Page 9 of Purchase Power
Those slim eyebrows grew apart in curiosity. “I suppose. Don’t know if I’ll have the answers, but I’ll do my best.”
“I… well…why?”
For the first time since meeting, she saw surprise on Noah’s face. The wider his eyes grew, the bluer the hue.Those kinds of eyes are unreal. Just saying.Lucy almost never noticed another person’s eye color. Maybe it was because hers were “just” brown, but eyes weren’t as remarkable as romance novels told her.Yet I’m sure as hell looking at his.Did Noah Gabriel realize he had beautiful eyes? That they werethefocal point of his whole face? Sure, he had that nice stubble and the trimmed eyebrows, but no woman was looking at his head and thinking,“Wow, that’s a hot freckle.”No, a woman like her was getting wet from the way his gaze pierced right into her soul.
“Why what?” he asked.
Right. She had asked a question.
“Why did you participate in this event?” Lucy almost couldn’t finish asking. “I mean, don’t take this wrong way, but I wasn’t expecting someone so…”
“Young?” he drolly asked.
“I guess.”
“Do you have a problem with how young I am?”
“No!” Lucy folded her arms across her chest, lest her fingers wag in his direction. “I mean, I’m merely surprised.”
“Pleasantly, I presume.”
What? You think I got an old guy fetish? A crop of daddy issues?“I knew I shouldn’t have said anything.”
Noah took yet another step closer. Lucy tried to match his steps, but she backed up against the couch, her arms falling to catch her balance.
“I’m a busy man,” Noah simply said. “I have a lot on my plate. I have a family I take care of. I have a business I run. I’m a man who doesn’t like to play games. I like to know what I’m getting into with someone. Functions like these allow me to have my cake and eat it, too. From what I understand, you get quite a bit in return.”
A family…So, Mr. Gabriel was more than likely married. Barring that, he at least had some kids at such a young age. Maybe elderly parents he minded? More than likely, he was married, and Lucy was the definition of a mistress.
“I see.”
Noah was soon only three feet away from Lucy, his cologne growing stronger in her nostrils. “You will get a full list of my expectations and rules by tomorrow evening, Ms. Craig. However, there is one thing you should know about me right now. Internalize that, and this next month will go smoothly.”
She waited for him to continue, her skin covered in chills and her thighs slipping together as she struggled to find her balance in her heels. Didn’t matter that the couch bumped up against her ass. It made it worse, really. Her arms and torso wanted to flail. Maybe smack him a little. A good excuse to touch him for the first time.
Smack that stubble right off his face…
“I’m not looking for love,” Noah said. “I am not in need of a wife, or a girlfriend, for that matter. I’m looking for convenience. A break from my day. Someone who understands that I like my space and don’t want to answer a lot of questions.”
“So…” Lucy glanced up toward the ceiling, where a humble chandelier gently swung beneath the pressure of the vents. “Sex.”
“I think that goes without saying.” Noah held up a finger, not quite touching Lucy’s lips, but leaving the implication behind. “A definitive kind of sex. I’m not big on kissing. I don’t like to indulge in tender lovemaking. Sex is a function. A very nice one that plays a good part in my life. Yours, too, I’m assuming.”
Lucy said nothing. How could a woman respond to that?
“Of course, it’s not very fun if my partner isn’t enjoying herself, too. Whatever you need, let me know, and I’ll make sure you’re taken care of. But I have my boundaries, like I’m sure you have yours.”
Lucy shrugged, her shoulders pushing against her bleached hair and her hand playing with the tie holding her coat closed. “I’m not a big fan of choking,” she sputtered.
“Choking.”
“Yeah. Not big on it.”
“Cho… king…”
“Hey, don’t choke me, and I won’t choke you.”
Noah’s mouth remained slightly open. “I’m not interested in choking you, Ms. Craig.”
