Page 33 of Secret
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Noam pinched the back of his neck. Another headache was coming, but he hoped he could hold it off long enough to get through dinner with Kasey. He'd dosed himself on pills before leaving the house, but he'd learned long ago that the pills hardly dulled the pain once a migraine took hold.
Still, he wasn't going to cancel dinner for anything. He'd been dying to see Kasey ever since their night out at the trampoline place. This would be their first time alone since, and if nothing else, he wanted that first kiss. He needed the memory of Kasey's lips against his as he went to bed every night.
Kasey's house wasn't hard to find, but he was shocked as he pulled up the short driveway at how nice it looked. It was three times the size of his, a nice three-story home that had huge bay windows that overlooked a cropping of pines and other trees. It had a rustic, yet very modern look. He wasn't sure what he'd expected, but this wasn't it. It was clear that Kasey did well for himself and must have made a hell of a lot more money than his own detective salary.
He parked at the end of the driveway and climbed out of the car, a nervous excitement rolling through him.
"You found it okay?" Kasey walked out the front door.
"I did, but I have to admit, I didn't expect this. It's amazing." He walked up, meeting Kasey near the front porch. "Hi." He stepped closer, nervously pulling Kasey in for a hug.
"Hi." Kasey smiled as he took half a step back, still keeping close. "I'm glad you like it. Come on inside. I've got dinner in the oven and we can have a beer while we wait." He linked his hand in Noam's as he led him inside.
Once through the door, Noam paused, gently tugging Kasey back to him. "Before we do anything else, can we get this out of the way?" He cupped his hands on either side of Kasey's face, and without hesitation, kissed him.
The first touch of their lips was more intense than he expected, sending a fire through him, causing his stomach to flip, his heart to race, and the ground seemed to tilt. He closed his eyes as he stepped closer, wrapping his arms around Kasey and holding him tightly.
Kasey opened for him, teasing his tongue over Noam's lips for a second before he welcomed him into his mouth, getting his first full taste of the man who had been driving him insane for weeks.
He lost track of everything. Nothing mattered but the man in his arms, the feel of the kiss, and the overwhelming surge of emotion that swept through him. It was better than he'd ever imagined, and that scared the hell out of him.
When he finally forced himself to pull back, they were both breathless as they stared at each other.
"I knew it would be good." Kasey smiled as he licked his lips.
"Good is an understatement." Noam shook his head. "What are you doing to me?"
"I don't know, but I think you're having the same effect on me." Kasey leaned in and softly kissed Noam again, this time it was a simple lingering caress of his lips. "We have all night to talk about it. We'll figure it out together." Kasey smiled as he turned and started to walk farther into the house.
Noam followed, looking around at the open space living room they were in. "You live alone, right?"
Kasey laughed. "Yes. I know it's a lot of space for me, but I hate feeling confined. I grew up in a tiny place. Now that I can afford a bigger one, I wanted someplace that had space. I know it's crazy for a single guy to have a five-bedroom house, but I had the money, I fell in love with the place, so I grabbed it."
"Good, that's what you should do. Too many work hard and never reward themselves."
"How do you reward yourself?" Kasey asked as he motioned to the couch.
"Hmm, guns probably. They're my weakness. At least they were before that kiss. Things might have changed now." He smiled at Kasey.
"Don't give me that kind of control over you. It's dangerous." Kasey grinned. "Beer, wine, anything else?"
"Beer is good." Noam relaxed back against the soft cushions.
While Kasey grabbed the beer, he looked around, not shocked to see a large TV and gaming system front and center. He'd gotten the feeling from some of the conversations he'd heard while they were out with Faith that gaming was a big part of Kasey's life. Surprisingly, Faith's as well.
"You sure you got enough rest? When we talked earlier, it sounded like you were out almost all night." Kasey handed Noam a beer before sitting down beside him.
Noam debated how much to tell Kasey. The department was trying to keep information about the 'Castrator' out of the media as best they could. Still, he didn't see Kasey as the type to talk and start a panic around town about some vigilante who was taking down pedophiles. "Yeah, I slept a few hours. It was enough. I got in around five this morning." He shifted, turning so he was facing Kasey. "Anything I say stays between us, right?"
"Of course. I don't expect you to share information about your cases with me, but if you do, it stays right here. I promise you that." Kasey rested his hand on Noam's thigh.
"Have you seen the news recently? There was a kid attacked in a bathroom at one of the fast food places in town." Noam took a sip of his beer.
"Yeah, I saw that. Disgusting what happened to him." Kasey's eyes flared with anger as he spoke.
"Yeah, it was worse than even the media knows. Anyway, we got a tip to where his rapist was last night. He'd been attacked and left injured for us to pick up. I can't go into a lot of details, but at least we got him. He'll be going away for a long time." Noam wished he could tell Kasey everything, but he couldn't share the details of the case.
