Perfectly Inappropriate

Her eyes were sad and so was her voice. “I might be aware of some things, but with other things, I’m totally clueless. I never really think things out, like I’m sure you do. I just always do the smart thing, the right thing…or what I think is the right thing, I should say. Which I guess is maybe why I’ve been so blind to so many things.”

Now that made him curious. “Blind in what way?”

She averted her gaze again. “To Cameron not loving me.”

That single statement told him so much. Like he’d told her, Noah had felt purpose many times in his life. First, at Harvard. Second, to become a senator. Now that same sense of purpose pulsed through him so he could fix her wounded soul. Because of Cameron, this woman had no idea how amazing and unique she truly was. That needed to change.

“Oooh!” She gasped.

Noah snapped into focus as she rose. She lifted her camera to her eye, aimed at a couple across the street who were smiling at each other. Her camera clicked with each photograph. He stayed put, realizing that while h

e would not change anything in his past, today had been his happiest day in as long as he could remember. Because fate, it seemed, had led him to exactly where he needed to be.

Right here. Right now. With her.

* * *

—

Back at the house, Olivia passed the scattered clothes in the hallway, carrying two glasses of water. Clothes that she and Noah had practically torn off each other on the way to the bedroom a couple of hours ago. Apparently, fresh air and a romantic dinner had done them good. She wore nothing now but Noah’s button-down shirt, the first thing she’d found on the floor. The worn hardwood floors creaked under her bare feet as she padded her way down the hallway, passing the bedrooms and main bath on the left. She entered the room ready to ask Noah about all the paintings lining the hallway but suddenly was failing to come up with a coherent thought.

He lay sprawled in the bed, stark naked with the sheet covering him from his hip down. The lights were all off except for the small lamp on the end table next to him. My God…The strength and masculine beauty took her breath away. Her gaze fell to the table next to her and her camera. The flutters of her belly drew her forward. She gently placed the glasses down, quickly snatching up her camera and taking the shot. Again and again, she pressed the button, not wanting to miss this moment. Hell, wanting to forever encapsulate this minute in time.

When she moved closer, Noah’s low voice filled the room. “Are you taking my photograph, Olivia?”

She lifted her head and discovered his heated smile. “Not of your face. Don’t worry.”

He tilted his head to the side a little, giving her a long gaze. “You have my permission to photograph me, if you’d like.”

“Are you sure?” she asked.

He nodded. “Quite sure.”

He tucked his arm behind his head when she came a little closer to the bed. This couldn’t have been easy for him, allowing her to photograph him half-naked, considering how much he valued his privacy. Maybe that’s what made Noah so amazing. He took that leap sometimes, no matter how risky it was. Of course, maybe he trusted her by now, knowing that she’d never sell him out, and because of the nondisclosure. But still…this had to push his limits. And yet, he looked completely unafraid in the face of that fear.

She wished she was more like that. Not so scared of the repercussions.

A dozen shots later, she lowered the camera. “I can’t wait to develop these. I bet your body looks amazing on film.”

“When you look at that photograph…” His soft voice pulled her in, and she found his eyes even softer now. “…what do you think you’ll see?”

“Strength,” she said softly.

The end table’s light couldn’t have been better lighting for the perfect shot. But the moment she looked through the viewfinder again, she noticed that what she’d said had brought emotion into his expression. She moved even closer now, catching the perfect angle showing depth in his eyes. She began clicking and didn’t stop until she knew one of those shots captured this moment of how he looked at her.

She lowered the camera in the same second Noah slid out of bed. Unabashedly, he strode toward her, naked and hard. Oh, so hard. He moved with grace and power until he stood behind her. The air seemed to evaporate as he swiped her hair away and pressed a soft kiss to her neck. “Tell me what else you think you’ll see,” he whispered huskily in her ear.

She shivered as he licked the curve of her earlobe. “I’ll see a man who sometimes forgets to look at the world around him.” The truth flowed easily as his tongue trailed along the side of her neck, making her damp. “I’ll see a man who is so focused on everyone else that he never asks for anything for himself.” He turned her in his arms then, and as she stared into his heated eyes, a larger truth spilled free. “I’ll see kindness and tenderness. I’ll see what the real meaning of a dominant male is. He’s not the guy with the biggest muscles. The toughest attitude. The loudest voice. He’s the guy who lifts up the people around him. The silent guy who doesn’t ask for anything but gives the world everything he’s got.”

Emotion raged through his eyes. He stared at her now in a way she hadn’t seen before. Her breath grew raspy under his intensity. He held out his hand. “The camera please.” She offered it to him, and he took her hand and slid her palm over his erection. “Look at what you started.”

Her nipples puckered beneath his shirt. “I like what I started.”

With his free hand, he slid his fingers over her cheek and through her hair slowly, taking his time, reminding her of the last time he’d touched her like this. She knew by now this was his tell, indicating that playtime had begun. When she moaned and wiggled against him, so hot, so ready for all he had to offer her and more, he sealed his mouth across hers. His kiss was passion, sin, and heaven all wrapped up in one. His tongue danced with hers as he cupped the back of her head, deepening the kiss as she molded herself against him. “This mouth, Olivia, it’s perfect. These lips…I crave them.” He brushed his mouth across hers then murmured, “Treat me to them, angel.”

She kept her attention on his steady, albeit simmering gaze, and slowly lowered to her knees. She liked how he looked down at her. Desperate. Aroused. And hungry for her to taste him.

To hold the power now was titillating, causing her to dampen further and her clit to throb. His eyes burned with lust as he dragged his thumb across her mouth and she sucked on it, making him groan. Desperate to taste him, she reached for his thick cock, its veins protruding along the sides.