Page 56 of Saving Noah

Chapter 14

Noah lay on his side on the bed, staring at Zach as he slept. His lover had been awake most of the night, tossing and turning and then holding Noah in such tight hugs he’d feared the larger man might accidentally snap him in two. Their sex life had been wild and lusty from the beginning, and Noah had enjoyed every second of it. Last night, however, Zach had made love to him, slow and seductive, worshipping him with each touch and softly spoken word. The small amount of his heart Zach hadn’t already taken possession of finally surrendered. He loved Zachary Meadows with every fiber of his being. He loved how he looked, how he talked, how generous he was, how kind he was, how he made Noah feel so…cherished. Hell, he simplyloved.

So, this morning, while Zach slept peacefully, Noah watched him. He memorized every beautiful detail of his handsome face. Something told him he needed to catalog every feature and tuck it safely into his memory. When his time came, and itwascoming, he wanted Zach’s smile to be what he saw as he left this world. In his heart, he knewthiswas what Donovan had been waiting for. There were no doubts left in his mind about whether Moretti had always known where he was. He’d just been waiting for Noah to finally find happiness because taking it away from him would be the ultimate revenge.

Zach looked boyishly vulnerable in his sleep. His eyelashes were incredibly long as they fanned out against his cheeks, the inky blackness standing out against bronzed skin. His lips were plump and still a sexy pink color from the kisses they’d shared throughout the night. His dark stubble gave him a rakish appearance that only added to his sexiness.

Zach was sheer perfection, and Noah was happy he’d had him in his life, in his arms, for the short period of time they’d shared. Lying there, next to Zach, Noah was sure of two things: firstly, he was madly in love with Zachary Meadows; secondly, there was no way he was going to do anything that put Zach’s life in jeopardy. Zach and Connor naively thought they could protect him from Moretti, but if they tried, they would only end up getting hurt, maybe killed, in the process. He wouldn’t allow it. No, he would find a way to go to Moretti. He hadn’t had the courage or fortitude to leave the apartment building in almost three years, but he would find a way to leave now. He had to in order to protect the man he loved.

His cell had beeped nearly thirty minutes ago, notifying him of a message. Noah knew, without a doubt, the message was from Moretti. He also knew he wasn’t going to tell Zach or Connor about it. They needed to remain under the misconception there would be two more messages from Moretti before he attacked. If either of them thought it was time, they would never let him out of their sight. This was going to be yet another one of the times he was forced to bear his cross alone, but he would do it in order to keep them safe.

Quietly, he reached over for his cell and pulled up the message. He hadn’t been mistaken. Moretti had reached out again, proving he could touch every aspect of his life: the gym, his apartment, his cell….

Seven. Eight. I’ve set the date.

He deleted the message and set the phone aside. So, the date had been set. His time left on earth had been given an official number. Noah frowned. It wasn’t as if he was going to go down without a fight. No, he would fight Donovan Moretti with his last fucking breath. He would fight to be able to come back to Zach.

He would fight.

He would lose.

Pushing those morbid thoughts aside, he turned back to Zach and continued memorizing the beauty that was Zachary Meadows. Knowing it was time for Zach to get up and start getting ready for work, Noah focused his attention away from all things Moretti and toward all things Meadows. He inched his body closer and wrapped one of his legs around Zach. When he’d finished his maneuvering, they were chest to chest, and their cocks, his more awake than Zach’s, were nestled together. Being in that position, his smaller body tucked so close to Zach’s larger muscles, felt so fucking perfect, almost like nobody had the power to come between them.

Almost.

With the tip of his finger, he traced the outline of Zach’s lips, enjoying their plumpness and marveling at the fact something soft actually existed on Zach’s body. The man was all hard muscles and solid planes of definition, but his lips were softer than fucking marshmallows. He was enjoying himself more than he probably should when a hand suddenly reached up and grabbed his wrist.

Zach’s gray eyes were watching him with a lazy seduction that made his heart do a cartwheel right there inside his chest. Those beautiful eyes could say so damned much without his mouth ever making a sound. The remainder of his blood raced to his cock.

When Zach started sucking on the fingertip that had just been tracing his lips, Noah heard a needy whimper escape from between his lips. He wasn’t at all impressed with the noise, even wished it had come out just a tad more manly, but he didn’t have time to worry about that. All his attention needed to be focused solely on the pleasure barreling in his direction.

“I’m sorry I woke you,” he lied as he watched Zach’s lips wrap around and suck on his finger.

“I’m not.”

Grinning, he answered, “It’s almost time for you to start getting ready for work, and I thought a quickie might be on the agenda for the day.” His hand wandered down between them, and he fisted Zach’s cock, loving the silky heat coating the steel shaft. He stroked it up and down, twisting over the crown at the top. “What do you think? A quickie or do you want to roll in a few minutes late and fuck me really good?”

Zach rolled them over to where his body completely covered Noah. With one skilled move, he had spread Noah’s legs and settled his hips right between them…like he owned the spot. Well, Noah supposed he did.

“Hmmm, babe,” Zach whispered as he nibbled on Noah’s lips while his hips rocked in a seductive motion. “I can fuck you all day long if you take a notion to put yourself in a position where you won’t be able to sit down for a full week. I’m not going to work today.” A bite on Noah’s earlobe. “Or tomorrow.” Another bite, this one on the sensitive skin above his collarbone. “Or the next day.” His mouth returned to Noah’s lips. “Wrap those long legs around my waist, babe, and let’s get this party started.”

Noah felt like a bucket of water had just been tossed on him. He shoved at Zach, trying to push him away but quickly found he would have better luck trying to lift an automobile. Zach’s muscles weren’t budging. “You have to go to work, Zach,” he argued. “What are you planning? Just sit around the apartment complex with me for the rest of our lives? No, Zach. That won’t work. I’m not going to let you lose your job so you can babysit me.” He gave another push against Zach’s hulk-like shoulders, but his lover retaliated by lifting his ass off the mattress and sliding his engorged dick straight into his hole with one solid thrust. They’d stopped using condoms a couple of weeks ago, and since Zach had fucked him several times last night, there was only the slightest bit of discomfort. The invasion and fullness felt so delicious Noah almost allowed Zach’s attempt at distracting him to succeed.

“Fuck, Zach,” he grunted when huge balls slapped against his ass. “Ever heard of stretching a lover’s ass before bottoming out?”Stay focused, Noah. You’re mad at Zach. He can’t stay home and stand guard all day.

Zach withdrew and then pushed back in again. “I’m confident I did enough stretching of this perfect hole last night. I’ve got it just the way I like it right now: ready to take my cock and still sloppy wet from my cum.” Zach sat back on his heels, tugging Noah’s body right along with him, keeping his cock buried as deep as possible. With a wicked grin, Zach reached down to grab Noah’s ankles and spread his legs wide and held them there. “Here’s the deal, Noah St. Claire,” he said in the huskiest voice Noah had ever heard in his life. “I may not be able to give you the sweet words and forever commitment you deserve. That’s on me, my bullshit past I can’t seem to overcome.” He pulled out, tilted his hips, and plunged back into Noah’s heat. “Here’s what I can do, though. Your body…it’smine. It’s mine to hold, to cuddle, to fuck, to play with, to spank, and most importantly, to protect.” He pulled out and pushed in again. Harder. Deeper. “You may not like the fact I’ve added protection to the list of ownership perks, but it is what it is.Mine.” The thrust following “mine” was forceful enough to cause Noah to cry out in the sweetest agony.

His hands fisted the sheets every damned time Zach thrust inside him. He bit his bottom lip until he feared he would be tasting blood. Zach’s body claiming his in such an animalistic way, along with the naughty words equivalent to his own L word was almost too much for him to handle. He needed to stay focused on ensuring Zach didn’t spend the day,or days, watching over him…but all he could think about was how fucking good Zach’s cock felt inside his ass.

He opened his mouth to argue, to convince Zach to go to work, but the only word that came out was “Yours.” He’d have to worry about convincing Zach to go to work later. For all he knew, this could be the last time he’d feel the magic of Zach’s body, and he’d be damned if he allowed Moretti into the bed with them.

“What’s he mad about?” Connor asked Zach in an exaggerated whisper clearly meant for Noah to overhear. “Weren’t you able to perform yourdutieslast night?”

They’d joined Connor in the kitchen for breakfast, and Noah was back to figuring out how to convince Zach to go to work. Contrary to what his lover thought, he couldn’t spend the rest of his life protecting Noah from all harm. The passion he currently felt would surely die a fast death if Zach were trapped in this apartment with him day after day.

Zach snorted as he slid a bagel into the toaster. “No, it’s definitely not that. I performed my duties three times last night and once this morning.” He pulled the low-fat cream cheese out of the refrigerator and slapped Noah on the ass as he walked by. “Didn’t I, babe?”

Noah gritted his teeth and tried not to smile. Playful Zach was cute and endearing. Too bad, because playful Zach needed to get his playful ass to work. “You did okay,” Noah answered dryly as he pulled the box of Count Chocula cereal from the cabinet where he’d hidden it. He topped it off with some milk and a diet Coke. Yeah, he was picking a fight with Zach.

---