Page 32 of Norah

His movements match mine, hands dropping lower to my ass and pulling me against his growing hardness. I’m panting into his mouth, little moans spilling out, and Ethan groans with pleasure. All I can think isI want you now. Despite the freezing temperature, my body feels like it’s on fire, and I wonder if we could actually melt some of the surrounding snow.

The sound of female giggles breaks through the fog of desire, and we step apart with a gasp. A small group of women passes by, pointedly looking away but laughing good naturedly. Even though I know I should be embarrassed, I can’t bring myself to care. I want the entire world to see our love.

“I guess we should continue this back in our room, huh?” Ethan’s breathing is hard, his cheeks flushed, eyes dark with need.

“Yes, please.” I give him another kiss. “Let’shurry.”

He lifts me into his arms and takes off towards our resort. His voice is a low growl as he says, “I can’t wait to celebrate our engagement.Allnight.”

Chance Meeting

ETHAN

I’m engaged. To be married. To Norah.

The words keep zooming around in my head, creating tiny zaps of happiness. Joy fills my chest, making it almost hard to breathe through the intensity of the emotion. I can’t drag my eyes away from her, celebrating in the glow spread across her face, falling into her eyes so filled with love.

I keep thinking I should pinch myself, to make sure this isn’t some dream that I haven’t awoken from. Until the moment she said yes, I was half convinced she’d tell me no. I was worried that she’d let her fear overpower her love, convince herself once again that she didn’t deserve to be happy and loved. But love won out, and now I can spend the rest of our lives making sure that Norah understands how much she deserves to be loved and treasured.

“Are you listening to me?” Norah taps my arm, pulling me out of my post proposal reminiscing. She’s smirking at me, eyes twinkling, so I know I’m not in trouble.

“Sorry, I couldn’t stop thinking about how happy I am.” I pick up her hand to inspect her ring, admiring how perfect it looks on her. “This ring looks amazing on you, my lovelyfiance´e.”

Her eyes go soft, like the ocean at low tide, lashes dropping in pleasure. Her smirk changes to a smile as her cheeks flush. “I love the sound of that.Fiance´e. I still can’t believe we’re engaged.” She plays with her engagement ring and says, “It’s so beautiful. It’s like you knew what I’d like before I even thought about it.”

“It reminded me of the night sky, so you can see the stars anywhere.”And yes, I know I sound like a character in one of the cheesy romance novels that my sister used to leave around the house. It’s true, and I always want Norah to hear the truth.

Norah snuggles closer to me on the couch we claimed near one of the resort’s many fireplaces. Flames cast a glow over her, making her hair look almost fiery itself. She tucks her head into the nook between my neck and shoulder, sighing in contentment.

As I reach for my glass of wine to find it’s empty, I look at Norah’s and notice hers is almost gone as well. “Would you like another glass of wine? I can get it from the bar.”

“Mmm, that would be wonderful. If you don’t mind going? I would go, but I’m too comfortable.”

“It’s not a problem. You stay here and keep our couch reserved. I’ll be right back.” I brush a soft kiss across her lips, enjoying the faint taste of Cabernet mixed with Norah’s unique flavor.

The line at the bar is longer than expected, so it takes nearly ten minutes to get two more glasses of red, and I hope Norah’s not getting restless. Expecting to see her still lounging as I return, I’m surprised to see her sitting up straight and talking animatedly to a man sitting in an adjacent chair. He’s good looking, with wavy blond hair and bright blue eyes. Perfect white teeth flash as he talks to Norah, and I have to fight down the instinct to rush over and push him away in a jealous fit.

“Hey Norah, who’s this?” As I reclaim my seat and drag Norah close, my arm wrapping around her, I notice my voice has taken on a growly tone. I’m almost embarrassed at my territorial behavior, but then I look at the guy grinning at me and don’t feel bad anymore.

Norah raises her eyebrows at me and I realize I’m busted.Act first, ask for forgiveness later?Pressing her lips together in a mix of annoyance and restrained laughter, she says, “This is Roman. Roman, this is my fiance´ Ethan.”

Roman stands up and reaches over to shake my hand. “Hey man, nice to meet you.” Sitting back down, he picks up his beer and takes a swig.

Returning the sentiment, I look questioningly at Norah, waiting for her to explain why this guy is over here talking tomyfuture wife. I admit my jealousy needs to be addressed.Just not now. Not when this guy is staring at Norah like he wants to knowallabout her.

“Ethan, Roman came over to talk because… well, he’s like me. He saw us and realized that I was another… you know.” Her hands flutter as she talks, and she glances around nervously.

Roman laughs, showing more teeth. “Norah, it’s fine. No one is close enough to hear what we’re talking about, and your guy knows the truth.” This guy could be in toothpaste commercials; it’s obscene how much he smiles.And, of course, he looks even better looking when he’s smiling, not that I’m noticing. Much.

“I was telling Norah that once you’ve been one for a while, you can sense when another is nearby. It’s like a vibe; I saw you guys and sensed she was one. I came to chat because I don’t see many vampires around here.”

I’m not sure how to respond, and notice as Norah’s eyes go wide. She’s smiling at Roman, a little hesitantly, and her body quivers as it presses against me. “I’ve only met one other vampire, and it was the one who changed me…” her voice is soft as she searches for words. “You’re not what I expected. The other was… not nice.”

She’s scared, I realize.But curious too. Norah has spent the last five years thinking that vampires were monsters. She doesn’t know what to think after meeting this friendly and outgoing guy. I’m not sold on him yet, but maybe he can help her understand what she is. I’ll be keeping an eye on him either way.

NORAH

This is crazy. And scary. And maybe a little exciting.

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