I had to keep myself in check around Noah. He needed someone to pose for the camera, not someone to play house with him.
Best not confuse the two, Sinclair.
When I thought back, I realised that holding onto my childhood crush on Noah had always been the safeguard to shield me from developing any real feelings for someone else. But only after I told Maddie how I felt about Noah did I realise the depth of feelings I still harboured for him. One of the motivational quotes I’d read on Noah’s ArgoS popped up in my brain.
A ship is safe in harbour, but that isn’t what ships are made for.
I snorted. Maybe our chance had long since sailed. I bet being near him will prove that I held onto a pipe dream, some stupid childhood fantasy that sounded great in theory but sank in real life.
I guess time will tell.
Once I’d parked the truck in the tiny parking spot outside the cottage and somehow squeezed my bulk out of the car door, I walked up the small, paved path. It, too, had seen better days.
I knocked. Nothing happened. I knocked again. When there still wasn’t any movement inside the cabin, I pressed my ear against the door and heard the faint sound of some kind of meditation music.
Maybe I could catch his attention if I looked into the small window next to the door.
Oh. Gods.
When I woke up this morning, getting coffee for Noah had seemed like a good idea. I wasn’t so sure anymore when a mortified pale face gaped at me as he hastened to open the door.
I had surely imagined the look he gave me and the flash of heat that flickered in his eyes.
“Good morning. What are you doing here so early?” He tilted his head at me and chuckled. “You need a beanie.”
“Hi,” I muttered, keeping my eyes firmly trained at a spot over his shoulder.
“I remembered that you wouldn’t have any coffee, so I got you some.”
I held up the bag and the holder with the two thermos cups.
“You got me coffee?” Noah asked, then it seemed to dawn on him that he was only wearing shorts and how freaking cold it was outside. “Want to come in?”
“Oh, yeah, thanks.”
I tore my eyes away from his hard nipples and the thin sheen of sweat on his skin, stepped inside, and closed the front door behind me.
“I’ll go get dressed real quick, okay?” Noah grabbed fresh clothes from his bedroom and disappeared into the bath while I tried to ignore how very much almost naked he was, and that I had wanked to the thought of him this morning.
I put the bag and cups on the kitchen table, then paced the small room.
I was unsettled. When I closed my eyes, I saw Noah in his tiny yoga shorts and nothing else. The smattering of hair on his pecs and how it thickened around his navel and disappeared under the waistband of his shorts had intrigued me way more than it should have.
Did he have his navel pierced?
I hadn’t dared to take a closer look, but I was quite sure I’d seen the glint of a metal barbell embedded in his skin.
Noah had always been lithe, but now he had defined muscles and a bumpy little six pack. His sharp collar bones created deep, elegant hollows I longed to explore with my tongue.
He showered quickly and a few minutes later came back out wearing dark slacks and a soft looking beige jumper that made his skin glow.
How does he do that?
How did he manage to look like a million quid in an outfit that would have made me look like an old man?
“I thought you’d appreciate having coffee,” I mumbled, pointing at the two cups on his kitchen table.
“Fuck, yeah, I do.” He grinned at me and began to pull out plates, knives, and two of the hand thrown mugs.
