Sandcastle Kisses: A Billionaire Love Story (8 page)

“But I learned my lesson. No more tourists.”

Noah faced me, his hands on my shoulders. The heat of his palms against my bare skin set my body afire with want. I wasn't sure if he was trembling or if I was, but either way my body was humming. Ice blue eyes held me in their thrall. They were full of kindness and attraction, and it was intoxicating.

“What about me? I'm a tourist.” His voice was deep and playful. I stared at his perfect lips, wanting to kiss them, as they formed the words.

“Yeah, well, I never said I was a good student.”

The fingers of one of Noah’s hands made their way to my chin, moving me into a gentle, yet insistent kiss. The kiss deepened, my lips parting to give him more. His kiss was hot and deep, banishing every unhappy thought from my mind. He tucked his head, breaking the connection and allowing me to replenish the much needed oxygen for my aching body. I took an unsteady breath, keeping my eyes closed, feeling lightheaded and wonderful.

At least this time I know what's coming,
I thought to myself.
I know this is just for now and not forever. I can enjoy this now, or I can regret never having it.
I opened my eyes to see his blue ones.
I choose to enjoy it.

“You are so beautiful,” Noah whispered. His smile was soft and full of affection. Butterflies danced in my stomach.

“Thanks,” I whispered. My voice didn't seem to work anymore. I cleared my throat, trying to steady myself by holding onto him. I wasn't sure if that was working, but I wasn't about to let go. Being dizzy in his arms was far better than walking straight alone. “So, what about that dinner I was promised?”

Noah laughed, the rich sound filling the tunnel of trees. The sun had set, turning the branches into a dark mystery of shadows and secrets. I could see the lights of houses ahead on the path, urging us on to civilization. Noah took my hand in his, pulling me forward as we went to eat the dinner he had planned.

T
he sound of Noah's feet changed as he stepped from the path onto a smaller, sand-packed one that led toward the rear of Owen's beach home. The sky was fading from lilac to navy as the stars came out to play with the ocean. He led me past some palm trees to an adorable bungalow on the beach.

It was right on the water with the back porch suspended over the ocean on piers that dove into the sea at high tide. Big windows were open to the night air, and I could already smell the scent of food wafting out of them. The front door was flanked by two palm trees leading up to a wooden porch that wrapped around the entire house.

Noah hurried to open the front door, holding it for me like a true gentleman. The inside was just as charming as the outside. Teak floors and comfortable furniture filled the small space with blue and green accents everywhere. It felt like a home instead of a beach house.

The little bungalow appeared to be a main room, kitchen, and then a bedroom with an en suite bath. Set up in the main living area was a round wooden table with candles, two big white plates, and glasses. A smaller rectangular table stood beside it with buffet style warming dishes and carafes of milk and orange juice.

“M'lady,” Noah said with a smile as he pulled out a chair for me to sit. I sat as delicately as I could, and while I got comfortable he lit the two candles. Warm light flickered through the cozy room and added a romantic vibe.

With a flair, he opened the four lids of food on the serving table. Inside each warmer was a breakfast food. Steam from bacon, hash browns, pancakes, and scrambled eggs with cheese and peppers filled the room and made my mouth water.

I clapped my hands with delight. “This looks fantastic!”

Noah let out a little sigh of relief and grinned. “I was hoping you would like it. You said to make my favorite, so here it is.”

“I love breakfast food. It really should just be anytime meal food because it's so good.” I handed him my plate, and he began scooping food in neat portions onto it. “This is so much better than anchovy pizza with mustard sauce.”

“There's maple syrup, ketchup and hot sauce if you want it,” he said nodding toward the end of the table. It looked like it was real maple syrup. The man certainly knew how to do breakfast right.

He handed the plate back to me, and I had a hard time waiting to eat while he quickly filled his own plate with the delicious breakfast food. I poured a little maple syrup on the plate and tasted it on my finger. It was the real stuff. The expensive stuff. The stuff my mom only got us on Christmas. I nearly poured the rest of the bottle on my pancakes.

Once he sat down, he grinned. “Let's eat!”

The pancakes were possibly the best pancakes I had ever had in my life, and I've had a lot of pancakes. They were light and fluffy, but had enough weight to them that they didn't feel flat or too little. They were buttery and delicious. Combined with the maple syrup, I could have lived on that alone for a year.

“So does this count as you making me breakfast, or dinner?” I asked, reaching for the ketchup. The hash browns were crispy and perfect, and the eggs melted in my mouth with little explosions of heat from the peppers. I was fairly sure I had died and gone to food heaven.

“Whichever you want it to be,” he said as he poured maple syrup over all the contents on his plate. “I'll even make you dinner in the morning if you want.”

I giggled at his joke. Noah took his fork and mixed all the contents of his plate into a pile, stirring in the maple syrup. I made a snorting noise at his culinary decision.

“What?” he asked, his mouth full of maple syrup breakfast goodness.

“You eat like my little brother,” I explained, pointing to his plate with my fork. “He likes it all mixed together too.”

“I like the way all the tastes combine...” Big blue eyes looked at me in complete innocence, thinking I was making fun of him.

I smiled. “That's what he says, too!”

Noah swallowed and grinned. “So you have a little brother? Is he here on the island with you?”

I shook my head. “No, he's back in the States. He starts high school this year. Will you hand me the orange juice?”

Noah's eyebrows rose, but he reached for the juice. “High school?” I could see his brain trying to do mental math to figure out if I was far younger than I looked.

“Thanks,” I said as I took the juice and poured a big glass. “The two of us are nine years apart.”

“Oh,” he replied, a relieved smile lit up his face. He put another bite of food on his fork and got ready to put it in his mouth. “Are you two close?”

I shook my head. “Not really. I got stuck watching him a lot growing up, but now that we're so far apart, I kind of miss him. He's a good kid.”

“Absence makes the heart grow fonder.” Noah took another bite.

“Or forgetful. Though I doubt I'll forget all the frogs he put in my pillowcase anytime soon. Little child was a brat.” I laughed. It was a funny memory now, but at the time I nearly took him to the local pond and drowned him. “Do you have any siblings?”

Noah swallowed. “An older brother.”

“What does he do?” I added some more maple syrup to my plate. It was just too good.

“He works for me,” Noah said with a grin. I set my fork down and eyed him.

“See? I knew you had to be successful. Reporters, Jack Saunders, and an older brother that works for you. You must do more than just flip distressed properties. What do you do?”

Noah shook his head. “Not telling.”

“Why?” I took another bite and swallowed. “Do you work for the mob?”

Noah laughed, nearly choking on his eggs. “No, no mob. I've been accused of it, but I can honestly say that I don't work for the mob.”

“Hmm. Do I need to be worried about what you do? I mean, if you're a hit man, I'd like to know.” I felt a little bit of anxiety at the fact that he didn't want to tell me exactly what he did for a living. I was getting the very clear impression that he had a good deal of wealth, but there were a lot of shady ways to make money. I wasn't nearly as afraid as I should have been, though. For some reason, every fiber of my being already trusted him completely. Even the little worrywart fibers that liked to whisper things in the wee hours and didn't fully trust that gravity existed, trusted him.

“You only need to worry if you're a distressed property,” he answered, leaning back in his chair and pushing his empty plate forward.

I patted my chest. “Nope, still a human.” I played with my fork in the last remnants of egg on my plate.

“I'll tell you this,” he said, relenting slightly. “I have several businesses, and they all deal with real estate in some form. I am very successful with what I do. And the reason I don't want to tell you, is because I'm afraid you'll be tempted to go Google it and you'll find out about those failures I was telling you about earlier. The press hasn't been very nice to me, and there are a lot of lies being spread around.”

I set my fork down. “So why don't you just tell me now? Then I'll know the truth.”

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “If I tell you, I'm afraid you won't look at me like you are right now. I'm afraid you'll look at me the way everyone else does, and that would kill me.”

His eyes focused on mine, the candlelight flickering and bringing out the handsomeness of his face. There was an energy to him that I couldn't escape. Didn't want to escape. At that moment, I didn't care what he did. I just wanted to be with him. Besides, it didn't matter what he did anyway. He was leaving soon.

“You haven't asked me when I'm leaving yet,” Noah remarked as if he could read my mind. For all I knew, he could.

“Maybe I don't want to know. Maybe I like the illusion that you might stay.” I swallowed hard. I hadn't realized that the words were true until I spoke them. The idea of him staying was like being told I could have the moon. I wanted it so badly, but I knew realistically it wasn't going to happen.

“How about this, then? I'll tell you what I do when I leave.”

I thought about it for a moment. That was an acceptable answer. He could keep his secret, I could keep looking at him as though he walked on water, and when he left, both our illusions would be shattered, but in private. “Then I hope I never find out.”

I looked into his eyes and I wished that there wasn't a table separating us. I wanted to kiss him so badly. His refusal to disclose his job to me only added an air of mystery that I couldn't get enough of.

Noah's eyes reflected the candlelight.

“Did you know that my back porch has the best view on the island?” he asked quietly. I smiled. The man knew how to change a subject.

“Is that so?”

“Best view on the island.” He crossed his arms with a smug smile.

“And you've been everywhere on the island to check this?”

Noah grinned, standing up and offering me his hand. I couldn't refuse the opportunity to touch him, so I took it and followed him out onto the back porch. He only let me go so that he could close the door behind us.

I leaned up against the railing, looking up at the moon. Her silver light reflected down on the ocean waves, turning their white tips bright. The sky was dark purple now, and the air was humid, dark, and full of promise.

“Yup, definitely the best view on the island,” Noah whispered, making me turn. He wasn't looking at the night sky or the ocean. He was looking at me. It was slightly cheesy, but I enjoyed the compliment.

Noah moved forward, gathering me up in his arms. The masculine scent of his light cologne was exhilarating. His mouth slowly slanted to mine, sending small thrills up and down my spine. He went further, tasting me with his tongue like I was something to be savored. A low moan escaped my lips as he pulled me closer to him, his arms strong and demanding around me. His kiss was sweeter than heaven and hotter than hell.

I didn't want to fall for another tourist.
You're not falling
, I told myself.
You're simply enjoying.
I knew he was going to leave and I would be sad. But I would also be far more disappointed if I missed this. His kiss was insistent, intoxicating, and driving me insane. I wanted to melt into him and let him melt into me. I wanted to kiss every inch of his skin.
Every
inch.

I had never been so turned on by a kiss before. It was as if Noah knew everything I loved in a kiss and was delivering and then some. I had never felt this sort of connection with another human being before. I didn't want to get hurt, but I wasn't going to miss this either.
Just one last tourist...

As if he could read my thoughts, he began to press into me more, leading me back toward the door of the house. I smiled as I walked backward, hoping that I wouldn't trip over a loose board on the deck.

I
, of course, did trip. But Noah was there to catch me. His strong arms wrapped around my waist, and he pushed me up against the wall of the house. I was pinned by his arms, and I had no intention of escaping. With slow, sensual lips, he nibbled down my jaw, kissing my throat as he made his way down to my collarbone. Each touch was erotic and hot. My body was responding with pure want and arching into him without me telling it to.

A soft breeze came across from the ocean, cooling the hot kisses on my skin. I wondered if people could see us, since we were still outside and not secluded by windows or walls. Noah's hand was planted firmly on my breast, his fingers massaging me through the fabric of my dress. I moaned quietly, realizing that the only people who could see us at this private villa would be boats out on the ocean. With the darkening night, that would be close to impossible, but the thrill of possibly being seen was still there.

Noah's hand slid down my side to the hem of my dress, tracing the lacy edge against my thigh. The light touch on the sensitive skin sent shivers up my spine. He chuckled, the sound reverberating deep in his chest as he slid his leg between mine. It was strong and steady, and I rocked against it. His hands went back up to the collar of my dress. With a feather-light touch, he grazed the skin right above the collar of my strapless dress. I sucked in a breath as he suddenly pulled down on the fabric, exposing both breasts to the night air.