Fuck. This is Carla. Don’t go there.
And then she lets out a fucking cry that has my cock straining against the zipper to get to her and my hands itching to explore her curves. There’s a burst of desire to dominate her, and I struggle to breathe through the overwhelming feeling as Carla pulls back.
She gives me an I-told-you-so look, then says, “You can wipe the drool off your mouth. The show’s over.”
I suck in a deep breath, hoping none of the emotions are showing on my face. Needing some distance from Carla, I say, “I think we should take a break and order in.”
“Yeah, sure,” Forest agrees. He grabs a menu. “What are you all in the mood for?”
“Noah wants a cold shower,” Carla taunts me, and I worry that she felt my cock hardening while she was pressed up against me.
Wanting to distract everyone and get back at Carla, I open the freezer, and taking ice from it, I turn to her. Her eyes instantly widen, and she tries to dart away, but I grab hold of her arm and yank her back to me. Her soft scent fills my lungs, and there’s a crackle of electricity between us. Dropping the ice down the back of her shirt, I whisper close to her ear, “This will help you cool down.”
“Oh God!” Carla shrieks. She begins to shake and wiggle her body to get rid of the ice.
Everyone laughs, and it has me chuckling. “It looked like you were overheating, so I thought I’d help out.” Wanting to fuck with her, I wink at her before taking the menu from Forest. “Should we get platters?”
Chapter 4
NOAH
I could’ve graduated years ago with my high IQ, but my parents wanted me to have a normal upbringing. For the first time in my life, I regret not fighting them on it.
If I had finished my studies sooner, I wouldn’t have to share a suite with Carla now.
After last night’s game, I’ve been sneaking in and out of the suite like a damn burglar, doing my best not to run into Carla. Figuring out what I’m feeling is like trying to solve the mystery of life itself. It’s damn near impossible.
I was awake half the night, replaying what happened in the kitchen. Even though Carla is beautiful, I’ve never felt an attraction toward her… until she fucking touched me.
It’s probably just a physical reaction from having a female body pressed against mine. Right? Then again, I’ve never had a strong response like that to a girl before.
What really bothers you, Noah?
The fact that Carla made you feel something or the fact that you’ve never felt something so intense before?
I’ve tried dating a couple of times, but it’s not something I’m cut out for.
Luckily I’m helping Kao drive all their stuff to the new house while Carla’s helping Fallon unpack everything.
“Remind me again why you didn’t hire a moving company?” I ask Kao as I’m busy driving us back to his house.
“Fallon and I want to do this ourselves. It’s part of the whole experience,” Kao explains.
“What experience? Working yourself to death?” I mutter as I pull up the driveway. They bought a ranch-style house, much to my surprise. I always thought Fallon would want a mansion like the one she grew up in.
Kao reaches for the door but stops when I say, “Can we talk?”
He relaxes back in the seat and looks at me. “Sure. What’s up?”
I take a deep breath, then mutter, “Carla.”
A smile begins to form around his lips. “What about Carla?”
Scratching the back of my head, I let out a sigh. “Things are weird. I don’t understand it.”
“How weird?” Kao asks his full attention now on me. “What happened?”
He knows Carla told me she loves me, and back then, he agreed I did the right thing.
“She’s not giving up,” I tell him. “Things have been volatile between us. Last night we played fear pong, and she had to act out dares with me.” I shake my head, then admit, “I felt something… with her.”
“Felt what?” Kao asks. “Tingles, a fluttering, desire? You need to be more specific here.”
“Desire and something else I don’t… It was…” I try to think of a word. “It was warm, almost like compassion?”
“Could it be you’re interested in her?” Kao turns in his seat, so he’s facing me. “You don’t have to dissect every single thing in life. I know it’s your first instinct, but you’ll miss out on half of life if you do that.” He places his hand on my shoulder. “If you’re attracted to her, I say give it a chance. Look at Fallon and me. We’re opposites, and it works for us.”
I lock eyes with Kao, “Carla and I aren’t opposites. We’re fucking light years away from each other, and she’s five years younger than me. She’s a kid.” Thinking she’s so much younger than me doesn’t bring me the same wave of apprehension and aversion it always has in the past.
“Noah,” Kao squeezes my shoulder, “it’s time you admit Carla isn’t a kid anymore. Three years ago, it would’ve been wrong, but now it’s a different story. She’s had time to grow up.”
“Mentally, I know she’s an adult, but,” I tap against my heart, “in here, it feels wrong. As if I’ll be taking advantage of a teenage girl’s innocent crush.”
“It’s only been a week. You don’t have to find all the answers right now, although I know it will probably drive you insane if you don’t solve every damn thing life throws your way.” Kao takes a breath, then continues, “If you want my advice, just hang out with her. If the feelings continue to grow, then go for it. If you don’t fall in love with her, the worst that can happen is you’ll become friends. You can’t keep treating her like an annoying kid. That shit is going to get you on the wrong side of Jase.”
Kao’s right. It’s only a matter of time before this thing starts to affect everyone around us, and I’m not one for drama.
“What if I’m friendly with Carla, and she takes it the wrong way?” I voice my biggest worry.
“Then you sit her down and have a conversation with her. Tell her how you feel, and respect how she feels. I think it’s about time that conversation happened. You can’t just swat Carla away as if she’s a fly. She’s one of us and deserves more than that.”
“Me… have a conversation?” I let out a chuckle. “You know I suck at talking to people.”
“Pretend you’re talking to me,” Kao says.
I give him a scowl. “Yeah, I don’t think that’s going to work. You understand me.”
“Just try, Noah. If you can’t communicate with her and things get bad, then I’ll talk to her. Okay?”
I let out a sigh. “Yeah, okay.” Giving Kao a smile, I say, “Thanks for listening.”
“Always.” Kao nods his head toward the house. “Let’s get in there before Fallon asks where we are. She has us on a tight schedule.”
I let out a burst of laughter as we climb out of the car, and we each grab a box from the U-haul trailer.
Walking toward the house, I decide to take Kao’s advice. After all, he is the one with a successful relationship. I’ll be friendly with Carla and see where things go. If I keep feeling awkward, I’ll tell her I only want to be friends. But if these emotions keep growing… My mind comes to a screeching halt.