Page 16 of Lust & Lies

NOELLE

HELLO, SAVAGE!

When he first noticed I was naked, he moved, like he was going to rush to look away. But then, he froze, as if his body was refusing to obey his command. Finally, he gave in and looked his fill.

His gaze drifted over me slowly, and I could practically feel the heat from his stare setting my body ablaze. I didn’t flinch. Didn’t shy away. I wanted him to see me, all of me, flaws and all. The good and the broken parts of me.

My heart rate sped up when his gaze lingered on my breasts. I knew my titties were sitting right, plump, perky, and pretty. I arched my back a little, just for him. His jaw clenched, and my pussy did the same.

Then his eyes dipped lower, over my stomach, straight down to where I was already wet for him. He licked his lips, and I swear my kitty wept tears of joy. The way this man looked at me was good for my ego. It wasn’t just lust in the dark depths of his gaze.

It was hunger. Possession. Worship. All of it rolled into one dangerous look. He already told me how savage he could be with me. And the way he’d gripped my throat earlier let me know he could indeed get that way about me. That same kind of look was in his eyes right now.

I swallowed, ready to be choked a little bit. But then his eyes drifted to my side, to one of the scars from the car accident. The savagery left his gaze in an instant, replaced with something softer, something that made my chest ache.

A look of concern.

It seemed to pain him to stare at my scar. He approached me slowly. Naked, I stood completely still when he reached for me, fingers brushing the skin near the scar. I sucked in a breath at his touch. Not from pain, but from how gently he was handling me.

“Does it still hurt?” he asked, voice low.

I shook my head. “Sometimes, it feels tender, especially when I move a certain way. But no real pain.”

“Even if it did hurt, you wouldn’t tell me,” he murmured, gaze still on the scar. “I hate it when you hide your pain from me,” he whispered. “If something hurts, tell me.”

“It doesn’t hurt,” I insisted softly. “I promise. If you don’t believe me, touch it.”

His thumb traced it once. The caress was feather-light, as if he were afraid he would hurt me if he applied the smallest amount of pressure.

“See,” I told him. “I didn’t flinch at all. It doesn’t hurt. It just feels tender.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

But even after my promise, he still didn’t take his gaze away from the scar.

“Is it ugly?” I didn’t mean to ask that.

Those words slipped out before I could stop them. Maybe it was the way he was staring at it that started to make me feel self-conscious about it. I don’t know. But I instantly wished I could take those words back.

“No, love,” he answered, eyes meeting mine while his hand lingered at my side.

“It’s proof that you survived. And there’s nothing ugly about that.

There’s nothing ugly about you, Ms. Park.

You’re the strongest, most beautiful woman I’ve ever met.

And if you want me to create matching scars on my body, I’d gladly do that for you. ”

“Aiden,” I whispered, my voice catching as tears blurred my vision.

How could words be so insane, yet so romantic at the same time?

“Thank you,” I whispered, blinking back tears.

“You’re welcome, love.”

This man was so damn sweet. He deserved some sex. Some wild sex. And I was already naked, so there really was no point in getting dressed. I gifted him a sweet smile.

“What’s with that look?” he asked, frowning now. “Quit smiling at me like that before I get other ideas,” he muttered, grabbing the shirt from me and sliding it over my head before I could stop him.

“Aiden,” I protested through the fabric, unable to see anything.

“Lift your arms.”

“I don’t want to.”

He grabbed one of my arms and tried to get it into the arm hole.

“That’s the wrong hole,” I told him.

“You haven’t said that to me in a while,” he muttered, grabbing my other arm.

It took a while for his words to sink in.

When they did, I burst out laughing. So did he.

I stared at my laughing husband, and all I could think was, I hope this never ends.

But then he twisted my body sideways so he could get my other arm in the hole, and all I could think was, this man is going to break my damn arm.

“Are you trying to break my arm?” I asked.

“No. If you relax and stop struggling,” he muttered, going silent when his arm grazed my nipple.

My body was so hungry for that kind of contact that I had to bite my damn tongue to keep from groaning.

“Sorry,” he muttered.

He would apologize.

“I can dress myself,” I told him, but I let him guide my arms into the sleeves anyway. “I’m not a baby.”

“Okay, baby,” he teased.

I shook my head but remained silent until the sleep shirt was finally draped over my body, stopping mid-thigh on me.

“I’m done,” he stated, looking proud of his achievement.

“You’re not done yet.”

“What did I miss?”

“My panties,” I said, holding the boy shorts out to him. “Since you want to dress me, you need to go all the way.”

He looked at the underwear.

Then at me.

“You want me to put your panties on you?” he asked.

“I’m your baby, remember?” I shrugged, giving him a dose of his own medicine.

He stretched and faked the world’s worst yawn.

“I can barely keep my eyes open,” he said. “I’m going to bed.”

“Chicken,” I muttered as he walked away and climbed into bed.

I started to just slide the panties on and be done with it. But, of course, I was too petty for that. So, I turned my back to him, then bent over to step into my undies. I slowly pulled them up, knowing I had an audience watching my every move.

I took my time pulling them up to let him look his fill and see what he was missing out on. I was turning my own damn self on with the way I was sliding them up my thighs and over the curve of my ass.

I made sure my sleep shirt crept up so he could get a good view of what these panties were about to cover up. Once they were high over my hips, I glanced over my shoulder to see if the savage had emerged.

This motherfucker was lying on his side with the cover pulled over his head. He hadn’t seen one second of my slow seduction. Coward! Chuckling, I stood up straight and adjusted my clothes.

I grabbed the towel from the floor and took it back to the bathroom, tossing it in the hamper. He didn’t say a word or move when I climbed into bed beside him. He just lay there like he was asleep.

I slid beneath the covers, pulling them up to my chest as I lay flat on my back, staring at the ceiling. I was in bed with my husband. This felt strange, almost unreal. Everything was too still, too quiet.

Now that I’d noticed how quiet it was, my breathing sounded too loud in the dark room. I stared over at Aiden, who still had the covers pulled over his head with his back to me. When I said I wanted him to sleep in the same bed as me, this wasn’t what I meant.

He may as well be sleeping down the hall at this point. I glared at him for a long time, hoping he’d look my way. He didn’t. Had he really fallen asleep just like that? A yawn slipped out before I could stop it. If he wanted to sleep, then we’d sleep.

I turned onto my side, facing away from him. My eyes drifted shut, but sleep didn’t come. Instead, my head was filled with all kinds of thoughts. Today was only day one. Just one day out of the hospital, and things between us had shifted so much.

We’d gone from my refusal to believe he was really my husband, to wariness, to acceptance, and even hope. I’d gone from not wanting him anywhere near me to wanting him to sleep with me.

In just one day, I’d gone from suspicion to trust. From refusing to let him touch me to aching when he didn’t.

One day. That’s it. Was this too much of a change in one day?

Yeah, maybe. But it didn’t feel like too much.

Not really. Honestly, this felt so much better than how I’d felt in the hospital.

The way we laughed together, his subtle touches, his intense stares... I liked it. All of it. Experiencing it made me feel like I was returning to my rightful place. Like I’d just forgotten where I belonged, and now I was remembering in pieces.

Or rather, I would remember it in pieces... in time. Then again, maybe I was just convincing myself of that because the alternative would be hard to accept. Though I tried not to think about it, those thoughts crept in anyway.

What if I was wrong about him? What if this whole thing, this warm, tender, beautiful thing that was reforming between us, what if it was just one long, carefully orchestrated lie? I closed my eyes against the pain that thought caused.

If this was a lie, I didn’t think I could handle that.

Tears stung my eyes. I blinked them back, refusing to let even one of them fall.

I would not let my spiraling thoughts make me fall apart.

Only time would tell whether our love was real or fake.

If it was indeed real, that would be a great thing.

If it wasn’t...

A cold feeling crept over me. If it wasn’t, I’d deal with that and Aiden when the time came. Another yawn escaped me, and I forced myself to stop thinking. Just rest. I was almost asleep when I felt Aiden move behind me.

So, he wasn’t asleep. His arm slipped around me as he scooted closer, his broad chest pressing against my back. The warmth of his body chased away the chill that was clinging to me.

“Sweet dreams, my love,” he whispered.

And just like that, the tension left me with those whispered words from my husband. My body relaxed against his like this was exactly what it had been waiting for. Muscle memory.

The chaos in my mind and heart quieted. The doubts dissipated as I began to doze off. Wrapped in his arms, I finally let go. Sleep came easily after that. I drifted off into dreamland, where Aiden was waiting for me in my dreams.