He broke the kiss first, the sound of their heavy breaths filling the air, his hands still on her face. His cock was hard as a rock, his heart racing. He wanted to take it slow but she made it so damn difficult. “Let’s go back to the bedroom.”
She gave a shaky nod and whispered, “Okay.”
Noah took her hand once more and led her through the sleek, sparsely furnished suite. The bedroom was large, with a huge bed dominating most of it, and he flicked on a lamp as they entered.
“You want the light on?” she asked shakily.
Say what? Of course, he did. “I want to see you, sweetheart,” he drawled, letting go of her hand so he could turn on a couple more lamps around the room.
“Oh. Really?” She l
ifted her chin, trying her best to look brave but failing miserably. “Um, I’m probably not that great to look at.”
This girl was the complete opposite of pretty much any woman he’d ever been with. By now, whoever he’d brought back to his room or the tour bus or backstage would be halfway to naked. Or completely naked. Most of them didn’t waste time and neither did he. His sexual encounters weren’t of the tender wooing nature.
Hell, he was shocked he had the words tender wooing in his vocabulary.
He went to her and pulled her into his arms, smoothing his fingers along the expanse of her bared back. “You’ve been with the wrong men, I swear to God. Has someone told you you’re unattractive? Called you a hideous troll? Because, sweetheart, you are the farthest thing from a hideous troll I’ve ever seen.”
She blushed and dropped her gaze. “I’m glad you don’t think I’m a hideous troll.”
“Seriously.” He slipped his fingers beneath her chin and tilted her head back up so she was looking at him. “You’re beautiful. I can’t wait to get you out of that dress so I can kiss you all over your delectable body.”
Her cheeks turned even pinker if that was possible. “Stop. You’re exaggerating.”
“I’m not,” he said vehemently, making her frown. “What sort of jackass have you been with to make you so shy? To make you so doubtful?”
Natalie pressed her lips together and took a deep breath before exhaling loudly. “Well, I’ve been with exactly one guy. Once.” She paused for a moment, most likely to let those words sink in because that revelation was a hell of a doozy. “That’s it.”
Chapter Six
Natalie felt like she was having a total déjà vu moment. Noah watched her while all sorts of conflicting emotions warred within him. How she knew this? By the way his expressive features showcased every little thing he was feeling. At the moment, he was like an open book, one she was getting very comfortable reading.
“Wait a minute.” His words came out slow and thick, like he was having trouble saying them. “You’ve only been with one other guy. Ever?”
She’d decided to be honest with him. Maybe that had been a mistake. “Yeah. Well, I’ve kissed plenty of guys.” She had. It had become her life’s mission the last two years in college to kiss as many boys as possible. “I’ve fooled around with a few too.”
That was also true. She’d been felt up plenty of times. She’d given exactly two awkward blowjobs, though she’d never completed them. And no way could she let a guy go down on her. That always felt way too intimate somehow.
“One guy,” Noah said once he got his tongue working again. Poor man. He looked stunned. “That’s it?”
“Yes. That’s it.” She nodded, sinking her teeth in her lower lip. Now he was going to tell her to leave. He would smack her ass, ask for the two thousand dollars he gave her to gamble with and then send her out the door.
“You’re practically a virgin,” he whispered almost reverently, and that was her cue.
She needed to leave.
“Clearly you’re freaked out.” She disentangled herself from his hold and turned tail, ready to run out of the bedroom and never look back. “I get it. I really do. You’re probably totally turned off and I can’t blame you. I have no experience, and you’re used to plenty of experience,” she called over her shoulder as she hurried down the short hall toward the living area. She’d left her purse on an end table and it had her phone and money in there. No way could she leave it behind.
“Where the hell are you going?” He appeared out of nowhere, grabbing hold of her arm and turning her so she had no choice but to face him. “Why are you running away?”
“But I thought…” She waved a hand between the both of them, frowning up at him. She was confused. Why was he stopping her?
“You need to quit assuming, sweetheart,” he whispered, just before he hauled her into his arms and pressed a firm kiss to her lips. “I’m not letting you go anywhere.”
“Give me a break.” She somehow got out of his grip again and made her way toward the door, stopping to grab her purse along the way. “Go find someone with real experience. I’m sure I’d be a total disappointment tonight, so don’t even bother with me.”
“Stop. Running.” He had her by the wrist, twirling her around so her back was to the front door, her purse dangling from her fingers. “Someone needs to work on her self confidence, I think.”