Page 2 of Knot By Design
My cock stirs, hard and unyielding against my zipper. Not here. Not now. Fuck.
She smacks my thigh lightly. “You’re not even listening.”
Her touch jolts through me, sharp and hot. My cock twitches again. I drag in a breath, trying to ground myself.
“I’m listening, baby,” I whisper, dragging her chair closer until her knee brushes mine. My lips hover by her ear, my voice low so only she hears. “I’m really trying to pay attention to what you’re saying, but you wore this short, pretty skirt tonight. And my favorite boots. And your hair’s pulled up so I can see just a bit of your neck. It’s killing me. You’re killing me, Norah.”
Her giggle bubbles out, but I see the way her eyes flick to my mouth. She’s hungry too. Tempted.Good.
“Oh yeah?” she teases.
I nod, then catch her lips with mine again, hungrier this time. She gasps against me, a sound that only makes my cock harder.
“Fuck,” she breathes when we break apart, cheeks flushed.
“Finish up,” I murmur, voice ragged. “I’ve got a surprise for you.”
Her eyes light, her whole body sparking with excitement. “I like surprises.” She claps her hands together, a little bounce in her shoulders.
I grin. She doesn’t know yet.
Doesn’t know I’ve planned for one night where we don’t have to sneak around her aunt’s flower shop, or make do with the backseat of my car. One night that’s ours.
I glance down at her wrist, at the silver bracelet glinting under the tavern lights. The one I gave her last month. It cost me almost everything I had at the time, but she hasn’t taken it off since.
My chest tightens with pride. One day, when I’ve made it—when the world knows my name—I’ll buy her more. Earrings. Necklaces. Anything to prove how much she means to me.
I lift her hand, press a kiss to the bracelet. “You’ll love this one, I promise.”
Her smile is radiant and pure, enough to gut me.
I can’t stop imagining it—her spread across white sheets, auburn curls spilling, freckles like stars scattered over pale skin. The chance to undress her slowly. To take my time as I trace every inch of her with my mouth. To keep her warm while snow falls outside.
They say twenty-two is too young to find the love of your life. But they don’t know Norah. They don’t know what it feels like to love someone so much you’d move mountains for them. She’s it. She’s my forever.
That’s all I can think about as I pay the bill and watch her get her coat.
Snow drifts across the windshield, thick and slow, catching in the headlights as we pull away from the tavern. Norah hums under her breath while turning on the radio.
The soft croon of Leon Bridges fills the cab, rich and low, matching the rhythm of the tires crunching over the frozen road. Her fingers tap against her thigh in time with the beat.
She’s glowing, her cheeks pink from the tavern heat and the whiskey in her drink. I glance at her profile, the way her hair curls around her ear, the tiny gold hoop she wears there. Every little detail feels burned into me.
“Where does your aunt think you are tonight?” I ask, shifting gears as we head toward the edge of town.
Norah gives a little grin, the kind that makes her dimple show. “Told her I was helping you measure out sites for a snow shelter. Charity project or something for your schoolwork.”
I huff out a laugh. “A snow shelter?”
“She doesn’t question anything if it sounds helpful,” she says, turning toward me. “She thinks you’re some kind of saint.”
“That’s one of us,” I mutter.
She laughs softly, brushing her fingers against mine on the console. “You’re not so bad, Dorian. You pretend you’re all gruff, but you helped Mrs. Callahan shovel her driveway last week.”
I shrug, keeping my eyes on the road. “She gave me cookies.”
“She’s ninety,” Norah says, rolling her eyes. “You didn’t even take them.”
