Page 23 of The King Contract
“This is how you woo real-life women, isn’t it?”
Noah grins without looking my way. “Are you not a real-life woman?”
“You know what I mean.”
Noah puts his items in the basket and stands up to face me. “Yes, I cook for the women I’m dating. Research shows women love a man in the kitchen.”
I snort. “Another cliché.”
“You act like clichés are a bad thing, but it’s a fact that a man cooking is effective.” Noah winks at me. “Now, act like it’s effective onyou.”
I plaster on my best fake smile and lean into his side. “Like this?”
Noah’s free hand reaches up and skims my chin unexpectedly. A gasp of surprise slips out of my mouth and my fake smile vanishes.
“Exactly like that,” he murmurs darkly, his green gaze flickering over my shoulder. “Don’t move yet. The girl from the front counter is very un-subtly filming us.”
My body locks in place as a steady thrum dances its way from Noah’s hand on my chin up my jawline. I’m grateful my back is to the camera. I have no doubt my face would give us away.
Noah curls an arm around my waist, pulls me into his side so there’s no space between us and leans down. He angles his head, and my body goes rigid with panic, right before he kisses me on the side of my face.
His mouth moves to my ear as he pulls me closer. “I promised I wouldn’t kiss you without your permission. Stop panicking.”
God.It’s been so long since I’ve been close with a man, I’ve forgotten what to do, how to act. This seems so easy to Noah.
After we grab our remaining items, we head to the register. Noah’s hands touch me gently, but consistently.Naturally. I have to consciously think about not locking up.
“Hey, Mia,” Noah greets the cashier again.
“Hi, Noah,” she replies with a smile. Her eyes flash to me and I offer a smile in return. She processes our items, and Noah pays for our things, keeping the chat light and unimportant. He steers the conversation away from himself and puts it back on Mia, who is flattered by his attention.
“With any luck we’ll be all over TikTok tonight,” Noah says as we leave the store.
I glance back at Mia and sure enough, she’s on her phone, tapping and swiping furiously. A wave of nausea threatens to stop me in my tracks. Any sense of anonymity is now officially gone. Publicly I am always going to be a notch on Noah King’s belt, even if we both know nothing like that will happen.
We make our way back to Noah’s house in a surprisingly pleasant quiet. I’m not sure what Noah’s thinking about. Perhaps he can see the worry in my eyes and is giving me space to process what the hell I’ve signed up for.
“You sure you don’t want to stay for dinner?” Noah asks as he walks me to my car. “I meant what I said about me being a good cook.”
“I’ve got to get back to help Ellis.”
“Suit yourself,” he replies. “We hard launch with my friends in two days. There’s a get-together happening just over the border. You’ll get to meet Mack and Callum and a few people in the surfing circle. Bring your cousin. If we’re going to make this believable, our friends need to be involved.”
Panic flutters in my belly. “Already?”
“I introduce the women in my life to my friends straight away.” Noah runs a hand through his hair, his shirt liftingto expose the tight muscles underneath. “I want their honest opinions.”
“And if they don’t like me?” I query, averting my eyes. “Shouldn’t we have checked thisbeforewe entered a legally binding contract?”
Noah shrugs. “I don’t always follow their advice, but I always want their opinions. They’re going to be suss if I don’t introduce you.”
“Tell them you’re trying a different tack,” I offer meekly.
Noah shakes his head. “There’s no getting out of this one. We’re ripping it off like a Band-Aid. I’ll send you the details later tonight. I think it’s at two, but not sure if that’s Queensland or New South Wales time.”
I unlock my car and throw my handbag across to the passenger side. “No one’s going to believe it.”
Noah grins. “Just you wait.”
