Finally but . . .

Veronica

Seeing Noah blindsided and knocked unconscious was probably one of the most horrific images Veronica had ever witnessed. Everything that followed was a blur. All she could think of, even as Abel beat the guy who did it to a pulp and the rest of the guys brawled it out with his friends, was getting Noah in the house and out of harm's way.

She knew enough from taking first aid and CPR classes at the college to turn him on his side so that he wouldn't choke on his own tongue. He'd come to fairly quickly, but he was totally out of it. She managed to get some of the guys that were there with the sound crew to help her lift him and walk him to his bed.

Veronica didn't even realize how unnerved she was, until she tried running her fingers through his hair and her hand shook uncontrollably. The minutes that passed as Noah slipped in and out of consciousness were the worst. She kept wondering if she should call 911. But each time she was about to, he'd come to.

The guys came in after they'd cleared all the troublemakers out of her yard.

"How you feeling?" Gio asked Noah, handing him a couple of aspirins.

Veronica frowned, she hadn't even thought of bringing him any painkillers. She lifted the bag of ice away from his face. Noah raised himself up on his elbow, grimacing as he brought a hand to the lump on the side of his face. "What happened?"

"That asshole's friend sucker punched you," Abel muttered. "I was right behind you, and I didn't even see it coming."

"I saw it," Veronica added. Her throat ached as she felt a warm tear run down her cheek. "But not soon enough."

Abel touched her shoulder gently. "The guy knew what he was doing, Roni. He wasn't about to give anyone a chance to warn Noah. Fucking coward."

Noah reached his hand out for Veronica, and she held it. "Do you wanna go to the hospital?"

He shook his head and squinted. "Nah, I'm good. I just hope these aspirins kick in soon." He tried to sit up, but he immediately looked woozy.

"Don't get up, dude." Gio said. "You need to just rest." He turned to Veronica. "We can wrap it up if you want, Roni. The night's pretty much shot anyway."

"No." Roni shook her head. She tried to pull her hand away, but Noah held on to it. "You guys can stay." She turned to Noah who was staring at her. "But I think Noah's had it."

"Yeah, you're done for the night. I wouldn't even try to get up unless you have to." Abel said. "Don't worry, man. That asshole is in a lot more pain than you are right now. I made sure of that."

Abel wasn't kidding; the last look Veronica got of the guy, she couldn't even make out his facial features, he was so bloody. And his coward friends had left him to fend for himself when they saw what they were up against.

Noah thanked them, and one by one his friends left the room. Veronica began to rise from where she sat on the edge of the bed, but Noah tugged at her hand. "Stay with me, please?"

She smiled, touching his face gently. The lump on his head was still very warm, but she'd checked his temperature already and knew he wasn't running a fever. "I was just gonna close the door. I'm not going anywhere."

Noah let go of her hand, and she stood up to close the door.

"Will you turn the light off too? It hurts my eyes. The lamp would be better."

Veronica turned on the small lamp first before turning the light switch off. She came back and sat next to him. He scooted over and patted the mattress next to him. Her heart had sped up from the moment he'd asked her to stay. This made it beat a little wilder. She was only comforting him. The blow he took was horrendous, and she could only imagine the pain he must be in, so she lay down next to him, resting her head on his pillow, facing him. "I was so worried," she whispered.

He reached over and touched her hair, twirling a ringlet around his finger and smiled but said nothing.

"Are you still going to be able to fight in two weeks?"

He nodded, staring at her but not like he'd done in the past. There was no lust in his eyes, no yearning like she'd seen earlier in the kitchen. What she saw in his eyes now was pure honesty. Whatever he'd hidden in those eyes all this time was no longer hiding. It was as if he'd suddenly made up his mind and he was putting it out there: putting out what she'd suspected for weeks. He'd fallen for her. "I know I said it earlier, but I have to say it again. You're beautiful, Roni."

Just like earlier, something deep inside her warned that she should stop this. Stop him before he said something that would forever put them in a different place than they were now and there'd be no turning back. But just like earlier, she was helpless to do so. She felt lost in his eyes, but it felt so good she didn't want to stop him.

Instead of stopping him, she leaned over and kissed the lump on the side of his face. She felt him inhale deeply as her hair brushed against his face, then his hand was on her face, and she turned her face just enough so that their lips were less than an inch apart.

"You're so beautiful," he whispered as his eyes dropped down to her lips, and he kissed them softly.

Her head screamed that this was a mistake as he kissed her again, only longer and deeper, but her heart argued otherwise.

She rested her hand on his hard shoulder and squeezed a little as she allowed herself to do what she'd been dreaming of doing since day one and sucked his bottom lip. He let out a soft groan, reminding her that she should slow this down. She laid her head back on the pillow as he lifted himself onto his elbow and stopped to gaze in her eyes. "I'm fucking crazy about you, Roni."

Stop him!

Based simply on the way he kissed her with such unabashed emotion, she knew where this might be going, and if it did, it would ruin everything. Deciding selfishly that the best way to get him to stop talking was to kiss him again, she brought her hand around the back of his neck, and he dove in. His tongue was magical. It was almost funny now how she actually thought his age would make him less experienced than some of the older men she'd been with. But no man's kisses had ever made her feel quite like this.

He didn't try for anything else, and she was glad about this, because one touch in the right place would let Noah know just how badly her body wanted him. She was hot and damp in places she'd only been lately when she thought of him.

His mouth moved from hers, and his lips traced her chin, kissing it all the way down to the soft spot just under her chin and down to her neck. He sucked softly at first and then a little harder as his breathing accelerated. She knew it was probably hard enough to leave a mark, but she didn't care. It felt so damn good—too good.

"Noah," her voice sounded hoarse to her own ears, and she knew there was no way he could miss the longing in her words.

This only made him suck harder, making her tingly in the most private of places. Her back arched instinctively as his hands finally made their way down under her cardigan.

His touch was so gentle and slow it drove her insane. She wanted to tell him to stop. She knew she should, but the feel of his hand against the burning flesh of her abdomen made it impossible.

"My," he whispered in between sucking her neck, and she shushed him before he'd begin to talking again. "My Roni." The words were gasped, and he went at her neck even harder now.

She gulped hard, trying not to put too much thought into what he'd just said. Her entire body was on fire now, feeling his lips and tongue sucking her neck. He brought his mouth back to her lips and kissed her so deep she was drowning in his taste, and she loved it.

His body slid over hers. There was no hiding how badly he wanted her too. This only made her heart beat even harder. The only shred of hope that Veronica clung to now that this wouldn't go any further was the fact that they were still fully dressed and the door wasn't locked. Surely, he wouldn't take the chance of someone walking in on them.

Those were the only things she could count on at this point, because the feel of his hard body against hers, the taste of his mouth, the smell of his masculinity mixed with the cologne nearly did her in. They made it impossible for her to put two words together. There was no way she could come up with any any reason why she shouldn't beg him to do to her what she'd been dreaming about for months now. Her hands roamed his big strong back wildly. She was drunk with the anticipation of feeling him inside her.

He slowed his kisses and pulled away to look at her as the DJ outside began the countdown to the New Year over the mic. When they got down to one and heard the cheers, Noah smiled and Veronica smiled back, still barely able to catch her breath. She couldn't think of a more perfect way to ring in the New Year.

"Happy New Year," he whispered, and without giving her time to respond, he kissed Veronica very slowly, prolonging it as it got deeper and deeper, driving her absolutely crazy. Then he stopped to gaze at her for a moment. "I love you."

Those three words paralyzed her instantly, and she prayed he didn't feel the erratic change of pace her heart suddenly took. Okay, maybe she could think of a reason why they shouldn't do this--the same reason she'd had all along. Nothing but heartache could come of this. But for the longest time she'd been worried about her own heartache, not his. Unbelievably, she was even surer now that this would be a huge mistake.