Built to Last (4 page)

CHAPTER FIVE

The third apartment she viewed was the one for which she applied, and by afternoon the building manager had called to offer it to her. The price range was right and while it was only a small one bedroom, it had a nice view of the mountains out the bedroom window. She could picture where she would put the little bit of furniture she did have and what she liked most is that the living room had enough room for a reading chair a couch and a small desk to work at. She did spend a fair amount of time with her laptop in her bed, but when she needed to write something serious, she found she was much more productive if she was sitting at a proper desk.

Two more stops and she was walking out of a business building with an interview in two days for a copywriter job. She had also registered with a Temp agency just in case. Noelle stopped for lunch in a little deli and then headed for the University to see where her credits stood and fill out financial aid applications.

The woman behind the admissions counter was very helpful and set an appointment after lunch to talk with a degree specialist. While she waited, she began filling out the financial aid forms. Some of them could be done online and others still required her to fill in the blanks. As she looked around, she felt so much older than the students that were walking through the building. She knew many people that went back to school or started it for the first time after twenty-five but she hadn’t counted on how it would feel to be one of them. College had been such a social experience for her the first time around. She attended parties and dated a lot. Classes were important but so was her nightlife. And now...now she was twenty-seven and didn’t have a social life. Six years and she was a completely different person than she had been. It didn’t have to be that way, she reminded herself.

The meeting with the degree specialist was quicker than she thought. It turned out since she was returning to the same school that all but a few of her non-major classes still applied. She would be able to jump right back in where she had left off, though the degree specialist reminded her that if she were interested in teaching she would have to make some contacts in the community and find a school and teacher that would be a good fit. The University would be in charge of her placement but she had to have at least three teachers and schools to list as her preferred schools.

When she finally left the campus, she was tired and starting to get hungry again. She checked her watch and realized it was four thirty already an hour and half until she would meet Griffin. At least it was close; she had a little time to check her appearance again, before she’d delve into rush hour traffic.

The place was busy for a Monday night and Noelle found a place to park her car that was only a block away. She walked inside and looked around for Griffin. Since she didn’t see him right away, she decided to pick a beer and find a table where he’d be able to see her when he arrived. She was on her second glass when she spotted him at the door and waved. He was dressed in jeans, t-shirt, and a ball cap on his head. He looked like he’d come straight from work but the jeans and t-shirt were too clean. She smiled at him as he told the waitress what he wanted to drink and then pulled out the chair turning it around to sit backwards on it.

“Sorry I’m late. The boss has been in a bit of a mood since yesterday afternoon.”

“Oh?” Noelle asked trying for nonchalance.

“Maybe he’s always like this, though I hope not. I’ve worked for a couple of steamers in my time and it never turns out well.”

“Steamers?” Noelle asked taking another drink of her beer.

“Hot heads. Guys that want everything done yesterday. The job takes as long as it takes and longer if you have setbacks.” Griffin answered. “You hungry? I’m thinking I want a burger.”

“Yeah,” she smiled and relaxed. This was what she always liked about Griffin. He was laid back and easygoing. He always felt comfortable, like a good pair of old jeans. The waitress took their order and Griffin turned back to her, knocking back half his bottle of beer. “So tell me about Griffin. You got a girlfriend in one of the far off places you have been visiting?”

“No,” he answered though Noelle got the impression that there was something just below the surface that was still fresh.

“Hard to believe that no one has snagged you off the market yet.” she prodded.

“There was someone, but it didn’t work out. It’s better this way though. My job requires me to travel a lot and that is hard on any relationship.”

“Yeah, I can understand that. Do you like travelling though?”

“I’ve seen all kinds of places and met people that I never dreamed I would. Some of them real Artisans, you know? But no, ultimately I’d like to find a place where I can stay in the area to work and make enough to settle down. Buy a house and have a place to call home. The money is better on the road though. Contractors will pay top dollar for my skills usually because they can’t find anyone else or like in this case, they need someone to finish a job under deadline.” He emptied his bottle and signaled the waitress for another. “What about you? What are you going to do next?”

“That seems to be the question of the day,” she laughed. “I spent the afternoon at the University looking into finishing my teaching degree. I won’t be able to get back into it until next fall and I’m looking for a job at the moment. I put down a deposit on a place so I’ll start moving my things from Ogden. The bank will be putting Mom’s house up for sale.”

Griffin nodded, “And you’re okay with that?”

“Dell doesn’t need it and I have too many unpleasant memories there over the last few years. It’ll be nice to have someplace new and fresh to start over.”

“What kind of work are you looking for? You said you’re still headed toward teaching…”

“Yeah, I want to teach high school English, and maybe work on my Master’s. I have a semester of classes if I do them all at once and a semester of student teaching as well, so another year before I have my degree. I applied for a Temp service today among others. Basically just something to pay the bills.”

“What about being a substitute?” Griffin asked.

Noelle began to laugh. “Boy, I am really off my game. It didn’t even occur to me to get back on the call list for subbing. I can use that toward hours for my Student teaching too. Thank you Griffin!”

“Glad to help ma’am” he drawled lazily and winked at her. Their dinner was delivered looking sinfully delicious. They both dove in with vigor. The waitress brought her a third glass of beer, which she ignored, for the glass of water that sat next to it. It was still a long drive home yet.

The rest of the night went well. They laughed and talked about college and eventually Griffin opened up about his ex. Noelle felt for the guy. She had left him for one of his friends while he was on the road leaving him nothing but a note, his engagement ring and a pile of unpaid bills. He’d sworn off relationships ever since.

“I had a great time Griffin,” she said as he walked her back to her car.

“You sure you’re good to drive?” he asked holding the door.

“Yeah my last drink was two hours ago. How about you?”

“I’m good; I might take a walk before I head for the motel though.”

“See now that’s the part I wouldn’t like about travelling all the time. I have too much stuff to live out of a motel.”

“You learn to travel light,” he shrugged.

Noelle leaned back against the car. “Call me next weekend and we can do this again if you like. I need to get out and socialize some more.”

“Alright,” Griffin replied and smiled down at her. Then quick as a wink his lips were on hers. At first she was too shocked to respond then she put her hands between them and pushed him away gently. She gave him a puzzled look. “Goodnight Noelle, sleep well.” he smiled again and turned away from her.

As Noelle drove home, she thought about that kiss. She had always thought of Griffin as a brother, well family at least but his kiss hadn’t felt wrong. She was not upset or offended that he had kissed her, only confused by it, as she had never considered that Griffin ever had feelings for her in any sort of romantic way. She did know one thing though. Griffin was not the type of guy she wanted to date. He was fun to hang out with and made her feel like she could be herself but she didn’t feel any passion toward him. Sure, when she thought about it he was handsome, some might even consider him a ‘hotty’ so to speak, but she wanted to feel overwhelmed and heady with attraction. The way she felt around Cade, the same man that didn’t seem to be interested in a second date with her.

CHAPTER SIX

His house was dark and quiet when he returned home, as it was every night. But tonight it felt empty to him. Tonight it was just a house. He collected the mail, and tossed it up on the table with his keys and pulled open the refrigerator door. He grabbed a drink and pulled out some burger. It might be February but he was in the mood to burn something. He went out onto his deck and lit the barbeque letting it heat up. Back in the house, his cell phone rattled on the table next to his keys. If he heard it, he ignored it as he smashed the ball of ground meat between his palms and seasoned it on the plate. He went back into the house and dug out some fixings shoving them up on the table. His phone beeped at him. He picked it up and read ‘1 missed call’ but there was no message and he didn’t recognize the number. He tossed it on the table and went back to making his dinner.

As he sat at the table eating the burger, he listened to his house. Again, he felt the emptiness of it around him. He cleared the table and put away his dishes, thinking that he should just go to bed. It had been a long week. The crew were putting their noses to the grindstone to get the building up and running by deadline. The owners wanted to open before the busy summer season so they could iron out any staffing issues in time. At the rate he was working, they would not have the job done until June instead of early May. He’d spent most of the day in office working out a labor dispute with the local union office. There always seemed to be something to keep him from just enjoying the day. He was climbing into his bed and flipping on the TV as his cell buzzed again.

“Hello?”

“Hi,” a soft feminine voice spoke on the other end of the line.

“Noelle, hi.” He sat up straight in bed, suddenly aware that he was naked under his bed sheets. And that just the sound of her voice had a way of affecting him.

“I wanted to let you know that I have moved and my cell number changed. I didn’t wake you did I?”

Cade felt like a heel for not calling her at all since their date. “No, I was watching some news. It’s been a busy week at work. You moved? I thought you had your mom’s place for another month.”

“I do but I needed to be able to clean the place and the bank wants to start showing it as soon as possible. It made more sense to move into the city since I will be working here too.”

“You found a job then?” he asked feeling like a lifetime of events had happened since their date.

“Yeah I’ve got a temp job that starts Monday and I’m on the substitute teacher list for the area.”

“It sounds like everything is lining up for you. Congratulations Noelle.”

“Thank you,” she answered then paused hoping he would say something else. The conversation felt awkward, not like the night of their date. “Well, I didn’t want to interrupt you,” she began.

“You’re not interrupting Noelle. I’m glad you called.” Cade was mentally kicking himself for letting something like work or another man keep him from what he wanted. “I’m sorry I didn’t call this week. Can I make it up to you with a movie night?”

“When?” she asked and if he wasn’t mistaken there was excitement in her voice.

“What about tomorrow night? I can pick you up if you like.”

“I’m babysitting my nephews tomorrow night. How about Saturday?  Unless…” she paused thoughtfully, “you want to come with me?” Noelle asked, feeling hopeful.

“Del’s kids... I remember how much of a live wire she was, but what the hell. When do you have to be there?”

“They are going out to the late show, so eight. I’ll text you the address.”

“Alright, it’s a date.” Cade responded.

“Okay then, I’ll see you tomorrow. Goodnight Cade.”

“Goodnight Noelle.” Cade closed his phone and put it back on the charger on his nightstand. He smiled and shook his head. Babysitting his high school girlfriend’s kids on a Friday night, just so he could be near Noelle. What was he getting himself into?

***

It was Friday. It was seven and Noelle was sitting in her apartment fit to be tied. What did one wear to a babysitting date? She’d gone through her closet several times looking for something that was casual, practical and sexy all at the same time. She finally settled for a comfortable pair of jeans and a soft pink sweater. She pulled the top half of her dark hair up from her face and found a pair of earrings that matched her sweater. She dabbed on some lip gloss and touched up her makeup. Del lived in Draper at the south end of the city, a good half an hour to drive if the traffic was decent. So, she grabbed her purse and headed out.

When Del answered the door, she looked harried. “Oh good you’re here. The twins are in bed already but I haven’t had a minute to myself to get ready.”

“Breathe Del he already married you. It’s not going to be a deal breaker if you aren’t ready on time.” Noelle teased.

“I’ve just been so looking forward to this. I want everything to go smoothly so that Sam will be willing to do it on a regular basis. I haven’t had more than a quickie in the better part of a year!”

“Delphinia Agnes Madison!”

“What? Oh, well forgive me, my lack of tact sister dear. So, what about you and Cade?”

“Sex?” she flushed as images of the two of them together in a dark classroom sprang to mind. “Oh goodness no! This will only be our second date.”

“And you bring him to my house to babysit.” Del laughed, “Then I guess you are safe from sex tonight as well. I put the numbers for the restaurant and the movie theater on the refrigerator if you can’t reach me on my cell phone. Otherwise, we should be back by midnight. Feel free to dig through the blu-rays. You may have to go down to Sam’s ‘man cave’ to find something over a G rating. I can’t tell you the last time I watched a movie that didn’t involve cartoon dinosaurs, talking cars, or magical creatures.”

“You gave her the numbers?” Sam asked as they joined him in the living room.

“Yes dear. She has both our cell numbers as well.”

“We will be at the restaurant and the movie starts at nine thirty,” he reiterated.

“I’ve got it all Sam. The boys won’t even know you’re gone. Trust me.”

“I do trust you Noelle. We’ve just never left the boys like this before. Oh, if Jason wakes up he wants a glass of water and his dinosaur. It’s the purple one. If Tyler gets up his is the yellow one.”

“Honey, she’ll be fine. The boys are sleeping. Now let’s go enjoy ourselves okay?” Del pushed her husband toward the door. “We’ll see you in a little while. Thanks again Elle.”

“No problem. Have fun.” Noelle called as the couple climbed into their car. She closed the door and looked around the house a bit. She picked up a few stray toys and put them away. She made her way back to the living room. She began picking through the discs near to the TV. Her sister had been right, mostly kid movies. She heard Cade pull up into the driveway and met him at the door to keep him from ringing the bell.

“Hello there,” she smiled and gave him a quick hug.

“Hi,” he replied feeling like an awkward teenager all over again. He’s body leapt to life the moment she touched him. I thought we might be able to enjoy this,” he said offering her a bottle of wine.

“Wine and popcorn... see, better than the movie theater already.”

Cade chuckled and hung up his coat on the coat rack. “Did you have anything in mind to watch?”

“Del suggested we head downstairs to dig through Sam’s collection. I don’t think he’ll mind us using the flat screen in there. His ‘man cave’ has a great sound system and I grabbed the baby monitor for the boys,” she added waving the little speaker box in her hand.

“I also picked out a couple from my own stash just in case.” Cade pulled them from his coat’s inner pocket and followed Noelle down to the basement.

Sam’s ‘man cave’ was everything a sports fan would want. He had a huge flat screen TV that took up most of the end wall with surround sound, several recliners, and a large couch all with cup holders. There was a large coffee table to hold snacks, and on the far end, stood a bar that was fully stocked with all of her brother-in-law’s favorites. A pool table stood between the bar and the couch with enough room to move around the table and shoot. The decor of the room was split between sports memorabilia and hunting trophies. Cade looked right at home in such a
place and Noelle wondered if he had his own in the house where he lived. She watched him move around the room and check out everything while she looked through the movies that lined one section of the wall.

“What are you in the mood for, Action, Western, or Sci-fi?” She turned to look at him and found him watching her. She blushed and turned back to the movies.

“What no chic flicks?” he teased.

“I’m sure we could find one or two of those here someplace, if that’s really your thing.” She couldn’t help but tease him back.

Cade moved to stand next to her and perused the movie titles for himself. Both of the movies he’d brought were here on the shelves. How about this one?” He grabbed the box and handed it to her.

“Why don’t you get it set up and I’ll get a couple of glasses for the wine and see what snacks Sam has on hand.” She moved back to the bar area and looked around the cooler. He had various cheeses and crackers, already cut up into snack size, in baggies. Noelle made them up a plate. She found a couple of wine glasses and brought everything back to the coffee table. Cade had managed to find the right remotes and had the screen already paused waiting for them. She pulled off her shoes and left them up against the wall, before curling up near the center of the couch. She watched him pour them each a glass of wine and took the one he offered her.

“To new beginnings...” he suggested raising his glass to her.

Noelle smiled, “To new beginnings.” She touched her glass to his lightly and took a sip. It was quite good. She snuggled down further into the couch tucking her legs up under her and turning sideways so she could look at Cade as he talked and still watch the movie. He leaned back into the couch, draping his arms along the top leaving his chest open if she wanted to sit closer. She smiled realizing what he was doing even if he hadn’t consciously made the move. She took the invitation wanting to feel the warmth of his body next to her own. He smiled down at her and draped his arm over her shoulder.

Cade loved the smell of her shampoo, all fresh and fruity. It mixed with the slightly spicy scent of her skin very well and it distracted him from the movie. He ignored it for some time trying to play the gentlemen, just enjoying holding her close to him in this way, but as the movie progressed so did his desire to kiss her, until it was nearly consuming him.

“Cade?” she asked turning her face up to his again.

“Hmm?” he queried back looking down into those beautiful mahogany eyes.

“Do you want more wine?” she asked but he didn’t appear to hear her.

“Hmm?”” he asked again, watching the way her lips moved as she spoke the words and still not hearing her.

Cade gave in to his impulses and leaned in taking her lips with his own. They were so soft and pliant against his. He moaned with pleasure as she responded.

Noelle felt a shiver run the length of her body when his lips touched hers. Every fantasy she had about him when she was younger, never came close to the blood boiling feeling that filled her body now. She slid her hands up around his neck, turning into his body and kissing him more fully. She opened her lips for him as his tongue prodded. From head to toe, she was a quivering ball of need. He wrapped his hands into her hair pulling her into him, the kiss becoming more demanding. Her lips tingled and felt swollen as he nipped and sucked at them. He tasted of tart wine mixed with sharp cheese.

Her breasts pressed into his chest and she could feel the rapid beating of his heart matching hers. Knowing he was so excited spurred her on to be more daring. She slid her hands down to his chest between them feeling the heat of him through his shirt. Then she slid them back up around his neck cradling his face in her palms and kissing him back with great ardor. Her tongue danced over the edge of his lips, and then she broke away dropping sweet hot kisses on his cheeks and nose. Noelle climbed into his lap, resting a knee on either side of his hips as she kissed his forehead. Finally, she returned to his lips once more for a kiss so scintillating, she felt it in her toes. Cade growled in appreciation, before he tipped back her head and nibbled down the side of her neck. She shuddered and seized his lips for her own again. She felt as if all of her bones were melting and every inch of skin was singing out to be touched. She could feel the warmth of her need spreading lower through her body, heating every curve and fold. The curling desire tightened in her belly making her feel hollow. She needed him to fill that hollowness as only he could. She closed her eyes and savored the feelings washing over her. She wanted him.

His hands encircled her waist and pulled her down harder into his lap so she would know exactly how much he wanted her too. The curling sensation increased. She opened her eyes and looked into his, seeing the heat of his desire for her burning there. His hands slid up to her waist pushing the soft sweater out of the way. She had an immediate urge to feel his skin against her own, so she tugged at his shirt pulling the shirttails from his jeans. She plucked at the buttons with her fingers, but they felt stiff and useless. He reached between them and helped her.