My Grumpy Old Bear - Jayda Marx Page 0,27

brought for you?” he chuckled. It wasn’t until he asked that I noticed my neck was stretched over his shoulder. I snapped it back, making him laugh harder. “Peeking won’t do you any good.” He brought his arms around to his front and handed me the small blue gift bag he held.

I excitedly grabbed the tissue paper on top, but stopped myself. “Can I open it now?” I asked in as calm a voice as I could muster. Noah snorted and nodded his head. That’s all the permission I needed. I ripped the tissue paper out and reached inside, pulling out a wooden frame. Settled inside was a photo Noah took yesterday. It was one I hadn’t seen; he and I were standing on the bridge. I was laughing at a butterfly perched on top of Noah’s head, and he was giving me a wide, pearly smile. It was the best damn photograph of myself I’d ever seen, and Noah would be gorgeous no matter what.

“This one was my favorite of the day,” he explained as I studied the picture. “I printed one off for my place, too.” He trailed his fingers along the wood around the photo. “I got a plain frame in case you wanted to carve something into it.” He shrugged. “You don’t have to, of course, but-”

His words were cut off as I slammed my lips to his. I was overwhelmed by his thoughtful gift, and instead of trying to muddle through telling him how much it meant to me, I decided to show him instead. I kissed him slowly and deeply, brushing my tongue along his. It was obviously sexy because Noah was involved, but it wasn’t a kiss meant to lead to more. It was a kiss of gratitude, appreciation and love. We hadn’t said the words, and maybe Noah didn’t feel them, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t show him how I felt.

“Woah,” he whispered as I pulled away.

I smirked and took a step back from the door. “Would you like to come in and help me choose a spot to hang it?” Ha! Look at me having manners! Maybe this old dog can learn new tricks!

Noah beamed. “I’d love to.” I let him take the lead and followed him into my bedroom. “It’s got a prop on it; maybe you can set it on your nightstand? That way it can remind you of me when you wake up and when you fall asleep.”

It was the cheesiest, best idea I’d ever heard. I leaned over and positioned it on my nightstand so I could easily see it when I lay down. “Perfect.”

“Yes it is,” he answered, roving his eyes over my ass. He only grinned when I caught him checking me out. Not much seemed to embarrass Noah. “Were you able to find some trunks?”

When he asked me out, he said I’d need swimming trunks for our date today. I told him I thought I had a pair tucked away in my dresser. Turns out I did, but when I tried them on last night, I couldn’t get them up past my thighs. It’d been a long time since I’d been swimming. I’m not sure why; floating in the water takes pressure off of my back and feels nice. I guess it was the whole ‘getting out of the house and being around other people’ that kept me away. At any rate, I had to make an early morning trip to Wal-Mart to get a new pair that fit.

“Yeah, I’ve got them and a towel in a bag in the living room.”

“Great! Ready for awesome date number three?”

I smirked at his confidence and excitement. “Ready.”

*****

“You’re full of surprises,” I told Noah when he pulled into the parking lot of a river tubing business. I thought for sure he was taking me to a public pool. Honestly, I was glad he didn’t; I don’t think I could have handled screaming, splashing kids pissing in the water. But peacefully floating down a river with Noah sounded perfect. It amazed me how he knew just what I’d like.

“Hey, anyone can wine you and dine you. I want to make our dates special.”

“Everything’s special with you.” Noah’s grin cracked his face and I groaned. “Oh my god, that was the corniest thing I’ve ever said.”

“I thought it was perfect.” He leaned in to give me a long, wet kiss. “Okay, we better stop; I need to be able to fit my dick in my trunks.” I snorted