ZenithRising Read Online Free PDF

on the table, fisted hands beneath
his chin. “Did it seem to be moving or swirling?”
    She blinked. “Now that you mention it, yes. But then it
cleared up so I thought I was mistaken.”
    “Then what?”
    “Then I saw…something else. Afterward I just figured I’d
been daydreaming. I mean, I’d been thinking about a time in high school and
then…it felt like I was there again.” She didn’t think it was necessary to tell
him about the particular moment she’d been remembering or how it had
effectively stirred her lust before he even showed up.
    Their cold soups arrived and she drained her glass. She had
only noticed Noah refilling her glass once but the upturned bottle in the ice
bucket suggested she may have had more than her usual limit.
    She watched the way Noah gently blended the cream into the
spicy red concoction without clinking the spoon against the side of the small
bowl and imitated his action. There was a confidence evident in his every move,
so unlike the boy who had been her adolescent best friend. Again the first
awkward kiss came to mind and her thoughts leapt to the experienced way his
mouth had moved over hers a short time ago, the way his fingers had trailed
down her neck and—
    “You’re killing me here,” Noah said with a chuckle. “Either
taste the soup or finish what you were going to say.”
    She felt her cheeks flush and was glad for the dim lighting.
“That was it. Cloudy then a clear vision of a memory but like I was actually
there again.”
    “Was I in it?” he asked quietly.
    Her vaginal muscles contracted in response. She delayed by
tasting the soup and tried to think about the interesting combination of
flavors passing over her tongue. But dammit, her panties felt wet again. “Yes.
But that would make sense. You were coming, er, would be arriving and I was
remembering…how we met.”
    He covered her hand with his and waited for her to look into
his eyes. “When we met…or when we kissed?” His thumb moved back and forth over
her wrist. When she didn’t answer, he said, “Would it help if I confessed I’d
been remembering the kiss too?”
    She eased her hand back and sat up straight. “No. It
wouldn’t help at all. I’m sorry, Noah. I need to say something. I don’t
understand. And I really need to understand if we’re going to spend more than a
few hours together. You make a living with words. I need you to explain to me,
in very simple terms, what happened when you kissed me that first time. And
what happened in the room before. And why you’re looking at me like this now.
And why, in all the years in between, no other boy or man ever made me feel
that way?”
    “What way?” He cautiously reached for her hand and after a
little flinch she allowed him to intertwine her fingers with his.
    “Like there’s no world outside of us. Like we’re each being
broken down to a cellular level and being rebuilt as a single new life form.”
    “Wow. Who’s the wordsmith here? I couldn’t say it better,
but if you want simpler, I’d say we have incredible chemistry together. What’s
so confusing?”
    Her eyes widened in surprise. “Are you kidding me? What good
is incredible chemistry if one of the two people is…” She waved her free hand
and shook her head.
    “Is…what?”
    He really didn’t seem to know what she was talking about.
She tried to retrieve her hand but he held tight. She took a breath in and out
before she could say it. “Gay.”
    His jaw dropped and he stared at her as though she’d just
grown another head. “Maggie, you may not have had a lot of positive experience
with men but you are not a lesbian. Trust me.”
    She was momentarily silenced as the waiter brought their salades and fresh, warm rolls and took away their soup course. The aroma wafting off
the bread made her mouth water but she made herself wait to satisfy the urge to
taste. As soon as they were alone she leaned forward and murmured, “Not me .”
    “Well, it’s not me, so