The Cinnamon Bun Book Store: TikTok Made Me Buy It (Dream Harbor, Book 2)

Noah was in her home.

She’d invited him in of course and now here he was. Standing in her entryway looking all large and sexy and she couldn’t quite remember why she’d invited him in. He’d scrambled her brain again.

‘I like your plants.’

Her what? Right. Her plants. ‘Thanks.’

The front bay window was filled with plants, Hazel’s babies. She couldn’t have pets thanks to her allergies – although Casper never seemed to make her sneeze so maybe it was time to get that rechecked – but she could have as many plants as she wanted. And she did. They’d gotten a bit out of control at this point and Hazel could barely see out the window past the various hanging vines and potted trees.

‘I thought you didn’t like nature.’

She shook her head. ‘No, I don’t like bugs and heat and dirt.’

Noah gestured toward the potted plants. ‘They have dirt.’

‘Right, but I don’t have to sit in it.’

Noah laughed, the sound low and rich in her small home.

‘Uh … So, can I get you a drink?’

‘Sure. What do you have?’

What didn’t she have? For as long as she could remember Hazel equated the number of available beverages with the coolness level of the house. If there was an entirely separate drink fridge in some basement or garage area, forget it, that house was by far the coolest. When she moved to Dream Harbor all her dads ever seemed to keep stocked was milk or OJ. These are not cool things to offer to your friends.

She rattled off the several types of beer she kept stocked for Logan, the wine she liked best, plus Annie’s favorites, various teas, coffees, several flavors of White Claw and sparkling water. Noah stared at her like she’d grown an extra head.

‘Are you opening your own bar, Haze?’

Her cheeks heated but something about the way Noah teased her never made embarrassment flair in her belly.

‘I like people to have options.’

‘I’ll take one of those local beers Logan likes.’

Hazel nodded and popped down the few steps to her basement to grab the beer. When she came back up, Noah was in her kitchen admiring the shells she’d put on the little window sill above the sink.

‘You kept the treasure,’ he said, a secret smile playing around his lips.

‘Was I supposed to bury it?’

Another laugh burst out of him and he turned to face her with sparkling eyes. ‘Nah, that’s when all the trouble starts.’ He leaned against the counter, his arms crossed over his chest and Hazel’s gaze flicked to the images inked into his skin.

‘Why the mermaid?’ she asked.

He flexed his arm and the woman seemed to undulate. ‘Seemed right for a fisherman, I guess. Got it the same day I left home with Ginger.’

‘So, do they all mean something to you?’

He shrugged. ‘Some more than others. They’re kinda like souvenirs, I guess. Memories from different times in my life.’

‘You’re only twenty-five.’ Hazel winced at the thought, the reminder of just how ill-advised her attraction to him was. ‘You’re going to run out of room.’

‘I’ve got a lot of body parts left.’ He said with a wink, and heat rose to Hazel’s cheeks. She really needed to spend more time outside. Maybe with a little tan on her skin she wouldn’t go bright red at every other word Noah said.

But now all she could think about while crammed into her tiny kitchen with him were his other body parts. She should steer the conversation back to safer ground.

‘Why do you always look at me like that?’ she asked, steering the ship right into the rocks of awkward conversation instead.

‘Like what?’ He grinned. ‘Like I want to undo every one of the buttons on those shirts you love to wear?’

Hazel swallowed hard. ‘That’s what that look means?’ Her voice came out embarrassingly squeaky.

He nodded.

‘Oh.’ More breathy sigh than actual word. Hazel thought she might expire on the spot when Noah’s gaze flicked down to said buttons.

By the time his eyes met hers again, she had apparently lost her mind because the next words that came out of her mouth were not something she would have ever said had she still had her wits about her.

‘Maybe we should have sex.’

Noah choked on his beer. ‘What?’

‘Oh, God, oh, no. Sorry. I just thought … maybe I misread the situation … but I thought maybe you might want to … Shit. I ruined it.’

He pushed off the counter and stalked toward her. The kitchen was small. Really only big enough for one person to cook in at a time which was normally fine. But now, with Noah prowling toward her across the worn linoleum and her back suddenly against another set of cabinets, it was frighteningly small.

He took her chin between his fingers and tilted her face up to his. ‘Stop saying that.’

‘Saying what?’

‘That you’re ruining things. You don’t ruin anything, Hazel.’

Her eyes widened at his words but she couldn’t respond before his mouth curved into a wicked smile.

‘And hell, yeah, I want to have sex with you.’

‘You do?’

He sighed like she was frustrating him and then planted a kiss on her forehead before releasing her chin. ‘I told you before. You. Are. Hot. Of course I want to have sex with you.’

‘Oh. Okay. Great… I mean right … so…’

‘What’s the matter? You sound like you’re malfunctioning.’

‘I think I am.’ She shook her head, hardly believing the turn this night took. She just needed some dinner, she just wanted to see him. She just…

‘Show me how you do it.’

Noah’s eyes widened. ‘Show you how to … have sex?’

Oh, God she was screwing this up so many different ways she’d completely lost count. This was why she only had sex within the safe boundaries of a long-term relationship. There was nothing to explain when you wanted to have sex with your boyfriend. You simply both worked it into your schedules. Right? Right?! Oh God, what was wrong with her?

‘No, no. Not how to have sex. I mean, I know how to do that.’ Although now she was doubting literally every sexual encounter she’d ever had.

‘I mean, I want to keep this casual.’

He looked like he might protest but Hazel plowed forward. She didn’t want to make this weird for him. She didn’t want him to think she was expecting anything to come of it. But if he wanted to undo her buttons and if she definitely wanted a repeat performance from yesterday then maybe she should go for it.

Casual sex with Noah was perfectly aligned with her goals for an adventure. And so…

‘I know you don’t date people long term and that’s totally fine because obviously it would be weird for us to get together and it would never work out and…’

Noah was staring at her again. ‘Wait, why would it be weird?’

‘Oh. Uh. Well, I don’t know. Too many overlapping friends and we have to see each other all the time in town and stuff and then when it doesn’t work out it would be awkward.’

‘And why wouldn’t it work out?’

Hazel huffed and gestured between them. ‘We don’t make sense together.’

Noah blinked. ‘Right.’

Wait, did she hurt his feelings? Shit. This was officially the world’s worst seduction. ‘I just meant, you don’t do long-term and I’m not looking for that anyway and I just thought while we are having fun together anyway, we could add this … component, but obviously I’m terrible at this so … we can just forget it.’

‘No way.’ Noah’s words were fast and sharp and Hazel’s head snapped up from where she’d been staring at her feet to avoid his gaze.

‘No way?’

‘No way we’re forgetting it.’ His mouth tipped into a slow smile and Hazel’s breath caught. ‘I can teach you.’

‘Oh.’ Heat crept up her neck but it wasn’t just her face that was warm, it was all of her. Heat pooled in her belly and between her thighs. Just a look from Noah had her hotter than all her past relationships combined.

‘When should we start?’ he asked, taking another step toward her until she could feel the rise and fall of his chest against hers.

‘Um … as soon as possible, I would say. Unless…’ The words stuck in her throat when she felt the soft brush of Noah’s hand against her breast. ‘Unless you’re busy.’

Noah chuckled as he undid her top button. ‘Definitely not busy.’

‘Right.’ Another button undone. ‘Good.’ Another.

Noah paused at the fourth, his gaze settling on the cleavage that was now visible. Thank the sweet lord that she put on a good bra this morning and not the worn-out one that was barely hanging on.

He leaned in and swept the hair from her neck with his hand. His breath skated across her skin before he kissed along her jaw bone.

‘This is going to be fun,’ he whispered, sending chills through Hazel’s body. She had no doubt about that.

His fingers continued their trek down the front of her shirt undoing each button, slowly, torturously, while Noah kissed and sucked her neck. He tugged the bottom of her shirt from her pants to get to the last of the buttons and when he did, he pulled away from her neck and stood back.

Hazel was dazed, already so turned on she didn’t know what to do with herself. The delicate skin on her neck tingled from Noah’s lips and the scrape of his stubble. Her shirt hung open, the rapid rise and fall of her chest moving the two sides further apart.

‘Much better.’ Noah’s smile was triumphant this time, his eyes dark and hungry and for the first time in her life Hazel understood what it felt like to be wanted. To be desired.

And it felt really damn good.

She wrapped her hands in Noah’s tight black T-shirt and tugged him forward. She wanted more of this. More of him. More of feeling this damn good.

‘Do you know how many times I’ve pictured you like this?’ he murmured into her skin as he kissed down her neck. He traced the top of her breasts with his lips and then with his tongue and Hazel groaned.

He stood and put his hands on her hips and she was up on the countertop before she registered what he was doing.

‘Every damn time I would come into that shop and see you there behind the register, all buttoned up. All prim and proper.’

‘I’m not prim.’ Hazel gasped as Noah’s tongue dipped into the top of her bra and found her nipple. She wrapped her legs around his waist and tugged him closer.

He chuckled, his warm breath raising goosebumps in the places he’d just licked. ‘Well, I know that now. But then, I just wanted to rip open that damn shirt and…’

He demonstrated exactly what he wanted to do, burying his face between Hazel’s breasts, his hands coming up to cup and squeeze them. Hazel arched toward him, wanting more, needing more. She slid the shirt the rest of the way off, letting it pool on the counter behind her.

Noah’s hands came around her and undid the clasp of her bra. He pulled back, then, like he was unwrapping her and didn’t want to miss a minute of seeing his gift. A moment of insecurity hit Hazel. It was a heady feeling to know someone had been fantasizing about you, but what if you didn’t live up to the fantasy?

She met Noah’s hungry gaze. Okay, maybe she was living up to it pretty well.

‘So perfect,’ he groaned, cupping a naked breast in his hand. He ran his thumb over the nipple and Hazel couldn’t help the sharp intake of breath at the movement. He grinned. ‘You are so damn sexy, Hazel Kelly.’

She might be starting to believe it. With the way he was looking at her, touching her like he couldn’t get enough. She’d be an idiot not to believe it.

He ducked his head and took her nipple in his mouth. He sucked and Hazel’s head dropped back. It thunked against the top cabinets but she didn’t feel it. She didn’t feel anything except Noah’s mouth on her body and the growing ache between her legs.

‘You okay?’ he asked, lapping at her nipple between words.

Hazel groaned. ‘Yes. Very okay.’

She could feel his smile against the curve of her breast.

‘Do you want me to keep going?’

‘God, yes.’

He chuckled and then ran his tongue over her other nipple. Hazel’s body arched toward him. She wasn’t in control of it anymore. This was a new body. A body that wanted and was wanted. This body was sexy and desirable, and even if those feelings hadn’t totally sunk into her brain yet they had been thoroughly absorbed by her skin.

Noah alternated between sucking and flicking his tongue over her sensitized nipples until Hazel wondered if she could come just from this. Was that a thing? How had she come this far and still know so little about her own body?

And why had her past boyfriends paid so little attention to her breasts? They were right there!

Hazel’s fingers gripped tight to the edge of the counter like she might float away if she didn’t hold on. Her heels dug into Noah’s lower back and her gaze had wandered down to where Noah was worshiping her body.

She moaned at the sight of his mouth on her breast. His eyes met hers and liquid heat flooded her veins. He licked her one last time and then raised his head to kiss her, his lips warm and soft now.

‘Do you want me to keep going?’ he asked between kisses.

‘Yes.’ Her voice was embarrassingly breathy but she couldn’t help it. ‘You don’t have to keep asking, I’m okay.’

He pulled back, a crease between his brows. ‘Of course I have to keep asking, Haze.’

‘Oh. I just meant … I don’t want you to worry about me or anything.’

He kissed along her neck again. ‘I want this to be good for you. Every time. I’ll always ask.’

She pried her fingers from the counter and ran them across the wide expanse of his back. A little thrill ran through her at the touch, at the fact that she was allowed to touch him.

‘Okay. I want this to be good for you, too.’

He kissed across her cheeks, nudging her glasses with his nose. ‘Thank you. So far I’m enjoying myself very much.’

She huffed a small laugh as he kissed down the ridge of her nose.

‘May I?’ he asked, pausing before he lifted the glasses from her face. She nodded and he set them down beside her on the counter. He kissed her long and slow and deep.

‘I want to go down on you.’ The words were a low rumble in her ear and just hearing him say it out loud made her shiver. ‘Can I?’

‘Yes,’ she squeaked. She cleared her throat. ‘Definitely.’

He smiled, leaving another lingering kiss on her lips while he undid her pants. She lifted her hips so he could slide them off, leaving her in nothing but her underwear sitting on her kitchen counter.

Nothing so scandalous had ever happened to her in her entire life, which she realized said a lot about her life. But that was what she was trying to remedy, right? And Noah kneeling in between her legs felt like just the thing to do it.

His hands were on her hips and he pulled her forward so her butt was right on the edge.

‘God, you’re killing me Hazel,’ he groaned, running a finger down the front of her underwear. The touch was light, barely a touch at all and still Hazel felt everything tighten, everything in her body coming to focus on that one single touch, that one finger.

‘Killing you how?’ Her voice wasn’t hers. It was breathy and far away.

‘These little cotton panties. I’ve been thinking about them since the beach.’

Shit. Should she be wearing some kind of lacy thong or something? Hazel owned exactly one lacy thong that she had worn exactly once for an anniversary. Joel, her boyfriend at the time, had given it a cursory glance before tossing it aside. Fancy underwear just hadn’t seemed worth it after that. And they weren’t very comfortable.

Hazel glanced down. But now with Noah face to face with her practical, polka-dotted, cotton underwear she could feel the sexy confidence seeping from her body. She was losing it.

Until Noah leaned forward and ran his tongue over the front of them.

He groaned and it vibrated through her entire body.

Maybe the moment was salvageable after all. ‘I can…’ Hazel went to take them off, but Noah grabbed her wrists, stilling her in place.

‘No,’ his voice was nearly a growl. ‘Keep them on.’

‘You … like them?’

He looked up at her, a look of shocked exasperation on his face. ‘These panties are all I’ve thought about for the past twenty-four hours. Well, these panties and seeing you in them. Ever since I got a feel of them yesterday, I’ve wanted to see you in nothing but these.’ He grinned. ‘And look at that. Dreams really do come true.’

Hazel’s laugh dissolved as soon as Noah ran another finger down her core. She was sure her panties were already soaked through, but she forced herself not to be embarrassed by that, not to close her legs.

Instead she let her head drop back, gently this time, to the cabinets behind her, and let Noah tease her with his fingers and his mouth. By the time he finally tugged the underwear to the side and licked her bare flesh Hazel was so close to coming she was surprised she didn’t fall apart after the first flick of his tongue.

‘So perfect,’ he murmured and Hazel’s toes curled. He mimicked the same attention he’d paid to her breasts, alternating between licking and sucking until Hazel thought this man’s mouth must be some kind of national treasure. Like maybe there should be a holiday designated to it.

Heat was building everywhere. Heat and a throbbing ache pulsed through her. Sounds were spilling out of Hazel that she didn’t want to think too closely about or she’d be horrified. Deep guttural sounds that were being torn from her by the pleasure racking her body. Noah’s fingers dug tight into her hips, holding her in place as he brought her to the brink.

And then he freed her hips to press a thumb to her clit, steady pressure right to the center of her. White-hot pleasure shot straight to her toes.

Hazel’s life flashed before her eyes.

No, not her whole life, just all the mediocre sex she’d had until this very moment. No sound escaped her, no breath.

He switched back to his mouth, sucking relentlessly.

Hazel broke.

Her body shuddered, a low, keening moan tearing from her lips. It went on and on until she finally twisted her body away, unable to take another second. It was too much. Her whole body shook, her throat raw from whatever animalistic sounds she’d been making. Thank God the windows were shut or the neighbors probably would have called the police by now.

Holy shit. This man deserved two holidays, a parade and a statue in the town square.

Noah laid gentle kisses along her inner thighs before standing. She leaned forward and pressed her head into his chest. He wrapped his arms around her, letting his fingers skate over the naked skin of her back.

He was still fully dressed, but having his arms around her made her feel safe and not exposed.

His heart was thudding hard beneath her forehead. She should reciprocate. She needed to return the favor. She just needed a minute to catch her breath.

‘Did you … I mean, was it okay?’ he asked.

Hazel pulled back, staring in disbelief. ‘Was it okay? Noah, that was…

‘Transcendent?’ he asked, the slow smile returning to his face.

‘Beyond.’

‘Good.’ He pressed a kiss to her forehead. ‘I should get going.’

‘Wait, what? You can’t go.’ How could you even think about leaving now? After … that? Hazel’s post-orgasm glow was threatening to fade.

‘It’s getting late.’

‘But you … but I didn’t get to…’

He gave her a rueful smile. ‘Haze, it’s okay. This one was for you.’

She frowned. ‘No. Now we’re all lopsided.’

‘Trust me, we’re not. That was amazing.’

She ran a hand over the front of his jeans and the hard ridge of his erection. He sucked in a quick intake of breath. ‘But I want you to feel as good as I do right now.’

He groaned, leaning his forehead against hers. ‘I appreciate that, I really, really do. But I don’t have a condom.’

She hadn’t considered that at all. She hadn’t even planned to have him come in.

‘Me, neither.’

‘So I should go.’

‘No!’

‘Hazel…’

‘We could … I mean … I will…’

‘Hazel it’s fine, really. I’m a big boy. I can⁠—’

‘I want to go down on you, too,’ she blurted, cutting him off.

Noah’s eyes widened, the pupils swallowing the color. She didn’t miss the stutter in his breath. She liked it.

Her smile grew. ‘I want to go down on you, Noah. May I?’ She licked her bottom lip and Noah’s groan reverberated through the kitchen.

‘I’m going to need an enthusiastic yes before I can continue,’ she teased. Noah nipped her bottom lip and she yelped.

‘Yes,’ he held her gaze. ‘Yes, I want you to go down on me.’