Code Name: Camelot (Noah Wolf #1)(48)
The three of them sat there at the table and looked at him for a moment, and then Moose raised his bottle into the air. “To the team,” he said. “Let’s make it the best one there is.”
Sarah clinked his bottle with her own. “To the team,” she said.
Neil let out a long sigh, then sat forward and clinked as well. “To the team.”
Noah raised his own bottle and they all toasted again. “To the team,” he said. “We’ve all got to have each other’s backs, every minute when we’re out there. Are we all on the same page?”
All three agreed that they were, and they drank to their new union. When the bottles were back on the table, Sarah looked at Noah.
“So, I’m just curious, but if you don’t have emotions, have you ever had a girlfriend?”
Noah nodded. “Yes, a couple. I dated some in my teens, and I had a couple of girlfriends even since I joined the Army. I’m good enough that my human act keeps them happy for a while, but I don’t ever let anyone get too close. Wouldn’t be fair to them.”
Neil winked at Noah. “Sounds like Sarah might want to apply for the job,” he said, and a moment later Sarah pushed him out of his chair on to the ground.
“No, I don’t! God, Neil, why do you have to be such an ass?”
Neil laughed as he got back up to his chair. “Excuse me, but have you seen me? I’m a stretched-out beanpole with zits! Being a smart ass, and you can take that any way you want, is all I’ve got going for me.”
They sat and talked for another hour, and by that time, each of them had consumed enough alcohol that Noah wasn’t happy about them driving. With Moose backing him up, he managed to convince them all to simply go upstairs in his house and choose a guestroom for the night.
He went to his own room, took a quick shower and dried himself off, then walked naked out of his bathroom. He stopped just past the doorway, when he realized that Sarah was sitting at the foot of his bed.
“Sarah? Did you need something?”
She didn’t answer, but simply stood up and looked at him. She hooked her thumbs into the waistband of her shirt and pulled it off over her head, dropping it onto the floor. The rest of her clothes quickly followed, and she walked over and put her arms up and around his neck. She pulled gently, and he leaned his head down so that their lips met.
When the kiss ended, Noah pulled back and looked into her eyes. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
Sarah looked into his eyes for a moment, then said, “I do. You know we’re not allowed to have any real relationships, right? I figure we need to find ways to help each other out. Sometimes, I just need a little intimacy, just to be close to someone, but the last thing in the world I want right now is to have any real romantic feelings involved. That makes you the safest game in town. As long as you don’t mind being used that way, we can have a little fun, now and then.”
Noah put on a friendly grin. “Sounds like you thought that out logically,” he said. “My only concern might be that the other guys would get jealous. Should we keep this quiet, just between us?”
She shook her head, then kissed him again. “Moose is into big women, and he’s just not my type, anyway. I prefer a man with a brain, but Neil is just a kid. You might not consider yourself human, but at least you are intelligent, and a man.”
Noah lowered his eyebrows, squinting at her. “According to the dossiers they gave me on each of you, you’re only two years older than Neil. There’s a bigger age difference between us than that.”
Sarah giggled. “I wasn’t referring to his age, I’m talking about his whole attitude, the way he acts. He reminds me of a twelve-year-old boy who lived next door to us a couple years ago. He’s just too much of a kid for me, but the whole point of that was that I don’t think we need to keep any secrets.”
Noah shrugged, and kissed her once more, then took her by the hand and led her to the bed. He tossed back the covers and pushed her gently onto the mattress, then slid in beside her.
Like always, Noah woke at five thirty, this time to find himself tangled around the blonde girl in his bed. He managed to extricate himself without waking her, then quietly got out clean clothes and went to take another shower. When he came out of the bathroom fifteen minutes later, Sarah was still sleeping, so he woke her gently.
“Hey, it’s morning,” he said when her eyes were opened and focused on him. “I’m going down to the kitchen to make breakfast, but I wanted to wake you up before I start yelling up the stairs at the guys.”
She yawned, stretched and then smiled at him. “Sounds good,” she said. “Can I use your shower?”
Noah pointed toward the bathroom. “Right in there, help yourself. I’m gonna go make some coffee.”
He went down the hall to the kitchen, and started a pot of coffee, then went to the base of the stairs. “Hey, in case you haven’t noticed, it’s morning time,” he shouted. “Breakfast will be ready in thirty minutes. Anybody who isn’t here then doesn’t get to eat!”
He went back to the kitchen, opened his refrigerator and took out a dozen eggs and a package of sausage links, and set about making breakfast for his guests.
Neil and Moose found their way to the kitchen ten minutes later, and Sarah joined them ten minutes after that. Neil’s eyebrows shot up when he saw Sarah, because she was wearing one of Noah’s polo shirts, and possibly nothing else.