Chapter Fourteen — Brothers in arms
The bass of the club vibrated through Lexi's bones.
Lights strobed across the dance floor, each pulse making the sea of people shimmer like a living, breathing thing.
Gia was tugging her through the crowd, laughing.
They were three drinks in, and the room already felt like it was on a happy tilt.
Behind them, Lucas and Noah held court at the VIP booth — drinks in hand, watching the girls.
Lucas smirked, eyes flicking to Noah, who hadn't taken his eyes off Lexi all night. His eyes followed her every move, met every smile and without knowing it- matched her every heartbeat.
God she's beautiful.
Lexi bounced back to the booth, hair messy, eyes sparkling.
"Shots!" she declared. "We need more shots!"
Noah chuckled. "You sure you'll survive
Lexi looks offended. "Excuse me, husband. Are you calling me a lightweight?"
Gia was already flagging down a server.
A tray of tequila shots arrived moments later — salt, lime wedges, the works.
Lexi grabbed a shot, did one, and then leaned in toward Noah, eyes mischievous.
"Body shots?"
Noah blinked. "Body shots?"
She nodded enthusiastically and then pouted theatrically. "Aw, can't handle it?"
Noah smirked. "I can handle you."
Lexi almost seductively crawled on to Noah, straddling his thighs. He grabbed her hips and looked up at her like he was being seduced by a goddess.
Lucas leaned in to Gia.
"Does Lexi know she's in love with her husband yet?" he asked with a mix of joke and seriousness.
"She's getting there. What about Noah?"
"I think he knows he has feelings for her, but I'm not sure he knows that he loves her."
Gia looks excited and has to grab her heart. "He loves her?"
"Just look at him..."
⸻
They started with Noah first.
Lexi giggled as she carefully sprinkled salt along his collarbone, then placed the lime between his lips.
Noah held her gaze — heat already building in his veins. The familiar twitch in the groin.
When she leaned in, slow, teasing — her tongue tracing the salt from his skin — his breath caught.
The tequila shot was gone in a flash.
Then her mouth was on his — taking the lime — their lips brushing, lingering for just a second too long.
His pulse roared.
God help him, he wanted her.
⸻
Then it was Lexi's turn.
She tilted her head back, neck exposed, as Noah dusted salt along her throat — heart racing.
He brought the lime to her lips, fingers lingering as their eyes locked.
Noah leaned in.
Tongue on her neck — slow, deliberate — making Lexi shiver.
He tossed the shot back, then bent toward her mouth, taking the lime — but the way their lips met was anything but casual.
For a second, they simply… hovered there, breath mingling.
Then Noah pulled back, jaw tight.
Lexi was flushed, eyes wide.
Lucas and Gia exchanged a look.
Gia whispered, "I think she just got there."
Later Lexi wandered toward the bar — flushed, glowing, heart pounding from the night… and from him.
She didn't notice the tall guy approaching until he was suddenly too close.
Overconfident. Smelling of overpriced cologne and cloves.
"Hey, gorgeous," he said, leaning in. "You here alone?"
Lexi gave a polite smile. "Actually—"
Before she could finish, a hand touched her hip.
Too far.
Noah was there in an instant, voice low and tight.
"Don't touch her!"
The guy snorted. "The fuck are you, punk?"
Noah's eyes darkened. "I'm her husband."
The guy laughed. "The fuck you are. Now fuck off. You're blocking my shot."
Lexi barely thought.
Before he had the chance to throw his fist in the man's face, she grabbed Noah by the shirt and kissed him.
⸻
What started as a way to get the creepy guy to back off became… something else entirely.
The second their lips met, the air vanished.
Heat. Hunger. Need.
Their mouths moved hungrily, bodies pressed tight, the rest of the club fading to nothing.
When they finally broke apart, the guy was long gone.
Breathless, Noah rasped, "I need you. Let's go home."
Lexi grinned. "God, yes."
⸻
They hurried over to the VIP section to get their things and tell their remaining company about their departure.
But Lucas and Gia were macking like teenagers, practically laying on the black leather sofa.
"We're going-" Lexi started, but the two lovebirds had temporarily checked out from the 3D world.
"Never mind, I'll just text her. Come on, let's get a cab!"
Lexi grabbed Noah's hand. He was staring at their two friends completely lost in each other.
"Did you know about this?" Noah asked as Lexi pulled him towards the exit.
"Anything else you're hiding from me?" he smirked.
Lexi pushed the information about their dads to the back of her mind for now.
"Of course not!"
⸻
Back at the apartment, the door barely closed before Noah had Lexi pinned to the wall.
Mouths crashed.
Hands tangled in hair.
Clothes tugged.
He lifted her easily; she wrapped her legs around him.
Their lips didn't leave each other once during the trip between hallway and his bed.
Clothes peeled away between heated kisses.
Noah hovered above her, eyes burning.
"Are you sure?" he whispered.
Lexi cupped his face. "I've never been more sure."
Noah explored her sensitive skin with his lips, trailing kisses over her body, heading south.
Lexi arched beneath him moaning softly when Noah's mouth reached the place that made her toes curl.
What followed wasn't just sex.
It was claiming. Consuming. Real.
By the time they fell asleep tangled together, neither cared about fake marriages anymore.
⸻
Three days of bliss, the honeymoon phase they never got to have.
That day they decided to finally visit a restaurant that had recently gone viral for their chocolate dipped chicken waffle sticks, crazy gold flake milkshakes and amazing brunch.
It was the kind of place where influencers casually pretended they weren't posing for stories every two minutes.
But Noah and Lexi barely noticed.
They were wrapped up in their own little world.
Noah moved some strands of hair from Lexi's face and caressed her cheek with his thumb.
She smiled warmly. "You're dangerously charming these days."
He met her gaze — earnest. "You bring it out of me."
⸻
It was perfect.
For three days, they'd been… something new.
Waking tangled together.
Stealing kisses in the kitchen.
Sharing looks that said this is more than pretend.
Noah had caught himself, more than once, wanting to say it:
I'm falling for you.
But each time, fear stopped him.
Would she even want that? Or was this all still the challenge to her?
They leaned forward to kiss, but before they reached that far-
their phones buzzed at the same time.
Unknown number.
⸻
Screenshots.
Screenshots of emails.
"Terminate Blackwood without severance."
"He's unstable. Cut before Q4 closes."
"Keep Nova's name off this."
Blackwood? Noah's dad? It was signed with her father's name. His boss.
Lexi froze. They hadn't just fired Charles out of negligence. This was punishment. They wanted to hurt him.
⸻
Noah's blood ran cold.
He stared at the screen, then slowly looked up.
Lexi's face had drained of color — but her eyes were full of something that looked too much like guilt.
His voice came out low, trembling.
"Did you know about this?"
Lexi swallowed hard. "I… I knew he was fired, but—"
Noah's voice rose, sharp and wounded.
"But? But you didn't know your father was a heartless asshole?"
He stood abruptly, chair scraping.
Lexi's heart thudded painfully. She stood too, panic rising.
"He's not an asshole! There has to be an explanation!"
Noah's eyes flashed.
"Of course you'd defend him."
Another buzz.
A new photo.
An old army picture — Charles and Lexi's father Ves, standing side by side in uniform.
Smiling. Younger. Brothers-in-arms.
Noah stared at it, anger boiling.
Voice rough:
"Your dad fired his army buddy. Made sure he didn't have a penny to support his family."
He looked up from the phone, voice shaking:
"There's only one explanation. You can't have old money and a heart at the same time."
"Noah—" Lexi pleaded, stepping closer, voice breaking.
His voice cracked.
"And you knew. And you didn't tell me."
Lexi's throat closed. She whispered, desperate:
"I was going to, I just—"
Noah shook his head.
"I can't. I need to go."
He turned and strode out of the restaurant without looking back.
"Noah!" Lexi called after him, voice choked.
But he didn't stop.
Lexi stood frozen for a moment — then slumped heavily back into her chair.
A shaky breath escaped her lips as tears blurred her vision.
She covered her face with trembling hands.