Culpables years later...

Chapter 8

Nick

Playing soccer with Andrew was one of the best moments I've had with him. As I looked up, I noticed Noah and Steve were watching us. My smile got bigger.

"Dad, I win! I'm a winner!" Andrew came running towards me, and I twisted him in the air and put him on my shoulders. His hands clutched at my head, and I tickled him with my hands. Noah came up to us and squeezed her arms around my waist. "My two soccer players." Andrew giggled, and I pulled them closer with one arm. "Mom are you better? Dad said you were sick. Did I catch you, Mom? I didn't want to."

"No, honey. It was just a lot of work for me today, so I had to get some rest. You didn't do anything." Despite all the shit going on, it was those little moments that I've always wanted. As it was getting dark, I noticed Steve's looks telling us to go inside. Steve followed us every step of the way, while Alex took care of security around the house. So he ran his rounds around the house. Dinner was relatively relaxed. Maggie was talking about her math exam she had finally taken today after weeks of studying. My dad was talking about his new company, which seemed to have some problems. The irony was that when I was in trouble, he'd been grumbling all the time. I wanted to be better than that, so I kept quiet. Dinner was relatively relaxed. Maggie was talking about her math exam she had finally taken today after weeks of studying. My dad was talking about his new company, which seemed to have some problems. The irony was that when I was in trouble, he'd been grumbling all the time. I wanted to be better than that, so I kept quiet.

I didn't want Noah to be sad. What could I do? Simple. The thing that always relaxed us. A walk on the beach. After lunch, Andie and Maggie watched TV, where I decided to take Noah to the beach. I asked my dad Andrew to tuck in later so that I could have time with Noah. On the way to the beach, I held her hand with one hand. As my thumb ran over her hand, she looked out the window. When I got to the beach, I took a deep breath in and out. The ocean could always help me get down. Noah and I held hands while we took an evening walk on the beach. "Do you remember our first time on the beach freckles?" "Of course. One of the best moments of my life." I pulled her close and kissed her dearly. Like two teenagers in love, we made out on the beach.

We sat down in the sand and looked at the water. My arm wrapped her waist. "I've been in love with you since the first time you told me you hated me." "I remember. It was funny."

Noah sat down on my lap and kissed me. "What do you say we re-enact our first time Nick?" "I'm fine with that freckles." She took off my shirt and sensually kissed my neck, her nails scratching my back. I took off her shirt and her breasts leaped toward me. They weren't big, but they were fine. As I paid close attention to her breasts, Noah moaned softly, her moaning telling me she loved it. "Nick, I have to be inside you. Please." Those words drove me nuts. I turned us on our backs so I lay on top of Noah. I kissed down between her thighs. Slowly, I stripped her pants and panties off. My tongue came to the spot where Noah soon exploded. My eyes went to her, but hers were closed. My tongues circled around her clitoris, and Noah's sigh kept me going. So I pulled my fingers in. She went mad. I speeded up, and I pushed two fingers into her. "Nick, here I come. Nick I -- " And then, when Noah was all wet, Noah climaxed. Her hands gripped hard into my hair and pulled me deeper into their center. I took off my pants and underpants and looked at them. Her exhausted smile encouraged me to continue. As I kissed her, I slid slowly into her. "You feel so perfect about Noah." My knocks got faster and deeper, and the moans louder. Noah turned, so I was on the ground and she was above me. She rode me as only she could. Her hair was blowing in the wind, and she looked like a goddess. My goddess. She took turns kissing my neck and my lips. My hands helped her to rock, and eventually we both came to orgasm.

As the orgasm subsided, she lay down on my chest and watched me. "I love you Nick Capullo Leister." I kissed her and held her tightly. "You know where I always wanted to go with you, Nick? Paris. No matter how clichéd it is, I always wanted to be in Paris with the person I love." I brushed a strand off her face. "Anything you want, baby. Our next vacation is going to Paris. It's romantic just for you. Both of us." Her laughter made me happy. We made love one or two more laps before we got dressed and kept walking. When we got to the car, we were startled as someone leaned against the car. It was dark, so it was hard to recognize the person. "Hello, you two. Having fun?" We got closer to the car and we recognized the person. I pulled Noah behind me. It was Ronnie. "Ronnie, you asshole! What are you doing here? Are you working with Michael?" Ronnie laughed angrily. "Me? No. I've heard of it, and I'm a fan of his. I don't like either of you. I hate you and your friends. Michael had done cool things. I'll tell you one thing. Take care of yourselves. He's got his eyes all over."

We were totally confused, and Noah looked at me. "What do you mean, Ronnie? What's he planning?" He shook his head and ran past me, but before he whispered something to my ear. "Be careful, Leister." I looked at him where he got into his car and drove away. Noah looked at me puzzled. "If even Ronnie, who hates us, tells us to be careful, that means something. What's going to happen to Nick?" The truth was I had no idea and was scared. I pulled Noah into my arms and breathed in the scent of her. We hurried home and found an empty dark house. I'm sure they were all sleeping peacefully. Noah and I went into the kitchen and got a drink. "Somehow the silence is weird, don't you think?" She was right, it was weird. Usually when there are kids in the house, it's never going to be quiet, let alone boring.

"Yes. Do you want to go upstairs and take a shower together? We've gotten dirty, don't you think?" She laughed seductively, pulling my hand up with her.

After taking a shower, Noah lay down to sleep. I, on the other hand, had to do some work. Quietly, I left Noah's room and checked Andrew's room to see if he was okay. A radio play was on the side, and he himself was sleeping peacefully. Quietly, I closed the door and sat down in the living room. Steve was awake leaving a newspaper. Alex was there too, just outside the whole time. "Hello Mr. Leister, are you all right?" I couldn't help but smile. After all these years, he was still literally talking to me. "Yes, given the circumstances. With you? I hope we don't keep you from your family." "All good sir. You're like a son to me and your family is mine. I'm proud of you. How you want to master all this and be strong for your family."

I ran my hands over my face. "It's got to be somebody. Noah's already scared, and I don't want her to worry any more, whether it's me or our whole family. I thought it was over, you know? All the suffering and anger. And here we go. I just want to be happy and happy with my family. Is that too much to ask?"

"You know. There are people who are unhappy and blame others for their problems. They have a hard time getting along on their own. They're going to get through this. I'm sure they will." He gave me a smile, "It's going to be okay." He let me go, and I just focused on the work. But my mind was always going to Ronnie. What did he mean? I was at the end of my game. I wish Lion was here. I needed his advice.

I stopped trying to work so I could go to bed with Noah. After an hour, I said goodbye to Steve and went to bed.