Noras House Ch 01

Rob Thompson - Summer 2024

"Rob! We're ready for lunch!"

The shout jolted me out of the empty mind space induced by the hours spent painting Nora's guest bedroom. I headed to the bathroom to wash the paint off my hands, then made my way down the stairs that still needed some work.

Thomas was already sitting at the table.

"Put on a shirt, young man."

It had been a hot July morning working in a house without functioning AC. As I reached for a discarded painting shirt on the couch, I noticed Nora's head whipping around from her spot at the kitchen sink, her eyes catching mine.

After making myself more presentable, I joined father and daughter at the table. Nora began filling our plates.

"Caesar salad! It's not much but with the heat I didn't feel like using the oven." Despite her words it was clear Nora was pleased with how the meal had come out.

"I still can't get over you cooking now," I teased. She wouldn't get a compliment from me without a little ribbing. "A few months ago, we nearly set my apartment on fire trying to make pasta."

"Honestly I've just been bored out of my mind since I moved to the 'burbs." Nora sighed. "When I come home from work I can either plop down in front of the TV and then pay a ridiculous amount for delivery." She scooped more food onto my plate. "Or I can cook for myself."

"Well I'm happy to see you taking care of yourself." Thomas said. Despite his stern exterior I had come to see more of his warm and supportive side over the past few months. "You are what you eat."

Nora had bought the house at the beginning of spring. It wasn't exactly a fixer-upper, but it still required a fair amount of work to reach its current state. Thomas, who ran a small construction firm, handled the more difficult tasks, but the three of us spent most weekends working to make the house livable.

I couldn't quite explain why I felt so compelled to help. Nora and I had met years ago at work and had quickly become close friends. However, her ex-boyfriend's jealousy soured our relationship, leading her to cut me out of her life for a while.

When my father died earlier this year, and I hit rock bottom, she was there for me. Working on the house gave me something else to focus on besides my strained relationship with my late dad. The hours spent painting, tiling or pulling weeds out of the front yard with Nora rekindled the bond we once shared.

"I'm done for the weekend." Thomas announced after finishing his meal. "I feel bad leaving your mother alone so much."

"Sure. Give her a kiss for me." Nora said, getting up to give her father a quick hug.

I took the dishes to the sink and started scrubbing them under the water.

"So what about you?" Nora asked me from the table after Thomas had left. "Do you want to hang around? The deck will be really nice with this sun."

"Actually I'd like to finish removing some of the shrubs in the back."

"Come on, you know you're welcome to stay here without working. Just chill with me, I don't expect you to be slaving away all the time."

"I know, I know. But I'm way too OCD to enjoy the backyard with those damn bushes taunting me all afternoon."

She giggled. "Suit yourself, I'm not lifting a finger. We've worked too hard not to laze under the sun on a day like this."

With that, I set off to grab some tools from the shed and start tackling the remaining vegetation in the backyard. The sun was beating down hard, but I enjoyed the manual labor. It allowed me to zone out and clear my mind, a welcome change from my mentally taxing job.

The garden was fairly large, especially for a suburban property. The backyard was almost sectioned off by a row of trees and bushes running parallel to the back wall of the house. We had already cleared the area closest to the deck, which contained an empty pool.

But the section further back was still a mess. A tangle of shrubs, overgrown lawn and unruly bushes, all of which needed to be cut or trimmed. The resulting yard waste was then carted off to the front of the house, to be picked up later by Thomas in his truck.

It was during one of those trips pushing the wheelbarrow that I noticed Nora stepping onto the deck and settling into one of the chaise lounges. To my surprise, she had changed into a black bikini. I tried to keep my focus on the work, but found myself stealing discreet glances in her direction.

Nora's recent forays into cooking had altered her figure, and it showed. She had clearly not renewed her swimwear to match, and her bikini, now too snug, accentuated her curves in a way that naturally caught the eye. The contrast of her pale skin against the dark fabric was striking, especially as she began to apply a thick layer of sunscreen on herself.

Despite my best efforts she must have caught me staring and pointed to the chair next to her.

"You're sure you don't want to just enjoy the sun?" she asked with a knowing smile.

"Uhm... No, I'm making good progress over here." I was trying to keep my cool.

"Your loss then."

I forced myself to look away, tightening my grip on the wheelbarrow, and refocused on my campaign against the wild backyard shrubs.

About an hour later, Nora called for my attention.

"Rob! Time for a break! I made cookies."

On the deck table, she had set out a plate piled with fresh cookies and a single tall glass of milk.

"I thought you didn't want to use the oven."

"We're not even indoors anymore, it doesn't matter, stop pulling my leg." Her tone was sharp, but her smile showed that she was enjoying the teasing. "So what do you think? Are they any good?"

The freshly baked cookies were warm and chewy, with just a touch of saltiness. I had already started stuffing my face, so I could only answer with two thumbs up.

"Pace yourself you pig!" she chided, pointing at the glass. "Drink your milk too."

"What am I, six? Why would I drink a glass of straight milk?"

"I had some leftover. It was going to go bad. Also it's not straight milk, it's half cow half almond."

"Okay, weirdo. Whatever you say."

With a smile on my face, I started drinking from the glass. She was right, the usual tangy flavor of milk was there, but with a strong sugary note.

The coolness of the drink was more than welcome. Working under the blazing sun had left me slightly dehydrated. As I chugged, I noticed that Nora was staring at me quite intently.

"So you like it?" she asked.

I shrugged. "I mean, it is milk." I realized how ungrateful that made me sound. I tried to switch topics. "Anyways, how are things at Wearstone since your big promotion?"

I had always admired Nora's social skills, she never felt out of place in a group setting and could always find a way to relate to someone. Unsurprisingly this led to her being a great saleswoman, and her promotion to head of her team had only been a matter of time.

"I guess it's been a bit strange. Going from spending years working for Kyle to working with him was jarring at first."

Kyle Ramos was our boss when we both started at Wearstone, but Nora had been promoted to manager a few months ago.

"Now I'm settling into a new routine, it feels more natural." She paused for a while before adding with a smirk. "Lydia is still a bitch though."

"Some things never change."

"It's reassuring in a way." She shrugged. "And what about you? I don't think I ever congratulated you on your move to Rockedge. It's been what, almost two years?"

"Yeah we weren't talking anymore at the time."

Back then Nora was dating Corey, whose growing jealousy over our closeness eventually led her to end our friendship. Despite all the time we had spent working on her house in the past few months, a strained silence always surfaced whenever certain topics came up.

A wave of anger surged in my chest, drawing from resentment I had not realized was still there. Nora's eyes widened, telling me I did not hide it really well.

"I better get back to it. Garden won't fix itself."

"Rob, wait, I..." She started, but I was already up and heading back to pick up the tools, leaving no room for further conversation.

Once again, manual labor proved to be therapeutic, allowing me to focus on my movements and use my body, taking my mind off my emotions. Nora did not attempt to confront me, opting instead to go back inside.

I eventually found myself facing down a thorny bush. Fortunately, it was no match for sharp steel tools and I was soon hacking away at its branches, piling them into the wheelbarrow. Soon enough it was full and I began hauling it towards the front yard.

As I moved closer to the deck, my foot suddenly slipped. My right knee scraped badly against the ground and my torso fell sideways into the wheelbarrow. My head landed onto my hand, sparing my face from the thorny branches. But I could feel them scratching the entire right side of my upper body.

The fall must have made quite a lot of noise. As I was trying to get up, I could hear Nora running out of the house towards me. My head was ringing and my shoulder was on fire.

"Oh my god! Rob, what happened to you?"

The impact of the edge of the wheelbarrow with my stomach had taken the wind out of me, but I think she still managed to piece the events together.

"Come inside, you're bleeding. I'll check you up."

Nora grabbed my left arm and pulled me into the house. I could feel the cooler air on my scratched skin as we hurried up the stairs and into the master bedroom. She sat me down on her bed and bolted into the adjoining bathroom.

An instant later Nora came back to the bedroom with a washcloth, an antiseptic spray, a pair of tweezers and a box of band-aids.

"Are you ok? Do you feel like you have broken something?"

I finally caught my breath, the pain dulling slightly, though a wave of embarrassment hit me, making me wince.

"Nothing broken, but I think I have a bunch of thorns stuck in me."

"Okay. Let me clean up your knee and then I'll take a look at your arm."

The scratches on my knee looked pretty bad at first. But as she wiped it with the warm washcloth, it became clear that it was just blood, and the wound itself was minor.

"There you go, I removed the pebbles that stuck to the skin, it's not too bad." She then grabbed the antiseptic spray. "This is going to sting a little bit though." Nora smiled and looked up at me. "But you're a big boy, right?"

"Here I am, bleeding to death, and still you patronize me. How insensitive."

"Tis but a scratch." I could not help but chuckle. She gently blew on my scratches, to dry the antiseptic.

After spraying my knee a few more times she got up facing me. I must have been hit on the head harder than I thought because it wasn't until now that I realized she hadn't changed clothes. Sure, she had wrapped a pareo around her hips, but she was still only wearing her undersized black bikini as a top.

Nora leaned over me and grabbed my right arm.

"Shit, there's actually quite a lot of thorns stuck in your skin."

Suddenly, I felt her hands on my lower belly.

"Whoa, what are you doing?"

"Relax! I need to take your shirt off, you big baby. It ripped on your shoulder and you're bleeding through in a few spots."

Before I could respond, she pulled at my t-shirt, and all I could do was sheepishly raise my arms to avoid it getting stuck around my head. It felt a little embarrassing to let her have her way. But there was something else flickering through me, something I couldn't quite name yet.

"Hold up your hand, I'll make my way up your arm, then do your shoulder and neck."

I obliged, and Nora proceeded to use her pair of tweezers to remove the thorns. Once she was done with a patch she would run the washcloth over it and then spray some antiseptic. It pinched and stung, but the sensation that I felt most was the caress of her warm breath on my damp skin.

She was working in silence, hunched over my arm. Her chest was now at eye level, and bit by bit, I noticed her bikini top losing its battle against gravity. Eventually, it surrendered, and her right breast slipped free, revealing a large brown areola and a stiff nipple.

I was trying my hardest not to stare when Nora shifted to work on my shoulder and neck. She pushed me further up the bed and then sat facing me. Unlike my arm she could not move my shoulder to inspect the skin in search of rebellious thorns, instead she brought her face close to mine.

This meant I could no longer see her chest, but it led to a new, unexpected closeness. In this position her wavy black hair was caressing me whenever she moved, sending tingles up my spine. And from time to time, I felt the soft brush of her bare breast against my chest.

When she needed me to change position to get better access to a spot on my skin, she did not ask anymore. She would just use her hands to move me around as if I were a doll. With her so close and not wearing any perfume I could smell the natural scent of her skin, as well a hint of sweat from her time under the sun.

By this point in my life I was no stranger to sensual physical contact. But when Nora cupped the side of my face to lift my chin and check the skin on my throat, it felt like the nerves in the back of my head exploded, flooding me with tingles. I was discovering a completely new form of intimacy, different from anything I'd experienced during sex.

Nora broke the silence, pulling me back to reality.

"Here that was the last of them!" She beamed, holding up a bloody thorn in her tweezers. However, as she looked at my face, her expression shifted to concern. "You're crying, did I hurt you?"

I hadn't noticed my eyes filling with tears until she pointed it out, and I wasn't sure why they were there.

"No, I'm fine. Thanks for the help, I owe you one." I was desperately trying to put on a brave face.

Nora reached out and wiped away a tear that had rolled down my cheek with her thumb. Then without warning, she pushed me, forcing me to lay on my back. This time, I didn't even have a chance to protest before she started speaking

"You need to take a nap. I think you've overdone it with the yard work for today and that was a big fall." She had already taken off my socks and was now pulling on the legs of my shorts. As Nora took even more control, a mix of gratitude and unease settled over me. I wasn't used to being this reliant on someone, and it made me feel both cared for and exposed.

"I'm really dirty, I'd better get back home and shower."

"Nonsense," she cut me off. "I don't think you should be driving right now. And besides, I need to wash the sheets."

Almost without thinking, I found myself agreeing with her. My body felt heavy, worn out from the physical labor and the fall. She pulled at my shorts again, but this time I didn't resist. I lifted my hips, defeated, and was left lying there in just my boxers.

"There you go sweetheart." She pulled the covers over me, and I found myself surrounded by the same scent I had smelled on her skin. "Sleep tight."

She turned off the lights and exited the room, leaving me alone to doze off.

Rob Thompson - Summer 2024 - The next morning

I had overslept at Nora's house and barely had time to rush home and get ready for my evening date, if you could call it that.

Tom was a nice enough guy from a dating app. We had already hooked up together a few times. He wasn't really in the best of shape, sporting a bit of a belly, but he made up for it with his height, broad shoulders and strong arms. He mentioned playing football in high school.

We went to a bar, got a little bit tipsy, made out then walked back to his place. I was glad for the nap the previous afternoon, because we didn't get much sleep that night.

A good chunk of Sunday morning had already been lost when I woke up in Tom's bed. We were both naked under the covers.

This was what my dating life had looked like ever since I had left college. A succession of meaningless hookups with men and women. At twenty six, I had to agree, it was starting to feel incredibly shallow.

I was also trying hard to suppress the memory of the events that had taken place at Nora's the day before. The sensation I'd felt in Tom's bed last night paled in comparison to the intimacy and confusion Nora had awakened in me with just a few simple gestures of care. But I was not quite ready to confront that yet.

Fortunately, my life was full of distractions, keeping me from dwelling too much on my lack of emotional fulfillment. Case in point, I soon realized that it was my phone lighting up with text messages that had stirred me awake.

Helen: hey u up?

Helen: james is out of town today

Helen: need to do some shopping

Helen: tag along? i can pick u up :)

Helen and James Chen were originally Nora's friends from college. I had met them when she and I had first started working together at my previous company. When Nora cut ties with me for almost two years, I had gotten really close to them. To the point that I was James' best man at their wedding last summer.

Rob: sure

Rob: I'm not home though

Rob: sending you the address

Helen: lol

Just like Nora, the newlyweds had moved to a house in the suburbs not long ago. Their property was not nearly as large as hers, but it had been in a significantly better state when they bought it.

I slowly extricated myself from the bed and took a quick shower. When I got back to the bedroom to pick up my clothes Tom was starting to wake up.

His voice was tinged with disappointment as he asked, "You're going?"

"Hey sleepy head, a friend is coming to pick me up."

"But I'm still horny."

"Sorry, no time". I answered apologetically.

He tossed the covers aside, and his erection flopped lazily against his belly. He looked really good, on his side, propped up on his shoulder. His large cock was standing at full attention and his balls were spread lazily over his strong thigh.

"I'm really horny."

"Okay but we have to be really quick." I said, unable to contain a grin.

I got up on the bed and knelt next to his hips.

"Lay on your back."

He obeyed, too happy to see me fold to protest. I grabbed the base of his penis with one hand and lowered my head, taking him in my mouth. He had clearly been sweating in his sleep but the taste was still pleasant.

When he reached for my own erection, I swatted his hand away.

"No time for that." I said with a big smile, before going back to work on him.

Instead his hand came to rest on top of my head. Some guys were really pushy and would have tried to press my face lower on their crotch. But Tom was not like that. He simply let me do my thing while playing with my hair.

One of the big advantages of promiscuity is that you pick up a lot of techniques to make sure an encounter does not last longer than you want it to. Between my hands, my tongue, my lips and what I could only imagine a lack of experience on Tom's end, I was able to bring him to the edge in record time.

As I felt his orgasm build I pushed him further in my throat, the hair on his pubis tingling my lips. It never felt right to me to make a mess on someone's belly or on the sheets of a bed, but I did not want to carry his taste until my next meal.

He came down my throat with a deep moan, his hands gripping the mattress, the rest of his body arching from his release. When he was done I pulled myself up and gave a last kiss to the head of his rapidly deflating cock.

"Okay gotta go now. I'll text you later." I probably would not, though, I had the feeling he was starting to get too attached. But in his post-orgasm state of bliss he did not put up much of a fight.

I quickly got dressed, grabbed my phone and made my way down towards the street. Usually a morning quickie like that would leave me buzzing with energy for the rest of the day, but after the weird experience with Nora the day before, it just felt flat.