Rock My World

by Lee Piper

  Me: Please.

  I waited a good twenty minutes, or at least until the closing scene of Patrick’s monologue and the remainder of my whiskey had been drained, before giving up. He wasn’t going to reply. It was time to face facts. I’d fucked up.

  Big time.

  After smiling weakly to Patrick, I then drifted back up to the room again. Miraculously, the alcohol actually did what it was supposed to this time and after collapsing on the meticulously remade bed, I grabbed Levi’s pillow, inhaled the remaining scent of him like some mad woman and fell into a fitful sleep.

  I awoke some time later to the sensation of calloused fingers caressing my face. Surely I was still dreaming? I didn’t want to open my eyes and realize that this was all some kind of cruel joke my deceptive head was playing on me, so I kept them tightly shut. Only, the fingers kept stroking me and as my sleep-induced fog slowly lifted, so too did my dejected mood.

  I smiled.

  “You can really snore.”

  I frowned.

  “You do. I could hear you as soon as I got out the elevator.”

  At that my eyes popped open and I hastily sat up before hurling myself at Levi. The sudden movement took him by surprise and he was knocked backward onto the bed. Straddling him, I leaned in until our noses were almost touching, my narrow eyes menacing. “I. Don’t. Snore.”

  That mocking smile of his was back and I felt an incredible lightness, like the weight of the world had finally been lifted from my shoulders. My heart progressively kicked back to life after a few false starts, and began merrily fluttering away like the fickle organ it was.

  Levi rolled his eyes up at me. “Sure, kitten, whatever you say.”

  I froze. “Say it again.”

  “What?”

  “What you just called me. Say it again.”

  “Kitten.”

  My lips slammed into his, no doubt burning him with a ferocity that quite frankly, terrified me. The desperate need I felt for this man was beyond comprehension, beyond description, yet undeniably all-consuming. He wrapped his arms around me, squeezing me tighter, pulling me closer, and I willingly lost myself in the feel of his body pressed against mine. His hands grabbed my ass, my back, my shoulders, my neck, molding them with impatient imprints while my fingers delved into his hair, tangling themselves amongst the soft strands. As I firmly tugged, he groaned into my open mouth and as he gripped my flesh, I moaned into his. Our lips raged a bitter war invading, conquering, occupying what each felt they were rightly owed. And when our tongues met, they at long last acknowledged what had been left unsaid the night before.

  Anger.

  Forgive me.

  Hurt.

  Forgive me.

  Don’t fucking do it again.

  Please. Forgive me.

  By the time our raging battle eventually waned and a truce had been declared, our lips were swollen and bruised.

  I rested my forehead against Levi’s, panting. “I’m so sorry.”

  “I know.”

  “I spoke to Riley. I got it all wrong.”

  “I know.”

  “I’m such a fucking idiot.”

  “I know.”

  I punched his arm and he chuckled. What an incredible sound.

  ****

  “Tell me something about yourself that I don’t already know.”

  We were sitting on the couch later that night and I was licking the last cheesy remains of nacho goodness off my fingers. We’d ordered room service the minute Levi found out that I hadn’t eaten all day. I tried explaining to him that whiskey could essentially be counted as a food group on account of the malt, but he wouldn’t listen. And thank God for that because those nachos were without a doubt the best I’d ever had. However, it then led me to ponder further. Granted, not the best idea after drinking on an empty stomach, especially when I found myself wondering if it was possible to marry a culinary dish. Probably not. Though I did watch a documentary once about people marrying inanimate objects, like the Eiffel Tower, statues, cranes and shit, but quickly dismissed that notion. After all, unless it was a fridge full of nacho ingredients, the point was moot.

  “Grace.” I felt a tug on my hair.

  “Huh?”

  “Tell me something that I don’t already know about you.”

  I’d just fantasized about marrying some Mexican food? Hell no. So I dragged my errant thoughts back to the much more delectable present. My back was resting against Levi’s chest and he was twirling a strand of my hair around his finger.

  “What do you wanna know?”

  “I don’t know, something no one else does.”

  “Um, my star sign is Scorpio?”

  “You’re gonna have to do better than that.”

  “But you already know about my dad and hardly anyone knows that stuff.”

  “Then tell me something else.”

  I thought for a moment and paused, suddenly shy. After taking a deep breath, I mumbled, “I hate getting wet.”

  “What?” Levi sat up straight, pushing me off him before turning me around to face his incredulous eyes. “What do you mean, you hate getting wet?”

  “Just to clarify, we’re talking about water here not … anything else.”

  He smirked.

  I looked down. “And it’s not that I don’t like getting wet exactly…” I sighed. God this was embarrassing. After taking another deep breath and looking up at him again, I continued, “Say you’re swimming at the beach, right?”

  He nodded.

  “And you’ve just stepped out of the water, dripping wet.”

  He nodded again.

  “What do you do?”

  “Ah—”

  “You towel yourself dry of course. Only it’s freakin’ impossible to actually get dry, isn’t it? I mean, your skin is still damp, your hair is still wet and the breeze always picks up by this time so it feels like the temperature suddenly drops to below freezing.” I shuddered. “And then you try and pull on some dry clothes to get warm again but they get all caught up on the residual skin moisture and … and…” I glared at him. “The whole thing is fucking horrible, okay? That’s why I don’t like getting wet.”

  Levi looked at me for a full ten seconds before throwing back his head and laughing. And laughing. And laughing.

  Asshole.

  I crossed my arms in front of my chest. “Fuck you.”

  But this just made him laugh even more. “Kitten,” he choked out between chortles, “that’s the funniest damn thing I’ve ever heard.”

  My glare turned dangerous but he ignored me.

  “So do you ever swim at the beach?”

  “No.”

  “The pool?”

  “No.”

  “What about taking a shower?”

  “I fucking shower, Levi.”

  “Okay, okay.” He wiped tears from his eyes while I imagined numerous revenge filled scenarios which all somehow involved his agonizing death and guacamole. After finally noticing my less than impressed facial expression, he leaned forward and softly pressed his lips to mine. Heaven.

  “The name Kitten fits you even better now,” he murmured. The man was forgiven.

  The corners of my mouth lifted as I gently pushed him back. “Your turn. Tell me something no one else knows.”

  “I’m an Aquarius.”

  I rolled my eyes.

  “Okay.” He stared at me, took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled. “I hate birds.”

  I blinked.

  “They freak me out.”

  I blinked again.

  “They’re the rats of the sky. You just never know where they’re gonna fly or land next. Their heads turn on weird angles and the way those beady little eyes stare at you,” he shuddered, “it’s like they’re plotting your death in the most painful way possible. And don’t forget that those sons of bitches have fangs attached to their goddamn feet. Those things could fucking rip you to pieces given half the chance.”

  I didn’t say an
ything. Not a single word.

  “What?”

  “Um, honey?” I tried to bite back the incredulous laughter but failed miserably and fell into a fit of hysterics. The irony behind his hatred for the winged creatures and one being plastered all over the side of his freakin’ neck completely made me lose my shit. After several minutes, I finally calmed down, even though my sides were aching and I was wholly out of breath. The man was a walking contradiction. For some reason this knowledge made me unbelievably happy.

  Levi still looked slightly affronted at my amusement, so I tenderly caressed his face and after a moment he succumbed to my touch by leaning into my hand. His eyes softened as they melted into mine. But I totally ruined the moment.

  Like always.

  “Where’d you go today?”

  He removed my hand and placed it on his lap, clasping it between his fingers. He was silent for a minute or two while I mentally stomped on my own left foot with an imaginary killer heel on my right. Just as I was about to retract my question, he looked down and murmured, “To visit my aunt. She lives just out of the city.”

  “Oh.” Stop talking, Grace. Shift the conversation to another topic, any other topic. Tomato salsa. Mention your new-found appreciation for tomato salsa. “It must have been good to see her again.”

  Damn it.

  He stared up at me. “Yeah, it was. Valerie’s always been like a mum to Dom and I.”

  “Hang on, what about your own mum?” For God’s sake, woman. Okay, corn chips. Talk about corn chips.

  Levi looked down again.

  “Levi, I—”

  “She died a few years back.”

  Whoa. My other hand instinctively moved to rest on top of Levi’s and I squeezed gently. “I’m so sorry.”

  He half-heartedly shrugged one shoulder and continued looking down at our hands, saying nothing.

  “Were you close?” Seriously, Grace. Shut up.

  He paused before replying, “Yes and no. I mean, she was Mum so of course I loved her, but… Anyway, she deserved a better life than the one she had.”

  “Because of your dad?” Shut up. Shut up.

  He looked up at me and there it was again, the sudden coldness that warned me to stop this line of invasive questioning. “Yes.”

  It seemed as though my defective verbal filter finally recognized the extraordinary foot in mouth situation I once again found myself in. “It’s okay, you don’t have to talk about him if you don’t want to. When you’re good and ready, remember?”

  He nodded. “When I’m good and ready.”

  I honestly didn’t know what to say to bring him back from whatever dark thoughts circled around in his head after that. So we were both quiet for several minutes. But I then decided to voice what I had really wanted to say for the past couple of hours. “I’m glad you came back.”

  The coldness in his eyes gradually thawed and once that quirky half grin appeared in the corner of his mouth, he began to look like my Levi again.

  My Levi.

  Jesus Christ.

  But for once I ignored my head. I chose not to overthink this ticking time bomb which my subconscious not-so-subtly dropped into my headspace. When Levi replied soon after with, “Me too,” I also refused to overthink the fact that my heart had now decided to beat at triple the normal rate for the sheer fun of trying to kill me.

  So instead I simply said, “Come to bed with me.”

  A slow, panty-dissolving smile spread across his face as I stood and held out my hand to him. He grasped it in his own and rose also, towering above me. Bending down, he encircled me in his arms, kissing me slow and deep. He then gently stepped me backward into the next room, never once breaking contact with my lips. It was only when I felt the mattress pressing against the backs of my knees that I murmured huskily, “I meant to sleep. We’ve got a big day tomorrow.”

  He gave a low chuckle. “Sure you did, kitten.”

  Chapter Eleven

  You wait patiently but it's too late,

  By the time she arrives she’s gone again.

  -MONDEZ, “Timeless”

  I lost myself in the luxuriating feel of Levi’s lips, tongue and hands for exactly eight seconds. To give him credit, that’s all it took to transport me from being a remotely sane individual to someone who was about to self-implode. I internally slapped myself across the face and then broke away from the kiss. However, a part of me, the aroused bit, knew that I’d regret this decision later.

  “Kitten, what is it?”

  We were both breathing heavily and Levi’s pupils had dilated to the point where they took up the entirety of his sapphire blue eyes. I took a deep breath, unlocked my hands from behind his neck and rested my forehead against his chest. My palms grabbed the material of his black t-shirt, scrunching it between my fists. After taking three more deep, steadying breaths, I finally found the strength I needed to talk without my rampant hormones doing the exact opposite of what I intended to say. Once satisfied that my itching fingers wouldn’t betray me, I relaxed my hands, smoothed out the fabric and looked up at him.

  “More than anything in the world I’d like us to fuck right now,” I began. His eyes glazed over and I quickly tried to channel my thoughts into some vague semblance of rational order so as not to reenact those very words. “But I meant what I said. I think we should just sleep tonight.”

  Levi tucked a stray strand of hair behind my ear, deep in thought. After a minute or two, he murmured, “And why is that, Grace?”

  I stared at his chest, trying desperately to ignore the tingling sensation of his fingers against my scalp and my embarrassingly weakened self-command because of them. Not wanting to meet his gaze, I shut my eyes and mumbled, “I don’t want to hurt you again.”

  As Levi tipped my chin up, I flicked my eyes open. Our gazes locked and for once he was deadly serious. “I don’t want you to either.”

  “But if we have sex right now, I will. I know it.”

  He tilted his head to the side, questioning.

  “Look.” But his proximity was too close and I couldn’t think straight when he was touching me. So I broke away from his embrace, moving over to the window. For a good five minutes, I stared out at the black Melbourne sky. The bright twinkling lights of the city buildings which fringed the comet-like streaks of cars whizzing past below, spoke of a speed and a fervor that matched my head and heart space perfectly.

  I wanted to explain this right. I wanted him to understand that what I was feeling was akin to Juliet for her Romeo. It was now all too sudden, too significant, too tangible for my poor heart to take all at once. Throwing our physical connection on top of the emotional turmoil I was currently trying to deal with gave me the ominous feeling that our budding relationship was likely to end just as badly. Not that we were going to die tragic mistimed deaths or anything, just that we were likely to drive one another to crazed stupidity if we didn’t tread more carefully. And the thought of hurting him pained me.

  A lot.

  Turning around, I immediately registered the fact that Levi was seated on the bed. His legs were straight out in front of him and crossed at the ankles.

  I gulped.

  His head rested against the padded headboard and his curious gaze was trained on me.

  I gulped again.

  Why is he doing this? Why is he suddenly modeling the latest linen and bedding exclusive to boutique hotels? Now was definitely not the time to look that damn sexy.

  I tore my gaze away again and spoke to the much less stimulating cobalt sky. “I think we need to … breathe for a bit, you know?” I glanced back at him over my shoulder. His expression was fathomless so I continued. “I don’t mean that we should stop or ignore what’s obviously between us, but I think it would be a good idea to just sit with these feelings for a while. Process them, that’s all.”

  “You want us to slow down?”

  I turned to face him squarely. “Honey,” I stopped and tried again, “Levi, it’s only been nine days.
But with all the shit that has happened it feels like…” Waving my arms about me in a vague gesture did nothing to explain the enormity of what I was referring to.

  “It feels like forever.”

  I dropped my arms back to my sides. “Exactly.”

  He nodded. “Okay, if that’s what you want, we can take it slow.”

  My body sagged with relief as I moved back to the bed, crawling up next to him. “Thank you,” I murmured, before tenderly kissing him and settling my body down next to his, unbelievably exhausted.

  “You’re killing me, you know that?”

  I chuckled softly, wrapping my arms around him, cuddling in closer. “Right back at you.”

  ****

  The next morning dawned bright and clear. As my eyes adjusted to the sunlight streaming in through the open curtains, I looked down and took stock of my current situation. It was pretty awesome. Levi was sprawled across me, one of his legs entangled between my own and his arm laying warm and possessive just below my breasts. I glanced across at his head resting against my shoulder, his features had softened through sleep, making him appear younger, while dark, thick lashes contrasted with the lighter skin of his cheeks. Seriously, this was the best wake-up call I’d ever had. I slowly reached for my phone on the bedside table, not wanting to disturb the sleeping Adonis next to me, and checked the time. “Holy fuck.”

  I tore off Levi’s arm and kicked away his legs, scrambling out from underneath the covers and almost falling face first onto the plush carpet in my haste. There was a gravelly chuckle behind me and it took all of my newfound resolve not to turn around and hurl myself at the man. Whether it was to devour or thwack him, I wasn’t yet decided, but either way I’d make him pay. No wait, we’re taking it slow. Definitely thwack him. Sadly, before I could begin my violent onslaught I was reminded of how little time I actually had to get the job done properly. So, in the interest of punctuality, I compromised and threw a cushion at his head instead.

  Once showered and dressed, I was rummaging around in my suitcase, searching for my wayward notebook and pen when Levi emerged from the bathroom.

  And Oh. My. God.

  The man looked like a wet dream. Truly. His gray suit pants hugged his hips in a way that made me immediately recite ten Hail Marys. The silver belt buckle winked teasingly at me as it caught the light. His crisp white shirt had faint blue checks which oh so conveniently matched the color of his fuck-me eyes. It was open at the collar and his sleeves were rolled mid-way up his forearms, exposing just enough skin to cause a riot in my downstairs department. Consequently, my female parts decided to protest against the decision made last night and to be fair, they voiced a damn convincing argument.