Rock My World

by Lee Piper

  “Christ Almighty,” I exclaimed, staring down at the meatball roll that was bigger than my shoulder blade.

  “It’s a good thing we’re sharing.”

  I nodded, mesmerized by the triple bypass on a plate in front of me. Levi cut it in half, picked up his portion and bit into it with a gusto that was quite simply awe-inspiring. I mean, the guy didn’t spill a drop. I followed suit and God in heaven, it was sinfully divine. “This is the best thing I’ve ever tasted.”

  Levi winked at me. “Give it time, kitten. I can think of something else you might like more.”

  I blanched and almost asphyxiated myself on a chunk of meatball before quickly swallowing. “You’re very sure of yourself, Mondez,” I stated flatly.

  Levi’s smile just grew wider and my panties almost shimmied themselves down my legs all of their own accord. Jerk. However, before I could suggest a creative place to shove that sexual insinuation, his phone rang. Levi looked down at it puzzled, then recognition cleared his features and he answered it. “Hey, Katrina.” Holding up his index finger and gesturing that he’d be one minute, Levi then stood and moved outside the restaurant. I just shrugged one shoulder in nonchalance. Who was I to give a shit if he answered his phone or not?

  Four mouthfuls of carb-laden bliss later, he returned, practically bursting with pent up elation. It was kind of adorable.

  “Good news?”

  “Abso-fucking-lutely. Katrina’s band, Adrift, is playing this Thursday night and she’s put my name on the door.”

  “Great.”

  “With a plus one if you’re interested?”

  I grinned. “Sure, sounds fun.”

  “They’re pretty heavy, but I think you’ll like it. Reckon you’re a dark horse when it comes to music.”

  “Piss off.”

  He smiled wide. “Anyways, you’ll get to meet Katrina after the show. She’s an awesome girl.”

  I nodded, not trusting my head/mouth filter because as much as I wanted to blame the amount of food I’d just ingested on that sudden stomach twinge, I’d be lying. For some reason, the sheer mention of this girl’s name sent warning signals shooting throughout my brain. It also caused my insides to tighten unnaturally. Was it possible to hate someone I’d never even met?

  The answer didn’t bode well for Thursday night.

  However, I managed to shove the last morsel of culinary genius into my mouth to avoid any possible verbalization of what I’d just realized. Once we’d both finished our meals, Levi took my hand again and led me outside. “C’mon, let’s head back to the hotel. I wanna get you naked before your head takes over again.”

  All thoughts of Katrina flew out of my mind. Instead, I was immediately flooded with images of Levi in various stages of undress while he contorted my body and ravaged me senseless. “And who ever said that romance was dead?”

  “Kitten, you’d fucking hate romance. You’d turn and run at the first sight of it.”

  I nodded. The man had a point.

  Chapter Twelve

  It's raising us, bending and molding us,

  It's raising us, it's reverberating.

  -MONDEZ, “Reverberate”

  It had been a hectic day. The café was incredibly busy from the mass influx of tourists all on summer holidays. My entire shift had been a whirlwind of taking orders, delivering food, cleaning tables, restocking condiments and trying not to let the seemingly endless chaos be the cause of my emotional ruin. So I was glad to finally step onto the beach, sink my feet in the sand and sit down next to Dad.

  I began tracing nondescript outlines and patterns with one finger as my mind ticked over an unusual conundrum.

  I had been asked out on a date.

  For the first time in my life, a guy had shown an interest in me. An attractive one too, in that healthy guy-next-door kind of way. It sucked he complained about his meal though. Total bullshit by the way, I’d even read the food order out to him before taking it to the kitchen. Anyway, now I didn’t know what to do about the phone number he’d slipped me with the tip.

  I stopped and gazed out at the water, it was calm now that the breeze had died off. The glassy ripples turned a dusky purple, mirroring the color above as the sun dipped low. I tried to locate the exact point on the horizon where the sea met the sky but couldn’t find it, so instead shut my eyes, inhaling deeply. A minute later, I slowly exhaled. I breathed out all the pent-up stress from the past five hours, all the uncertainty over the napkin burning a hole in my pocket, everything. When I opened my eyes again and watched the sun as it set, I felt renewed.

  I looked across at Dad and couldn’t help but smile. He must have had a lot on his mind too. The hole he’d dug was twice its normal size and almost three times as deep. I could tell he was finished because the customary stick was nowhere to be seen and he was staring at the waves as they rolled into the shore. Dad sensed my gaze and turned to look at me. He grinned.

  I loved these moments. They were the times I felt pure, unadulterated joy. So I came to a realization. I wasn’t going to overthink this. I was going to take my time and breathe. Life would somehow figure itself out and I would end up where I was meant to be.

  Eventually.

  “Do you want another?”

  “Yeah, thanks.” I was relaxing on the couch in our hotel room and had been reminiscing about a time when I’d felt equally as contented. My head was leaning against the cushion, my eyes were closed and my feet, still encased in nude leather pumps, were blessedly resting on the coffee table. I’d have to wear flats tomorrow. Turned out there was a reason why high heels weren’t a part of our national race walking team’s uniform.

  Who would’ve thought?

  Contrary to what Levi had threatened as we left the restaurant, he didn’t tear my clothes off as soon as we stepped into our suite. I was slightly peeved at first, frustration didn’t sit well with me at the best of times, but after a couple of drinks and Levi’s hand languidly tracing abstract nothings on the material of my pencil skirt, I relaxed considerably. He always did that. Calmed me with his touch and through his presence, calmed me until I could sit with the quiet, envelop myself in its stillness and not feel the need to scream at it anymore.

  Levi soundlessly rose from the couch and even though my eyes remained closed, I could feel him gone. My left side felt cooler as the warmth which emanated from his body and seeped into mine just seconds before, slowly dissipated.

  So now I can’t even sit by myself on a fucking sofa?

  Christ.

  This growing dependence on the guy was seriously disturbing. After taking a deep breath, I made a vow to think nothing but amatory thoughts. For tonight at least. Tomorrow however? I shook my head. Who freakin’ knew.

  “Here you go.”

  My eyes opened and Levi stood before me—a sexy culmination of all my teenage rock band fantasies mushed together. His arm was outstretched and a whiskey dangled tantalizingly in front of my face. Christmas had come early this year. My eyes dropped to the drink—and New Year’s too if the amount of alcohol in that glass was anything to go by.

  “Thanks.” I slowly took a sip and teasingly licked the corner of my mouth afterward. Refusing to break contact with his lustful gaze, I murmured, “Mmm, delicious.”

  Levi’s eyes darkened. He slowly placed his own glass on the coffee table before leaning down and gently nipping my bottom lip. “Tease,” he growled.

  I chuckled softly but then almost whimpered out loud when he stood and moved away. Now who’s the damn tease? Rummaging around in his duffel bag, he pulled out an iPod and then moved into the bedroom, connecting it with the dock on his side table. A few seconds later, soft piano chords wafted through to the lounge. It wasn’t exactly what I was expecting, but seemed pleasant enough.

  I raised an eyebrow at Levi as he sat next to me, resting his right arm behind my head on the back of the couch. “Give it a minute,” he said.

  A short while later, I smiled. Deep, dirty guitar riffs layered the
original gentle melody of the piano, like a grizzly bear balancing on top of a water sprite. The contrast of both those guttural and sweet sounds somehow seamlessly complemented the other and the intensity slowly swelled as the tempo increased. It then plateaued for a minute or two, only to take me by surprise as a tight drumbeat, accompanied by some smooth rolling bass lines suddenly kicked in.

  Whoa.

  The entire combination was heavy yet soft, profound yet playful and undeniably ingenious throughout. I kept waiting for the vocalist to make themselves heard over this cacophony of interlinked yet markedly dissimilar musical sounds, only they never appeared. Smiling, I realized that this band was in no way lacking without one.

  “This genre is what us musicians like to call stoner rock. Intense, huh?”

  I turned to face Levi. He was looking at me while slowly moving his head back and forth in time with the heavy beat.

  “Stoner rock?” I smiled wider. “The name fits.”

  Levi lifted the arm that rested behind my head and gently skimmed the backs of his fingers down the side of my face. “You’re so beautiful, Grace,” he murmured, before tucking some hair behind my ear.

  For some reason I felt the need to hold my breath. No idea why.

  “I never thought I’d feel this way about anyone, but…” He shook his head slightly. “How is it that you mean so damn much to me?” His eyes searched my face and I could feel that instinctive pull between us strengthen. “You feel it too, I can tell.”

  I nodded slowly but then looked down, suddenly awkward. Surely, a man couldn’t look at a woman like that after only ten days. I mean, he’d already moved past my prickly shell, sidestepped my Smart Mouth and snuck under my feeble deflections. And here he stood at the base of my last defense—a raised, weathered, drawbridge. It pathetically attempted to protect one very fragile core. Only, Levi was slowly pulling the rotting wood apart with his bare hands, inspecting the brittle pieces and telling me that they were irrelevant in the first place.

  He was asking me to let him in.

  How did he make it look so easy? What he said he meant, what he felt he showed.

  I didn’t even know where to start.

  “Look at me.”

  My gaze slowly traveled back to his again.

  “I’m falling for you, kitten.”

  The final bars of the first song slowly faded and we were left cocooned in what felt like a cozy bubble of tenderness. Only I burst it spectacularly by mumbling, “Um, thanks?”

  Levi stared at me as the opening chords of the second song began. He blinked once, twice and then his face broke into a lopsided grin that wreaked havoc on my female parts. Unlike my head, they were all up for this type of conversation.

  “Thanks?” he repeated.

  I squirmed in my seat as a mixture of some powerful emotion I refused to put my finger on, desperate need, and sheer embarrassment washed over me. “Well, what am I supposed to say? You know I’m not good at this shit.”

  He chuckled, low and deep. “You don’t have to say anything.”

  I looked at him for a long minute then, searching his face and trying to determine exactly how I was going communicate the true extent of what I was feeling. Once decided, I carefully placed my glass on the low table and standing up, turned to face him.

  When I deliberately stepped in between his legs, Levi looked up at me, openly curious. But he remained silent and I was grateful. It was a nice change not having to contend with my foot-in-mouth or his mocking quips, and ironically, this lack of conversation gave me more confidence to say exactly what I wanted without convoluted words getting in the way. So, when I reached around to the back of my skirt and slowly lowered the zip, Levi’s eyes darkened.

  He knew exactly what I meant.

  Smart man.

  As I let the skirt skim over my hips and flutter to the floor at my feet, he sharply inhaled. After I intentionally stepped out of the pooled material and kicked it away, his expression changed to something different entirely.

  I smiled coyly at the hunger burning in his eyes, and then unhurriedly unbuttoned my pale shirt, taking my sweet time with each and every fastening. Upon completion, I pulled the material wide and let it leisurely drop from my shoulders. I watched, empowered, as Levi momentarily shut his eyes, breathing raggedly. He was clearly attempting to deal with an internal struggle of paramount proportions and it emboldened me beyond measure.

  He opened them again and an acutely ravenous gaze deliberately raked my body. It traveled from my high heels to the lace band of my thigh high stockings before coming to rest on the delicate confection of scarlet material that tied at my hips with satin ribbon. Levi’s eyes questioningly flicked to mine and I smiled wickedly, nodding slightly while twisting my waist and visually confirming that yes, it was a g-string. He let out a deep breath and slumped back onto the sofa, rubbing strained fingers across his eyes.

  I giggled.

  After a minute, Levi appeared to gather more strength. He dropped his hand as blazing eyes once again continued journeying upwards. They took in my navel, followed the sweeping line of my waist, preyed on the matching crimson bra, and finally settled on my face.

  It was only when his eyes locked onto mine, stunned, yet enamored, that he breathed quietly, “Grace, just look at you.” He shook his head but then stopped abruptly, narrowing his eyes. “Have you been wearing this,” he gestured to my present state of near undress, “under that sexy librarian outfit all fucking day?”

  I shrugged my shoulders, feigning indifference but secretly loving his incredulity. “Sure, why not?” Okay, so maybe my subconscious secretly wanted this very moment to happen as I was selecting lingerie this morning. I mean, I sure as hell would never have chosen these scraps of material posing as sexy underwear otherwise. And okay, it probably also contributed to my raging quest for Olympic glory after the conference too. But I was choosing to graciously ignore both possibilities. I mean, at the time my head had decided to take it slow, remember?

  Levi’s eyes turned predatory then. He leaned forward, quickly picked me up by the waist as though I weighed no less than his acoustic guitar, swung me around and unceremoniously deposited me on the couch with a resounding thump.

  I swore.

  Fluently.

  Even though I’d landed safely, the sudden movement took me by one heck of a surprise. Thankfully, my mother and I were no longer on speaking terms because if she had seen me, she would have been mortified. My head rested on the cushioned armrest, hair in flagrant disarray. My back was on the couch itself, arms gripping Levi’s biceps and head still reeling from how fucking amazing those muscles felt as they contracted with the movement of hurling me onto the sofa. One of my feet was in contact with the floor while the other had disappeared somewhere behind Levi’s hip. Along with any remaining decorum.

  Altogether a very interesting position.

  Levi grasped my right ankle and lifted it up. After closely inspecting my leather pump, he murmured seductively, “I think we’ll leave these on.”

  I squirmed on the cushion, aroused by the dangerous glint in his eyes and his slow, deliberate movements.

  Levi rested my ankle on top of his shoulder and I inhaled sharply as he began kissing his way up my leg. Holy fuck. Even through the nylon, his lips were absolute magic. Once he reached the lace band of my stocking, he stopped, smiling devilishly. “I think we’ll leave these on too.”

  I bit my lip, stifling a groan at the prospect of what he was going to do to me and how much I was going to explode if he didn’t get started on it soon. But determined to see me self-combust, Levi continued his tortuously measured journey towards the apex of my thighs. His lips were now touching ridiculously sensitive skin on the inside of my legs, sending shockwaves directly to the most intimate part of me and I moaned. Loudly.

  Levi chuckled.

  Bastard.

  When he reached the soaked material of what used to be my g-string, he broke away and smiled up at me. I glared down
at him, annoyed that he had stopped and that I was quite literally panting.

  “But these will need to come off,” he murmured.

  “Do it already.”

  He snickered again. “Patience, kitten. It’ll be worth it, I promise.”

  I threw my head back on the cushion with a huff, like a petulant toddler having a temper tantrum. Stupid patience. It’s completely overrated.

  Ignoring my physical outburst and even worse, finding it funny, Levi grinned before licking and nipping his way across my hip.

  I moaned again. Honestly, I couldn’t help it. The man had the most amazing lips and tongue I’d ever experienced. So those, combined with the sensation of his slight growth as it scratched my heated skin, almost made me lose my freakin’ mind.

  When he eventually reached the bow, he took the ribbon between his teeth and pulled. Seriously, what is it with this guy and eating my underwear? Fuck, who cares, it’s hot. He then traveled to my other side and untied the second piece of satin just as sensually.

  My lingerie fell away and Levi stared up at me exultant, looking like all of his underwear-eating fantasies had suddenly come to life. But rather than begin his carnal onslaught on my female parts, he instead moved back, gently placed my right foot on the floor and switched his undivided attention to my left.

  “Please,” I begged, writhing and squirming and almost on fucking fire as he began yet another tortuous ascent.

  “Kitten, I’ve been wanting to do this to you for a very long time.” At last he reached my inner thigh. “I’m not gonna rush it.”

  “Honey, we’ve only known each other for ten fucking days.” I panted, as he moved ever so closer. God, even in this arousal-induced fervor I was still attempting to delude myself.

  Levi nipped my flesh and I unashamedly moaned. “Don’t give me that shit, you know we’re more than that.” His lips continued higher, he was almost there. “As far as I’m concerned,” he breathed, “we’ve known each other for an eternity.”