Last One to Know

by Sharon Coady

  “Johnny?” she whispered his name, her voice quivering slightly with this new experience.

  “I need you, Leo. I swear, I’ve never needed anything as much as I need you. I always have. See me? See how much I need you.” He crouched down, pulled his wallet from his shorts pocket, and removed a condom.

  She slid out of her jeans while she watched in apparent fascination as he sheathed himself. He saw her tremble when she crossed her arms over her breasts.

  “We can stop.” He froze in place, afraid to move.

  Her eyes were wide, and she wouldn’t meet his gaze. She opened her arms and he gladly crossed the short distance between them and kissed her slowly. He lowered her to the bed, his hands wandering over her soft skin.

  “I’ll be careful with you.”

  She moaned in response to this.

  He moved to position himself between her legs and felt her stiffen. He pushed himself up and looked down at her. “What’s wrong?”

  She sighed as a tear slipped from the corner or her eye. “I’ve never done this before. I’m scared.”

  “Leo, I know.” He rolled to the side. “Were you secretly waiting for me all these years?”

  She closed her eyes as if she was afraid to see his reaction. “I’ve never wanted anyone but you,” she whispered.

  “Open your eyes and look at me.” He gently turned her head. “If you want to stop, I’ll stop. If you want this, I promise I will be gentle with you. I love that you waited for me.” Please, don’t want to stop. Please, let me love you. His heart threatened to stop beating, and he felt as if he couldn’t draw a breath.

  “I do want you, Johnny... I don’t want to stop. I just don’t know what to expect…”

  “Just let me love you, Leo.” He heard what he needed to hear, she wanted him. She didn’t want him to stop. Love filled his heart and soul. He let go of the fear of losing her. His breath quickened and his heart soared. Finally after all these years, she was willing to love him back.

  His mouth claimed hers again, softly at first, and then more urgent as he touched her smooth skin, teasing and kissing every inch of her. His hand slowly moved down and started softly stroking her. She trembled and tensed up again. He kissed and stroked her softly until she moaned and moved against his hand, her eyes closed.

  “Should I stop?” he asked playfully but waited until she shook her head slightly before he moved his hand lower. Slowly, he moved one finger just inside her moistness. He moved in and out, dipping in a little further each time, pausing to let her adjust to the feeling of penetration and watching her face to make sure he wasn’t hurting her.

  She tugged at him to move over her. She spread her legs and her breathing quickened. She was watching him as he studied her face.

  “Are you sure you’re ready?”

  “I think so.”

  He placed himself at her opening, teasing and moving just a little further each time. John marveled at the feel of her wet silkiness against his erection. Leona started to move her hips to match his. Suddenly, she stopped and drew her breath in sharply, panic and pain showing in her eyes.

  He stopped moving, holding himself perfectly still. “Please, try to relax, beautiful.”

  “Ow,” she whimpered.

  He trembled along with her as he lowered his mouth, kissing her, teasing her with his tongue as he felt her relax and her breathing quicken again. He moved in a little further before pulling out slightly and moving back into her, each thrust taking him a little deeper. He felt her move her hips, felt the urgency in her mouth. He slowed down and increased his strokes, pulling further out before moving into her again. She moaned and lifted her arms, wrapping them around him to pull him closer. “Baby, you keep that up and I won’t last much longer.” He groaned.

  She threw her head back and clutched him tighter as she picked up the movements. “Don’t stop.” Her breath was ragged, and he felt her tighten around him. He captured her mouth and took her over the edge as he followed right behind her.

  Spent, he rolled over and pulled her against him, wrapping her into his arms. “Are you okay?” he asked as soon as he caught his breath. He kissed her forehead and sighed.

  “Perfect.” She snuggled closer and sighed too. “I didn’t know it would be like this.”

  “I didn’t either.”

  “I don’t think I can move.”

  “We don’t have to. Just let me hold you. Did it hurt much?” His hand made lazy circles on her back.

  “Only for a moment but it went away as quickly as it came. I could get used to this.”

  “Me too, Leo.”

  “Johnny?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Why do you call me Leo?”

  She’d never asked him that before. All these years and she finally wanted to know. “Everyone calls you Leona. You’ve always been special to me so I wanted to call you something no one else did, something just for the two of us. I like the way it sounds when I say it.” He studied her as her sexy, little mouth turned up into the cutest smile he had ever seen; her eyes danced and sparkled. “So why do you insist on calling me Johnny?”

  “Because I can and no one else does. You’ve always been special to me, too.” She became still and he watched as different emotions flashed over her face. Her eyes had a faraway look. Recognition crossed her face as a look of knowing filled her eyes.

  “Thinking about our past?”

  She giggled and smacked his arm. “How do you do that? How do you know things before I do?”

  “Because I’ve loved you for a very long time. We’ve had a special bond since the day we met. We’re soul mates. It just took you longer to figure it out.” He was so happy; he wanted to yell it to the world. He wanted everyone to know his Leo loved him back.

  John heard a door close and giggles flow through the hallway ,fading with the footsteps moving toward Heather’s room.

  “Oh crap. Heather is in the house! Damn, I don’t want to deal with her right now,” she whispered.

  John saw dread fill her eyes. He lay back and pulled her against him. “Don’t worry about her tonight. Besides, sounds like they’re a little preoccupied. Listen.”

  “There she goes again. Why does she do that?” Leona’s eyes narrowed. “She doesn’t know him that well, and she’s dragging him to bed.”

  Johnny couldn’t help but laugh at the look on her face. “At least she’s known him for a few days. He’s a nice guy and he seems to like her”

  “Why are you laughing at me? Be quiet Johnny, they’re going to hear you.” She nibbled on her bottom lip.

  He took her face in his hands and looked her in the eyes. “I’m not laughing at you. I’m laughing at the cute look on your face. I’m pretty sure they already know we’re in here.”

  She sighed. “You know, tomorrow she is going to be all over me about this.”

  “Yep, knowing Heather. Unless she’s still too busy with Sebastian. Will it bother you for her to know?”

  “Only because I don’t want to hear about it for the rest of my life.” She giggled and pulled him down to kiss his mouth. “How did I get so lucky that you understood and waited all this time for me? Did you know I loved you?”

  “Yep. I just didn’t know if you would ever know.” Please don’t let her take this the wrong way. “To tell the truth, I was getting tired of waiting for you. Every time we talked, I waited for you to say something. I hoped when I saw you this time, you would finally make up your mind.” He lifted himself up on his elbow. “So my question is, what made you finally realize this time?’

  She groaned and covered her face with her hands.

  He sat up. “Leo, open your eyes and look at me. Why this time? I want to know why you finally opened up.”

  “I don’t want to look at you. It’s going to sound weird.” She peeked out between her fingers.

  Still persistent, he continued “Why now?”

  She wouldn’t look at him. “When we got to the beach that day, and you were standi
ng there waiting for your friends to ride that wave… I didn’t know it was you. Crap, you’re hot, Johnny. Have you looked in the mirror lately? Have you ever seen what you look like from the back?”

  “You mean all it took for you to finally see me, and admit that you love me, was to be half naked and show you my ass?” For just a brief moment, he felt a pang of sorrow that she thought she was just looking at some random hot guy and got those feelings. Damn, he couldn’t be jealous of himself, but still it was a bit of a downer. He pulled her into his arms. “You’re something else, Leo. Let’s get showered and dressed. I’m suddenly famished.”

  “Are you mad at me?”

  “Why would I be mad at you? Because it took you thinking I was hot when you saw my ass for you to finally admit your feelings for me after all these years?”

  “When you say it like that, you should be extremely mad at me. Why are you even speaking to me? I’m so sorry. It makes me sound so shallow, doesn’t it?”

  “Hey you are anything but shallow, and I don’t care what it took to make you finally see me. But I’m ready to shower now.”

  “Me too. Do you want to go first?”

  He pulled her off the bed. “You’re kidding, right? I’m taking a shower with you. I’m going to take advantage of every opportunity to have you naked in my arms.”

  “Johnny!”

  He took her hand and led her into the bathroom where he started the shower, testing the water to make sure it wasn’t too hot. When he turned, she was staring at him with passion-filled eyes, her hair a mess from their lovemaking.

  “Leo, you have never looked more beautiful. You take my breath away.”

  She blushed from head to toe as she moved to him. She splayed her hand on his chest, stood on her tiptoe, and kissed him gently.

  He helped her into the shower and watched her close her eyes as she slipped under the spray to wet her hair. He watched the water slide down over her beautiful body, making its way to the shower floor. Taking her soap into his hands, he lathered them and gently tugged her forward so he could wash her. She reached for him and he could only shake his head, words failed him. He moved slowly and sensually over every inch of the front of her before turning her around and doing the same with her back.

  Her breath quickened and every time he touched her, she shivered. He pulled her against him and ran his hands over her breasts, kissing her neck just under her ear.

  “Johnny...” She whimpered and pushed back against him.

  He slid one hand down her stomach as the other held her at the waist. He stroked her sensitive nub, feeling her respond instantly as she dropped her head back against his chest. Her eyes were closed and her mouth slightly agape, the feeling apparently pleasing her as another moan escaped her lips. He stroked faster, slipping one finger inside of her and holding her tight as she trembled.

  “I love you, Leo. I love you so much,” he whispered in her ear, his voice husky with desire. Her breath caught and she shuddered as he took her to her release. She slumped against him, breathing hard.

  She turned in his arms and looked up at him with her eyes full of wonder. “Johnny, what you do to me. I...”

  He kissed her hard, pulling her body as close as he could. He marveled at the feel of her in his arms. He gasped as she took his erection in her little hand. He handed her the soap, tilting his head to the side slightly, letting her know what he wanted. She took it and lathered him, watching his face as she stroked and fondled him. He leaned back against the wall, smiling at the joy in her eyes and watching how they danced as she discovered what quickened his breath.

  He felt the release building and saw she sensed he was close. She moved her hand faster, stroking him in long sensual movements as she took him over the edge where he had taken her moments before. He moved her hand away and looked deep into her eyes; he leaned down and kissed her on both sides of her mouth.

  “Oh baby, what you do to me.”

  By the time the water started to cool down, they knew every inch of each other’s body. He reached behind her and turned off the water.

  Shaking her head, she giggled. “I’m starving.”

  John pulled her into his arms. “Me too. Must be the incredible workout we just had.” He waggled his brows at her, throwing her into a fit of laughter. “Now, let’s go eat.” He pulled her to him and gave her a gentle kiss. God, he was happy. Happier than he had ever been in his life since meeting her all those years ago.

  The walked hand and hand to the kitchen. “I’m so excited about doing these shows with Alastair. I’m glad you’re here to help us.”

  “Me too. I’m glad y’all agreed to let me draw up the contract. Speaking of that, I’ll have to start working on it tomorrow after we hear back from my contacts. I want to protect you both. I don’t want anything to cause either of you any problems. If we have the contract, Hark can’t back out. If he gets pissed off that we are asking for one then he’s not worth doing business with.”

  “I love you.”

  It sure felt good to hear her finally say those words. How did he get so lucky? “I love you, too. What are you hungry for?”

  She looked at him and passion flashed in her eyes.

  “Food, Leo. We need to eat remember?”

  “I know but…” She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him softly. “It’s hard to resist now that I know what I’ve been missing.”

  “Okay, let’s eat and we can go back to bed and finish this.” He turned her and gave her a pat on her cute, little ass. Get the eggs for me, and I’ll make us something to eat while you try and behave yourself.”

  She giggled and shrugged. “Whatever you want, Johnny.”

  They made their way to the kitchen, and she went to the fridge while he took the pan out of the cabinet. He glanced at her as she bent over to grab the eggs, and he smiled thinking about how that cute, little ass was now his. “I can’t wait to tell everyone about us.”

  She stood up and turned toward him, the color leaving her face. “What?”

  “I want to tell everyone about us, Leo. What’s wrong with that?” He crossed his arms over his chest. “Are you ashamed of being with me?” A feeling of dread was creeping up on him.

  “I’m not ashamed. I just don’t know if I want to share this with everyone yet. I want you to myself for a while. I could never be ashamed of being with you.”

  Instantly he relaxed, feeling like a heel for even thinking it. “Good, you kind of scared me for a minute. I’ve waited so long for you, I just want everyone to know. Can you blame me?”

  “No, I don’t blame you. But still, can we wait a few more days?” She slid her arms around his neck and fluttered her eyelashes at him.

  “We can if Heather doesn’t tell everyone for us.”

  Leona groaned and dropped her head against his chest. “Crap! I forgot about her.”

  “It’s okay. Maybe we can say we were working on the contract?”

  “Oh sure, because that’s exactly what it sounded like we were doing. I got a little loud, remember?” Shaking her head, she got out a bowl to start cracking eggs. “That pretty much shoots that lie all to pieces.”

  “I don’t know, can’t you talk to her?”

  Leona glanced back over her shoulder with her eyebrows raised.

  “Okay, I know this is Heather we are talking about. Yeah, we’re screwed.” He grinned from ear to ear, knowing it was going to piss her off. “So, I guess we should just go ahead and tell everyone so we can beat her to it.”

  She sighed. “You’re probably right.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  The next morning, Leona and Johnny made their way to the kitchen to find Heather and Sebastian making breakfast.

  “Morning, guys.” Leona poured two coffee cups and set one in front of Johnny.

  “Good morning. What’s going on with you two?” Heather nodded toward Johnny.

  “Nothing. What’s going on with you?” She nodded to Sebastian, giving it right back to Heather.


  Heather shrugged her shoulders. “I asked you first.”

  Leona could see Heather was getting upset from the way she was standing. “Heather, I’m not trying to fight with you, but you obviously already know what’s going on with us—just like I know what the two of you were doing. So, can we just have breakfast?”

  “Fine. But if you and John are finally together, I think it calls for a celebration, don’t you?” Heather’s eyes twinkled, and her mouth turned up into a huge smile.

  Leona felt her face flush. She turned to Johnny, who was sitting there grinning like and damn fool. He’s not going to be any help. “Heather.” She sighed. “We don’t want anyone to know yet, can you please not tell anyone else?”

  Heather squealed and ran to Leona, throwing her arms around her. “It’s about time, Leona. You guys are perfect for each other.” She turned to John and winked. “It’s about damn time, Montgomery.”

  “Well, she finally saw what was right in front of her.”

  “Johnny!” She smiled at him when he glanced her way.

  “Whatever. I’m just happy for you too.” Heather had her hands clasped together, her face still split with a grin.

  Sebastian put his arms around Heather’s waist, pulling her to him and kissing her gently on the head, the smile making his face shine with happiness.

  She leaned back and put her head on his chest. “Of course we’ll respect your privacy. Uh, do you think you could do the same for us?” She turned pink.

  “No problem.” Okay, where is Heather and who are you? Leona turned to glance at John. “Wow.” She mouthed.

  “Thanks, we really appreciate it.”

  John’s phone rang. “I have to take this, sorry.” He walked into the living room. “Tom, what did you find out?”

  “What’s that about?” Heather asked quietly.

  “The announcer from the club last night is part owner, and he really liked our performance. He wants to hire us to play a couple of nights while we’re here. The guys decided better safe than sorry, so Johnny is having him investigated. Just to be sure we aren’t going to get into something we don’t want to be associated with.” She shrugged. “He wants to protect us.”