In Tune

by JN Welsh

  He wrote, “tell me when” on the paper and showed it to her.

  Leona’s eyes scanned the paper. “Got it.” She laughed. “I sound weird.”

  She was beyond amusing without her sense of hearing. Hell, she was funny in general, something he’d quickly learned and found charming about her. He focused on the sound and increased the volume, eyeing her for confirmation.

  Leona pointed up and he advanced the dial a little bit more. She pointed up again and he put his hand over his heart, happy she shared his enthusiasm for a more robust sound.

  When he moved the sound to her desired level she gave him the thumbs-up.

  He wrote on the paper again. “A girl after my own heart.”

  Leona shrugged and laughed.

  Luke pointed to the headphones and mouthed, “Listen.” The kiss he landed on her was deep and thorough. His tongue played in her mouth and the familiar sweetness of her was like liquor inebriating him under her influence. He loved the way she opened to him and knew that whatever he wanted from her, she would give him. He brought his hands to her breast and squeezed. He pulled away from her, ending the kiss abruptly. He stepped away from her and crossed toward the studio door.

  Whatever you want from me, Leona, is yours.

  * * *

  Gone.

  Leona sat alone, listening to the music. She went to remove the headphones, but Luke’s instructions stopped her. Instead, she focused on the song filling her ears and the ethereal vocals overlaying the melody.

  The headphones must have been professional ones because she could hear every element in the music, from the heavy bass to the titillating breakdowns. The lyrics were in true Musical Prophet form and spoke of dreams, love, and union. They brought unexpected sentiment to her. Luke had put his feelings into the arrangement and the song was beautiful. The music coupled with the knowledge that Luke made this playlist for her only fueled her desire for him and her fear. This retreat was supposed to be five days of carnal pleasure and if she wasn’t careful, she’d take Luke’s emotional music too much to heart. She was about to go down the rabbit hole of despair when the lights went out.

  Leona was in darkness, her only company the music in her ears and the moonlight coming from the window. And then, candlelight flickered in various corners of the room until it was aglow.

  “Luke?” she whispered and waited, but he didn’t appear.

  She jumped at the sensation of hands curving over her shoulders and screamed so loud, she heard her muffled cry over the music and through the noise cancelling headphones. Her heart beat hard and fast. She whipped around to confirm Luke was indeed the boogeyman in the dark. She followed the pressure of his hands and lay back. Again, she was absent his touch.

  He reappeared and postured before her. Leona propped herself up on her elbows and forearms, peering over the two mounds of her breasts that partially obstructed her view. The soft blanket provided cushioning under her.

  Her heart raced. She watched Luke caress her legs and thighs with gentle strokes, moving upward to grab hold of her nighty. Leona shifted from one side to the other, tilting her hips so he could slide the material up over her hips and expose her belly. He ran his hand over her satin-and-lace panties, giving her the okay sign. That he appreciated the intimates she chose thrilled her and she made a mental note that he liked satin underwear. The song mixed in with another selection that started out quiet, then grew into a slow house rhythm, mirroring the growing fire Luke ignited in her.

  Luke grabbed hold of the waistband of her panties and his fingers eased the garment down. She again lifted her hips and he slid the panties down her legs and off, dropping them on the floor.

  Low and out of her sight, Luke’s lips traced her ankles and his hand cradled her calf. She inhaled at the unexpected touch. His surprising kisses traveled upward to her knees and outer thighs. He spread her legs and she was frantic with expectation. Her pussy ached, making her hope his kisses landed there. Luke’s hands massaged her outer thighs and his head moved to her inner thigh where he kissed, licked, and nibbled the soft skin inches away from her center.

  Leona’s knee jerked and she saw the obvious rise and fall of her heaving chest as she watched his head move over her lower body. She inhaled and Luke’s fragrance blended with the scent of candle wax and warmed metal from the DJ equipment.

  She felt the heat, vibration, and movement from his mouth against her skin as he spoke, but she couldn’t hear him. She strained to touch his head. “What?” Her breathless question resounded in her inner ear.

  Luke again reached for the paper and picked up the marker again. He scribbled with speed, then showed it to her.

  “You smell so good,” Leona read out loud, and the butterflies fluttered everywhere in her body.

  Luke tossed the marker and paper over his shoulder and freed himself from his boxers.

  Leona’s breathing quickened further when she saw his evident arousal aimed right at her. Luke’s eyes were transfixed on her as he massaged her legs. He glided his hand in between her thighs and he petted the thin strip of hair at her center. She squirmed, inviting him to give her more.

  His fingers pushed into her opening and his thumb flickered over her most sensitive spot. Leona fisted the blanket to keep from flying off the table and the intensive glint in his eyes took her higher. His fingers tunneled deeper and upward and Leona let out a syncopated moan.

  “Luke.” She squirmed under his caress.

  He withdrew his fingers and kissed her belly. Her insides screamed for his fingers to return. Luke trailed kisses down to her lower belly and rested just below her pelvis where the mound of her center was fullest.

  “Touch me, baby. Please touch me there.” The endearment rolled off her tongue as she jutted her pelvis toward him. He had called her baby when she had her panic attack and she didn’t complain because she adored hearing his sweetness. Her jerky movements begged him to taste her sweet spot, but by the wicked smile on his face, the torture was far from over.

  Luke opened her legs wider and the cool air melded with the hot, inviting juices seeping from her. Luke planted slow and gentle kisses on her hip bone and down the other thigh to her ankle. The tickling touch sent shocks through her. Maybe it was because no one ever touched her ankle, but the way he held her foot and kissed the bone made her soul blossom with affection so deep it almost inspired a tear.

  He continued kissing her inner thighs on his way back up, blazing a hot, wet path to her center, and her hips gyrated in excitement. Slight stickiness from moisture left on his hand slid over her leg. She tried to stay still, but her impatience was mounting. She needed more.

  “You’re driving me crazy.” Leona was a note away from a squeal. She didn’t know how she sounded to him, but between the music and the simultaneous sensory deprivation and overload, their intimacy soared to a new height.

  His hands reached up to squeeze the soft contours of her breast. He tugged the lace trimming and pulled down, exposing her as she popped out of the material. She rolled her shoulders out of the lace straps. He feathered his fingers over the nipple and squeezed her flesh as he continued to plant kisses on her stomach. Now able to reach him, she seized his hand and bit it in frustration. Luke didn’t even flinch as if taking his deserved punishment.

  She kissed the mark. “Please, Luke.” She guided his hand back to her breast.

  Leona hyperventilated with longing and loved every torturous minute. The more time they spent together the more they opened up, and their lovemaking was no different. The lengths he’d gone to create this experience thawed a part of her heart she’d kept cold and hard.

  The constriction of her lingerie added to her frustration. She slid her arms out of the straps and pushed at the material. She needed to escape the garment just like she needed to escape the confinement of the past. Now free from the garment, she shoved it down until it fell to the fl
oor, and with it what was left of her inhibitions.

  Luke surveyed her body and his strong hands clasped hold of her hips. He made eye contact with her before his head disappeared between her legs and he covered her hot pussy with his mouth. Leona melted and her back arched to receive the pleasure of his lips and tongue. She cried out, gripping and twisting the soft blanket. She writhed under his touch as his fingers separated the swollen folds of skin to give him fuller access to the sensitive gem at her center.

  Her moans vibrated in her ear and were simultaneously bizarre yet fascinating. She tried to censor herself but Luke had annihilated her defenses and she was completely undone. He continued his assault on her stimulated nerves, sending shocks through her. Every time she thought she’d experienced ultimate pleasure with him, he skyrocketed her to unimaginable bliss. She punched her ticket and held on for the ride. He lifted each of her legs to rest on his shoulders. Leona quickly crossed her feet at the ankles, locking him to her.

  “Luke. Oh shit, Luke,” she squealed as her hand went to his head and her fingers raked wildly through his hair.

  The vibrations and heat from him moaning between her legs and the tightness of his hands as they gripped her hips threatened to clamshell her legs shut. Leona fought the urge, determined to receive every titillating touch. She wished she could hear his desire, but beyond that she wanted to hear him say this was more than a fling, more than temporary.

  “Don’t stop. Please, please, don’t stop.” In her ear, every breath, moan, and plea was amplified. Her sensual singing added to the music. She groaned and panted as her body contorted and stiffened in expectancy of her arrival.

  Luke inserted his fingers and the combination of his hand and mouth sent her to heaven, through the constellations, and hanging on the edge of the universe. Her thighs tightened around his head and she curled up as her orgasm arrived mercilessly. Her movements pulled at the headphones wire and simultaneously unplugged them from the amplifier, shifting the earpiece off her head.

  The music playing in her ears blasted through the room. Luke startled at the abrupt loudness of the music, but his mouth concentrated on teasing every drop out of her. Bass shook under her ass, intensifying her orgasm, and the blanket was now a swirling mess.

  Luke kissed her and Leona smelled herself on him, tasting the essence he’d just enjoyed.

  “I need you, Leona.” He barked into her ear above the loud music. He lifted her off the blanket and carried her as she continued to buck and shiver. Leona shrieked as her back hit something cold. She was pinned against the window. The view was so expansive that it was as if she were suspended over the waves.

  “We’ll break it.” Leona shivered and panted against his ear.

  “No, but we’re going to try.” He pressed himself hard against her.

  “Can people see us?”

  Luke kissed and bit her neck. “Do you care?”

  She scraped her fingernails down the length of his back. “No.” She captured his mouth again, kissing him with abandon.

  Luke secured them against the glass and placed one of her legs around his waist.

  Leona gasped as he filled her, and bit his lower lip in pleasure. She wrapped her other leg around his waist and used the traction of her back against the glass window for stability. Luke rammed into her like he wanted to erase every other man before him. The unrestrained thrusts were raw and primal.

  She clawed at his shoulders and Luke’s fingers dug into the flesh of her buttocks. The chill from the cold glass sailed through her, freezing her nipples into taut nubs. The exquisite pain of Luke’s chest smothering her breasts added to the pleasure of each of his forceful thrusts.

  Luke’s muscles flexed from exercise, and he claimed his prize after expertly eating her out. Their position allowed him to delve deep without hurting her. As her insides opened to him, her soul offered him the pearl that she’d so ardently protected. Her love.

  “Yes,” Leona moaned and encouraged him to take his pleasure. “Come harder, baby.”

  He squeezed his eyes shut and hissed, pushing his forehead into her shoulder. She held him tight. He gritted his teeth and his harsh, frequent breathing was familiar to her now. His triumphant shout announced his ultimate satisfaction.

  “Oh shit, Leona.” He heaved in air as if to stay alive.

  Luke clinched her so hard her lungs wheezed. He brought his head to kiss her and she opened her mouth wide to receive his breath and tongue.

  Still inside her, he collapsed to the couch, bringing her with him. They stayed there in post-orgasmic sweat and stickiness. Leona never wanted him to soften or slide out of her. She wanted to feel this way forever and never come down from the high. She smoothed his back and head and after a few minutes, Luke again kissed her deeply and caressed her face. He was so tender. Instead of pulling away to bring things back into balance, she allowed his touch to clip the strings of the past.

  When they finally separated, Luke lowered the music before he trashed his used, mysteriously appearing, latex.

  “How was dessert?”

  “Meh.” She wandered back to the table and leaned against the blanket.

  Luke placed his hands on either side of the table, trapping her. His seeking tongue licked the curve of her neck and his lips followed, planting kisses along her nape.

  “The sweat on you tells a different story. Seems I’ve left a lasting impression.”

  “Perhaps.” She continued acting nonchalant about the fact that Luke just rocked her world, her universe, her everything.

  Luke tickled her neck with kisses. “Mmm-hmm.”

  “All right. Dessert was delicious. The music was beautiful, emotional...” She rubbed his forearms. “Thank you for sharing it like this with me.”

  Luke was silent and then leaned back. The intensity prompted her to touch his face.

  “Luke?” Leona stroked his cheek. “You okay?”

  He continued to stare. He inhaled so sharp it cut through any noise in the room. “Yeah. I... Everything’s okay.” He pulled her against him. She could feel his manhood on her hip. She shivered under the intensity of his eyes and from the coolness of the room on her sweaty skin.

  “Come.” Luke grabbed the blanket, placed it over her shoulders, and secured it with his arm. “I’m taking you to bed.”

  They strolled as one through the studio, snuffing the candles on their way out. Once in the bedroom, Luke left a really good impression on her. Several times.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Early the next morning, Leona snuggled over to Luke only to find an empty space.

  “Luke?” No response. She listened to see if she could pick up his sound from somewhere in the house. Dawn had not yet arrived so she flicked the light switch on the bedside lamp.

  A very low and consistent beat thumped, but from where? She lifted her naked body, feeling Luke’s imprint all over her, making her hungry for him again.

  She couldn’t find her nighty and saw Luke’s cargo pants and shirt lying on the leather ottoman at the foot of the bed. She put them on, pinching the shorts at the waist to prevent them from sliding down her legs. She tracked the music through the dark house.

  Leona’s travels led her back to the door of Luke’s studio. She squinted at a wall clock.

  5:20?

  “What in the world is he doing at the butt crack of dawn?”

  She gently opened the door to the studio and the loud music bowled her over.

  The room really is soundproof.

  Leona found Luke sitting naked at the DJ table, bobbing his head. The light from the large computer screen danced on his face. His eyes roved over the images and his hand clicked the mouse frequently.

  The start of sunrise gave a picturesque backdrop of technology meeting nature and man in the middle.

  She didn’t want to interrupt him and retreated. The m
usic lowered.

  “Good morning, beautiful.” Luke’s greeting stopped her.

  She almost came in Luke’s pants. He was hot even saying a simple good morning. “I didn’t mean to interrupt you.”

  “I’ve been working for a while. Come here.” Luke motioned her to him. “Did I wake you?”

  “No. I got up to use the bathroom and you weren’t there.” In truth, both the bed and her body were vacant without him. “Why are you up so early?”

  “I felt inspired. When that happens, I can’t sleep. So, I work.”

  Once she was close enough to him, Luke drew her onto his lap and kissed her.

  Leona hooked her arm around his neck.

  “You’re pretty sexy in my clothes.” Luke tugged on the cargo pants.

  “Thanks, but I should go back up so you can finish. Your show is tomorrow and I’ve been a distraction. Plus the tour will be starting and, well...”

  Her words had an effect on both of them and the muscles in his back went rigid. After Luke’s one-off show, they would be back on tour and back to reality.

  “You’re a pleasant distraction, Leona.” He shook his leg and she swayed. “Hey, something I forgot to mention. My sister is visiting a friend in Santa Rosa, so she’ll be stopping by at lunchtime before driving back to Santa Monica. I should get as much as I can get done before she arrives.”

  “She’s coming here? Why didn’t you tell me? Should I split for the day or...? I don’t want to impose. She probably hasn’t seen you in months.”

  “I spent time at her place last week. She knows who you are. She saw a picture of you in the entertainment section from that night at Aurora a few months back. I would have told you last night but we were kind of busy.” He gave her low-lid seduction.

  “Kind of.” Leona blushed, and evaluated the aftermath of their lovemaking. “We should probably clean this place up. There are clothes everywhere.”

  “This is true.”