Chapter Twenty
Nick
"Your voice is incredible," the girl who'd attached herself to my arm early on in the night slurs. She bought our band a round of shots then continued to sneak little sips from my beers. She'd smile all cute too with her dark brown skin and those big round eyes. She's so pretty and looks the complete opposite of Leah.
"Thank you," I manage to say, my head turning fuzzy from all the drinking.
"We're gonna head back," Carrie announces, slapping me on the shoulder. She turns to the girl and smiles. "It was nice meeting you. Maybe we'll see you around next time."
I nod as I slide off the stool, but the girl catches my arm. "Let me go back to the hotel with you. I got some other things for us to do to celebrate."
I can’t help but smile. "What are we celebrating?"
She grins. "Getting rid of that girl from your song." My heart sinks. "You deserve better than a girl who uses you. I wouldn't do that." She leans closer. "I'd let you use me."
"Nick, we're leaving," Carrie reminds me from a few steps back, her tone laced with warning.
I lick my lips. "Thanks for the lovely talk and the drinks, but we gotta call it a night."
She leans in, grabbing the collar of my shirt, and I say fuck it. I cup her cheeks in my hands and kiss her, shoving my tongue into her mouth as she runs her fingers all over my torso.
"Nick! Seriously?"
I pull away, and the girl hands me a napkin with numbers on it. "Call me next time you're in New Orleans."
Smooth as hell. I look down and see her name. Simone. Beautiful Simone with the big lips, the dreamy voice, and the soft skin. "Thanks. I will." We kiss one last time before Carrie drags me away from her. She giggles against my lips as I nip hers then wave goodbye, clutching the napkin to my heart.
"Who even are you?" Carrie asks once we get outside.
I shrug. "Come on. She was gorgeous. Nice big tits. Sexy ass."
"We're not here to hook up," she reminds me in a cold tone. "We gotta get up early tomorrow and head back to Austin before eight."
I wave her away. "Yeah, okay, I get it." My eyes roll hard enough to make me lose my balance and stumble on the sidewalk.
Sean is under my arm in a heartbeat. "You okay? We don't want you breaking another leg."
"I'm fine. Stop worrying about me." I shrug them both off and walk ahead.
"I'm hungry," Carrie proclaims. "We need pizza!"
"Pizza's good," Sean responds back.
Annoyance flares through me. She made me leave that hot girl behind to go to “sleep,” but suddenly we have time for pizza? Before checking my tone, I turn around to look at my band. "Well, you guys go get pizza or whatever the fuck, and I'm gonna take a cold shower and knockout."
Carrie pouts and flutters her lashes at me. "Come on. Pizza's as good as sex."
"No, it's not," I grumble, turning back around.
"You're gonna miss out on the shrimp pizza," Carrie yells behind me as I flip her off and head back to the hotel.
✵ ✵ ✵
It takes me a while to find our room since I'd forgotten which number we were. The hotel key doesn’t help at all since it’s blank. The only sign I’m heading in the right direction is the familiar blonde sitting on the floor of the hallway. Her body is slumped over, balancing her head on her knees.
My legs stop moving as my breath catches. "Leah?" I ask, ninety-nine percent sure it’s her. She doesn’t stir as I walk closer. "Leah?" I ask again, standing right above her this time.
My suspicions are confirmed when her head slowly lifts. She blinks at me with sleepy eyes. Those beautiful, dark green eyes. Those pouty, pink lips. That creamy skin with the freckles across her cheeks. She blinks again before she jumps up, surprised it’s me.
Her eyes roam my face and down my body before moving back up. Mine do the same as I take her in. She looks practically the same, the only difference being her clothes are new and her hair is freshly cut. "What are you doing here?" I ask, breathless.
She keeps blinking like she can’t believe I’m standing in front of her. She steps forward, and I step back. Hurt crosses her eyes, but what exactly does she expect for me to do? "I'm sorry," she whispers, her eyes welling before she looks away.
"I'm not in the mood for whatever drama this is," I say, hating how cold I sound.
Her mouth gapes open as she connects eyes with me again. They’re wide with surprise and can still bring me to my knees, but I can’t let her back into my life. I can’t let her have the upper hand again. "I'm sorry," she whispers again.
"Forgiven," I spit back. "Now get out of my way. I gotta get some sleep."
She frowns then stands a little taller, clearing her throat. "I wanted to talk."
My head shakes as I shove past her. "No time for talking. Might as well turn your pretty little ass around and go back to your old boyfriend or whatever the fuck."
She scoffs, crossing her arms. "I'm not back with him. He's in jail."
My hand freezes on the doorknob. I turn back to look at her as she stares at me with such intensity. "Well, whatever. Go find some other floor-mat, because I'm done."
"Is that why you finished the song and performed it? You're done with me?"
My fist pounds into the door, making her jump. I grab her arm and pull her body flush with mine. Her lips part as she looks up at me with wide eyes. "What do you want, Leah? You wanna fuck me again? My leg works just fine now. No thanks to you."
Guilt sweeps over her eyes at that. The only confirmation I need that her ex-boyfriend had told me the truth.
I take it further, wanting to scare her away from me. "I could fuck you up against the wall. I could push in real hard and deep like you like. Tear up your tight little—"
She slaps me. My eyes slam shut at the sting. When I open them again, her hand is covering her mouth in shock. "Oh, my God. Nick. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have done that."
"Whatever." I release her. I deserved it. "It doesn't matter. Just go."
But she still doesn’t leave. Why can’t scare her away? She grabs onto my shirt and pushes her body closer to mine until there’s no breathing room between us. "I can't go,” she whispers, her eyes searching mine. “It's my only chance to tell you how I feel. To apologize for how I left things. Nick, I was so—"
I break her off with a kiss. She gasps against my lips, so I pull her closer. Her hands fist in my shirt as I run my fingers through her hair, cupping the back of her head. I scan the card and open the door, pulling her in with me.
We nip and suck at each other's lips, clawing each other's clothes. I missed the way her sweet lips felt against mine. I missed her taste and the little breathy moans she makes as I run my hands along her body. I love the way her fingers tangle in my hair and her hips push up against mine.
"I need you," I whisper against her lips.
Her hooded eyes meet mine, and she nods. "I need you. I love you," she breathes out, but I don’t say it back. I can’t. I need to feel her body against mine, and that’s it. I'll get my fill of her and get her out of my head.
Our clothes are off in a flash as we stumble onto the bed, and I crawl on top of her. My lips move to her neck as she slides her panties down. I rip the straps to her bra right off then take one of her nipples into my mouth. She gasps, moaning as she bucks her hips up against my stomach. My fingers lace with hers as I hold our arms above her head, rubbing the dick in my underwear against her wet slit.
I moan. "You're already so wet for me, Leah. Does this turn you on?"
She nods, those pretty eyes filled with so much emotion. "I want you. I want you so much. I’ll do anything."
My mouth covers hers again as I push my boxers down and she helps me with her toes. Her legs immediately wrap around my hips. I spit in my hand, and her breath hitches as I wet my dick before lining it up with her opening. "You want it?"
She nods again, biting her lip. "I want it. Please. I want you."
I growl, shoving myself in all the way to the hilt in one thrust. Her fingers dig into my shoulders as she cries out. Her eyes pin shut as I start thrusting, hard and fast. Her breathy little moans can’t keep up as I pound into her, not giving a fuck about her pleasure.
She's turned me into this person. She got in my damn head. Made me believe she loved me as much as I loved her, then left me high and dry as if I were nothing. She was there the day my leg had broken, and she never said a thing about it. She’s the reason I lost focus this summer, wallowing in self-pity from the moment she disappeared. She’s the reason I’ve felt so damn empty and pathetic over the last two months.
She used me, so now I’m gonna use her. She can’t just show up three months later without a single text or phone call. She can’t demand I hear her out and forgive her. We were done from the moment she shut me out without a single text. He used her like this, and she went right back to him again and again. Why be any different? What did it ever get me?
Her eyes finally open, and I look into that forest green. The look pierces right through my heart, filling me with agony and anger. I quickly sit up and pull out. She blinks, confused. "Flip over," I order, stroking my cock in front of her.
She’s hesitant as she flips over and shoves her ass right in my face. I grab her hips and bury my tongue in her pussy one last time. She moans and tastes so goddamn good. I suck on her little bud and spank down on her ass as she groans through it all. I kneel behind her and push her head down into the mattress as I enter her again.
"Yes," she whispers as I start to thrust again. I grab her ass hard enough to bruise. My fingers tangle in her hair as I pull, and she moans. I fuck her hard, fast, and rough. She shoves her hand down between her legs and rubs her clit. I think about stopping her, but whatever, I don’t care.
I slap down on her ass again, keeping pace until I feel it. My body goes rigid as I shudder my release into her. A loud groan leaves my lips as my eyes pin shut and my cock pulses inside her. She follows quickly after, her pussy contracting around me as I milk myself dry.
She collapses on the bed, sweating and breathing hard. She glances up at me with this hopeful look in her eyes, but I don’t return it. "You got what you wanted," I tell her.
Her brow furrowed in confusion.
"Now go. Don't talk to me again."
Her confusion shifts into sadness as her eyes fill with tears. I feel like a damn asshole, so I look away. I can’t watch as she scrambles for her clothes, almost losing balance as she throws them back on as quickly as possible. She doesn’t turn back to look at me or say another word as she rushes out the door, slamming it behind her.
If using her was the right thing to do, then why did it hurt so much to watch her go? I hate knowing the cause of her tears is me, but I made my choice. There's no way Leah would ever want to speak to me again.