Chapter Sixteen
Levi
I bet I haven’t been this nervous a day in my life. Sure, I was worked up on my first ambulance call. Sure, I stared at that blank sheet of paper for what felt like an hour when I took my EMT class. But this? Terrifying.
The only thing that settles my racing heart is how beautiful she looks. Lexi tried to distract me while we waited for Abby to finish getting ready, but it almost did more harm than good. But now? Calmness washes over me as I look over at her stunning face, wearing just a bit more makeup than normal. What really holds my attention now is her outfit. Purple flowy tank top that dips low in the front, granting me a sliver of cleavage for my viewing pleasure. And that skirt. Fuck. It makes me so hard I bet NASA could see the outline of my cock from space. The skirt is shorter than she usually wears, hitting about mid-thigh, which pleases me greatly.
And let’s take a moment to give praise to those legs. Holy. Shit. Has she always had legs that make a grown man sit up and beg? Long, lean, and with a hint of a summer tan. Perfect fucking legs to have wrapped around my waist–or better yet, my neck.
“You really look amazing,” I tell her, moving hair behind her ear.
“Thank you.”
I feel like a shmuck. A complete clueless loser who has no idea how to talk to women. Maybe it’s the fact that I’m finally seeing her–I mean, really seeing her. From the way she’s blushing right now at my compliment, to the light colored polish on her toes, I’m seeing a whole new Abby Summer right now, and it’s exhilarating.
“Ready to go?” I ask, taking her hand in my own. Electricity bolts through my body, making it hard to reel in the gasp that almost slips out of my mouth. Everything with her is practically charged, sexually almost. There’s this new thrill that hits me every time we touch, and you can bet your ass my cock notices.
She nods, almost as if she can’t find her voice. I watch as she closes her eyes, takes a deep breath, and steels her back. When she opens her eyes, it almost knocks me to my knees. She looks so strong, so fierce, so stunning.
We take the stairs slowly down to the ground floor and into the late-July air. It’ll be August soon, which means the summer tourist season will be drawing to a close. Those who stay at the small bed and breakfasts and the hotels along the Bay, will be leaving in a few weeks. Personally, I’m ready for it to slow down a little bit; the ambulance has been hopping all summer long.
Keeping my hand on her back, I lead her towards my truck. We could probably take her car, which would be easier for her to get in and out of in that skirt, but I want her in my space–wearing that skirt. And it won’t hurt any that I get to be chivalrous enough to help her in and out, right?
When we approach my truck, she gives me a look. “I’ll help ya,” I offer, a naughty smirk playing on my lips.
“Do you say that to all the girls?” she asks with a smile.
“Nope, only you.” And that’s the truth. I’ve never really thought about it before, but I don’t necessarily date. Not in the official capacity. I’ve taken plenty of girls home from bars and gigs, but most of the time I’m more interested in getting them to a bed than trying to be all gentlemanly with my truck. I know, I know. You’re thinking, “Damn, Levi, you’re a dick.” Yeah, I can be, I admit. But never with Abby.
Never.
“Turn around.” She glances over her shoulder again before turning and facing me. I smile, bending down and grabbing a hold of her slender waist. Abby places her hands on my shoulders for balance as I lift and set her inside my truck cab. It’s a quick exchange, one I wish had lasted a hell of a lot longer than a few seconds, but I don’t want to maul her within the first ten minutes.
When she’s safely inside the cab, I give her a wink and shut the door. Then because I’m all smooth and shit tonight, I all but run around the front of the truck and hop in the driver’s seat. She offers me a tentative smile as she waits for me to start up the truck.
“So, where are we going?”
“I thought we’d do dinner down along the Bay and then I have a special stop we’re making on the ride back.”
“Sounds good,” she replies, but I can still hear the anxiety in her voice. I need to remedy that real quick.
“Tell me about your day.”
“Well, I worked for a bit to catch up on a big project that was sent my way. It’s a multi-book deal for an author I worked with about two years ago. She was planning to self-publish, but ended up talking to her contact at Stonewell and sent in the manuscript. It was amazing, so we jumped on a deal. The problem is that she was planning to self-publish next month so the entire process is being pushed up to the top of our to-do lists. I have until Tuesday at noon to get the first round of edits done.”
“Wow, that’s pretty rushed,” I say.
“Yeah, and I won’t be able to work on it much tomorrow because we’re helping Payton move.”
“Oh, yeah. Lex reminded me earlier. I’ll be ready to go at eight with my truck. Wanna just ride over together? You know, since we’re going to the same place.”
“That’s fine,” she says, but I catch the hitch in her voice. Glancing over, I see a shy little smile on her lips that she’s trying to hide, and a blush creeping up her neck. God, I love it when she does that.
“I’ll be over at seven-thirty. I’ll even bring that fancy coffee shit you like.” My girl loves those caramel lattes from the coffee house uptown. I’m actually kinda excited to run over and grab her one before our day of moving boxes and furniture for her oldest sister.
“I would be forever in your debt,” she quips.
We make small talk the rest of the way to the small coastal restaurant about forty minutes south of Jupiter Bay, that I’ve been dying to try. Abby doesn’t seem too bothered by the fact that we drove all the way down here for dinner, but it’s close to our next stop.
“I’ve heard of this place,” she says as we pull into the packed parking lot. “Grandma and Grandpa come here every now and again. She’s always raving about the seafood.”
“Some of the girls in the ER were discussing it not that long ago, and when I was planning our night, I thought it would be the perfect place to bring you.” Again, she blushes that adorable shade of red. It makes me want to keep saying and doing things to make her blush. And maybe someday soon I’ll be able to do that other thing to really make her blush–or flush, I guess is more accurate.
Yeah, I know. I’m a dirty bastard. Sue me.
“You’ve never been here?” she asks as I come around the truck and open her door.
“Nope.”
My hands are already wrapped around her waist as she shimmies towards the door, holding her skirt down as she goes. When I know it’s secure, I pull her out of the truck and against my body. Our eyes lock as she slowly slides down, her chest pressed firmly to my own. I’m one hundred percent certain she can feel the boner in my pants before her feet even hit the ground. Her eyes widen and darken with arousal, and there’s no missing the way her tongue darts out and wets her soft pink lips.
I groan.
“I’m sorry,” she mumbles, dropping her eyes.
“For what?” I ask, yet to let go of her waist.
“For, well, you know,” she whispers looking down at my pants.
“Angel, don’t ever be sorry for that. That happens a lot when you’re around, whether you want it to or not.”
“It does?” Her eyes light up in a way that says she can’t decide if she should be embarrassed or turned on.
Bending down, I whisper in her ear. “All. The. Time.” She gasps. “Come on, let’s go grab our table before they give it to someone else because we missed our reservation.”
“Are you sure you’re able to walk in your condition?” she quips, a gorgeous smile plastered on her face. Oh, she thinks this is funny, does she?
“I’m perfectly capable of walking like this, but if you’re offering to help me out with my problem, I won’t deny you the pleasure.” The words are out of my mouth before I can even stop them.
Shit. Damn. Fuck.
Expecting to see her eyes popping out of her head and a horrified look on her face, I risk a glance in her direction. What I wasn’t expecting to see was humor. “Did you really just say that?” She fights to laugh.
“Shit, Abs, I’m sorry. Sometimes I forget I’m with you. You don’t deserve to hear me talk like an ass.”
“So if this was anyone else but me, you would have said that and not batted an eye?”
I take in her curious face. She’s my best friend, right? No lies. “Yeah, I probably would have. You know my past, Abs. I’ve been known to have one thing on my mind and that’s it. But not with you. You’re different. I don’t want you to get creeped out by my perverse mouth, okay? Just pretend I didn’t say that.”
I start to walk towards the door, but she hasn’t moved. Dread fills my gut as I realize I’ve killed the date before it even really got started. She’s going to ask me to take her home now, I’m sure of it.
“Levi?”
“Yeah.” My voice is hoarse and full of remorse.
“Can I ask you a question, and you’ll answer it honestly?”
“Always.”
“What you said, you’d say that to any other girl, right?”
I swear I’m choking. There’s an imaginary noose wrapped around my throat, slowly suffocating the life out of me. “Yeah.”
She takes a step forward, closing the distance between us. “Then I want you to say whatever you want. I want this to be the real Levi and Abby, okay? Don’t baby me or hold back because of me. Okay?”
I nod, unable to speak over the lump in my throat.
Then, she steps even closer until our bodies are touching again. “Besides, I kinda liked it when you said that dirty stuff.” Her eyes are hooded and dark, and my state of arousal shoots through the damn roof.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
Reaching around, I wrap my arm around her lower back. “I can do that, but promise me if it ever becomes too much, you’ll tell me.”
“I want to see more of the dirty, lax Levi. He’s kinda sexy and turns me on a little.” Her face is flaming red, but dammit if it isn’t the sexiest moment ever.
“God I want to kiss the fuck out of you right now,” I tell her, tightening my hand on her lower back.
“In public?” Her words are breathy and come out in little pants.
“Hell yes.”
“Promise me someday you’ll do that?”
“That’s a promise I can definitely make, sweetheart. How about we head inside and eat before we give all of the patrons a show and I throw you down on the ground and ravish that sexy little mouth of yours.”
She pants again, desire flooding her emerald eyes. “Are you sure? I kinda like the second part of that.”
I run my finger from her forehead, down her cheek, and move her hair behind her ear, before taking her chin between my finger and thumb. “As amazing as that sounds right now, our first kiss isn’t going to be public. It’s going to be somewhere very private where I can kiss you until you’re gasping for air and beggin’ for more.”
“Now that sounds like a kiss.”
“I promise you, sweetheart. When I get finished with you, you won’t even remember a kiss before it. Mine will be the only one you think about, remember, dream of.”
“Something tells me I’m in over my head with you, Levi Morgan.”
Glancing down at her and giving her a smile, I respond, “Me too, Miss Summer. Me too.
Placing a kiss on her forehead, I pull back and head into the restaurant. Time to give my girl the best first date in the history of all dates.
* * *
Her head whips in my direction, her eyes full of excitement as we pull into the massive parking lot that’s barely housing a dozen cars. I drive my truck towards the building, but park far enough back that some asshole in a Prius can’t slide into the space beside me and door ding my truck. It’s wide enough that I usually choose to park away from the jerks who’ll squeeze in a spot that’s a foot too short, just to get as close to the front door as possible.
“Really?” she asks when I throw it in park and shut off the ignition.
“Really.”
“But you hate the bookstore.”
“Not true. I just never had any use for it back when you were going all the time. I had all the pretty girls doing my homework for me,” I quip, unbuckling my belt.
“You had me doing it,” she says, doing the same.
“Like I said, pretty girls.” Throwing her a wink, I hop out and head over to assist my lady in need. And like before, I use the opportunity to touch her, sliding her down my body in a way that makes me want to throw her over my shoulder, find the nearest hotel, and have my way with her until we’re both boneless and lethargic.
“If memory serves correct, I think you also used Sheila Kissee for her language arts skills,” she says, the corner of her mouth tilting upward.
“Oh, she had skills, but language arts wasn’t one of them,” I laugh.
I’m barely able to block her hand as she swats me across the chest. “You’re bad,” she says, returning my laughter.
“Come on, angel. Let’s buy books.”
She stops and looks me square in the eye. “That may be the most romantic thing anyone has ever said to me.”
“I aim to please, sweetheart. Let’s go.” There’s no need to lead her towards the massive bookstore. No, not anymore. My girl is practically sprinting towards the front door, eyes alive with excitement.
Stepping inside, I follow as she leads me towards the romance section. “I could come here every day and never get tired of it.” She gazes starry-eyed over the shelves upon shelves of paperbacks, sliding her hand gently over the spines of the books. “I always thought there was something magical about the library in school, and I’ll never forget the first time I came over here and saw one of the books I worked on.” Her eyes are alive and have a far-off dreamy look.
“Show me.” Those two words hold a whole new meaning than they normally would coming from my mouth, but with just as much anticipation–hell, maybe more.
I follow behind as she leads me further into the romance section. There are covers of every color, with half-naked men and scantily clad women; some locked in an embrace that screams, “We’re about to fuck.” This is my kinda book.
“Here,” she whispers, running her finger down the spine before pulling it from the shelf. Nightly Calling by Emma Jane Sloan. “This was my first solo edit,” she adds, opening up the book and touching the spot that says her name.
“Very cool, angel,” I say, grabbing the book from her hand and flipping it over. “So, is this porn?” I ask, glancing at her with a knowing look.
“It’s romance. It’s a love story.”
“With sex.”
“The book isn’t about sex.”
“Yeah, but there’s sex in it.”
“So?”
“So, you read about sex,” I state bluntly, holding the book in my hand. Stepping closer, I whisper, “I bet it turns you on.” Her gasp echoes through the rows of porn (fine, romance) books. “Admit it.”
Turning and facing me head-on, those intoxicating green eyes stare straight at me–or into me, might be more accurate. “Fine. Yes, sometimes the scenes turn me on.”
“Damn, that’s hot,” I whisper, closing my eyes and picturing it.
“What are you doing?” she whispers back.
“Shhhh. I’m imagining you getting turned on in that office of yours, reading a dirty sex scene.”
“Stop!” she exclaims, hitting my shoulder. We both burst out laughing, big dopey smiles on our faces.
“I’m just kidding you,” I tell her, grabbing a piece of that silky hair and pushing it behind her ear. Leaning forward, I add, “I’ll wait to picture that tonight when I’m alone in my bed.”
Her eyes widen and her mouth practically drops to the floor. I love knowing that I evoke this kinda reaction from her. It makes me feel like it’s for me, and me alone. Almost like a super power, you know? No, I have no idea why guys always resort to their childhood and superheroes. They’re fucking cool, all right?
“Come on, sweetheart. Show me more.”