Chapter 12

 

 

Elle

 

I felt like I had just closed my eyes when the alarm went off, indicating I needed to get up and get ready for my show.  I reached over to the bedside table and turned off the alarm.

Keeping my eyes closed, I tried to process where my head was.  I found that all my nap did  for me for the last hour was take me away from the thoughts that consumed me.  I was no closer to sorting my feelings on any of it.  Unfortunately, needing to get ready for the show took priority, so I couldn’t spend any time now trying to figure it out either.

I sat up in the bed and twisted my body to get out.  When I did, I saw the red light lit up on the hotel phone, indicating there was a message left.  I picked up the phone and pushed the button to listen to the message.

I was horrified the second the voice piped through the phone.  Barely three words had been said before I threw the phone and screamed.

The bedroom door flew open a second later and Pierce took in the scene.  The phone was no longer on the bedside table and I was sitting on the edge of the bed, shaking and out of breath. 

“What happened?” he asked.

I couldn’t stop shaking.  Not only was it physically noticeable, but I could feel my insides trembling.  My stomach was clenching and I felt sick.

Pierce must have realized I was about to completely lose it.  He came over, sat next to me on the bed, and wrapped his arms around me.

“Relax, honey.  Tell me what happened.”

My arms bent and my hands rested on his forearms.  I was so terrified I felt my fingernails dig into the skin on his arms.  I felt bad, but I couldn’t control it. 

I took in two deep breaths, trying to settle myself.  It was useless.

“There was a message,” I managed to get out.  “On the hotel phone.”

“Ok,” he replied.

I was still shaking so bad, but I felt Pierce run his hand up and down my back trying to settle me.

“Can you tell me what it said?”

I shook my head furiously, felt the tears welling up in my eyes, and rasped, “The voice.  It was so scary.  I couldn’t listen to it.”

“Alright.  It’s ok, rock star.  Just breathe and relax,” he said softly.

I took in two more breaths and proclaimed, “I need a new name, Pierce.  Rock stars are badasses.  You and Levi are rock stars.  I’m not.  I’m fucking terrified.”

My body began to tremble uncontrollably again as the tears rolled down my face.

“Christ, Elle -- honey, calm down.”

Seconds passed and I heard the door to the room open and close.  Pierce’s body went solid, which made me tense.  Despite the rigidity in his body, he continued to move his hand along my back trying to comfort me.

“What the fuck?” Levi roared.

My eyes shot to his and the second he saw mine he moved quickly to me.

As he came around the other side of me and pulled me out of Pierce’s arms and into his lap, he ordered, “Reynolds, update me.”

“I don’t know much yet.  I was out in the other room when I heard the crash and her scream.  I came in to find the phone over there on the floor and Elle shaking and terrified on the edge of the bed.  She said there was a message, but the voice was too scary.  She didn’t listen to it.”

“Listen to it,” Levi seethed.

As Pierce moved to pick up the phone, Levi’s hold on me grew tighter.  One hand went to the hair at the back of my head while his lips touched my temple.  He kissed me lightly there and brought his mouth to my ear.

“I’ve got you, sunshine,” he whispered.

I shifted my body in his lap, trying to get closer to him. 

There were several moments of silence that passed before I heard Pierce place the phone back on the receiver. 

“What is it?” Levi asked.

I lifted my head from Levi’s chest to look at Pierce.  His expression was a mix of anger and caution.

He gave Levi a slight shake of his head and stated, “A voice changer was used to leave the message.  That’s why she was terrified listening to it.”

“What was said?” I asked.

Pierce’s eyes came to mine and his expression went from angry to calm when he answered, “I’m going to let Levi make that call.  I’m not going to be the one to deliver this to you.”

“Give me the phone,” Levi asserted, holding his hand out.

When he had the phone up to his ear, he nodded at Pierce indicating he should play the message. 

Levi’s grip on the back of my neck tightened as he listened.

“Play it again,” he ordered.

After listening a second time, he pulled the phone away from his ear and handed it back to Pierce. 

“Start looking into this for me.  See if we track down where the call came from.”

Pierce nodded and took off.

Then, Levi’s eyes came to mine.

“Do you trust me to take care of this for you?”

I nodded, “Of course, I trust you.  What did the message say?”

He held my eyes and remained quiet.

“Tell me,” I pleaded. 

“Elle, I really don’t want to do that.”

“Please,” I continued to beg.

A look of defeat washed over his face as he took in a breath.  He then shared the chilling message with me.

“What makes you think you deserve to have it all?  I’m watching, you greedy…” he trailed off, struggling to tell me the rest.

“Bitch?” I guessed.

He shook his head.

“What?”

“It’s not worth repeating and is certainly something I’m not going to say to you.  Regardless, it wasn’t nice.”

“Was that all?”

“No,” he started.  “You can’t have it all anymore.  Somebody has to stop you.”

“Oh my God.  Levi, what do you think they’re going to do?”

“If I have anything to say about it, nothing.  But if you’re asking what I think they have planned, I honestly don’t know.  I’m sorry I left you here.”

I dropped my head to his shoulder and gave myself a few minutes to come to terms with what had just happened.  It took some time, but sitting there being held by Levi brought me comfort.  When I felt significantly calmer, I spoke.

“It’s not your fault,” I tried to reassure him. “It would have happened whether you were here or not.  You made sure I was physically safe by having Pierce here.  I’m ok now, but I’m behind schedule.  We have to leave soon and I need to make myself look decent.”

“You look beautiful, Elle.”

My arms tightened around him, giving him a hug.

“Are you ok?”

I pulled my face from his neck, kissed him on the lips, and answered, “I am now, thanks to my superhero.”

“Alright, I need to shower.  Hopefully by the time I’m finished, Pierce will have some news for me.  I need to see what I can get handled before it’s time to leave.”

“Ok.”

Levi kissed me before standing with me and making sure I was steady on my feet.  Then, he walked to the front door of the hotel room where he set the security guard lock on the door.  After, he moved to the bathroom to shower.

I needed to get started on my hair and makeup, so after picking out my clothes I moved to the bathroom where my makeup and other toiletries were.  Levi was still in the shower and as I stepped into the room, his head turned in my direction. 

His body. 

It still amazes me. 

And if this stalker situation hadn’t taken up so much of my time just a little bit ago, I would have climbed in there with him.  Unfortunately, I was running behind so getting in the shower with him was not an option.

“Sorry,” I yelled out so he could hear me over the water.  “I need to get to work on my hair and makeup.”

“I don’t mind.  Do whatever you need to do, sweetness.”

I loved when he called me that. 

I started on my hair and got about halfway through it when it hit me.  There was something about this moment that was so intimate, so wonderful.  Sure, we were in a hotel, but this felt natural.  I was doing my hair in front of the bathroom mirror while Levi took a shower. 

I loved it.

Not more than two hours ago my head was a mess of confused thoughts and now it couldn’t be any clearer.  I don’t know if it was the fact that he gave me what I needed by giving me time to myself earlier to nap and collect my thoughts, the comfort he gave me the second I was in his arms after that voicemail, or this very moment standing in the bathroom with him while we got ready together, but the steam from the shower was doing little to hide what was now so evident.

Levi was mine. 

I was his.

And I loved him.

The feeling was overwhelming and I tried my best to remain focused on finishing my hair.  Somehow, I got through it and finished the last section as Levi turned off the water in the shower.  I set my curling iron down, unplugged it, and watched him in the mirror. 

He dried himself off and wrapped the towel around his waist.

My mouth watered at the sight of him.

I needed to distract myself, so I pulled out my toothbrush and began brushing.  Oddly enough, Levi walked over next to me and pulled out his as well.  Then it was the two of us standing there brushing our teeth together.  I couldn’t stand it anymore.  I quickly finished, rinsed out my mouth, and lifted my head up to look at him in the mirror again. 

I stared.

He noticed, finished brushing, and held my eyes.

When I said nothing, he spoke. 

“Elle, what’s wrong?”

My eyes searched his face, but I couldn’t manage to find my words there.

“They’re liquid honey.  Please say whatever it is because I know with that look in your eyes it can’t be bad.”

“I think…” I trailed off, unsure of myself.

He waited.

My throat was tight, but I finally managed to get out, “I think I’m in love with you, Levi.”

A grin slowly spread across his face before he teased, “It’s about fuckin’ time.”

Shocked, I asked, “What?”

“Sunshine, I fell in love with you the first time I heard you sing.  After that, I knew there was no way out when you looked at me with those fuckin’ eyes.”

“Levi,” I whispered.

I watched in the mirror as he moved closer to me.  He stood behind me as his hands went to the hem of my nightie.  He slid the satin up my sides and over my head.

“I have to get ready,” I said softly.

“You just told me you love me, Elle.  I need to show you what that means to me.  You’ve got to give me this,” he pleaded as his fingertips began tracing slowly over the skin at my hips.

“You could show me when we get back tonight,” I suggested.

“I’ll do it then, too.  I’m asking you, El, please don’t make me wait until tonight to make love to you.”

I couldn’t say no to that, so I said nothing.

Levi’s hands moved from my hips to my belly.  One hand traveled up to cup one of my breasts, while the other moved down my abdomen and stopped right between my legs.

I leaned back into him.

As his fingers slid through the wetness, I tilted my head back into his chest and looked up at him.

When his gaze came to mine and one of his fingers had entered my body, I acquiesced, “Ok, Levi.  Make love to me.”

He lowered his head to mine and claimed my mouth.  This kiss was different.  It was passionate, but possessive.  His finger continued to slowly move in and out of my body while his other hand slid up over my breasts, past the skin at my throat, and around the back of my head into my hair. 

I moaned into his mouth and reached my hand back behind me to run over the length of him.  I found the edge of the towel, opened it, and put my hand back on him.  I began stroking him.  Now, it was Levi’s turn to groan into my mouth.

After a few minutes of the two of us doing a lot of touching, Levi picked me up and carried me out of the bathroom and back into the bedroom.  He put me down on my back in the bed and settled himself between my parted thighs.

“I wanted to take you in my mouth,” I confessed.

“Later, sunshine,” he said, his voice husky.  “Right now, I want to love you.”

When he put it like that I couldn’t help but give him what he wanted, so I agreed, “Ok, whatever you want.”

That was it.

The next thing I knew, Levi was inside me.

Filling me.

Loving me.

He took his time with me, moving slowly and building me up.

My hands moved along the solid muscle of his arms and shoulders while I moved my hips against his.  The soles of my feet were planted in the bed, helping me get the leverage I needed to move with him.

“Levi,” I whispered, as my head fell to the side.

“Give me your eyes.”

It took me a few seconds, but I managed to bring my eyes back to him.  Knowing how I felt in this moment, about him and the connection between our bodies, I was certain he was getting the sexiest, liquid-honey, bedroom eyes he had ever seen.

“Such sweetness,” he bit out.

Yep.  I knew it. 

“I’m going to come, Levi,” I told him.

“Wait for me, Elle.”

Oh God. 

No. 

I couldn’t. 

It was too much.

He felt too good.

“Levi, please.  Hurry.”

He picked up his pace, ever so slightly.  This only served to increase the need I had to give in to the pleasure and let go.

“Say it, sunshine.”

“What?”

“Tell me.  Tell me, I want to hear you say it.”

It took me a few seconds, but I realized what he wanted. 

“I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

Oh my.  Hearing the words sent me over the edge.

“Levi,” I called out as my orgasm tore through me.

“Oh fuck, Elle,” he growled as he came with me, our eyes never leaving each other.

Levi pumped his hips against mine a few more times before he collapsed against me and quickly rolled to his back.  He wrapped an arm around my back and took me with him. 

After giving ourselves several minutes to come down from the high, Levi spoke.

“Feels so fuckin’ good.”

With my cheek to his chest and my fingertips tracing lazy patterns over the skin there, I asked, “What does?”

“To know that I can finally tell you how I feel about you whenever I want and not have to worry about you running scared.”

“Did you really fall in love with me the first time you heard me sing?”

“I can’t sit here and say I am so sure of myself.  I knew there was something about you that I hadn’t ever felt before.  I couldn’t explain it at the time to be anything more than just a serious attraction.  As I began spending time with you, that feeling grew deeper.  The day before we left for Denver and I heard you on the phone with your girl, I knew.  You were about to get off the phone with her and you told her you loved her.”

I lifted my head to look at him and wondered, “What does me talking to Leah and telling her I love her have to do with how you feel about me?”

“When I heard you say that to her, all I could think was that I wished I was on the receiving end of that sentiment.”

I tilted my head to the side and took in his contented face.

“I’m sorry you had to wait to hear it.”

“It only matters now that I’ve heard it.  Twice.  And it feels so fucking good, Elle.”

I agreed, “Yeah, it does.”

My head went back to Levi’s chest where I stayed for a few minutes wrapped up in his arms.  Then, even though I really wanted to stay right where I was, I knew I needed to get ready for my show.

“I have to finish getting ready.  I have zero makeup on and I’m convinced I now have sex hair.  I can’t go out there to perform looking like this.”

Levi rolled me to my back and said, “You look sexy as fuck right now, sunshine.  But, you’re right, you better go get ready because I don’t want anyone else seeing you with this freshly fucked look.”

I cocked an eyebrow at him. 

He ignored it and kissed me on the lips.  “I’m going to throw some clothes on and call Pierce.  Finish getting ready.  We’ll be ready to go whenever you are.”

“Ok.”

“Love you, Elle.”

As the warmth spread through my body hearing him say those words to me, I beamed, “I love you, too.”

The joy in his expression was undeniable.

I loved seeing it.

He gave me one more peck on the lips before he got up out of the bed and reached out a hand to help me up.  I took off to the bathroom to finish getting ready while he got dressed and walked out into the living space to handle business. 

I heard the hotel door open when Pierce arrived a few minutes later, but did my best to block out the reason he was there.  The simple fact was that I was in a situation that I couldn’t control.  Sure, I guess there were plenty of things that I could do to help myself in this situation, but the reality is that it’s not what I do. 

I sing. 

I read. 

I write music.

I play my guitar.

I hang out with my friends.

I spend time with my family.

I buy copious amounts of lip balm.

I do not investigate.

I do not fight bad guys. 

I wouldn’t lie.  When I thought about the situation too much, it scared me.  I experienced anxiety over it, but I had someone I believed I could depend on to keep me safe.

And the best thing about all of it now was that I was in love.  I just told Levi how I felt, found out that he felt the same about me, and I wanted to live in that moment now.  I could allow what happened today to consume my thoughts and prevent me from doing what I loved, but I refused.

I was in love. 

Nobody was going to do anything to put a damper on that…at least, not today.

On that thought, I put on my pomegranate-flavored lip balm, gave myself a once-over, and walked out to meet Levi and Pierce.  I walked up to Levi, gave him a quick kiss on the lips, watched his eyes heat, and left for my show.

Levi, I’m certain, decided he liked pomegranates.