“I called your name ten times, and you didn’t hear me,” she states, and for one of the first times in the past few months, I can’t tell how she’s feeling. Taking a step toward her, I apologize again. I feel like a piece of shit for scaring her. I don’t regret what I said or the threat, but I do regret how it affected her—my beautiful woman.
Stevie straightens, all of her trembling disappears, and she walks up to me. Her hands wrap around my face, and she brings me down for a kiss. It’s deep and slow, confusing me so much more.
“So, you’re not mad?” I ask hesitantly.
She pulls away. “I was scared that you were going to kill him.” I wince. “But now, I’m kind of turned on.”
I lift an eyebrow, surprised. “Oh?”
She smiles. “He explained everything. There was no reason for you to do that, but I understand why you were so angry.” I nod. “I’ll tell you everything on the way to the hotel, but I can guarantee you that he won’t be bothering us again.”
Chapter Forty-Two
LEVI
Once we’re back at the hotel, I join Stevie in the shower, feeling exhausted from every ounce of energy I used during the whole Andrew situation. He was no threat to her this time around. If anything, he was helpful. He gave her the closure she needed, but I still don’t regret what I said. He needs to stay out of our lives for good now.
Fucking Tiffany deserves to rot in prison. She got off easy, but all that matters is that Stevie’s safe. She feels better and she’s safe. She even decided to throw the whole tradition of not seeing each other the night before the wedding out the window.
A hand lands on my chest. “You okay?”
My eyes roam, memorizing the lines of her beautiful face. I don’t allow myself to look at her naked body yet. “Getting there.”
She gives me a sad smile and hands me a small bottle of shampoo.
Stevie turns around, and I lather her hair in the fresh-smelling liquid, gently massaging her scalp. Both of us seem to relax when I touch her. It’s somehow grounding us, reminding us that we’re here together and that everything’s okay.
She faces me, eyes closed, and rinses the shampoo off. I grab a washcloth and squeeze liquid soap onto it. Scrubbing the soap gently around her neck and moving down to her chest, I try to keep it as PG-13 as I can. My thoughts are elsewhere when I remember everything she told me—the timeline of how everything happened. I still blame Andrew. Not as much as Tiffany, but I still do.
I finally get to her legs and lift one at a time. Finishing her off, I straighten, and she already has a washcloth in hand, ready to return the favor. My body relaxes further as she cleans me from top to bottom. None of it is sexual; it’s intimate in an entirely different way.
Stevie reaches her full height again, and the fleeting look of panic in her eyes at the club jumps to the front of my mind.
“Do you still want to marry me?”
Her eyes shoot up to mine, and she looks down at her ring finger. I’m not angry in the slightest, and I wouldn’t blame her if she said no after everything that happened tonight.
She grabs my face in between her two hands and leans up to kiss me. Her lips press against me delicately, and her green eyes turn watery once she pulls away. “More than ever.” She kisses me again, and a weight lifts off my chest. Stevie pushes me away slightly. “I still want to get married tomorrow. No, Ineedto marry you tomorrow.”
This time I kiss her and she deepens it. A whimper escapes her as she grabs my cock that’s now hardened.
She flicks the piercing, and I groan, pushing her against the wall.
I pick her up, and her legs lock around me. “I love you,” I breathe against her lips, and I push myself inside of her.
Her mouth opens with a relieved exhale. “I love you.”
This time, it’s not like the others. We make tender love, soft and unrushed.
I kiss her neck and she cries at the touch.
“I love you,” she repeats. “I’ll always want you.”
“I’m yours. Forever yours.”
That seems to get her going as she matches my pace and moves faster. She’s getting close, and so am I.
The hold I have on her doesn’t allow me to touch her clit, but she doesn’t mind doing it herself. I have a feeling she needs to take control tonight. I hand it over to her, and her moans grow louder with mine.
