Laney (15 page)

Maybe I shouldn’t have asked. I was quiet; I had no idea what to say. I rubbed his arm with my free hand.

His eyes met mine. “She taught me to live every moment and never to take anything for granted.” He took a step closer to me, his eyes still on mine as he put his hand on my lower back and pulled me into him. Then he kissed me. A jolt shot through me as his cool lips were on mine, soft and gentle. I gasped a little as I felt that energy flow through me again, even stronger, along with feelings that ignited in other areas. It was incredible and I didn’t want it to end. His hand came up on the side of my neck just under my ear. He pulled back still holding on. He focused on my eyes and rubbed my cheek with his thumb. He looked a little flushed, as I’m sure I did, too. With the fantastic feeling still flowing through me, I smiled nervously and the corner of his mouth rose into that crooked smile of his.

“I waited too long to do that,” he whispered, resting his forehead to mine.

“Yes, you did,” I whispered back.

He laughed, kissed my forehead, and took my hand. We began walking again. My heart was still pounding from that kiss.
I survived!
I giggled to myself and he raised an eyebrow at me. I smiled back. The date wasn’t over yet.

A car passed us, turning the corner a few feet away. Oliver chuckled. It was my turn to give him the raised eyebrow look.

“Have you ever watched people turn corners while they’re driving?”

I raised both eyebrows and shook my head at him like he’d lost his mind.

“It’s actually really funny. Watch sometime. Some people lean and others don’t. Hayden and I will sit on the corner and watch people pass. One of us picks leaners and the other gets the non-leaners. She usually picks leaners and wins.” He chuckled again. “You should try it sometime.”

“I think you might have too much time on your hands,” I joked with him.

“You have no idea.” He was quiet for a moment as we walked back toward home. “Have you ever thought about what goes on behind closed doors?” he asked, nodding toward the house we were passing.

I raised an eyebrow at him again. He definitely had some interesting topics—better than my attempts at small talk.

He smiled. “Think about it. It’s so quiet; yet, think about what goes on behind your door…”

I took a brief moment to flash through memories from behind my door—memories with Oliver that had happened and ones I hoped would soon take place.

“There’s so much, isn’t there?” He seemed to catch my thought process. “So many happy, sad, and private moments. Moments that aren’t important to others, but they’re important to us.”
Wow—that’s quite the thought to ponder
. “Then there are people like those idiots,” he said, nodding down the street we were crossing. We were crossing past the street Ashton lived on. He and some friends were in the road throwing the football back and forth. Thankfully, they didn’t seem to see us pass by to the next street.

We were at the park near the college. It was a big, grassy area filled with trees; it was pretty much what the Fountain Park had been before the trees got sick, but this park had a large clearing in the middle that the other one never had. We slowed as we started through the park. Oliver seemed deep in thought. I leaned back against one of the gigantic trees so I was facing him.

“So many people take their lives for granted.” His eyes met mine and they seemed to smolder. “I can’t stand the thought of a wasted life.” He took a step closer to me and dropped his voice to a sensual whisper. “We get one chance. We have to make it count.” He leaned in closer, his eyes focused on my lips. I felt them tremble and I held my breath, hoping to steady them. One corner of his mouth turned up into that mischievous smile. My heart was racing; my knees were starting to tremble, too. I had never wanted anything more than I wanted him to kiss me at that moment.

He cupped the side of my neck, his thumb brushing my cheek. He was so close now. I closed my eyes. I wasn’t sure I could take the anticipation. His cool lips gently touched mine. My body jolted. I pressed my lips against his and wrapped my arms around his chest, pulling him closer to me. His lips parted and I felt his cool tongue brush my lower lip. I gasped and he quickly pulled away.
Crap! That was not the response I wanted.
That exciting feeling he caused to rush through me was strong and lingering.

“I’m sorry. I got a little carried away,” he whispered, resting his forehead to mine.

“Don’t apologize,” I said quietly, my voice quavered a little. My body felt strange, like it was vibrating or humming.

“I haven’t quite been myself lately.”

“What do you mean?” I said, looking up at him.

“You distract me, Laney.” Then, in a whisper, he added, “I’ve lost my focus—you’re all I think about.”

“I know the feeling,” I whispered back, dropping my gaze from his.

He pulled me against his body and I wrapped my arms tightly around his waist, resting my head against his chest. I breathed deeply. Everything about him was amazing and he smelled so good. His body felt perfect in my arms—like he belonged there.

“It’s getting late. We should go.”

I sighed quietly into his chest. He gave me a quick squeeze before letting go and taking my hand.

We started down the street across from the park. It seemed familiar and it gave me an uncomfortable feeling. I pulled myself into Oliver’s side, wrapping my other arm around the one holding my hand. He glanced sideways at me and smiled.

When we were halfway down the street, I realized where we were; it was the street with that crazy cat lady.

“We shouldn’t have come by here,” he said as he picked up the pace. “I wasn’t paying attention.”

“What’s wrong?” I asked in a low voice.

We were passing across the street from her house now. There were cats everywhere, hissing and scrambling away from us. Oliver walked even faster and I had to jog to keep up.

“That lady hates me.” He indicated to the cat lady house.

“Why?” I was appalled.
Who the hell in their right mind would hate him?

“She had a run-in with a friend of mine a while back and it’s a hate-through-association thing.”

Okay…

I glanced back at the house as we passed and saw the curtains rustle. It was probably her—or one of her many, many cats.

We slowed as we reached the corner.

“I’m sorry.” he said, easing up on the grip he had on my hand. I hadn’t noticed how hard he had been squeezing until he let go.
OUCH!

“For what?” I asked.

“I…uh...” He smiled and shook his head a little. “I don’t know,” he said, with a laugh.

I gave him a crooked smile this time and, getting on my tiptoes, I kissed him. He wrapped his arms around me and I did the same to him. He fit perfectly against my body; his lips molded to mine like they were made for each other. That sensation flowed through me again making me press myself against him more. He pulled back first. His eyes seemed dark, but it was too dark out to tell.

“Let’s go,” he said brushing my cheek.

“Go where?” I responded quietly. I didn’t want the date to end.

“Home,” he said flatly and we started toward the apartments. Had I done something wrong?

We walked the rest of the way, which wasn’t too far, in silence. When we reached the top step, he sat and gently pulled me down beside him. He wrapped his arms around me and I snuggled into him.

“Even the best nights must come to an end,” he said softly, kissing the top of my head.

“I guess so,” I sighed. I didn’t want this night to end. It felt like it had just started.

After several peaceful minutes, he led me to my door and waited for me to unlock it. I did and then I leaned my back against the door facing him. He leaned in with his hand on the door just above my shoulder. I closed my eyes. His lips softly brushed mine. My heart skipped a beat. Then he pulled back. It wasn’t enough; I wanted more.

“Thank you for tonight.” He smiled. My heart was racing.

“Thank you,” I managed to get out.

I opened my door and he waited until I closed it behind me. Later I wondered if he had waited to make sure I got in safely or if he waited to see if I’d invite him in. I also wondered if he would have come in had I invited him and where that would have led…

I lay in bed that night thinking about him and I couldn’t help smiling. I couldn’t wait to kiss him again, to wrap my arms around his cool, firm body. How would I make it through all those classes tomorrow? I thought my fantasies were bad before. It was going to be so much harder now that I knew what was waiting for me at the end of each class.

My phone beeped and the picture I had taken earlier popped up with a message from Oliver across it:

I miss you already.

I miss you too. I responded.

With the last lingering prickles of that amazing feeling I’d had most of the night fading from my body, I fell asleep.

Chapter 19 - His Place

When I stepped out my front door the next morning, there was one blood-red rose on the door mat along with a small, folded note that simply said:

Thank you for a wonderful night.

Your carriage awaits you downstairs.

~ Oliver

After giving the flower a quick sniff, I put it in a water glass with the other one and bolted down the stairs where my Knight—I know, cheesy
—
was waiting for me. He was leaning against the passenger side of his car, arms folded across his chest, feet crossed at the ankles, and sunglasses in place. He gave me a gorgeous, crooked smile as I hopped off the last step. My heart hurt, he was so beautiful. And so mine! He didn’t move until I was just in front of him, then he grabbed me into his arms so fast I hardly saw him move. His lips were on mine in that moment.
This is by far the best morning ever!

I made it through the day—barely. I delivered one really big kiss in the car, one when we were in the apartment parking lot, and then I received a small one at my door with an invitation to come over.

After a quick stop to refresh myself and grab a small snack, I followed the path that led from our place to theirs. I’d never been to his and Carter’s place before. We didn’t know Carter’s last roommate very well. Carter had said he was really strange and wanted us to stay away from him. So, Carter always hung out at our place. I think Kiera’s cooking was an added bonus for him, so he didn’t mind.

I reached number seven and hesitantly knocked. I became so nervous that my knees started to shake and my heart was sprinting. I took a deep breath to clear my head and the door swung open. There stood Oliver. He was still wearing the same clothes from today—jeans and a long-sleeved, light blue T-shirt under a short-sleeved, white Tee with an ocean wave printed across the front. His shoes were missing, exposing white socks, and his hair was a little disheveled. I felt myself relax when I saw him. I didn’t know what the mini-panic attack was about, but now everything felt right.

“Hi.” His eyes lit up. He smiled and took my hand, leading me into his apartment. It was the exact same layout as ours. A big square—a living room as you walked in, a kitchen just behind and to the right, a dining area to the left, and two bedrooms on the left, with a bathroom separating them. Their kitchen table was in the same place—like there was another option for it. Their TV was much bigger than ours, with a lot more gadgets surrounding it on the entertainment stand. The couch was in the same place as ours—they were just missing the chair.

“Wow, it’s like déjà vu,” I said.

“Crazy, huh?”

I nodded. “I guess all the apartments probably look the same.”

“It’s more Carter’s place than mine. I just live here,” he said with a grin.

“So, who has my bedroom?” I asked.

“Me.”

“No way! That’s too funny.”

“Want to see it?” He awkwardly ran his hand through his hair and shoved the other one in his pocket.

“Sure.”
Of course!

I followed him into his room. It was the exact layout as mine: a closet to the right as you came in the door and a window straight ahead. His furniture was in almost the same places as mine. He had a desk in the corner to the left, and his bed was centered on the left wall, with a nightstand on either side. The difference was that his dresser was under the window and mine was on the opposite wall from my bed. Mine had a large mirror on top of it, so I couldn’t put it under the window. His room was clean and tidy, everything in its place. I wondered if his closest was a mess like mine. All of his furniture was a dark wood. I crossed to the dresser, running my fingers over his comforter as I passed. It was black satin with a red Chinese dragon in the center and red trim along the sides. On top of his dresser was one small, silver-framed photo.

“Is that you?” I asked.

“Yeah. I think we were almost ten and Livie was seven.” He smiled and crossed the room to me.

I picked it up to get a closer look. It looked like a Christmas morning snapshot. They were all sitting cross-legged on the floor in a mess of wrapping paper and pajamas. I could identify Oliver by his eyes; his brother’s were blue like his little sister’s. Oliver was leaning sideways towards Olivia with his arm around her and they were both wearing big, happy smiles. His brother was on the other side of Olivia with a mischievous smile and his fingers up behind Oliver’s head. The picture made me smile. He and his brother looked alike, but they weren’t identical. Oliver was right; Olivia looked more like his brother than she did him.

“Where’s Julz?” I asked.

“Oh, probably off being moody somewhere.” He flashed me that killer smile and my pulse quickened.

“That’s a great picture,” I said, putting it back in its place.

“I have very few. They were all I could save.”

“Save? What do you mean?”

“Well…” he started, “after my parents passed away, my brother destroyed our house.”

After a quick intake of breath, my hand shot up to my mouth in horror. “Why would he do that?”

He shrugged. “I can guess, but I really don’t know.”

“He can’t do that!”

“He did.” His eyes filled with sadness. “Almost everything else was destroyed, but I was able to find some pictures and a couple of other things that survived.”

“That’s awful,” I said sadly. He had lost everything, even his home. “Have you talked to your brother since that happened?” I asked.

“Only when it can’t be avoided.”

I was staring out the window, processing everything he had said, when his cool arms wrapped around me from behind.

“I didn’t kiss you hello,” he whispered into my ear and chills raced down my spine.

I turned in his arms to face him, our eyes meeting.

“Hi,” I breathed.

He leaned in and gently kissed my lips. Shivers ran through me and I felt him shudder. I pulled back and studied his face.

He gave me a bashful smile.

“What?” I giggled. He was so freakin’ cute!

“You make me tingle.”

“What?” I giggled again. “I make
you
tingle?” It was good to know it wasn’t just me.

He nodded, pulling my left hand up with his right. With our palms together, he intertwined his fingers with mine. His other arm was around my waist, holding me against his firm body. He focused on our hands.

“Have you ever thought about how amazing touch is?” He returned his eyes to mine. “We take it for granted, how wonderful the sensation is that we get from it.” He unlaced his fingers and lightly ran his fingers down my arm. It felt wonderful. I had the most amazing feeling in the world running through me. It was love, not just the hope of it anymore. I was falling in love with him.
Holy Crap!

“You give me a pretty good feeling yourself.” I was able to keep my voice steady, although I was freaking out inside from my revelation.
Oh…My…God!

“Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?” he said, brushing my hair behind me. He leaned in and kissed me lightly on my neck. My body began to hum and his touch comment was making me super-sensitive to every ounce of contact we were having.

I let my fingers trail down his chest and stomach. I could feel through his T-shirts how firm his body was. He tensed at my touch. Every muscle felt perfect, but not so chiseled as to make you insecure—just right. I watched my hand as I slid it back up his chest to his neck; I met his eyes staring into mine. He leaned in and kissed me. This kiss was different. It had an urgency to it. It was stronger than before. I kissed back, pulling him closer to me. I felt his lips part and his tongue touch my lower lip. I didn’t hesitate and did the same. His body tensed again, but it didn’t stop me.

“Maybe we should slow down,” he said breathlessly against my lips, as he tried to pull back.

I pressed myself against his body and kissed him—really kissed him. I heard a little rumble in his chest, it sounded almost like a growl, and it made me even more excited. He made me tingle in deep, secret places. With his hands around me, he swiftly lifted me off the floor a couple of inches, enough to move to the bed, and laid us down on our sides, never breaking the kiss. He sighed and tried to pull away, but something came over me and I kissed him hard while pushing him onto his back. He resisted at first and then gave in. I couldn’t get enough. I felt an urge I didn’t know existed. That energy was flowing through me again, stronger than ever before. I came up for a breath and he pulled me close, moving us back onto our sides, and nuzzled into my neck. I felt his cool breath against my neck, then his lips pressed gently against it. I felt several more kisses and then one pinched my neck. I gasped and he pulled away quickly. There was a flash in his eyes.

He sat up on the edge of the bed and I sat beside him.

“What’s wrong?” I asked quietly.

“We need to stop,” he said, trying to catch his breath.

“Did I do something wrong?” I asked, feeling a little rejected.

“No,” he said, flashing me a quick smile. “That’s the problem. You do everything right.” He kissed my forehead and I sighed as I relaxed against him. My body still hummed. It was such an amazing sensation, but it made me want to do things I had never done before—things I wasn’t sure I was ready to do yet. His arms were wrapped tightly around me and it felt like the best place in the world.

“Let’s go for a walk,” he said quietly, kissing the top of my head.

“Okay.” Yeah, like a walk was going to keep him safe. I had no issues with mauling him in public.

He put his shoes on and then took my hand, leading me out of the apartment.

“I could really use some dinner,” I said, as we were leaving his apartment.

“Sounds good,” he smiled slightly. “Where to?”

I thought for a moment as we walked down the path that led to my place—my body coming down off of its Oliver high.

“How about that place with the organic salad bar and sandwiches?” he suggested.

“Um, sure. Where’s that?” I asked.

“Back at my place.” he gave me a playful smile.

“Sounds good,” I laughed.

We went back to his place and he made up two salad bowls with lettuce, spinach, cabbage, carrots, apples, cucumber, tomatoes, peas, and an assortment of beans. He wouldn’t let me help, so I just admired the view while leaning against the counter beside him. Oliver cut cheese into cubes and put them into a separate bowl and filled another small bowl with dried cranberries. He set out some dressing and then he made me half of a turkey sandwich on whole wheat with Swiss cheese and avocado.

I added the cheese and cranberries to my salad with some Italian dressing and Oliver left his bare with none of the extras.

We sat on the floor at the coffee table and turned the TV on.

My sandwich was fantastic! I hadn’t realized just how hungry I was.

“You don’t eat a lot,” I pointed out, as I finished my sandwich.

“I have a low tolerance for certain foods. I’m on a very strict diet.” He was picking at his salad. “Can I get you something to drink?” he asked, getting up from the floor.

“Just some water.”

He set my glass of water on the table and said, “Be right back.” Then he disappeared into his room. He returned a moment later with his cell. “It was under my bed. I could hear it beeping with a message, but I couldn’t find it. I must have dropped it when we were in there.” He gave me that bashful smile again. I felt my cheeks warm at the thought of what had happened in there earlier.

“So, have you seen Carter lately?” I asked, trying to change the subject.

“Yep, he and Kiera were here earlier. I think they were going to dinner and then to your place.”

“Oh, I think the only time I see her is in English class.”

“They are pretty inseparable and they rarely leave Carter’s room,” he said. My cheeks warmed again at the thought of what
they
were doing in there.
Change the subject! Change the subject!

He sat back down beside me and we focused on the TV for a while. Then he asked, “I’m going to see Julz and Hayden this weekend. Would you like to go with me?” He flashed me that gorgeous smile of his, the one no one would be able to resist. “I’m spending the night. I understand if that’s too weird.”

“Um…sure. Do you think Julz will be nice this time?” I asked, flashing him my very own smile, although I doubt mine had the same effect.

“I’m not sure she has it in her to be nice to anyone.” He leaned over and kissed my cheek. “Cool, I’m glad you’re coming. You’ll get to meet my best friend, Felix.”

“Cool. Is he a cat?” I joked, trying not to sound nervous.

“Ha, ha. Like we haven’t heard that one before.”

After we finished eating and cuddling on the couch, he walked me back to my place.

“See you in the morning,” I said into his chest as I hugged him tight.

He lifted my chin and kissed me gently. “Goodnight.”

“‘Night,” I said, as I went inside.

I leaned against the back of the door and tried to clear my head. Things had gone further than ever before and there was no going back from it. As much as I wanted to be, I really didn’t think I was ready for the big step that was coming. I stood there, lost in my thoughts, when a giggle broke me out of my thought process. I looked toward Kiera’s room. I could see light coming from under the door and giggles continued to flow from that area.
You have got to be kidding me! There’s no way I can listen to this all night.
I went into my room, closing the door behind me. I grabbed my iPod, shoved the ear buds in my ears, turned the volume up, and flung myself onto my bed.