Page 15 of Served
He took his shoes off and climbed into the bed after turning the bathroom light off, jeans and all. I rolled toward him and put my hand out and he grabbed it. We laid like that for a while. I wanted to be closer but had to get the nerve up to move.
Eventually, I scooted next to him and moved his arm so I could lay in the nook between his chest and shoulder. I felt him watch me get settled but he waited patiently as I got situated. His arm wrapped around me, and I closed my eyes. His warmth and smell were intoxicating. I was still aching for him but tried focusing on breathing instead. His heart was pounding below my cheek, but his breathing was slow and steady. My breathing mimicked his quickly and the matching rhythmic motion and his warmth around me slowly lulled me out of this day.
Chapter 8
Jason
I spent the last day convincing myself I could move on. You can’t lose something you never had, so it should be easy enough to let it go. That was until I saw her again. She had on an incredibly short skirt and a top similar to last night. Even more skin showing. I found it hard to keep my breathing normal just watching her face, much less see her in such an amazing outfit. She never wore clothes quite like the last two days, but I liked them. Although, she looked great in everything.
I watched as Jaz walked her to the greenroom where the band went between sets. Then I tortured myself as she played. I even acted like a puppy and ran her water to her when she left it on the bar. She smiled down at me, and those punks all got an eyeful, so I glared at them as I saw in her face she realized it, too.
The night was intense for me. Watching her rub up on those guys. I think she caught me staring at her during the show, but I was quick to move to a customer. And it was even worse when I realized Amy left and she and that punk bassist had gone back to the greenroom alone.
A couple hours passed, and Jaz and I were shutting it down. I had been in the kitchen grabbing the rest of the trash to carry to the dumpster out back when I heard something. I went to the door and could hear through the crack shuffling, pushing, and a familiar voice. It was quiet, but it was her. I didn’t want to intrude on a private moment, but something told me this wasn’t what that was.
I flung the door open and quickly saw red. The next few seconds were a blur, but I peeled that animal off of her and don’t remember much except my fists connecting to bone and skin. I remember a breeze in my face but if he even landed a hit, I never felt it. I think if he hadn’t fallen and scrambled away from my grasp, I would have killed him with my bare hands. But my feet didn’t run after him. Instead, they turned to the whimpering sounds against the building.
I went to her, unsure if he was gone or coming back. I looked down at the ball she formed and knew I had to do something, anything. I leaned down to grab her off the ground and slid her bag around my wrist. She tensed as my arms went under her legs and around her back, but I whispered into her ear and felt her loosen enough to pick her up. She wrapped her arms around me, and I flung the door back open and rushed inside toward the greenroom, careful to avoid roaming eyes.
At first, she wouldn’t let me put her down, so I sat and rocked her in my lap. So much ran through my mind and I was torn between wanting to go hunt down that coward and kill him and staying with her. I chose to stay and reassure her she was safe with me.
She insisted on not calling the police and just going home. I knew it was a terrible idea, but I didn’t want to push her. Not after what just happened. Her top was ripped so I did get her to let me go shut down the club and I grabbed one of my old shirts I knew was in the office for her to wear home.
I held her hand all the way to her apartment. Holding her hand made me insane. It was soft and warm and fit perfectly within mine. I never wanted to let it go. She wasn’t mine to console, but I wanted to wrap my arms around her and take away all the hurt and confusion she was feeling. She didn’t speak on the way but kept her head down. She wanted me to go inside with her since Amy wouldn’t be home yet. I couldn’t blame her for not wanting to be alone. I knew it was a bad idea. At least for me.
I checked the door just to be safe when we got upstairs. I didn’t know how well she knew the band and didn’t know if that jackass knew where she lived. We went inside and she led me around by the hand before we sat, still not letting go. It was when I saw the handprint on her throat that sent a new wave of rage through me. Eric was not as big as me, but definitely bigger and stronger than her. What kind of shit did this to a woman?
She sent a different emotion through me, though, as she reached her hand to my face. Feeling her touch against my cheek sent my skin ablaze, among other things. But I couldn’t act on it. She was just attacked. And had been drinking. I just needed to be sure she was safe. I had to be strong and push this feeling down.
But she insisted on mending my face where that jackass got one hit in. Once she was done, her own emotion got the best of her, and she kissed me. At first, I stood motionless, trying to remind myself she was just acting out of confusion and hurt. But the feel of her lips was unbearable. She only lightly pressed them to mine for a brief second and pulled away just barely. My heart was nearly beating out of my chest, and I knew she could feel it since her palm was pressing against my chest. I couldn’t hide the reaction of my body to her touch. She leaned back up to me again, this time more forcefully and I couldn’t control myself. I reached around her and grabbed her hair, but not in a malicious way. Just enough to guide her mouth on mine.
Her lips burned against mine. My other hand wrapped around her, pulling her body against mine, setting mine on fire. For a moment I forgot everything. I only felt her. Her mouth on mine, her tongue brushing against mine. Her body arching into mine. It was everything I had imagined, maybe even more. But somehow, even as all the blood was rushing below my abdomen as her hands grabbed my shirt, something clicked in my mind, and I pulled away. She let out a small sigh of displeasure and pulled me to her again. At first, I succumbed to her once more, attacking her mouth with mine, but my mind stopped me again and I pulled her face from mine.
Hurt and confusion filled her face. I knew this was wrong. I tried to explain that to her, but she became angry. Then Amy came home, and she quickly ran to lock her door, but then told her I was with her. Of course, Amy had something to say to that but left it alone for the time being. Since the energy had shifted and Amy was now home so she was no longer alone if I left, I asked her if she wanted me to go or to stay.
“I need you to stay,” she said as she looked up at me from across the room.
I couldn’t deny her in that moment, even though I knew it was a bad idea to stay.
“Then I’m here to serve you.”
I went to settle into the chair that sat in her room, but she patted the bed next to her and told me she needed me there, next to her. I had to swallow the huge lump from my throat but was able to get out that we would only be sleeping, nothing else. She agreed, but I thought my body was going to jump from my skin when she eventually cuddled up to me, laying in the crevice between my arm and chest. I laid there with my eyes closed, trying hard to contain my urge to ravage her. I felt the tension leave her body as she drifted off to sleep on my chest. I laid there for what seemed to be hours still fighting myself as she practically burned into my skin before I finally was able to find sleep myself.
Chapter 9
Lucy
Light peaked in through my curtains, glaring into the room. I tried peeling my eyes open after the hardest night’s sleep I’ve had in years. As my mind caught up with my eyes, I felt the weight and warmth of the large body against me. His arms were holding me, and our legs were tangled together, my face smushed up to his chest but turned up just enough for air to reach me. I tried to be still to not wake him. I didn’t want to move from his cocoon around me. I must have already stirred too much, or the light woke him as well because he tensed his body into a stretch, pulling his legs from mine, but squeezed me tighter as he let out a sleepy moan. Then suddenly he jumped, pulling away and rolling onto his back.
“Sorry, I didn’t realize. I was asleep.” He rubbed his eyes and went to lean up, but I reached my arm across his chest. He grabbed it gently, but then continued to lean up in the bed and toss his legs over the side, turning his back to me as he pushed my arm gently away. He took another stretch, arms up over his head and it only highlighted the perfect shape of his shoulders and back.
“I better go. I have some things to handle and I’m sure you have work or something to do.” He was putting his shoes back on and I was frozen on the bed, trying to force anything from my lips but couldn’t move until my alarm went off and startled me. I rolled back to the nightstand and slammed it off. He had already stood and was grabbing his keys and wallet from the nightstand on the other side of the bed. Finally, my brain and body decided to work in conjunction, and I flew off the bed, stopping him at the foot.
“Wait, do you have to go now?” I gazed up into his eyes. He still had a pained look in his face and the bruising had spread under the cut on his cheek. Still, even with that and in the cruel light of day, he suddenly was the most magical creature I laid my eyes on.
“Lucy, you just don’t want to be alone because of what happened. I get it, and it’s fine. But I can’t be a crutch. Not for you.” He seemed like he wasn’t done, but he stopped himself. He started to walk around me. My mind was racing. Part of me wondered if he was right, was it just because he rescued me? Or did I really suddenly see something else, something that had been there all along. Either way, I couldn’t let him walk away.Not like this, damnit.
I grabbed his arm hard and jerked him around to look at me. “Look, maybe it’s shitty that it took something bad to open my eyes, but it’s not like you ever tried to show me before, either. So, you can’t get mad at me now for it.”
