Текст книги "S.O.B. "

Автор книги: J. C. Valentine

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Текущая страница: 12 (всего у книги 16 страниц)

Tipping my chin up, I brush a kiss over his lips. “You’d better get used to it then,” I respond. “Because every time you get on that field, I’m going to worry about you until you’re back in my arms.”

His blue eyes fill with emotion, something that is completely unlike the Levi I’ve come to know, and his lips part, ready to say something. But before he can, a low, rolling sound like distant thunder starts up around us.

Glancing up, Levi smirks and I stiffen as we realize that the whole stadium is watching us. And they’re chanting.

“Oh God,” I groan and I feel my face flame red hot when I see the two of us flash up on the video board with kiss, kiss, kiss pulsing in enormous, white letters. I’m more than ready to get the hell out of here.

Attempting to pull away, Levi’s hand—the one that’s still curled around the back of my neck—clamps down. The firm hold he has on me is enough to get my attention and give me pause. I look up at him, my brows furrowed in question, but the laughter and glimmer of playfulness flashing in his crystal clear eyes answers for him.

“Levi—”

“You heard ‘em, princess,” he says, his voice taunting. “You wouldn’t want to disappoint our fans now, would you?”

My answer is a resounding hell yes. I could give a rat’s ass what a bunch of strangers want, but Levi is clearly having fun with this, and he isn’t about to let me get away without a struggle.

I don’t want to cause a scene, but this whole situation—my face blasted across a big screen, hundreds of people cheering us on—has my anxiety levels shooting through the roof. The last thing I want to do is indulge them.

With my hands firmly planted on Levi’s abs, I push him away, but he’s ready for that. Bracing himself, he stands his ground, not budging an inch. And then, without much effort at all, he yanks me in.

I resist for the barest second, until the moment I feel Levi’s lush mouth pressed against mine. Instantly, I’m lost. The world falls away as my muscles relax and I fall into him. My hands snake around to grip his shoulders and my head tilts to the right as his mouth opens over mine and his tongue slips past my lips.

He moans into my mouth—or maybe that was me. I taste a hint of cherries from his sports drink and I feel his hardness pressing insistently against my stomach. Lust consumes me until I can hardly remember my own name, let alone where we are.

Levi is the first to break the kiss, and when he looks down at me, he’s wearing a cocky smile and his eyes are dancing with humor.

“Damn.” That’s all he says. That’s all he needs to say.

Slowly, I become aware that the stadium is roaring with applause and catcalls and somewhere in the distance is the announcer’s excitement-filled voice, but I tune them all out.

Huskily, I say, “Let’s get out of here,” and with little more than a sharp nod, Levi takes my hand and practically drags me away.

24

I wake up in Levi’s hotel room, in his bed. His heavy, tattooed arm is draped across my hip, his large hand cradling my abdomen, and I can feel his slow, steady breaths on the back of my neck.

I smile to myself as last night comes back to me. After we fled the stadium, Levi pressed pause on our libido, sighting that it’d been hours since I’d been properly fed. Despite being hungry, I was ravenous for something much more than a burger. But he wouldn’t hear of it. I don’t think I’ve ever eaten so fast in my life.

Once we got back to his hotel room, there was no stopping us. We were naked and tangled together as soon as the door was closed.

Something about knowing he feels the same for me as I do for him has released the need to keep him at arm’s length, and from the little bit of talking we managed during our dinner last night, we’ve agreed that neither of us see the point in denying our relationship any longer.

Especially now that the cat’s out of the bag.

And our parents are divorcing.

Why deny our feelings? It seems pointless anyway, considering we have a child on the way. One way or another, news of our baby is going to get out. Levi reasons that we might as well deal with it together, and I agree, convincing myself that together, we can handle whatever comes our way.

Carefully, I lift Levi’s arm and extract myself. Tiptoeing into the bathroom, I empty my bladder, brush my teeth, and splash water on my face to wake up. When I see myself in the mirror, I pause. The woman looking back at me isn’t someone I recognize. Her skin is flushed, her kiss-bruised lips upturned into a faint smile, and her eyes are filled with happiness.

This is Levi’s doing. It used to be that when I thought of him, there was no stopping the scowl, no silencing the snarling voice inside my head that wanted nothing more than to burn his memory to the ground and bury it beneath pounds of dirt. All of it was built on nothing more than lies, though. Baseless, teenage lies founded by a hateful man who isn’t happy unless he controls everything and everyone.

Now, though, those dark memories have been replaced by a hopeful jubilance that makes my heart soar. I can’t contain my smile as I think of all the time we’ve spent together just having fun and enjoying each other’s company. I’ve lived more in the few short weeks I spent with Levi than I have in my entire life. He’s forced me to experience the world, afraid or not. He’s shown me that he’s more than the carefree, reckless playboy the world knows him to be. In fact, he’s proven that he can also be a strong and supportive man just as easily as he can be a playful, full of life boy who knows how to make me smile. Without the dark memories tainting my impression of him, I’ve come to realize that Levi is much more complex than I gave him credit for.

When I leave the bathroom, Levi is laying on his back with his arms folded behind his head, watching me. My heart stutters as his baby blues follow me across the room, and I don’t think I’m imagining the growing heat lurking in their pale depths.

“Did I wake you?” I ask as I climb back into bed and curl up on my side facing him.

Turning so he faces me too, Levi tucks his arm under his pillow and lifts his free hand to brush my hair back over my shoulder. His gaze follows his hand as his fingers trace the curve of my shoulder and down my arm, causing a shiver to track through me.

“Nah, I’ve been awake since the sun came up.” My eyes widen and he chuckles. “It was cute watching you try to sneak away though.”

I mock scowl at him. “Cute, huh?”

He nods, a wide smile creating creases around his eyes. “Fucking adorable. I especially enjoyed the view,” he drawls as he reaches around and grabs a handful of my ass.

“Oh yeah?” I challenge. “I thought I had a flat white girl ass.”

“It’s unfortunate, but you work with what you have.” He shrugs as he says this, as if it’s just a sad fact of life.

“You’re such a bastard!” Swatting his bare chest, I belt out a laugh that triggers one of his own, and the sound is so deep and smooth that I’m instantly ready for him.

Snatching my wrist, Levi pushes my arm over my head and twists his body over top of mine, forcing me onto my back. The playful smile is still there as he pins me beneath his solid frame and situates himself between my thighs.

“I thought I was a son of a bitch.” The glittering of mischief mixed with heat in his aquamarine eyes drains all the playfulness right out of me and instantly sends coils of heat through my veins.

“You can be both,” I say, breathless as I stare up at him.

Narrowing his eyes, Levi’s jaw clenches. It’s the slightest movement, but it informs me that he’s thinking hard about something. Whatever that is, he doesn’t say it. Instead, he lowers his head and plants the sweetest kiss on me that I’ve ever felt. It’s slow and soft, his lips moving over mine unhurried. When his tongue seeks entrance, I open to him easily. The muscles in my legs contract, drawing him closer, wordlessly demanding more.

I’m ready for so much more that when Levi pulls away, I release a groan of displeasure before peeling my eyes open.

“What—” The tenderness in his eyes stops my protest.

Releasing his hold on my wrists, Levi wordlessly moves down my body. His lips touch my chin, my jaw, the base of my neck as he places sweet kisses on my skin. He works his way lower, paying extra attention to my naked breasts, licking and sucking each nipple into his mouth, before moving lower once again.

By the time he’s reached his destination, my body is a live wire, ready to be detonated with the slightest touch.

But Levi pauses, his face suspended over the swell of my belly. I say nothing as I watch him, waiting for whatever it is that he’s about to do.

With more care that I thought him possible of, Levi frames my stomach with his large hands and rests the side of his face on my stomach. His eyes slip closed and he just lays there, still as ever.

Sensing this is an important moment, I bite my lip and settle in, holding my breath as I wait. Then in a soft voice, Levi starts talking.

“Hey, baby. It’s me, your daddy. I just wanted to say hello and tell you that me and mommy can’t wait to meet you. But until then, I want to apologize if the ride gets a little rough, because mommy is too sexy to resist and sometimes daddy gets carried away.”

“Levi!” I bite back my laugh as Levi looks up at me from beneath a thick fringe of dark lashes and grins shamelessly.

“What? I’m just stating facts here,” he defends. “I don’t want to start his life out with lies.”

Tilting my head, one eyebrow arches. “I think he can wait a few years before you give him the birds and bees talk.”

“It’s never too early to learn,” he responds matter of fact. Smoothing his hand over my stomach, he kisses it just above my belly button and then moves back up until his chest touches mine and I’m secured in his embrace. “I just want to make sure that he knows everything he needs to know about life.”

Looking into his eyes, I see the sincerity burning in them. I see his doubt, his nervous energy, and I see desire, too. Desire to do well in this new role that is terrifying for both of us because neither of us knows what the hell we’re doing.

Combing my fingers through his soft, wavy hair, I say, “You’re going to be a good daddy, Levi.” The words are sincere. The way my chest tightened as I watched him speak to our baby and kiss him like that gives me hope that this future we’ve decided to build together just might work out after all.

Pain or doubt, I don’t know which, flash across Levi’s face, tightening the skin around his eyes and setting his mouth into a firm line. Wiggling in closer, fitting every hard line of his body against mine so that we’re as close as two people can possibly be, he holds my face between his hands and says in a guttural rasp, “You really think so?”

Doubt. That’s what that look was. It pains me to see how much damage David has inflicted on this man. He’s never had a chance to prove himself. Until now. “Baby, I know so,” I say fiercely.

“But my father—”

“Is an asshole who doesn’t know the first thing about being a dad,” I say, cutting him off. “But you’re nothing like him.”

“I’m everything like him,” Levi argues. “I’m arrogant, cocky, stubborn, demanding. I don’t know the first thing about being a parent other than the example he set.”

“And that’s why you’re already a better parent than he’ll ever hope to be,” I say softly. “Being able to recognize your faults, to question them and worry about being good enough is what makes you better. It’s because of that, that you’ll try, every day, to be nothing like David. If anything, it’s because of his example that you’ll be a great dad.”

His gaze is steady on mine, his doubts and insecurities plain to see. But as he continues to stare me down, I see the battle of wills he’s waged begin retreating, leaving behind stark realization. Of what, I don’t know, but I hope it’s that he knows I’m right. That he’s more than capable, more than worthy, because I know he is.

His hands already framing my head, edge in to hold it, cupping my face firmly. Levi’s stare grows intense and he drags the pads of his thumbs across my cheeks and over my bottom lip.

“Damn, princess,” he rasps. “You fucking slay me.”

Well, as compliments go, that one was pretty damn good considering whose mouth it came from. Levi may not be the most poetic, but his words are effective. My insides twist with need and butterflies tickle my stomach as he dives in for a kiss.

When his lips crash into mine, taking what he wants and giving back nothing short of one hundred percent, I feel the depth of his passion all the way to my toes.

His guttural moans fill my mouth and my lungs as Levi tilts my head for deeper access. His tongue plunges deep as his hips rock against mine in an erotic dance that makes my pussy ache.

Still naked from last night’s impassioned romp makes it simple for Levi to push into me, and he does with one agonizingly slow move that is in complete juxtaposition with the aggressive way he takes my mouth.

“Levi,” I breathe against his questing lips.

“Yeah, princess?”

No words leave my lips. His name is a plea for mercy, for more, for…I don’t know what, and his answering smirk says he knows this.

Wrapping my hands around his back, I cling to him as he starts up a slow, tortuous pace that allows me to feel every. Single. Inch. I swear, if he keeps this up, I might literally combust.

Reaching between our sweat dampened skin, Levi pinches my clit, sending a bolt of electricity shooting up my spine. “Ahhh!” My back arches, pressing my breasts into his chest. My nipples scrape across his heated flesh, creating a delicious friction that ramps up my need to impressive levels. My head is spinning, my heart racing. I can’t seem to find my breath, but the feel of Levi’s hard, unforgiving body pressing me into the mattress is all the grounding—and leverage—I need.

Without warning, my orgasm slams into me.

“Oh fuuuuuck!” Levi shouts. Dropping his head down, he buries his face in the crook of my neck, his breaths gusting out of him as his hips pump harder, extending my orgasm. As the waves continue rippling through me, I feel Levi’s cock thicken inside me.

He begins chanting oh fuck in my ear as his own orgasm rushes up to claim him. As his hips slam into mine I turn my head and skim my lips over his ear and whisper, “Come for me, baby.”

That’s all the coaxing he needs. With a violent shudder, Levi’s whole body tenses and he groans long and low as he spills inside of me.

His hips continue to move in long, lazy strokes, milking the last of his orgasm, until Levi pushes his knees up higher under my thighs to ensure he won’t put pressure on my stomach before collapsing on top of me.

“God, that was amazing,” he pants.

I stroke my fingertips up and down his spine, causing a shiver to wrack him and he chuckles under his breath.

The moment is perfect. Quiet. Serene. Just the two of us, cradling each other. I’d lie like this forever, but the pounding on the door shatters the moment like glass.

Levi grunts his displeasure and I ask, “Expecting someone?”

His head moves side to side against my chest. “Probably just one of the guys wanting to go out and celebrate.”

I sigh internally, not wanting to give up a single moment with him. But I know we can’t live in this hotel room forever. The real world is calling.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Lifting up, Levi’s scowl is dark, dangerous. Throwing the blankets off, he leaps out of the bed and reaches for his boxers lying on the floor. “Give me a minute and I’ll get rid of them.”

“If you want to go out, you can. You had a big win. You deserve to celebrate,” I assure him.

His gaze cuts to me and he clips out, “You think I’d choose getting wasted over spending the day inside you? Not a fucking chance.”

Cheeks hot, I draw the blankets back up, covering myself as he storms across the room. I feel sorry for whoever is on the other side of that door, because Levi looks ready to kill.

The pounding starts up again just as Levi reaches the door. “What the fuck is it!” he shouts as he rips the door open. Then he freezes. The whole world comes to a standstill as I look over his shoulder to see the last person I ever expected.

“Dad, what are you doing here?”

25

“What am I doing here? What the fuck is she doing here?” David muscles his way into the room, knocking shoulders with Levi and practically plowing over him in the process. His eyes are stormy, his deep scowl promising retribution, and the impeccable way he’s dressed—a full suit and tie with his raven hair slicked back off his forehead—makes him intimidating as hell.

And by the murderous glow in his eyes as he levels his hateful look on me tells me exactly who he’s gunning for.

I feel myself shrink back, wishing I could disappear. This is so not how I saw the morning going. Especially after such a wonderful and passionate start. But whatever resplendent feelings Levi and I conjured up have been obliterated by David’s intrusion.

“Hey!” Levi shouts, his voice dark and edgy. “You can’t just walk in here. This is my room.”

David doesn’t bother acknowledging him. His focus riveted on me, he takes in my state of undress with hard steel in his eyes. Jabbing one long finger at me, he says with an ominous calm, “You have been nothing but a thorn in my side since the day I married your bitch of a gold digging mother. I see the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree,” he sneers. “At least have some class and get the fuck out of that bed and get dressed.”

Authority rings loud and clear in his voice and like a small child, I clutch the sheet to my body and scramble to do as he says.

“Don’t you get out of that bed,” Levi commands. I pause with my feet on the floor, unsure of how to proceed.

Father and son stare each other down. They’re nearly identical in height and appearance, making them look like deadly predators facing off. My body vibrates with nerves. I want the hell out of here, to get away from these two because this is bound to end badly, but all my muscles are frozen.

“I want you out of here. Now,” Levi snarls. I notice his hands are balled into fists at his sides, and his body is coiled tight, ready to spring into action at a moment’s notice. Would he really attack his own father?

“Have you lost your damn mind? Do you forget who I am?” David rages, his face mottled red.  “Don’t you talk to me like that, you disrespectful little shit!”

“I’ll talk to you however the fuck I want. You don’t own me!”

“There’s where you’re wrong. You forget that I’m the one who secures your contracts. I’m the one who makes sure you get from A to B. I run your entire life and if it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t be Levi-fucking-Black. You wouldn’t own a shelf full of trophies. And you sure as hell wouldn’t be stirring up the media frenzy that’s sweeping through the nation right now!”

My spine stiffens and I sit up straight. What the hell is he talking about? What media frenzy?

Levi’s jaw pulses, his eyes narrowed in hostility. “What the fuck are you talking about?” he growls.

A smug smile laced with pure animosity spreads across David’s face as he reaches inside his jacket and pulls a folded up newspaper from the inner breast pocket. With a snap of his wrist, he extends it to Levi.

“While you two are up here screwing around,” he clips, “every newspaper and magazine across the country has been chomping at the bit over what happened out on that field yesterday.”

My heart pounds frantically in my chest. My gaze falls on Levi, studying his reaction. Which is grim at best. His expression slowly morphs into deep irritation followed by disbelief and…maybe regret. I don’t have to be the one reading that paper to know what’s in it.

“They’re calling it The Kiss Heard ‘Round the World,” David says, his upper lip curling up in distaste. He flicks me an equally powerful look that shrivels my insides and turns them into dust. “Congratulations, you two. You’re famous! The only thing that could possibly make this situation any worse is if you knocked her up.”

Levi’s shoulder stiffen and I feel my eyes shoot wide. David takes in my obvious alarm, and his expression slowly morphs, turning bright red with fury.

“You stupid son of a bitch. You knocked her up?”

“Well, it wasn’t exactly on my list of goals,” Levi smarts off.

“Do you know what this means?” David snarls?

“Paternity leave?”

“Dammit, stop being such a shit!” David bellows. “Do you ever take anything seriously? For Christ-fucking-sake, Levi. You’ve really put your foot in it now.”

“Well, that wasn’t exactly the body part that was used—”

David’s finger stabs out, his tone threatening, as he cuts him off. “Shut your goddamn mouth. You’ve royally fucked everything now. There’s no coming back from this.”

With that, David strides across the room toward the door. Thank God he’s leaving. But of course it can’t be that simple. Before he goes, he stops and turns back to us. Levi’s back is turned toward his father, so he doesn’t see the spiteful look in his eyes that I do. It’s enough to make me sick. What reason, aside from the obvious, could Levi have possibly given him to harbor so much contempt for his own son? I used to think he was an alright guy, but now I have nothing but hatred for this man.

“You’ve been an embarrassment to me for the last time,” he says to Levi’s back. “Consider this the final straw. I’m cancelling all contracts that involve me and my company. I may not be able to stop being your father, but I refuse to risk mine and my company’s reputation for this sick affair you two have going on.”

Levi huffs a humorless laugh. “Don’t worry, Dad. I’ve grown used to not having a father, so you can continue to rest easy.”

Tossing the paper down on the end of the bed, Levi rakes his hands through his hair and squeezes his eyes shut in frustration.

Curious what’s in there, I pick up the paper. My eyes widen as they land on the enormous black and white image of Levi and me locked in a heated kiss. Then I read the headline and my heart sinks. Soccer’s Sweethearts…Brother and Sister?

“As for you,” David continues on, directing his hostility toward me. “I don’t care what your mother says or does, you’ll never see another penny from me.”

Seriously? Offended, I glare back at him. “I don’t want your money, David. I think I made that perfectly clear when I told you to keep your checks.”

As soon as the first check arrived, I knew that I didn’t want to start my life indebted to a man I had lost all respect for. Levi had told me things about him that hadn’t set right, but it wasn’t until that night at the hotel, the night that I left Levi, that I formed my own opinion of him. I decided then never to take a cent from him.

“That may be, but I know how you women are when it comes to money. And now that you’ve successfully trapped my son with your bastard, I just want you to know that mine is one pocketbook you will not tap into.”

My stomach clenches and pressure builds in my head in both shame and outrage. Shame because anyone would consider me a gold digger, and outrage that he just called my child a bastard. But I don’t need to say a thing, because Levi beats me to the punch.

Having reached his limit, Levi spins around and shouts, “Are you still fucking here? Get the fuck out!”

“Why, because you can’t take hearing the truth? The sooner you open your eyes and realize what an epic mistake this little tryst between you two is, the sooner you can correct it, Levi. I’m only trying to protect you.”

“Oh fuck off already,” Levi says with no small amount of disdain. David’s scowl deepens as Levi continues. “It’s one thing to treat me like shit on the bottom of your shoe, because I’ve grown used to it, but you won’t ever, ever speak to her with anything short of the utmost respect. You can think whatever you want about us and our choices, but if I ever hear you say a cross word to her or about her or my child again, I don’t care if you’re my father or the fucking pope, I will end you, old man. Got me?”

With a measured step, Levi steps in front of his father, partially blocking him from view, but, despite their similar height, I can still see David’s piercing eyes over his shoulder. The devastation, though held in a tight fist, as Levi delivers his next and final blow is there.

“You may not be able to stop being my father, but I am done being your son,” Levi snarls. “I want you out of here, and don’t ever think of darkening my doorstep again.”

David’s eyes narrow, his lips pressing into a firm line. Then, without another word, he turns and walks out the door, slamming it behind him.

The ball of tension in the room seems to burst like a bubble. As soon as he’s gone, all the air oxygen rushes from my body and I hunch over my knees, sucking in a lungful of air.

“What a fucking asshole,” Levi mutters to himself. “He’s got a lot of nerve coming in here like that.” I sense his movement as he begins pacing the room, his anger ratcheting higher with each step. “Telling me that he’s basically forced to be my father? Fuck him! Who ever said I wanted to be his son?” He’s yelling now, and as much as I want to go to him and tell him it will all be okay, I can’t. My ears are ringing, my thoughts are spinning out of control, and my breathing is so erratic that it’s hard to take a solid breath.

“And the way he talked to you?” Levi continues. “He’s lucky I didn’t rip his balls off and shove them down his throat. That fucker is dead to me!” He makes another circuit past the bed, stirring the air. “I’m so done with this shit. This is exactly why I branched out on my own. He thinks he has me cornered, but the joke’s on him. I can’t wait to see the look on his face when he realizes that I don’t need him or his fucking company.”

I stopped hearing Levi back at “Fuck him.” All I can see is the image of the two of us splashed across that page behind my closed lids. Holding my head in my hands, I wrap my fists around my hair and squeeze, hoping the pressure against my skull will relieve the throbbing ache in my brain.

This cannot be happening. The whole world now knows about us, about what we’ve done. We’ll never live it down. We stained our reputation, and by default, our child’s, too. And what about work? Everyone will know. They’ll never look at me the same. This is my worst nightmare coming true.

“Hey, hey,” Levi’s soft voice reaches into my head a second before I feel his firm hands clasp my knees. “Breathe, princess.”

Lifting my eyes, I see him crouching in front of me, worry written all over his face. It’s then that I realize I’m having some sort of panic attack. My chest feels too tight, my head fuzzy, and I can’t seem to get enough oxygen.

“It’s okay, baby, just keep breathing. That’s it. Nice and slow. There you go, princess. That’s my girl,” Levi praises as I concentrate on his voice, using it to calm me, to center me. Eventually, the fog in my head begins to recede and my heartrate slows to a more normal pace.

Stroking my cheek, Levi leans in and presses a soft kiss to my lips. “Okay now?”

I nod, but I’m not okay. Nothing is okay. “Levi,” I croak, my voice sounding rough and scratchy.

“What is it, princess?” His eyes tight, Levi’s thumb tracks across my cheek, smearing wetness across my skin.

I frown. When did I start crying? Swallowing down the lump that’s formed in my throat, I give voice to the fears running rampant through my mind. “That kiss…They know. The—” My voice chokes off on a sob.

Levi’s expression softens. “That we love each other? Yeah, they do. Everyone knows it now. We don’t have to hide anymore.”

What is he talking about? Doesn’t he understand what this means? For both of us?

“But what about soccer? What about my business? They’ll ruin us!” I cry.

Standing, Levi pulls me up and into his arms, holding me firmly against him. Beneath my ear, I hear the heavy beat of his heart thumping madly in his chest. As calm as he appears, he’s as upset about this as I am.

“They can try, but it doesn’t matter. Nothing matters but you, me, and our baby. Soon, the divorce will be final and all of this will be yesterday’s news.”

Tilting my head back, I meet his turquoise stare. “Do you really think so?”

He brushes my messy hair back over my shoulders and flashes a small smile. “Yeah, baby, I do. We just need to stay strong and stick it out. Nothing they say or do can touch us as long as we have each other. Deal?”

I want to believe him, but I have my doubts. Who wouldn’t? Media is a scary thing. It’s a monster that lives to tear people apart. Levi and I? We’re not exactly a power couple. Even under the best of circumstances, this would be a challenge. I’m just not sure that Levi and I have what it takes to overcome this. But, God, I hope like hell that we can. We at least have to try.

Mustering up a false smile, I tighten my hold around his waist and bury my face in his chest just beneath his chin. “Deal.”