Scarlett

I stood in the hall, my heart beating so hard I could barely breathe.

They published the article over twenty-four hours ago.

I had hoped to see Levi at the game, but somehow, he’d slipped out before I’d been able to speak with him.

I’d been looking at my phone all night, praying for a message from him the entire day, to at least know he’d read what I’d written, but by the time I got back to the hotel tonight and still had heard nothing an hour later, I couldn’t sit there any longer.

I was supposed to fly back to New York the day after next, and while it was still a while away, I didn’t want to waste my time waiting.

So, I got dressed, called a cab, and had them drop me at the building.

Lucky for me there was someone who’d just left the building, so before the door locked, I’d snuck in and made my way to the floor Levi lived on.

Now I stood, staring at his closed door, just having lightly knocked.

The last thing I wanted to do was wake Mia, so I stood there waiting to see if he opened the door before I knocked harder. Just as I was about to knock again, I heard the lock click and the door opened, my eyes falling on Levi.

We stood there looking at one another.

“Hi,” I said, my voice barely audible.

I stood there, my heart aching as I stared at the man I’d fallen in love with, hoping and praying that he’d read the article and would find it in his heart to forgive me.

I’d gone over this moment in my head what felt like thousands of times.

I imagined he’d take one look at me and, without a moment’s hesitation, pull me against him, kissing me, begging me never to leave his side again. Only it was far from what I’d imagined.

Instead, he stood there, staring back at me.

“Hey,” he whispered.

“Could I come in?” I questioned, trying to read the look in his eyes.

Finally, Levi stepped to the side, not saying a word, but giving me enough space to let me into his place.

He quietly shut the door and stepped away, placing his hands on his hips while he watched me.

A funny feeling came over me as I stood in the entry of his place.

I’d hoped he was going to make this easy on me, because I’d figured he’d have read the article.

“Levi, I know it’s late, and I am so sorry to drop in like this, but I couldn’t wait any longer.”

I shoved my hands into the pockets of my jeans, then removed them, shifting from one foot to the other and back again, trying to find a comfortable position.

“It is late,” he said, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

I knew that position well. Closed-off Levi, which meant he’d probably not read my article, and that he’d meant what he said the last time I saw him.

I shifted from foot to foot again, my mind screaming to just stop making a fool of myself and back away from him before this blew up in my face again. It wasn’t worth the heartache. I’d suffered enough, I thought to myself.

For the first time in my life, I knew I was right.

While my eyes ran over him, I noted his body language again, making sure I was seeing what was really in front of me, then decided that this was a battle I’d never win no matter what I did.

We really were over. Instead of saying another word, I turned away from him and put my hand on the door handle.

“Scarlett…” I heard him say just as I was about to turn the door handle.

I didn’t turn around, I already knew what he was going to say, and I knew I’d never be able to look at him as he confirmed it.

I waited a moment, and then I felt his hands on my arms, my body jolting with electricity as he touched me. Then, without warning, he carefully turned me around and took my lips with his, kissing me hard.

My body instantly melted against him as his tongue washed through my mouth, and I let out a tiny moan as he nibbled my bottom lip while pulling me closer.

When he pulled away, I felt as if I were going to fall into a heap on the floor, but he didn’t let me go.

Instead, he leaned forward, locking the door again, and took me in his arms and led me down the hall to his bedroom.

I lay in his arms, breathless and exhausted, wrapped in blankets. I opened my eyes and looked at the clock. It was almost ten. My body ached yet felt so relaxed, and I could feel the gentle puff of Levi’s breath against the back of my neck as he slept behind me.

I shifted, gently stretching, trying not to wake him up, but the moment I stopped moving, he wrapped his arms around me tight, pulling me back against him.

“Were you trying to get away from me?” he murmured, pressing a kiss to my bare shoulder.

I couldn’t help but let out a small giggle. “No way,” I said, lacing my hand with his. “I never want to leave.”

The moment he’d closed the door to his bedroom last night, he’d pushed me up against the door, kissing me hard as he worked quickly to undress me. Then he guided me over to the bed, where he kissed his way up my body, asking me for my forgiveness.

I had nothing to forgive him for, and I’d told him that, but he insisted he had to apologize for not allowing me to explain myself.

Then, once he had me writhing on the mattress, he lay beside me, pulling me back against him, moving my leg to his hip and slid himself deep inside of me, slowly bringing me to climax repeatedly throughout the night, until we were both exhausted.

We continued laying there drifting in and out of sleep as we held one another. I felt the bed move and glanced over my shoulder to see Levi slip from the bed, his bare ass heading toward his ensuite.

I lay there, my body still exhausted and heard the shower start, then felt the bed sink.

“You coming to join me?” he asked, kissing my neck, before he left me again.

I finally kicked the covers off, making my way into the bathroom to see his silhouette in the frosted glass of the shower door.

I opened the door, stepping into the steamy shower, pulling the door closed behind me and placed my hands on his back.

“It’s about time you got your ass in here,” he said, turning and wrapping his arms around me as he pressed me up against the wall of the shower, lifting me up so I could wrap my legs around his waist.

“I know, I’m exhausted.” I giggled as he kissed me.

“That’s okay, give it a few minutes and you’ll be even more tired than you are right now. Oh, and be as loud as you want, Mia’s not home,” Levi said as he sucked my nipple into his mouth and between his teeth.

I stopped him the moment he let my nipple go and placed both my hands on the side of his head.

“You mean to tell me I was quiet all last night for no reason.”

Levi couldn’t help but chuckle as he gave me the grin I loved the most.

“I’ll make it up to you.”

“How are you going to do that” I questioned, pretending to be annoyed.

“You’ll see.”

I lowered my hands from his face, and he spun me around, so I was facing the glass panel of the shower.

He took my hands, placing each one up on the glass above my head, then took his foot and knocked on each of my ankles, signaling me to spread my legs, which I did.

He gripped my hips, pulling me back, and slid himself deep inside of me.

“So, you are off to Florida?” I questioned him as we stood in the airport.

Levi had decided that there was no need for me to stay at the hotel and that I’d just stay with him for the remainder of my stay in Vancouver, so I’d taken him up on that.

“Yeah, and then don’t forget stopping in New York on my way home.”

I nodded. I’d been hoping to have more time to rekindle than what we had, and while I tried not to allow my disappointment to show through, I knew it was.

“Listen, what is your schedule like?” Levi questioned, as we stood in line for me to get my boarding pass.

“Well, I have a full day of meetings for the rest of this week, and then I don’t know.”

“What would happen if you weren’t there in person, but you were attending them virtually?”

“I have to do that sometimes, and it’s never been an issue, but it’s normally when I’m away on an assignment.”

“Ah, I see. Well, what if I were your assignment?” Levi asked.

“How are you going to be my assignment? I don’t think they will look at wanting to be with my boyfriend as a work-related assignment.” I giggled.

Levi pulled me in closer, pressing a kiss to the side of my neck. “You don’t?” he said, this time biting my earlobe sending a shiver of excitement through my body.

I closed my eyes, willing myself to fight the feelings that were running through me now, and shook my head.

“No, I don’t.”

I heard the announcement for my flight over the speaker and looked at Levi. I could already feel the sense of loss and we hadn’t even said goodbye yet.

“I guess that means it time for you to go,” he said, taking hold of both my hands in his.

“Unfortunately,” I whispered, stepping closer to him, afraid to let him go.

“Message me when you get there okay.”

“Of course.”

Levi pulled me against him, kissing my mouth hard. I didn’t want to leave him. Hell, after everything I never wanted to leave his side again. These months we’d been apart had almost killed me, and had he not taken me in that night I showed up at his door, I’d have fallen apart.

“I love you,” he whispered the moment our lips parted.

“I love you too.”

I turned around after I’d made it through the security and waved, then made my way to my plane.