Bare Hearts (12 page)

The past week has been excruciating for me. Not talking or seeing Lily has been killing me. I miss her and wish I could take all her pain away. I’ve been trying to give her space and hopefully she will come back to me.

“I really fucked it up with Lily,” I say to Tim as we sit at the bar.

“What did you do?”

I take a swig of my beer before answering.
I must look really pathetic at a bar on a weeknight
. I shake my head. “It’s not so much of what I did, per say, it’s more of what my dad did.” Tim’s eyebrow’s furrow as he cocks his head to the side in confusion.

“What does your dad have to do with Lily?”

“Well, when he died, his last words were, ‘tell her I’m sorry’. And I could never think of why he would say that. I was so confused. Then, the other night it all came back to me. He hit her mom’s car, spinning it out of control and causing her to hit another car. Of course, I told her about it and she took off.” Tim’s eyes grow big at the news.

“Dude, that’s fucked up.”

“You’re telling me. Leave to me to have a fucked up life,” I say, finishing my beer off.

“All I can say is give her space. If it’s meant to be, she’ll come back to you.”

“I hope so, ‘cause it’s killing me not being able to see her.”

“I wasn’t supposed to say, but I think she made plans with Molly sometime this week. I’ll let you know if I hear anything.”

I drink the last drop of my second beer, tossing back a few shots before calling it quits. Standing up to pay my bill I sway back and forth, realizing I may have drank more than I thought.

*****

In the morning, I wake up in a groggy state. It takes a second to remember being at the bar last night. Tim must have dropped me off. I usually don’t drink that much. My mind always goes right to Lily. I wonder what she’s doing, if she’s thinking about me like I am her. She is my first thought when I wake up and my last thought before I fall asleep. My rib has finally healed after icing it every so often. Grabbing some coffee before I start the day, my phone beeps.

Want to go paintballing to blow some steam? I can rally up the guys. It’ll be fun. Tim

I hit the reply button and responds with a
hell yes!
Send.

I am always up for some time with the guys.

A few hours later, Tim and the guys convince me to go out to a club tonight. It’s the last thing I want to do, but I agree to go anyway, because I heard Molly and Lily may be there. What Lily is doing out in a club is beyond me, so of course I have to go to make sure everything is okay.

“We’ll just peek in on the girls; make sure everything is okay. I highly doubt she even knows we’re all coming along, anyway,” Tim says convincingly about Molly and Lily.

After a quick shower, I scan my clothes and decide on a black form fitted t-shirt and black jeans, topping the outfit off with a gold chain around my neck. Tim decided it was probably best if we took two cars, just in case he decided to leave with Molly. I just roll my eyes and laugh.

The club in the next town over is a popular spot. However, I have never been there before. I am nervous about seeing Lily. I have resisted seeing or talking to her for well over a week. I wonder what she would think, knowing I will be there tonight. The line to get into the club is long, but moves quickly and we are in, in no time. Inside the club, the music is thumping through the speakers so loud you can barely hear yourself think. The spot lights change different colors over the dance floor as it moves with the music. The place is packed, and I have my doubts on seeing Lily through the throng of people. Tim and I find a couch and table with the rest of the guys. Some of the guys brought their girlfriends so I kind of feel like the odd man out. I already filled them in on the craziness earlier today.

We get a few rounds for the table and I’m starting to loosen up and enjoy myself. The songs are fast and I stand looking out toward the dance floor, and my heart catches in my throat as soon as I spot her. Lily is out on the dance floor dancing with Molly. She dances seductively, like she has no care in the world. My heart beats rapidly as I watch her. She is wearing a dark blue body hugging dress and sky high heels, which I know she doesn’t own. She must have borrowed them from Molly.

Molly catches me watching Lily, but she doesn’t say anything to her. Tim makes his way over toward Molly to dance with her, leaving Lily to dance by herself. I let out a deep breath, realizing I had been holding it while Lily had me in a trance. I wonder how long I’ll be able to hold out on revealing my presence to her. Grabbing another shot, I toss it back in one swift move. Moving my eyes back to Lily, I see a guy approach her to dance and anger starts to creep up inside me. I watch as she shakes her head no to him and he leaves her alone. A sigh of relief overcomes me, knowing she isn’t interested in dancing with any random douche bag. The thought of someone else touching her makes me sick. Just when I think everything is cool, I see another guy approach her, except he won’t leave her alone when she tries to shove him away. The anger reappears as I make my way over to Lily, shoving everyone out of my way. I reach her just as the guy is pulling her closer to him, pressing their bodies together.

Lily sees me approach, but all I see is red as my fist flies into the guy’s face. “Beat it,’” I scream at him. The guy takes a hint by walking away, covering his face and looking at me like I’m crazy.

“What the fuck, Parker?” Lily shouts over the music.

“Are you seriously asking me that right now? That guy was all over you; it was making me sick. Someone had to get rid of him, because he sure wasn’t leaving when you pushed him away.”

“I appreciate you coming to my rescue, but you didn’t have to hit the guy. Did you come here with Tim?”

“Yes; Tim thought it would be fun to come check on you guys. Lucky we did,” I tell her with an aggravated tone.

“Oh, I see you two are finally talking.” Molly winks at Lily.

“Is this your doing?” Lily says pointing her finger at Molly.

“Maybe,” she says flashing a wink as she walks away.

“Well, you might as well dance with me since you’re here.”

“I don’t dance,” I say as I start to turn away.

“Are you going to leave me all alone out here?” She asks before I leave her.

“Fuck, I guess you have a point.”

I grab her hand, leading her back to the table and introducing her to the guys and their girlfriends. I toss a shot back and Lily follows suit, and then we head back out to the dance floor.

“I don’t know how to dance,” I tell her nervously.

“It’s really not that hard. Just sway your body to the music. Let the music lead,” she shouts.

Pulling her against me, I can feel every inch of her body and I’m not sure how much longer I’ll be able to control myself. The chemistry between us continues to increase as her eyes lock with mine. But first I have to know where we stand. We continue to dance for a few more songs, and she lets the music carry her away.

“See, you’re not a bad dancer,” she teases.

I pull her through the crowd as I make my way outside the club. The street is no longer crowded. I turn to face her. “I need to know where we stand, before I do what I’m about to do.”

“I thought seeing you again would be painful, but it’s been the complete opposite. No matter what, my heart has belonged to you since the first day I met you in the emergency room.”

My heart swells at her words. I pull her against me and kiss her with such a need that I may explode if I don’t have her. “Let’s go,” I tell her as I lead us both to my car.

“Where are we going? This is not the way to either of our places.” Her eyes scan her surroundings.

“It’s a surprise. You’ll love it; I promise.”

Five minutes later, I pull up to the most popular and lavish hotel in the city. Lily looks out the window and up at the tall building.

“What are we doing here?” Her eyes reflect the lights of the city.

“We are spending the weekend here.”

“Is that so? I don’t have any clothes or anything,” she says, concerned.

“You won’t be needing clothes for what I have planned. Let me go check us in real quick.”

Inside the hotel, I check us in until Sunday evening. Grabbing the hotel room key, I head back outside and hand the car keys to the valet as I retrieve Lily for our weekend stay. Her eyes grow wide as she looks up, taking in the tall building again.

It’s been well over a week since I last laid eyes on Lily and the thought of touching her consumes me. She is the one I want to spend the rest of my waking days and endless nights with. I wonder if she feels the same way about me. We stop inside a small shop located in the hotel.

“Get whatever you need for the weekend,” I instruct her as I let her roam the store. She gives me a quizzical look but doesn’t disobey my request. She will see the real me this weekend, and then we’ll see how she feels. She scans the store, grabbing some essentials such as a tooth brush and other things she might need. I prop myself against a counter and wait.

“Happy now?” I ask after paying for the stuff.

“Yes, thank you,” she says looking up at me with a wide smile. I put my arm around her shoulder as we take the elevator to the seventy second floor, making our way to the room.

Once inside the room, I press her against the door, holding her hands above her head while I lightly graze my tongue from her mouth to her neck. “God I missed you,” I whisper in her ear. She presses her body against mine, but I break away from her because I can’t take her just yet.

“We are going to order room service and then you can rest, because you’ll need the energy tomorrow.”

“A whole forty eight hours with you alone and uninterrupted is fine by me,” she says, leaning in to kiss me.

Chapter Nineteen

Whatever Parker has up his sleeve for the weekend is perfectly fine by me. Somehow, I don’t think there will be much talking going on. I am happy he showed up at the club tonight; he looks so hot with his all black outfit on. He has that rocker look going on and I wish he would have taken me against the door like he was going to. Instead he made me wet and wanting him badly, but I play along just for kicks.

The suite is large with all white and black furnishings. It includes a living room, eat-in kitchen area, a grand bathroom, and bedroom suite with large windows overlooking the city. After we eat the burgers and fries that were delivered, Parker suggests I shower and get some rest. I obey his request and go shower. I take my time running the soap over my body, imagining his hands all over me, caressing my body as if it’s never been touched.

Once I’m out of the shower, I realize I have no clothes and smirk thinking about how much I can tease him. Bravely, I enter the suite where he is propped up against the headboard in just my towel wrapped around me. His eyes scan my body from head to toe and back up, and a smile spreads across his face. Standing on the other side of the bed I drop the towel and slide into bed, next to him, completely naked.

“Are you sure I can’t persuade you to fuck me now?” I lay a hand high on his thigh.

He sucks in a deep breath and closes his eyes as he exhales.

“If you seriously want me to fuck you right now, I won’t be stopping anytime soon. Not only do I want you to bare your body to me, I want you to bare your heart, mind, and soul to me. Forget about your worries and let me take it all away.” Parker’s eyes darken as he waits for my response.

My heart quickens at the thought of letting it all go and baring myself completely to him.
Will he still accept all of me, like he claims to?

“And before you answer, I want you to know I want you to show me the real Lily. Not the Lily that owns a flower shop, not the Lily that mourns her mom, and not the Lily that has a mobster father. Just you.”

I melt, my heart skips a beat and I wonder what has gotten into him. Why he wants to travel down this road. Do I even know myself the way he wants me to bare it all? His words haunt me. A stray tear slides down my cheek but I quickly wipe it away hoping he doesn’t notice. But it’s too late.

“I didn’t mean to make you cry.” He leans down to caress my cheek with the back of his hand.

“I just don’t know if I can do that. I want to. But I have so much baggage,” I say tilting my head up at him.

“I have no secrets from you. I’m a “what you see is what you get kind of guy” and I’m willing to make a few exceptions when it comes to you. You are the reason I don’t act so crazy, you are the one who’s showed me love, it’s you that I see a future with.”

My heart skips a beat once more. I flip to lay on my stomach, propping my head up with my hand. “I’m willing to follow your lead on this one.”

His eyes are hooded at my response. “Do you trust me?”

“Yes,” I say, biting my lower lip.
I think.

“Then close your eyes. I just want you to feel. Don’t open them until I tell you,” he says with instruction.

Oh. My. God.

He reaches down to rub my leg from my knee upward to my now exposed butt.

“Don’t move,” he instructs, and I obey.

I feel the bed move as he gets up. Suddenly, he lowers himself on my legs and rubs an ice cube from the top of my butt up my back, and the sensation causes goose bumps to form making me want to squirm because it tickles. He tackles the liquid with his tongue while he spreads my legs apart with his knee. The moisture is already dripping from between my legs. He suddenly flips me over, holding my arms above my head as he towers over me. I can feel his eyes on me.

“God you are beautiful,” he says, tracing his lips up my neck and behind my ear. As badly as I want to see his blues, I keep my eyes shut and just feel him. The heat emanating off of him wraps my body in warmth. He spreads my legs apart with his knee again and I’m already panting heavily. Positioning himself between my legs, he continues licking my neck and moving downward stopping at my breast. He takes his time with each breast, sucking on my nipples hardening them to the peak.