Finding Her Strength (Sonoma #3)

31. Levi

31

LEVI

M y trowel scraps across the wall, spreading the gray mortar across the surface. The shower tile is going in today on the Silvey house. We’re down to only a few more projects to complete, then the house will be finished. I’ve got a few other builds starting up soon, but I won’t have to be at them full time, so I’ll be able to focus solely on my own house. A good chunk of the upstairs is done, but the downstairs still has quite a bit to go before it’ll be ready to live in.

Making my house livable hasn’t been much of a priority since I’ve basically moved in with Hope at this point. It’s been a couple of weeks since we went to the beach, and I haven’t had any desire to move back into my apartment. Hope hasn’t made it seem like she wants me to leave, either, so I’m taking advantage of the extra time I get to spend with her.

We’ve settled into life as a couple so seamlessly, it’s as if we’ve always been together. Hope has a huge event tonight that she’s been prepping for all week. There have been some late nights at the store, but it could be huge for business. It’ll get her recognition as well as potentially bring in a slew of new clients .

I wish she’d hire another part-time employee since the shop is doing so well. She’s worried the income won’t be there forever, which I can understand. I just don’t want her to have to work so hard. It’s been killing me how much time she’s been putting in the last few days. I know she’s exhausted. At least she’s letting me help her drop off the flowers tonight instead of trying to do it all by herself.

Continuing to put the tiles against the wall, I make sure everything is as straight as possible. This is when I love my job. The moment my mind wants to start moving a million miles a minute, all I have to do is start on a project that requires my full attention.

If I didn’t have to focus solely on these tiles so they’re straight, I’d be thinking about everything I could screw up with Hope. I’ve enjoyed getting to know her on a deeper level. I know she likes to go through her bedtime routine in a certain order every single night. She knows I like to strip down to my underwear when I get home since I’m usually a mess. I know she loves to cook dinner but hates grocery shopping. All the little things in life you only learn when you get close to someone.

I wish I could help ease the tension Hope has been feeling this past week. She’s been up at all hours, her anxiety not letting her sleep, and working long days at the shop to finish the arrangements for this event. It’s been a lot for her. Sometimes it feels like it’s more than the event that’s weighing on her, but she hasn’t said anything to the contrary. I’ve even asked her to be sure. Hopefully, once it’s over, she’ll be able to relax again.

Shaking my head, I focus back on my task. It’s so easy to let my thoughts slide to the negative. I have to keep reminding myself that Hope and I are adults, who are fully capable of communicating any issues we have. I just have to keep trusting that she’ll tell me if something isn’t right so I can help her fix it.

I pull into the empty parking lot of Blooming Beautiful. Hope closed the shop early today so she could focus on the event tonight instead of customer orders. I’m going to have to do my best to help her relax when we get home tonight. She’s been stressed to the max and working so hard, she deserves to be pampered.

Walking into the store, I’m surprised the door is unlocked. The door doesn’t chime, reminding me I need to fix it for her. It broke a few days ago, but I haven’t had a chance to get to it yet. I’m early to pick her up, so maybe I can work on the door while she finishes up.

Since I don’t see her out front, I head toward the back room where she has a big walk-in fridge for her extra inventory, as well as another table she uses to make arrangements when she needs more space. I finally find her sitting in her office. There’s only a desk in the small room, so it’s more like a closet than an office, but she likes it well enough.

“Hey, sweetheart,” I say softly, making her jump a mile.

“Jesus Christ.” Her hand flies to her chest as her breathing increases. It’s been a long time since I’ve scared her like that. She must’ve been super into whatever she’s working on.

“Sorry! I thought my days of needing to wear bells on my shoes were over.” I lean down to kiss Hope’s temple while squeezing her shoulders.

I watch her shake her head as she smiles at me. “I was apparently too in the zone to hear you come in.” Her eyes dart to her computer, then back to me.

“The chime is still broken on your door, so that probably didn’t help. If we’ve got some time, I can install the new one.”

“We’ve got about thirty minutes before we need to load up the truck.”

I nod at her before I lean down to press my lips against hers. Soft under mine, she lets me take over the kiss. It humbles me every time she lets me lead. Especially after everything she’s been through. Having her trust me enough to let me take over is one of the best feelings.

I pull back before I get too carried away. As much as I’d like to boost her up onto her tiny desk and have my way with her, we don’t have time for me to give her the attention she deserves.

Her dazed face has me grinning down at her. “The quicker we get this event done, the quicker I can get you home, so hurry it up.” I wink at her, then head back to the front with the sound of her laughter following me.

The minute I’m done getting the door chime installed, Hope is ready to pack up my truck. We get everything loaded, then head to the convention center outside of town. There are about a million flowers in my back seat and truck bed, which has a top cover on it to protect my tools. Right at this moment, it’s protecting flowers.

She’s quieter than usual as we drive over to the center. She’s been pretty quiet in general since we hung out at Natalie and Tucker’s last weekend. I worried my friends overwhelmed her, but she assured me they didn’t. She’s been texting with the girls ever since, so I think she’s being honest.

I know she’s been stressed about this event, and I’m sure the anxiety of doing well has made her withdraw into herself. I just hope she hasn’t built her walls back up too high. It was tough to break through them the first time, but I’ll do it again. I’ll do whatever it takes to prove I’m in this for the long haul, no matter how hard things may get.

“You worried about the event?” I ask, trying to pull her out of her deep thoughts.

“Not anymore. With the arrangements done, I’m feeling fine about it. Once we get everything dropped off, I’ll be able to slow down again.”

“Good. You’ve been working hard this week. It’ll be nice to see you relax a little. ”

Hope sends me a small smile in agreement but doesn’t offer much else in response. I let her have her silence instead of pushing since we’re almost to the convention center.

I park in the loading area and help transfer the flowers from the back of my truck to the conference room. Then, I stand in the back, watching Hope do her thing. She places each piece in the middle of the tables, fluffing them if they were smashed in transport.

Watching her work with the flowers is mesmerizing. Every move she makes is full of confidence, knowing exactly what needs to go where to look the best. She’s amazing and so fucking beautiful it’s hard not to grab her around the waist and carry her home.

When the final arrangement is placed on a table, she looks up to scan the room. She suddenly freezes where she stands. Her body is so stiff, I can see it from all the way across the room. Scanning the area, I try to find what made her freak out but only see a group of employees from the convention center.

I look back at Hope right as she shakes her head and resumes scanning the rest of the room. The moment she finds me, her body relaxes as a small smile pulls at the corner of her mouth. Knowing that I can ease some of her tension just by looking at her gives me so much pride, I’m barely able to wait for her to come to me.

Again, my body is on edge, wanting to sweep her out of this place. To spend all my time worshiping her incredible body. Even though I’ve had her several times since our first, I can’t get enough of her.

“Everything okay?” I ask when Hope gets close.

“Yeah, why?”

“I saw you freeze out there, so I wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“Oh, um, I’m fine. Thought I forgot something, but I didn’t.” She glances at the group of employees standing at the back of the room, then back to me.

I hesitate, knowing she’s not being honest with me. Do I push her to tell me the truth or let her come to me when she’s ready? Knowing the stress she’s been under, I decide to let it go. “Shall we head out, then?”

“Yes. I’m sorry it took longer to get the flowers in place than I anticipated. Thank you for waiting.”

I grab her hand to lead her out of the conference center. “Of course. If I’m being honest, I enjoyed watching you work.”

“Really?” Hope frowns in disbelief.

I open the passenger door of my truck to help her in. “Really. It was a major turn-on, actually. You looked so confident and in control. It was hot.” I grin at her look of surprise. I don’t know how she doesn’t see how incredible she is. I’ll have to make it my mission to make sure she knows it every day.

Hope’s moan echoes through the bathroom, going straight to my dick, which is already harder than steel.

“Levi, that feels incredible.”

My hands continue digging into Hope’s shoulders, her olive skin smooth under my calloused hands. With her dark hair pulled up into a messy knot on her head, I’ve got full access to her neck, shoulders, and back.

When we got home, we warmed up some leftovers for dinner, eating them while catching up on the rest of our day. Then, I carried Hope up the stairs to the bathroom, where I filled the tub for her to soak her tired body. She insisted I get in with her, even though the tub’s not quite big enough for my frame. With my legs stretched out on each side of her, I’ve been able to massage her back, working some of the tension out of her muscles.

I didn’t realize how tight she’d gotten over the last week. I’ve been working to get rid of some of the edginess she’s been carrying. I’d do anything for her to go back to her happy, relaxed self.

“I’m glad it feels good. You’ve been working hard this past week, so you deserve to be pampered.”

Instead of responding, she turns her body so she’s facing me, sliding her legs around my sides to sit on my lap. My arms naturally snake around her waist, pulling her closer to me. My cock is weeping at how close her center is, but I know the purpose of this move is not for the sexy times it’s hoping for right now.

Her face is serious while her eyes are wide and vulnerable. The dark pools of her irises pull me so deep, I’d never be able to find my way out, even if I wanted to. And I definitely don’t.

“Thank you for supporting me, Levi. I’ll never be able to put into words how much I appreciate your ability to be by my side, helping when I need it, and letting me do it my own way. Being able to come to you, knowing you’re not going to take over everything for me is something I hope to never take for granted. You’re everything I’ve ever dreamed of and never believed I’d actually get to have.”

“Oh, sweetheart.” I run my thumbs across her cheeks, completely overwhelmed by my feelings for this woman. She’s absolutely shattered every illusion I had of what a committed relationship would be like. She’s brought so much more to my life than just companionship. My world is brighter, happier, with her in it than it ever was before.

“I need you to know how much you mean to me. I thought moving here was going to be the best decision I ever made, but saying yes to going on a date with you was much better.” She pauses for a moment as a small smile begins to form. “I love you, Levi.”

My chest expands with so many feelings, I have no idea how to deal with them. Instead, I push forward, taking Hope’s lips in an all-consuming kiss, pouring all my love for her into this one moment. I’m overwhelmed with emotions, and the only thing I can think to do is get as close to her as possible.

It seems Hope has the same idea because she reaches down to grab my cock, guiding it to her center. She slowly lowers herself down, her tight sheath pulling me in deeper. We both groan when I’m fully seated inside her. God, she feels incredible. It was the best day when we decided to forgo the condoms. With us fully committed to each other, and Hope on birth control, it was a no-brainer.

“You’re everything I’ve ever wanted in a partner, Hope. I never thought I would get to be with someone like this, but it turns out, I’ve been waiting for you to come into my life.” The words are tumbling from my mouth so fast, I barely even register what I’m saying.

I think Hope likes them, though, because her hips start moving faster, grinding down on me with every pass.

“Fuck, you feel good,” I growl, which only spurs Hope on more. I grab her hips, squeezing her hard while helping to guide her movements. The water is splashing everywhere, but it barely registers as I watch Hope’s body writhe on mine.

Water droplets fall down her chest in a sensual glide, highlighting her round, full breasts. Leaning forward, I suck her nipple deep into my mouth, making Hope moan while her pussy tightens around me. I can tell she’s getting close, pulling me along right behind her.

I gently bite down on her nipple, tugging on it. Hope throws her head back, her orgasm crashing through her as her pussy clamps down on me so tight, I have no choice but to follow her. My entire body explodes as I come harder than I ever have before. It’s intense, matching the words and feelings we shared earlier.

Our breathing is heavy, the little water that’s left in the tub laps at our skin. Hope’s hands run across my shoulders and back while mine do the same to her. It’s soothing as we both come down from our heightened states.

“I love you so much, Hope,” I whisper against her lips. She gently kisses me despite the grin on her face.

“That’s good because I’m not letting you go.”

“Oh, yeah?” I smirk, raising my eyebrow. Hope’s giggle has me melting, my smile growing even bigger.

She nods her head, happiness radiating off her in waves.

“Good because I wouldn’t let you.”