Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
WYLIE
“May we come in?” one of the deliverymen asks.
“Of course,” I say as I step aside. They roll in a large square box and a second smaller one.
“Over there in the corner,” the other man says.
“Is that the corner he was talking about?” the other guy says.
“Yes, matches the picture.”
What on earth did Levi get me?
I keep the door open as I watch the men open the box, peeling the sides down to reveal a camel-colored oversized leather chair.
They set it in the corner, near the window, and then remove a side table that they place right next to it.
Then they look around the room for a second until they spot the fiddle leaf fig tree and move it to the side table and place it on top.
My heart flutters.
They then pick everything up and hand me a card before leaving. When the door’s shut, I open the letter and read it.
Wylie,
I wanted to offer you a space where you can curl up and let your art inspire. I know you’re going to create beautiful things, and I can’t wait to see it all.
Enjoy, baby.
Yours,
Levi
I clutch the letter to my chest and let out a deep sigh.
No one has ever done something so thoughtful for me.
No prior boyfriend and certainly never my father.
. .It makes me feel so cherished. As if what I need, what I feel, is extremely important.
As I consider Levi’s apology, his restraint— and then his lack of restraint —his complete focus on me? That’s...incredible.
Oh God . . . I think I might be falling for him.
I’m sitting cross-legged in my chair when Levi arrives home.
He walks through the door, and the largest smile spreads across his face when his eyes land on me.
“You didn’t text me,” he says.
“I wanted to show my appreciation in person,” I say and pat the chair. “Come here.”
He sets his things down, takes off his shoes, and walks over to me looking all kinds of good in a tight long-sleeved shirt and joggers.
He takes a seat next to me since the chair offers enough space for us both, and he puts his arm around me. I snuggle into his chest and lift to place a kiss on his cheek. “This was incredibly sweet, Levi. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” he says, resting his hand on my hip. “I wanted you to have a comfortable place to draw, and I thought near the window and the fiddle leaf fig would be ideal.”
I chuckle. “The fig tree was a nice addition. You should have seen them look for it and then carefully place it on the table.”
“I’m glad you said carefully. I told them it was of the utmost importance that they were careful, and I tipped them well, so I’m glad they listened.”
“They did.” I draw small circles on his chest. “This was one of the nicest things anyone has ever done for me.” I look up at him and try not to get emotional, but I can’t help it. “I love that you believe in me, Levi.”
He shifts to look at me as well. “Of course I do. If you’re passionate about something, then I’m going to believe in you and support you. That’s how it should work.”
“You’re right,” I say softly. “That’s how it should work.”
Unfortunately, that’s not how it works with my dad.
He must be able to tell what I’m thinking about because he lifts my chin and says, “He’ll come around, Wylie.”
“But what if he doesn’t?” My eyes well up with tears, and I hate that I’m getting emotional over this.
“Hey,” he says softly as he pulls me onto his lap so he can look at me better. I reach up to wipe at my tears, but he beats me to it. The pads of his strong thumbs run below my eyes, catching my tears. “Don’t cry, Wylie.”
“I’m sorry.” I let out a low breath. “I just . . . I’ve never had someone believe in me like you do, other than Sandie, and you haven’t even seen anything I’ve done. How can you so freely hand it over, and my dad can’t?”
He runs his hands over my sides soothingly as he says, “I really don’t know, Wylie.
I wish I could give you a reason, but sometimes parents can be blinded by the future they planned out for their children, not realizing, that it’s not up to them to plan it.
It’s up to them to nurture the plans you have for yourself. ”
My lip wobbles before more tears fall down my cheeks. “I wish he was different. I wish his love wasn’t conditional. I wish he would accept me for who I am and what I want.”
“I wish that too, Wylie,” he says softly. “And maybe someday he will, but you have to keep being you. You have to keep being the person you want to be, and you have to keep working toward your goals, regardless of whether he approves. Allow him to catch up to you. Don’t fall back to appease him.”
I stare down at his handsome face and endearing eyes, and I think he’s such a different man than I initially believed him to be.
In my head, he was the playboy, the guy who fought on the ice and fucked at night, and I wanted a piece of that.
It felt dangerous and exciting, but sitting here with him, being around him the last few weeks, I can see he’s anything but that man.
He’s kind.
He’s hilarious.
He has a warm heart.
He’s compassionate and supportive.
He’s the complete and total opposite of my father, and I truly believe that’s why I want to cling to him.
Why I need him in my life.
Why I want him so desperately because I want the comfort. I want the protection. I want the stability he offers so freely.
“Thank you,” I say to him as I lean down and kiss him softly on the lips.
When I pull away, he says, “No need to thank me, babe. I’m here for you.”
“I know you are, and I can’t tell you how appreciative I am of that.”
“You don’t need to,” he says. “We support each other. That’s how it goes. At the end of the day, we’re there for each other.”
I play with the collar of his shirt. “You say that as if we’re in a real relationship.”
His brow quirks up. “Uh, we are.”
I chuckle. “So . . . if presented with the opportunity, you’d introduce me to someone as Wylie, your girlfriend, not Wylie the wench who lives in the nanny hole?”
He lets out a laugh as he considers it. “Wylie, the wench who lives in the nanny hole, has a nice ring to it, honestly, but I’d have to go with Wylie, my girlfriend.”
“Good answer.” I smooth my hands up his chest and lean forward, making out with him for a few seconds, letting our mouths explore as his hands wander down my back to my ass.
That’s when I pull up, and he groans in disappointment.
“Baby, keep kissing me,” he complains.
“Can I show you something first?”
“Is it your tits?”
I chuckle. “No, it’s a drawing I did.”
“Then, hell yeah, show me.” Smiling, I move off his lap, but he stops me. “You don’t need to get off me to show me.”
I roll my eyes. “Really? You know I’m a sure thing. You don’t need to keep me on your lap.”
“It’s a comfort thing. I like you here,” he says, those pleading eyes nearly cutting me in half.
Hard to say no to that. So instead of dismounting, I lean over to the other side of the chair where my iPad is and wake it up. Feeling slightly nervous, I stare down at the drawing I was working on, then hold it to my chest.
Looking Levi in the eyes, I say, “Please be honest with me. Don’t say it’s good just to spare my feelings.”
“I’ll tell you the truth.”
“Promise?” I ask.
“Promise,” he says.
I let out a pent-up breath and say, “So a little backstory, I’ve found great fun in drawing and not really focusing on graphic design for marketing purposes. That doesn’t really excite me, but this does.”
I turn the iPad around and watch Levi’s expression as he takes in the erotic drawing I did of Patty Ford with a man between her legs, being pleasured.
His brows lift, and his mouth parts as he takes the iPad in hand and stares down at it.
“Holy fucking shit,” he says as he takes it all in.
Excitement flows through me because that is an honest reaction. That’s the kind of reaction I was hoping for.
I spent all day working on it, going back and forth between Patty Ford’s website and envisioning what I thought she’d look like if she had someone else with her.
I worked tirelessly on making sure her face was accurate and her proportions made sense, and I spent probably more time than I should have on her chest and refining her nipples.
“Wylie,” he says as he shifts under me. “Fuck, this is really hot.”
“Really?” I ask.
He looks up at me and nods. “And really good. Jesus.” He drags his hand over his mouth and stares at it some more.
“The shadowing is amazing, the way you contoured her body. Your lines are smooth. The expression on her face almost has movement to it. The whole drawing does. I can virtually see her panting if I stare at it long enough. Fuck. It’s good.
” His eyes fall to mine. “And I’m not just saying that. This is really fucking amazing.”
I can’t help the smile that spreads across my face. “Thank you,” I say. “I worked incredibly hard on it, and to be honest, it came to me while I was sitting in this chair.”
“It’s insane, like . . . fuck, babe, I’m hard.”
I chuckle and wiggle on his lap, feeling exactly how hard he is.
He groans and sets the iPad down. He grips my hips and asks, “Are you going to send it to her?”
“Do you think I should?” I ask as he grabs the hem of my shirt and pulls it up and over my head, revealing my bare breasts. He sighs happily before reaching up to play with them.
“Yes, I think you should,” he says.
I bring his shirt up and over his head as well and say, “What would she do with it?”
“Sell it,” he says as I move down between his legs and pull down his joggers and briefs until he’s fully naked on the new chair.
His erection’s stretched up to his navel, and instead of grabbing it, he rests his hands at his sides, letting me take charge, something that I love about him.
He’s very much a man in control, but he has no problem submitting every once in a while.
I smooth my hands up his thighs. “You think she’d sell that?”
“Fuck yes,” he says as I spread his legs.