Chapter 55
FIFTY-FIVE
Zephyrine
“Holy fuck.” Levi lets out a low whistle as he surveys the hotel room I’m staying in.
We took a walk around the city and ate dinner at a quaint little Gasthaus down the street at his insistence.
If it had been up to me, I might have just brought him back here and worried about room service later. “Is the Vatican paying for this?”
“No. This is Charlotte’s doing.” I do a quick twirl, grinning as I look back at him.
“Isn’t it gorgeous?” The hotel rises above one of the main squares in the city, and the floor-to-ceiling windows in the room have spectacular views of vintage roofs and cobblestone paths leading out between the churches and shops.
“I think it might have been a setup though.” I tap the champagne bottle that’s on ice on the table and snatch one of the chocolate-dipped strawberries that sit next to it, offering it up to him.
He takes a bite and lets out a small hum of approval.
“Good?” I ask as he grabs my hips and pulls me close.
“Not as good as the ones in the woods, but they’ll do for tonight.” His hands slip around to my back and follow the curve of my butt as I step out of my flats and tuck them under the table.
“Do you want some champagne? Or I can see if room service has whisky?” I glance back to see if there’s a menu. I feel oddly nervous at the thought of being with him again. He pauses abruptly and raises an eyebrow, studying my face.
“Did I misread what you meant about coming up for dessert? Are we slow-rolling this? Back to square one with the dating and chaste kisses?” He doesn’t complain, but I can see the look of concern flash behind his eyes.
“Are you capable of chaste kisses?”
He presses his lips together, one eye closed and the other looking to the ceiling in contemplation, before he leans down to press a soft kiss to my cheek.
Just that little touch has my heart thudding in my ears.
He moves to break it, but his lips glide lower, kissing along my jaw and down my neck as he walks me backward, pinning me against the table.
I let out a soft sigh when he finally lets me go.
“I don’t think so.” He breathes, his eyes heavy as he looks to me for permission.
“Good, because I was thinking more along the lines of making up for lost time.” I wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him softly where his shoulder meets his neck, slowly working my way up.
“The Late-Night Playlist you made me is good, but it doesn’t live up to the real thing,” I whisper when I reach the shell of his ear.
“I need you to remind me what it’s like. Can you do that for me? Please?”
“Fucking hell,” he mutters under his breath.
He shoves the champagne and strawberries out of the way, one of them tumbling to the ground as he lifts me on top of the table. His hands are under my dress, wrenching my panties off as he kisses my throat again and again.
“I’ll fuck you slow later. I promise. I'll let you ride my face as much as you want, but I need inside you.”
“Yes, please.” My hands slide down his back, digging into his shoulder blades for purchase as he slips his belt loose.
I can’t even think to help him. I’m just lost in how good he feels.
The smell of his cologne wraps around me again, and the sounds of the city below are drowned out by his breathing and my heart racing as he works his zipper down.
“You thought I’d be that easy, huh?” he asks, pretending to be cross, but the smirk that forms gives him away.
“I hoped so.”
“Well, you’d be right. And I’m not even remotely sorry about it.”
He closes the distance between us, and I slip my hands around the waistband of his jeans, shoving them down with his boxer briefs.
He grabs my hips and drags me to the edge of the table, slipping inside me where I’m already wet and ready for him.
I cry out softly when he pulls out and slides back in again, moaning his approval against my cheek as his hands dig into my ass.
“Christ. You feel so fucking perfect.” He lets out a shuddering breath as he starts to fuck me.
“You too.” I don’t have words right now. Just a flood of emotions that steal my breath and confirm that I made the right choice. This is exactly where I’m supposed to be.
He’s uncharacteristically quiet as he concentrates, kissing me up one side and down the other as he fucks me like he’s been deprived of it for years.
“You feel so good like this. Having you bare. I missed it.” I talk since he won’t, and the quiet is making me anxious all over again.
“I thought about you every night. I couldn’t stop listening to the recording we made.
” I run my hand down his back and use the leverage to shift our position slightly, taking him deeper while he keeps a steady pace.
His thumb brushes over my clit, building the need for him.
I bring my lips to his ear. “I waited until everyone went to sleep and put my headphones on. And I’d put that part where you’re telling me what to do on a loop, imagining I was doing it again while I touched my—”
He cuts me off with a kiss. It’s rough and claiming, his tongue tangling with mine for several long moments before he finally releases me to let me breathe again.
“You can’t talk like that if I’m gonna make it last long enough for you. It’s been too long without you, and I’m a weak fucking man right now,” he confesses, his eyes brimming with concern as they meet mine.
“I don’t care about it lasting.” I kiss him softly before I meet his eyes. “Don’t hold back. You’re going to have plenty of nights to do that.”
He gives me a doubtful look, and I run my hand around his neck, slipping my fingers into his nape, and bringing my lips back to his ear.
“Don’t make me beg. Mark me. Make me yours,” I plead, and it’s all the encouragement he needs.
“Fuck me.” He moans low as he starts to fuck me faster, his breathing heavy, and more broken curses flow from his lips as he comes inside me. I dig my nails into his back, begging for him and telling him over and over how good he is.
He pulls out, his cock still heavy and hard as he drips out of me onto the edge of the table.
The sight of us nearly pushes me over. I’m so close to my own orgasm that I can barely stand it.
His thumb circles my clit again to test me, and I whimper, spreading my legs to give him better access, before he drops to his knees in front of me.
“I’ve got you, sweetheart. Whatever you need,” he promises as he keeps up the pressure on my clit and uses his free hand to drag me all the way to the edge. I slide my leg over his shoulder, and he spreads me wide. His tongue teases me as he laps up the mess we’ve made.
“Fuck, the taste of me on you like this. I needed this so fucking badly.” He lets out a guttural sound from his chest and kisses my clit, wrapping his lips around and sucking until I see stars. The wave of pleasure rises so hard and so fast that I don’t see it coming.
“Oh my god, I can’t—” I start to murmur, but the moan I can’t hold back cuts me off.
He slips two fingers inside me, working me from the inside and out as I rock my hips forward against his mouth.
I take in a deep breath and cry out for him, running my fingers through his hair and begging him for more.
He draws another wave out of me and then kisses me softly, tracing them slowly over the inside of my thigh to my knee as I come down from the high.
“Good?” he asks, glancing up at me as he continues his trail of kisses down my leg to my ankle.
“I might need you to come first every single time if that’s how it ends for me.” I laugh as I grab the edge of his collar and tug him up while he sets his clothes to rights.
“I’ve been so fucking desperate for you.” He breathes the words against my skin as he bends over me, and I lean back. The confession echoes through my heart because he’s all I’ve wanted since he left the convent.
I let him pin me to the table as he kisses me gently.
The taste of us on my lips as I wrap my legs around his waist is perfection.
He picks me up and carries me to the bed, laying me down before he climbs on next to me.
He takes a lock of my hair, shorter now since I cut it, and winds it around his finger absently as he studies me.
“I missed you,” he confesses.
“I missed you too.”
“I’ll walk any line you want me to. Whatever you need to make you feel confident about where your life is headed now, I’m here for it. I’m just happy to have you back.” His eyes meet mine with the kind of sincerity I’ve only ever known from him.
“Do you hate the idea? The apartment and everything? I’m willing to negotiate.”
“Not at all. Honestly, the more I think about it, the more I like it. It's a little bit like getting to start over on the right foot instead of me stealing you in the middle of the night.” His warm smile puts me at ease.
“I mean, we can still reenact that part sometimes, though, right?” I run my fingers up his forearm, flashing him a playful grin.
“Yeah, I think we can make that work.” He grins back.