Burning Up
Page 27
“Where’s the fire?”
I whimpered as I held my hand to my forehead. “I need coffee.”
Throwing off the blanket, he nodded. “Sounds like a good idea. “ Oh thank God that he was still in his jeans! At least one thing was certain, we clearly hadn’t had sex, but aside from our moment in the bathroom, there was very little I remembered about the previous night. He swung his feet onto the floor and swept his fingers through his hair. I couldn’t help but stare at him. His arms were thicker, muscular, and definitely bigger. His abs had deep and defined lines and the curve of his Apollo’s belt only reminded me of what lie beneath his zipper. Ollie was gifted, blessed, and incredibly sexually charged. He had a weapon of mass erotic pleasure, and he was an expert at using it. Catching my line of sight, he laughed.
“Enjoying the view?”
I pulled my attention back to his face, but those big brown eyes of his were equally as distracting.
“I was just thinking how you’ve changed. That’s all.” I tried to seem unaffected and non-chalant.
Chuckling, he stood and sauntered past me and into the kitchen. “Sure. Pervert.”
Following him in, I snorted a laugh and shook my head. “Says the guy who just couldn’t pass up an opportunity to cuddle up behind me.”
“For your information, I stayed because you were throwing up, and I didn’t want you to choke in your sleep. So don’t flatter yourself. Believe it or not, you’re not that irresistible, Princess.”
I fisted my hands on my hips and scowled at the back of his head as he began making a pot of coffee.
“And let’s not forget that it was you gripping onto my cock last night in the bathroom, too. Don’t act all high and mighty. You’re just as depraved and sex hungry as I am.”
I scoffed a laugh. “Does that ego of yours ever take a break?”
Shrugging, he pulled two coffee cups out of one of the cupboard beside the sink.
“Can’t deny I like to be stroked. Vigorously, playfully, gently, and in oh so many positions. If I remember correctly, you weren’t so shy about stroking it before.”
I flushed and felt my cheeks heat. “Well, that was … before. Things were different.”
Handing me a steaming cup of fresh coffee, the corner of Ollie’s mouth curved up. “What was different? I still have all the same guy parts and you still have the same girl parts. Not that I’ve seen them in a while but I’m happy to inspect you to be sure.”
He winked at me, and I rolled my eyes. “You are such a dick.”
Bowing slightly, he smirked. “Oh baby I’m not a dick. I’m the dick. And last night you were practically salivating for it.”
Slamming my cup on the counter, I pointed my manicured finger in his face and was about to read him the riot act, when Mel breezed into the kitchen as bright as a button.
“Morning!”
I ran my hand over my face and tried to calm my mood. Plastering on a smile, I gave her a small hug.
“Morning. Thank God you’re here,” I whispered in her ear.
Ollie raised an eyebrow, but said nothing as he took a long gulp of his coffee.
Mel eyed my scantily-clad body from head to toe and gave me a confused look before casually walking over and pouring herself a cup of coffee.
“So, Ollie, you ready for our trip?”
I looked between the two of them with curiosity. Ollie nodded, and catching my bemused expression, Mel smiled.
“I’m driving Ollie to the state pen.”
I immediately turned my attention to him. “What the hell did you do?”
He snickered and shook his head. “I didn’t do anything … unless you can get arrested for inflicting multiple orgasms. Or reckless fucking.”
I winced at the thought of Ollie with other girls. I wasn’t an idiot, I knew he’d end up fucking someone sooner or later, but I didn’t need a reminder.
“I’m going to visit my dad. I made a fucking promise to my mother, and now I have to make good on it. It was my bargaining chip, and she’s cashing in.”
Mel put her hand on his shoulder compassionately. “You sure you’re ready to do this? I mean, it’s been a long time and it’s no secret how you feel about the guy.”
Ollie sighed heavily. “I have to. If I don’t, I can’t play my card with my mother either.”
Finishing her coffee, Mel grabbed her keys and nodded toward the door.”
Well, I’ll go start her up and wait for you downstairs.”
Ducking into her bedroom first to no doubt say goodbye to Amy, Mel left the apartment with a spring in her step. I had no idea what exactly she had to be so happy about, but whatever she’d slipped into her coffee to make her that bouncy, I wanted a whole heap of it!
The moment the front door closed, Amy came bounding out of the bedroom, and seeing Ollie and I standing in the kitchen, she quickly halted and attempted to appear natural. It was an epic failure.
“Oh, I didn’t know you two were in here.”
Liar. It was obvious she had been given all the details by her meddling and gossiping girlfriend. Ollie tousled his hair briefly before walking past the two of us and into the lounge to search for his shirt. Watching him carefully, Amy pressed her hands on my chest and urged me across the room and out of his sight.
“Oh, my god, Layla! Did you two hook up?”
Hushing her, I shook my head fiercely. “No! I woke up dressed, and so did he. He said he stayed the night with me because I was throwing up. I kind of hoped you could fill in the blanks!” I whispered.
She shrugged. “All I know is he insisted on bringing you here because you were so drunk. He called your folks from your cell, too. Mel and I kinda crashed as soon as we stumbled through the door. He must have got you out of your clothes and put you to bed. You threw up a couple of times in the bathroom first, though. The first time I barely made it out of the room when he came barging in, carrying you, and dropped you in front of the toilet. Seriously, Layla, can you hold your booze at all?”
I gave her a surprised look. “Coming from you? Do you not remember Cosmo and taco night? Or your ring of fire the next morning?”
Biting her bottom lip, she winced as if in pain. “Don’t remind me.”
“He’s so fucking confusing. He’s running hot and cold all the time. One moment he’s teasing, tormenting, and being a cocky asshole. The next, he’s sweet, caring, and carrying me home.”
Amy took a glass from the cupboard and poured herself some orange juice.
“Layla, he had his heart broken and stomped on, did it occur to you that maybe, just maybe, he’s trying to hurt you? He might be cocky, arrogant, and screw anything in a skirt, but he’s still Ollie.”
I scoffed at the idea. “Still Ollie? That guy in there,” I pointed toward the living room, “is not the Ollie I remember. And what do you mean screw anything in a skirt. How many have there been?”
She looked uneasy. “A … few. But what does it matter? You dumped him; remember? And he is still the same Ollie. You just gotta crack through that shell he’s hidden himself under for the last few fucking months. I swear, I am so sick of it. Every now and then a glimmer of the real him peeks out, and I hold on to hope that he’s finally ready to drop the act. But he doesn’t.”
“The act?”
She nodded and took a sip of her drink. “The ‘I’m totally a bad ass rock star who can fuck anyone he wants and I’m so over Layla’ attitude. It sucks. And it’s all completely false. Everyone knows it.”
“Yeah, well so far he seems pretty convincing to me.”
Putting down her glass, Amy checked again to see if Ollie was within earshot before hurrying back to me.
“You have to fix this, Layla. Maybe spend some time together, talk, and remind him how much fun you guys used to have. You were friends too once, you know.”
Letting out a long and heavy breath, I closed my eyes quickly and thought about Amy’s suggestion.
“Even if I thought it would work, which it wouldn
’t by the way, there is no way I am spending any length of time with the Ollie that’s been torturing me like this. Not going to happen.”
The sound of the front door slamming caught us by surprise. Mel, cursed, yelled, and stomped around as she entered the apartment. Leaving our conversation for another time, Amy and I headed out to see what the racket was about. Mel and Ollie were sitting on the couch, and Mel’s face gave me the impression that she was pissed.
“What’s up babe?” Amy asked as she sat down beside Mel.
“The fucking pile of shit I drive has decided that today is the perfect time to totally break down on me! It clunked, clanked and died when I tried to start it up.”
Ollie chuckled. “And there was me thinking you had a magic touch with the ladies. Not the mechanical kind, obviously.”
Mel shoved him on the arm. “You’re just relieved because it means you don’t have to go and actually face your father. Pussy.”
Ollie frowned at her. “Bullshit. I told you I had to go. I don’t have a choice. This is my bargaining chip with my mother; remember? Screw it, I’ll take the bike.”
Amy gasped in horror. “No! It’s too far, too long, and too dangerous to drive there on the Monster.”
Standing in the doorway in my bra and shorts, I shifted uncomfortably as Mel and Amy’s eyes landed on me. Oh no, you don’t Melanie!
“Layla, you could totally drive him! Your car is probably desperate for some open road and loud stereo time.”
Ollie raised an eyebrow at me. “Relax, I’m not expecting you to drop whatever high society plans you have today to drive my ass to the state pen.”
I scowled at him and fisted my hands on my hips. “For your information, I don’t have any plans, high society, or otherwise, smartass.”
Amy bounced in her seat. “Then it’s settled! You’re not busy today, Layla, and Ollie needs a ride.”
Ollie snorted a laugh. “Judging by that look on her face, I’d say Layla’s the one in need of a good ride.”
Dick.
Storming over to him, I shoved my finger in his face. “I’ll drive your ass to the state pen, I’ll even wait for you, and haul it back here, but if you even utter one more fucking insult at me, I am throwing you out of my car. I won’t even slow down. Tuck and roll, asshole. Tuck and roll.”
Leaning back on the couch, he shrugged at me. “Whatever you say, boss.”
I rolled my eyes at Mel and Amy who simply shrugged back at me. Everyone seemed to either be shrugging or rolling his or her eyes at me lately. Maybe it was something I was doing? Picking up my clothes from the back of the couch, I headed for the bathroom to clean up and get myself ready. It was going to be a long day.
* * * *
Sitting in the passenger seat of my car with his feet on the dash, Ollie stared out of the window. We’d been driving for almost an hour so far and hadn’t spoken a word to each other.
Taking a deep breath and swallowing my pride, I offered him an olive branch.
“You said this was your bargaining chip with your mom. She got some hold over you?”
He shook his head. “No. We made a deal. I visit this asshole, and she agrees to move with my brother to L.A. With all this music contract stuff, I need to be in California.”
“You’re moving back to Long Beach?”
He sighed in frustration. “Looks that way. Don’t worry, I won’t cramp your style or stalk you.”
I groaned slightly under my breath but chose not to rise to it.
“So, you nervous about seeing him?”
He continued to stare at the passing landscape. “No. There’s nothing to be nervous about.”
“Then what’s eating you?”
“Nothing. God, why do you have to keep pushing?” he snapped back.
“Excuse me for showing a little concern.”
“Bit late for you to suddenly give a fuck about how I feel,” he scoffed at me.
Slamming my foot on the breaks, I pulled over and glared at him. Enough was enough. I was tired of his bullshit and constant insinuation that I was a cold-hearted bitch. Okay, I wasn’t perfect, and I’d definitely wronged him, but I wasn’t made of stone!
“Layla, what the fuck!”
“I do care, Ollie! I always have! You can be bitter, pissed, and as angry as you fucking want, but I did care about what I did to you. I hated myself. I could hardly look at myself in the mirror without crying. I thought about you constantly, and I asked about you all the time. Just because I didn’t choose you, doesn’t mean I didn’t want to!”
He stared back at me with his mouth open in shock.
“Then why didn’t you choose me, Layla? What the fuck was so wrong with me?”
Getting out of the car, I slammed the door behind me and stomped my foot on the ground. This was not a conversation I wanted to have. I knew it would have to happen sooner or later, but that didn’t mean I had to like it. Slamming his own door, Ollie joined me by the side of the dirt-covered road. There was only desert for miles around and traffic was sparse.
“You can’t run away this time, Layla. Fess up. Why him? Why not me?”
I hung my head and leaned my back against the car. “I don’t know, Ollie. It wasn’t anything you did or anything you are. I just … it was a gut instinct.”
He laughed sarcastically as he rounded the front of the car and stood in front of me. “Gut instinct, huh? Was it gut instinct when we were fucking in the bathroom? Where was that gut instinct when you told me you loved me on the hill? And where was it the morning I left? You told me you loved me and watched me leave. I would have come back for you, Layla. If you’d asked me to I would have dropped everything and come back for you. Just like I did when I came to London!”
My mouth agape, I fumed. “I knew it! Record deal my ass! You followed me! You’re as bad as Jared. Border line fucking stalking me!”
Grasping my hips, he pressed me against the car. “I was not stalking you! I was there for a record deal, but I figured I’d kill two birds with one stone. You were fucking miserable. Amy and Mel were worried sick, and every time I heard your voice on the line to them, I wanted to swim across the fucking ocean and drag you home. Do you have any idea how it feels knowing the person you love most in the world is so incredibly unhappy? It sucks. I had to do something. I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I buried my pain and my cock in dozens of fucking women and none of them even made me feel like half the man I feel when I’m with you! I went to London because I love you, Layla. I love you, and I didn’t care if you hated me, I couldn’t take one more second of not being around you. I thought I’d die from the black hole that was growing in my fucking chest.”
I had no words. I couldn’t speak. His eyes were staring right into my soul as his hands gripped my waist. The heat from his body was warming my blood, and the passion in his voice was melting my cold and icy demeanor that I had adopted. He still loved me. After everything I’d put him through and done to him, he still loved me. A lump formed in my throat, and as I gazed into his deep brown eyes, I thought I might cry. Ollie wasn’t my enemy or my stalker in London; he was trying to be my rescuer. My phone buzzed loudly in my pocket, breaking the tension between us. Releasing me, he stepped back and ran his fingers through his hair.
“You better answer that. It’s probably douche canoe and we both know he won’t let up until you answer. Besides, we should go. Visiting time doesn’t last forever.”
He walked quickly around the car and slid into the passenger side. I watched as he pounded his fist on the driver’s seat for a moment in anger before resuming his gaze out of the window. My breathing was harsh and my eyes stung with unshed tears. Pulling my cell from my pocket, I answered.
“What do you want, Jared?”
“Layla, for the love of God please don’t hang up. I’ve been going out of my mind these past few days. You won’t return my calls messages or emails. Please, I just want a chance to explain. I swear that child isn’t mine. You have to believe me.”
“That’s not true! You’re everything I want you to be and more. I just want to keep you safe. Is that such a crime?”
I let out a long sigh. “No, Jared, you wanted to keep me close and blind. I’m tired of walking around with my eyes closed. You don’t and didn’t trust me. Not even to take care of myself.”
“I’m sorry. I know I haven’t been perfect, but I’m working on it. I’m coming back to L.A. tomorrow and starting therapy. I won’t give up, Layla.”
I glanced back inside the car at Ollie who rolled down the window and yelled at me to hurry up.
“Layla, is that who I think it is?” Jared had clearly heard him. “You’re with him! And you want to talk about honesty?”
Growling back at him, I clutched the cell firmly in my hand. “Who I see, talk to, or hang out with is none of your business anymore! You have your secrets, and I have mine. And I’m done with all of it. I have to go, Jared. I can’t do this right now.”
Hanging up, I pressed my hand to my chest. My heart was thundering beneath my palm, and I felt as though I might burst into tears any moment. But, holding my composure, I got back into the car and started the engine to continue the drive to Arizona. Turns out Ollie’s father had originally been incarcerated in Michigan, but after a whole bunch of paper pushing and petitions, his family had him moved to Arizona where he was born. I didn’t understand it, but then it really was none of my business.