"C'mon gorgeous. Let's go up to bed. You're gonna sleep with me, right?" Austin mumbled as he leaned his forehead flush against mine, a hopeful tone weaved into his low raspy whisper.
I gave him a short nod just before I pecked his lips. He lazily rolled off of me and held out his hand to help me off of the huge couch.
I placed my small hand in his, letting him pull me up to my feet, just before he began to lead me through the living room, his fingers still intertwined with mine. I was almost taken by surprise as I was half way expecting him to scoop me up into his arms as he usually did.
"You're not gonna carry me?" I teased as I followed closely behind him.
He looked back over his shoulder and playfully rolled his eyes. "Lee you wore me the fuck out, I don't even know if I have the strength to get myself up the stairs, let alone both of us. Your boy is out of shape and thicc with two C's." He said as we chuckled together.
"I'm only kidding rockstar, I know I wore your ass out." I squeezed his hand as we carefully made our way up the stairs and silently tiptoed to his bedroom.
Once we reached inside, he closed the door behind us, letting go of me and instantly pulled his shirt off, tossing it to the ground.
"I promise to give you the best fucking cuddles of your life to make up for not carrying you." He grinned that boyish smile of his that always seemed to make my heart stop and plummet all at once. "Sound good angel?"
I gave him a content smile as I nodded my head. "Sounds good."
"Okay arms up." He coaxed, signaling for me to for oblige as he reached for the bottom hem of his tee shirt that hung loosely on my petite body.
I quickly obeyed, allowing him to slip the shirt over my head, leaving my stripped form exposed to his full disclosure.
"Beautiful." He mumbled under his warm breath as his stunning blue eyes blinked at me with nothing but pure adoration.
My lips twisted upwards at his amazed reaction that always seemed to remain the same every single time he saw me in my most natural state.
I turned away from him and crawled onto his king sized bed, enveloping myself into his soft sheets, pulling them just above my breasts.
"Come to bed." I beckoned towards the empty side of the mattress.
I watched as he slid his grey joggers down to the ground, slowly stepping out of them, his bare body now matching mine.
My eyes glossed over his tattooed body, admiring the dark ink that was scattered beautifully across his skin.
My gaze came to a pause at the side of his torso and I couldn't help the giggle that escaped from my lips at the tattoo drawn smack in the middle.
"What groupie?" He raised his brow in curiosity. "What's so funny?"
"Nothing, I just like your milkshake." I stifled my laugh as he climbed into the bed, pulling the sheet off from my covered body.
"I like your milkshake." He purred playfully, though a devious look lurked in his unpredictable eyes.
Before I could even realize what he was planning, his tattooed fingers were dancing along the sides of my ribcage, tickling me into a state of oblivion.
Our laughter mixed in the air as he continued his attack on my sensitive skin.
"Austin please, no. I can't take it." I begged, once I was able to find my voice, my lungs out of breath from the intense sensation.
My pleading caused his torturous motions to come to a quick halt, though his hand was still resting along my hip.
"Make fun of my milkshake again and you're in for a tickle war Lena. No fucking mercy." He said as I chuckled at him.
"No promises Austin." I teased, while he rolled his eyes towards me.
"Austin huh? A little while ago I was baby."
My cheeks immediately flushed a crimson red as his eyebrows raised. His expression was unreadable and I couldn't tell if he was teasing me or if he was being completely serious.
I bit down onto my lip as I always did when I was unsure what to say, while his gaze was remained fixed on mine.
"You still are." I mumbled quietly as his lips formed into a smirk while he tugged the sheets, pulling them back over our bodies.
I shifted closer to him, resting my head on his bare chest, causing him to place a lenthy kiss onto my forehead.
He gently stroked my hair with his fingers as I relaxed into his body, letting my eyes close as I listened to his steady pounding heartbeat.
A warmth took over my body as I felt my sanity slipping away from me. I was giving in to him and I wasn't sure I could stop myself. Or if I even wanted to.
I wanted to spend forever and a day with him. I wanted to belong to him. I wanted to lose myself completely in him and never return if it meant loving him for a lifetime.
"You're my angel Lena." He mumbled quietly, his soft voice unraveling my insides as he spoke.
I opened my eyes and lifted my head to see him already longingly staring down at me.
His ocean eyes were kind and held a softness behind them, somehow telling me it was all okay.
I felt weightless and on top of the world all at once.
A sharp realization hit me like a ton of bricks as our gaze latched together and I suddenly felt something I hadn't felt in a long time.
Trust.
Austin POV
I laid in the darkness of my room, wrapped up in the sheets of my bed with the single most beautiful woman in the entire world.
I was still in disbelief that she was sleeping with me and every time I was with her was beyond magical.
She was a goddess and I couldn't help but feel almost unworthy of her.
She wasn't like all the girls from my past. She was so much more and deserved to be put on a pedestal.
I had no idea how in the hell I ended up lucky enough to have her.
Except you don't have her Austin. She's holding herself back from you and you know it.
She was held tightly in my embrace yet she still felt so far away.
I pressed my lips against hers, as if my kiss would keep her locked in my arms for the end of eternity and somehow shatter down her heavy walls.
I didn't want her to think I only wanted her when she was naked in my bed.
I wanted her in the morning when she was rubbing sleep from her eyes. In the middle of the day when she was working, buried in her laptop. I wanted her when she was in the front row of my shows, screaming my lyrics at the top of her lungs. I wanted her in her adorable pajamas with her wild hair piled on top of her head while she flashed her beautiful smile at me. I wanted her forever. In every single fucking way.
But I didn't want to push my limits. I didn't want to fuck things up and scare her away. I wanted nothing more than to make her mine but I knew I had to tread lightly.
But as of right now, I just wanted to soak in our time alone and cherish sweet moments like this with her.
"Do you get homesick? With all the traveling?" I heard her hum against my chest, her soft lips withering against my skin as she spoke.
"All the time." I chuckled. "Don't get me wrong, I love what I do. But there's nothing like coming home after months of being on the road." I went on, my hand now trailing circles down the arch of her back. "I never wanna leave once I'm here. It's my escape."
"How about you?" I asked as she raised her head to meet my gaze.
"I've been homesick for a long time." She muttered. "But the funny thing is, it was for a place that I've never been."
Her words made my heart clench as her soft voice was almost intertwined with sadness.
"What do you mean Lee?" I asked curiously, hoping to gain some insight on what she was trying to say.
Was she actually going to let her guard down?
There a slight moment of complete silence, as if she were deep in thought and was careful in choosing her words.
"My dad left when I was twelve. He was cheating on my mom with another woman and ran off to start a new family with her." She said quietly, almost hesitant as she began.
Holy fuck, yes she was.
I said nothing as I rubbed her back, allowing her to continue without interruption. My heart raced with anticipation as I was anxious for her to finally feel comfortable enough to open up to me.
"We never had much of a relationship after that and he barely kept in contact with me. He ended up having another child with his new wife and once she was born, he now had a new daughter that he replaced me with and wanted nothing to do with me anymore. I didn't hear from him again. My mom raised me on her own with the help of my older brother, Noah. I'm extremely close with them, and they're all I have. But Chicago stopped feeling like home when my family broke up."
Her voice was now struggling to remain emotionless, which sent a sharpness to my chest as I could hear the pain almost seeping through her words.
I gave her a short nod to go on as I was afraid if anything slipped from my mouth, it would stop her from pouring her heart out to me.
"High school was a little tough for me, I didn't have alot of friends and the friends I did have weren't exactly the best crowd. I got wrapped up in the wrong lifestyle and I was cutting class nearly every day just to get high. Somehow I survived it all thanks to my only good friend Sofia, Adam's sister. I went on to try the whole college thing but that didn't work out so well. So I decided to pick up my life and move to LA. I wanted a different environment, a fresh start. I didn't want to be labeled a failure just because I was a fucked up kid with some daddy issues. I knew I had to make a change, so I left Chicago. Adam had just started out with photography and he knew a few people in the industry. He got me my first job as a personal assistant and I've been living in LA ever since. But you weren't lying when you said Hollywood is bleeding because it never felt like home there either." She let out a half witted chuckle.
"Now I'm just rambling, giving you the cliff notes version of my life story. But I guess what I'm trying to say is, in the short amount of time I've been here, I don't feel so homesick anymore."
Her words felt like a warm blanket on a cold winter night and I felt her walls slowly begin to disintegrate before my eyes. I was in disbelief that she had finally began to open up and give me a piece of her.
"I'm really sorry about what happened with your father. I can't imagine what that must have been like for you at such a young age. But your mom and your brother did a wonderful job raising you. Even after everything you've been through, all the up and downs, all the rough patches, you're still so smart and hard working and strong and kind. You have a beautiful heart Lena. He missed out on knowing a really incredible woman." I said as she looked up at me with her precious doe eyes.
"That means alot Austin." She whispered almost inaudibly, giving me a small but content smile.
"It means alot that you felt like you could tell me all of this angel. I want you to know that you can tell me anything. I will always be here for you." I whispered before pecking her pink lips with my own.
She gave me a nod as she raised her hand to caress my cheek softly with her thumb.
I knew it must have taken alot of courage for her to spill of part of herself to me and I didn't want to push her. But my heart was swelled at the fact that she admitted to feeling at home here with me and I couldn't help myself as the words left my mouth.
"Does this mean you'll stay with me after the tour?" I wish I could taken take it back as soon as I said it, not wanting her to feel as if she was burdened to give me an answer.
I watched her long eyelashes flutter as she blinked slowly up at me, her expression calm and at ease.
Her voice was like honey as she mumbled softly against my lips.
"Yes baby, I'll stay."