What We Started
.
.
He felt her touch his arm again, strictly, but gently. It was an embrace with purpose. He rolled his peripheral gaze her way so that he could watch her lips move as she talked through her smile. In his humble observation, not only did it not seem like she was trying to hide it, it didn't look like she had even noticed she was doing it.
.
He stole his gaze back for just a moment to watch the sidewalk ahead of him start to turn liquid, and it had nothing to do with the rain starting to fall from the angry sky. He felt his stomach churn and chase a hesitant growl from his throat as his double-vision made his legs feel rubbery. He had never remembered the walk to his apartment being so long, not even on his way home. He tried looking up into the misting of rain above them, wondering if the sight of the sky falling would make him feel the hangover he knew would follow his evening a little less. It didn't. He was restless, but even with his enthusiastic companion by his side, he continued to drag his heavy feet.
.
Then, he felt it again.
.
Twisting his lips into a sardonic grin, he let his words flow smoothly from his lips. "You keep pawin' at me," he rumbled playfully. "Should I be taking a hint?" He'd really hoped that she wasn't the hand-holding type. He'd awkwardly held hands with small women before, but she had looked Barbie-sized compared to them. As self-assured as he was, he really wasn't down to look that utterly ridiculous in public.
.
Neirah didn't seem stricken by the insinuation he might deem awkward. Instead, she turned her beautiful sea blue gaze to face him. It was when he'd noticed that either her thick onyx lashes were natural, or her designer, big-impression mascara was waterproof because the way the raindrops started to gather on the batting lashes she peeked out from underneath had him stifling groans. "A pretty big one there, Stud." She reached out and pinched the brown leather of his jacket, tugging on his forearm for the umpteenth time. "Playing in traffic is for the drunk and stupid."
.
"How many times am I gonna have to tell you I'm not dr-"
.
Neirah casually reached out and snatched his entire arm, raking him back onto the sidewalk from where his stroll in the gutter almost had him setting off the car alarm of the vehicle he'd nearly taken to his knees. "At least once more," she crooned.
.
He turned to look over his shoulder only briefly before she was commanding his attention.
.
"Eyes forward, Sweetie."
.
His face knotted sheepishly as he glowered at her, carrying on in her conversation like she hadn't patronised him at all. As beautiful as she was, he was discovering that she was a rather vexing creature. He couldn't help but interrupt. "You think you're real clever, don't you?"
.
She tipped her innocent pout, an adorable mark of inquiry on her face as she paused mid-sentence and glanced his way. "Oh no, see, I know I'm clever," she purred confidently. "The jury is still out on you though."
.
"You're kind of a brat," he growled in conclusion.
.
"You're kind of a drunk," she retaliated swiftly. Laxus returned to brooding for a moment while Neirah gave the street a quick scan. "A clever man might not have told the woman in three-inch heels that he lived 'not far'."
.
A little yelp found the feisty woman's mouth as her arm was taken and she, drawn to the side of the path they trudged. She stumbled a bit to his encouragement thanks to her aforementioned heels and it undoubtedly aided him in drawing her up against the building they worked on passing.
.
Her confidence faltered as she looked up at the titan she knew was more than a couple whiskies past impaired. That was about all she'd known about him aside from his problems and dreams. Glossy lips parted to speak her discomfort, but his beat her to it.
.
"You really think I'm a drunk?"
.
Neirah's brow creased hesitantly. "I said the jury was still out."
.
"No, you said the jury was out on me being clever," he corrected sternly; cleverly, even. "I wanna know if you think I'm drunk."
.
Her expression lightened playfully to the smell of bourbon on his breath. "Oh no, you're definitely drunk."
.
"No, I mean always." He watched her gaze flicker and then he diverted his attention as the hand pressed to the wall alongside her head began to fidget. "This is... kind of a bad time for me. 'Nd I mean, I don't know what's in it for you, but... I don't wanna be that guy, you know?" He straightened his shoulders but kept his arm pressed against the cracked brick alongside her head. Diverting his gaze to the street, he bit out a harsh curse. "Shit, I mean, you seem like a nice kid and all I can think about is how long I'm gonna last once I get you out of that dress." He watched her expression flicker doubtfully and his voice filled with panic. "Fuck, I don't mean- I don't know if we're gonna get that far but- I'd like us to, but not like that. I mean, like that but-" He growled and dropped his backpack on the ground, throwing it purposefully into the wall at her side. "And now I sound like a dick." He drew his tensed fist towards his face and heaved a sigh of exhaustion into his knuckles as he meditated on his racing thoughts. "I just... I don't wanna be that guy anymore..."
.
"You think I'm a nice kid?"
.
Laxus opened his eyes and glanced back at her with a bemused vexation. "I come out with somethin' like that and you make it about you?"
.
Neirah tipped her bashful smile downcast and then returned it in force. "I'm sorry, that was rude. I just think it's funny that we're both talking like we know anything about each other. I guess you just made me feel so comfortable, my filter came off a little too soon."
.
"Ok," he encouraged boldly. He didn't bother lingering on the fact that a two-hundred-and-eighty-pound, boxing drunk made the tiny woman beneath him comfortable. "And what makes you say that after the 'nice kid' comment?"
.
Her expression grew seductive for a moment, to his observance. "Because I'm not your stereotypical 'nice kid'."
.
His expression knotted with curiosity. "What's that supposed to mean?"
.
Her smile became more genuine. "It means I'm not judging a book by its cover and neither should you."
.
When she moved to escape his lingering presence, he imagined she thought it would be the big-screen thing to do. Unfortunately, he couldn't let her get off the hook as easily as some Hollywood hunk. His stirring intrigue and slight arousal saw their games extend a little longer as he locked his arm in place and pressed his second one against her hip to keep her within his hold. "Ok, so what does that make you then?" Even he was surprised at how much seduction found its way into his lazy drawl. He didn't mean to let his face get close enough to hers that their noses could brush, but he was growing desperate for a taste of the secrets she was hiding. "Are you... a bad girl?"
.
She didn't shy away from his insinuation and he could feel her breath hastening against his lips. "Are you a good boy?"
.
"You know, you're pretty damn hard on me," he announced eagerly. He shifted his weight, taking a quick peek at the empty street around them before returning his lusting gaze to hers. "I kinda like that."
.
She let her tongue peek out from behind her lips to taste the rainwater rolling over her face. "You seem like a man who can take it," she murmured softly.
.
In his next breathy sigh, his eyes closed and his forehead met hers. "I think... I'm gonna kiss you."
.
Neirah swallowed the nervous lump in her throat to banish her uncertainty and put forth the effort required to see that her reassuring smile remained. "I think now... would be a good time for that."
.
Their lips were already dusting when he inhaled his last encouraging breath before the plunge that would see them connected when a car whizzed by in the sloshing streets, filled with people just as drunk as he was.
.
"Give it to her good, Dreyar!"
.
"Fucking dog!"
.
Those condemning comments plus the sound of the boys hollering catcalls in the split second it took them to zip past in the quiet street made Laxus drop his brow solidly against the woman's shoulder. He heaved a heavy sigh to the sound of her disbelieving laughter. "There goes that moment," he growled bitterly. He couldn't help but wish the worst upon his yahoo pals but he wasn't quite drunk enough to articulate it. "If someone ever tells you they dig the thought of a small town, I want you to remember this good, got it?"
.
"Understood."
.
The way she touched his face and beckoned his return made him thankful that he'd managed to shave before his ex had kicked him out of their place. He was taken by surprise to her encouragement, her little nails nipping at his cheek and drawing his face back against hers. Once his attention had returned, one of her hands was slipping down into the buttons of his shirt and encouraging his advance as the other hand lightly scathed his bare forearm. For his surprise, his cheeks flushed with heat and colour every second he spent staring back into her intoxicatingly enamoured gaze. The water rolling over her pouty lips was tantalising, the condensation cloud forming in front of her lips had him desperate to taste her heat in the cool, damp street.
.
"Finish what you started, Boxer."
.
He didn't know what about her comment made it so alluring but it had a spark of arousal singeing his nerves and kicking his libido into overdrive. He'd never experienced a technical knockout in the ring, but he was imagining it was something like what her affection was doing to him; stealing his breath, making his heart race and his tense body ache. Maybe they hadn't known a lot about each other yet, but he wanted to learn. He wanted to learn it all.
.
In his pocket, as their lips met, his cell phone was in the process of missing his second phone call and by the time her tongue had snuck past his lips, he couldn't care about anything less.
.
Where r u? u still at rocks?
come over
dad's got another chick here so i'm down if you wanna try and out fuck them
Are you dead?
that is literally the only reason I can think of that you're not responding
.
Another call.
.
heelllllooooo?
Don't screw with me dreyar I'll kick ur ass !
.
Neirah whimpered heady arousal as she tipped her head back against the brick, detouring his kisses to the neck she'd exposed. "You know you're ringing, eh Stud?"
.
"I don't give a shit if it's the fucking pope, he can leave a damn message." He connected their lips for another slow, sweet moment before reining in his appetite and bringing their gazes together again. "Just... let me get this out of my system."
.
"Not drunk, he says," she crooned devilishly. "Getting too hard to walk?"
.
He took a tight hold of her cheeks and drew her face back in line with his but even if he was growing impatient with the feisty spitfire, his lips were still beaming delight. "The world's fucking shakin'." He smiled into the slow, gentle repetition of kisses he rained upon her pretty face. "By the way, my offer still stands about your shoes." He backed away to observe what his fingers felt as confusion. "If you want me to carry 'em..."
.
Neirah cocked a brow playfully. "Oh?"
.
"We actually... passed my building a couple blocks back..."
.
.
His sobering intent had already regretted inviting her to leave with him by the time they'd walked up to his building, it got worse from there. It was way the light-hearted chatterbox clammed up during their approach. Maybe she didn't mean to exude it, but he could feel her pity. It made him take a second look at the grungy building from the cracks in the base of the concrete plaster to the rusting black steel balconies on the upper floors. It probably could have used a little elbow grease to smooth out the rough edges, but the laundry machines worked and he hadn't seen a single bug that would indicate infestation. He wished he could say that his apartment wasn't actually half as bad as it looked from the outside, but that was providing she would be able to find it under the heaps of dirty clothes and empty liquor bottles. In his apartment's defence though, the laundry machines did work.
.
"Jeez, say something." His grim announcement broke the silence extending between them as he shifted his weight self-consciously. "I don't think I've ever had a hard time showin' a girl my place before."
.
"Oh? Afraid that I'm the high maintenance type?"
.
"Y'know just 'cause you say you don't care doesn't mean you're not gonna think less of a guy once we're in there."
.
Neirah sighed sadly. "I'm sure it's not that bad."
.
"That's what they all say," Laxus rumbled edgily. He started to pace aggravated circles, unsure of whether or not he really wanted to take their entanglement any further. He'd been drunk and desperate and by some miracle managed to net himself a real winner that he didn't want to scare away with the leftover pizza in a box from sometime last week. "Look, I already said that I didn't want to be that guy, and if you don't think I'm a total jackass, maybe I could get that number I was after earlier and we could sync up some other ti-"
.
His world stopped turning, his heart in his throat when he noticed that she was no longer at his back. He whirled around to the sound of her ringing the apartment bells of his neighbours one at a time. "What the hell!?"
.
Her expression was vacantly adorable as her long, lean fingers pushed the illuminated buttons until one answered her call. From what she could tell, the man at her back had a reputation, but he was a good person who, even if he couldn't consciously admit it, had a lot of love for the town he called home. Surely someone would lend him a hand if he were in need.
.
"Y'Ello."
.
"Would you knock it off!" Laxus scolded fiercely under his breath. "D'you have any idea what time it is?!"
.
"Good evening sir!"
.
"For FUCK'S sake!"
.
"My name is Neirah and I am here with Laxus er… Dreyar?" Her brain added the pieces together with the help of Laxus' rowdy pals from earlier that evening. "I believe he is a resident of this building but, you see-"
.
"The kid's plastered again, ain't 'e?"
.
Neirah couldn't contain her giddy laughter as she pressed the receiver to the sound of Laxus face-palming at her back. "Yes sir, he is. And I'd really like to get him home to bed. It's starting to rain out here."
.
"You're a fucking cunt."
.
"Just a minute and I'll buzz ya in."
.
Neirah snickered happily. "Great! And he's-?"
.
"304, third floor. Is 'e still walkin'?"
.
Neirah's gaze faltered curiously. "Er, waking?"
.
"D'ya need a hand bringin' the big dope upstairs? He ain't exactly light."
.
Neirah sniggered as Laxus cursed the neighbour she was sure he knew rather well. From what she could tell, the one who'd answered her must have delivered Laxus back upstairs a couple times himself. "It's alright, he's still walking, just in zig-zags. I got him this far, I can handle it."
.
"Right-o, kiddo. I'm in 201 if ya need me."
.
Neirah threw her arm out and slammed the button, puffing her chest out triumphantly as the door to the apartment clicked open. "Thank you, sir!" She took her shoe straps in both hands and spun to face her reluctant host. "Welp, I'm going to apartment 304, I don't know about you."
.
Laxus was still trying to process how swiftly his night had gone to all types of hell. "What the fuck just happened?"
.
Neirah opened the apartment door and let herself in. "I told you I was studying psychology. I just deduced your relationship with the public and went off that."
.
Laxus leapt forward to snag the door before he'd got locked out and had to try to type in the code when he was seeing three keypads. "And in English?"
.
Neirah paused and turned to face him with a sad smile. "The hollering friends, the bar. Even if I'm still figuring out my own version of the tale, to the rest of the town, you're a drunk. You do the same silly things that other drunks do like sleep in your clothes, lose your phone, and get locked out of apartment buildings."
.
"How do you even know that?" Laxus staggered out impatiently. He followed her as she led herself towards the building elevator. "You've known me for like three hours."
.
"Unfortunately, stereotypes," she admitted humbly. "University has killed my ability to shut them out. They're things you need to know to get upstairs."
.
He paused as she pushed the worn out up button on the wall. "To my apartment?"
.
She turned and poked his temple with a light-hearted giggle. "To your head. We have elevators for apartments."
.
He groaned as he watched her shapely hips carry her forward into the musty elevator that had arrived before them. "That is pretty much the only place I don't want you tonight. My head, that is," he grumbled. He followed after her and tried to keep his spirits from fading but all he could think about was everything he hadn't cleaned, all the dirty little secrets an attentive little brat like her would take notice of. At least if she'd been like the rest of the mindless broads he'd taken for a night or two she wouldn't care. He admitted to himself that he had to be a special kind of pathetic to be wishing away the brains his beauty came with though. "Just so you know, I haven't been home for a bit..."
.
Neirah didn't redirect her attention to him as she gently shook her head. "Laxus, I'm having a nice time," she assured him kindly. "And I understand your situation."
.
He went back on the defensive. "Which is?"
.
She laughed along with the chiming of the elevator bell as she turned to face him. "Crappy, at best."
.
He was starting to feel like a dog on her heels as he watched her depart the elevator, having to throw his hand up against the steel wall to keep it from taking him back downstairs with it. "You know you still need my key to get in, Sweetheart."
.
"How do you know I don't already have it?"
.
An involuntary shiver stole him as he patted his pocket to make sure he was still, in fact, in possession of his apartment key. He groaned as he sauntered after her, weaving from one side of the hall to the other with heavy footsteps. "Honestly, I expected you to hold it up as soon as I got the words outta my mouth."
.
She looked to both sides of the hallway before stopping at room 304. She turned to look up at him with a playful grin. "I'm good, I'm not that good."
.
His hand was harder to move than he remembered but maybe it was just because he was so reluctant to do so as he pulled his key out of his pant pocket. "If the first words out of your mouth are 'it's not that bad', I'm haulin' you out."
.
Neirah reached out and laid her hand on his before it could turn the key. She then worked her fingers over his forearm and up to where she could fist his shirt. She nuzzled into his attention as it dropped from the door to her, her fingers starting to unbutton his shirt from the top. "You're acting strange for a man who's used to bringing home unfamiliar women on a regular basis. Why can't you just treat me like them?"
.
"You don't want me to do that," he assured her in a low murmur. He diverted his humbled gaze but kept his face in close proximity with hers. "You're different. Most of them are just as drunk as I am by the time we get here. The only thing that should be on my mind right now is sex, not if your mother is gonna like me."
.
Neirah's brow furrowed sadly but her meek smile remained as she unclasped a couple of his buttons and smoothed her hands over his undershirt. "My mother died when I was quite young and my father not long after," she admitted softly. "I was pretty much raised by my stepbrother so he's the one you'll have to worry about impressing." She meant to be playful and spirited with her remark, but she could feel the weight of his mistake in his bleak sigh.
.
Laxus didn't mean to concuss the woman when he dropped his brow into hers. "Shit, I'm sorry."
.
"Don't be," she whispered kindly. "You don't have anything to worry about."
.
"You never told me what's in it for you," he reminded her quietly. "I'm not really a guy who usually gets tangled up in this sort of thing."
.
She was amused at how innocent he thought she was, it helped her stay playful when she was being nagged by her own uncertainties. "Don't worry about tangling anything just yet," she assured him softly. "Just think of this as a social experiment. Exploring what happens when good boys and bad girls play together." She let her nose dust the ridge of his ear as she nibbled her lip and whispered her words against him. "And if sex is what you want on your mind, I'm sure I could help you get back on track," she encouraged breathily. "To be fair, you're pretty cute and I think you have an awkwardly charming personality."
.
"Cute?" He groaned, aggravated that she was patronising him but elated with the way her breath felt against the earlobe she brushed against.
.
"Handsome," she corrected. "I got a little hot and bothered when you flashed me your ink at the bar."
.
"My i- shit, right."
.
Neirah smiled nervously. "I've never been with a man who had tattoos before. Never been with a boxer either." She took a deep breath to steady her racing thoughts. "Being near you is... it's really exciting. I just want it to last a little longer in case I don't see you again."
.
Laxus still hadn't opened his eyes or raised his head from where her words against his ear had stunned him into silence. "Keep talkin' and you won't be goin' anywhere."
.
She stifled her tender laugh so that she wouldn't wake the neighbours who were undoubtedly sleeping at such a late/technically early hour. "You're really lucky that I understand sarcasm or some of the things you say might be considered unnerving." The dangerous look in his lethargic gaze when he reconnected it with hers was enough to startle her into silence and maybe, in part, alarm.
.
"Who said it was sarcasm?"
.
When the door fell open at her back, she was a little more cautious. She stepped into his apartment as he flicked the light on. For a studio layout, it was actually quite spacious and like she expected, it wasn't nearly as bad as he made it out to be. Sure there were some empty pop cans, some liquor bottles. There were some shirts stashed here and there and some dirty dishes. She could admit that when people were coming to visit her, she needed at least six hours to primp and preen. Like everyone else, he wasn't perfect.
.
She stepped into the room, the kitchenette the first thing she passed. The first thing she took notice of, was that he didn't have a television. Where she would imagine the living area might be in the room's arrangement at the foot of the king sized bed, there was just a collection of weights and empty liquor bottles. He didn't even have a couch to offer to his guests. If he were to offer her a seat, it would have had to have been on his bed.
.
She blinked a couple of times and tried to process that reality. "U-wow."
.
"I warned you," he nearly snarled.
.
"N-no that wasn't even close to what was on my mind," she assured him swiftly. "I just... You really don't have company over to do anything other than... well... that."
.
"Yea," he sheepishly agreed. There was no sense in trying to hide something so obvious. "I don't... I'm not really a people person."
.
She smiled docilely back at him as she spoke. "Do you have a towel I could use to dry off?" She considered her question and begged he didn't pull the sports towel off his barbell. "I'm a little chilled now that we're inside."
.
It took everything his sleazy mouth had not to jump on the opportunity to suggest they start heating things up. If there was any chance he could keep his mermaid on the hook, he would exhaust what little effort he was capable of. "Uh, yea... probably the one in the bathroom's the cleanest." He threw his hand out lazily in the direction of the only separate room his apartment had to offer, quickly retracting it with a dirty shirt in hand like he thought he was being inconspicuous. Luckily, his bathroom didn't have a window or means of escape, so he had at least a little time to straighten up in preparation for her return.
.
"I'll start there then," she mused adventurously. "Be right back."
.
Laxus nodded a couple times, glancing around the apartment casually as she approached the bathroom. As soon as he'd heard that door click, he was storming the apartment, cursing his bad habits under his breath as he gathered laundry and stubbed his toes more than once on liquor bottles. When he had more of a handle on the situation, he quickly approached his fridge, tearing the half-empty appliance apart for some form of snack or beverage to offer his pristine guest. She seemed like the carrot-munching type, but he didn't have a vegetable in sight. All he had on the snack front was half a steak that had been in the back of the fridge frosting for way too long and an onion that was way past the way too long stage and headed straight for the garbage stage. He slammed the lid on top of the bucket with a devastated growl, raking his fingers through his cropped hair like he might have ripped it out if he didn't think it would turn her off.
.
The cupboards didn't offer him much more in the way of relief. "Shit," he muttered bleakly. 'I spent way too much time with that b-' He flinched, unintentionally slamming the cupboard doors and poking his head around the corner like a meercat to the sound of the tumbler on his bathroom rolling over. He quickly returned to his kitchenette with a restless fidget. 'Fuck, fuck, fuck...'
.
Neirah sighed blissfully as she combed her fingers through her drying hair, her makeup fresh enough that she was regaining a little more confidence in herself. "Much better," she sang. She turned her curious gaze to where he was piling a strange assortment of groceries onto his table.
.
Warm coke, for mixing with his liquor. Crackers for when he was hungry but didn't want his food coming back up. Milk, which, if she didn't peek at the best before date, might be just fine. He held out his flattened palm towards her as she approached, his realisation striking. "Hold on," he announced enthusiastically. "I think I have a bottled water in the bathroom for-" He paused mid-sentence only to snarl out the unavoidable truth. "Shit I am a drunk..." he grumbled. "Just a minute and I'll grab it."
.
"Laxus, w-" And, he was gone. Her fingers barely captured the back of his shirt as he disappeared around the corner. She smiled sadly and poked her finger into the top of the open cracker box, tipping it over so she could look into it. She cocked her head to one side with a curious hum before pulling out one of the golden chips. She took a nibble on it just as he started to return, her eyes widening and lips puckering to the taste of the stale, flavourless slop liquefying beneath the grind of her teeth.
.
Laxus seemed triumphant as he added the bottle of water to the gathering on the table. "I even had a couple that weren't open yet," he announced proudly. "I was living with the ex for so long that I kind of forgot to shop-" He flinched as she reached for the water and cracked the top off it, easily downing a half of the bottle to rinse her mouth of multigrain mush. "Wow," he announced dimly. "If that's the way you drink, it's no wonder you don't do alcohol."
.
Neirah cleared her throat as delicately as possible to cover her folly. Luckily, she had nibbled on her brother's fries and split a basket of chicken wings with his girlfriend, so she wasn't really interested in snacking anyways.
.
"It's not... usually this bad," he assured her sheepishly. "Just, since all this shit with my ex, I've been spending a lot of time at the gym and-"
.
It was something about the way she came on to him; it wasn't like what he was used to experiencing. She only seemed confident when she laid her fingertips over his sternum, long polished nails kneading into the material of his shirt, but her flushing cheekbones assured him that modesty was in her vocabulary. Most of the women he'd brought home were needy, desperate even, but she wasn't. It wasn't that type of confidence. She was playing him like a fool; like she'd known from the start that she could get what she wanted out of him. He was desperate to know what that was.
.
He felt the edge of the partition between his kitchenette and living space bump against his tailbone. It meant he'd let her back him up a couple of steps. The warning signs were there, all the sirens blaring in his head at once not to get involved with her. He could tell she was dangerous. His slightly inebriated mind could imagine her sinking her claws past skin and bone straight into his chest where she'd tear out his heart and feed it to the crows. He was too weak too fast and he had let his entire defence wither. But when her lips met his, he'd lost the will to fight her. Maybe he was a bit of a masochist, but the way she called to him had him higher than he could have become that night at Rocko's. She was a succubus with strawberry flavoured balm on her lips, and not the cheap garbage girls got at the drugstore. It had tasted like she'd just dusted her lips with a fresh berry in front of his mirror, powdering her lips with sugar immediately afterwards. The woman pressed against him was a high roller and he was desperate to know what had her slumming.
.
He sighed into their kiss, his tension beginning to release and respond to her touch. "Fuck, you taste good," he rumbled hungrily. "Finally, Rocko's put somethin' on the menu worth eatin'." He heard himself say the words, but he was helpless to stop it from sounding absolutely offensive. "Fuck, that came out wrong."
.
Neirah smirked against his lips as they began to defend the clumsy tongue she was working towards tasting. "Just stop talking." She tried to make the words sound as gentle as she could. She truly didn't mind if he continued to talk, she'd found it delightfully amusing, but she could tell he was getting nervous. He wasn't used to caring about whether his one-night stand lasted until morning and that thought comforted her. It provided her with her own confidence. "You invited me here for one purpose. Patronizing you wasn't it," she purred eagerly.
.
His chest inflated beneath the exploration of her warm palms, shivers raising his skin when she untucked his undershirt and started to slip her fingers under its hem. "Straight to the point," he groaned in approval. "My kind of woman."
.
Neirah's sly smile was seductive as she leaned into his relaxing figure. "False," she defended sweetly. "I'm under the impression that I have more activity upstairs than what most of your quick fixes have."
.
"Savage," he growled passionately. He moved his hand towards her face, a little nervous with how sentimental it felt when she looked back at him from behind the stray strands of hair he aimed to move from her beautiful line of sight. "I don't know what about that hurt more, the fact that every woman I've ever fucked just got burned or the fact that you think you're a quick fix." He nearly smiled to the way her cheeks coloured with bashful heat.
.
"Well, I hope I'm not here to quickly break you."
.
He didn't mean to sound quite so ravenous as his lips neared the neck that he'd revealed by pushing back her curtain of hair. "By all means, take your time." He felt a peaceful weight settle into his senses as he filled himself with her sweetly fragranced presence. "Compared to everyone else who's left their mark, you're a fucking saint."
.
He could feel her breathe her words against his ear, his heart rate quickening with rapture. "Saint's heal," she promised tenderly. "I'm not here to break anything."
.
He slipped away from her, a dark furrow in his brow as he took her chin between his fingers and stared down into her mesmeric gaze. "Are you carryin' baggage?" He kept his gaze locked on her expression, scanning it for truth. "You still didn't tell me what's in this for you. No nasty ex'es or jealous boyfriends you're gettin' back at? Kids? Look, I'm not sayin' it won't be for me someday but that really took it out of me with the last one."
.
She reached past his hold on her face and brushed her fingers against either side of his cheeks. "Laxus, stop thinking."
.
He took a moment to absorb the way she had said it. "I like the way you said that," he murmured breathlessly. "My name... I like how it sounds."
.
"Then make me say it again," she whispered receptively. "Like you said you knew how." Her lips neared his, her face flushed crimson for the bold actions that she obviously wasn't used to. "Like I know you want to." She noticed that he kept playing with her hair, pushing it back out of her face. She sniggered softly, embarrassed for her high maintenance ruining the moment. "I'm sorry," she whispered awkwardly. "I have a lot of hair." She reached for the hair elastic around her wrist. She'd always kept one on her so she could tie it back.
.
"What are you doing?"
.
She started to gather her hair, a little startled by how desperate he sounded. "Tying it back," she assured him. "It has a nasty habit of getting in the way, anyhow. It's kind of embarrassing."
.
Her ashamed giggle made his heart melt. "Don't..."
.
Neirah faltered, her body stilling timidly as he quietly brushed his fingers over her hand in order to release the silky strands she'd taken prisoner.
.
"It gets caught everywhere..."
.
He moved his lips over hers as his hand slid down her forearm to her wrist. He gently slipped the elastic band from her wrist in an unobvious manner that saw his fingers mingling with hers. When he was sure she was distracted, he pitched the band back behind them. "I'll be careful," he promised genuinely.
.
She felt him raise one set of fingers to her shoulder, her breathing hastening as he dusted his knuckles over her collar. The moment she felt him reach for her dress strap, she started to tremble. Her flinch had obviously startled him into taking pause and she was immediately flushed with guilty panic. "I'm sorry," she breathed out frantically. "I'm just nervous. I don't... do this often..."
.
His reaction was a little more casual and comforting as he rumbled a low snigger behind a reassuring smile. "I'd be nervous around me too," he teased. "You heard old Rocko warning you to steer clear."
.
"It's not you, it's me," she mewled spiritedly.
.
He tried to remain lively. "It's a little early to start with that crap, isn't it?"
.
"You're right, I'm sorry it's just..."
.
Laxus stepped into her so that their bodies were aligned, both of his hands on her face and forcing it to tip into his. "It's nothing," he rumbled confidently. "I've had so much to drink tonight I probably won't remember half of this anyways."
.
Neirah's thick lashes batted as she closed her eyes and pressed her lips into his encouragement. "Please don't forget me."
.
Her quiet whimper wounded him. He had carried a bit of a reputation, but there were very few times he had outwardly struck a woman from his memory. "How... could I forget something so beautiful?" Clumsy. He knew it was cliché, but he couldn't think of a better way to say what was on his mind. Unfortunately, he didn't know much about her other than that she was beautiful; not yet.
.
"Is that enough?"
.
Daggers, they seared his insides as they pierced his chest and surged with her venom. He wished it wasn't. He felt shallow, sleazy and cheap. Beauty was the only ticket a woman seemed to need to step into his life and it was always seemed to make them walk right back out when they were through with him. His heart started to palpitate and he was reminded of his fears.
.
It was what made her different. She was a tender woman hiding behind feigned confidence. As beautiful and commanding as she was, he could still feel her tremble beneath his fingertips. His brow knotted as he touched it to hers, their lips connecting for a silent, affectionate moment. "You're going to break my heart, aren't you?"
.
"I already told you," she whispered meekly. "I'm not here to break anything..."
.
He could feel her fingers inching towards his shirt like they wanted to encourage him to remove it and with the heat she was giving off, he was all too eager to oblige. He tore the material over his head and tossed it over his shoulder. It made pulling her into his body that much more addicting. He brought their lips together, his passion a little more fervent than he wanted to let on. He prayed she could take it because he already felt like he was in too deep to let her go. He shuddered anxiously when her hands slipped around his waist to hold him, her soft breasts pressed to his abdomen. She was a delightful contrast to him and all he wanted to do was hold her, squeeze her soft, fragile figure tight to his. He could taste the apprehensive eagerness in her kiss, her gentle whimpers encouraging even if they sounded timid. Something about him had attracted her, and that was good enough for him.
.
He slipped the straps to her gown over her shoulders, and following his lead, she withdrew her arms entirely. She let the dress ball around her shapely hips and when one of his hands reached around her back to unclasp her strapless bra, she didn't squirm. His throat worked dryly as he heard the pop of snaps at her back and his fate was sealed the moment her naked breasts smothered themselves against his body.
.
He hissed his immeasurable contentment as he diverted his lips to the soft, tan mounds. "Those are real," he groaned elatedly. "Fuck, you really are a ten..."
.
His neck was starting to ache as he tried to get closer to his little godsend so he scooped her up into his arms, delighted when his large palms filled with naked haunches. He was desperate to see how her sexy little g-string was topped. Bows? Lace? Was she a studded leather type girl? He groaned his exasperated need into their continued French. "Hang on, I'm doing this right," he encouraged haughtily.
.
Neirah was moments from questioning his exclamation, but she was beaten by the feeling of soft mounds of sheets striking her back. She looked back at him hesitantly and, for the first time, got a pretty clear look at what was over top of her. It was easy for him to tell that she was having second thoughts, but her uncertainty didn't steal her touch. Instead, she laid it on one of the arms he'd braced in the sheets alongside her.
.
Her confidence seemed to peek back out from behind the clouds of her dark, stormy gaze, the ocean of darkening colour threatening to drown him as she nibbled on the corner of her smile and curled her index finger towards herself. "Finish what you started, Boxer."
