caution: Lime-y lime dusted throughout this short chapter - I'm making up for teasing last chapter ;)


Gajeel opened his mouth, "I don - " He was cut off by the press of Levy's lips against his open mouth. He could feel her fingers releasing his shirt and starting to caress his pectorals, the rapid beat of her heart, almost taste the now intense scent of her.

Levy shifted, desperate to touch more of Gajeel. She clambered atop his broad thighs and knelt there, snaking her arms around his neck and squashing her breasts into his chest. Not once freeing his lips, Levy continued her assault on Gajeel. Leisurely she tasted his mouth, stroked his tongue with her own and swallowed his moans. Gradually she became aware of his hands under her skirt, gripping her hips and digging into her buttocks.

Passionate moans and the sound of fabric rustling competed with laboured breathing. Levy kept her eyes closed and poured her yearning into their kiss. Her hands migrated to Gajeel's hair and she thrust her fingers into his mane. She kept one hand buried in inky black strands and caressed the side of his face with the other. Slowly her fingers traced the metal piercings over his eyes, detoured to under his bottom lip and then gently touched the bridge of his nose; all the while kissing Gajeel. Gajeel; the enigmatic, complex, strong, and determined man.

Panting, Levy pulled her lips from his and trailed them to his neck. Licking and biting softly, she marked a path down the column of his throat. For an endless moment, she concentrated her attentions on his pulse point. Levy pushed herself upright and stared point blank into Gajeel's eyes. Her kiss swollen lips trembled and her eyes promised heaven.

Suddenly, deep burning guilt stabbed at the dragon slayer's consciousness, "Levy, I don't think you really know what you're doing."

"Huh?" Deep in passion's grip, Levy couldn't make sense of his words. "I'm kissing you, and you're enjoying it according to the death grip you have on my ass."

"Levy," he repeated, "I've misled you. I'm not good enough to be with you like this. I don't know that we should even be friends after what I did you and your team as part of Phantom Lord. How can you even stand to be in the same room as me?"

Levy sighed and reached up to yank on a hank of Gajeel's hair. "Do I have your full attention? Everything in your past; the good and the bad, has made you who you are today - I wouldn't change a damn thing. Your past choices and the path you walked are just that, the past." She sighed and removed herself from his lap, walking over to the club chair and perched on the edge watching him with shadowed eyes.

"Levy, I - " Gajeel was stumped. He could still feel the anxious worm of doubt in his stomach, twisting and dancing, sowing seeds of despair. The weight of misgivings in himself was reaching epic proportions. Bowing his head he sat unmoving and silent, lost in contemplation.

"I don't think I've ever heard you speak my actual name before, Gajeel." Levy settled back into the comfortable chair, bringing her legs up to sit cross-legged. Pushing the front of her skirt down to preserve her modesty, she barked a harsh chuckle. "It takes rejecting me for you to say my name. That's how I know you mean it - "

Gajeel snapped his head upright, the fire in his eyes stopped Levy from continuing her sentence.

She could feel her dying spark of hope flare into renewed life. His eyes - so conflicted! Is this as confusing for him as it is for me? Levy witnessed the naked yearning painted on his face, as was the resolution to withhold happiness from himself. His red wine dark eyes almost glowed with suppressed emotion. She felt like she was spying without permission into his soul.

"It's not about what I want, It's about what's best for you," Gajeel grunted in a surly tone.

In almost as bitter a tone, Levy scathingly replied. "If you're so concerned with giving me what I want and what's best for me, you should consult me before rendering a verdict without listening to all the evidence!" Each word was louder than the one before and she ended her impassioned speech with a pounded fist on the arm of the chair. Without thinking further, Levy launched herself at Gajeel.

His dragon slayer reflexes allowed him to open his arms to the determined bluenette and roll with her hurled body so they were laying on the couch touching from head to toe. Her slight form trapped against the back of the sofa trembled with an excess of nerves. Gajeel crooned wordlessly into her ear and stroked one hand down her back while the other cradled her head. Gradually, she calmed as Gajeel became more worked up from caressing her form.

"There's so much I should tell you before we explore this attraction any further." He groaned and rolled so Levy was sprawled atop his muscular form. "You are messing with my brain - I have reasons why this isn't a good idea. I decided that -"

"Screw your reasons!" Levy snapped, "Screw you!" She started struggling against Gajeel. "Fuck your reasons if you can't talk to me like I might be able to make my own decisions!"

"Levy!" Gajeel bellowed, "Goddammit! Stop twisting my words!" He didn't resist as she pushed down on his chest and levered herself up over his prone body. She glared at him full of such fury, he couldn't help but laugh. Deep, belly shaking chuckles shuddered his whole body.

"Am I funny to you?" Levy hissed, even more pissed off. She was perched precariously with her knees gripping Gajeel's abdominals, her back hunched, with her hands trapped in his. Having lost her hair band minutes earlier, she growled her irritation at the hair sweeping in front of her eyes. "Stop laughing at me - you overgrown mountain of a man!"

Another snicker burst from him lips. His face bore a comical mix of chagrin and apprehension. "I'm not laughing at you." Gajeel turned his head to try to shield his expression from the solid script mage. Yet another suspicious mirth-like sound escaped his mouth and it incensed Levy to new heights of displeasure.

"I'm warning you Gajeel!"

"I can't help it, It's a nervous response!"

Grinning evilly, she replied, "So is this!" Levy impulsively leaned forward and enthusiastically bit the dragon slayer at the base of his neck.

Levy was equal parts horrified and excited with her behaviour. She couldn't ever remember being so enraged or sexually stimulated. In the back of her mind, she felt as if she were witnessing herself at a distance. What am I doing? She relaxed her bite as Gajeel stopped laughing and instead began an almost imperceptible moan.

"Shrimp, you gotta make up your mind fast!" His voice was rough and thick with desire. "It's probably too late for you to back out on me now; but if you back off right now, we can take it slow."

Levy felt the tension from Gajeel ratchet up another notch. His body fairly hummed with stress. The diminutive girl closed her eyes and sighed, "What the hell are you talking about?"