Layla smiled as she sat at the island in her kitchen, Jon sat next to her along with Nick and Summer. The four of them spending one of their days relaxing at Layla's house, having made the long drive there straight after Smackdown. The following day, Nick and Summer would be heading to Summer's place in Chicago. Come Friday, Jon would be making his way back on the road, while Layla would be remaining home. The week- long trial set to start the Monday.
Layla had liked giving Jon the tour of the pace Nick had bought her for Christmas, her own little sanctuary. She had left Nick and Summer to their own devices; everyone just relaxing. Though, knowing them, she had a feeling they were making the most of the spare bedroom; giving her and Jon space. She was just glad Jon was with her now, her nerves were all over the place and she still had to write her victim impact statement, which would be read at the closing of the trial.
Layla's feelings about Jon not being at the trial were all over the place. On the one hand, part of her was glad he wouldn't have to sit there and listen to everything. He knew more about some of what she went through, there was times when something would happen and she would end up telling him something that had happened; some beating, something Carter had said to make her feel worthless. She could always feel the anger that radiated of him when she would tell him, so she wasn't sure how he would deal with actually being at the court. Especially when it was Carter's turn on stand. And of course, she was worried about how Carter's lawyers would use her relationship against her if they found out she was now in a relationship with Jon, which they would if he was there. Plus, what would happen if the media found out that wwe superstars were at an attempted murder/ domestic violence trial. She was already worried about that with Joe being a witness.
Though another part of her wanted him to be there to support her and hold her close when she wasn't on the stand. To tell her that he loved her and was there for her whatever happened. He made her feel safe and had helped her so much, more than he knew. Just his presence there would make her feel a little more confident then she was feeling.
Sat in the games room, Layla was watching Jon and Nick on the X-box; Summer sat in between Nick's legs as they sat on the floor. They had all spent the past couple of hours relaxing in Layla's game room, taking turns on the x-box. Layla's favourite bit though was probably when Summer played against Nick, the banter between the two making Layla laugh. Even more so when Summer beat Nick. Which then ended with Summer crawling into her pouting boyfriend's lap and the two of them playing tonsil tennis for ten minutes.
What Layla really noticed was everyone's interaction; the laughing and how at ease everyone was. She laughed when, Summer helping Nick to win, attempted to put Jon in a headlock; Jon trying to wiggle out of her grasp.
Watching from her spot on the large couch behind them, all the issues Layla had had with the statement disappeared. She knew what to write, how to express how her relationship with Carter had impacted on her life as she watched the scene in front of her. How much fun the three on the floor were having, how carefree they all were.
Standing up, she leaned down to kiss the side of Jon's head. "I'll be back in a bit. Have fun."
Layla sat on the couch, laptop on her legs as she typed away. Seeing Jon, Nick and Summer so carefree, so comfortable reminded her, once again, what Carter had taken away from her. Her feelings for Jon ran deep and he made her laugh, but it felt like she could never just be as carefree as other people were. She couldn't imagine just putting Jon in a headlock like Summer just had, or anyone else for that matter. Just like how she never felt comfortable at big events or around people she didn't know. She didn't know how to just let loose; lose herself in the moment. How to be confident. Maybe in time, once the trial was over. She had to remind herself, like her therapist told her, to take one day at a time. And she had to remind herself how far she had come since Nick got her away from Carter. And how much Jon had helped her.
She had not long finished when Jon walked into the living room and joined her on the couch, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.
"Hey princess, you ok?"
Layla nodded. Chewing on her bottom lip, she turned to face him, handing him the laptop. "I want you to read something. I, I wrote my impact statement. I can't be here whilst you read it though. I'll be upstairs."
Jon understood. He knew that everything about Carter and this trial was hard for Layla to deal with. He knew she wasn't pushing him away, which was evident in the fact that she wanted him to read her statement. "I'll be up after, princess." Jon kissed her cheek, smiling before Layla walked out of the room and upstairs.
Reading through Layla's victim impact statement, Jon was a mixture of emotions. He was angry and sad at what she had been through, how much it evidently still had a large effect on her life. But he was also so proud of Layla and what she had been through and the fact that she was still here today. She was a fighter. She was his little fighter and he couldn't love or be more proud of her.
After he finished reading the statement, Jon walked upstairs to Layla's bedroom, finding Layla sat in the middle of the bed. Sitting on the bed next to her, Jon wasn't surprised when Layla moved to straddle him, burying her face in his large chest. Jon wrapped his arms around her, kissing the top of her head.
"It's perfect," was all Jon could say. It wasn't something you could easily have a conversation about. It wasn't praising someone on an excellent essay; it was expressing what an abusive relationship had done to someone. Someone Jon was in love with.
Pulling back a little, Layla looked at Jon. "I just want to sleep for a bit. Will you hold me?" She asked. Having driven straight from the Smackdown taping to her place, not having yet slept, Layla was really starting to feel the exhaustion seep in. A few hours' sleep before dinner was definitely needed.
"Course, beautiful," Jon softly replied.
Layla laughed when Jon just dropped back onto the bed with her still on him, ending up with her body half on him, half on the bed, one leg over his and his arms wrapped around her. One of Layla's hands over Jon's heart and one of his hands over that hand. "Comfortable?" Jon smiled down at Layla.
Layla returned his smile, "I could stay like this forever."
Closing her eyes, it wasn't long before Layla fell asleep. Jon falling asleep not long after Layla.
Waking up a few hours later, in the same position they had fallen asleep in, Layla moved so her whole body was on top of Jon's, softly kissing his lips.
"Am I dreaming or is the most beautiful woman in the world kissing me?" Jon smiled, his eyes still closed. But he knew Layla was blushing. She always did when he called her beautiful or said anything like he just had.
"Not dreaming, it's happening," Layla replied softly before pecking his lips.
"In that case, it's time I kissed her back," Jon replied, finally opening his eyes before flipping them over, hovering over Layla. Leaning on one forearm, he gently cupped one side of Layla's face, taking her top lip between his lips. When Layla brought a hand up to Jon's face, he deepened the kiss, his tongue finding Layla's, setting a slow rhythm. Jon would spend his entire day kissing Layla if he could, loving the feel of her soft lips against his.
"We should probably go downstairs, you can continue kissing me later though," Layla winked, then blushed at her own words. Jon loved it when Layla would blush, finding it adorable. He loved the times, like this, when Layla seemed to come out of her shyness.
"I'll definitely be kissing you again later," he winked back before moving so he was sitting on the edge of the bed, not at all surprised when Layla moved over to him, wrapping her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. He took hold of her thighs, making sure she was secure, before standing up and walking out the room and down the stairs.
Summer and Nick smiled when they heard Layla's laugh and then saw Jon walk into the kitchen with Layla on his back. It was good to see her so happy, and with Jon. Anyone could see they were made for each other.
"We figured we'd cook, a thank you for letting us stay. By that I mean me, your brother can't cook at all. I'm teaching him though." Summer said as she checked on the food in the oven. "Perfect timing, the chicken is done."
"That's really nice of you Summer. But honestly, you can stay here whenever. And good luck trying to teach my brother to cook, mom's been trying to for years."
"I am here you know," Nick said, injecting himself into the conversation.
"We know, I was just warning Summer about trying to teach you how to cook," Layla grinned, walking over to sit at the table, Jon having placed her back on her own two feet.
"I'm not that bad!"
"You nearly burnt the house down once. Cooking bacon," Layla revealed, making everyone laugh. Though Jon, watching Layla as they sat at the table, could see that behind the laughter was fear and anxiousness for the trial. He'd noticed that all day. Jon wished there was something he could do to take her mind of it for a little while, to allow her to relax.
After they all finished dinner and everything was tidied away, Jon went upstairs, having an idea on how Layla could relax for a bit. He knew, whatever he did, her mind was always going to be on the trial. There was no changing that. This could help her relax for a bit though. Layla herself was on the phone with her lawyer, Summer and Nick were curled up on one of her couches watching a film.
Upstairs, in Layla's onsweet bathroom, Jon set to work, running Layla a bubble bath and placing various candles around the bathroom, turning the lights off.
Ten minutes later, he went and found Layla who was finishing up the call with her lawyer. He wrapped his arms around her, standing behind her and placed a kiss on her temple. Layla leaned into Jon, resting her head against his shoulder.
As she placed the phone down on the kitchen island, Layla turned around so she was facing Jon, smiling up at him.
"I have a surprise for you."
"Jon, you didn't have to do anything for me."
"I know, I wanted to. Come up," he replied, taking her hand and a curious Layla upstairs.
"I want you to relax," Jon said softly as they walked into the candle lit bathroom and Layla's eyes widened as she saw what Jon had done for her. "Take your time. I'm going to go for a run, princess."
Layla wrapped her small hand around Jon's forearm as he went to walk out of the bathroom. He noticed the tentative look on Layla's face. "Stay…join me. I just want you to hold me. Please?" Layla asked, biting down on her bottom lip.
Whilst Jon knew they wasn't about to have sex, he knew this was still a big deal for Layla. Being completely naked in front of him, vulnerable. Though he had seen her scars, Layla had never been naked in front of Jon. He knew, especially with the trial so close, Layla was more fragile at the moment. He wasn't going to mess this up. Whatever Layla wanted, he would do. Nothing more.
Stepping closer to Layla, he cupped her face in his hands, pressing his lips to hers. "If that's what you want." Layla nodded.
A few minutes later, both of them stripped of all their clothing, Jon gently stroked Layla's cheek. "Beautiful," he whispered in her ear before helping her into the warm bubble bath.
Getting in behind her, Jon pulled Layla back to rest against his chest, loosely wrapping his arms around her waist. A few minutes later and he visibly felt Layla relax against him, drawing circles on one of his arms with her index finger.
For a while they just lay there, relaxing in the warm water, neither saying anything.
Layla smiled, leaning further into Jon's touch when she felt him start to press soft kisses against her neck and down her shoulder. She loved the feeling of his lips against her skin, his arms around her. She felt comfortable around him, those nerves she'd had at first, naked around him, had gone. Though she still wasn't ready to have sex with him.
Turning around and moving so she was straddling him, resting her hands against his chest, Layla softy kissed Jon. Pulling away, she smiled. "Thank you for this. I needed it," she said before kissing him again.
Jon rested his hands on her hips, deepening the kiss. He could feel Layla's breasts pressed up against his chest, amongst other things he could feel; he was trying his hardest not to get completely aroused and ruin the moment. It was difficult, his eyes had devoured Layla's body as she took her clothing off earlier and then as she leaned against him in the bath and now as she straddled him and they kissed. Every part of her was beautiful. He didn't want to ruin everything though, make her feel pressured. He wouldn't. He wanted this to be perfect for her; for her to relax. Sex would come when she was ready. For a while, the two got lost in kissing each other.
Getting out of the bath later, Jon gently dried Layla's body with the towel. His lips once again finding hers. She was addictive.
After Layla had pulled one of Jon's shirts on and some panties, Jon putting on some black basketball shorts, the two lay on Layla's bed.
Lying on her side, Layla absentmindedly ran her fingers up and down Jon's arm as they spoke.
"You have a bit of an obsession with my arms, don't ya, princess?" Jon smirked, having noticed how she was always touching his arms.
Layla blushed, biting down on her bottom lip. "Maybe. I don't even notice I'm touching them most of the time," she finally answered. "You do have amazing arms though."
Jon smirked, rolling onto his side to face her. "Oh? So is it just my arms you like?"
"No!" Layla chewed her lip again. "I like the rest of you too. I really like the rest of you. I just happen to like your arms a lot," Layla rambled making Jon laugh.
"I really like you too," Jon grinned back, kissing her forehead.
"I like your chest too," Layla said before placing a few kisses across his bare chest.
"Uh-huh," Jon smiled as he rolled onto his back, allowing Layla to do whatever she wanted to do. "What else?"
"Your arms and your shoulder's, like you pointed out earlier," Layla grinned before kissing up both of his arms and shoulders.
"And your face," Layla rained more kisses on Jon's face.
"Anything else?"
"Your eyes, too," Jon closes his eyes before Layla kissed his closed eyelids.
"I'm also a really big fan of your lips." Layla placed her hands on Jon's chest as her lips found his.
Jon wrapped his arms around Layla, pulling her closer to him. "I like this game," he grinned before his lips descended onto her, his tongue dominating hers.
Next chapter the trial!