Chapter Three:
Darkness fell around them but neither Kate nor Rick noticed. They sat in the booth talking and laughing over coffee and salad and sandwiches. Somehow he managed to get her talking about herself; telling him random stories from her childhood and things she got up to in college. She hadn't revealed her job yet but she had opened up to him more than the last time they were together. He matched her story for story as he coaxed her into talking about herself, regaling her with tales of his own college days. When she had finished eating she leant against the back of the bench and laid her hand against his chest. He grasped her hand in his own and she smiled up at him. That awful feeling of being trapped had slowly filtered its way out of her system as they laughed together and she found herself relaxing into the conversation and into his side. He was telling her about a college soccer match when his phone rang from the end of the table. He smiled apologetically at her before answering it. She watched with interest as he answered the caller with single word answers, the stress lines reappearing on his face. She checked her own phone and was surprised to see it was 10 o'clock. She knew Lenny's closed at half past; their evening would soon be coming to an end. She slid her phone into her bag as he ended his call and she turned to face him as he spoke.
"I've got something I need to go check on..." His voice was low but she could see the sadness in his eyes that she knew would be reflected in her own.
"Yeah it's late... I should probably be getting home." He nodded and helped her into her jacket as they stood up. She led him towards the door, raising her hand in goodbye to Kevin. They stood outside as Rick slid into his own coat and she glanced up at the night sky.
"I wish I could see the stars." It slipped from her mouth before her brain could keep her mouth shut and Rick laughed as she looked down shyly.
"Me too." His breath ghosted over her hair as he whispered in her ear. "Do you... Do you have to get home?"
She looked up at him as he wrapped his arms loosely around her back. She was glad he wasn't shying away from her. After her little display earlier she had half expected him to make his excuses and run out on her. He hadn't and as she relaxed into his chest she found that she didn't want to run off either.
"You're busy." Her words were muffled as she buried herself into him, trying to ignore the pain in her chest at having to part ways.
"You could come too... if you wanted." She shifted back looking up at him; she ignored his hands as they came to rest of her sides and smiled shyly at him.
"If you're sure..." She spoke quietly, not wanting to sound too eager for him to leave. He nodded and she found herself leaning up. He met her halfway and she gasped as his lips met hers. His ghosted over hers repeated until she took half a step forwards and slid her hand up around his neck bringing him down to meet her lips securely. Her lips moved languidly over his and she smiled as he pulled her closer. A small part of her brain noted that his hands were moved steadily up and down her sides, the sensitive skin prickling against her clothes as it reacted to the touch but before she could pull away his tongue slipped between her lips and tangled with hers. She gasped as they continued to kiss. She pulled back as his hands dipped to grip her hips and rested her head against his as they both caught their breath.
"That was amazing." His voice was rough and she smiled at him as he quickly dipped down and pressed his lips briefly to hers. She leant her head against his neck as they relaxed together.
"What are we doing Rick?" She spoke softly so that if he chose to ignore her then he could pretend he hadn't heard her question. He shifted so he could bring one hand up to cup under her chin.
"Honestly Kate?" She nodded as she stared into his blue eyes. "I don't know... but I don't want to stop." She smiled shyly as she nodded her agreement, leaning up to kiss him briefly.
"Shall we get going?" She nodded and he led her to the edge of the pavement as he held his arm out for a cab. One screeched to a halt almost immediately and he held the door open as she scrambled across the seat so there was room for him to sit. Shutting the door behind him he directed the cab driver and settled next to Kate.
"Where are we going?" She was leant against his shoulder again, her eyes fluttering as she relaxed against him and he grasped her hand in his and threaded their fingers together.
"You know 'The Star Club'?" He knew she knew it since it was where they had met three nights earlier and he felt her nod against him. "I own it..." She sat up to stare at him and he caught her eye as she gasped. Her mouth hung open and he could see the disbelief and confusion flash in her eyes.
The club was busy when the cab dropped them off, a long line of people waiting outside to be let in and he could feel her tense next to him as a few people looked their way. He wasn't very well known, he had a tendency to try to keep himself away from any association with the clubs he owned, they made their own way then but sometimes people recognised him from the occasionally media interview or from the VIP area of the club. He placed his hand on her lower back and led her towards the top of the line. He could feel the muscles in her back tense as he touched her but he didn't pay any attention to it. He'd noticed in the last couple of hours at Lenny's that she tensed every time he touched her, sometimes it was barely noticeable; so much so that he didn't think even she realised it was happening, other times it was enough to have her whole body freeze and her breath stutter. He kept his hand on her back continuously as the doormen let them through into the club. As they stepped through the door, he pulled her against his side completely and stepped them through the group of people lingering around to swipe the card in his back pocket against the security system of the side door. He could feel how her whole body tensed as he pulled her into him and he knew her breathing had stuttered as well. Coaxing her inside the office he kept her flush with his side until the lights had come on; he slowly released her hip and grasped her hand in his.
"You okay?" She glanced up at him as her breathing levelled out. She should have known he would have noticed. She nodded slightly, offering him a small smile that didn't reach her eyes. He cupped her cheek and tilted her face until she met his eye. "It's okay."
She could see the sincerity deep in his eyes and nodded before leaning up and kissing him. Her tongue slipped inside his mouth and she felt him pull her closer to him. As their tongues battled against each other, her hands gripped his shirt as he trailed his fingers down her back to pull her shirt from her pants.
He could feel her tense as soon as his hands came into contact with her bare skin and he stilled them completely, giving her the chance to pull away from him. Her lips continued to move against his and he could feel tremors beginning to shake through her body. Pulling his lips from her he kissed her cheek and slowly trailed his lips across to her ear.
"I won't hurt you Kate..." He moved his kisses down to her jaw and steadily moved down her neck. He trailed kisses across her skin, his hands still on her hips as their bodies stood flush with each other. He could still feel the tremors rocking her body and her hands were twisted in his shirt as she tensed and unravelled her fingers.
"I'm sorry." Rick could hear the tears in her voice and he felt his heart break just a little to hear her pain.
"You don't need to be sorry Kate... It's okay." Her body shuddered, and he could feel her tears soaking into the neck of his shirt.
"It's not though!" The frustration in her voice was obvious and he tugged her closer to him, his arms wrapping around her tightly. Her body was still shaking but he couldn't tell if it was from the tears or if it was the tremors he knew would still be wracking her body.
She pounded her fists on his chest and he just tightened his hold on her. Her knees started to buckle underneath her and she stumbled into him. He staggered them backwards until he felt his knees hit the edge of the coach before dropping down and pulling her onto his lap. He could feel her muscles tense and her breathing stutter as she gasped for breath. He rested one hand on her lower back rubbing, hopefully soothing, circles through her shirt while the other hand moved to cup her cheek and turned her face towards his. He could see the panic in her eyes and wished he could take the pain away for her.
"It's okay Kate... You're okay... we're at the club and it's just you and me... no one's going to hurt you." He kept his voice low so as not to startle her, his breath ghosting over her face and he kept talking to her. He could still feel the tremors in her body but her breathing seemed to settle down slightly. He wiped the tears streaming over her reddened cheeks carefully before leaning forward and pressing a kiss to her forehead. "It's okay Kate."
She shuddered as he kissed her forehead and whispered into her hair as she rested against his neck. Her legs were draped across his lap and it would have been a rather intimate position if she wasn't just coming down from a panic attack. She couldn't remember the last time she had one that was as powerful as that had been... She had thought that they had calmed down over the last year. She still got the tremors but they were something she had come to expect... the only time they seemed to disappear was when she could feel music pounding through her body; that was the reason she had ended up at 'The Star Club' three nights ago. She hadn't expected to meet Rick though... he had been so great to her tonight and she had no idea how to repay him... well she did, but she wasn't sure he'd be up for it after all that. Leaning forward she pressed her lips harshly to his, her teeth nipping at his bottom lip. She knew he would still be able to feel the tremors in her body but she hoped he would pay more attention to fucking her than to her emotional state.
He could guess what she was trying to do as soon as he felt her lips touch his. She swung her legs over him so she was straddling his lap and he could feel her grating down on him. Placing his hands carefully on her hips he stilled her movements and pulled from the kiss.
"I don't want to do this like this Kate... You don't need to apologise or thank me or anything like this... I said it was okay, and it is... Don't ruin what we could have Kate; don't run from this." He felt her shudder as she settled down on his lap, his response to her intense kissing pressing against her leg. "It's not that I don't want you Kate... You can feel that... I want to do this right..." He paused and sucked in a deep breath before taking the plunge. There was something about Kate that had him feeling something he didn't think he had ever felt with someone else before. "I want to see if we could have a relationship Kate... A proper relationship... because, hell Kate... You must feel it; this connection we have... I've never felt it before."
She pulled back to look at his face, shifting her hips back so he wasn't pressed so intimately against her lower body.
"I do feel it Rick..." Her whispered words filled his heart with a feeling he knew he shouldn't be feeling this early on in their relationship.
"Will you go on a date with me Kate?" He smiled at her as her eyes lit up and she nodded happily before melding her lips softly to his.