Unfortunately, my bladder wakes me up way too early. And while I try my best to save that sleepy feeling as I slip out of the bed, trying desperately not to jostle Dimitri's unconscious form, by the time I leave the bathroom again I am wide awake.
So I tiptoe over to the nightstand to grab my phone, and snag Dimitri's sweatshirt from where it lay in a heap on the floor. Then, after taking a second to admire the utter peace on Dimitri's sleeping face, I clutch the items to my chest and retreat into the living room.
I curl myself up on the couch with my phone, turning the volume all the way down to a whisper. My suggested articles include a piece on Dimitri's show last night so I entertain myself by skimming through it for a few minutes. It includes a fan's phone video of his last song, so I click through to watch it on YouTube. The audio quality is terrible, but the moment that the pyros go off is admittedly pretty epic, even though the camera struggles to expose for the sudden burst of light.
Idly I scroll down to the comments, but then I catch sight of the views.
Over six hundred thousand. In less than 24 hours. Holy fuck!
And more than ten thousand comments too. My eyes blaze through the sentences on my screen.
He's so amazing!
Who's it about?
Omg but can you imagine someone writes something like this for you
That voice
Husband material
Jealous of that guitar lol
Okay but WHO DID HE WRITE IT FOR?
Well. It appears Dimitri's gone viral again. And try as I might, I can't shake the thought that Tasha was right; it would be a dumb move for him not to go on tour right now. But where does that leave me?
A message pops up from Lissa.
Do you have time to talk?
I kneel on the couch to peek down the hallway to the bedroom, where I can just see a bare foot sticking out from under the blankets. Still fast asleep then. I just need to keep it down. So I call her.
"You're never awake this early," Lissa says by way of a greeting. "Or have you just not gone to bed yet?"
"Hi Liss," I reply with a smile. "I had to pee and then I couldn't get back to sleep."
"Hate when that happens," she sympathises. "Anyway, I wanted to check in after the show. How was Mason?"
I almost laugh. All of that seems so far away now. But it's as good a time as any to catch her up on the Mason front, so I decide to kill two birds with one stone and make a cup of coffee while we talk. I check through the bedroom door again as I pass the hallway, just to make sure.
"So it's five minutes to call time, and Mason still isn't there," I'm busy telling Lissa as I hunt for a mug in the bland fancy cabinets. But when I grab one and turn to the counter, I find to my dismay that the coffee machine is one of those fancy capsule ones that I don't know how to use.
"Ah shit Liss," I interrupt myself. "I need coffee. Can you guide me through this?"
"Sure," she says, and we switch to a video call. I flip my camera to show her the contraption.
"Wait, where are you?" she asks.
"Oh, I'm at a hotel. I didn't want to drive all the way back too late."
She narrows her eyes.
"With all the stuff with Mason, I was way too tired to drive," I explain. "Once you help me get caffeine, I'll tell you the whole story."
"Okay fine. Flip the camera again please."
She tells me where and how to insert the capsule, and after very little time at all, I'm leaning against the counter with my mug in one hand and my best friend in the other.
"So yeah," I finish off. "I swear to God, I've never wanted to punch someone in the face so much. After everything he put me through. But I'm lucky Dimitri was there."
"I'm so sorry you had to go through that," Lissa says earnestly. She was an excellent audience, with all the right reactions and a validating anger on my behalf.
"But I'm really glad he didn't get away with it," she adds. Then a more hestitant, "What are you going to do now?"
"I don't know. Even Dean dropped me from the job their team was on." I sigh, then narrow my eyes as an unpleasant thought occurs to me. "I wonder if Mason will struggle to find work after this."
Lissa's smile is sympathetic. "He's a man. You know it won't affect him much."
"It can be arranged," comes a voice from the doorway.
My eyes flick up suddenly to find a freshly awoken Dimitri with his hair adorably mussed and lines from the pillow indented on his face.
"Who was that?" asks Lissa, who can only see my startled expression.
"Uuhhh," I say.
But Dimitri strides across the kitchen and pops his head into view next to mine.
"Hi," he says cheerfully. "I'm Dimitri."
To her credit, though she's clearly surprised, Lissa gives a convincing smile. "Hi Dimitri, it's great to meet you. I'm Lissa."
"And you," Dimitri grins back, obviously enjoying my discomfort.
"Sorry," Lissa says with a sideways glare in my direction, "Rose didn't tell me she had company."
"I was getting to that part," I say weakly.
"Well then," Dimitri chimes in, evidently satisfied with the amount of trouble he's now caused. "I'll let you two talk. I only came in here for coffee."
And when I turn my head to glare at him, he plants a swift kiss on my lips.
When I look back at Lissa, I can feel my face burning. But despite her joking objection to being left out of the loop, she gives me a genuine smile.
"Seems like you had an eventful evening," she says. "You look happy Rose, and it's good to see."
"Thanks Liss," I reply sheepishly. "I am happy."
I glance over at Dimitri's smug smile as he sets his mug in the machine. I imagine Lissa can see the resulting melting expression on my face. And then my eyes widen when I realise how much more is on display than just his smile.
He must have heard my intake of breath, because he looks over at me.
Pants? I mouth.
He raises an eyebrow and sends a pointed glance at my own bare legs, making me blush again.
Lissa calls my attention back to my phone. "Have you seen the fans' reaction to the show today Rose?"
"Yeah, it's crazy," I reply. "The view count just keeps climbing."
"I wonder if it was the AV direction that contributed."
I laugh. "I doubt it Liss. But I actually have some equipment to return this morning, so I should probably go."
"Oh absolutely, I'm sure it's because of the outstanding equipment," she teases, and I roll my eyes.
"Can I just speak to Mr Belikov before you go?"
"Liss, it's not really-"
"-Sure thing," Dimitri interjects, holding his hand out.
I sigh, but carefully pass him the phone, making sure not to pan downwards even a fraction.
Anxiously, I take a sip of my coffee. But Dimitri's expression doesn't waver.
"Rose has only had good things to say about you," comes Lissa's voice from the speaker. "And I really hope you've been misrepresented in the media. Because if you hurt her, I will make sure you suffer."
Oh god.
I open my mouth and reach for the phone, about to tell her that's not necessary. But Dimitri puts an arm out to stop me.
"I understand," he says simply. "Rose deserves better than she's had to go through recently. You're a good friend."
"Excellent," Lissa replies. Then I hear the call disconnect.
There's an unbearable beat of silence where I'm forced to comprehend that that really happened.
"I'm so sorry," I breathe.
Dimitri just shrugs and hands my phone back.
"I get it, she's looking out for you." Then he smiles, giving me a very obvious once over. "Oh, and you're adorable by the way."
He takes one look at the tension still visible in my shoulders and closes the distance between us.
"Really, Roza. It's fine," he says, pulling me to his chest. I can't help but bury my face in his skin, feeling the tickle of his chest hair on my nose.
"You smell good," I tell him, my voice slightly muffled by his skin.
He laughs and I feel it rumble through his chest, echoing into my own frame. It feels so good to just be with him. It feels right. And part of me worries that something is going to put a stop to it.
He pulls back. "Finished your coffee?"
I nod.
"Cool. What time do you need to return the equipment?"
"Good question," I reply, checking the time on my phone, then googling the store. "I should probably get it back when they open, which is in 30 minutes."
I'm really grateful to that store owner, and I want to make sure he has his equipment back first thing so he doesn't miss out on any profits. Which reminds me...
"Okay, so we'll head over to the venue now then," Dimitri's saying, "maybe we can-"
"-Can I get your autograph?" I ask.
For a second I don't understand why he freezes mid sentence, mouth still open from what he'd been saying. Nevertheless, I seem to have finally managed to shock him.
"I don't...have anything on me at the moment," he replies eventually.
I can't help it, I burst out laughing. He watches me, completely bewildered, until I'm able to explain.
"Sorry, sorry," I manage between renewed bouts of laughter. "The shop owners' daughter is a fan of yours. I wanted to get one for her."
And once he understands the context, he laughs with me.
"I'm glad I didn't say what I was going to, in that case," he says after we've both calmed down a bit.
"What were you going to say?"
His fingers wrap around my biceps, and I find myself pressed up against the edge of the kitchen counter, wedged between the hard marble and Dimitri's body.
"I thought we have to leave," I breathe, but a devilish smile silences me almost as effectively as the tongue he then teases into my mouth.
"What I was going to say is, I can sign my name with my tongue if you'd like. Or maybe something else."
He keeps his voice low, his breath tickling my ear as he speaks each word just for me. His hand makes its way slowly up my thigh, exposing more of my skin to the morning air. And though I'd like nothing more than to make him keep his promise, one thing has been bothering me about our conversation last night. So I may as well set the record straight.
I arch my neck, presenting him with the perfect opportunity to kiss me more thoroughly. But when he obligingly lowers his head to do so, I grab his jaw.
"You're cocky, Belikov," I inform him with a dark smile of my own. His eyes widen for a second, but then he grins underneath my fingers. I pull him forward for a brief, rough kiss.
"I have reason to be, Roza," he says when his lips are free again.
"Well, yes," I allow, thinking back to the best parts of last night. "But. You're not the only one."
I spin us around, so he's the one with his bare ass to the cold stone of the counter. While my job makes me strong, he could have stopped me if he'd wanted to. Paired with the wide grin on his face, I'd say it's safe to assume he's enjoying himself. And having power over him in any form is just hot, even when he's agreed to give it to me.
I run my fingers lightly over his shoulders, his pecs, down his stomach until he's shivering slightly in anticipation. And then my tongue traces the same path down until I feel the cold porcelain tiles pressing into my knees.
"I thought," he gasps, "that you had an objection to my lack of pants."
I smile, which exposes my teeth a little more, thus ensuring he has no breath to spare for any further wisecracks. His gorgeous hands tighten on the edge of the counter.
"It was more of an observation than an objection," I reply when I'm able.
His answering chuckle is cut short as I get back to my previous task of proving a point; he's not the only one who's good at what he does.
Author's Note
Thank you so much for reading! You've all been so wonderfully supportive, I appreciate all of your kind words and patience more than you can know. I'd love to hear what you thought of the chapter, if you'd like to leave a review. Some of y'all genuinely make me laugh out loud with your reactions and it's amazing. If you'd like to keep in the loop when I post, please feel free to favourite and follow.
In a stunning turn of events, we've had two consecutive updates! I make no promises, but maybe I can keep these good vibes going before we move house at the end of the month. While I enjoyed writing the build up, getting in some good solid Romitri is always my favourite way to write.
The VA universe and the characters therein are the sole intellectual property of Richelle Mead.