Chapter 30

Zara woke up first the following day, her bladder practically screaming at her to be emptied. She was tucked into Leon's warm embrace, and he frowned in his sleep when she moved away from him and carefully got out of his bed. Looking around, she got her bearings and remembered her way to the bathroom as she hadn't been in his apartment since she came over to crash when Aaron and Bri had their date night. Once she'd relieved herself, she saw he had a clothes horse out with what smelt like clean clothes. Hoping she wasn't overstepping, she picked a shirt from it and pulled it over her head as she wandered back to the kitchen. She only had the dress, bra, and panties that she had worn the previous night, and she could see the dress on the floor, but she didn't know where anything else was. Nor did she care at this point.

Since she knew he loved coffee as much as she did, she thought it would be nice to wake him with one. Turning his machine on, she took a minute to familiarise herself with it and then made them both an iced coffee since it was pleasantly warm in his apartment. When she was finished, she took them back into the bedroom, placed them on the bedside table and sat on the edge of the bed next to him. He stirred but didn't open his eyes, and she saw him pat the empty space beside him where she was a few minutes ago.

Abruptly, his eyes snapped open, and they darted around in a panic. He seemed visibly relieved when he focused on her and smiled sleepily. She saw his chest fall with the sigh he let out. His hand found hers, and he brought it up to kiss the back of it softly.

"You okay?" She asked, wondering why he had looked so panicked.

"I thought you'd left." He answered but kept his eyes lowered.

"Nope. I made coffee." She gestured to the cups on the bedside table.

He smiled but didn't look away from her. His silence caused her to look at him questioningly, wondering if everything was okay.

"What is it?" She asked.

"I…" He started but trailed off like he was lost for words.

Sitting up, he wrapped his arms around her and then pulled her back down to lay her torso on top of him. She laughed at him and happily accepted his sudden burst of affection. After a few seconds, one of his arms hooked under her knees and lifted, depositing her on the bed beside him. He trapped her in his arms, peppering her with kisses along her arm, shoulder, and hair while she laughed. Shifting her until she was on her back, his hands pressed her boobs together to allow him to lay on her. He placed his head on her chest, eagerly snuggled into the soft flesh, and closed his eyes contentedly.

"You good there?" She asked with mirth.

"Mhmm." He smiled broadly and nodded, looking pleased with himself.

"You don't want your coffee?" Zara asked, glancing at the ice that was melting in their cups.

"I want you more," Leon responded without opening his eyes, his voice still thick with sleep.

Zara sighed happily and raked her fingers through his hair soothingly. She was surprised he didn't go back to sleep, appearing content and relaxed. He eventually opened one eye to look at her and lifted his head to look at the clothing covering her.

"Is this mine?" He asked with a puzzled tone.

"Uh, yeah. I grabbed it since I had nothing to wear besides my dress. I hope that's okay." She answered hesitantly.

Leon frowned at her. "Nothing is good."

"What do you mean?" She raised an eyebrow at him in confusion.

"I like you wearing nothing." He couldn't hide his smirk.

"Ahh, I see." Zara rolled her eyes dramatically at him.

They both laughed before Leon sat up and pointed at her.

"Don't move."

"Can I drink my coffee?" She asked, blinking slowly.

He rubbed at the hair on his chin and narrowed his eyes thoughtfully before eventually nodding. "That is acceptable."

Staying where she was, she watched him walk out of the bedroom and turn left, likely heading towards the bathroom. Sitting on the edge of the bed with her feet hanging off, Zara sipped her coffee and heard the sound of the toilet flushing. Leon's footfalls got louder until he appeared in the doorway, still completely naked. She enjoyed the sight while he strolled towards her, stopping just before her and making her tilt her head back to look up at him. She picked up his cup and handed it to him, and he sipped it, then nodded appreciatively. He put it back down, leaned forward to cup her cheeks and kissed each one slowly, making her smile bashfully.

Her heart raced as she immensely enjoyed his attention. She was surprised by how affectionate he was, considering how proper he usually was around her. He'd touched her hair the first time she'd come to his apartment and had put his hand on her shoulder to let her know he was shuffling past her at the studio or when he'd hugged her once. Aside from that, the only other time she could recall was at the release party last night. Thus, the suddenness of his proposition the previous night had taken her off guard. He'd seemed a little off, and she'd noticed him watching her throughout the evening. His gobsmacked expression when he'd first seen her was like a bright neon sign, but she didn't dress up often. She had, albeit disappointedly, expected it was just his surprise at seeing her dressed up. After that, when she felt him watch her, she guessed it was his way of ensuring she was all right since she'd never attended an event like that before. Dane hadn't exactly hidden the fact that he had a crush on her, so her assumption was that Leon wanted to ensure Dane was a gentleman. Aaron had given her a long look at one point, but that was all, and she was used to him anyway. She briefly recalled that she was going to question Aaron about a comment he made, but never got the chance since she left.

Leon seemed to notice that she was thinking and moved to lie down on the bed behind her. He laid on his side, propping his head up on his elbow, and she shifted to face more towards him. She passed him his coffee, which he took with a grateful smile.

"What is it?" He asked quietly, almost as if afraid to ask the question.

"I'm... I'm just surprised, I guess." She offered with a shrug.

"Surprised about this?" He gestured to himself and then to her.

Zara nodded shyly. Leon just watched her calmly and expectantly, wanting her to elaborate. She took a deep breath and tried to get her head around what she wanted to say. He waited patiently and didn't interrupt her despite chewing his lip nervously. Zara hated talking about herself and her feelings but was actively working on it. Leon had been more open with her than expected, so it was only fair that she shared her thoughts.

"I'm just surprised since I didn't get any indication that you had feelings for me before last night. You hid it so well. Unless it was just a sudden change." She added, trying to make a joke since she wasn't great at talking about things that made her feel vulnerable, but he shook his head in denial.

"I kept my distance from you for two different reasons," he answered, lowering his eyes. "At first, it was because I found it hard to look at you since I was still getting over...everything." She knew he meant the coma dream with Red. "Then I kept my distance because I started to like you, but I was worried that it was just my subconscious being drawn to you out of familiarity."

It made sense to her. People can't choose who they develop feelings for, so she appreciated his concern that it was for the wrong reasons. Aaron hadn't let her in on much about what had happened, and she'd only talked with Leon about it once at length. As she thought back, she recalled that he scarcely looked at her when he first returned to work. Gradually, he became more comfortable, making eye contact, talking, joking, and laughing with her. They had become friends throughout the last few months, and feeling accepted and welcomed had been excellent. His treatment of her at the start wasn't cold, but just so cautious, like he was a frightened deer staring into a speeding car's headlights. That had gone away quite quickly, though, likely due to Aaron's strong bond with them both, which hopefully made him feel more at ease.

"I didn't think it was fair on you since I assumed I felt that way because of Red. I didn't know it was genuine for a while. It took me a while to properly figure it out and had a few nudges. After that, I kind of surprised myself at how…uhh…I've been told before that I'm 'intense' and I didn't want to scare you off. I wanted to take the next step, but I guess I needed a push." He rubbed his thumb across the outside of the glass, still not looking at her.

"Then what was the push?" Zara asked since she was curious. He must have meant that something forced him to act.

"Dane asked me if I thought you would leave with him. I would have stayed quiet if you wanted to, but I knew I'd regret it if I didn't tell you I wanted you for myself and that I had feelings for you. I'd been stupid enough to miss the chance on multiple occasions before." He lowered his eyes to his cup as he spoke, and she could see a muscle shifting in his jaw as he chided himself.

"Multiple?" She furrowed her brow in confusion. She got the impression that he wasn't referring to the coffee shop.

He noticed his slip-up and grimaced for a second, then sat up, put his coffee on his bedside table, and lifted his hands up in fists.

"Twice at the coffee shop. When we went and got Thai food. When Dane was flirting with you on the first day of recording. When you sang Eternal for me in the studio. When we all went out to the bar down the road when we'd wrapped recording, and Dane asked you to dance. When you talked to Cailan about your ideas at the photoshoot, and I could see your passion and excitement. When I got the photos back. When you asked Aaron about him landing a plane, and we ended up laughing hysterically. When I hugged you the other day." He used his hands to count manually each time he referred to and still seemed to be thinking of more.

"There are probably more specific ones, but it's safe to say that every time I've ever been in the same room as you, looked at you, talked to you or thought about you." Leon finished with a faint huff and gave her a shy smile.

"I didn't realise..." She didn't know what else to say, but he stopped her from speaking as he rolled to grab his phone.

Silently, he flicked through what looked like emails until he found the right one, opened it, and clicked on a link inside. Zara thought she recognised the photos from the shoot at the studio and waited to see what he was doing. Once he'd found the right thing, he turned and looked at her momentarily, taking a breath.

"This is kinda embarrassing." His nose was scrunched up, but he handed her his phone.

Zara saw a photo of her, Aaron and Leon, but she was trying to reach up to rest her arm on Aaron's shoulder. Since he was far too tall, Aaron was laughing at her, and she had a broad smile on her face. Leon was off to one side, hands in his pockets, and when she saw his face, she knew that was what he wanted her to see. His expression was complete adoration, and he was looking sidelong at her, smiling, with his bottom lip between his teeth. Her mouth fell open, and she made a soft, whimpering noise. It was the kind of thing that would be a romantic comedy to show that the male protagonist had fallen in love with his female counterpart.

"I didn't see this one before." She said as she looked over to him.

"No, I didn't download that one to show you guys. I hid that one from you. Cailan asked me about it while he was editing the photos. I didn't realise what he meant until I saw it. He asked if we were dating." Leon huffed in a mix of embarrassment and amusement.

"Did Aaron know?" Zara asked out of curiosity. Aaron and Abi were freakishly perceptive; thus, it would surprise her if Aaron wasn't aware.

Leon dropped his chin to his chest with a brief groan. "He knew straight away. It was mostly him convinced me that it wasn't just me being fucked in the head. The man is a human bullshit detector. Can't get anything past him." Leon laughed softly with a fond smile. "I debated with him about it, but he just rebutted everything I said. He was right."

"Abi is the same and we also debated the issue. Fucking wonder twins." She muttered under her breath, and Leon snorted.

"I heard it from him, from Calli, my friend Felix, and even my psych. I was the last one to figure it out, apparently." He offered with a sardonic huff, but smiled happily.

Leon's phone alarm interrupted the conversation. She handed it back to him, and he turned it off. Then, he sighed in disappointment before looking up at her.

"What is it?" Zara asked with an eyebrow raised in question.

"I have a coffee meeting with Vaughn from the label. I think he wants to discuss more work. He asked Aaron and I last night. I have to go." He flopped back against the bed with a frown.

"Leon, that's amazing!" Zara exclaimed, proud of him for making a good impression. His work was brilliant and spoke for itself, but this was a fantastic opportunity.

"But I have to leave you." He pouted. "You could come, actually." He perked up, looking happier.

"I have no clothes to wear. I don't think yours will fit me." She reminded him but glanced around thoughtfully.

"Surely we can find something. I don't want to go without you." Leon sat up, leaning on his hands, then got up and ushered her to follow him to his wardrobe.

Zara poked her head in and looked around and found a button-up shirt that she could wear as a dress since she was so short compared to him. It was a deep navy with a subtle black damask pattern, and Leon noticed it had caught her gaze and picked it out for her.

"Belt," she said simply, and he pulled open a drawer with several different ones rolled up inside.

Zara picked out a black belt with a silver buckle and nodded that she was done. Leon gave her a funny smile, and she laid it out on the messed-up bed. She asked him if he had a clothes dryer, and he led her to the small cupboard that concealed his washer and dryer inside. He helped her set it to a fifteen-minute short run and chucked her bra and underwear to freshen them up after finding them. She'd barely worn them for a few hours before they'd been flung on the floor of Leon's apartment anyway. Her bra had landed half on the coffee table, dangling over the corner, and her panties ended up on the floor near the bed. While the dryer ran, they showered together and did their best not to get distracted, and Zara was flattered when Leon actively had to turn his back from her so he wasn't looking at her.

Once they were dried off, Leon dressed in a tidy button-up shirt and slacks, and Zara put on his shirt and wore the belt around her waist to give her some shape. Thankfully, her shoes went with the outfit, and it was doubtful that Vaughn or Aaron would notice they were the same pair she wore last night. She used the powder compact and eyeliner she'd kept in her purse to tidy up her appearance as well. Checking that he had everything in his bag, including his laptop and anything else he might need, Zara waited patiently for him. He pulled out a familiar-looking notebook and left it on the kitchen island, and she recognised it as the one she'd found and accidentally read. After noticing her looking at it, Leon spoke.

"I'll tell you about that later." He said cryptically, and she nodded since they had somewhere to be.

They went to the underground parking, got in his car, and Zara messaged Aaron to let him know they were on their way. He wrote back that he was leaving, too. Leon told her during the drive that Vaughn had asked them to meet them at the cafe in the hotel that he was staying in, which also hosted the party last night.

When they got to the hotel and found a park, Zara slung the laptop bag over her shoulder since she figured it would be best to take notes using Leon's laptop during the meeting. She wasn't sure how formal it was supposed to be, but she wanted to do her best to make a good impression on Vaughn. Leon and Aaron had talked to him for a while last night before Leon had left with her, but she'd barely said more than a sentence or two to him. They'd arrived before Aaron, found a table with enough room for them all and sat down. Zara set up Leon's laptop and noticed that he looked nervously at his phone. Aaron arrived and joined them at the table after Zara waved him over.

"Morning. I would ask how your night went, but the shit-eating grins tells me everything." Aaron said to Leon and then smirked at Zara, who rolled her eyes at him before they all laughed. "Glad you pair finally figured it out. About time. For two intelligent people, you're both a bit dumb." He said exasperatedly.

Vaughn arrived before the conversation could continue, but there would undoubtedly be many jokes about how slow they were later. Aaron had likely prepared a whole routine by now. All three stood up and shook Vaughn's hand before they sat down. They ordered coffee, and Zara prepared to take notes as they spoke. She didn't have her glasses on, but she did her best to not squint at the screen as she typed.

Leon's quiet confidence and pride in his work shone through, and Vaughn smiled and nodded as they discussed using his studio for more of his label's up-and-coming artists and bands and some of their more popular ones, similar to Broken Phase. This would lead to more permanent work for the studio, and Zara hoped that some of her efforts had helped with this. She stayed quiet, aside from her fingers tapping against the keyboard as she typed, and sipped her coffee occasionally. Her quick thinking came in handy since Vaughn asked to hear some of their other work and she grabbed the headphones from the laptop bag and pulled up some other tracks Leon and Aaron had produced. Vaughn put the headphones on and smiled within a few seconds of the music playing and Zara wiggled excitedly in her seat for a second.

After just under an hour and a half, Vaughn seemed happy, and they called the meeting to a close, agreeing to keep in touch. All four of them stood and moved out from the table.

"Thank you. I appreciate you making the time to see us today." Leon said with a polite smile as Vaughn shook his hand.

"I wasn't going to get on a plane until I'd met with you all." He replied with a half smile, half smirk as he shook Aaron's hand.

"Thank you for your time." Zara gave him a bright smile as she was the last to shake his hand.

"If any of you end up moving to New York, let me know. You'll have a job and apartment within the hour." Vaughn said with a casual tone, but he was completely serious, making eye contact with Aaron and then Leon before looking back at Zara. "You as well, Zara. Take care."

Vaughn turned to leave and Zara was wide eyed from being included in his offer as well. She glanced up at Leon and he gave her an impressed smile. The three of them sat back down, finally relaxing. Aaron flopped bonelessly against the back of the chair, letting his arms fall towards the floor. Zara started tidying up her notes so they would make more sense to the others later on, rather than just her shorthand that only made sense to her. Leon watched her quietly, and she glanced at him quickly before returning to the screen. Then, she was finally distracted enough to take her hands away from the keyboard.

"Mmm?" She asked softly, and Leon just gave her a smirk and half-shrug in response.

"Well, aren't you pair just adorable. About fucking time, too. Literally." Aaron drawled, only moving his head enough to look at them and roll his eyes before he let his head loll backward again.

Zara huffed and flipped him off, not that he could see it before she smiled sweetly and fluttered her lashes at Leon innocently. He smiled back and licked his lips, indicating his mind was in the gutter, which she wholeheartedly supported.

"Had I known that it was my best bud from the coffee shop that you were crushing on, we probably would have arrived at this point much earlier," Aaron said, still looking up at the ceiling, apparently exhausted by the meeting.

"Who are you talking to?" Zara asked since he wasn't looking at either of them to indicate who his comment was directed at.

"I thought I was your best bud," Leon said with a pout before he answered, assuming Aaron was talking to him.

"I'm talking to both of you since it works on both sides. I guess you pair are a package deal now, though." He sat up slowly and finished the rest of his coffee, resting his elbows on the table after pointing between them sharply back and forth a few times.

"Being dramatic is my job," Zara warned, pointing at him with narrowed eyes. "Anyway...that seemed to go well."

"Yeah, I think so. I got the feeling that he'd planned on asking us to meet when he spoke to us last night. I doubted he'd hang around in the city if he didn't have a reason to." Leon commented and shifted the laptop towards him so he could read Zara's notes.

"What time did you get home?" Zara asked Aaron, who groaned tiredly. "Late, I guess?"

"It was about one-ish. After all the big wigs left, the guys and I went hard at the bar. Bri said I vomited when I got home." Aaron wasn't a huge drinker, so Zara knew he would have struggled. "Didn't have anything else to do after you pair ditched." He said with a childish pout.

"Sorry." Leon scrunched his nose up as he apologised and Zara bit back her laughter.

"It's fine. I'm just glad you guys finally figured yourselves out." Aaron smiled tiredly, but his expression showed that he was happy for them.

"Did Dane talk to you?" Leon asked casually, and Zara hadn't even thought about that until he'd brought it up. She experienced mild panic until Aaron answered the question.

"You do realise he already knew you liked her, right?" Aaron gestured towards Zara.

"What do you mean?" Zara piped up, wondering what that meant.

"Dane figured out Leon liked you when they recorded with us. Whenever he tried to flirt with you, Leon would ask him something or pull him away somehow. It was pretty obvious to me anyway, but maybe that's because I know you." Aaron explained nonchalantly.

Leon glanced at Zara before they both looked back to Aaron.

"Did I?" Leon's gaze turned inward, likely trying to remember what Aaron was telling them from his perspective.

"Yah. He asked me when we finished Rhys' stuff if you two were dating. When I said no, he got this cheeky look on his face. He was crushing on her, but I'm pretty sure he just poked the bear to get you to do something." Aaron answered and had his own cheeky smirk plastered across his face.

"Did you tell him to?" Zara asked pointedly, glaring daggers at her friend.

"I did nothing. I just watched you pair dance around each other for the last few months. You should feel sorry for me." He sighed and flicked his hair girlishly, not long enough for him to flick, making Zara groan at him.

"Why didn't you say something to me?" Zara hissed at him, partly forgetting that Leon was there.

"Did I need to?" Aaron raised a cynical eyebrow at her, and she pursed her lips. "Anyway, you coming home with me or going with your man?"

Zara hadn't thought this far and glanced at Leon, who was smiling at her. It appeared he didn't mind either way, so she thought it best to go home with Aaron since she didn't have any clothes or toiletries to take back to Leon's. Hearing Aaron call Leon 'her man' made her stomach do flips.

"I'll take you home." Leon offered swiftly, and Zara nodded, unable to stop the bashful smile from spreading on her face.

"Sick one. See you at home. See you Monday." Aaron nodded once at them each as he said goodbye, dragged himself out of the chair and stood up, looking like he would probably crawl straight back into bed when he got home.

"Are you hungry?" Leon asked, glancing at the menu that was still on their table.

"Well, we didn't have breakfast and only had finger food last night. It's probably a good idea to eat something." Zara was happy to stay with him for a while longer to get something to eat.

"Toastie?" Leon asked knowingly, having already guessed what she'd want. Zara nodded, and he headed over to the counter to order it.

Sitting alone, she finally had a moment to figure out how much things had changed in the last 24 hours. They were about to get a whole lot busier at the studio, with both rehearsals and recordings, and she suspected that Ritual Recording Studio would end up affiliated with Golden Sky Record Label shortly and with Leon and Aaron as contractors through them, judging by the conversation with Vaughn. The work she'd been doing for their advertising had been helping their bookings for the rehearsal room, which usually resulted in enquiries about recording. Besides all of that work-based stuff, the other significant change was evident. She watched as Leon ordered their food with one of the staff at the counter and glanced over his shoulder at her briefly, flashing her a warm smile.

His explanation this morning helped all the pieces fall into place in her mind about how things ended up this way: why he'd kept his distance and eventually taken the leap into shifting their relationship beyond work and friendship. She remembered how he'd mentioned some specific moments that had sparked his feelings for her and the photo he'd shown her from the shoot. Unable to stop smiling, she knew they would have crossed this line before last night if she'd seen that earlier. Despite her lack of self-confidence and awkwardness around someone she was attracted to, she could read his body language and expression well enough to realise what he was feeling now that he wasn't hiding it. She would have gathered the courage to take the plunge after seeing how enamoured he looked at her in the photo. It made her immensely happy, happier than she had anticipated.

When he returned to his seat, she was broken from her reverie. He gave her a charming, boyish smile that she adored. They talked for a while about the studio and what Vaughn had discussed with them, and they continued as they ate their breakfast.

Once they were finished, they packed up and thanked the staff before heading out to his car. Zara hopped in with the laptop bag on her lap, and before they drove off, Leon's hand moved to grasp hers and squeezed it, then put the car in gear. The drive back to her building would take about fifteen minutes, but Leon made it drag out a bit longer, taking the longest way he could without making it seem suspicious. Zara found it adorable that he was trying to get as much time with her as he could.

As they pulled up in the drop-off area in front of the building, he snatched her hand after she unclipped her seatbelt and pulled it towards him. His eyes met hers as he kissed the back of her hand softly.

"I want you to know you've made me immensely happy." He spoke his mouth still against the back of her hand.

Pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, she didn't quite know how to respond to such a profound statement, especially when he looked at her like that.

"I'll see you on Monday," he said, sensing that she was unsure how to respond.

"Yeah, I'll see you on Monday." She replied with a smile.

"Would it be okay if I called you sometime tonight?" Leon's hopeful voice was music to her ears, and she grinned, nodding vigorously.

The gorgeous smile he gave her melted her insides, and he kissed the back of her hand once more before letting it go. She carefully placed the laptop bag on the seat as she exited the car. A voice in her head reminded her that she'd left her dress at his place, but it wasn't important right now. That was a future Zara problem.

Once she shut the door behind her, she bent down and waved through the car window with a smile, and headed towards the front door of her building.

Before she could reach it, she heard Leon call her name and turned to see him jogging towards her. She stopped in her tracks and didn't resist as he put his arms around her and kissed her. The abruptness made her breath catch in her throat, and the soft squeak of surprise was smothered by his mouth on hers. It was chaste, but just before he pulled back, she felt his tongue graze against her bottom lip teasingly.

"Bye." He said after they separated, but she smiled at how disappointed he seemed at letting her go.

"Bye." She responded sweetly and let her hand graze against his as he slowly released her and allowed her to head inside.

Just after she pressed the elevator button, she turned around and saw that he was still there, watching her with his hands in his pockets and a smile on his face. She couldn't help the smile that spread across her face and felt slightly emptier when the elevator doors opened.

Leon hadn't moved, even as the doors began to shut, and she spent the entire ride to her floor grinning like a lovesick idiot...