Under the Cornerstone (19 page)

His eyes fill with unshed tears at my words and he nods briefly as if those were the only words he ever needed from me.

“I love you,” he repeats and closes his eyes as he kisses me.

Something about the way the words sound when they cross his lips, like his love is devout, burning, and zealous… the tenderness of his whispered words is what I needed to take that last step. It isn’t a gradual ascension to the crest. Its precipitous and all-consuming.

“I’m coming,” I warn him and then explode on him. “Fuck!”

“Please don’t stop,” he begs. “Don’t stop. Fuck, you’re so wet and tight. I can’t… bare is so… feels so good.”

“Come inside me,” I demand.

“Noe, I…” He says and tries to lift me off of him before he comes, but I push back down hard.

I kiss him and push my tongue into his mouth while I make him come. He groans into my mouth right before he pulses inside of me. I feel the warmth inside me as he releases.

“Fuck,” he says in my mouth. “Fuck, Noe. Fuck, baby.

We kiss while his come spills down my thighs and onto his lap. Eyes closed, we soak each other in. He tastes like cigarettes and tequila again.

“I love you,” he says again.

“I love you, Johnny.”

He lies back and rolls until we’re in the bed and he’s on top of me. He touches my face as he looks down at me with such reverence. After half an hour of exchanging small kisses and touches, he slides out of me. He rolls over, reaches for his shirt, and uses it to clean me up. Once we’re both clean, he pulls me to him and presses his hand to my cheek and his forehead to my own.

“Sleep, Noely baby.”

I close my eyes and tell him one last time, “I love you.”

“I love you too. More than you’ll ever know.

Chapter Nineteen

The phone disturbs my slumber. I am sleeping deeply when the ringing breaks through my consciousness. I reach across Johnny, smile for a moment that he’s still there, and grab the phone from the night stand. I only open my eyes long enough to click the green button.

“Hello?” I answer.

Silence. Then…

“Who the fuck is this?”

“What?” I ask the woman.

“Who the fuck is this?”

“I think you have the wrong number,” I tell her and am about to hang up and curl up around Johnny.

“Why in the fuck are you answering Johnny’s phone?” she asks.

Carrie.

“Hold on,” I tell her as I begin to recall the very reason I fought this thing with Johnny in the first place.

I place my hand on Johnny’s chest and shake him awake.

“Yeah?” he asks half asleep.

I place the phone on his chest and climb from under the covers. I need a minute. I need to wake up and process instead of freaking out.
“Hello?” he answers.

I can hear Carrie screaming from the two steps I’ve taken away from the bed.

I continue my path to the bathroom to hide out and have a mini-breakdown.

“Fuck you,” he seethes and then I see the phone fly across the room.

Shit. I keep going.

“No running, Noe. No fucking running from me,” he says and moments later his arms wrap around my stomach.

He picks me up and drags me back to the bed, where he falls back with my back landing against his chest. I’m quickly rearranged until I’m under him and he’s looking down into my eyes.

“I fucking told you, Noely. You can’t keep running away from me over these insignificant little cunts. I’m where I want to be. I’m with the woman I love. You fucking trust
me
. You fucking love
me
. Yeah?” he says and then pushes inside of me with no warning.

His head drops down to the center of my neck and lips drag across the area.

“Who am I inside of?” he asks me.

“Me.”

“Who did I chase after?”

“Me.”

“How far did I let you get?”

“Maybe ten steps.”

“Never chased after another woman,” he growls.

He thrusts inside of me with purpose as if last night didn’t show me exactly how he felt about me. It feels like he’s fucking his love into me. He’s rougher than he was before with a look of determination on his face that matches the vibe he’s giving off.

“I fucking love you,” he says and leans down to kiss me.

Our tongues dive inside, which sparks something inside of me. I lift my hands and hold his face in them while our faces move and adjust to different angles throughout the kiss. Sweat drips from his forehead onto my face as he exerts himself. He plunges into me so deeply, my body inches up the bed from the sheer force.

He places his hands palm down on the mattress and raises his body above mine as he continues to pummel me. I slide my hands down his toned back and grab onto his ass so I can feel the flex of his muscles each time he drives forward.

I continue to inch up the bed while the sounds of skin slapping and rapid breathing fills the air. The veins bulge in his arms and neck as he works me over. When my head begins to hit the headboard, I raise up and place my lips and tongue all over his chest, neck, and shoulders. My body continues to move up the bed, even though there’s nowhere for me to go. His mouth releases, hot breaths against my forehead, and then he moans out in pleasure with me.

When my body literally can’t move any further up the bed, he warns me, “Hold on, Noe.”

I wrap my arms around his shoulders and tighten my legs around his waist. A hand comes up to hold the back of my head as he lifts me up and pushes my back against the headboard. He positions himself on his calves with his knees bent, and places his free hand on my hip. He buries his tongue in my mouth as he pivots like a jackhammer inside of me. My body bounces on top of him like I’m being impaled. He fucks me hard and bare, but it isn’t meaningless sex. It’s full of passion and desperation on both of our parts.

I begin to claw at his shoulders to pull him closer, because he isn’t close enough. Our chests touch, but it isn’t close enough. Fuck, it isn’t close enough. I wrap one hand around the back of his head, and the other at the center of his shoulder blades and pull at him. I pull at him to get closer.

He breaks the kiss, “I’m right here, Noe.”

“I know,” I moan.

“That’s it. Fuck me, the sounds you make.”

“Kiss me,” I demand and he presses his lips painfully hard against my already swollen lips.

The hand on my hip moves and then his thumb presses against my clit.

“Fuck!” I hiss into his mouth.

His tongue continues to move around in my mouth while I bounce on him. The hand behind my head moves to cup my right breast that bounces along with my body.

I scream out his name as I come hard. My vision blurs and every nerve in my body explodes. His sweat-soaked body continues to pound into me while the headboard sounds in protest against the rigorous force.

“I’m coming inside you,” he says into my mouth.

“Please,” I ask for it.

“Fuck, Noe,” he calls out and closes his eyes. His mouth parts once again like it does on stage, and he breathes into my mouth.

I continue to hold him tightly against me as he fucks through the remainder of his orgasm.

“Pussy fits me like a glove,” he murmurs.

I break the kiss so he can catch his breath. He buries his face in the crook of my neck while we both inhale and exhale harshly. I can feel his heart beating through my own chest. His come once again leaks out around us both, but neither of us can be bothered to give a fuck.

“Did I hurt you?” he finally asks.

I smirk even though he can’t see it, “No.”

“You smiling, Noe?” he asks with a smile in his own voice.

“Maybe.”

He pulls his head from my neck and looks at me with a smirk, “You’re smiling.”

“Maybe.”

His tongue snakes out of his bottom lip, “I made that smile, Noe.”

“Yeah. You did.”

“I want to do that every day, yeah?”

“Sounds like a good idea to me,” I coo.

“I didn’t think you could be any more beautiful, but covered in our sweat, my come inside you, a lazy smile, and your hair soaked in sweat… that’s so beautiful there aren’t words to describe it. You look so goddamn peaceful.”

I smile at him, “I am.”

He leans his forehead down to mine, “Me too.”

He kisses the tip of my nose, and then takes us to the bathroom to clean up. Once we’re clean, we climb back into bed and tangle ourselves in each other. He plays with the ends of my hair, which relaxes me and induces sleep.

Right before I nod off, he speaks, “I broke things off with her. She wasn’t my girlfriend, but I let her know we weren’t seeing each other ever again. She didn’t take it so well.”

“I think she’s a little unstable,” I reply in my sleepy voice.

He laughs loudly, “That’s an understatement. She’s fucking psycho. That bitch is a poster child for mental health.”

“Then what in the fuck were you doing with her?” I ask.

He kisses my lifts softly, “Trying to forget you.”

I don’t respond.
“I can’t though. I can’t forget, Noe. You get me?”

“Yeah.”

“All these months in California, did you forget?”

“No, Johnny. I tried though. I tried like hell.”

“Yeah. I know the feeling.”

Chapter Twenty

A pounding at the door is followed by shouting voices as I step out of the shower. The voices are both deep, both male. Another knock follows by more male voices. I assume it’s the rest of the guys so I wrap my hair in a towel and pull on a robe.

As I open the door, I hear Jimmy say, “That bitch is fucking crazy.”

“What’s going on?” I ask and all four of them turn to me with worried expressions.

“Carrie…” Jimmy starts.

“Nothing. Everything is fine,” Johnny interrupts him all the while shooting him a menacing glare.

I narrow my eyes at Johnny and then turn to Jimmy, “What’s going on, Jim?”

Jimmy opens his mouth to speak, but Johnny attempts to cut him off, “Every…”

“Shut up, Johnny,” I say between gritted teeth. “Jimmy?”

“Carrie is not taking the uh… well, I guess the breakup… she’s not taking that well,” he answers.

“And why didn’t you think I should know about this?” I ask Johnny.

He sighs and runs a hand through his hair, “I told you not to worry about these insignificant women.”

I roll my eyes at him, “What’s she doing?”

“She’s screaming, crying, and making threats. She’s hysterical,” Rich paces apparently uncomfortable.

“She’s looking for Johnny. She can’t find him and its only making her crazier,” Ryan adds.

“You guys are heading out day after tomorrow, right?” I ask.

“Yeah,” Ryan answers.

“Lay low until then. Make sure security knows her face and don’t let her anywhere near you guys,” I solve the problem simply.

“Um… Noe, she is like Girl Interrupted crazy. I don’t know if we
can
lay low for that long without her finding us,” Rich confesses.

I wave him off and enter the bathroom to get dressed. I blow dry my hair and throw some makeup on before I head back out. Room service covers the room and the guys are pigging out like they live here.

“They don’t have Mountain Dew here,” Ryan pouts.

“There are some vending machines around the corner,” I tell him.

His eyes grow as big as saucers, “Do they have Mountain Dew?”

“Yep. I’m going to grab some ice. I’ll get you a drink while I’m there,” I smile at him.

Johnny, Rich, and Jimmy also request a Mountain Dew and everyone digs out dollar bills for the machine. Johnny kisses me on the lips sweetly before I depart. I can still hear the boys hooting and hollering like teenage boys. I giggle as I close the door behind me.

I press the Mountain Dew button for the sixth time and listen to it vend when the hair on the back of my neck stands up.

“You fucking my boyfriend?” Carrie asks.

I turn around to face her with my arms full of drinks, but I’m struck on the side of the head with something really fucking hard. I feel my world spin on its axis and drop the drinks. I hear one bottle spew after it hits the ground. I follow behind the bottles. Carrie’s boot feels as though it rips through several of my ribs, and then she brings down something hard on my forearm. I can’t see her or what her weapon is, but I can hear my bone snap.

I scream out in pain. I reach out with my right hand to grab her ankle and pull her down on the floor, but my vision is blurry. I scream again as the pain shoots up my arm and through my shoulder. My ribs throb and ache as she kicks me over and over again.

“What the fuck are you doing?” asks an unfamiliar voice.

“Mind your own fucking business,” Carrie tells him.

I try to whisper for help, but nothing comes out as I try to keep the screams inside.

“Help!” the man screams. “Help! Stop fucking kicking her! Give me the bat!”

I hear them struggle and several other voices join them, and then I begin to fade in and out only catching snippets of words and voices. I hear Carrie screaming like a banshee, but thankfully I’ve only been subjected to that for a few moments before I fade back out.

“Noely!” I hear a familiar voice, but can’t place it.

I extend a hand but can’t feel anyone, and then… darkness.