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  In one impetuous moment, I ruined the budding relationship. And, I’d just gotten Levan to approve bringing the twins into our relationship. We hadn’t known each other long but I already knew my heart was all in.

  “Cherry.” Levan’s voice was deep and I heard the clink of him lowering his own fork. “Look at me,” he demanded.

  I didn’t want to look at him but I couldn’t refuse his demand. Something inside of me loved it when he took control.

  “Yes?” My voice was whisper soft as I hid as best I could beneath my eyelashes.

  Levan let out a sigh – “Damn it, Cherry. I didn’t mean it the way it sounded. What I should say is” – he tapped his fingers on the table – “I fucking loved it. You made me so fucking hot.”

  My eyes snapped wide open along with my mouth. “Really?”

  “Absolutely.” He nodded his head and his mouth curved into a bright smile. “How about we get dressed and go out to… how about a movie?” Levan grinned at me and I nibbled my lower lip.

  I pulled my dress back on when I heated up our dinner and Levan had pulled on his jeans, but we definitely needed to straighten ourselves before going out.

  “You sure?” Excitement began to build inside of me at the thought of going out like a real couple. We’d done it before but for some reason, this time felt different.

  “Positive. I want to take my girlfriend to a movie,” Levan grinned and rose from his seat. He offered me his hand and helped me up and pulled me directly into his arms. “Cherry, I lo–” Levan looked down into my eyes and swallowed hard. “I love everything about you.”

  He pressed a quick kiss to my lips and spun me out of his arms. His hand came down on my ass and I squeaked in surprise at the slight sting that heated something deep inside of me.

  “Now get ready. I’ll see what’s playing.”

  “You sure about this?” I asked an hour later as we settled into the questionably clean seats in the old theater.

  “Positive,” Levan smirked at me.

  Before I could say anything else, the lights lowered and music swelled from the speakers surrounding the room. The screen immediately filled with the scratchy grayscale images of the early movies and I settled back into my seat with a sigh.

  I was so focused on the screen and reading the story that it startled me when Levan made a noise and settled his arm over my shoulders. A grin curved up my lips and I bit back the chuckle that wanted to escape at the old school move.

  Leaning back on his arm I snuggled into him.

  Levan turned in his seat and moved closer to me. I almost wished that we had gotten a movie and stayed home. At least on the couch, we wouldn’t have the armrest between us.

  From his actions, I was beginning to think Levan may be thinking the same. He adjusted his body again and he looped his arm across his body and down to my stomach. I glanced at him because the position couldn’t be comfortable and came face to face with a wicked grin.

  “Shhh, watch the movie, baby,” Levan rasped softly into my ear.

  “What ar–”

  My words were cut off in a gasp when Levan quickly lifted my sweater and shoved his hands down the waistband of my leggings.

  “Shh,” Levan chuckled against my neck as he bent his head and nibbled.

  His fingers toyed with the elastic waist of my panties. The tips of his fingers tickled against my skin and I bit my lip to keep from moaning. Levan’s insistence that we sit in the back of the theater made a lot of sense now that he put his plan into motion.

  The wicked grins, his disappointment when I didn’t wear a dress, and the fact that he promised me ice cream after the movie if we skipped popcorn… it all made perfect sense to me now that he slipped his hand inside my panties.

  “Levan,” I whispered as I scanned the mostly empty theater.

  A couple on the other side of the darkened room was taking advantage of the dark with no care for those around them. Hell, the people around them were totally ignoring them or were watching them avidly, but no one said anything.

  “One more word and I stop, Cherry.” Levan’s tone was deep and caused shivers to race up and down my spine as my hips adjusted my position in the seat.

  Raising my hand to cover my mouth, I fought to keep silent as he moved his hand further into my pants.

  “You’re so fucking hot, baby. So wet,” Levan moaned into my neck as he buried his face to keep himself silent – at least that was my guess.

  I tried to focus on the movie screen but when Levan thrust a finger into my pussy, I closed my eyes and bit my lower lip beneath my hand.

  Struggling to keep silent, I fought off my need to move against his hand. The other couple may be okay with others watching but I wasn’t – or was I? Arousal soaked Levan’s hand and he moved easily in and out as he added a second finger and rubbed his thumb against my clit.

  My inner muscles clamped down on Levan’s fingers each time they pushed inside of me. Everything inside of me wanted to push his fingers deeper, to move my hips and ride his hand, and most of all, I wanted to make lots of fucking noise.

  Not once in my life had I felt so insatiable. Not once had I wanted to instigate sex, try to be sexy, or felt the need to talk dirty like I had earlier. Something about Levan pushed me outside of my comfort zone. And, I loved it.

  My heart constricted… I loved him.

  A whimper escaped as my muscles tightened. Levan must have known I was close because he flicked my clit and pushed his fingers deep inside as he curved them and hit all of the right places. My muscles spasmed as the orgasm hit me from out of nowhere.

  I loved him. I fought the need to say it out loud as I shuddered in his arms.

  “Such a good girl,” Levan murmured against my skin as he placed kisses against my neck. “So beautiful.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Levan

  “Levan,” Cherry pouted next to me. She tugged at my jacket. “Let’s just go home.”

  “You can survive a few extra minutes for us to grab some coffee and your favorite dessert,” I chuckled.

  “You are my favorite dessert,” she huffed. If I hadn’t been holding her hand, I’m pretty sure she would have crossed her arms in front of her chest and glared at me.

  “Keep walking, Ms. Jones.” I kissed her hand that I held and we walked down the sidewalk hand in hand.

  A gust of cold wind blew past us. Cherry wrapped her arm around mine and held me close.

  “Cold?” I asked, looking down at her. The tip of her nose was red and so were her cheeks. “How about I take you to your place and I’ll run out to the cafe by myself? That way you can stay warm.”

  “No.” She shook her head and pulled me even closer when another gust of wind blew by.

  “You sure?” I chuckled. The wheels were turning in her mind. “And, no, I won’t come inside when I drop you off. You aren’t going to seduce me and have me not get your favorite dessert.”

  “You are my favorite dessert, Levan Clarke!” she sassed. I kissed the tip of her nose and smiled.

  “And you’re my favorite dessert, my queen,” I grinned.

  “Please,” she whimpered. “Please, let’s go home and have dessert.”

  “Cherry,” I sighed heavily. I couldn’t deny this woman anything. No matter how hard I tried, she always got her way. Tonight would be no different.

  “Well?” she prompted with a huge smile on her face.

  “Let’s go home, my queen.”

  “Mmm. I like the sound of that.”

  As we headed towards Cherry’s apartment, I thought about how I had said let’s go home, instead of let’s go to your house. The words had come out naturally. There was no hesitation. No fear of saying them. Nothing. The words just felt right.

  Cherry had been the best thing to happen to me since the twins. She made me a better man. She showed me how it felt to truly care about a woman and want to give her my all. She taught me that it was okay to fear things because as long as we communicated, we cou
ld get through anything.

  “What are you thinking about?” Cherry asked, glancing up at me. I glanced down and smiled.

  “You of course.”

  “Okay. What are you really thinking about?” she raised her eyebrow. I couldn’t help but laugh at the face she was making. Between her and Lily, it was a face I saw quite often.

  “You and Lily kill me with that facial expression,” I chuckled.

  “Well...you and Branch kill me with that innocent look and puppy dog eyes,” she retorted playfully.

  “Oh, yeah?” I laughed.

  “Yeah!” she laughed.

  “You two make the cutest couple,” a familiar woman’s voice said, stopping Cherry and my laughter.

  “Hey, Lola,” I smiled at Lola who stood a few feet in front of us with a group of her female friends. They were all dressed in short dresses, faces made-up, and hair done. They were ready to hit the clubs.

  I felt Cherry tense up beside me. I glanced down and saw Cherry staring at Lola and her friends. I could tell by the look on Cherry’s face she was feeling insecure. She and I were really going to work on her self-esteem. She should know by now how she was the only woman for me, and that to me she was the most beautiful woman in the world.

  “Cherry, you remember Lola, right? She works at the cafe we go to,” I smiled down at her, and then let go of her hand. Her body tensed, but relaxed when I wrapped my arm around her waist. I kissed the top of her head.

  “Oh,” she whispered and then looked at Lola. “Hi. I didn’t recognize you.”

  “I know, I barely recognized myself today, too,” Lola laughed. “These misfits are dragging me out.” Lola gestured to her friends and rolled her eyes.

  “Well, you look very pretty,” Cherry smiled.

  “Aw. You’re so sweet,” Lola smiled at Cherry and then looked at me. She glared and pointed her finger at me.

  “What?” I asked.

  “You better bring her by when I’m working next time. Stop keeping her all to yourself, you greedy bastard,” Lola stuck her tongue out at me and then looked at Cherry, who was trying to contain her laughter.

  “Whose side are you on, anyway?” I chuckled, looking down at Cherry.

  “Women always stick together, Levan,” Lola replied.

  “Hush you,” I frowned at Lola and returned my gaze to Cherry. “Whose side are you on, my queen?” I grinned. I watched Cherry swallow hard. Her cheeks reddened, but it wasn’t from the cold night air.

  “Stop embarrassing her, Levan Clarke,” Lola scolded me. Before I knew it, Lola was standing in front of me and smacked the back of my head. “Now, you get her home. It’s cold outside.”

  “Says the woman dressed like a hook– OW!” I shouted when I was slapped on the back of my head by two hands. One hand belonged to Lola and the other hand belonged to Cherry.

  “Don’t call her that,” Cherry glared up at me.

  “Great. My girlfriend and my best friend are ganging up on me,” I grumbled then rubbed the back of my head with my free hand.

  My head didn’t hurt too bad, at least not where Cherry had slapped me. Her hit had been playful. Lola’s slap wasn’t. She was trying to slap my head off my neck.

  “She’ll be my best friend, too, soon enough,” Lola beamed cockily. I rolled my eyes and pulled Cherry closer against me.

  “She’s mine, so back off,” I frowned. Cherry leaned her head against my side and laughed. “See, she thinks you’re funny because you can’t take her from me.”

  “No. She’s laughing because you’re a clown!” Lola smirked, making me roll my eyes. Lola’s friends high-fived her.

  Great. She brought back-up. I laughed to myself.

  “Cherry, you should come out with us,” Lola offered. Cherry lifted her face from my side and looked at Lola with wide eyes.

  “Me?” Cherry asked, surprised.

  “Of course, you,” Lola smiled sincerely. I could tell she really liked Cherry and was trying to connect with her. “I mean, if the club isn’t your scene, we can always catch a movie or something.”

  Cherry bit her bottom lip and rocked back and forth on her feet. Her cheeks were as red as a tomato. The corner of my mouth curved into a cocky grin because I knew what Cherry was thinking. She was thinking about the orgasms I had given her earlier at the theater.

  “Going to the movies does sound nice,” I grinned down at Cherry. “I wonder if there’s anything worth seeing?”

  Cherry glared up at me, and I laughed.

  “Don’t like the movies?” Lola asked Cherry.

  “No,” Cherry blurted and looked at Lola. “I love the movies. A movie sounds nice.” Cherry always rambled when she was sexually flustered or embarrassed.

  “Great. You can get my number from the clown and message me. Maybe we can meet up sometime this week,” Lola smiled.

  “Sounds great,” Cherry returned Lola’s smile.

  “Maybe I can come to the movies, too?” I said grinning.

  “No!” Cherry and Lola both shouted at me in unison. They both looked at each other. Lola laughed and Cherry blushed.

  “Well, then it’s settled,” Lola smiled. “We’ll link up some time and hang out.”

  “Sounds great,” Cherry beamed from ear to ear. Her thoughts must no longer be on us and the movies. She was now focused on her girl time with Lola.

  I wanted to throw a fit because I wanted all of Cherry’s time. However, Cherry deserved to have true friends. And, if she and Lola hit it off, that’s exactly what Cherry would be getting… a true friend.

  Minutes ticked by with Cherry, Lola, and Lola’s friends chatting about this, that, and everything. I remained a good boyfriend and stood there with my mouth shut. I was regretting the route we had taken to go home.

  Home. There I went again calling Cherry’s place home.

  I looked down at Cherry and found her laughing and smiling. She looked so beautiful. I loved seeing her smiling and happy. At that moment, as the street lights shined down on her, I realized that I loved Cherry Jones with all of my heart.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Cherry

  The twins were coming home with me this evening and I was giddy with excitement. The fact that Levan trusted me with his children spoke volumes about the level of trust between us. I still wasn’t sure what are relationship was officially but I hoped Levan was in it for the long haul. I knew I was.

  “Ms. Jones, these two little scamps say they are to go home with you tonight, is that correct?” Sister Mary Agnes stood in the classroom doorway with Branch hanging on to her left hand and Lily to her right.

  “That’s right,” I smiled at the kids and they smiled back. “I’m sorry I forgot to come get them. Actually, I didn’t realize it had gotten so late already.”

  “Children, please go over and play with the blocks while I speak to Ms. Jones.” Sister Mary Agnes gave their hands and affection squeeze and shooed them away.

  “Alright,” Branch said as he gave the sister the side-eye. He was never one to fall for diversion tactics but when Lily tugged at his hand he went with his sister.

  “Ms. Jones, I know as well as the next person how easy it is to fall in love with these children.” Sister Mary Agnes grabbed a tiny chair and moved it up to where I was sitting at my desk. The ex-nun had a far off look in her eyes. “However, there are rules in place to make sure there is no impropriety going on that could bite the church in the tush.”

  Nerves filled me as the sister looked across the room at the twins. Branch was looking on with a knowing look no child his age should have.

  “Are you saying something like this has happened before?” My stomach felt ill and I began to rub my arms against the chill that fell over me.

  “Yes…” Sister Mary Agnes turned to find me with a shocked look on my face. “But not with the twins,” she assured me quickly.

  “Are you sure? They are so sweet, I wouldn’t wa–”

  “Cheryl, Levan is a good man. I’ve known his family fo
r years. But I also know that they have been through more than their fair share of heartbreak.” The sister sighed and looked down at her hands which were resting in her lap.

  “Ms. Cherry, look!” Lily yelled and pointed at a stack of blocks.

  “Very nice,” I replied absently as I waited for the ex-nun to continue.

  “Levan lost his father at a very young age, his uncle went next, and his parents were in a car accident when he was just becoming a man. Then the children’s mother” – Sister Mary Agnes’ eyes grew wet – “poor lost lamb.”

  Drifting in a sea of loss that I hadn’t lived, I wished there was a way I could have taken it away from Levan and his family. His grandma and aunt were good women and Levan was simply the best man I’d ever met. We had been together for such a short period of time but sometimes when you knew something, you just knew it.

  Tonight, was the next step in seeing if our relationship would work. Because sometimes love wasn’t enough. I had loved my ex. But, once the divorce was final and I saw him with his new girlfriend, I wondered how I ever thought he loved me. I also asked myself daily on how I thought I had loved him. Especially now that I was with Levan, it was clear to me that I was never in love with Norm.

  The feelings that filled me at the thought or sight of Levan were nothing close to what I had felt with my ex. And the tightening in my chest as I waited for Sister Mary Agnes to tell me I couldn’t see Levan anymore; I knew I would do anything for him. I couldn’t live my life without Levan.

  I was devastated by Norm’s deception but I wasn’t sad to see him go. Losing Levan would destroy me.

  “Ms. Jones, are you okay?” The ex-nun was on her feet and coming to my side. It wasn’t until she spoke that I realized I was hyperventilating.

  “What you do to Ms. Cherry?” Branch demanded from in front of my desk. His little fists were balled up at his sides and Lily was prancing behind him with fear in her eyes.

  “Branch, can you go to the office and have them call Nine –”

  “No,” I gasped and gripped the sister’s arm. “I’m fine.”