The Stella I Remember

20| For the Both of Us...

I slowly started waking up. I stretched in the bed, extending my arms out so far I was surprised I didn't pull something. I exhaled a heavy breath before the events of the last twelve hours came back to me. 

Stella and I...

We had sex.

No, not just sex. Amazing sex by the river where I first kissed her. Then we came back to my hotel room where I made love to her all night. First we had sex in the shower. Then we ordered room service and ate dinner together. After that, Stella seductively discarded her robe and seduced me back to the bed.

To be honest, it wasn't much of a seduction. No matter how many times I took her, I always wanted more. And I had her a lot last night. That made me wonder what the hell time it was. 

I glanced at the clock. 

7:30am. 

Wow. I was surprised I was awake right now. I reached out and felt the left side of the bed where Stella had slept. When my hand came in contact with nothing more than a pillow, I looked around the room. Where the hell did she go? 

I had to squint my eyes when the door to my hotel room swung open suddenly. Stella came in the room carrying two coffee cups. 

And she was wearing my one of my shirts. She looked fucking good. 

"Good morning," she said with a smile. 

She sat on the bed next to me and tucked her knees under her body. 

I took the coffee she offered me but didn't drink it yet. "How did you sleep?" 

The blush in her cheeks was answer enough. 

"Really good, actually. What about you?" 

I glanced down at my coffee cup. "Better than I have in...a long time." 

"You know," I quipped, "my shirt looks a lot better on you than it does me." 

She glanced down at the shirt and tucked her hair behind her ear. "I was a little out of it this morning when I woke up. When I couldn't find my clothes, I looked for anything to put on. Your bag was open and I saw a couple shirts inside."

My eyes were glued on the shirt. "Why did you pick that shirt?" 

She frowned and looked down at herself. "I'm sorry. Should I not have?" 

A corner of my mouth lifted in a smile. "It's not that. Remember when I told you about the festival? When a drummer spilt his drink on you and you borrowed one of my shirts?" 

She nodded. 

"The shirt you borrowed was identical to that one. Black, ACDC."

Her eyes widened. "Really? I don't—I don't remember. I saw the shirt and I just..."

"I get it," I murmured. "It's okay, Stella. You don't have to apologize for something like that." 

Her shoulders fell. "I feel like I have to. Especially when I do or say something that reminds you of...before. I can see the pain in your eyes when you think about the past, Elliot. So yes, I do need to apologize. I don't want to cause you pain." 

I reached out and cupped her cheek. "Stella, yesterday by the river...and last night? Those have been the best days of my life. Well, since I met you, of course. So believe me when I say that you have nothing to apologize for. Nothing was your fault." 

She leaned forward and captured my lips in a passionate kiss. When she went to pull away, I cupped the base of her neck, not breaking the connection. When she moaned a little, I pulled away.