Fireworks 1 and 2

Chapter Sixty-Five

    Mia didn't bother checking her social media accounts during the party. The party was way too live. There were too many familiar, happy faces, too many good times to be had. She ate, she danced, she sat on Drake's lap and teased him mercilessly, she swam. She swam while staring up at a sky where the stars were playing Peek-A-Boo, wondering if this was really her life.

    She turned her head while flat on her back in the water. Drake was sitting at the pool's edgen with his jeans rolled up, drinking and smoking while staring out at her. That beautiful, intense man right there was her boyfriend. Tonight, after everyone left, that was the man she would cuddle with, the man she would fall asleep with. He was all hers. She stared back at him, wondering if he could see the desire in her eyes from this distance.

    A corner of his mouth lifted into a lazy grin. That knowing grin answered her question.

    She smiled back and lifted her eyes back up to the sky. One o'clock in the morning, and she wasn't the least bit tired. She'd already experienced so much, and she wanted to experience much more. But maybe that was the liquor talking. Maybe that was Drake's mysterious purple drink talking. Or maybe it was the second-hand, funky-smelling smoke she'd breathed in talking. All she knew was she felt weightless and carefree. It was crazy to think that just several hours ago, Drake and Trevor had ben grappling on the ground, threatening each other. That event seemed so far away in time.

    She took her time floating in the water, feeling the effects of the potent substances working their way through her system. She was no less drunk and second-hand high by the time she finally decided to lazily swim back to the edge of the pool and climb out. In order to swim, she'd stripped down to the gold bra and panties she'd worn along with her dress. The night air rolled across her skin, causing her to shiver.

    Drake stared up at her, finished what he was smoking, and stood up. He walked along the length of the swimming pool to a cabana area, where he grabbed a large towel for her. He returned to her and draped the blue towel across her shoulders. "You looked like an angel out there," he commented.

    She glanced around the backyard, which was now empty. "Everyone is gone already?"

    "It's four o' clock in the morning," he said with his eyebrows raised.

    "But..." She hooked a thumb over her shoulder, not even sure why or what she was pointing to. "It was only one o' clock, the last time I checked."

    He studied her and a slow smile spread across his face. "You're faded."

    She frowned. "What?"

    He laughed and grabbed her hand. "Come here, baby."

    She followed him along the patio, to the short bridge leading to the circular oasis that was partially submerged in the pool water. He sat down at the furthest end of the circle and rested his back against pillows. She remained standing, looking down at him.

    He stared up at her. His eyes lowered from her face, down to her breasts, medium-sized areolas visible through the wet bra she was wearing. His eyes delved even lower, down the curve of her stomach, to the gold panties she was wearing. He ran an index finger back and forth across his lips while he studied her. He lifted his eyes back up to her face. "Come here," he said softly.

    She went to sit beside him.

    "No," he said. He patted both of his thighs. "Here."

    She lowered a knee on the cushion on one side of him. Holding onto his shoulders for balance, she lowered her other knee on the other side of him. The wetness from her soaking undergarments started to seep into his jeans and t-shirt, but he didn't give any signs of noticing.

    Instead, he was looking up at her like she was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. "In this business, you have to choose the people you surround yourself with very carefully," he said slowly, pushing some of her wait hair back. "Once you reach a certain level of success, people won't hesitate to take advantage of you. Use you for their gain. And especially when it comes to interactions with women, you never know who you can trust - as Vanessa has shown." He paused and lowered his eyes. "Tonight, you showed me that you trusted me. You could have taken Rih's advice. You could've found a time to check the text messages in my phone. But instead, you took a chance. On me. And you believed in me. And by doing so...you've shown me that I can believe in you."

    She could barely make sense of the words he was saying with the alcohol and other substances taking a hold of her system. All she could focus on was how good he felt underneath her, how good his lips looked when they moved to form words, and how expressive his eyes were as he spoke. "I do trust you," she said, and hiccupped.

    He laughed and shook his head. "Oh, man, you're so faded."

    She shrugged. "I'm not used to drinking this much."

    "There's nothing wrong with being faded," he said softly, sliding a bra strap down her shoulder. "There are benefits to being faded, actually."

    She stared down at him as he slid the other bra strap down. Her breasts spilled out over the top of her bra and he didn't hesitate in leaning forward and pressing his lips to them. She tilted her head back and stared up at the sky, for the umpteenth time tonight. She felt his arms encircling her waist and all she could think of was how thankful she was for this man. She kissed the top of his head and felt his arms tighten around her.

    He raised his head and looked up at her.

    Several images ran through her mind at the point in time. An image of him singing on stage in Toronto. Then PartyNextDoor's Los Angeles show. An image of him playing strip air hockey with her...which made her smile. An image of him naked, teasing her every which way in bed. An image of him being so gentle with her the night Trevor had hit her. An image of him beating Trevor senseless. An image of him commanding the stage at the VMAs. And this image, here and now, him seated beneath her, staring up at her with those gorgeous puppy dog eyes. She pressed her hands flat on his chest, feeling the heat emanating from him through the black, cotton t-shirt he'd changed into earlier. She ran her hands down his chest, her fingertips feeling the subtle ripples of his muscled abdomen. She sat back and lowered her hands to the belt buckle on his jeans. Then, she leaned forward and kissed him while unbuckling his jeans.

    His hands squeezed her ass cheeks as they kissed.

    She unbuttoned and unzipped his jeans as quickly as her fingers would allow her. She was eager to feel him in her hands. She was eager to feel him in her. Those benefits of being faded that he'd mentioned earlier...she was beginning to feel them. Everything she felt, every sensation, was multiplied tenfold. The sensation of the breeze caressing her skin was enough to cause her to sigh in contentment. The feeling of his lips on her lips, or his lips on her breast, was enough to bring her to the brink of ecstasy. She didn't even know it, but that was only the beginning.

    Because once she had him freed from his jeans, and once he had her panties pulled to the side, she found out that those sensations were nothingin comparison to the feel of him inside of her. He bounced her up and down on him while catching her bottom lip between his teeth. "Whose is this?" he growled against her mouth.

    "Yours baby," she said breathlessly.

    He groaned and started to thrust harder.

    They came together. Waves of intense passion crashing unto them with the sounds of lapping water from the swimming pool filling their ears. Beneath a dark sky where the stars were still playing hard to get, hiding behind clouds. When she went to move off of his lap, he clung onto her, tightened her grip on her to hold her there.

    "Stay," he told her, looking up at her.

    She looked down at him and nodded. "Okay," she said, wrapping her arms around his neck. She stayed on his lap and he stayed inside of her. His arms stayed around her waist, holding her to him. And really, she wouldn't have it any other way.