Title: Love Runs Deeper: Chapter Twelve, Sunset Flowers
Rating: R [sexuality, drugs, alcohol, language]

Summary: Lindsey and Lily have a few intimate moments. And then they hang out at the studio.





Never one to turn down such an offer, Lindsey stood up, keeping Lily in his arms as he did so. With such a light frame, he did not struggle for a moment in carrying her over to the bed. He laid her carefully on the bed, kissed her deeply, his hands dropping to her jeans. When no utterance of protest left her lips, his fingers slipped under her waistband and unbuttoned her pants. Lily arched her hips up from the bed, allowing him to slide the jeans down, depositing them on the floor. His fingertips slid up her legs and slipped under her shirt. Sitting up, Lily guided his mouth into a kiss before allowing him to remove her shirt.

She lay back down, clad in only her bra and panties, and reached up for Lindsey. Quickly shedding his own jeans, he crawled over to her, bending down to kiss her as he straddled her body. Still a bit apprehensive that she was willing for this to continue, he did not lower his body fully onto hers. Instead, he leaned to the side, freeing up one hand to caress her body while his lips kissed and nibbled on her skin.

His fingertips caressed her breasts, slowly working down to her panties. He playfully tickled her ribs before drawing circles on her concave abdomen. Halting his kisses, Lindsey looked up to her face as his hand reached the elastic waistband of her panties. He knew this was the final test. If their lovemaking were to progress, he would know. His hand moved down pass the waistband and gently cupped her sex. Lily did not protest, but moaned softly. Smiling against her skin, Lindsey’s middle finger pressed down, slipping between her cloth-covered petals, enough to wet the fabric of her panties.

Pleased with her reaction, Lindsey’s mouth covered hers, kissing her deeply. His hand left her sex and cupped her breast. Slowly he followed the line of her bra to the clasp, intending to remove it and kiss her beautiful breasts. Working his other hand under her to aid in the removal of the bra, Lindsey felt her tense but passed it off as her moving to help him in his actions. However, the moment the clasp released, Lily’s hands went to his chest and pushed him away.

“Lil?” he asked, his voice husky with arousal.

Saying nothing, she scrambled away from him, reaching for anything to cover herself with.

“Baby?” his desire turned to concern. “Baby, are you okay?”

“I can’t… I thought… I can’t…” she muttered softly, clutching a blanket to her body.

He took a deep breath, “Lily, its okay. I understand.”

“No no no no,” she covered her face with the blanket.

“Baby…” he reached for her. “Lily, tell me what’s going on?”

“I can’t,” she mumbled.

“Sure you can, Lily. You can tell me anything,” he assured her, his fingers brushing hers.

Lily snapped backwards, “Don’t touch me.”

Meeting her eyes, he saw terror similar to what he saw the last time they go hot and heavy. Knowing he could not reach her in that moment, Lindsey nodded and backed his way off the bed. He found his pants and pulled the jeans on, not the least bit surprised that his cock was soft again. Keeping his eyes on hers, he backed up until he neared the balcony. Saying nothing, he grabbed a joint from the case near the door and stepped out. He would give her a few minutes to calm down and find the ground himself as well. Then he would figure out how to handle this. He hoped.

Clutching the blanket to her body, Lily stared as Lindsey disappeared from the suite out onto the balcony. She had thought she was ready. She loved him. Shouldn’t that be enough? But when he touched her… no, when he touched her it felt good. But when he tried to get her naked… all the bad memories of sex came rushing back. And with those memories, came fear. She could not go through with it.

Which meant she had to leave. He was not going to want her around anymore. No man wanted a girlfriend who was terrified of sex, no matter the reason. With this thought in mind, she threw back the blanket and hurried to the closet. Grabbing items without rhyme or reason, Lily began to pack her belongings – until she realized that Lindsey had purchased all of it. She would leave it all, just put on the cheapest outfit she could find and leave. But where would she go? She did not know anyone she could stay with and had given up her apartment. It did not matter; she would figure it out.

As she pulled on a pair of pants, Lindsey returned to the room and turned another light on. Lily froze like a deer in headlights. He calmly closed the door behind him and slowly approached her.

“Lily, where are you going?” he asked evenly.

“Away.”

“Why?”

Her eyes met his, “Because you don’t want me anymore.”

“What makes you think that?” he asked.

“Because I’m terrified of sex,” she whispered.

“Lily,” he stepped forward, “I don’t want you to leave.”

“But I can’t have sex with you.”

“Lily,” Lindsey took another step forward, “I understand that you’re not ready. It’s okay. We have not been together long at all. I don’t need to sleep with you to be in a relationship with you. We are more than sex.”

“But you want to have sex, don’t you?”

His fingers touched hers, “We will make love when the time is right, when it is right for you. Yes, I think you’re beautiful and sexy. And yes, I do want you. But us being together is not contingent on us fucking. Please don’t leave.”

“But…”

“Lily, will you sit with me? Maybe we can talk about this?”

“I… I don’t know, Lindsey,” she responded.

“Fair enough. Will you at least stay?”

“I… yes,” she whispered.

He moved a little closer and kissed her forehead, “I love you, Lily. We’ll work through whatever it is that scares you and when the time is right, it will be so beautiful. But for now… can I just hold you in my arms while we sleep?”

Her wide golden eyes went to his. Slowly she nodded. He smiled quickly before kissing her mouth gently. It may not have solved the issues, but at least she was not running away – yet.



Waking with Lily still sleeping next to him, Lindsey smiled. Though his libido was certainly disappointed with the turn of events over the night, he was not. He could tell that something dark plagued her soul. As she slept, she looked so sweet and angelic. He could not even imagine someone wanting to hurt her, but… he was certain someone had. Lindsey had no idea who had done such to her, but the longer he thought about it, the more it angered him. She had such a hard life in her young years. He was going to make certain that never happened again. He would protect her with all his life and love her more than enough to make up for all her previous heartache.

She slowly stretched and her eyes fluttered open. Before her eyes could focus on his, Lindsey leaned over and kissed her gently. She smiled slightly, snuggling against him without protest. With a smile, he showered kisses all over her face, bringing light to her eyes and giggles to her lips. His eyes locked with hers for a moment before he leaned down and kissed her mouth deeply.

“I am… sorry for last night,” Lily stated softly.

“Don’t be,” he brushed her hair from her face. “You do not need to apologize for your fear, my angel.”

“I… I…”

Lindsey kissed her again, “I love you, Lily. I do not ever want you to be afraid around me.”

“I just… I just…”

He nuzzled her again, “You don’t need to worry about it, Lily. I’m going to take care of you. I promise.”

“But I should… I should be able to give you what you need,” she breathed.

“You do,” Lindsey assured her. “You absolutely do.”

“But I can’t–”

“That will happen when it is right,” he declared. “Not a moment sooner. I do not need sex. I can do without. We will make love when it is right. Do not feel pressured into it, Lily. Please, sweetheart.”

She sighed, “But…”

He kissed her again, “Let it go, baby. Let it go.”

“I just thought that… because I love you… and you love me… that it would all be okay.”

“It will when it’s really time,” he assured her.

“I guess,” Lily replied.

Pausing for a moment, Lindsey carefully responded, “Do you want to talk about it? I mean the source?”

Her eyes snapped to his, “No.”

“Okay,” he kissed her again. “How about breakfast? Then maybe a walk?”

“Don’t we… need to go to the studio?”

Lindsey rolled out of bed, “Some time, yeah, but not right away.”

“Don’t we need to pack and check out and stuff?” she sat up slowly.

He shrugged, “Eventually. I’m fine with staying here for awhile longer.”

“But the band expects…”

“I don’t really care what the band expects. We are not staying there until you are comfortable with it. Plain and simple,” he declared, pulling his pants on. “Waffles or French toast?”

“Are you sure about that?”

“Well yes, breakfast is important.”

She smiled crookedly, “That’s not what I meant.”

He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her, kissing the top of her head, “Let’s eat breakfast and we’ll figure out what else to do, okay?”



Seated in the lounge, Lily attempted to organize a pile of papers Lindsey left with her before disappearing into the studio with the band. While she understood most of the expenditures, it was so disorganized, likely resulting in some things being paid repeatedly and some not at all. Frustrated and certain she was missing some paperwork, she shoved her pencil behind her ear and stood, intending to find someone to ask questions.

Leaving the lounge and her work behind, she headed out into the hallway. She stopped at the soda machine, retrieved a Coke, and continued in search of one of the band members, hopefully Lindsey or Mick. The door to one of the studios opened and her face brightened, thinking it would be one of the two men she searched for. However, her hopes instantly fell when Stevie and three of her girlfriends stepped out.

Biting back her uncertainty, Lily stepped towards the singer, “Hey, Stevie? Could I maybe get your help on something?”

Stevie stared at her coolly, “And what would that be, little girl?”

“Some paperwork of the band’s,” she responded, ignoring the slight.

“And why is that any of your business?”

“Lindsey hired me as his personal assistant and this afternoon Mick asked for my help sorting band things out since… he can’t really do that and do this at the same time,” she explained simply.

Stevie blinked, “Very well.”

Turning, Lily bit her lip when the other girls quickly fell instep behind Stevie. They all entered the lounge, Stevie’s girls arranging themselves near enough to jump for anything she needed. Lily returned to her place on the sofa in front of the stacks of paper. Leaning forward, Stevie picked up a random sheet of paper, her brown eyes quickly scanning it.

“So what is your problem?”

“Well… according to your tour itinerary, you spent three days in–”

“Lily!” Lindsey stepped into the lounge, interrupting. “Come quick!”

“What is it?” she asked, getting to her feet.

Noticing Stevie’s presence, he nodded, “Hello, Stevie.”

“Lindsey,” she responded coolly.

“Anyways, come, Lily,” he held out his hand to her.

She slipped her hand into his, “What is it, Linds?”

“Just wait.”

He quickly led her out of the studio and around back. Her eyes quickly went to the spread of wildflowers, littering the foliage that helped seclude the studio from passersby. Her face instantly lit up at the dimly lit flowers, but that was not what Lindsey wanted her to see. Instead, his arms slipped around her from behind, his lips touched her ear, and he turned her in the correct direction.

Her eyes widened, “Lindsey, it’s… beautiful.”

He kissed her ear again, “Just like you.”

“I’ve never seen a sunset like this before. Actually… I’ve never really seen a sunset other than when hurrying between jobs.”

Lindsey squeezed her tightly, “Well now you have time to enjoy it, my sweet.”

“How did you…?”

“Stepped out for a smoke and to clear my head. And the beautiful view just… reminded me of you,” he whispered, kissing her ear again.

“Thank you,” she smiled, squeezing the arms around her. “I really appreciate it, but I do have work to do.”

“It can wait. Just be here with me for awhile.”

They remained embraced as the sun continued its descent. Once the sun and all of its colors disappeared from sight, Lindsey pulled away from his girlfriend and quickly plucked a handful of wildflowers. Lily giggled as he tucked the flowers randomly into the twist of her long hair. Kissing her sweetly once more, he led her carefully back to the studio’s entrance.

“What were you and Stevie doing?” he pulled the door open.

“Well I’ve been going over that paperwork and some things are missing. So I was going to have her help me with it, since… well I found her first,” Lily answered.

“That’s something Mick should help you with. Stevie won’t know any of it,” he declared.

“Do you think Mick would be able to do that now? Or is he too busy?”

“Too drunk,” he answered. “It’s best to make do with what you can now, sweetheart, and ask him tomorrow when we first get in.”

“Oh… okay,” she responded.

As they neared the lounge, Lindsey suddenly pulled her to him. His lips went to hers, kissing her deeply, as one hand pressed against her back and the other cupped her small ass. She squealed slightly but did not push him away or even protest. Returning the kiss with as much gusto, she knew very well why he was putting on such a display. Clearly, Stevie had to be within eyesight of his very passionate display. As he pulled away, Lily heard the songstress scoff and breeze by in a flurry of lace and scarves.

“Was that really necessary?” she muttered against Lindsey’s mouth.

He kissed her again, “Yes.”

She rolled her eyes, “You’re not making this easy, Linds.”

“She’ll get over it.”

“Not if you keep doing things like that,” Lily retorted.

“I’m going to kiss you when I want, Lily. She needs to get used to it.”

She rolled her eyes, “I’m going back to work. You should too.”

He paused for a moment, kissed her again, “I love you, Lily. I really do.”

“I love you too. Get back to work, Linds,” she pulled away and headed into the lounge.

Standing in the doorway for a moment, he smiled as she settled down in front of the paperwork once more. As she plucked her pencil free, a few of the flowers fell from her hair, sprinkling down upon her pile of work. Seeing her slight smile, he silently decided to shower her with flowers as often as possible. Her sweet smile was worth more than gold in his life.