THE RULES OF FAME

Chapter 16 - Delivery

Peyton Bell

Mom's the bomb… I got her address, and I immediately bought another flower bouquet. And while doing the errand, I spotted a cute butterfly diamond bracelet, and I smiled. That was so her…

I couldn't help it, and I bought it. I didn´t know if I should give it to her tonight, but I will eventually. Her address was not far from my hotel, so I decided to walk to my hotel, get dressed in something comfortable, because I would plainly stalk her place until I ran into her…

I showered and changed. Baggy ripped jeans, a plain t-shirt, and a black hoodie were the perfect items for my look. I checked myself in the mirror and decided to head out.

Even when the GPS indicated that we were within walking distance, I decided to take a cab. I stepped out of the cab, paid the driver, and stood before the apartment building. It was a quiet street, the building with that antique facade, but with modern amenities. I looked at the entrance, and it was locked, but it had an intercom to the apartments.

I looked at the names beside the buttons, and hers only had a number. I smirked because I did have the number of her flat, thanks to my mother.

I rang once… and waited.

I stood there for about a minute without answering. Then I ran again… and nothing.

My heart rammed inside my chest. I was so close, too close to behave in a normal way.

No one answered…

I rang a third time and waited.

Nothing…

My shoulders slumped, and my head started spinning. I wanted to see her, I needed to see her… it was like oxygen to my lungs, and the distance had been killing me.

A delivery guy walked out. There was no one in the lobby. Before the door closed, I slipped in and quickly headed up the elevator to her floor. I located her apartment and stood before her door.

Like a maniac, I pressed my ear against the door, and I heard movement. Was she with that man? I took a shivering breath. “No, she wouldn´t…” I sighed, and taking a deep breath, I knocked on her door.

“Who is it?” she said, and my heart stopped. It was her voice, on the other side of the door… just one door separating me from the love of my life.

I knocked again, and, feigning a deeper voice, I said, “Delivery for Mrs. Louvier.”

I heard her footsteps, and then she opened the door. She was wrapped in a soft bathrobe, her hair wet from a shower. She was showering, that's why she didn't answer her intercom. “What can I…” she stopped mid-sentence.

She froze in place, her eyes locked with mine. She was not the girl I allowed to walk away in New York. She was a woman, the most beautiful and amazing woman I have ever seen. Her features were a bit sharper. Her eyes held many promises, and her body, f**k, she grew up to have amazing curves.

“Hi…” I said, and she blinked several times…

She looked at me, her eyes analyzing my face. I have changed, too; my jaw was stronger. I was sporting a two-day beard. I had grown, too.. My back was muscled and broader, my legs a bit longer, and my arms were, let´s say, working out every day had paid off.

“Peyton?” Her voice wavered, and I took a deep breath.

“It´s been a while,” I said, and then showed her the red flower bouquet I had selected for her. “These are for you,” I said, and she looked down at the bouquet and then up at me.

“What are you doing here?” she asked, clearly fighting the urge to snap at me, or better say, call the cops.

“I came here for you,” I said and extended my arm as a sign for her to take the bouquet. “May I come in?” I asked,

“I…” she paused, “I don't think it is a good idea,” she mumbled, and I took a deep breath.

“Well, I don't think it is a good idea for me to say what I came to say right here in the hallway, but if you want it that way, I don´t mind an audience,” I said, knowing I was playing a bit dirty… I knew well that she would not want people to be witnesses to her personal life. She was a public figure after all, and when you are in the entertainment industry long enough, you learn to keep your private life, well… private.

“Come in,” She said, finally grabbing the flowers from my hands, and turning around, allowing me to follow her.

Her place was so her. Clean, open, pristine, lovely. It smelled good, I could see the city lights, and an amazing view of Big Ben through the open windows of her living room.

She didn't stop in the living room, but continued to the kitchen.

“What do you want?” she asked while opening cabinets and cupboards, searching for something.

She stood on her toes and started struggling to reach the top cabinet. I silently walked around the island, and standing behind her, I reached out to the top cabinet and handed her the vase she was trying to get for the flowers.

I placed it in front of her, but did not step back. “I shouldn't have acted like a fool,” I said, and I felt her tremble.

“You shouldn't,” she mumbled, and I carefully removed her wet hair from her neck, sending it over one of her shoulders.

“I was an i***t,” I said, slowly brushing my lips against the soft skin of her neck.

I felt her tremble and lean a bit into my touch. God, I love her even more now than five years ago.

“Yes, you were…” she mumbled, and I smiled, my lips brushing her skin. “What do you want?” she asked again, this time all the anger and annoyance gone, leaving just a weak protest trailing after the question.

“You,” I said, and she took a deep breath,

“You are in a relationship…” She straightened her back, but didn´t move. I guess her body language was trying to build a wall between us.

“PR stunt…” I said without giving more explanation.

“You can check the PR statement that was released last week…” I said, and she took another deep breath.

“And you? Tate?” I asked, and she closed her eyes.

“A colleague who wants something more, but…” she sighed.

“But?” I pressed, leaning my head forward to brush my lips against her neck again.

She shook her head; she didn't want to answer me.

“I never got over you… My PR team made up that relationship with Shanty, because I was drunk most of the time… I was involved in one too many scandals because I missed you. I wanted you back, but I thought you didn't want me… It was too easy for you to walk away…” I said, and at that moment, she turned around facing me. The vase, the flowers, and the entire London outside her apartment vanished. It was just her and the tears that welled in her eyes. I was bearing my soul, telling her how miserable I was without her, how her absence turned me into a man I despised. I had hit rock bottom, and now I was here, bearing my heart and soul, hoping she would take me back.

“Easy?” she said, and “Do you think it was easy for me to come here? To leave my family… to leave you behind?” she said, her voice rising an octave higher.

“I was miserable for years… So many times, I took my phone to try to text you, to call you... But…” she paused, a tear rolling out of her eye, and on instinct, I reached out to cup her face, wiping the tear away.

“But?” I said softly,

“But I thought you didn't want to hear from me… I thought you didn't want to know how I was doing, I thought you hated me for leaving...” she sighed, and I took a deep breath.

“Nessa, you are still engraved deep in my heart,” I said, and she locked her eyes with mine.

“This is probably a big mistake…” she mumbled, and I nodded.

“Maybe, but it will be the best mistake of my life…” I said, and she trembled in my arms, pressing her palms against the warmth of my chest.

I leaned forward. I wanted to kiss her. It was a subtle move, testing the waters… but when she closed the distance, and then when our lips were about to touch each other, she surprised me by saying, “Will you?” She paused, “Will you kiss me?”

Fuck! This was everything I had hoped for.