Elevator Pitch (Hapless In Love #1)

21. Elevator Pitch

21

elevator pitch

Selah

Manhattan, NY | January 2, 2024

I just woke up from an interesting dream. Another one about my neighbor, Greyson. It’s a pleasant reprieve from the nightmares that I’m used to. I sigh and look over at the clock. 8:38 am. It’s a Tuesday, and I’m still on holiday break. I have a new toy I have yet to try. I reach into my nightstand to grab the silk drawstring bag. It’s lilac and palm-sized.

I press the on button and another to start the functions. This one is intense and there’s a strong vibration happening in my hand. This must be for when it’s inserted. As I fiddle with the settings, vibrating sounds fill the room, and a startled Peach jumps up from the foot of my bed and nearly takes the blankets with her as she darts out of my room. I chuckle. They’re hardly ever as quiet as advertised. I press the off button and select a different function. The clit stimulator starts with the lowest setting.

I can work with this.

I set the toy on my clit and feel the suction instantly. It’s intense but bearable. I take deep breaths and focus.

I close my eyes and envision Grey cornering me in the elevator. He leans in, peppering kisses from my neck to shoulder. He grabs my waist to pull me in close and whispers in my ear.

“I think you can come on my fingers before this elevator stops. You want to prove me, right?”

I nod. My breath hitches as his hands lift the hem of my dress. He looks at me with the skirt of my dress balled in his fists.

“Hold this, Princess.”

I forget how to speak. I grab the dress, holding it up as his hands dip lower.

His fingers find the pool of wetness through the lace, pulling them to the side.

“So perfect.”

He slides a finger between my slick folds before pressing his thumb to my clit and rubbing in soft circles. I whimper at his touch. His intense gaze remains while he showers me with praise and increases the rhythm.

His free moves toward my face.

“Open,” he orders, placing two fingers in my mouth.

I take his fingers, swirling my tongue around them while keeping eye contact.

“Good girl,” he says before removing the fingers and placing one inside me.

I gleam from the praise and shudder at the fullness. He draws steady circles on my clit while pumping in and out of me. The sounds of my wetness fill the space.

He lowers his head to suck on my hard peaks through my dress, and I wail in response. I’ve never done that before. As if he can read my mind, something ignites in his eyes. He sucks harder, granting them both attention, but the rhythm of his hands doesn’t falter. He adds another finger, pumping in and out of me at a faster pace. I feel my legs tremble beneath me, and my breath quickens.

“You’re so fucking beautiful.”

He pumps harder, and my head rolls back.

“Eyes on me. Almost there, baby. ”

I feel the pressure building and grip onto his arms for leverage. My moans echo through the elevator, and he stares in amazement.

“You’re going to come for me?”

I cannot speak.

“Use your words.”

“Y-Yes. I’m going to come.”

I gasp between each word.

“Let go,” he says.

The sensitivity in my core is overwhelming as I teeter off the cliff. I increase the suction of my toy and fall back to the pillows, clawing at the sheets as my climax builds. I let out a loud moan, and the doorbell rings in response.

Not the bell I needed rung .

You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me.

I glance over at the clock and see the time. 8:49 a.m.

Who would be here this early? The girls would’ve texted first. I open up my doorbell app to see who’s out there.

Shit. It’s him.

What is he doing here?

He’s holding a box and a drink carrier. Pacing outside my door. He rings again.

Did he bring me breakfast?

Without thinking further, I click the mic button on the app and speak.

“Hey. Um, I’m not decent. If you could give me a moment, I’ll be right there.”

“Yeah, no-no problem.”

I now notice the loud buzzing from my toy—which I forgot to turn off.

Fuck. Can he hear that?

“ Is everything okay? What’s that noise?”

Shit. I scramble to turn it off. Pressing each button but to no avail, I accidentally increase the setting.

Fuck, that feels good .

I stifle a whimper. The toy is so slippery from my arousal that I can’t grip the buttons.

“It’s—ummm, my toothbrush! I’ll be right there!”

After I click the mic off, I press every button simultaneously and hold them until finally it shuts off. Whew.

I clean myself up, then dash around my room to get dressed while actually brushing my teeth.

I rush towards the door, yelling out, “just a minute!”

I check myself in the mirror and realize I still have my fucking bonnet on. I yank it off, toss it over my shoulder, and give my curls a good shake. Now, I’m out of breath.

So sexy, Selah. Great job.

I open the door, and there he stands with a smile, taking me in as if nothing else exists.

A man has never looked at me like that in the morning.

“Good morning.”

“Morning,” I say shyly.

“I was out grabbing coffee and when I came across this shop that makes tiny donuts, I thought of you and figured we could try them together?”

“Since we haven’t had our coffee dates during the holiday break, I figured I’d bring the date to you.”

Because we eat donuts together on Tuesdays.

This man is precious. Wow.

He’s so sweet and I’m so awkward.

He wants to come into my house and eat?

Deep breaths.

This is what romance novels are made of.

I’m going to let this man into my house and hope he doesn’t kill me.

I open the door wider and invite him in.

He steps through the door, and I head over to the kitchen island when he slips out of his shoes and sets them on the doormat.

That was hot.

That’s a number one house rule for me and I forgot to mention it.

I lean over the counter, grab my phone from my pocket, and shoot off a text to Daya, letting her know the hot neighbor is here, and silence my phone before placing it face down on the counter.

He rounds the island, and I’m screaming internally from his proximity. His cologne surrounds me, and I want to bathe in it. He pushes up his sleeves, exposing his tattoos that are usually concealed, and I feel my face warming. I stare at them and swallow.

He interrupts my gaze by asking, “do you mind if I…?”

He aims his head toward the sink and makes a hand-washing motion. I nod. He washes his hands while I stare at him.

He removed his shoes AND washed his hands upon settling in.

Pro: He may be the perfect houseguest.

Con: I think he’s trying to steal my heart.

Alert the proper authorities.

After drying off his hands and rolling his sleeves back down. He takes a seat on a barstool and takes a sip of coffee.

“I’ve never seen you drink coffee, but I took a wild guess at what tea you’d like. Please tell me if you hate it. Wait. You’re not allergic to anything, are you?”

He looks panicked, and it’s the cutest thing.

“Thank you. Not that I know of. It’s hard to ruin tea. If it’s sweet, I’m sure I’ll love it.”

“I figured I couldn’t go wrong with peach tea.”

I take a sip, and I moan.

I stiffen and avoid eye contact, but I feel his eyes on me

One day, I won’t embarrass myself in front of this man.

I gather the courage to look at him, and he raises his eyebrow.

“I’ll take that as a positive review, hoping you don’t make noises like that when something is bad.”

He looks at me expectantly.

“It’s perfect. Thank you for thinking of me.”

He takes a sip of his coffee .

“I always—shit.”

He erupts into a fit of coughs, choking on his coffee. I run over to pat his back and rub it as he settles down.

What was he going to say?

“Sorry. Wrong pipe,” he chuckles nervously.

“I’m glad you’re alright.”

My phone buzzes on the counter. I pick it up and see that Daya texted back. I point to my phone and tell him I need to respond.

“No worries.”

Daya

Dios Mio.

You let the HOT neighbor in?

Me

We haven’t had our standing coffee time during the holiday break.

He brought coffee and donuts.

Said he was bringing the date to me.

Daya

Sounds like he was written by a woman.

Keep me posted.

Make sure he cleans all those cobwebs out!

Me

OMG

BYE

I stifle my laughter and look up at Grey. He’s on his phone as well. I apologize for the interruption, and he waves it off. He opens the donut box, taking one out that’s covered in powdered sugar. My mouth waters. When he bites into it, his face tells it all. It’s as good as it looks. I’ve got to try it. I grab napkins from a drawer and set them beside him.

He slides the box across the counter for me to take my pick. I choose a glazed one with sprinkles and grab a napkin to set it on. A comfortable silence floats through the kitchen as I bite into the donut and moan again subconsciously.

Girl.

He looks up at me with a glimmer in his eye.

Am I always like this?

Get it together, Sis.

As if he senses my embarrassment, he averts his eyes. They dance around my apartment and halt. I’m not sure what he’s looking at until he gets up and moves towards my fridge.

The list. Shit!

He’s reading it.

WWAD?

She’d own it.

I’ll own it now and throw up later.

He raises an eyebrow and continues reading.

“So, this is the infamous Fuck It List . I’m impressed.”

I breathe deeply to myself, waiting for this moment to end.

“I’m so embarrassed.”

“Don’t be. I know you didn’t mean for me to see it, but I don’t mind. You don’t take yourself too seriously and you’re having fun. You may need to give me the backstory behind these, though.”

He smiles and I chuckle, covering my mouth.

“Look at all you’ve accomplished so far! These are difficult feats. I’m proud of you. My family always had high expectations of me as the oldest. My parents planned out my entire life before it began. While I was the first to go to college and use my degree, a dating app didn’t exactly fit in with their plan, but I launched it anyway. I guess you could say that was a ‘fuck it’ moment. It was a stressful time, and I had panic attacks often, but I’m glad I stayed the course,” he says, returning to his seat .

“I can relate. I had a few starting out and I still do from time to time.”

“How do you manage?”

“Honestly? My friend Audrey, she’s absolutely fearless and I think of her every time I’m afraid of something. I picture how she would handle the exact scenario, and I go with that. It works.”

“Whenever that doesn’t work, a joint does. Though I sometimes forget what I was afraid of.”

I shrug my shoulders, and he sniggers to himself.

“I like that. I need to find more fearless friends and a dispensary,” he chuckles.

“Well, if you ever meet her and she decides she likes you, she won’t let you leave until you are friends. I love that about her.”

I smile to myself.

“What about if she doesn’t like me?”

“You’ll leave in a stretcher. There’s no in-between with her.”

I break out in a fit of laughter, and he joins me.

“I can’t wait to meet her. She sounds like a good time.”

I lean over the counter, facing him as I sip my tea.

“So, you took a moment to answer. Were you resting or did I interrupt something?” he asks with a knowing look.

“N-No. I was just in bed.”

“But you said you were using your toothbrush. Do you always brush your teeth in bed? That sounds a little strange.” He crosses his arms and leans back.

“Are you judging me, Greyson?”

He raises his hands in surrender.

“Of course not. I’m just trying to get the positioning in my head, that’s all.”

I see he will not let this go, so I’ll play along.

“Maybe I was distracted by something.”

“Hmm. Are you sure you finished brushing your teeth? If you didn’t, I’m certain I could provide some assistance. ”

He does air quotes around brushing your teeth and gives me a knowing look.

The nerve of this man.

This must be about the damn list.

“I suppose I didn’t completely finish, since the doorbell rudely interrupted me,” I say, crossing my arms over my chest.

That’s it.

He scoffs, placing his hand over his chest, pretending to be wounded.

“I came bearing gifts and truthfully, if I knew that’s what you were doing on the other side of this door...it sounds to me like you summoned the right man for the job.”

He pushes up his sleeves and leans towards the counter, waiting for my response. I swallow and feel heat pooling low in my belly.

Relax.

He’s just a man.

Tell that to my body.

“I never took you for cocky.”

He sits up straight, looking amused.

“I’m not cocky. I am confident in my abilities to please a woman. If you’re interested in learning more about my capabilities—and before you disagree—it seems you’re in the market for them,” he adds with a nod to the list.

Who is this and what happened to the golden retriever?

My breath catches as heat pools between my legs. An idea pops into my mind that may be able to help us both. I fear his boldness is contagious because I’m not only considering it, but I start repeating it out loud.

“So, uh, about the list. I’d like to propose something and please stop me if this is ridiculous.”

He quirks an eyebrow and leans in, resting a hand on his knee. I take a deep breath, and he studies me.

“I’m listening.”

You can do this .

If you need anything, you can call me. His words.

“I have until May to cross everything off. My thirtieth birthday is approaching, and I need to complete it. This would be mutually beneficial for us, and I’d like you to name your price or, in this case, a favor. Would you be open to helping me out? I mean, since you’re ‘the right man for the job’ and all?”

He perks up, crossing his arms and he eyes me curiously.

“You’re serious. Do I at least get an interview?”

I chuckle nervously. “Um, if that’s what you want?”

“I know you’re dating, and there may be other worthy candidates. I’d like to request a trial run or…a taste test to prove myself?”

It’s safe to say the golden retriever has left the building.

He stares expectantly, and I nod assuredly.

“When can I have a taste, Selah?”

He chuckles darkly and wetness pools between my legs at the sound. His eyes turn ember, a flame stokes within them. My breath hitches at the sight. I’m so lost in them I forget to respond.

I desperately need relief right now, and I was thinking of him, anyway.

What comes out of my mouth next surprises me.

“Right now.”

His gaze erupts with fire, and he is on me. His hand envelops my back, and the other gives my nape a gentle squeeze. He leans in closer, eyes locked on mine.

“Are you sure about this? I know what I said, but we can stop. Say the word, and I’ll stop at any time.”

If he’s anything like he was in my dream, I need to know.

“I don’t want to stop.”

“I was hoping you’d say that.”