Only With You (Knights #2)

11

JULIANNA

“Bloody hell.” Landon sucks in a breath, tipping his head back before angling it down to look at me. “I will drop you on your arse if you don’t stop.”

I dramatically gasp. “And here I thought you cared about me.”

“I don’t care half a fuck about you.”

I halt in my step. “You said half , so that means there’s another half of you that does care about me. Oh my gosh, things are finally looking up. Landon Taylor cares half a fuck about me !” I laugh uncontrollably but stop when everything starts to spin and I stumble on my feet.

My heels scrape against the asphalt, and just when I think I’m going to fall on my ass, strong hands ground me and lift me up.

I blink a few times, hoping it’ll somehow help my double vision, but it does the opposite. And I think I’m hallucinating now, because Landon’s carrying me. One arm underneath my legs and the other at my back.

“What are you doing?” I flail my feet and make my body heavy, but he doesn’t stop or set me down.

He continues walking, his hands holding me firmly. “We’ll never make it up the stairs with you stumbling like that. So, for fuck’s sake, stop being difficult and let me help.”

If I had any strength left in me, I’d continue fighting him, but my energy is dwindling down by the second. I can feel the adrenaline of the alcohol wearing off, and now I’m feeling fatigued.

“Fine.” I yawn, lacing my arms around his shoulder and resting my head on it. “You know, you’re really quiet.”

“I wish you were, too,” he snipes.

“You’re so…” I lose my train of thought. My eyes flutter and another yawn tumbles out of my mouth. I contemplate finishing my thought, but my eyes grow heavy.

“We’re here.” His gruff words startle me, but I don’t fully wake until he drops me on something soft but firm.

I groan, taking in my surroundings, and realize we’re in my bedroom, and Landon’s standing in front of me, towering over me.

A slight smirk tugs on his lips and I think I see the indent on his cheek, but I’m not too sure. “You’re welcome.”

“You’re welcome? You threw me on the bed.”

He stares at me with indifference and shrugs lazily. “The landing was soft. Could’ve been worse, so you’re welcome.”

I contemplate whether he’s worth an argument, but a wave of dizziness traps me. Closing my eyes, I rest my elbows on my knees, cover my face with my palms, and wait until everything stops spinning.

As I do, I hear the soft pad of his footsteps walking away and when I take a peek, he’s gone.

“Oh, thank God,” I murmur, letting myself fall back on my bed, relishing the cool duvet under me.

“No, it’s ‘Thank you, Landon.’ ”

I tense at his voice and peel my eyes open. Once again, he’s towering over me, but this time, he holds a water bottle.

“Here, you need to stay hydrated.” He uncaps the bottle and holds it out for me to take.

If this had been any other guy, I wouldn’t have touched the water, much less considered drinking it. But since that night, despite our differences, I do trust him.

He may be an asshole, but I can say with all certainty, he’s the kind of guy you can leave with your drink lying around and know it’ll be okay.

I pull my hair tie off and throw it on the nightstand. I rake my fingers through my hair, sighing with relief as the pressure eases off. Then I grab the water and take a sip, but chug it because I hadn’t realized how thirsty I was until now.

Licking my lips, I go to set the empty bottle down, but he takes it from my hand. Swallowing down my pride, I say, “Thank you for the ride and the water.”

With a curt nod, he walks out, leaving me feeling bemused. I don’t think too much of it, though, because another yawn escapes me. Exhaustion is creeping up and I’m slowly starting to lose the will to move.

As I get off my bed, I hear the front door shut and sigh with relief. Him being here was getting weird and I’m not sure how to feel about it.

I head into the bathroom, brush my teeth, and do a semi-decent job of taking my makeup off. There’s still a bit of mascara and eyeliner smudged beneath the rim of my eyes, but I’m too exhausted to care to take it off.

Next, I go to take off my top, but I struggle to grab the knot at my back.

“Why does it seem like you’re always struggling?” he remarks, clicking his tongue.

I gasp in fright. “What the hell? I thought you had left.”

“You left your bag in my car.” My shoulder bag hangs from his fingers. “I didn’t want you to accuse me of theft. I’m sure you’d love to do that.”

I march up to him and take my bag. “No, I wouldn’t.”

“Sure,”

I’d roll my eyes if I wasn’t too tired. “Thanks for everything. You know where the door is.”

I turn my back on him and set my purse on the shelf where the others sit.

“I’m not leaving,” he states.

“What do you mean you’re not leaving?”

“You’re drunk,” he says as if that should be enough of an explanation.

“I’m fine now. I don’t need you to stay.”

“I’m staying, so get over it because I’m not leaving.”

I hate to admit this to myself, but a little part of me feels relieved.

Arching a brow, I fold my arms over my chest. “Is this supposed to be another one of your good deeds of the year?”

He copies me, crossing his arms against his chest. “Something like it.”

I gauge his expression and wait for him to say he’s messing with me, and that he’ll leave, but that never happens. I debate whether I should kick him out, but he’s looking at me like I should know it’s going to be nonnegotiable.

Sighing, I drag my hair over my shoulder and turn around. “Fine, and since you like to be so helpful, help me untie this.”

Might as well put his kindness to good use before it wears off. Who knows how long it’ll last, and I really don’t want to sleep with this top on.

I look over my shoulder at him, but he’s not looking at me but rather my back. Landon’s expression is unreadable, and for a moment, I think he’s going to walk away. But he surprises me when he drops his arms and cuts the space between us.

He stands behind me, almost as close as he was when we were at the alley.

“Consider this my last good deed of the year.”

“Yeah, yeah, no more helping me. Got it.” I mock salute and turn around.

I feel the heat of his hands at my back, and when he grabs the knot, I suck in a breath. I don’t know why I do that, but I tell myself to breathe, because I’m hardly able to keep my balance. I haven’t taken my heels off yet, and any moment now, I’m sure my legs will give out on me.

He grumbles something under his breath and tugs on the knot hard. “Who tied this?”

I glance over my shoulder and find him keenly staring at my back. His brows are pinched and jaw set tight as he struggles to undo the knot. “Who’s the one struggling now?”

“You still will be if I can’t undo it,” he shakes his head in frustration as he attempts again to get it undone. “This is ridiculous. Seriously, who did this?”

“Polly.” I grin, enjoying how annoyed he is.

I shouldn’t be reveling in his frustration, because he could give up, but this is too funny. Especially since he’s cursing under his breath and saying words I don’t understand. It almost sounds like he’s speaking another language. I’m almost tempted to ask him, but I decide against it.

“Of course she did.” I’m facing forward again, but I’m sure he’s rolling his eyes. “Why don’t you just pull it over your head? It seems like it stretches.”

I take a few steps forward, adding some distance between us, staring at him, horrified.

“No. Absolutely not. I don’t want to stretch out the material.”

I have love for a lot of things, like my favorite YouTuber, mugs, hot chocolate, music, and the kids I teach on the weekends. But I have a true weakness for makeup, purses, and clothes.

What can I say? I grew up with a mother who’s a stylist. Of course I’m going to love all those things. I mean, what girl doesn’t?

Landon wipes his face with his large palm, blowing out an exasperated breath. “You’re kidding, right?”

“No, I’m not kidding. I will not pull this over my head. I don’t want to stretch out the material.” I stand my ground.

A deep, sardonic chuckle rumbles from his chest. “You’re fucking unbelievable.”

He stares like he’s waiting for me to say that I’m kidding and I’ll do as he suggested. But all I do is stare right back, and even though I’m not saying anything, my silence is loud and clear.

It’s not going to happen.

“You’re a headache,” Landon grits, running his fingers through his hair. “A goddamn fucking headache,” he drawls.

Hmm…did it look disheveled like that earlier? It really looks good.

I blame these horrible thoughts on my drunken brain.

“Ditto.” Rubbing my temple softly, I huff. “Thanks for the help, but I got it from here. My feet are killing me, so if you could get?—”

“Do not take the heels off.”

My heart stutters and I freeze at the rough demand. “What?”

I search his face, but it’s blank. I don’t know why I thought I’d find something.

He approaches me. “Turn around.”

I tilt my head back, staring into those expressionless eyes. “Why?”

“Because the extra height is going to help me.” His gaze coasts down as if he’s assessing me. “Trust me and don’t worry. Your shirt will be fine.”

Hesitantly, I spin and wait patiently for whatever he’s going to do. I hear him shuffle behind me and take a hold of the knot again. And then I understand why he needed me to still wear my heels.

He’s going to use his teeth to pull on the knot.

Oh.

His warm breath tickles my back, causing a wave of goosebumps to cover it. I try to stand as still as I can, even holding my breath, but when I feel the tug on the fabric, a shiver runs up my spine.

All I can picture is Landon’s teeth on the knot, pulling gently not to ruin the fabric. But then the image in my head shifts to his teeth on my skin, grazing my…whoa! No, I didn’t think that!

Swallowing thickly, I cross my hands at my chest to hold the top in case he manages to take it off.

He clears his throat, and I feel him step back, taking all the warmth with him. “Done.”

“Thanks,” I reply, almost breathless.

He says nothing to that and I hear him back away some more until his footsteps sound distant.

When I turn around, he’s gone, and I know it’s to give me privacy so I can change.

I shake off the weird daze and change out of my clothes and into my pajamas.

Rubbing my eyes, I get in bed and decide from here on out that this is the last time I’m ever alone with him.

Reaching for the remote to my TV, I turn it on as I make myself comfortable and place my body pillow between my thighs. My fingers move on autopilot, going straight to YouTube and clicking the person who I always fall asleep to, Haptic.

I click on the new song he posted. He’s singing a cover of “River” by Leon Bridges.

My eyes flutter as the sound of the piano floats in my room, then his voice softly follows. Sleep slowly starts to take over, but it quickly gets interrupted.

“What are you listening to?”

My eyes pop open and I gasp loudly. Sitting up, I glance at the door where Landon stands. “What’s the matter with you? You scared me.”

“You seem fine.” He disregards my frightened state and shifts his focus to the TV. “So what are you listening to?”

“Music. Isn’t it obvious?” I retort, feeling extremely irked. “Why the hell are you still here again?”

He hums, nodding absentmindedly, and it almost seems like he’s zoned out.

“Are you just going to stand there or are you?—”

“Who are you listening to?”

“Haptic. He’s a YouTuber who?—”

“Sounds like shit.” He slips his hands in his pockets, looking bored.

I scoff defensively. “Excuse you. You don’t get to come in here and run your mouth. If anyone sounds like shit, it’s you.”

One thing I refuse to hear is any Haptic slander.

He clicks his tongue and something flashes in his eyes. I swear I see him smirk for a second, but when I blink, it’s gone. “Are you not going to turn the light out?” His gaze draws to the light coming from my closet.

“No, I…like to leave it on.” I nervously swallow and wait for the jokes to come.

I don’t owe him an explanation, but how do you tell someone that at twenty-one years old, I’m afraid of the dark? I used to not be until two years ago.

The jokes never come and his face remains blank. “Okay, I’ll be in the living room. Good night, Angel .”

“Good night, Lucifer!” I counter and lie back down.