Page 110 of You Rock My World
Rock my Christmas, when there’s no one else around…
“Love me now, love me loud,
Turn my silence into sound.”
His voice is honeyed gravel, rough and rich. He poured so much of us into this song. The night we met, in the dark in a quiet city. Our game of strip souls. Me calling him too hot, too out of reach. Even my “all celebrity relationships are doomed” statistics. Him describing me as a rainbow…
I don’t realize I’m crying until Lily hands me a tissue.
By the time Dorian strums the last chord, the crowd is a mess of applause, cheers, and whistles. But I don’t hear any of it.
I gracelessly blow my nose and run.
My socked feet slap against the cool tiles as I fly down the steps. Dorian watches me come, slinging the guitar to his back and opening his arms, ready to catch me.
I crash into him, my arms winding around his neck. “Yes.” I look into his beautiful blue eyes. “I will love you now. I will love yousoloud.”
His hands cradle my face, his thumbs brushing away the tears. “I love you.”
I nod. “I love you, too.”
Our faces draw closer, noses touching, breaths mingling. I’m not sure who makes the first move, but soon, our mouths are locked together in an urgent and hungry kiss.
His lips are soft yet insistent. On them, I can taste the sweetness of his apology, the depth of his love, the worry of the past few days when it all seemed lost. My fingers thread through his hair, pulling him closer, never wanting to let go.
Dorian moves with a desperate tenderness that makes my heart stutter. I taste the salt of my tears, feel the heat of his skin through the cool leather of his jacket. Time stretches, bends, then snaps back as we pour every unspoken word and promise in this kiss.
His love is a wave crashing over me, but I’m not drowning—I’m floating, buoyed by the strength of our connection.
As we pull back to catch our breaths, our foreheads resting against each other’s, the sounds of the courtyard seep into my consciousness. Around us, the neighbors erupt in applause, a chorus of cheers and whistles filling the air. Someone shouts, “Play another one!”
I glance up at Dorian, who is grinning like an idiot.
He waves at the crowd, his grip firm on me, as he talks into the mic, “You’ll have to forgive me but I gotta take my girl home.”
A cheer rolls through the courtyard as Dorian swoops me into his arms, brushing a kiss against my temple. “It’s a little early, but Merry Christmas, everyone. I just got the best gift. Hope yours will rock, too.”
Lily’s neighbors erupt in a final burst of applause, voices overlapping in playful shouts and whistling approval.
I bury my face against Dorian’s shoulder, laughter bubbling up as the noise swells around us. It feels surreal—this moment, this night, this man who loves me so boldly, so unapologetically. A part of me wants to press pause, to hold on to the magic before reality remembers it still has a say. But maybe that’s the thing about love. The real kind. It doesn’t need perfect timing or quiet spaces. It crashes in, loud and reckless, and dares you to grab on. And I’m not letting go.
50
DORIAN
I lower my head to whisper in Josie’s ear, “Is it okay if I steal you?”
She nods and turns toward the balcony, waving at Lily. “I think I’ll skip dinner.”
Lily laughs. “Don’t you want to at least get your shoes?”
“No, thanks,” Josie shouts, and I agree. I can’t wait another minute to be alone with her.
“I’ll get her new shoes,” I yell, already walking out of the courtyard.
Josie pulls up in my arms and stares behind my shoulders. “What about your stuff?”
I shrug. “I’ll send someone to get it.” The only thing unique is the guitar strapped to my back. “Nick will stay here with the equipment.”
