“You feel so fucking good,” he whispered.
Lowering my head, I went back to my original plan of kissing him all over soon. I tasted every inch of his throat and shoulders, his chest, his sexy-as-fuck abs. Max knotted his fists in the sheets as I lowered the waistband of his boxer briefs and licked the curve of his hip. His thighs came up, taut as steel beams, and I used the leverage to strip off the fabric entirely. Then he was naked for me, his cock long and lean, throbbing visibly.
“Delicious.”
“It feels like you’re making love to me.” His voice was husky, thick, not just from sex.
I paused, glancing up. “Is that a problem?”
“Nobody ever has before. It’s so good.”
His emotional nakedness stripped me to the bone. Before I knew it, I was naked, too. Max fumbled in his bedside drawer and got out a condom. I rolled it on for him and then pulled him upright. It felt like we needed to do this together. Sinking onto his lap, I watched his face as he pushed into me, an agony of pleasure, the brightest sunrise in his parted lips. Max wrapped his arms tight around me and I held him just as hard, wrapping my legs around his back, too. I’d never had anyone inside me like this, not ever, sexually, emotionally; he was everything, everywhere, and we strained together, fighting for more, deeper, better—yes.
“Like that?” he breathed. “Oh, fuck. Courtney.”
My breasts rubbed against his chest while he pulled me into him. He worked my ass in his hands, cupping, squeezing, and I was so hot, unable to stop thinking, Max, this is Max inside me, Max— We came together, shuddering, and I remembered how the French called this the little death. Yet my heart beat on, for him.
Always, for him.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The next morning, it was late when I rolled out of Max’s bed.
I woke alone, my clothes still strewn all over his floor, mingling with his dirty laundry. Which was gross but also kind of weirdly sweet. You are in so deep if you think his sweaty socks are adorable. After getting dressed, I could not resist the urge to straighten up his room.
It wasn’t that I was trying to mother him, but if he expected me to spend time in here, there would have to be some changes or OCD would make my head explode. Quietly I tiptoed around, sorting his clothes by clean and dirty, and yeah, I did the sniff test, which should’ve made me want to dump Max immediately. The fact that it didn’t struck me as worrisome.
After I put his laundry in the hamper, I tucked it away in the closet, then I started on his clutter. I organized music, movies and games as made sense to me, expecting him to burst in any minute and ask what the hell I was doing. It’s helpful, I told myself. I’m helping. He’ll see that, right? Making the bed properly only took a couple of minutes, then I dusted his bedside table, chest and shelves, though I couldn’t call myself satisfied until I vacuumed in here.
I ventured out, not cautious exactly, but I still froze when Max came down the hall toward me. “You look guilty.”
Biting my lip, I gave up on the idea of ever keeping a secret from him. “Uh. Surprise?”
“Wow. I haven’t seen the carpet in three months. It’s still beige, huh?” That wasn’t a horrible reaction, I guessed. He seemed more amused than upset.
“If you want me to have sex with you in there again,” I whispered, “then it has to stay that way. Last night was an aberration...and it was dark.”
“Hey, I picked up some dirty clothes last night.”
I grinned, going on tiptoe to kiss him on the cheek. “You only got the first layer, it’s like you’re trying to make topsoil or something.”
“When you put it that way, it sounds supergross. Let’s do laundry later.” Max followed me to the kitchen, wrapping his arms about my waist to snuggle me from behind.
Angus was making pancakes in the kitchen. He cracked a huge grin, pointing his spatula at me. “Somebody got lucky last night.”
“Was it your mom?”
“Doubtful. She prefers sculpting and charity work. Don’t try to change the subject.”
Opening my eyes anime wide, I protested, “I’m not. I’m genuinely concerned about your mother’s sex life.”
“I already told him we’re together, don’t let him give you a hard time.” As Angus ladled out another hotcake, Max kissed my ear.
I shivered slightly. “That’s your job?”
“Got that right.”
“I can see you washed the dishes. Did you apologize, too?” It seemed best to confirm, though if Angus was still mad at Max, I suspected I’d know by now.
He nuzzled my neck. “Of course. For some reason I’m in a fantastic mood today.” Releasing me, he ambled over to the fridge and spelled out You Drive Me Wild with the fridge magnets. Not content with that, Max added I Want You.
Angus sighed. “Clearly we need some PDA rules. If I ever come across you two screwing around in the common areas, I will hose you down like dogs.”
Laughing, I said, “That’s fair. I’m pretty sure we can confine our lust to Max’s room.”
“Speak for yourself. The minute Angus goes to Del’s, we’re doing it in his bed.”
“I hate you so much,” Angus muttered.
“Wrong. Or you wouldn’t be making enough food for everyone.” Max went over to mess up Angus’s hair, something he hated.
“Get off me, you asshole.” Angus hip-checked him into the counter while flipping a flapjack. I considered that fairly impressive multitasking.
“God, y’all are loud.” Kia stumbled out of our room wearing a cranky look. “I don’t care who’s hooking up with who, I need actual sleep.” She brightened up when she realized breakfast was in the works. “Ooh, pancakes.”
Turning to her with a smile, Angus ordered us around like a boss. “They’re almost ready. Courtney, can you get the eggs out of the oven? Max, set the table.”
“Wow, this is fancy.” When Nadia lived here, we did this sort of thing a lot more often, as she and Angus were more domestic than Max and me.
“I figured we should try talking to each other once a week or so.”
Kia smirked at Angus. “Boy, you sound just like my mama. If you guilt me about family time, I won’t even notice I left home.”
Though she was joking, I could tell it was a nice surprise for her to wake up to a home-cooked meal. I got the potholders and delivered an egg casserole thing to the table. It had bacon in it, but since Angus was health-conscious, it would be turkey, not pork. I was mostly lapsed, religion-wise, but sometimes I felt bad for abandoning most of our family traditions. But this wasn’t time to think about parental disapproval and disappointment.