“I’ve missed you too.” I laugh as he lifts me off the ground, then dumps me over his shoulder. “What are you doing?” I hold onto his waist as he carries me up the steps to the second floor.
“Going to show you just how much I missed you.” He squeezes my ass, and I close my eyes, hoping like hell this isn’t too good to be true.
Chapter 10
April
WITH THE SUN casting shards of light around the edge of the blinds in my bedroom, I lie awake, listening to the sound of Maxim’s heart’s steady beat. Having him back with me last night meant I slept like I haven’t in days. I missed him more than I let myself realize. I missed waking up to him, being held by him, his presence in my space, and the way he makes me feel.
All that said, if I let myself think about the way I feel about him too long, I will freak myself out. Trust is not something that comes easy for me, especially when it comes to men. I can’t even blame that mistrust on the men most important in my life, because all of them are shining examples of what men should be. Loving, loyal, dependable, and protective. It’s the men outside of those closest to me, the ones I’ve dated, my girlfriends have fallen for, or just guys I know who have taught me to tread cautiously when it comes to allowing my heart’s involvement in any type of relationship.
“What are you thinking about?” Maxim’s sleepy voice drags me from my thoughts as he uses his hand on my hip to drag me deeper into his side.
“Nothing really.” I slide my hand around his waist, hitching my thigh higher up on his hip, while I burrow my face into his warm skin.
“Liar.” He squeezes my hip. “You’re not talking yourself out of coming home with me, are you?”
“No.” I tip my head back, and his chin dips to meet my gaze.
“That’s good, since it would suck to have to kidnap you,” he mumbles, making me laugh, and his eyes move to my mouth and his expression changes ever so slightly. “So fucking pretty.”
My belly dips at the compliment, and without thinking, I move my hand to his jaw and lean up to kiss him. He slides his fingers behind my knee, using it to drag me over him to straddle his waist.
“Morning.” I smile down at him.
“Morning.” His palm glides up my back, into my hair, and I lower my face toward him, ignoring my cell phone when it rings. “Wanna get that?”
“No.” I brush my lips across his while rolling my hips into him. With nothing between us, neither of us having dressed last night after our shower, the head of his cock rubs against my clit, causing a mewl of pleasure to pass my lips. “We need a condom,” I pant against his mouth when he rocks up against me.
“Got tested when I got home. I’m clean.” His eyes lock with mine, and my heart starts to pound.
Before him, it had been months since I had been with anyone, and when I got my birth control replaced recently, they tested me for everything under the sun. But going without a condom is not something I have done with anyone. Ever.
“It’s okay. Let me get to my bag, and I’ll grab a condom.” He starts to move me, but I shake my head and dig my fingers into his pecs. “It’s okay, baby. I’ll wait for that, wait for you to trust me with all of you.” His thumb skims over my bottom lip. “I want more than your wet heat strangling my cock, or to know how good it feels to be bare inside you. I want you, all of you, even the pieces that you work so hard to protect.”
My throat burns. I stare into his eyes, and my fingers dig into his skin. “I want to trust you.” It’s not a lie. I do want to trust him. I want to give him the opportunity to earn my trust and to allow myself to be vulnerable with him. Instead of telling him all of that, I lick my lips, then lift up slightly, then hiss when the head of his cock bumps against my entrance.
“Fuck.” His expression becomes darker, and his hold on me tightens as I slide down his length. When I’m full of him and there is no space left between us, I bury my face in his neck while his arms wrap around me tight. “You okay?”
“Yeah.” I swallow down the overwhelming amount of emotions coursing through me and make sure I’m not going to do something ridiculous like cry before I lean back.
“Look at me, April.” The softly spoken order and his fingers on my jaw draw my gaze to his. “Fair warning.” He wraps his hands around my hips and uses his hold to rock me against him. “I want way more than just your pussy or the use of your body, and I always get what I want.” How a threat like that can sound so damn sweet is anyone’s guess, but my eyes slide closed, then open when he lifts his hips off the bed, making me whimper. “Ride me.”
Without a fight, I start out slow, taking my time, memorizing the way he feels, the way he’s looking at me, the soft touch of his hands in such contrast with the look in his eyes. He cups my breasts, his fingers tugging at my nipples before he sits up, locking his lips around one, then the other.
My fingers glide into his hair, and my head falls back on my shoulders as I start to pant for breath, sure I will never get enough air in my lungs. I ride him faster and harder, chasing the orgasm I feel right at the tips of my fingers. And I know he’s right there with me when he falls back to the bed, slides one hand between my legs, and circles my clit, the other delving into my hair, yanking me down so that our mouths are almost touching.
“Maxim,” I breathe against his lips, then gasp when he kisses me hard, thrusting up into me even harder. The ball of pleasure that has been slowly building and growing in my lower belly expands, then combusts, lighting me up from the inside out. I moan his name against his lips as I lose myself, listening to him groan, hips jerking and his hand in my hair tightening. With my core clenching around him, I tuck my face into his neck, holding on to him with every part of me, while he presses his forehead against my throat.
“I’m going to kill whoever that is,” he grumbles against my skin, and it registers that someone is ringing my doorbell. “Are you expecting someone?”
“No.” I somehow pull myself away from him and look at my cell phone when it starts to ring. “Can you reach that for me?” With his arm around me, he grabs my phone, handing it over. I frown when I see July is calling, then the doorbell goes off again. “It’s my sister.”
“Answer it,” he says, keeping hold of me, and as I give him a look, he grins. Carefully, I get off him and fall to my hip at his side before I slide my finger across the screen.
“Hello,” I answer, proud that I don’t sound as breathless as I still feel.
“Are you home?”
“Yes.”
“Oh.” She sounds calmer than when I answered. “You’re not answering the door.”
“You’re here?” I watch Maxim stand and head for the bathroom.
“Yes, come let me in.”
“Give me five minutes.” I hang up, then carefully roll off the bed and go into the bathroom to clean up. I go to my closet and put on a pair of sweats and a tank top. “I’m going to let my sister in.”
“I’ll be down once I get dressed.” He brushes his lips across mine, then heads for the closet where he put his suitcase.
When I get down to the first floor, I open the door to not just my sister but her husband, Wes, who has a cat carrier in his grasp.