Act cool.
I take a few steps down and they both focus on me. My eyes anchor on Max as he smirks, dropping his gaze over my body. I bite my lower lip, catching my wide smile in my teeth. I want to run into his arms and kiss him feverishly, but I restrain myself.
My heart pirouettes. "Hi, Max."
"Hey, Little One."
Dad smiles tightly and wanders toward me, planting a little kiss on my cheek. "I'm going to bed. Cassidy, maybe put something more appropriate on for the drive."
The drive?
I blink at Max, who is looking smug. "Okay," I murmur.
Dad disappears up the stairs, surprising me. I'm his youngest child. His baby girl. Why is he allowing me to leave at this time of night and go... where?
Max gradually stands and moves toward me. His throat pulses as he meets me at the stairs and for the firsttime, we're the same height. He takes me all in for a moment, in no hurry to stop his gaze from stripping me bare. "You're staying at my house tonight."
A smile takes over my face. "Okay."
He chuckles once. "You don't hide anything, do you?"
"I try. I'm just not very good at it."
As I rub my hands down the hard grooves of his chest, his muscles twitch beneath my fingertips. I can feel the breath from his lips, the hot sweetness beckoning mine towards them. My skin is suddenly humming with desperation. Desperate to be touched. Desperate to be taken. We stare at each other, eyes heated. My hands find their way into his hair and then suddenly his lips are on mine. His hands are gripping my arse. My legs are around his waist.
The cotton of my knickers presses against his abdomen as he carries me effortlessly up the stairs and into my room.
This is a different experience altogether. Here I am, in my house, Konnor and Blesk asleep in the room beside mine. But we are still us, Max and me. When we are together, it's like the rest of the world fades away.
Every cell in my body is on fire as his kiss consumes me. The door opens and shuts behind us.
He crawls onto the bed with me, caging me beneath his hot, heavy, needy body. My limbs open to accommodate his breadth. I cry out when he slaps my thigh on a growl. He worships my leg, running his hand down to my calf and up to the soft inner flesh of my thigh.
"You have the sexiest legs," he groans between kisses. "I need to taste you."
Nipping and licking his way down to the little divot between my collar bones, he tongues it suggestively. I squeeze my eyes shut, his mouth overwhelming me. I let outa long, needy moan, thrust my pelvis up into his abdomen, and rub myself on him shamelessly.
He stops suddenly at my chest and raises a hand to my mouth. "Shh." He shuffles back up and presses his forehead to mine before looking at me and loosening his grip around my mouth.
My lips part immediately as I breathe hard. "Sorry."
He seems to be gathering his own composure. "Don't ever apologise for those beautiful noises. Just go pack a bagnow." I slide out from under him slowly, noting the big, defined bulge between his thighs. I smile, loving that I affect him just as strongly as he does me. The urge to climb onto his lap is only held back by my curiosity of seeing his place... Of course, knowing that once we're there, we'll have all night to continue what we started helps me do as I'm told.
While I'm riffling around trying to find my black yoga pants and favourite pink tee-shirt, Max wanders into my ensuite bathroom. I'm debating what panties to grab, knowing quite well they'll be seen and touched and taken off by Max Butcher, when he strides out of the ensuite, the door slamming behind him. Taken aback by the noise, I spin to face him.
He looks at me, but his eyes are unreadable. "Are you injured?" he asks tightly.
My mind shuffles information around in confusion for a few moments before realisation dawns. "Oh, the ice bath. No. Well, a little. I hurt my ankle today."
He mashes his teeth together, blinking unnaturally fast. "Just your ankle?"
I shift my gaze around. "Yeah."
"Why the whole bath?"
"I don't know," I say, taking a little step towards him. "I've always done it that way. It’s good for you."
"Who told you that?" he bites out.
