Vivian Arend - Turn It Up

“You’re killing me,” Tasha groaned. He’d turned her to her back, crawled between her legs, and was planting lazy kisses on the inside of her thighs.

“Nope. I’m finally getting what I’ve longed for. Besides, we’ve got all night.”

“I didn’t think we were going to have sex all night—Max!”

He licked everywhere. It took a concentrated effort to ignore the embarrassment factor and stop from squirming away. His tongue tickled her clit, descended along the side of her labia, crossed the divide to circle between her butt cheeks. If she weren’t half boneless from her climax she’d have complained more. As it was, the noises of delight he made as he explored, the wet sounds of his tongue and his fingers against her nether lips, all of it made her hotter.

He spoke against her sex, kissing lightly between the words. “You are beautiful, everywhere. The way you look, the way you taste. I can’t get enough of you.” Another sweep, and she shivered. The temperatures outside had begun to drop, but the heat in here was just fine, thank you very much.

Suddenly, he was inside her again, hunger for more written in all his actions, his every touch. He started slow and gentle, then caught on fire, pounding into her body like a madman, driving in hard. The muscles in his shoulder and forearms bulged as he held himself over her. His hips surged forward, and she pressed her heels down into the mattress to meet him. There was no possible way she could be ready to climax so soon, but somehow, she was. He had played her body so well that this wild act was exactly what she needed to be able to rise back up one final time. Their bodies slammed together. Tasha waited for a single second to take her away. When it came, it was a lightning strike—hard, immediate. It exploded out in magnificent blast. Her core tightened and a harsh groan escaped his lips and Max rocked unsteadily, his face twisted in a grimace, this time one of ecstasy.

There was too much heat, too much pleasure, to do anything other than stay in one place and wait for the earth to settle. Her heart pounded, their breathing echoed harshly off the walls. Contentment filled her. Okay, that had been spectacular, no matter what ulterior reason they had.

Tasha wrapped her arms around him and pulled him on top, sweaty body to sweaty body. The cool air of the room hovered over them, but the heat they’d generated was more than enough to create an oasis to hide from the world.

He kissed her gently. “I’m extremely happy right now.”

She pushed his hair back from his face and met his smile with one of her own.

“Me too.” A yawn escaped, even as she whipped up a hand to try and hide it.

Max laughed quietly. “Did I wear you out?”

She nodded lazily. Why not admit it? “Is there a quilt to go along with this comfy mattress? I don’t think I want to go home yet.”

He rolled off her slowly, tugging her legs until she was curled up on her side. He reached over their heads and grabbed a quilt that he shook over them. One more twist let him nestle his body around her, bare skin against bare, his wet cock nestled in the seam of her butt. She was too relaxed to even think of finding a pair of undies to pull on.

This had been far better than the sterile setting of a medical room, and far more pleasurable. As a means to an end, she could handle sex with Maxwell. As a means to finding fun—with a friend? That was all it was. Right?

The tiny tea lights went out one by one as drafts caught them, or the wicks grew too short. The light coming in the window faded to nothing. Surrounding her was the warmth of his arms and the soft whisper of his words.

“You are home.”

It was official. Maxwell Junior was officially head-over-heels in love.

He’d done his best to hide it from Tasha, and so far, he thought he had done a damn fine job. The shirt in his hands hung forgotten for a second as he wasted a moment regretting he wasn’t simply allowed to let her know how he felt. Still, she accepted his attention and seemed to be enjoying his company—all good things that boded well for the future, right?

The drawer in front of him was finally empty and he moved to the next. Clothing and collected bits of junk got sorted, some tossed into the garbage, some into the box he was packing.

“You want me to save any of these dishes?” Tasha called from the other room. “Anything sentimental in here?”

You. You’re the only thing in this house I need. He poked his head out of the bedroom and let the pleasure of seeing her wash over him again. “I picked most of them up at the thrift store when I finished college. Box them up and we can take them back there.”

Tasha leaned on the table and raised a brow as she eyed him up and down. “Interesting packing attire. I’m not sure I want to know.”

Max glanced down at himself and let out a snort. He was down to his boxers, and nothing else. “Yeah, unconventional, but it works. I figured if I was getting rid of old clothes, I should start with the T-shirt I was wearing. Then I realized that with all the dirt and dust bunnies I was unearthing, my shorts would just get messy—”

“The T-shirt you were wearing? There was nothing wrong with it. You didn’t throw it out, did you?”

She crossed her arms and gave him this look that he totally couldn’t interpret. He scrambled to explain. “It’s got a tear under the arm. It’s just one of my college shirts.”

Tasha marched past him, brushing his body as she slipped into his room and grabbed the discarded garment from the edge of the box where it had caught when he threw it earlier. “There’s nothing wrong with this shirt. You can’t throw it out.”

He laughed. “Okay, fine. You can have my ripped shirt.” It would look far better on her than on him anyway. Especially if she wore it with nothing underneath, her long legs bare, her breasts pressing the front of the fabric—

Oh boy. He shook his head and willed his cock to behave. They needed to get the packing done sometime this century. The pile of his belongings grew smaller as he prepared to move in with her. He swallowed hard. Even the thought was enough to re-engage his cock. It was really happening, not only the sex with his dream girl, but the whole relationship and moving-in and establishing-a-family thing. For him, the most important thing in his world. Screw it if some people thought he was crazy, he’d been looking for this all his life.

She shook the shirt in his face. “Thank you, it’s mine. You obviously haven’t had as much practice as I have in making things last as long as possible. Since we’re going to be roommates, you’re going to have to make a few adjustments. Hey, do you think there’s enough left in the fridge for lunch, or do we need to pick something up on the way to the lawyer’s?”

“I’m easy.” Max tried to make his shrug look nonchalant even as the roommates comment hit him hard. That’s what she still thought of them as? Damn. He obviously needed to turn the romancing up a whole lot harder. Of course it hadn’t been all that long since their first time together—two weeks in fact. Leaping forward into moving together had been Tasha’s suggestion, and it still floored him.

He grabbed her by the hand and pulled her against him. “Thanks for letting me move in with you so quick. The thought makes my head spin.”

“I’ll admit it’s a little weird to think about. I haven’t shared a place with anyone for years. But it makes sense, even if the entire Turner family is ready and waiting to ask us all sorts of questions.” She hesitated, then rested her arms around his shoulders as she played with the hair at the back of his neck. “Besides, you had a standing offer for this place, and my apartment is only a rental. Once the new house is officially done, we’ll be moving again.”

“You don’t want to have to move twice, admit it.”

He rolled his neck slightly, loving the glide of her fingers against his skin. She didn’t seem to mind physical contact with him outside the bedroom, but there was still something missing. The spontaneity wasn’t there yet, not on her part. Was it just the years she’d refused to see him as more than a friend? Had she gotten so good at turning him down she was now turning down what could be?

“Oh, I’m guilty of not wanting to move more than necessary. Hate it with a passion. In fact, I think I’ll hire that part of the job to some of the Turner clan. That will get me back in their good books, right?”

“You’re not in their bad books. It’s going to take time for them all to catch up. Just because news travels through the extended family like wildfire, doesn’t mean they take it in that fast. Look at my folks—they’re totally fine with the whole situation.”

“Your parents are incredible. I was sure they would at least give me a few dirty looks when they found out we were moving in together.”

“They are cool—but you gotta realize they’ve learned there’s no use arguing with me. I’m a grown-up, and I’ve proved enough times I can take care of myself. Besides, they like you. Always have.”

He swayed from side to side, enjoying the feel of his arms around her. They’d been making love daily for the past couple weeks, and he couldn’t get enough of touching her. They’d talked a ton as well, figuring out the details of the prenatal arrangement. He’d been careful to avoid anything like making a promise to keep things nonemotional, and nothing but “friends only forever”. He wasn’t about to lie, but he wasn’t about to scare her away.

He’d practice the fine art of the slow seduction of her heart and cross his fingers that no matter how much she said she only wanted a friend, that eventually she’d accept him as much more.