“That’s what happens when you spend the night with a curvy brunette wrapped around you like a vine.”
I swallowed hard. “I didn’t mean to... I must have moved in my sleep. I usually stay on my side.”
“I liked it,” he said. “I liked the way you sighed when I pulled you closer. I liked the way your skin felt against mine.”
My nipples were aching, rubbing against the fabric of my t-shirt as my chest heaved. I felt so small with his arm wrapped around me, so soft and vulnerable.
“Is it always like that?” I blurted out. “In the morning? It feels... substantial.”
Max pushed my hair back, his mouth gazing the curve of my shoulder. “Substantial? That’s the word you’re going with?”
“I’m a hardware girl, Max. I appreciate solid construction,” I snapped back, finally regaining some of my composure, even if my heart was trying to leap out of my throat.
He let out another one of those guttural chuckles, his lips leaving at rail of wet kisses along the side of my neck. “Yeah, it’s always like this lately. Ever since I started wondering what it would take to get you under me. This is six months of looking at you and wanting to stake my claim.”
He didn’t wait for me to process that. He flipped me over, his weight crushing me as he kissed me. His tongue swept into my mouth, demanding everything. I let out a broken moan, my fingers tangling in the thick hair at the back of his head. I was a goner. I’d walked into this thinking I was doing a favor fora grumpy mountain man, but as Max ground his hips against mine, letting me feel the absolute power of his need, I realized this had been what I wanted all along.
“We have to go to that brunch,” I whispered against his lips.
Max pulled back just enough to look at me, his eyes half-lidded. “Fuck the brunch,” he growled. He dipped his head again, his teeth catching the soft spot where my neck met my shoulder, a sharp, biting pressure that made me moan out loud. “I’ve spent months watching you walk around that store, wondering if you’d feel this good under me. You think I care about some half-assed brunch right now?”
My body arched into his against my will. I wanted him. I wanted to wrap my legs around his waist and find out exactly how substantial he really was. “They’ll come looking for us. If we don’t show up, Leo will think he won. He’ll think you’re up here hiding.”
Max stiffened, the name of his cousin acting like a bucket of cold water. He let out a long, frustrated hiss through his teeth, his grip on my hip tightening until it was almost painful. For a second, I thought he was going to ignore me and take what he wanted. What we both wanted.
“Get dressed, Frankie,” he commanded, levering himself off me and getting off the bed. He stood there, his arousal still prominent. “We’ll go down there. We’ll play their game. But don’t think for a second this is over.”
I could only nod, my voice gone. I’d thought I was the one doing him a favor by pretending to be his girlfriend. But as I watched him walk toward the bathroom, his body still hard, I realized I may have misread the situation entirely.
“And Frankie?” he stopped at the door, looking over his shoulder.
“Yeah?”
“Wear something that shows off those curves. I want Leo to spend the entire brunch looking at what he can’t have. I want every man here to know exactly why I’m not looking at anyone else.”
CHAPTER SIX
Max
Frankie came out of the bathroom in a yellow sundress.
Simple cotton, thin straps, the kind of thing that probably cost less than a full tank of gas. It hit just above her knee and flowed over her curves. Her hair was down, falling down her back in a brown silk waterfall. She’d put on some makeup and a pair of small gold earrings.
She picked up her phone and put it in the pocket of her dress. A dress with pockets. How very practical. How Frankie.
“No. Before we go down there I need to tell you something.”
She looked up at me. “What?”
“They are going to be out for blood.”
“I noticed that last night, Max.” Something in expression must have given me away because she frowned up at me. “Oh, you’re worried they’ll make fun of what I’m wearing?”
“No, that’s not it. You look beautiful.”
She placed a hand on my arm. “Don’t worry, Max. They won’t even notice me. I tend to fade into the background.”
I had to chuckle at that. “You did anything but that, Frankie. But we don’t have to go down. I’ve made my appearance yesterday. We can go back home.”
