And for some reason, I feel shy and glance away.
“What is it?” he asks, gripping my chin gently between his thumb and forefinger until I’m staring back at him.
I shake my head, not even sure, myself.
“You just keep surprising me, is all,” I reply.
His eyes soften. “Is that good or bad?”
I nod. “It’s good.”
Smiling, he leans forward and kisses the tip of my nose. Fuck. He will turn me into a sentimental sap if he’s not careful.
His eyes glance to the clock hanging on the wall behind me. “We have about an hour before I have to go home to change and we need to be at the hall. Fancy taking a shower with me?” he asks, trailing his finger up the inside of my thigh but keeping his eyes on me.
I stand up and drop my dressing gown, hand on my hip.
“Last one there has to wash the others back first,” I say before darting past him and towards the bathroom. I don’t even reach the hallway before he grabs me from behind when something like a growl vibrates through my body.
He moves my hair off my shoulder, gaining access to my neck, and starts kissing me. My entire body tingles, and I know what he’s doing.
“Don’t mark me, please,” I say in a high-pitched voice. I haven’t had a love bite since Tanya, and all it does is resurface toxic memories.
He spins me in his arms and studies my face for a moment.
“Sorry, you just taste so fucking good.”
The tension eases, and I let out a soft laugh as his mouth descends, kissing my lips softly. His hands roam over my body, and I melt under his touch as he backs me against the wall, pinning me flush against his body.
Pulling back, he gives me a devilish smile. “How about you let me get you dirty before we shower? Make it count.”
I lick my lips, my body a live wire. “Okay,” I reply, my voice coming out sultry.
* * *
Nathan drops me off at my mum and dad’s on his way to go and change. He’s bringing everything we loaded into his car. My dad is letting me borrow his car, and Mum and Dad are coming up in hers, or should I say Max’s. They bought it for his seventeenth birthday and couldn’t bear to part with it after he died. I would have had it if they had offered. I don’t have a car of mine, so I borrow my dad’s when I need to. The rest of the time, I stick to my oyster and jump on the tube or walk if it’s close enough. But today, I need a car, hence me borrowing my dad’s.
I let myself in, and the smell of freshly cooked food assails my senses and makes my stomach grumble. Let’s just say the toast did nothing after our sex escapades before we showered. I’m not complaining, but we will need to discuss it later.
“Hi, Mum,” I say, walking into the kitchen to find her wrapping the last couple of food trays.
Every surface in the kitchen is covered with platters of food.
“Thanks for doing this,” I say, kissing her cheek.
She smiles. “Of course, dear, it’s no different to what I would have done if Max was still here, and this was the two of them.”
It's a sucker punch to my stomach. As much as I miss my brother, we can’t change the past, and it’s not fair she still manages to make this about Max. He wouldn’t have wanted this. I can hear him in my head, saying he was far from perfect and that my parents shouldn’t put him on some angelic pedestal. The words are on the tip of my tongue, but my dad enters, smiling widely and pulling me in for a hug.
“You look nice,” he says, eyes roaming over my outfit.
I feel my face heat a little from his compliment.
“As do you, my love,” he says, pulling my mum into his side and kissing her temple.
It’s rare to see their affection so open in the moment, not clouded in hidden grief.
She turns her face to his, and without missing a beat, he captures her lips in a sweet kiss, one I find myself looking away from.
