God, Max.
After several minutes, I heard the front door close and Max’s heavy steps approach up the stairs.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, I dug my nails into the mattress, and his eyes met mine. He looked apologetic.
“That was awkward,” he said.
“Max, she’s so toxic. Why is she even in your life?”
“She and my father own fifty-one percent of my company—well, the family trust does. But she controls it.”
I hadn’t known that. “How did that happen?”
“She fronted the money when I started. We kept growing, so I could never buy her out.”
I scratched my head. “How have you put up with that for so long?”
This man was…fearless. He took shit from no one. And compared to her, he was a saint.
He sat next to me on the edge of the unmade bed, but didn’t look at me. “I’ve tried to get through to her—she is, after all, my mother—but she doesn’t believe there’s anything wrong with the way she behaves. Not even the fact that my sister disowned her and won’t speak with anyone who has a connection with her has swayed my mother’s opinion.”
That was such a sad thing to hear. His own sister had chosen to leave her entire family behind rather than have even indirect contact with that evil woman. I understood why, but couldn’t she have found a way? On the other hand, who knew how damaged his sister was. Maybe just looking at Max, who had his own issues to deal with, reminded her of her pain.
“It’s the reason I decided to take C.C. public,” he explained. “Once that happens, my mother will own stock—so will I—but we’ll have a board of trusties and shareholders. She won’t hold any real power.”
I bit my lip.
So C.C. was really a family company and the IPO wasn’t just a move to grow. It was Maxwell Cole’s passage to freedom. Everything he’d been doing wasn’t for greed or power, but to escape.
“Does she accept any blame for your disorder?” I asked.
“No. And she doesn’t acknowledge her own.”
What a great mom.
“And the book?” I asked. “Does she know?”
“Yes.” He rubbed his unshaven jaw. “She’s not pleased. She stands to lose a lot of money if the company goes under, but that’s my issue to deal with, not yours.”
Not exactly true. It was my issue too, but I understood what he meant. The problem was that I cared. And I wanted to know how he ever expected to truly get over his issue if this vile, cruel woman remained in his life.
“Max, will there ever be a point that she’ll be completely gone?” I couldn’t begin to articulate what being in her presence had felt like. There wasn’t an ounce of compassion or niceness in her body. She was simply evil.
“Not unless I follow in my sister’s footsteps and disown my entire family, including my father,” he responded.
I couldn’t imagine being put in that position. Having to choose between your family and your sanity. Especially since he’d already lost his sister.
“So your father’s still with your mother?”
He nodded. “Yes. He’s terrified of her, which is another reason I find it hard to cut them out of my life.” I didn’t have to ask if that meant his father never stood up for him. I pretty much guessed he hadn’t.
Wow. I suddenly felt so grateful for my insanely loving parents. They would never allow anyone, let alone someone in our family, to hurt us like that.
“Let’s get some breakfast,” he said, giving my bare thigh a loving stroke. “Then I can take you to your thrift-store debacle to collect some clothes.”
He didn’t want to talk about it anymore, and I understood why. Still, my heart genuinely went out to this beautiful man, and strangely, it didn’t make him lesser in my eyes. It made him more—more human, more admirable. He’d built his dream despite having to deal with some rather daunting emotional obstacles.
“Max, don’t go insulting my woman cave. And why would I need clothes?” I stood in front of him and stripped off his tux shirt, letting it fall to the floor.
His eyes traveled up and down the length of my naked body.
He cleared his throat. “Well, I didn’t say you needed them right away. But you can’t go to work like that tomorrow. I mean, yes, you could…but then I wouldn’t get any work done.”
“I’ll go home tonight.”
“Not to stay.” He folded his arms over his bare chest.
“Max, I can’t live here. It’s too weird. And that Nancy woman is probably watching your house.”
“You’re not living here; you’re staying for a few weeks. To start. And that Nancy woman can screw herself.” He stood and grabbed me around the waist. “And if you don’t mind, Lily, I’d like to get on with some screwing of my own.”
I couldn’t resist that charming smile. Not when it was so genuinely seductive and those little smile grooves had made an appearance. “Fine. You can screw me.” My sore body demanded it now that I felt the heat of his hard cock pressing against me through his pants. “But we’re not done with this conversation.” He kissed me and backed me up until my ass ran into the narrow table against the wall.
I reached for the button of his pants and opened them up. The moment they fell around his ankles, he stepped out and spun me around. Before I realized what he was doing, he pushed me forward and stroked me from behind, letting his fingers slide between my folds, instantly drawing a soft moan from my lips.
“God, Lily, you’re already wet for me.” His tone indicated how much that pleased him. He suddenly gripped my hips and thrust into me in one smooth, hard stroke, stealing my breath.
He pulled out and thrust his hips forward again.
I let out a sharp gasp. He felt so good inside me, but there was no doubt that the three rounds of sex from last night had left me raw and overly tense. He wasn’t getting very deep.
“You’re so fucking tight, Lily.” Holding me firmly, he withdrew and eased in again. “Try to relax.” This time he stayed there, not moving for several moments, allowing me to enjoy the sensation of his thick cock inside me. I felt my muscles relax around his hard flesh and then the throbbing, buzzing euphoric pressure building on my c-spot. I wanted him to touch me there, but knew if he did, it would all be over too quickly.
“That’s right,” he said in a husky voice. “Just like that.” He slowly pulled out and eased back in again, applying pressure to that sweet, sweet spot deep inside me. “Try to stay relaxed.”
The sensual sound of his deep voice and the coaxing, smooth motions of his hips and shaft felt like a blissful massage of my aching inner walls. They molded around him, allowing him to deepen the penetration.
I could tell he liked it and was close already because as he pushed forward again, burying himself fully inside me, his grip on my hips tightened. “God, you feel so good, Lily.”
Now that I’d warmed up a little, I wanted him to show me exactly how good. “Don’t hold back.”
He didn’t need me to twist his arm, because the force of his next thrust jarred my body forward, forcing me to press my palms to the wall. With the entire weight of his body, he pounded into me, his hips slapping against my ass. With the stamina of a wild beast, he went on and on and I never wanted it to end.
“Fucking hell, Lily, you feel so goddamned good. I can’t get enough of you.”
The sound of his deep husky voice pushed me closer to my own release. And when he bowed his large body over me, digging his forehead between my shoulder blades and cupping my breast, I couldn’t wait anymore. I reached down with one hand and stroked myself, immediately feeling the hard waves of sinful contractions paralyze me. God, what you do to me Max.
Max’s head fell back, his face tilted toward the ceiling, as he came inside me with sharp little thrusts. “Fuck, Lily. Oh fuck.” His tense body ground against me while my mind floated away.