by M. Tasia
His words loosened something deep inside of Saint. “Only you, no one else. Okay?”
Max’s eyes lit up before he said, “Only me, babe.”
The honesty and affection in Max’s voice shouldn’t have surprised him, but after a life spent searching for hidden meanings and private agendas, it was still a shock.
Saint uttered words he’d never spoken before. “Make love to me.”
Sex was easy.
Involving emotions was the hard part.
Max pulled away from kissing his neck and looked down at Saint. “I will always make love to you.”
No words were needed after that, as the two lost themselves in each other’s bodies. Saint wanted to take his time and explore every inch of Max, but his desire made him edgy and desperate. “Condoms and lube are in the top drawer of the side table. I need to feel you filling me.”
Max reached over and grabbed the supplies before tossing them onto the bed beside Saint’s hip. “All in good time. I’m not finished exploring yet.” The growl in Max’s voice along with that sexy grin only served to excite Saint further.
The combination of Max’s wet tongue and the scrape of his teeth as he worked his way down Saint’s body had him distracted. When Max’s finger circled his hole, Saint was surprised and so needy. He spread his legs wider, causing the tip to slide into him. Before he could form a thought, Max sucked Saint’s cock down his throat and swallowed.
Saint lifted off the bed as he suddenly came without warning. Max didn’t miss a beat as he swallowed him down but refused to release Saint’s sensitive cock. Max continued to suck and lick his prize before taking one of Saint’s balls into his talented mouth. Saint didn’t have a chance to lose his hard-on as his cock and balls were lavished with Max’s attention.
Max’s thick finger slid out, making him groan for its return. “Please, don’t stop.”
“I have no intention of stopping,” Max replied as his fingers returned covered in lube. Saint hadn’t even heard the bottle click open. “Relax, babe, and let me stretch you.”
Saint laid his head back on the pillow and threw his arms out to his sides, allowing Max free reign over his body. He’d noticed the gentle way in which Max handled his stomach injury, especially when he kissed the dressing protecting his healing wound. It had almost brought tears to his eyes to have someone so obviously concerned about him and what he needed. Saint had never felt that, and now that he’d had a taste, he’d be craving the feeling from now on.
His lover pumped Saint’s throbbing cock while sucking on his mushroomed head as a third finger slid inside him. Saint tore at the sheets with each rush of endorphins slamming through him with every move Max made.
The first brush against his prostate had him reaching for Max, wanting to make him feel even a small percentage of the bliss he was feeling. However, his lover gently pushed his hands back down. “This is about you, Saint, what you need and the attention you deserve. There’s plenty of time left in the day to switch it up. You are my only priority.”
Words Saint never dreamed would be directed at him. He was someone’s priority.
By the time he heard the rip of the condom wrapper, Saint was overwhelmed with sensations and emotions. When he shifted to turn over onto his stomach, Max stopped him by placing a hand on his chest.
“I want to see your face when we make love for the first time. Unless it will hurt your stomach?”
The concern in Max’s voice had Saint wanting to do whatever it took to make this man happy, but he had to be honest. “I’m not sure. I haven’t been with anyone since I was shot.” He felt a bit odd at confessing his dry spell.
Max rubbed his hands up and down Saint’s thighs, calming him instantly. “Then we go slow, at least until we make sure you’re not in pain.”
“As long as that doesn’t mean stop, I’m in.” There was no way Saint wanted this to end. He wanted to spend the whole day in bed with Max.
Max lifted Saint’s legs onto his arms and he could feel Max’s lubed cock nudging his hole. Saint had never been so ready to be filled, and pushed himself down until the head of Max’s cock slid in, making them both groan into the silence of the room.
“Easy, babe, I’ll make sure you’re satisfied but I refuse to hurt you.” Max stilled and waited for Saint to give him the go-ahead to slide deeper inside him.
It wasn’t long before Saint relaxed and Max pushed forward. The burn was intense. It had been a while since he’d bottomed for anyone. With Max it felt right having him inside his body, joined together as close as two people could ever become.
Once Max was fully seated, Saint reached around and cupped Max’s hard ass, needing to have a bit of control. Max seemed to understand and allowed Saint to direct the speed at which Max slid in and out of his body.
Soon enough Saint lost his rhythm. The ecstasy of having Max fill him became too much. Every brush against his prostate sent him higher. He knew he was moaning load enough to be heard out into the hub, but he didn’t care if Finn or Miguel heard them. For the first time in his life, he was being made love to, and he wouldn’t stop it even if the walls burst into flames.
“That’s it, babe, just feel. S’good,” Max rumbled. Saint’s eyes were hooded as Max increased his speed until the bed began to shake. Saint wasn’t sure if the frame could take it, but he didn’t care. He’d put the mattress on the floor if he had too. “Are you in pain?” Max asked, ever concerned about him.
Other than the initial twinge when Max had bottomed out inside of him, Saint felt no pain from his injury. Though he was sure he’d feel it later, that didn’t matter at this point in time. “No, I’m good. Don’t stop, I’m so close.”
Max wrapped his hand around Saint’s cock and began pumping in time with every stroke. Saint’s balls pulled up tight to his body as fire raced down his spine before he roared his release to the ceiling and streams of come covered his bandaged stomach. Max seemed to double his efforts until he pushed deep inside of Saint and came with a combination growl/groan.
Damn, that is so fucking sexy.
The euphoria surrounding Saint was unrivaled by anything he’d ever experienced, and as Max lowered his legs Saint reached for his lover. Max leaned forward and captured Saint’s lips in a lazy kiss full of emotion.
Max gently pulled out and disposed of his condom before pulling Saint into his arms. “I’ll get you cleaned up in a minute. I can’t stand being away from you at the moment.”
Saint could accept that and sank into his lover’s arms. Slow touches and soft kisses soothed Saint even further until his eyes closed and he drifted off to sleep.
The next time he woke Saint found a tray of food sitting on the side table and he’d been cleaned up. How had he slept through all of that?
“Eat, babe. You’re going to need your strength for what I have planned.” Max smiled wide as he handed a plate over to him.
Saint didn’t argue. He took the food and ate every last bite, from the fluffy eggs to the crispy bacon. As it turned out, Max had multiple plans as they remained in bed for the rest of the day, only surfacing for food and showers.
Until the lovers fell into an exhausted but happy sleep.
Chapter Eleven
True to his word, Saint had reported his father’s attack and took out a temporary restraining order against him. Having Max as a witness to all that had transpired the night of his father’s visit made the process much easier. Now if dear old dad returned, one call to LAPD and he’d be sitting behind bars. The fact that Saint would be putting his own father in a cage was unsettling for obvious reasons, but Saint was done with being on guard all the time. He’d also contacted Johnny to give him the heads-up that their father was on a rampage.
Max and his team had carefully removed the carved wooden panels from around the bar and had begun restoring them at his shop in Santa Monica. So far, Max hadn’t asked Saint why the carvings were so important to him, no doubt respecting his privacy. Saint argued with himself for days
over whether to share those private memories with Max.
Saint had visited the offices of Connor Construction several times over the past couple weeks and seen the small apartment Max had been staying in while in the city. It made Saint happier knowing that he hadn’t taken Max away from an expensive apartment to stay with him in his shambles of a building. Although the maxim was “It looks worse before it gets better.”
The day Max had brought over a duffle bag of clothing and toiletries, something settled inside Saint. He had never lived with someone as an adult, and thought it would have been a bigger struggle to get used to sharing his space than it actually was. His nightmares hadn’t gone away, but at least he hadn’t tried to punch Max again in his sleep.
Sometimes, they’d go all day without running into one another. Max was busy with several projects, and Saint dove into the restoration with a passion he hadn’t had since he’d lost the ability to operate. But no matter their day, they’d come together in the evenings in their comfy clothes to watch television and talk over their days. Typically while he laid his head on Max’s lap, while sprawled out on the couch.
However, no matter how busy he was, Max would check in with Saint throughout the day to touch base. When his father used to do the same thing, Saint felt as if he were being kept on a short leash. Now though, when Max texted or called, Saint felt wanted and needed for the right reasons. Funny how the same behavior from two different individuals elicited polar opposite responses.
Finn continued to slowly come out of his shell, allowing Saint the opportunity to learn more about his life before he’d found the young man living in his doorway. As Saint had originally thought, Finn was from the Midwest, Iowa to be exact, though he stopped short of narrowing it down to a city or town. He had one brother who was overseas on his third tour of duty somewhere in the Middle East. Finn hadn’t talked to him in over a year, having left Iowa while his brother was away. He was proud of his brother and Saint could tell that Finn missed him.
“Boss, you going to sit there staring at the wall all day?” Finn teased as he walked into his newly renovated office complete with painted walls, furniture, and cabinets. Though Saint had instructed Max to concentrate on the public areas of the first floor, the man refused to listen, citing that Saint would need a respectable office to run the bar and restaurant while they continued on to the condominiums.
The fact that Max had also started working on the hub on his free time was lumped into that same logic. Saint needed a place to kick back and relax in comfort because it could be years before his penthouse condominium was completed considering it was scheduled as the last item on a substantial list.
“I’m thinking, smart-ass,” Saint shot back as Finn sat down one of the newly acquired ergonomically designed chairs in front of his own desk.
Yeah, Finn had a desk and a title. The kid was intelligent and caught on easily. Bonus was that he didn’t take shit from anybody. Which made him the best right-hand man and manager Saint could have asked for. Finn had an affinity for computers, and Saint had ensured he had the programs they needed to get everything in order. However, all of this made Saint wonder about Finn’s schooling and whether he might like to take a few courses.
“I’ve been thinking. How far did you get in your education?”
Finn took his time to think before he answered, “First semester of college, but I can still handle anything you can throw at me.”
“I’m not worried that you can’t handle something,” Saint explained while reminding himself to be ever mindful of Finn’s constant concern that everything would be taken away from him at any moment. “I was suggesting we look into some courses over at Cal State that would help out around here. There’s no way I’m going back to school and you’re young, so I thought if you were interested, you’d go.”
The look in Finn’s eyes confused Saint. He couldn’t quite decipher if the kid was shocked or angry. He was hoping for the former because he hadn’t intended for this to be a problem or a touchy subject.
“You want to send me to school?” Finn’s voice remained monotone.
Why did that sound like a trick question? “Um…only if you want to go.”
“Why?”
“Shit, kid. You’re intelligent. I can see that. Some business courses could only help us in the future. This is up to you, the offer doesn’t expire,” Saint assured before standing up to look out the one window they had in the office. “There’s no strings attached, and if you decide to move on, you could use what you’ve learned to get a good job.”
“So I won’t be forced to live on the streets again?” At least Finn’s voice had softened a touch.
Saint didn’t bother to turn around. “Yeah, so you will always have the security of an education. No one can take that from you.”
He heard Finn’s chair slide back from his desk and assumed the kid was leaving to think things over. What Saint didn’t expect was for Finn to come up and hug him from behind.
“Thank you, boss,” Finn said.
“Hey, hands off my boyfriend.” Max’s happy voice brought an even bigger smile to Saint’s face.
Finn released him and they turned to find Max and Miguel standing in the open doorway. “I’m going to school. The boss is sending me back to college. Can you believe it?”
“Yep, I can.” Max grinned as he walked over, pulled Saint into his arms, and kissed the side of his neck. Open shows of affection were a completely new world for Saint. “Hello, babe. Having a good day?”
“Yeah. The plumbers are on the second floor and we should be able to hit our inspection deadline now that you’ve managed to get a few more men in.”
“Good, that will make up for the lost time we spent replacing those rotted walls from all the water leaking down into the original wine cellar.”
“I’m still sorry we couldn’t save the existing oak racks that held the bottles.” If Saint had his way, he’d figure out a way to save everything, but he knew that was impossible.
“Don’t worry, Saint, we’ll get it looking spectacular down there,” Miguel added as he sat on the same old couch they’d brought into the office since they’d started. The Marine refused to throw it out, saying it added character to the room. “Besides, now that you’ve decided to add a private dining experience in the cellar, we would have had to tear them out anyway.”
“All true, but I can’t help but want to save as much as I can.”
“You are, Saint. Everything that is salvageable is being restored, repaired, or repurposed. You can’t do any more than you already are,” Max assured him.
“I’m going to go get my laptop out of the hub and start looking at business and management classes.” Finn cheered as he left the room.
“Miguel, could you give us a little privacy? I need to discuss something with Saint,” Max asked, before leaning against the edge of one of the desks.
Saint went on alert. Max had never asked Miguel to leave before, well, not unless they were going to fool around. However, by the tone of Max’s voice, that wasn’t the case this time.
“Understood,” Miguel stated, stood, and shut the office door behind him when he left.
“What’s wrong?” Saint wasn’t going to beat around the bush.
“A friend of mine down at the planning office let me know there have been a few inquiries into your building.” Max gave it to him straight, which he appreciated.
“Inquiries? What type?” Why would anyone care about this building? It sat empty for decades.
“Mainly permitting and licensing. There have also been questions raised about me and Connor Construction.”
That was enough for the pieces to fall into place. “My father.”
“That’s what I’m thinking, but as far as I know he has nothing to find. Everything is in order and I’ve worked in this city a long time. My reputation is solid.” Max didn’t look overly bothered about someone looking into him. Saint wished he could say the same.
He leaned into M
ax, who had been rubbing soothing circles on Saint’s lower back. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to drag you into this.”
“Hey.” Max used his other hand to turn Saint’s head so that they were looking at each other. “You didn’t drag me anywhere. I sought you out. I want to be by your side. This is my choice. You mean a great deal to me.”
“You mean the world to me as well, but what if he messes with your livelihood or family? I can’t let anything happen to them. You’ve only known me a short while in the grand scheme of things. You need to protect yourself, your mom, and Grandma Evie.”
Max smiled and repeated a line Saint had been hearing every time he’d had doubts. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“Then what do we do? I’m acutely aware of how far Thomas Jeffrey will go to get what he wants. The question is, what does he want? There is nothing personal or professional left between us.” For the life of him, Saint had no clue.
“Whatever it is, he’s not giving up easily. Miguel is already aware of the situation, but I’ll have to let the team in on this, so they can keep an eye out for anything or anyone unusual around the site.”
“Yeah, I’d hoped it wouldn’t come to this. I’m useless to him any longer, so what the hell could he want from me?” Saint used one of the words his father had spat at him in the hospital after Saint had recovered consciousness.
“You are far from useless and I don’t want to hear that shit again. You’re perfect. Even if one narcissistic asshole could never see that, it doesn’t make it any less true.”
Saint cupped Max’s face in his still-bandaged hands, those three little words hovering so close to the surface. Fear stole his voice. Saint wasn’t brave enough to utter them for the first time quite yet.
***
Max watched as Saint struggled with the words on the tip of his tongue, but Max didn’t need them. He already knew Saint loved him, as he loved Saint. It was crazy how fast it was all moving especially after such an inauspicious first meeting, but he had not one reservation about being with Saint. Even if the man still did.
