“Thanks for coming to get me a little later. Stuart’s just been giving me such hard time lately.” I moved in close as Max put his arms around me. “We went out a few times, almost a year ago and he’s still angry with me for breaking it off. It just didn’t seem like a good idea for him to see you, picking me up tonight.”
“Or dropping you off this morning?” Max teased. He held me a little tighter. “I can imagine how he feels.” He leaned down and kissed me until my knees were soft and trembling. I could feel his thick cock pressing through the thin fabric of my dress. “I know I’d never want to see you in any other man’s arms.”
I smiled, breathless from the kiss, feeling my cheeks flood with warmth and spread downward to my belly. My whole body was anticipating the evening to come. My nipples were hard and sensitive. My clit brushed against my panties and I felt a growing warmth and slickness…
We’d been so drawn to each other from the very first moment. And in every moment since, Max had shown me that he was honorable and trustworthy. I knew it was all happening fast, but I knew in my heart this was no mistake. It just felt so right…
“Ana, I’m glad you stayed late tonight.” I heard Stu’s voice from down the hall and suddenly felt cold. I’d been so sure he’d be gone for the day by now…
“Do you want to get a bite for dinner…” His face came around the doorway and his flushed cheeks went pale. He looked up at Max, who towered over him, and his eyes narrowed. “Oh, I didn’t realize…” he said stiffly.
“Max came to pick me up, Stuart, since I don’t have my car…” I stumbled through. I could see the anger building in Stu’s eyes. It was only that morning that I’d told him I’d keep my private life away from the museum.
“Collins, is it?” Max came forward and put out a large hand. I watched as Stu took it reluctantly and tried to stand taller. “I’m Maxim Ivanov. A good friend of Ana’s.” He kept ahold of Stu’s hand, gripping hard. I watched Stuart’s fingers turn white. “I’m afraid she’s spoken for this evening, although you’re more than welcome to join us, if you’re on you’re own…”
I could hear the amusement in Max’s voice.
Stuart disengaged his hand and took a step backwards, flexing his fingers. Max smiled down at him.
“No… no thank you,” Stuart managed. He looked around Max to me. I could see what it was costing him to stay polite. His face was flushed and he was white around the eyes. He was furious.
“I only thought you might need a ride, Ana. But I can see you’ve taken care of that.” He glanced up at Max, who still smiled patiently.
“Maxim,” Stuart said, with a dismissive nod. He turned for the door. “Meeting in my office at eight Monday morning, Ana. See to it you’re on time.”
I bit my lip and looked at Max’s face as Stu’s footsteps echoed down the hall. “I’m going to pay for this. He’s angry. And I’m afraid you may have made an enemy.” I smiled guiltily. “He knew you were teasing him…”
Secretly, I was pleased with how Max had handled Stu. He’d been polite, but dominant. And he’d made it clear that I was his...
“The man is a useless weakling, Ana, and he has no right to be angry with you. You’re off the clock now,” he said, stepping forward to drop a kiss on my lips. “And besides, tonight you belong to me.”
I gathered my things, and Max took them from me as I locked the office door behind us. We walked out to the car, hand in hand, and stashed them in the tiny trunk along with my overnight bag. Then I remembered that he’d taken care of reporting the incident at my apartment.
“What did the police say this morning?” I asked, as we drove. “Did they see anything suspicious that we missed?” I looked at Max in the fading evening light. His hands were on the wheel, eyes on the road ahead.
“They took the report and your number. They’ll get in touch if they need anything else. Since nothing was taken, I doubt anything more will come of it.”
“But the unlocked door… and the photograph…”
“There’s just no evidence those things had anything to do with an intruder, Ana, and cops can only work with evidence.” Max reached over and pulled my hand into his. “Besides, we were both thinking of other things when we left for dinner.” He kissed the back of my hand. “And a photo can easily be dropped easily enough, and left unnoticed. They’ll call us if they need to Ana, but tonight there are so many other things for us to focus on.” His fingers began to work their magic in the tender center of my palm as we drove. As my body responded, I let go of my lingering concerns. Max had taken care of it, and he was right. Tonight I was going to focus on nothing but the two of us.
“I hope you like steak?” he asked, as he pulled into the drive of the loveliest old house I’d ever seen. It stood like a proud reminder of the city’s long history.
“Oh… Max…” I breathed, as we walked in through the tall, narrow doorway. The living room was done in dark jewel tones. I watched as he went to the fireplace and stirred the dying embers. He added some wood and soon the fire was high and crackling. Then he turned back to face me.
The flickering light from the fire glowed from behind him, casting his face and powerful body into partial shadow. For a moment, it was like looking at the portrait of Anton, and I was spellbound. Then he moved toward me and became a living man, one of flesh and blood. I felt like I was waking up from a beautiful dream, to find the dream was reality after all…
“Oh, Ana. You have no idea how beautiful you are… or how wonderful it is, to have you here.” He took me into his arms. I could feel the tension in his body, in his thick chest and his muscular thighs pushing against me. I felt tiny in his huge arms and reached my hands up to his shoulders. He leaned down and kissed me slowly, deliberately, melting me into him as his mouth explored mine. After a long time, he pulled away, smiling down at me with a look that burned through my entire body. “Can I get you a glass of wine?” he asked, his voice husky. “It’s early yet, and we have the whole evening ahead of us.”
We have the whole night ahead of us, I thought, smiling. And it was going to be a night to remember.
“Please,” I said, flashing my dark eyes at his glowing green ones. “Can I help with dinner?”
His smile widened, his eyes teasingly seductive. “I’ve got the steak, if you’ve got the salad.”
He took my hand and let me into an expansive kitchen. Old brick walls and lovely wooden beams in the ceiling, the appliances were a contrast in modern, shiny steel.
“It’s just beautiful, Max. How long have you lived here?” Max lit the gas grill. It was brick, built into the kitchen wall, with a burnished steel hood. He poured two glasses of red wine and handed one to me.
“To us, Ana. To tonight.” He smiled as I sipped, then he drank as well. He pulled a thick steak from the dish of marinade on the counter. “I’ve been here a few years. This place is really too big for one man, but it’s warm, comfortable. I like having you here.” He smiled at me, taking a colander of crisp lettuce from the fridge. “Help yourself, there’s a lot more…”
I pulled out tomatoes and cucumbers and set to work, washing and slicing. I flashed back to childhood memories… the warm kitchen and everyone pitching in to help. Max set the steak on the fire and the smell filled the room. It had been so long since I’d had this kind of feeling, like I was safe and home. Like I belonged.
Dinner was simple, delicious. He paired the rare steak with roasted potatoes and an expensive Cabernet. He had pulled a low table near the fire and we’d sat on the carpet in the living room, eating as the fire burned lower. For dessert, he’d brought out a single chocolate mousse. He sat it down on the table and eased himself in close behind me, his long legs spread and curving around mine. He kissed the back of my neck, and stroked his fingers lightly down my spine. I leaned back against him, feeling the hard length of his body against my back. He dipped a long finger into the chocolate and put it to my lips.
“Taste,” he whispered in my ear, and I obeyed
. The mousse was dark and velvety. It must have been delicious, but my only awareness was Max’s finger between my lips, stroking me. I closed my eyes and curled my tongue around him, flicking it against his fingertip and then sucking him in.
15
Max
My pulse had been pounding ever since I’d left Savvin. I was furious that drunken son of a bitch thought he could start spouting orders to me. At least the cocky little shit had admitted he didn’t have Ana’s sister, Ally. She wasn’t a hostage. Not yet. But the stupid fuck knew where he could find her…
My first impulse had been to call Sergei and put an end to the whole fucking job. Shit, I didn’t even know for certain that Ana’s diamond was the Strastnyy. Maybe when I finally had it in my hands, it wouldn’t even turn out to be the one we were looking for. But I supposed there was no point in involving Serge, not until I was certain.
I looked at Ana, across the table from me, sipping her wine. She had looked so lovely when I’d arrived at her office… and so stricken once her boss had come in. Everything I’d seen in his face and in his manner had confirmed what Ana had told me. I didn’t like the man. And I hated how he looked at Ana, how he spoke to her…
I brought out dessert as Ana’s eyes had begun to soften and relax. Dinner and the wine was working its magic along with the charm of the house itself, so softly lit by the fire. I had Ana exactly where I wanted her, here with me. I could tell she was so ready, so willing. And we had an entire weekend in front of us. Everything was right on schedule and if I played it right, she’d never have to know that she or her sister had ever been in danger. I was so close to everything I wanted, including Ana, naked in my arms. If only my conscience would shut the fuck up. I looked at Ana’s trusting smile as I sat down behind her, wrapping my legs around her and nuzzling into her neck. I was in too deep to back out now.
“Taste,” I said, and she did what I asked. Her mouth was warm and wet as she took the length of my finger in and sucked me. My cock was pounding into the small of her back as she leaned into me. I slipped my free hand around her tiny waist and up underneath the swell of her breasts. “God, Ana,” my breath caught harshly in my throat. She felt so small against me, so vulnerable. I reached down to slip off her tiny pink heels, first one and then the other. Her feet were perfect little miniatures. In one smooth movement I had spun her around to face me, her legs wrapped around my hips.
“Max… oh Max…,” she breathed into the vee of my shirt. “The way you make me feel…”
“Tell me, Ana. I want to know what you feel when I touch you. Tell me…” I cupped my hands under her ass and lifted her, settling her weight back down onto the throbbing bulge in my jeans. Her soft grey dress had slipped up around her hips and I could feel how hot her pussy was. I slid my hands up her sides and cupped the weight of her breasts. Her hard nipples were hard under the thin fabric.
“I feel… I feel like I can’t catch my breath… like I can’t breathe…,” she whispered against my ear, as my hands roamed her body. “And it feels like I belong here… in your hands, with you touching me like this.”
“And what do you want, Ana? Tell me what you want tonight.” I spoke the words against her lips. Her mouth was open, her breath warm. She tasted like chocolate and wine.
“I want to touch you, Max. I want to see you…” She put her fingers to my shirt buttons. I looked into her dark eyes and watched the firelight dance in them. She started to unbutton…
My cock was pounding its approval as she pushed my shirt down my arms and ran her fingers across my naked chest. Every muscle in my body tightened with need. She was the most erotic fucking woman I’d ever met. Tiny and feminine, yet seductive as hell and unafraid to reach out for what she wanted…
“Christ, Ana,” I groaned, as I pulled her roughly into my arms and crushed her mouth against my own. “I want your skin. I want your skin on mine. I need to feel you…”
I slid her dress up and off. She sat on me, in only white lace panties and a wisp of a bra. The lace stretched over the swelling mounds of her breasts and showed the hard pink nipples beneath. I dipped my head and nipped at one. She gasped, and clutched at my back as I lost control and tore the delicate lace off with one hand. “Fuck, Ana,” I rasped out, pulling her nakedness against my bare chest. “You’re so beautiful. So beautiful.”
I stood, holding her ass as she wrapped her arms and legs around me. She was so tiny, she seemed almost weightless against me. I laid her down on a chaise longue near the fire. She was dressed only in her panties, lying there, her breasts quivering with her breath. She was so vulnerable, so ready. My cock was huge and raging, furious to be freed and buried in her pussy. Her eyes were enormous and dark. And trusting.
“I’m going to touch you, Ana.” I said, as I watched her. “I’m going to touch you and I want you to tell me what you need. I want to give you pleasure, sweetheart. With my hands, my mouth. Whatever you desire. But I’m not going to fuck you tonight, Ana. Not yet.”
I reached down and hooked a finger under the elastic of her panties. I kept her eyes locked to mine, as I slowly slid them down her slender legs. “I want tonight to be about you. Your pleasure.” I sat next to her and stroked her hip with my fingertips. “I want to learn about you, Ana… your desires.”
“I want you, Max,” she started to protest.
“You’ll have me… all of me. Soon.” I leaned forward to kiss her into silence. “And there’s time. Time for everything.” I lifted her nipple to my mouth. “I don’t want to rush this. I want us to take our time…”
I ignored my rock hard cock and my aching balls. Waiting to fuck her wasn’t about the job anymore. This was about my fucking conscience. Maybe I didn’t have much honor left, but I wasn’t going to steal hers.
“I want to give you pleasure, Ana. I don’t want to take anything from you.” I leaned in to kiss her lips and felt her sigh. I cupped her breasts and gently squeezed, thrusting her nipples forward for me to lick and suck.
“Oh my god, Max.” She held onto my arms as I worked her. Her hands were so tiny on my thick forearms. She clung to me as I worked her, stroking her soft, golden skin. Then she took my big hand in hers and pushed it lower…
I stroked my fingers down her belly and watched as the muscles quivered with anticipation. “Tell me… Ana…,” I demanded gently.
“Touch me, Max. Like I touched myself in the shower last night…” She caught her bottom lip between her teeth and her eyes looked shy, naughty. I smiled and stopped breathing. She was so fucking hot.
“Tell me what you did, sweetheart.” I shifted and moved my lips to the delicate skin below her navel. “What did you imagine me doing to you?” I slid a warm hand between her thighs and felt her muscles working. I smiled, teasing her with a fingertip as I inched closer to her pussy.
“Did you imagine me inside you, Ana? Did you think about what my cock would look like, wet and hot in your little hand?” I took her whole pussy into the palm of my hand, spreading her legs wide. “Did you imagine what I’d have done to you, if I’d gotten into the shower with you?” I slipped the tip of one finger to her slick, swollen clit and felt her jolt, her breath catching.
“Ana… I knew what you were in there doing…”
“Oh god…” She reached down and wrapped her hands around my thick wrist, straining to push me inside. “Please, Max…” She was so wet, my fingers were already slippery and the sound of her begging was too much.
I pushed two thick, hard fingers into her velvet pussy. “Is that what you need, baby? Is that what you did to yourself in the shower?”
“Yes… oh yes. I need…” She writhed against my hand, panting for breath. Her clit was hard against my knuckles as she worked her body against me. I knew she’d be amazing, but this was better than I’d imagined. Her body demanded more and I gave it.
“Tell me what you want, Ana.” I worked my fingers in and out, feeling her walls squeeze. I put my thumb to her big clit and worked it in tight circles. She wa
s clenching and working her hips, but I wanted her to talk to me. “You beautiful, needy girl. Tell me.”
“Lick me, lick me Max,” she moaned. “Put your mouth on me.”
I was on her in an instant, lifting her hips to my mouth and holding her ass. “Spread them Ana. Open up and take me.” She arched back and moaned, spreading herself in front of me. I took her legs in my hands and wrapped them around my neck, lifting her pussy high. I took her into my mouth, almost brutally and felt her body begin to shake.
I worked her hard, with my mouth and my tongue. She was sweet, hot and delicious. Never had I taken a woman whose strength of need and desire matched my own so perfectly. It might kill me tonight, to deny my own need, but I was going to make this fucking incredible for her. Some guilty corner of my mind thought perhaps, one day, she might be able to forgive me.
I slipped my fingers back inside her as I felt her body tighten. She was so fucking close. I tilted my chin, keeping her raging clit captive between my lips, working it with my tongue. Then I twisted my fingers inside her and began to stroke her upper wall. I felt her swell inside and worked my fingers harder against her. I pulled long, hard strokes inside, as her legs gripped my back. “Oh… my… god… Max…,” she barely got the words out when it hit.
Ana’s whole body lifted with the power of her climax. She struggled for breath as I worked her relentlessly, meeting every thrust of her hips with a powerful stroke of my fingers and tongue. She dug her heels into me and bucked as I took her, and the waves of her orgasm rocked us both. It was only my name she managed to say, over and over, as she crested and fell back. Her body began to slacken as her pussy throbbed with her heartbeat. I kept my hands still then, letting her own body make the last movements it needed, until a long time later she was finally still. A trickle of sweat ran between her lush breasts. God, she was beautiful.
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