Her breath left her on a rush, leaving behind a painful void in her chest. Chloe pressed her palm to her heart. “That’s just cruel, Max.”
Though he’d been glaring in the direction of the lights of the cabins, Max’s head swung toward her. “Cruel?”
“You pretended to like me just to…just to get control over my beach fire!”
“That’s crazy. I was never pretending to like you.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. When you inserted yourself into my entire vacation, I guess it was stupid of me to assume you were flirting!”
“I was flirting,” he said simply, as if her voice hadn’t taken on the edge of hysteria. “I like you. It’s just hard for me to stop…thinking.” He crossed his arms and uncrossed them while Chloe tried to take in what he meant to say. He liked her?
He ran an impatient hand through his hair. “Do you want to go for a walk? I need to walk.”
“Why?”
“I’ve never had this conversation before.” He strode toward her and took her hand to tug her along the edge of the water. “It’s nice tonight. Let’s walk.”
He seemed to need to burn off some energy, and for once, his charm wasn’t on display. Max looked nervous and unhappy. And his fingers were wrapped tight around hers, distracting her more than even his most charming smile could. She kept pace with him, letting the occasional wave sweep over her toes, but he didn’t drop her hand.
“How could you have never had this conversation?”
One shoulder rose in a suspiciously casual shrug. Now that they were walking, he seemed disinclined to talk. Ironically.
“Max? Do you want to talk or is this walk just another one of your ploys?”
He stared straight ahead. “How did you see it?”
“See what?”
“How did you see what I was doing?”
“Well, I was kind of looking forward to hanging out with an international party boy, but then there didn’t seem to be much partying going on.”
He drew in a breath as if he meant to say something important, then let it out again, slowly. His fingers shifted, sliding in between hers. “You don’t seem like the type of girl who likes party boys.”
“Ha! No, I guess I’m not. That’s why I was intrigued. New experiences.”
“I’m sorry if I’m a disappointment.”
“I don’t know what you are. I can’t figure it out.”
Max finally smiled, his teeth flashing white in the moonlight. “Boy, are you selling yourself short. You’re the only one who’s ever called me on my…issues.”
“I can’t be the only one.”
“Believe me, you are.”
“But you can’t take responsibility for every single person you meet, right?”
“Mm,” he hummed, “of course not.”
“Max.” She stopped and used his hand to force him to turn toward her. “Do you take responsibility for every person you meet?”
“No!” he said with a laugh. A charming, warm laugh exactly like one she’d heard from him before. When he was being a big, fat liar.
“Look, we’re on an island. We don’t know each other. After the end of this week, we’ll never see each other again. So you may as well tell me the truth. When will you have the chance to spill your guts without any consequences? Don’t think. Just tell me.” He hesitated.
“Tell me.”
“Yes!” he said on a rush of air. “Yes, I feel responsible for everyone I meet.”
“But… That’s crazy. How can you do that?”
“I can’t. It’s…” His wide shoulders slumped. “Chloe, it’s exhausting.”
“Oh, Max.” She sighed at the utter weariness in his voice.
“It is crazy. I know that. I see that, but I can’t stop it.” As he spoke, she could hear herself in his words. The desperation and tiredness and helplessness she’d been feeling for weeks. It was all there in his deep, rich voice, coming from this confident man with strong shoulders that looked like they could carry the weight of the world. And did, apparently.
“Max.” She sighed, her fingers tightening in his. Forgetting for a moment that he might not even be attracted to her, Chloe leaned toward him, pushing up on her tiptoes, feeling the sand give way and squeeze through her toes. She felt all this, but his mouth was all she could see, all she could think of. His mouth and the sad curve of his lips, and the slight, surprised parting when she’d almost reached him.
At the last second, just as doubt reared its ugly head, he finally moved to meet her. That sad mouth didn’t feel sad at all. It felt…comforting. Warm. And definitely interested.
For two heartbeats, his lips simply pressed hers gently, but then Chloe felt the faint rush of Max inhaling, and his arms curved around her.
A brief moment of shock sizzled through her. Shock at being touched by a man who’d never touched her before. But when the surprise wore off, his hands were so solid and hot against her back, and she was no longer on her tiptoes. Max was holding her, his lips parting to taste her.
Chloe opened for him, and the first taste of Max drew a little sound of approval from her throat. An embarrassing sound, surely, but Max’s tongue rubbed against hers and she didn’t have time to be embarrassed. She was too busy being happy.
Oh, God, she was kissing a gorgeous man who was nearly a stranger. Chloe, who’d always been a good girl. Who should’ve been on her honeymoon this very week. She was rubbing her tongue into this man as he deepened the kiss and pulled her closer.
There was nowhere to put her arms but around his neck. And nothing to do with her hands but slide them into his hair.
And suddenly, despite everything, the night was perfect. The ocean rushed gently behind her, the wind danced over them, and they both held on tightly as they kissed and tasted and licked. If he was faking his interest, he was doing a damn good job of it. His hands moved restlessly against her back. He pulled her closer, until their bodies lined up. My God, he felt like one solid wall of muscle against her.
She was so focused on his chest and hips and thighs, Chloe hardly noticed the downward path of his hand. It felt cozy and right when he touched the small of her back, then a bit more exciting when his palm slid over her hip. She kissed him harder, caught up in the excitement of exploring hands and big shoulders.
But when he ventured farther south, his fingers curved over her ass, and Chloe remembered that she wasn’t wearing pants.
“Oh!” she gasped as she turned her head to the side. She meant to slow things down. She really did. But then Max’s lips touched her neck. His mouth closed over the very sensitive, secret spot just below her ear. And he sucked.
“God,” she groaned, knees shaking to uselessness. He’d found the chink in her lust armor. His teeth scraped the skin and he pulled her hips more tightly against his.
No, he definitely wasn’t faking. And she still wasn’t wearing pants.
“Max, I… Oh, that feels good. We should… Oh, I think we should…”
“Yeah,” he murmured, as if she’d said something intelligible. “Yeah, we should.”
Before she could ask what he meant, Chloe found herself being lowered to the sand. “You don’t like the sand!” she gasped, trying to decide if she was excited or panicked.
“I do now,” he murmured just before his mouth took hers again.
This was better. Way better. Now he was snug against her side, controlling the kiss, one knee resting atop her bare thigh, and Chloe decided it wasn’t panic welling up inside her. It was sweet, hot lust pooling beneath her skin like a fever.
Max kissed her, his hand framing her jaw with gentle fingers. He kissed her again as his fingertips trailed down her neck before he turned her face to the side and sucked beneath her ear, already confident she’d like it. She did.
A minute before, she’d been thinking she should stop him. But now his body pressed heavy against her side and filled her up with recklessness. Her fingers curled into his arm as his mouth licked at her pulse.
&
nbsp; “Max,” she breathed, the sound of his name giving her a thrill. Two days ago, she hadn’t known him, now she was holding her breath as his hand inched lower.
“God, you taste good,” he whispered, his words slipping over her skin. “You feel good,” she said, running her hand all the way up his solid biceps. The muscles flexed beneath the skin, rewarding her for her exploration. “So good.”
His leg slid more snugly between hers and Max kissed her again. Finally, his hand slid down and cupped her breast. Despite her anticipation, Chloe shivered in surprise.
This was like high school all over again. She felt just as excited and scared and uncertain. Goose bumps spread over every inch of her skin as his thumb brushed her nipple. Her hand shook against his wrist, as if this were her first time.
But it wasn’t her first time, and she knew exactly how rare it was to feel such sweet, heavy heat flowing through her veins. Max might be a virtual stranger, but the chemistry between them was unbelievably hot.
Chloe angled her mouth to take his tongue deeper. She rubbed her leg against his and moaned at the tightening of his fingers. Max made a low sound in response, and a subtle shift of his body made her suddenly aware of the press of his arousal against her hip. All the nerves in her body flared to brighter life.
He was excited. For her. For her.
Yes, this was like high school, when male attention had been unexpected and flattering to an average girl. The insistent, impressive length of his cock was a hot brand against her hip, and there was hardly any barrier between them. His baggy swim trunks and the paper-thin material of her bikini. They were practically naked.
“Max.” She sighed, curling both her hands into his hair to drag his mouth back down to her neck. In a move she would later admire for its smoothness, he kissed his way to the other side of her neck, requiring a slow shift of his body in order to reach her favorite spot. A few breaths later, Max was sucking just where she liked and his body fully covered hers, all their parts lining up perfectly.
So perfectly that Chloe groaned in sharp pleasure.
“Jesus,” Max whispered, rocking against her. Balancing his weight on his elbows, he slipped his hands into her hair to hold her head, then he began a leisurely exploration of all the sensitive spots on her neck.
Eyes open, Chloe stared at the swirl of stars above her. Pleasure spun through her body. His mouth trailed heat while his cock pressed her clit. Chloe couldn’t stop herself from moaning his name.
He whispered her name back to her. As if she were desirable in ways she’d forgotten she could be. In ways she’d never been with Thomas. That thought scared her, so she pushed it away and edged her knee higher up on Max’s thigh.
His weight lifted, and she was just about to whimper in disappointment when one of his hands touched her waist before sliding to her belly. His fingers were shockingly hot on her bare skin.
Oh, God, he was about to slide his hand into her bikini bottoms and feel how wet he’d made her.
Her nerves sang with anxiety…and desperate arousal.
“Can I…?” he murmured, but his hand was already slipping beneath the delicate fabric, feathering over sensitive skin.
Chloe could barely breathe. She arched her neck, twisting her head to the side to draw cooler air than the heat that shimmered off his skin.
“Chloe,” he said again, just as he touched her.
“Oh,” she breathed, not quite registering the flash of pale yellow that moved across the sand a few feet away.
His fingertip circled her, and she whimpered with lust, just as another flash of yellow shifted in front of her.
She blinked, drawn away from her focus on Max and his hand. A crab? She would’ve been scared if she’d had room for that in her head, but she was too full of what Max was doing, now sliding two fingers up and down just where she needed them. “Oh, God, yes,” she whispered.
“Yeah,” Max answered.
But the crab sidled into view again, clear and bright as if… Oh, no. Light flashed in her eyes.
“Chloe?” Jenn called out of the darkness.
“Ack!” she yelped. She moved to knock Max’s hand away, but he’d already slid it free. He had just enough time to shift his weight to the side before the light found a steady home on Chloe’s face.
“Chloe!” Jenn called out happily. Her footsteps hurried closer before they came to an abrupt stop about ten feet away. “Oh. I…”
Chloe closed her eyes in mortification, but she clearly heard her friend’s loud swallow.
“I’m sorry!” Jenn said.
Chloe shook her head. “No, it’s fine, we were just…um…”
“Your mom called, and it sounded important, and Elliott had a flashlight, so…”
Opening one eye, she saw the dark shape of a man next to Jenn. “Oh, hi, Elliott.”
Max’s muffled curse reminded her that while this was embarrassing, it was also a little bit funny. “Maybe,” she whispered, “we should get up.”
“I was hoping for a minute,” he muttered back.
“A full minute?”
“Ideally, yes.”
She was still laughing when he pushed himself to his knees.
Elliott cleared his throat. “Maybe we should just—”
Chloe shook her head and took the hand Max offered once he got to his feet. “What did my mom want?” Walking toward Jenn, she swiped sand off the backs of her legs, then looked up to find two sets of eyes focused low on her body.
Still no pants. Right. “Uh… We were swimming.” Jenn’s gaze rose to Chloe’s shirt, which was clearly not wet. “I, um, found my shirt, but… So about the phone call?”
“Oh.” Jenn cleared her throat and cut her eyes toward Max. “She was calling about something to do with your cousin Tiffany.”
“Is she okay?” Chloe asked, even as Jenn’s reluctant tone finally registered in Chloe’s brain. Reluctant, because she obviously didn’t want to discuss it in front of the men. Which meant it had something to do with Thomas and the scandal.
The scandal Chloe had completely forgotten about during her walk with Max. Wow. “I’ll call when we get back to the cabin,” she blurted out, trying to cover up Jenn’s awkward silence.
“Yes!” Jenn said.
Max’s hand touched her back. “I hope everything’s all right.”
“I’m sure it’s fine.” She forced a smile at his doubtful look. “My cousin is always up to something.”
“Oh, I see. I hope it’s nothing then.”
Elliott cleared his throat for the third time. “We’ll head back.” When his hand touched Jenn’s arm, she jumped and he jerked away.
“Sorry. Yes, let’s head back.” The two of them took off as if they’d just accidentally stepped into an extraordinarily uncomfortable situation.
“Uh, okay,” Chloe called. “I’ll be there in a minute!” Her friend disappeared into the darkness, and Chloe quietly added, “after I find my pants.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
OKAY, SO THE CELIBACY THING wasn’t working out so well.
Max’s heart was still pounding and didn’t seem interested in slowing its pace, overwhelmed as it was with three strong emotions. Lust, for a good start, and shock at having been discovered rolling around in the sand, and then there was the anxiety of having his secrets revealed.
He watched Chloe’s dark profile as she stared in the direction of the bobbing flashlight, and his pulse didn’t slow at all. “We’d better go,” he said. “You need to call your mom back.”
Crossing her arms, she turned toward him. “We didn’t finish talking about your problem.”
“I thought we wrapped it up pretty well.”
“No, we just made out instead.”
“Exactly.” The flash of her smile drew him closer, and Max slid his arms around her body and lowered his lips to hers. His heart turned over at the taste of her, but Chloe pulled back.
“Was all that about distraction, Max?”
“You totally di
stracted me, yes.”
“No, I mean were you trying to distract me?”
“Chloe, for God’s sake, did it feel like I was playing you?”
When she touched her hand to his chest, it felt like a caress, but he knew it was a sign that he should keep his distance. “You said no one’s ever noticed your control issues. Which means that you must be pretty damn good at fooling people, right?”
Fooling people. Tension wound around his stomach and squeezed. Yeah, she was right to be wary. He’d acted his way through countless relationships. “You’re right. I’m good at fooling people. Really good at it.”
“What about girlfriends?”
His fingertips felt numb and his jaw close to cracking. “I don’t want to talk about that.” It was sick, what he did, taking needy girls home like stray dogs. He was weary and exhausted from the constant vigilance.
“Why don’t you want to talk about it?”
“Because it’s ridiculous and it’s over. I haven’t dated in months. I decided to…” Oh, shit. That wasn’t something you blurted out to a woman on a first date, even if the date had been based on fear of sharks and drowning. “What?”
“Don’t you want to call your mom back?”
He couldn’t see her roll her eyes, but he was pretty sure it was happening. “Avoidance much, Max? All right, I’ll let you off the hook. Let’s go.”
He’d wanted to stop the conversation, but he also didn’t want this little bubble of peace to be gone, so Max reached for her elbow before she could step away. “That wasn’t an act and I wasn’t trying to do anything but kiss you, Chloe. I swear. I’ve been thinking about doing that since the moment I saw you.”
“Sure fooled me.”
“You said yourself that I’m really screwed up.”
“True.”
“Come here.”
She turned easily, swaying into his chest and wrapping her arms around his neck. Kissing her pushed away some of the awful tightness in Max’s chest. Whatever he’d done before, whatever lies he’d told, what he wanted from Chloe was real and good. She was real and good.
So he kissed her and held her and let himself forget the mess he’d made of his life. For just a few more minutes.
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