Last on the List (Wait With Me #5)(65)

“Max!” I exclaim when his tongue swirls along my bundle of nerves, his hot breath blowing against my damp thighs. He teases me mercilessly as my hands score through his hair and my hips pump up into his face, begging for more.

I struggle not to rip the robe sash off my eyes because I’m sure he looks incredibly sexy between my legs right now. But he needs to know that it’s him turning me on whether I can look at him or not.

Max sucks hard and bites down lightly, and the sudden sharp strum causes a wave of pressure to explode between my thighs. I scream loudly, my legs squeezing around his head as my fingers pull on his hair, my climax taking over all my wits.

When I finally peel myself off the ceiling, I can hear Max chuckling from his position between my legs. Blindfold still intact, I slide off the sofa like jelly onto his lap before he pulls the blindfold off to see the blissed-out, drugged-out expression all over my face.

His lips glisten with my arousal as he murmurs sexily, “You missed a good show.”

I smile dreamily. “I don’t need to watch you to know that I want you, Max.”





Well…that escalated quickly, I think to myself as I brush my teeth on Monday morning. I didn’t fully expect to sleep with Cassandra again last night, but when she texted saying she had a leaky faucet and wondered if I could come take a look, I didn’t question the matter.

Spoiler alert…her faucet was fine.

So was her shower, by the way. Props to me for springing for the rainfall showerhead in the tiny house. I was able to enjoy every bare inch of Cassandra’s body and keep us both warm under the hot water at the same time.

Except for that one moment when a notification went off on my phone and I had to dart out of the shower to check it, only to see a text from my mother. I seriously need to change the notification sound on my security system to prevent that from happening again.

But regardless, I was glad she texted. Saturday night, it took every bit of my strength not to go knocking on her door again. I submerged myself with work, poring over documents I finally received from All-Out and doing my best to stop myself from staring down at her place every time I looked out my bedroom window.

Jesus, I really am a stalker.

Cassandra didn’t look like she was home, which is probably why I was so fixated. She told me in the shower that she spent Saturday night at her sister’s house for dinner, and the level of relief I felt knowing she didn’t go to a bar was a little alarming. I never really considered myself a jealous person. Yeah, I had issues watching Jessica move on with another woman, but I wasn’t jealous. I was just adjusting to the idea that we wouldn’t be a family anymore.

It was hard to watch the woman I was with all through college and had a child with right after we graduated turn into someone completely different. Yeah, she was still the woman I fell in love with, but it was impossible for me not to wonder if it was the real her that I loved…or the version of herself she thought society wanted her to be.

Those were the thoughts that consumed me after she sent me a bunch of articles about compulsory heterosexuality, which is something she identified with. It’s the theory that heterosexuality is assumed and semi-enforced upon women by a patriarchal and heteronormative society. Basically, society only fed her straight culture, and until she was comfortable enough to go against the supposed “norm,” she couldn’t truly identify with her sexuality.

It all made sense to me, and frankly, opened my eyes up to ideas I had never considered. Not that my opinion on her sexuality really mattered. It was Jess’s journey, and I was happy for her to finally speak her truth. I was even happy when she married Kailey only two years after we divorced. I attended the wedding.

But Jessica’s coming out changed me as well. It made me more guarded and less of a believer in love. I stopped seeking out meaningful relationships and focused on being a dad and growing my company. Honestly, having split custody with Everly meant that I could obsess over my work when Everly wasn’t with me. I hate to say my divorce helped my business flourish, but it did. If we had been a traditional happy family all living under one roof, I wouldn’t have dedicated the time I did to my company to bring it to the next level.

It’s wild how my ex-wife’s sexuality changed the course of my entire future. Now I’m on the brink of leveling up my company once again, yet here I sit, brushing my teeth and thinking about the nanny.

I need to get this jealousy in check and keep my eye on the prize. Cassandra and I are just having fun. My priorities are still Everly and Fletcher Industries. I have no room in my life for anything else. The sooner I bang it out with Cassandra, the better.

I’m shocked when I come out of my bedroom to find Everly seated at the kitchen island with Cassandra. They both have halos of gold around them as the rising sun pours in through the windows. Cassandra is blowing on Everly’s bowl of oatmeal, and the view of the two of them laughing together gives my heart a strange jolt of contentment.

“Morning, Dad!” Everly says when she sees me standing there, watching them like a freak. “I’m up early today.”

“Yes, you are.” I laugh and walk over to press a kiss on the top of her head. She smiles and nuzzles into me before my eyes find Cassandra’s over top of Everly.

“Morning,” she greets, and the flush in her cheeks causes my muscles to tighten.

“Good morning,” I reply, a bit too crisply.