Picking Up the Pieces (Pieces, #2)(114)

His eyes darkened with hunger, and something else I could only describe as love. "Doll, I've been yours since the day we met."

And with that declaration, we wasted no time picking up where we’d left off: all mouths, hands, and throbbing need.

"You wore a f*cking skirt on purpose, didn't you? When you put it on this morning, you prayed it would end up around your waist."

"Damn right I did," I replied as I pushed one hand into his hair and dug the nails of my other into his shoulder.

Max's hand drifted beneath my skirt, which had already been hiked up when I wrapped my legs around him. "This is in my way," he muttered as he ripped my thong from my body.

The warm air hit me at the apex of my thighs, and I briefly thought I would lose it right there. I needed him inside of me. Right then. So I pushed toward the ground with my legs, a silent plea for him to put me down. When he complied, I ran my hand down his stomach, toward his waistband, easily unbuttoning his jeans so I could pull down his zipper. I reached into his jeans and immediately found his straining cock. No boxers. Glad some things never change. I ran my hand over it, wanting to touch him freely, like I used to before I told myself he wasn't what I wanted. I couldn't have been more wrong.

Max suddenly reached into his pocket to withdraw a condom.

"Always ready, aren't you?" I jested.

"A guy can hope."

I took the foil wrapper from him, ripped it open with my teeth, and leaned back against the wall so I could reach down to sheath him with the thin latex. Once I had rolled it down his hard length, he lifted me back up into his arms as I guided him to where I needed him most.

He wasted no time thrusting inside of me. My back bowed and I stifled a loud groan by digging my teeth into Max's clothed shoulder as he stroked me steadily, forcefully from the inside.

"Look at me," he commanded.

I lifted my head.

"You're going to watch me so that you never forget who does this to you, who makes you feel this good."

I didn't respond, but did as he instructed, taking in his piercing blue stare that seemed to see right through me. The feel of him pushing into me was euphoric, and I hated that it would eventually have to end.

"Who do you belong to, Lily?"

"You," I hissed, barely able to get enough air into my lungs to respond.

"And why do you belong to me?"

"Because you love me," I answered, honestly.

His rhythm faltered slightly, letting me know that my answer had surprised him. "Who do I belong to?" His question was soft, almost unsure, like he wasn't certain what I was going to say and was rattled by the unsettling feeling.

"Me. You belong to me."

He continued to thrust, but his pace slowed as he looked at me as though he were trying to memorize exactly how I looked in that moment. "Why do I belong to you?"

My answer came without the slightest hesitation. "Because I love you."

"Say it again," he demanded as he thrust deeper, harder, causing me to cry out.

"I love you," I ground out as my orgasm built within me. Max rocked his hips into me hard, and I welcomed him every time.

"I'm so close. You don’t know how much I’ve wanted to do this again, feel the warmth of being inside you.” His pace increased, causing me to shiver with pleasure as his breath tickled my ear. “Come with me, doll."

I put my hands on his shoulders for some leverage, and began to bear down on him, impaling myself on his thick shaft.

Max let out a guttural moan. "That's it. God, you feel so good. Just like that. I'm gonna come, Lily. You there with me?"

I mewled. "I'm there."

He found his release at my words. Then his head dropped to my chest as he pumped into me, filling the condom as his cock thrummed inside of me. I followed him over the edge, my body shaking with pleasure as I milked every drop of cum from him. “Max,” I sighed, knowing that there was probably nothing else he’d rather hear more. My body was limp in his arms, perfectly sated.

We stood there for a few moments, trying to catch our breaths and enjoying being wrapped in each other. Finally, Max lifted his head so he could look at me. "Say it again," he rasped.

I caressed his face. "I love you, Max," I said, hoping he could see the veracity of the words in my eyes.

“I know you do, doll,” he said with a wink. “It's about damn time you realized it.” He leaned in and kissed me. It was a soft, meaningful kiss–one meant to mark this moment as a time of firsts for us.

The first time we'd made love without all the bullshit in the way. The first time we were both completely honest with one another. The first time we accepted that this was what we had needed all along. This is what made us complete: each other.

"I thought I'd never see you again," Max whispered as he feathered kisses wherever his mouth could reach.

"What, after A.C.?"

He shook his head lightly. "After I left your apartment last April. After the fundraiser."

I pulled back, looking at him quizzically. Does he need to be cryptic right now? "I've seen you a bunch of times since then."

"I haven't seen you. Not the real you. Not the one I fell in love with in that airport." He sighed. "I thought I'd lost you forever. I missed ya, doll."