Hide and Seek (11 page)

Maxim afforded her all two of seconds before his mouth smashed down upon hers, knocking any sensible replies from her mind.

What she might have said didn't matter, nothing did, nothing except having him inside her, fulfilling her, erasing the ache.

Possessing her with his lips, his tongue swooped into her mouth, rubbing along her teeth. Their mouths tangled together in a fierce embrace, stealing her breath away. Elisa relaxed against the hard tree, welcoming his kisses, his touch.

Wrenching his mouth free, he rained kisses along her jaw, neck, and collarbone, slowly working his way down her torso as he ripped open her coat.

“Hurry,” she told him, pushing his busy hands south. “Get to it.”

Her demand made him pause. He looked at her with a dimpled, fresh smile, his deep eyes sparkling with pure joy. Filled with lightness she'd never seen before.

“Yeah, baby. That's what I want to hear.” He kissed her fully on the lips, so fiercely, her lips swelled. “This is the best
something special
a man could hope for.” His pressed his mouth to hers again, this time softer, quicker, then pulled away with a groan.

He jerked at the elastic waistband of her snow pants and tugged the bottoms down, which were quickly followed by the long johns she wore underneath, then her thong.

His stripping left her most intimate regions exposed to the frigid cold and her ass pressed against rough bark. She stepped from the garments, breathless as she watched him shove away the clothing confining his cock.

When he was completely bare from the waist down, he retrieved a condom from his coat pocket, tore the wrapper apart, and sheathed himself in rubber. He seized her thighs, reaching around them to toy with her pussy from behind. His erection nestled between the juncture of her thighs, a constant reminder of the ecstasy to come.

Holding tight to his shoulders, she leaned against his upper torso and enjoyed his delightful foreplay, the way his fingers whispered along her silky wet folds, the way he tapped ever so softly at her clit.

Tiny earthquakes shattered her body and she melted against him, mewing her delight. The pads of his thumbs caressed the tender skin on the underside of her ass. Fingers from both of his hands teased her entrance, plunging in, then withdrawing, plunging in, then withdrawing.

Her sheath constricted around vacant space and she moaned from pure frustration. His cock was the only thing that could provide her relief. Release.

“Maxim, please,” she whimpered as his fingers again pierced her, then quickly withdrew. “I—”

“Say no more.” Straightening, he cupped her bottom and lifted her. She leaned against the tree for support and he positioned his cock at her entry. “Your wish is my command, my queen.”

With one full thrust he drove into her, his shaft stretching her sheath to accommodate his size. She cried out in glory, filled to the max, and dug her nails into his shoulders.

“Hold on, baby,” he whispered against her ear, nuzzling her intimately before suddenly pumping into her, hard and fast, his strokes thumping her against the rough bark of the tree.

She bucked against him, driven wild as pleasure burst through her in a million tiny electric shocks.

They fucked in steady, quick rhythm, their lovemaking so intense she wasn't sure how much more she could take. Her body was on an all-time high as she rode a powerful wave of ecstasy.

Maxim slipped his hand along her bottom, sliding his finger in the deep crevice, and stroking the tender, buttery-soft skin. Without warning, his pinky pressed into her anus, driving her to the brink.

An orgasm vibrated through her, her pussy convulsing around his cock, the pleasure trapped in her nether muscles discharging in quick, furious spasms. She clenched her core and held tight to his shoulders, crying out.

Maxim slid his hand free, drawing her tight against his body as he plunged deep within her, then quickly yanked his cock free.

Her sheath continued to quiver in tiny aftershocks as he drew her into his embrace, hugging her. His hand stroked her long hair from scalp to end. “I…”

He better not say it. Better not cry wolf and claim love. Not now.

Her every muscle tightened in emotional protest. She didn't want a bunch of heartfelt bullshit from him. Just honesty. Affection. A good fuck. Sweet talking trash she couldn't take.

“Maxim, don't,” she warned, but Maxim held her even tighter, unrelenting, his eyes studying her intensely.

“Thank you,” he murmured, surprising her as he placed a gentle kiss to her head. “Thank you.”

R
eleasing
his suddenly tense lover from his embrace, Maxim stepped back, giving Elisa room to dress.

Mind-blowing orgasm or not, he wasn't satisfied with his
something special
yet. Not even close. But he did want to get Elisa back to the cabin, where he could romance and pleasure her properly, in a bed, in the warmth, rather than up against a cold, hard tree.

“You good”? Maxim asked. After slipping off his condom, he reached for his pile of discarded clothing lying on the snowy ground and slipped his feet into the legs of his stolen jogging pants. He pulled the bottoms up, awaiting her answer.

Screwing her had moved him so much he'd just
thanked
her, yet Elisa had clammed up. Her lips were flat and pressed tight. Her eyes hooded by her thick, dark lashes. Even though he wasn't touching her, he could sense her anxiety. Her withdrawal.

Elisa drew up her pants with quick, jerky movements. “Well,” she huffed. “I can see what all the fuss over you was about.”

“
Was
…that's right, Elisa.” Forgetting the coat he was about to zip up, he winked at her. “I guess you should have gone on that date with me, explosion or not.”

“Yeah. Right.” She rolled her eyes, trying to stifle a smile.

“I was a boy. No control.” Stepping forward, he pressed his palms to her biceps and hauled her body against his. “I'm a man now. And think of all we've missed.”

“If I'd have dated you, Professor Hobbs would have failed me.”

“Hey, he didn't hate me that much. He let me stay lab partners with you.”

“Let? He forced me to, because he was hoping I'd straighten you out. Much to my dismay.”

“Much to your fun.” He kissed her forehead. “You know I made you laugh.”

She chuckled again, memories dancing in her eyes. “I know you ruined every experiment we did.”

“Not true.” He rotated his hips, rubbing his cock against her. “We just made chemistry, baby. And I'm not done
experimenting
with you, yet. Not even close.”

“Pfff.” She looked away, shaking her head, and trying to control the smile threatening her lips. “What a line.”

He placed a hand to her shoulder. “Don't do it again. Please don't shut me out. A minute ago, you were getting all—”

“Bitchy?” She gave a quick, seemingly sincere laugh and shook her head. “I'm fine. And I'm sorry. You're right.”

“I was going to say uptight.” He stepped back, allowing her to finish dressing.

“Well, you do know how to talk to a woman.” Her pants in place, she met his gaze. A grin widened as she gave the zipper of her coat a quick tug. “It was a natural reaction, I suppose. After an experience like that, it's hard to know how to act.” When he just stared at her, she continued to ramble. Her words practically poured out all at once. “I mean, the sex was great…better than great…I guess I just didn't know what to say. And I thought for a minute that you were going to—well—” Her smile fell. “You're gawking at me like I'm weird.”

“That's what I lo—like about you,” he stammered, feeling like a fool for the slip he'd almost made. Had he completely lost his mind? No, just his dick; a part of him that was currently growing hard all over again from her little speech about awkwardness and great sex.

She gulped and glared at him like he was a lunatic. “What's that?”

With a growl, he seized her shoulders and hauled her against him. Her breasts smashed against his torso, barely perceptible through their thick coats. He pressed the growing lump in his pants against her pelvis, trying to redirect their conversation—into another fuck against the tree.

“You're so different. Unusual. Incredible,” he told her, trying to cover his almost-slip with enough bullshit to distract her. “Damn, I want you.”

Shaking her head, she pulled back. “I thought you were going to say something else…something stupid…”

Damn. She'd caught it. He'd better clean this up, before she got any ideas in her head. “Like I love you?”

“Yes.”

“That's one line you'll never hear from me, Elisa.”

Surprise flickered in her gaze, and she exhaled, widening her grin. “Good.”

“I'm glad you feel that way.” Releasing her, Maxim returned to dressing in an attempt to ignore the strange feeling in his gut. “Really glad.”

“Not that I thought you would…fall for me…just that you'd use the line. You know, like your others.” Elisa tossed her long, wavy hair over her shoulders and wiggled her knitted cap into place. Such a simple, innocent gesture, but combined with her lift in spirit, so damn adorably sexy.

“Nope. Not me. Not ever. That's not the kind of line that should be
used
by anyone. When said, it should be meant.” Maxim studied the raised curve of her mouth, the dimples in her cheeks, the pink glow to her flushed skin, wanting her reaction at its fullest. “And I'll never mean it.”

Their gazes met once again. With a blank look on her face, she nodded slowly. “Good.”

“Good?” The question slipped from him before he could stop it. “Can I ask you why that is?”

“Are you kidding? You saw the tabloids.”

Yeah. He saw them. He still wanted to strangle the guy who did that to her. Now, he wanted to even more. “So you loved him?”

“No, not truly. But I came close enough. What about you?”

“Me?”

“Why won't you ever mean it?”

“I'd rather not talk about it,” he grunted. “I just can't.”

He zipped his coat up. They'd done quite enough talking for now. It was high-time they got back to her cabin, to a warm bed and a hot fire. He wanted to take things slow, to handle her right. Physically. Forget all this emotional bullshit.

“So, you want to know how you should act, Elisa?” Stepping forward, he wrapped his arms around her, letting his hands rest on her ass.

“Ho—”

“Just like this.” Quickly bending at the knees, he caught her by her upper legs and tossed her over his shoulder.

She squealed, kicking in protest. “Maxim!”

His hand swatted her bottom. “It took me three hours in the freezing weather to find you. I do believe that means I get at least three hours of hot,
something special
from you.” He grabbed her ass cheek firmly, keeping a tight grip on the muscle as he walked, his thumb pressing into the crevice in sensual promise.

“But our skis!”

“Screw 'em. I can wade faster through this shit than I can ski. The cabin is close. I don't want to waste a moment of time, not until we get into your bedroom. Then, things are going to move at a much,
much
more leisurely pace.”

N
aked,
Elisa stretched, lying on her back atop the bearskin rug. She watched Maxim stoke the fire, jabbing at the glowing coals with a poker, moving the burning wood so that flames burst forth.

She'd allowed herself to be taken against a tree, hauled inside, and stripped naked. She didn't regret a second of it…except when she'd expected a second go-around, he'd turned his attention to fire and food.

Since Maxim had already eaten more than his fair share of the apples, she might as well enjoy some sustenance herself—she couldn't make love without energy. Plucking a slice from the bowl beside her, she popped it in her mouth, chewing the juicy flesh.

Maxim lifted a log, bending to carefully place the wood on coals. His motions granted her an intriguing glimpse of his taut ball sacs. With a sigh, she brazenly studied the muscled definition of her former adversary's fine ass.

Wasn't life ironic?

“I can't believe I just screwed Maxim Cox,” she murmured, more to herself than to him.

Once upon a time, she'd avoided him like he was the devil himself; a pure shame. He was quite the lay. Hell, he'd
thrust
her right out of her self-commitments and concerns. No wonder he was so popular with the ladies. No wonder so many females had been wounded by his abandonment. She'd be hurt too if she didn't get laid again real soon.

“Oh yeah?” Maxim turned his attention from the fire, a gleam in his intense gaze. “Correction, Elisa, screw
ing
. We aren't finished, no way. I still have at least a couple of hours left to my
something special
and by the time they're up, I'm positive I'll have persuaded you into needing more of this.” Grabbing his dick, he winked at her.

Cocky as ever. But somehow, right now even that was sexy in an adorable sort of way.

She raised a brow. “So, I take it I'm your longest relationship ever?”

He'd already stuck around much longer than she'd ever expected. Unusual, given his bad boy history.

“Probably.” He grinned wide enough to show his pearly white teeth. “Okay, definitely. But don't turn me away and I won't stop.”

“Deal.” Elisa smiled, rolling onto her side. At the moment, nonstop orgasms sounded damn good to her. Whether they knew it or not, his parents had named him appropriately. She just wished she'd discovered his talents sooner, like before meeting her asshole ex.

No matter what came next, she wouldn't regret having sex with Maxim. Back in college, there'd been no telling this side of him existed. Maybe she'd been too preoccupied with wanting to strangle him to notice—mainly because she was so damned attracted to him despite his behavior—but something haunted Maxim and she had to know what.

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Depends.” He covered the few feet between them and lay next to her, flat on his back. “About what?”

Elisa fingered the fur directly above his shoulders. “When I told you that you couldn't masturbate, you hinted that maybe you'd been hurt.”

“Yeah.”

“You said I didn't understand you.”

“Yeah.”

Good grief. She felt like she was pulling teeth.

“So, I'd like to.”

He cleared his throat. “I don't know.” His voice dropped, thickened by the slight, exotic accent he often slipped into. “Have you ever wanted someone so badly, you hurt?”

“Yeah,” she chuckled, thinking back to when he'd screwed her with the dildo. “Oh, yeah. But you never had to come here. Never needed to play this game. To hurt so much. So,
why
…really?”

“Because,” he grunted, again dancing around the truth.

There was something more going on, something he refused to reveal. Something she needed to know.

Elisa abandoned the rug, instead wrapping his hair around her pinky. “That's not an answer.”

“Have I told you how beautiful you are?” His Adam's apple bobbed up and down, revealing more than his slapdash words ever could.

“A hundred times, but that's still not an answer.”

He rolled to his side, facing her, and glided his hand over her hip. “I think it is.”

The touch set off mini fireworks as he trailed his fingers along her bare skin, gently caressing over her ass, her thighs.

With a shiver, she caught his hand, ceasing his seduction. “No, Maxim. I really want to know. I
have
to know. What's your deal? Why all this trouble for me?”

“I'd tell you, but the answer sounds silly. Like one of the lines you're always accusing me of.”

She raised a brow. “Tell me anyway.”

“Okay. First of all, you're right, you know. I understand how to talk to a woman…or at least the average one. Not you, though.” His tongue darted out, running over his lower lip. “But I'm not toying with you, Elisa, I swear. When I saw that tabloid, I don't know what happened to me. I changed. Went crazy. I kept thinking of our college days. The way I drove you nuts. The way you drove me nuts. How much I wanted you. You're the only one to tell me no and mean it. I couldn't stand that…Suddenly I just had to come. To finish what we started.”

“But there was never anything between us. I told you no, remember?”

“There should have been and you know it.”

“I think we're past a date at this point.”

“Yet, I still want it. I still want you. You make me feel…differently than most females. Like I shouldn't.” Taking her hand, he pressed her palm to his chest, directly over where his heart beat. “You don't just interest my cock. You touch me here.”

For a second, Elisa was speechless. She concentrated on the steady pulse thudding against her hand.