by Kelsey King
“And to allow more opportunities to get me naked,” I add with a smirk.
“Or for you to get me naked,” he adds.
“I'm pretty good at this game. The result may not go how you hope.”
“Princess, whatever the result, I’ll be happy.”
I smile. “Alright then, you’re on. With one twist.”
“What twist would you like to add?”
“Because you are so much bigger than me, and because you probably can drink me under the table, we need to even the field in that respect. You need to drink. Now.”
“Alright. And how much would you like me to drink?”
"Put the bottle to your lips, and I will tell you when to stop."
“And this sounds fair to you?”
I answer with the hitch of my eyebrow and crossing my arms in front of my chest, slightly hiking up my boobs a notch to catch his attention. He wants a tease. I’ll give him one.
There's fire in his eyes as he catches my movements but reconnects eye contact before raising the bottle to his lips. I nod my head at him to start drinking, and Maddox responds instantly. I watch as his head tips back, and I see his Adam's apple dance with each swallow. I momentarily lose track of time watching him drink and am quickly brought back to the moment when he slams his hand on the table indicating it's getting to be a bit much.
“Okay, stop.”
He slams the bottle on the table and slides his chair back as he leans forward, coughing. I can’t help but giggle.
“Damn, woman. Are you trying to kill me?”
"No. Just thought you could take it." I feign innocence and shrug my shoulders. Maddox glares at me as he gets his breath back and controls his coughing. He moves his chair back into place and starts shuffling the cards. Now, his mood has changed. I thought the drinking thing would be fun, but it seems to have sparked something in him. Competitiveness. I guess I will have to wait and see. Maddox looks at me why he shuffles and shakes his head.
“What, are you mad now?” I ask.
He lets out a growl that somehow instantly makes me wet.
“Not mad, princess. Just ready to take this to the next level.”
Oh damn. I have gotten myself into uncharted territory, and he means business. I have a feeling that I have no idea what I'm in for.
Chapter Ten
Maddox
This woman is pushing buttons on purpose. This innocent game is taking a turn that I'm not sure can be derailed. I'm soaking up this side of her and am hoping this is who she is. Her smartass responses grab my attention and make me want her even more.
I knew the alcohol would loosen her up, but I didn’t expect this. While she's coherent and playful, I want to get as much out of her as I can. It has been a long time since a woman has worked me up in more than one way, and all without touching me. She has my pants standing at full attention and haven’t fully come down from what happened earlier. I’d give anything to see her up close, to feel her perky tits in my hands and to see just how soft her skin is.
While I'm shuffling the cards, I do my best to not look at her. I don’t want any distractions because I'm determined to win this hand. Trying to kill the silence, she starts small talk.
“So, have you been watching the news? Have they said how much snow we have gotten or how much longer it will fall?”
“Those are questions, princess.”
“Oh, come on. They aren’t specific questions about you or your life, so I think they are allowed. Besides, don’t you want to know how long you’re stuck with me?”
"Well, to be honest, I'm enjoying your company, so I don't see it as being stuck with you." I look at her and see she's slightly surprised by my response. "From what I heard, we have gotten close to three feet of snow, and it isn't supposed to let up for another twenty-four hours."
“Oh, wow. That's crazy. How will you ever get out of here? I mean, at least down in the town, we have snow plows and stuff. How do you clear the roads all the way up here?”
“I do it. I'm the only house out here for miles if you didn’t notice on the way here.”
“It was a blizzard. All I could see was white.”
“Right. Well, on the road we took to get here, there are only three other driveways, and I clear them all, as well as the road.”
"Wow, that's nice of you. And you do it out of the goodness of your heart?"
“You know, I'm capable of generosity.”
"Oh, are you now? I would’ve never guessed." She giggles.
Seeing her smile right now makes my heart lurch forward. All I can do is smile at her. During our conversation, I manage to deal us each our cards.
“Now, let’s get this game going. I want to see how bad you lose,” she tells me.
“Yeah, yeah. We’ll see who loses!”
Our first few hands were uneventful and got rid of about five cards from each of us. But she then discards a color I have none of, and my hand is filled once again with more cards than when we started. Finally, I draw a wild card and slam it down in victory.
“Ha! Take that one, princess. You have to answer a question and take off a piece of clothing.”
She rolls her eyes at me and takes off her shirt. I'm disappointed to see she has dressed in layers. Damn winter. She had a wool sweater on, and now she's sporting a cotton T-shirt. If I had to guess, I’d say she's also wearing a tank top before getting to her bra. This is going to be interesting considering all I was wearing was a shirt, pants, and boxers against her layers upon layers of clothing.
“Now I see why you weren’t too phased with the strip part of our new game. You have a million layers on!” I tell her.
“It’s not my fault your house is freezing.” She shoots me a wink.
“We need to make this a little fairer. I think if he gets a wild, draw four cards we will still answer four questions, but only remove one piece of clothing.”
“Are you serious?”
“I have three items on. You have what, twelve?”
“Oh, stop exaggerating you, big baby. Here, how about I make it even then.”
She takes off her shirt and sits in front of me in just her bra. I guess I was wrong. I allow my eyes to wander over the beauty in front of me.
“Eyes up here, big guy. If you can’t handle it, we can stop playing,” she mocks.
“Nope, I’m good. So we’re even then?”
“Even Steven. What’s your question?”
I almost forgot I won a question. Hmm, what to ask this time? I laugh when I figure out what I want to ask her.
“What's your favorite feature on a man?” I'm half expecting her to gawk, or start to protest the question, but to my surprise, she hardly even thinks before blurting out her answer.
“Eyes.”
“Really?”
“Yep. They can say a lot about a man.”
I was hoping for something a little dirtier.
“What color card?” she asks.
“Oh, um…green.”
We play a couple more turns, and she slams down a draw four wild card. "Ha! Take it off, mister!"
I smile and take off my shirt. I love the way her eyes trace over my chest. I know the effect I can have on women, but the way Taylor is responding means more for some reason. It's as if I'm being looked at for the first time.
“Like what you see, princess?” I taunt.
She’s almost shocked that I call her out on staring and is almost embarrassed to be caught. She takes a few beats before answering and shrugs. "Yep."
I smirk. “Okay then. What are your questions?”
“Let’s counter your question. What's your favorite feature on a woman?”
“Breasts. And lips.”
“So you’re a boob guy?” She chuckles.
I look at her with a little smile and watch her face flush as she fidgets.
“How long has it been since you’ve been with a woman?”
I look at her, a little taken back by the question. I'm not sure I want
to answer, but decide what the hell. "Almost two years."
“And how many women have you slept with?” She looks me straight in the eyes, challenging me. I want to be honest with her. “Well? What’s the number?”
“Why do you want to know this?”
“Your answer.”
“Eight.”
I watch her jaw drop, and her eyes grow wide. "Are you serious?"
“You asked for the truth, there it is.”
"And how old are you exactly? I need a little perspective on timeframe here."
“That’s a new question. And why do you need perspective? How does my sex life impact you in any way? It’s not like you’re in my bed.”
“Don’t you want me to be?”
And there it is. The shy, insecure woman from earlier makes an appearance. She quickly recovers and acts as if she's just being cocky. But I know she truly meant what she said. She wants something more here, and I'm not sure what to make of it. This is going downhill, quickly.
Chapter Eleven
Taylor
Now Maddox knows my interest is piqued, and I’m not even sure where that came from. Can I blame it on the whiskey? No, that's immature. The whiskey has only let me loosen up and be more myself than usual, but the truth is I wanted to know. There's no way I’d ever be able to satisfy him.
“Do you want to be in my bed, princess?”
I swallow hard. My body is begging for him. “No.” I try to lie. “I’m blaming the whiskey.”
“I don’t need games to tell you what I want or alcohol. And I’d never take advantage of a woman who’s been drinking.”
He’s a gentleman through and through. “I never once thought you’d take advantage of me, Maddox. Not once. And now it’s time for you to lose another article of clothing.”
I feel as if I know Maddox better than I know myself.
He stands and removes his pants. Showing me his boxers and long, muscular legs. I look up at him, and his eyes meet mine. All he does is smile.
“What do you want from me, princess?”
Not breaking eye contact, Maddox gets up from his chair and comes around to my side of the table. I turn and look up at the tower of a man standing in front of me. Giving in to my inner voice, I slowly rise and break eye contact as I bring a hand up to his chest, lightly caressing his peck. He’s so warm, and there’s hardly any hair, which seems odd to me.
"Tell me," he whispers. "I want to hear you say what your eyes are already telling me." I slowly let my hand trail down his abs and swallow my desire at how hard he is. I stop at his waist and make my way back up, and look back into his eyes. There's so much heat and desire in them that I genuinely believe the blue darkened about three shades. My insides tighten in such a delicious way, I lick my lips and bite my bottom lip, just slightly, in an attempt to control my breathing.
I close the small gap between us and Maddox lifts me onto the table, so I'm at a better height. Without thinking, I wrap my legs around his and feel just how hard he is at my navel. I look back into his eyes, and before I can assess what I see, he clasps my face in his hands and covers my lips with his. At that moment, I lose all inhibitions. I pull him closer to me with my legs and feel his erection against my stomach. The kiss deepens to a degree I didn’t know was possible.
It feels as though we can’t get close enough. My hands roam over his arms, his sides, his back and Maddox returns the favor by caressing me with fervor, grasping both my breasts in his hands as he breaks our kiss. As he leaves a trail of kisses on my neck, I’m becoming so wet I can hardly stand it.
“I want you so bad, Taylor,” he admits as I run my fingers through his hair.
Taylor. He called me Taylor, not princess. This makes it even harder to stop him, but just as important.
"Maddox, this is happening too fast." I want and need him more than I need air, and when he stops kissing me, I feel so empty. He drops his hands to the table to brace himself and hangs his head and rests his forehead to mine, trying to catch his breath.
"I understand.” Maddox leans forward placing one soft kiss on my lips before he steps away from me, runs his hands through his hair, and stalks to his room. He respected my wishes. There was no wrongdoing here…except for maybe me. Maybe I was in the wrong here. Why did I stop? Why did I push him away? Because I'm a virgin. There's no way I could continue this way without telling him I've never been with anyone before. He needs to know the truth.
I'm still sitting on the table, trying to gather my thoughts and honestly, beating myself up for stopping him. Every part of me wants Maddox and still does. My insecurities have gotten the better of me, again.
I thought with the whiskey, I’d just let go and finally not care or worry, but that nagging little bitch in the back of my mind wins again. She may own my voice and forever be a part of me, but there are times where she blindsides me and find her presence a real inconvenience. Now, I have to figure out my next move. I honestly don't want to go to my bed, cold and alone. I loved the feeling of being in Maddox's arms and want to return to that warmth. I don't want to give in to my annoying backseat driver anymore.
And just like that, I make up my mind. I refuse to let this go and to avoid what I want. I want Maddox, and I will do all that I can to tell him that. I take a deep breath, hop off the table and walk to his door. I stop myself for a moment, hand frozen in the air and ready to knock.
With a big swallow and a second deep breath, I knock on the door. At first, I hear nothing and my heart sinks. Either he's upset or no longer wants me. Maybe this isn't a good idea. I should wait until tomorrow when we’re both sober. Talking myself out of taking this risk, I start to walk away, but as soon as I turn to leave, the door opens. When I turn back around, Maddox is leaning on the door frame, eyes half open.
“What is it, princess?”
“Um, I-I’m sorry. I’ll let you sleep.” I turn to walk away.
"Taylor. Come here. Or I'll carry you over my shoulder and make you." Maddox chuckles, and I'm relieved to see him smile again.
My butterflies return at the thought of him carrying me to his bed. Just as I let the picture settle in my head and start to answer, he opens the door a little more, swoops down and lifts me over his shoulder so that he’s holding my legs and my head is at his backside.
“Hey!” I yell at him, but can’t fight the giggle that escapes as I do.
“Way to call my bluff, princess.”
He brings us into the dark room and playfully drops me on his bed so that I bounce a little before settling into the mattress. It takes my eyes a few moments to adjust, but when they do, I still can't see very much. The fire is dying, and it's the only light in the room. Maddox plops himself down on the bed, lying on his back, and drapes his left arm over his eyes while his right is resting on the bed right next to mine. The room is quiet, and I continue to look around, trying to see a little more of his room. His voice breaks my search, startling me a little.
“You cold?”
“A little.”
“Do you want me to get the fire going again?”
“Um, if you aren’t too tired.”
“You could just crawl under the covers with me and let me warm you up.” Maddox winks.
"I get cold at night, but I like the idea of both options."
He releases a snort-laugh as he gets off the bed. Maddox heads to the fireplace, closing the door on his way. I'm confused why he isn't going out into the living room to get wood, but when he turns on a small lantern that’s on the mantle, I see there’s a woodpile sitting on the hearth.
While he adds more logs to the fire, I quickly look around to see what I can make out with the little light provided. His room is a lot larger than the spare room, and the bed is massive. There are four posts and are all thick logs.
Why does he need such a large bed? I look around a little more and can only make out a nightstand on each side of the bed and some paintings above each, but of what I'm not sure.
“Looking for an
escape route?” Maddox breaks the silence. I didn’t even know he was looking at me.
“No. Just curious to see where the magic happens.” I chuckle.
“There’s not much to see.” He shrugs.
“Why do you need this big of a bed?” I finally ask. He sits down next to me.
“I don’t know. I guess I got a little out of hand when I made it.”
“You made this?” I look at the woodwork once more and realize it's the same as the bed in the spare room. “Did you make the one in the other room as well?”
“Most of the woodwork you see in the house is mine.”
“Wow. You’re amazing.”
I look back at Maddox and notice he’s staring at me. His gaze makes me shy and excited at the same time. I’m not sure what to do, but I know I don’t want to leave.
“So what do ya think, princess?”
“About what?” I ask, slightly confused.
“About sleep? I'm exhausted.”
“Oh! Right, I’m sorry. I can go.”
“No, you’re staying here. I meant it when I said you could lay under the covers with me.”
My cheeks are blazing hot, and I look down at the bed.
Am I really going to sleep with him? In his bed? My head is reeling. I have never spent a night with a man and have no idea what to expect. When I get the nerve to look back up at him, Maddox smiles at me and lightly caresses my cheek with his thumb.
“There’s nothing to fear, I promise.” All I can do is nod. I trust him.
"Here, let's get settled in." He gets off the bed and pulls back the covers, holding my hand as I maneuver to get myself under them. I'm in the middle of the bed and place a second pillow under my head. Deciding I want to get as close to him as possible when I have the chance, I lay on my side and wait for him to settle in. Maddox lowers himself next to me and pulls the covers up over us. He lays on his back but lifts his arm, inviting me to move into him. I'm a little hesitant, but crawl in as close to him as I can. I lay my head on his chest, and Maddox wraps his arm around me, pulling me in tight. He’s so warm. I honestly thought it’d be hard to cuddle with him because he's so muscular, but this is the most comfortable I’ve been in a long time. Physically and emotionally.