“How bad do you want me, Almost Mrs. Mack?”
“Desperately seems to be a gross understatement...”
“Not to worry, little one,” he murmured, his fingers weaving through her hair. “Tomorrow...you can have me here...” He kissed her again, slipping his tongue alongside her top lip as he moved the blanket aside. “And...here...” With a hasty yank of his hand, he pulled the zipper of her jeans down in one even stroke, dipped his middle finger inside her.
Maxine clutched his shoulders, her eyes wide with all-consuming need...pleading. “Just a little one?”
“Not until tomorrow, Maxine,” he said, slipping his finger out only to explore her further. “And let's not forget this little virgin hole back here...”
“You're...killing...me...Mack...” she hissed, gripping him then with all her tiny might. “So much for our...last...few...quiet moments....alone...”
“Ah, but you're being so carefully quiet tonight, even with all of this sudden...agitation,” he said, his voice full of both pride and amusement. “After all, I've trained you well...”
“You've won again, Mack,” she muttered as he zipped her back up and pulled the blanket over them once more—playing as if nothing just happened between them. “I suppose you'll likely receive your blowjob in a back alley in Paris...”
“Likely?” he questioned.
“We've still got some alone time this evening...” Maxine reminded him. “And there's always the chance that you'll just break down and lose all control tomorrow morning. Last minute jitters...and sex does so well to sooth your cranky soul...”
“That's Old Drew's modus operandi. Besides, I've told you already, there are no jitters here,” he insisted. “We are, need I remind you, almost at the finish line...”
“You know, we never talked about my prize...should I so happen to win this game,” Maxine said suddenly. “Perhaps Naughty Sassy Maxine has some thoughts...”
“Oh, little one,” he groaned right into her ear. “We’ll only explore those if you win—which you won’t...”
“Guess you'll just leave it up to my discretion,” she added, with a purposeful push of her bottom right up against him, then added, “...should I win...”
“Maxine, just concede defeat and enjoy these last few minutes we have together here tonight,” he sighed.
“Yeah, well, it's not like I'll exactly be a loser in this challenge,” she teased, smacking her lips together.
“You think that brother of mine and your maid of honor are behaving so chastely right now?” Drew wondered out loud.
“Kind Sir, one could hardly believe that shoving your hand into your Almost Wife's panties while lounging on a public beach is...ahem...chaste?” she suggested gently. “And besides...I really—really—don't want to know what she does with Adam!”
“Yeah,” he shook his head as if the thought made him sick, “I don't want the details, either.”
“Damn,” she said once he'd settled her into the crook of his arm. “Someone needs to go wake up Padre McCarron so that he can just marry us right now.”
“Oh, the only child is surfacing again,” Drew teased. “And she's being such a brat...”
“Kills me when you say that, Mack,” Maxine reminded him. “Right between the legs...”
Even with that undying ache that continued to tremor in all of the right places, Maxine still managed to find a sense of reserve, allowing him to simply hold her once more. As much as she hated to admit, she rather appreciated his turn toward traditionalism.
There had been such a quick progression of their emotions over the last seven months, carrying them from sexual attraction to a love so intense that it frightened them both at times. However, when Maxine stopped to rationalize this whirlwind, her sense of admiration, passion and devotion only deepened.
Drew was her partner...her lover...but also her friend. The underlying innuendos hadn't waned but had grown stronger with the progression of their feelings.
“Come on, little one,” Drew said at long last, pushing himself up against the boulder so that he could stand. “I need to get you back to your room and put you to bed. Big day tomorrow...”
Taking the blanket with her and wrapping it around her shoulders, she fell readily into his embrace once again. “You'll stay with me again? Until I fall asleep?”
“Have I not waited with you every night since we arrived?”
“Drew...?”
“What, little one?” he smiled, tickling his fingers under her chin.
“Just know...” she clung to the collar on his jacket. “Just know that you're the greatest thing that ever has ever happened to me...”
“Likewise, Maxine...” he touched his nose to hers. “In every single way...”
Chapter Twelve
The sunlight streamed through the windows, nearly blinding Maxine as she pulled open the curtains. Stepping back, she sighed with relief. So far, with the weather reports assumingly correct for a change, they would indeed have the outdoor wedding they'd planned. She hated those damn New York meteorologists—they never got anything right.
Maxine practically bounced over to her bedroom door when the gentle knock came, and she caught her breath when she saw Tom and Jillian, standing in the doorframe with an entire cart of breakfast treats. She felt like she was staying in some fancy hotel for a few days with the deliveries each morning. With their honeymoon only a day away, she hoped she wouldn’t get a little too used to this luxury of breakfast in bed!
Immediately, Maxine noticed that Jillian didn’t look well. Dark brown rings framed her eyes as if she’d spent the entire night out, and her cheeks appeared to be drained of color. Maxine saw that same look on many mornings as of late, and that day, she couldn’t hide her concern.
“Jill, are you alright?” Maxine lowered her voice and took her elbow.
“Oh, I’m fine. Just a little restless because I’m not sleeping in my own bed,” Jillian improvised. “But Drew has requested that I bring your overnight bag down to the guest cottage. Want to grab that for me?”
With the obvious state she was in, Maxine certainly didn’t want Jillian traipsing all over the property alone just to humor Groomzilla. However, Maxine had to tread carefully.
“If you’re not feeling well, Jilly, I hate to see you running on some wild goose chase just to—”
“I’m fine, Max!” she assured her with a pat on her back. “Jeffrey’s meeting me downstairs with the golf cart.”
“You trust that boy to drive you?” Tom teased. “Ben said he’s not a good driver.”
“He’s my ride,” Jillian laughed. “I have no other choice, Papa Kirk.”
“Well, Jill, you just tell him to watch the driveway and mind the speed limit,” Tom said, as he wheeled their mini-breakfast buffet through the door. The kittens were already at his feet, rubbing their little faces against his legs. “Hey, you two...you must know that Grampy brought food!”
“Grampy…” Maxine snickered.
“And Drew doesn’t need to be so bossy, Jill,” Tom added. “I’ll have a word with him later—after he marries my daughter.”
“Well, Papa Kirk, you’re the only one he seems to take direction from,” Jillian observed. “And don't you ever tell the hubs I said that, Max...”
“The hubs,” Maxine repeated. “No worries, Jill. Secret's safe with me...hey, hey, hey, Daddy! Easy on the cream cheese with those two! They're on a wet food only diet!”
Tom continued to hold out his finger to Emile and Nellie. “Cats love cheese, Maxie...”
“But it's human food—that's not good for their little tummies!” she contended. “You and Drew—you two just have to feed them from the table! I think Vicki needs to school you both.”
“She's practicing for real motherhood here,” Jillian said in a very loud stage whisper as she raised her hand to her lips.
“Or she's starting to get a little bit nervous this morning...” Tom suggested.
But Maxine folded her arms over
her chest and just smiled. “Cool as a cucumber. As Drew keeps saying, there's not a single reason for us to fear anything today.”
“Well, listen...I need to pay a visit to those two boisterous gents in the guest house,” Jillian began.
“Stick around, Jill,” Tom encouraged. “They can wait!”
“No, Tom, you enjoy this time with Maxine,” she insisted. “Besides, I've got to make sure that Adam’s on his best behavior this morning...”
“Yeah, well, if I'm the only one who has control over Drew,” Tom began, “I think it's very clear that you're the one who has all the control over Adam!”
“I do what I can, Tom,” Jill said, pulling Maxine's small suitcase behind her. “Now, I'll see you a bit later, Max...”
With a brush of her lips against Jillian's cheek as she headed out the door, Maxine said, “Good luck, my dearest...”
“I shall need it...”
Patting his hand on the arm of the empty chair next to him, Tom called Maxine over to sit with him near the windows.
A comfortable silence had lingered between dad and daughter for a few moments before Tom started shuffling through his pockets with a look that Maxine recognized all too well playing in his caring eyes.
“Daddy...what did you do?” she asked as Tom pulled out the small, square gift box and placed it in her hands.
“Oh, it' just a little somethin',” Tom said rather nonchalantly. “Just open it before you put your make-up on.”
And his recommendation was spot-on because the second Maxine lifted the lid, tears filled her eyes.
“I knew you already had something to wear around your neck from Drew,” Tom explained with a knowing wink. “So I had your mom’s pearls restrung into a bracelet for you.”
Maxine recognized those champagne colored pearls all too well. Tom bought them for her for their own wedding, and Judy wore that strand around her neck at all times.
This gift was beyond sentimental for Maxine. Thoughts wandering back to her childhood, she remembered playing dress-up when Judy would clean out the closets in the spring, trying on her mother’s old clothes as she discarded them. That was the one time every year that Maxine was permitted to wear those pearls. And every time Judy closed the clasp around her neck, she reminded Maxine of the story behind them.
Tom and Judy didn’t have a lot of money when they first got engaged, and with a baby on the way, they had to save. However, Tom wanted to give his fiancée the moon, so he got his first credit card just so that he could buy Judy’s engagement ring. While at the jeweler, though, his eyes caught that strand of pearls. He splurged on both.
Maxine held out her arm so that Tom could close the diamond clasp of the triple strand of pearls around her wrist, and she simply couldn't contain her emotions. Now she understood why Drew chose to buy her pearl earrings.
“Hey, Princess,” Tom reached out and pulled her close, “she's here with you today.”
“I miss her,” Maxine tried to no avail to blink back her tears. “And I promised myself that I wouldn’t cry today.”
“I know you did,” he said. “But it’s okay, Maxie.”
“This is the most precious gift,” Maxine said, giving his hand a squeeze. “It's a part of both of you—you and Mom.”
“Well, you just wear them with as much pride as she did, Maxie,” he said. “I love you, little girl.”
“Nope,” she shook her head insistently and pulled him as close as she could before resting her head on his shoulder like she'd done a million times before. “I love you even more, Daddy.”
Caressing her fingers over the delicate bracelet, Maxine allowed herself a few moments to honor Judy’s memory. It wouldn’t be the last time she’d think of her mother that day, but she felt a closeness to Judy in wearing those pearls—just as she did as she pulled Drew’s t-shirt over her head the last few nights. There was something tangible that belonged to her mother that still existed in this living world. This was a new way to embrace her mom that Maxine would cherish forever.
“So,” Tom began, and then took a sip of coffee. “I suppose this is my last chance to impart every last bit of wisdom I’ve acquired since you were born….”
Reaching out, Maxine looked him in the eyes. “Daddy, it’s never too late to give me advice. Remember that.”
For a very long moment, Tom simply sat with his daughter’s tiny hand in his. He remembered how small she was when she was a baby—and how terrified he was to hold her until Judy finally sat him down in the rocker and placed a squiggling Maxine in his arms.
He could still hear her little voice as a child, calling out after him as he trudged into the woods while she crunched along in the brush. Although he’d initially wanted a boy, he couldn’t go anywhere without his little girl tagging along. She didn’t just love him unconditionally—she respected him as no one else had in his life. He made her, but Maxine made him whole. She was Tom’s strongest reminder of that love that he and Judy shared for each other.
“Just think like your mom, Maxie. Maybe she and I didn’t always make the best decisions, but everything worked out in the end.”
With a squeeze, she clutched his hand. “You miss her, too.”
“Of course, I do,” he said. Maxine could see that he was fighting hard not to cry. “I adore Vicki, but…but this should have been Mom’s day with you. I could hear her voice every minute this week. Hell, I look out those windows, and I can even see her ordering the florists around. You know how she loved flowers.”
“That, she did,” Maxine endeavored to smile through her grief. “And she would have fought Drew on the music and the menu.”
Suddenly, her phone alerted her to a text.
“Bet that’s your husband, Princess,” Tom waved his hand. “And I’ll message Ben, too, and tell him to get his ass in here. We need some comic relief.”
“Good plan.”
Little one...
Can’t wait to marry you!
I love you.
Kisses,
Drew
And to that, Maxine danced her fingers over the screen.
My love—
I love you back! More than life itself...
Blowjobs,
little one
Ohhhhh...he's gonna sting me with that app! she thought the second she hit send.
However, now was not the time to get kinky with her Kind Sir. Her father sat next to her, and Ben was already knocking at the door.
“Wooo-hooo!” he shouted as he skipped into the room and into Maxine’s lap. “Captain’s getting hitched today!”
Shoving and squirming against him, Maxine shouted, “You’re smothering me!”
“Get up, Ben! Don’t kill her before the wedding—because then you’ll have to deal with Drew….” Tom warned.
Hauling himself out of his awkward position, Ben asked, “Can I sit on your lap, then?”
As Ben and her father quibbled, Maxine returned her attention to Drew’s latest text, her cheeks already heated with chagrin.
I give you kisses.
KISSES!!!!
And you return with BLOWJOBS?
So much for tenderness and traditionalism.
“Ouchie!” Maxine exclaimed.
“Texting the groom,” Tom explained to Ben. “Kinda cute...”
“Guess that's what these kids do today...” Ben said, pouring a cup of coffee for himself. “So when are we getting our hair and make-up done, Cap?”
In Ben’s presence, there was simply no way for her mood to sour—and that’s likely why Tom summoned him. Ben made this gorgeous day a hundred times more special than she could have ever imagined, and she hadn’t even showered yet. “They’ll be here shortly—but you missed the mani-pedis yesterday.”
“Rub it in!” Ben challenged her.
“Aw, stop it, you two!” Tom folded his newspaper and sliced it through the air, chuckling all the while.
“No, Tom,” Ben grabbed his arm to catch his attention. “For once I’m being serio
us. You’ve gotta do a mani-pedi with me. Oh, it’ll look so nice on camera for your show.”
“Nobody’s gonna see my feet through a pair of work boots,” Tom insisted.
“Uh, hello…there’s Vicki,” Ben reminded him. “She don’t need to be seein’ your gnarly toes.”
“Will you two knock it off?” Maxine jumped between the two of them. “I don’t want to hear about feet on my wedding day!”
“A-ha! Bridezilla emerges at last!” Ben accused. “I knew she was hiding in there all along, Cap.”
“I still have time to switch your partner, Ben,” Maxine warned. “Want to walk the aisle with Adam this afternoon?”
Ben chose, however, to ignore her. “At least get your nails done, Tom,” Ben chirped. “They’ll shoot close-ups since you work with your hands.”
“Well, nobody’s worried about Daddy’s fingers today,” Maxine stepped in once again. “But how about a selfie with two of my favorite boys?”
A knock on the door brought their frivolity to a brief standstill.
“Max?” Maggie peeped her head in the doorway. “Oh, I’m sorry—I didn’t mean to interrupt…”
“Not at all, Maggie,” Maxine said, opening her arms wide for a hug.
Readily, Maggie hurried to Maxine’s embrace and held on. She’d just spent the better part of a half-hour, crying over her own joy to Declan.
In Maxine, Drew had finally found everything he needed. So lovely with such a generous heart, she gave not only to Drew but to everyone around her. Maggie couldn’t help but smile every time that wonderful young lady walked into a room. Perhaps they’d taken things quickly, but in those short seven months since they met, Maggie saw the true progression of love between her son and Maxine. Without her, Maggie wondered if Drew would have ever had the courage to face his demons. Maxine had truly given him the gift of life anew.
“How are you, darling?”
“I’m beyond happy this morning,” Maxine said. “And by the time the ceremony ends, I think I’ll be bursting at the seams.”
“I remember that feeling from my own wedding day,” Maggie reminisced. “And I can tell you that, even though we’ve had some rough times, there’s no one I’d rather wake up to every morning than Declan. And that’s what I see for you and Drew…a very joyous, long life together.”
KNOTTED: The Manhattan Bound Series, Book Three Page 19