Turn It Up: Turner Twins, Book 2

by Vivian Arend

  “Afternoon, Junior.” She turned to walk away, but that wasn’t good enough.

  “We need to talk.”

  Lila glared at him. “I don’t know that we need to do anything, but since you asked so politely…”

  She strode across the room to nearly the same spot he and Maxine had been standing, the tall floor-to-ceiling windows letting in the December sun and filling the area with a lot more warmth than came from his cousin and her sour expression. One deliberate crossing of her arms later and her body language screamed shut up. He laughed.

  “Very nice, now how about you throw a bucket of cold water on me and announce to the room that I’m a blood-sucking lowlife. I doubt it will make you feel any better, but you’d get it out of your system.”

  “Don’t be stupid, you haven’t done anything wrong.”

  Max fought his temper. “But you’ve refused to speak with Tasha for almost three months, and you ignore her at family functions. You only answer the phone if I call or email.”

  “Right. See? I’m not mad at you.”

  Damn it all. “You’re supposed to be older than me and more mature, stop acting like a pouty twelve-year-old.”

  Lila narrowed her eyes. “Yes, I am older than you, aren’t I? Gee, like ten years or so. Maybe I’m a totally different generation than you, and I don’t see things the same way.”

  He wasn’t going to step into that trap. “Or maybe it’s not the years but the lack of maturity after all, at least on your part. You’re telling me this is all because I’m younger than Tasha? You’ve turned your back on years of friendship because I fell in love with her?”

  “I’m sorry, but I simply can’t see your relationship as anything other than a mistake.”

  Max held up a hand to stop her from turning away. “I don’t understand why you won’t at least talk about it. Whatever the specifics are of this…” he waved his hands in the air, feeling very ineffective, “…misunderstanding between you. Can’t you get together for a drink and try to smooth it over?”

  She shook her head. “This isn’t your business, and it’s not really something I want to talk about at a family event. I promise to stay on the other side of the room, and if you’ll do the same, we’ll have no problems. Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to go say hello to everyone before I have to leave. I can’t stay for dinner, so you won’t have to choose your seating to avoid me.”

  She walked away, her body tight and awkward as she carried her tension with her. It made no sense to him, the depth of her anger, and yet that emotion was definitely there. Something harsh must be hurting his cousin that she could be this bitter, this quickly.

  Enough. There was other family he wanted to celebrate with, others who had completely welcomed Tasha as a new member.

  As always, there was nothing quiet or calm about the gathering. Max spent the next two hours moving from group to group, visiting with aunts and uncles, teasing his nephews. The whole time he kept an eye out for Tasha, enjoying seeing her smile, hearing her laugh. She winked at him across the room right before he got hauled into an impromptu game of jacks with his nine-year-old cousins and impressed them all with his skills.

  When he finally managed to pull himself free and track down Tasha, he found her with a group of the toddlers. One sat in her lap, another draped over her shoulder as they peered at the picture book she held. The expressions on Tasha’s face grew exaggerated as she changed her voice to match the wild monsters in the story, or the fairies coming to the rescue. The realization that she’d be doing this with their child in a few years’ time choked his throat so tight he had to turn away and retreat to the kitchen for a glass of water to calm himself.

  There was nothing he had wanted more than to have a future with Tasha, and that future seemed to be arriving as ordered, and he was the luckiest bastard around. Now if he could just get her to fall in love with him, things would be perfect.

  She’d seen him approach. Even as she read the familiar story, Max’s broad shoulders and distinctive walk had caught her eye. Just before he’d turned away, a moment of doubt struck—the worried expression that had crossed his face seemed out of place. He’d seen her with the children. Was it only hitting him now that this would be their life in a very short while? Full-time parenthood? She finished the book, kissed the top of the little one’s head, and passed him back to one of the teenage girls gathered in the area who were in charge of the children until dinner.

  She caught up with him as the announcement was made for everyone to make their way toward the table. He pulled her close as a stream of hollering children raced past them down the narrow hall, and the comfort and familiarity of his body felt so right.

  They had only a few minutes as the chaos settled in the great room.

  “Hey. What’s up?” Tasha slipped her hand along his cheek, holding him for a minute.

  He kept her trapped against him, even though the hall emptied out, his hands resting on the top of her hips. “Let’s see. I don’t like my sister’s boyfriend, there’s turkey and ham for supper, but no sweet potatoes because two of the family got their names mixed up in the email, and you smell delicious.”

  His mouth brushed hers and she smiled even as she responded with a quick kiss of her own. But that wasn’t enough of an answer. “You seem distracted.”

  He snorted. “You’re in my arms. Distraction at its finest.”

  “That silver tongue is working well tonight, I see.”

  Max rumbled, a sexy sound deep in his throat that made a shiver thrill up her spine. “I can show you exactly how well my tongue is working later, if you’re interested.”

  Oh yes, now she was the one getting distracted. Max slipped his fingers through hers, drawing her to his side for a second and kissing her neck before leading her to a chair. As the rattling of plates and noise carried through the meal, he kept one hand constantly touching her.

  Whatever had made him run and hide, she wasn’t going to ask. Tasha took in all the smiling faces down the long length of the table and gave thanks she was able to be a part of the family.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Max brought Tasha back to Gramma’s house a couple days after the big family gathering so they could tell her their news in private. Her enthusiastic response was exactly what he’d expected, and seeing the flush of delight on Tasha’s face made it even better.

  Unfortunately, his timing was bad, and they barely had a chance for a cup of tea before the visit was cut short. Gramma kissed him and Tasha, then took hold of Uncle Maxdean’s arm, using him to help negotiate her way down the wide front steps. She spoke as she walked, her voice clear and strong as always. “Now I want you both to come back another day when I don’t have to run off. Tasha, I’ll be sure to find those albums I promised. And don’t you fuss about looking around the place without me here. Make yourself at home.”

  “Love you, Gramma,” Max called after her.

  “I know, but it bears repeating,” she called back and he laughed, leaning on the doorframe. Their standard response, filled with the familiarity of love.

  When he turned, Tasha stood beside him, contentment etched on her face. “She’s amazing. I’ve always loved visiting with her, and to think I’m now related to that wonderful woman makes me warm, no matter how cold it is outside.”

  Max shut the door before pulling her against him. He couldn’t seem to get enough of touching her. Holding her close. “You made her very happy yourself just now, telling her about having another great-grandchild on the way.”

  “She did seem pleased.”

  “Pleased? I thought she was going to get up and dance a jig, she was so excited.”

  Tasha smoothed his hair, running her fingers along his nape and his motor revved. She definitely seemed to be over the bump in terms of not wanting to be touched. It was making his plans for romancing her and trying to build a stronger connection between them both easier and harder. Easier, because she was willing to spent lots of intimate time with him. Ha
rder—well, there had to be more to their relationship than sex, but that was difficult to explain to his body.

  Her face lit with excitement. “You ready to show me around? That was sweet of her to offer to let me take a peek around when she found out I’ve never really had a chance to explore the house. Especially since she already had an appointment.”

  “I honestly had no idea she had other plans today, or I would have arranged our visit for another time.”

  Tasha pulled him toward the stairs, her fingers threaded through his. “That was a long-enough visit. We just had Christmas dinner two days ago, and you know there will be a ton of other family events over the next weeks.”

  Then Tasha got lost in architectural design, admiring the construction and details of the old family home. He followed her from room to room, loving the exclamations of delight that escaped as she found some new feature that she’d studied about but never actually seen before. They went through every room in the house on the first and third floors. They skipped the rooms that his grandmother still used on the second floor—the master bedroom, and a couple others that contained her personal effects.

  Three hours later he still had a grin on his face. Tasha’s enthusiasm flowed out of her in a constant stream as she shared ideas for slight modifications to their house under construction. He tugged her into the kitchen and pressed her onto one of the tall stools before handing her a glass of juice. She sipped without thinking, then blinked in surprise. “Oh, that is good. My mouth was so dry.”

  Max grinned. “That’s what happens when you talk for hours straight.”

  She glanced at her watch. “No. Way.”

  “Way. I didn’t think you had it in you, to be that kind of chatterbox. Well, except when you’re very tipsy.” He stepped around to rub her shoulders, the tight muscles relaxing under his hands as she leaned back into him.

  “Don’t nag about that. But you should have said something when I lost track of time. I didn’t mean to waste your afternoon.”

  He slid his thumbs along the tendons in her neck and she moaned. His body tightened at the sound. “It wasn’t a waste at all. I told you, this entire week is a holiday for me, and I want to spend it with you.”

  The height of the stool forced her to look up at him as she twisted to face him, her cheerful face a pleasure to witness. When she wrapped her arms around his waist, his body nestled between her open thighs. It was comfortable and easy and her smile was real.

  Then that damn shadow intruded again. He swore he saw it—as if a physical cloud actually rolled between them. She shifted her position, lowering her hands to rest on his hips, pressing her body away from him slightly.

  “That’s sweet of you. I enjoyed your company. I guess we should head home soon.”

  What the hell? All the ease of her flowing conversation of the past hours disappeared into awkward phrases that were completely unlike her. Tasha stood, brushed past him and moved toward the door.

  “What’s wrong?” He hurried after her, worried about both her and the baby.

  Tasha shook her head. “Nothing. Should we go?”

  “Are you sure? Do you feel okay?”

  “I’m fine. But we should go.”

  Max scrambled for inspiration. Whatever weird thing had just happened, he wasn’t going to let it disrupt the good memories of this day. “I wanted to show you something.”

  She checked her watch again. “You’re sure you don’t have anything you need to do?”

  He forced himself to laugh as naturally as he could, even as his mind raced to figure out what was wrong. “Tasha, I’d swear you were trying to get rid of me or something. Come on, I have nowhere to be, and neither do you. Indulge me. Please?”

  She accepted his hand, and he led her back onto the porch, walking slowly along the wide covered veranda that wrapped around the entire house. He kept their hands together, rubbing his thumb lightly over the back of her knuckles. To their left, the surface of the small pond rippled with tiny waves, the slight wind disturbing the surface. The trees swayed, and when she shivered, he pulled her under his arm. Around the first corner the wind died away, blocked by the house, and he pointed to the massive porch swing. “Our destination.”

  The firm cushion on the oversized bench seat sank only a little as they arranged themselves. Tasha sat primly at his side, her hands lying in her lap as she gazed at the land surrounding his grandmother’s home.

  He rested his arm along the top of the bench seat, drawing circles on her shoulder lazily as he got the swing rocking. Max kept silent, spinning through their conversation in his mind, everything they’d done since arriving at the house, but he couldn’t think of a single thing that would have made her turn formal all of a sudden.

  Screw it. He nuzzled under her ear, kissing her neck. If she wanted to be stiff, he’d find a way to relax her. Tasha arched her neck, opening up to his touch, and he smiled against her skin. Even if there was something going on in her brain he didn’t understand, he had learned enough to push her hot buttons. Her remaining tense wasn’t going to make her any more open to confessing what was on her mind. Keeping the swing moving with a gentle motion, he twisted to face her, leaning across her body to slip his fingers into her hair and cup her neck.

  He kissed her gently, smoothing his lips over hers, playing with his tongue over the seam of her mouth. She let out a sigh and he felt her loosen up as she kicked off her shoes and snuggled against his side.

  All the while, he kissed her, stroking his tongue into her mouth, nibbling on her lips. She moved closer, pressing him back against the bench and straddling his thighs, her hands cupping his face, her body swaying sensuously over his. Oh yes, that was much better. Whatever she was worried about had been pushed aside. Hopefully forgotten. A breeze floated past and she shivered, tucking herself tightly to him.

  There were only the light noises of nature on the air, and the wet sounds of their kisses, the heavy intake of breathing as their excitement revved up a notch. He slipped his hands between their torsos to undo her buttons, rearranging her breasts by folding the tops of her bra in half and creating a shelf for the heavy globes to rest on. Then he lifted her to a more upright position, bringing his mouth in line with his goal.

  The swing rocked and she jerked, catching her balance.

  “Grab my shoulders. I won’t let you fall.” He held her hips and covered one breast with his mouth. Immediately after lowering her hands to his shoulders, she dug in her nails. Her back arched, giving him greater access to every inch of skin as he laved in long, slow strokes around the sensitive peaks.

  He deliberately planted his feet on the ground and swung the bench forward, forcing her toward him, then he swayed in the other direction, holding firmly to her hips but causing her upper body to retreat slightly. She laughed, joy and happiness back in her voice, and his heart lightened. That’s what he needed, what he wanted. To have Tasha be herself—the woman he’d fallen in love with. The one who loved life and greeted every day with enthusiasm.

  Side to side he alternated on every rock until she squirmed.

  “More, I need more.”

  She ground her hips down, the heat of her sex passing through the layers of material between them and making him crazy.

  “You trust me?”

  She looked him straight in the eye as he held his breath. “Of course.”

  “I’m pretty sure this will work, but let’s check.” He cupped under her hips, and rose. She clung to him, her arms wrapping around his neck.

  Her lips distracted him again, and he stopped to kiss her for a moment, letting her slip down his body until she stood crowded against him, feverish heat rising between them to counter the slight chill in the December air. Here on the backside of the house, there were no neighbors to be seen. The house faced the pond and the distant trees on the back of the acreage. He eyed the levels carefully. Oh yeah, it should work.

  “Kneel on the bench.”

  Tasha grabbed the side support with one
hand and laughed. “What are you up to?”

  “You’ll see soon enough.” He stepped closer, sliding his hands around her waist, until he reached her buttons and zipper. Undoing her pants only took a moment, then he wiggled them past her hips to leave her naked ass facing him.

  “You’re insane, Maxwell.”

  Down on his knees behind her, he pressed his cheek against her bare butt and licked. “Not insane. Creative. Hold on tight.”

  He had other things in mind, but this had to be explored. With his knee wedged under the swing to brace it in place, and one hand still wrapped around her hips, he trailed the fingers of his other hand up the naked skin of her inner thigh until he touched the entrance to her sex.

  She shuddered. “This is crazy.”

  “Yup. Open your legs wider.”

  Tasha obeyed, then let out a squeal as he bent her toward him, exposing her to his mouth. She was wet, and as he explored with his tongue, she blessed his ears with a steady stream of moans and squeals and breathless mutterings until he couldn’t wait another minute.

  “Get a good grip on the back of the bench and press your hips toward me.” Max waited until she’d gotten into position before hauling the footstool over. He admired the shape of her ass as he opened his jeans and released his aching cock. “I’ve always loved the view from the swing, but this is better than I remembered.”

  Tasha glanced over her shoulder and shook her head. “Screw the jokes. You need to hurry up.”

  He adjusted the footstool until it was directly below the swing, knelt on it and lined his cock up. It took one slow pass to bury his shaft entirely in her warm welcoming body.

  Oh my word. Tasha let out a low cry of approval as he filled her, dropping her head to rest on her hands where she clung to the bench. “Okay, insane or not, this feels great.”

  She squeezed him and Max reacted. His fingers where he gripped her hips dug in deeper, and she relished the sensation. This was what she needed. Something raw and wild to take her mind off the doubts that insisted on tormenting her when she least expected them. For just a little while, she didn’t want to ponder if her relationship with Maxwell was going to last. Didn’t want to imagine what she’d do if he didn’t keep his promise and she were suddenly left on her own.