Days like this, where I was run off my feet made me appreciate Nate a hell of a lot more when he wasn’t at work. My manager, along with a prep cook and a waitress had all fallen with some late summer or early fall flu. I didn’t know what the hell it was, only that it had taken away my best employee.

And left me to deal with customers. It was something I was comfortable doing, but only when Zeke’s Joint was just a bar. Restaurant customers were picky bastards who could find something to bitch about even under the most perfect of circumstances. Their sole job was to test my patience, at least that’s how it felt tonight. And I was beat.

I couldn’t complain too much though since the restaurant had been packed all night with families, the after work crowd and those who didn’t mind enjoying a mountain of chili cheese fries with their booze. It was exactly what I wanted when I opened the place, except I planned to have Nate do most of the heavy lifting. As I locked the place up with a smile, I had a brief moment of dread as I thought about going to Maddie’s place. Not that I didn’t want to, just that I imagined a special kind of hell at coming home this tired to an energetic household.

I’d grown accustomed to being alone. Living alone. So far, there had been no issues with Max or Maddie, but as I made my way to the back of the parking lot, I wondered how it would feel to come home feeling this way.

That was another thing that got to me. Home. I hadn’t had a home since I left New York, not really anyway. I had places I crashed, where I laid my head, took a piss and cooked the occasional meal. But none of those places were home. Maddie’s place though, was a home. Everything about it from the colorful knit blanket that rested on the back of the sofa to the candid photos of her and Max, all screamed home in big capital letters and flashing neon lights.

I braced myself as I pushed the key inside the lock and turned, pushing the door open and holding my breath. But there was nothing. Well not nothing but there was no loud noise like there’d been the past few nights, just a calm quiet. “Hey,” Maddie said, smiling up at me from the sofa and looking sexy as fuck in a pair of sexy purple glasses perched on pert little nose.

“Hey back. I dig the glasses.”

She blushed prettily and took them off. “Thanks. I was just, ah, catching up on some bookkeeping. And inventory. How was your day?”

“Aw honey, I had a terrible day. How was yours?” I was joking but the way her brows crinkled in the middle told me she’d taken me seriously.

“Why, what happened?”

I sighed and kicked off my shoes before turning to shut the door. “Nothing happened but Nate was sick and I actually had to deal with the customers.”

She laughed and shifted her laptop to the cushion beside her as she shook her head. “You mean you actually had to work? You poor thing.”

I stared at her until her lips twitched, but to Maddie’s credit, her gaze never wavered. It dared me. Challenged me and I wanted more of it. “I knew my wife would get it.” Her honey brown eyes lit up when I leaned in to steal a taste of her plump lips and I savored that kiss, sank into it and reveled in it until she pulled back. “You don’t like my kisses?”

Her nose scrunched up and she leaned back. “I like your kisses plenty, but you stink.”

I took a whiff and nearly knocked myself out. “Damn! Not quite ready for all this man, are ya?” She rolled her eyes and that pulled a laugh out of me. “When I get back you can tell me all about your day.” It was still an experience, sharing more than a bed with someone else for more than a few hours. Inside the master bathroom my bodywash sat beside hers, my tooth brush crossed hers in the little cup on the sink. Stepping under the hot spray, I let the water wash over me for awhile as I thought about Maddie in those sexy librarian glasses, wondering if I could get her to dress the part for me.

Thinking about Maddie, as always, had my cock growing harder and thicker but I refused to jerk off, not when she looked at me like she wanted to devour me. I would convince her to do just that before bed. That thought propelled me out of the shower and into a pair of pajama pants and nothing else. “Okay honey, tell me about your day.”

She grinned but kept her glasses on this time. “Nothing too exciting, honestly. I ordered some new designs from a couple of my bestselling designers and I found some fabric for a dress idea I’ve been toying with.”

“Red? Because I’d love to see you in something red.”

Maddie rolled her eyes but she could do nothing to stop the smile that lit up her face. “And here I thought you wanted to see me in nothing at all.”

“Always,” I told her seriously. “How’s Max?”

When her smile lit up so all the threads of gold in her eyes shone like melted gold, I felt ten feet tall. Invincible. “He’s good. Sorry he missed you so prepare yourself for an onslaught over breakfast.” She waited for a response, probably a groan but there was none. I looked forward to conversations with Max. Sure the kid had entirely too much energy but I was pretty sure his IQ was higher than mine. “There’s a plate warming in the oven if you’re hungry.”

“For me?” At her casual nod, I walked over to her and dropped a kiss on her forehead and I swear, she made a soft little sighing sound. “You’re the best wife I’ve ever had.”

She laughed and I felt her gaze on my ass when I walked towards the kitchen. “The only wife you’ve ever had…right?”

She sounded worried, like maybe she cared what my answer was. “Jealous?”

“Maybe,” she admitted honestly. “You just seem like the kind of guy to have crazy adventures, like accidentally marrying your best female friend in Vegas.”

“Yes Maddie, you are the only woman I have ever married.” I turned to watch her before I grabbed a fork and can of soda. “What about you?”

Her laugh came out harsh and bitter. “No, Zeke. In case you haven’t noticed, men are tripping over themselves to get with a workaholic single mother. Trust me.”

I laughed at the absurdity of her statement. “First of all, that’s total bullshit. Second, I’ve been tripping over myself for months.”

“Yeah but you didn’t want to marry me, Zeke. You were forced into it.”

“I could say the same thing about you, but I’m glad it happened so I don’t mind how it happened.” I could see the disbelief on her pretty face, fresh and free of makeup. “I wanted you before we were accidentally married, Maddie. Don’t forget that.”

She turned to face the TV after that, not yet ready to explore my words in depth. “You can watch something else if you want.”

I smiled at her kindness even though she wasn’t looking. “A woman who gives up the remote easily? You really are the best wife around.” Her lips twitched and she gave me a playful eyeroll. “I don’t watch much TV so we can watch this. What’s it about?”

“You’ve never seen Project Runway? It’s a group of budding fashion designers competing to win a giant prize that will allow them to launch their own fashion line.” Her brown eyes lit up with excitement and that’s when I realized that creating clothes was her true passion.

“No shit, this is a show? Sounds kind of cool.”

“Really?”

“Hell yes. I mean my sense of fashion is jeans and a t-shirt, but I admire people who create something from nothing.” She smiled as though my answer pleased her.

“You wear jeans and a t-shirt very well, Zeke.”

“A compliment? You must really like me, Maddie.” I knew she did and it wasn’t just the sweet little gestures like making me a plate and asking about my day. I could see it in her eyes even when she didn’t want me to.

“I do like you, Zeke.” It was a simple statement, not meant to entice or excite but it did all the same. “Or,” she began cryptically as she laid her head on my shoulder. “I’m preparing for that payback I promised you.”

Payback. The word had echoed in my mind for days since the night I ate dinner with Maddie’s head resting on my shoulder as we watched a fashion based reality program. Yeah, I had it bad for the woman and the worst part of was, I couldn’t tell her. Maddie wasn’t ready to hear it and I didn’t know if she would ever be ready. Her ex, the bastard, had done a number on her that was only complete when her parents all but abandoned her when she left school to have Max.

To say I had an uphill battle would be the understatement of the millennia. But I was determined to change her mind. In time. As the spray of hot water washed over me I thought of all the ways I could make her see that I wasn’t like all the other people in her life who’d abandoned her. That I wasn’t the bad bet she thought I was based on the lack of relationships in my past.

My thoughts were interrupted by a cool breeze behind me. Then a pair of delicate but capable hands wrapped around my chest and slid down. The woman occupying my thoughts was here. Naked. Touching me. “You look really good wet, Zeke. Really.”

I barked out a laugh at that compliment and turned to face her. “So do you, Mads. But you taste even better when you’re wet.” That little intake of air, that sexy little gasp made my cock stand even taller.

“You’re not gonna distract me this time, Zeke.” She slammed me with that gaze so full of heat and longing that I had to steal a kiss. Had to taste plump lips that begged to be kiss. My mouth opened hers and my tongue slid deep inside, making her moan. Too soon, Maddie pulled back. “I said you’re not gonna distract me.”

My lips twitched in amusement. “Wouldn’t dream of it.” She let out a husky laugh of her own and smacked my chest. I grabbed her wrist and held her hand there, slowly sliding it down until she wrapped it around my length. “No need to hit. If you want a little kink sweetheart, just say so.”

She sucked in another breath and squeezed the hand still attached to me. “I want a little kink, Zeke.”

It was my turn to suck in a deep breath at her words, at the intense look in her eyes. “Yeah?”

She nodded and I knew she was nervous because the little pulse at the base of her throat fluttered furiously.

“Good. Turn around and put your hands on the wall.” She hesitated and I twirled my finger in a motion to urge her to turn. She did and the sight of her ass, all lush and pale, had my cock straining towards her. I couldn’t help but reach out to flick a smack on her ass, watching the hypnotic way it jiggled. “Fucking perfect.”

“Zeke.” She was annoyed but the way her skin turned pink told me the anticipation was getting to her. “Zeke, dammit.” She looked over her shoulder at me with a sexy little pout.

“Face the wall and spread your legs.” She did. “More.” When Maddie did as she was told her back arched just enough to let me see how wet and swollen she was. Just for me.

“Perfect.” I took a step closer, mindful of the slick shower floor and put my hands on her shoulders, letting the water ease the journey down her sensual curves while my mouth took the same trip. “Maddie.”

A low growl escaped when my lips reached the small of her back. Then lower and lower still. My tongue slid between her cheeks, drawing another irresistible gasp. “Zeke,” she moaned.

I loved the little sounds she made, especially the ones she couldn’t help, like that scandalized sigh. The way she arched into me just a little bit told me she liked it more than it shocked he and that only pushed me to push her. Her body trembled as I tongued her ass, enjoying the way she pulsed around my tongue as I gripped her hips to keep her still.

“Zeke,” she moaned again. “Yes!”

That’s what I wanted to hear. That. Right. There. I moaned and slid my tongue down until it slipped inside her and her hands slammed against the wet wall of the shower. I laid claim to her, licking and sucking, fucking her with my tongue and bringing her to the brink or orgasm time and again.

“Zeke!”

I laughed against her until her body shook before turning around and settling myself between her thighs. “You wanted kink, honey. Here it is.”

Those big brown eyes looked down at me and widened when I flatted my tongue and swiped it from top to bottom. “But I-,”

“It’s okay,” I assured her and pulled her clit between my lips, sucking hard. “Do it. I know you want to.” When she hesitated I reached for one of her arms and settled a hand on top of my head. “Ride me, Mads. Take your pleasure.”

I knew I had her when her fingers wrapped around my hair and her hips began to rock, slow at first and then faster as her pleasure ratcheted up another notch. The harder she slid her moisture and those plump lips across my mouth, the harder I was. “Zeke, yes! Zeke!” She was close. So fucking close and I wanted to push her so I reached up and palmed those delicious tits, pinching her nipples while she exploded and came all over my face.

“Keep going,” I urged because I knew she wanted more. She wanted to hold me close while she wrung every last drop of pleasure from her body she could. And I was happy to play the part of her scratching post, feeling her skin, slick from the steam of the shower and the exertion of reaching for her pleasure.

“I can’t,” she moaned even as her hips picked up speed and her legs began to shake. Instead of telling her what we both already knew, I stuck out my tongue and reveled in the way she impaled herself on it, rocking harder and harder until she got the pressure she needed on her clit. “Oh my…oh, oh! Zeke!”

I lapped up her juices while she shook and trembled as her orgasm shot out of her, fingers growing tighter and tighter around locks of my hair. I moaned and she lost it, trembling violently as her pleasure washed over me and I got lost in her scent.

Her taste.

The way she rode the orgasm out in ever slower movements. “Ah, sweet Maddie, that was fucking hot.”

She laughed and I joined in, which only caused another shiver to zip through her. “And you Zeke, are a very naughty boy.”

“Oh, you have no idea.”

She stepped back and reached out a hand to help me stand. “I’m starting to get an idea, though.” She tapped her chin and looked up at me, a question burning in her eyes. “I wonder, though.”

“Wonder what?” My body was hard and tense, everywhere, and the minx was teasing me. “Maddie?”

She stepped out of the shower and reached for a towel, tightening it around her curves and I lost the battle to suppress a groan. “I wonder how you’ll feel when I return the favor.” Maddie. Sweet little sexy Maddie dropped the towel and left the bathroom.

Three seconds later the water was off, my body was dry—mostly—and I was joining Maddie in the bedroom. Cock hard, aching and dripping. “It wasn’t a favor.”

“Neither is this. I just want to see if I get as turned on by giving as you do.”

She was going to kill me, and sick bastard that I was, I couldn’t think of a better way to go.