Chapter Eleven
Maxime parts my lips, his mouth desperate to explore me. Heat surges through me as I feel his tongue slide against mine in a slow, sensual rhythm, kissing me deeply. His hands move through my hair, and he takes hold of it and sexily winds his fingers through the strands as he continues to kiss me.
I lift my hands and cradle his face as I lose myself in this kiss, this kiss that is turning my world upside down. It’s sexy, it’s exploratory, and it’s drugging all my senses. Our mouths move together, increasing the intensity, wanting to take more and more with each kiss. I love the way Maxime is kissing me. It’s not a shy, tentative kiss, but the kiss of a passionate man who knows what he wants—and that is to bring me to my knees with his sensual mouth.
My heart pounds as his lips take more command. Our mouths are caught up in a frantic need to stay connected and never break apart. I’m burning up. I’ve never been kissed like this. I move my hands to his wavy locks, and Maxime moans as I glide my fingers through his silky waves. His hair has a glorious scent, one that I want imprinted in my memory.
I realize he likes having his hair touched, so I move my hand through his thick locks, down to the nape of his neck, and lightly graze my fingertips across the back of it. Maxime responds by drawing me closer to him, his hands skimming down to my waist and pushing my coat aside. I gasp as he finds my camisole, his fingers touching the curve in my waist, and I shiver against him, which causes Maxime to kiss me harder.
Maxime eventually breaks the kiss, and we take a moment to catch our breath. I move my hands to his face, framing it in my hands, feeling absolutely treasured by the way he’s looking at me.
“That kiss,” Maxime murmurs, brushing his fingertips over my swollen lower lip. “That kiss … I don’t even know what to say.”
“It was incredible.”
He dips his head and presses a sweet kiss against my lips that is gentle and soft and sends happiness through my veins.
“A perfect Valentine’s Day kiss?” he murmurs against my mouth.
“Yes,” I say back, smiling.
We kiss again, holding each other’s faces in our hands as we engage in a slow, caressing kiss.
I break it first this time and look up at him. “You would tell me if I tasted like onions, right?”
Maxime’s face lights up in the biggest grin.
“That wouldn’t be very gentlemanly of me,” he says, dropping another kiss on my mouth.
I furrow my brow. “Do I taste like onions? Is that why you can’t say that?”
Ew, I hope not.
“You happen to taste like honey, but I would still kiss you that way if you tasted like onions. One, because your kiss is that good, and two, because I get to kiss you. That’s all that matters.”
Maxime gives me another kiss. I lose myself in him again, and I know one thing for sure.
This is, without a doubt, the best date I’ve ever been on.
There’s no yacht.
No exotic beach.
No candlelight, champagne, or decadent foods.
Just Maxime. And like he said, that’s all that matters.
And I can’t wait to see where we go next.
***
Celebrate Life with Sprinkles—The Blog
The Game is On
Getting no sleep was so worth it last night.
That’s what I keep telling myself as I look at the horrible dark circles under my eyes. I pick up my Juice Beauty concealer and dab some on my makeup brush, warming it up on the back of my hand before applying it to the large shadows under my eyes.
These are different dark circles. They aren’t from insomnia, or staying up crying over Tom. They weren’t caused by anxiety over awful things being said about me on social media.
These are happy circles.
I grin as I apply concealer to the other eye. Maxime and I kissed in his car, and then again when he walked me up to the door. I invited him inside, but, being a gentleman, he declined and said he would take me up on that next time. Maxime said he wanted to end the evening the right way for a first date—with a sweet, gentle kiss at my front door.
As soon as he left, I told Boris and Natasha all about our date and then got ready for bed. I kept reliving every moment of THAT KISS over and over in my head, from the feeling of his hands on my waist to the sexy scent lingering on his thick hair.
Apparently, Maxime had the same problem, as he texted me to see if I was still up, and we chatted well past midnight before he signed off.
This man makes me happy, and I think he could make me happy for a long time if I decide to let him.
I made plans to meet up with JoJo and Sierra in Denver. We’re going to grab dinner and then go to the game together. Maxime said I’d have a credential and ticket waiting for me at will call, and I’m so excited I could burst.
Knowing tomorrow he’s leaving for a massive road trip through Canada is the hard part. Maxime’s going to be gone for eleven days, but it’s probably for the best. Maybe his being on the road will allow me to slow down my heart and think rationally about him instead of being overwhelmed by the surging feelings I have now.
Of course, texting Maxime today has done nothing but continue to create feelings of excitement and anticipation in me. I told him how I went out to some resale places looking for funky accent pieces for my new place. I also made the dreaded trip to the grocery store to fully stock my kitchen. Of course, more pictures of me showed up online, but at least this time I didn’t have cat food cans shoved in my coat pockets or kibble in my hair.
I’m winning at life today.
“Meow.”
I gasp and turn to find Natasha watching me from the edge of the bathroom door.
My heart is a puddle as I see her sweet, tiny face studying me.
“Hello, sweetheart,” I say softly, putting down my makeup brush.
“Meow.”
Then, to my absolute shock, she arches her back, stretches, and comes to me.
Tears fill my eyes as I slowly lower myself to the floor. Natasha rubs around my leg and begins to purr.
She let me in.
I gently place my hand on her and begin to stroke her super-soft fur. Natasha flops down next to me, purring happily as she allows me to pet her.
“You trust me,” I say aloud, moved by her affection. “I promise I won’t break it, sweet girl.”
I glance up at the doorway.
There’s no sign of Boris.
I draw a breath as I continue to pet Natasha, thinking of how these two kittens represent my heart so well. Natasha is going with her gut, trusting me quickly, wanting to give her affection and receive it in return.
While Boris remains very uncertain. It’s too soon for him to reward me with trust. I have to earn it from him. He’s not going to be hurt by me. He’s cautious. Boris is protecting himself.
“I need to be more like your brother,” I say to Natasha. “Maxime has been wonderful so far, and I can see myself falling for him, but I’ve been wrong before. What if I’m letting my heart repeat the same pattern?”
I can’t take a chance of falling for Maxime and being that wrong again.
Because I have a feeling if Maxime broke my heart, I’d never get it back again.
I draw a breath and exhale slowly as Natasha crawls into my lap. There are still so many things I need to learn about him. About myself. About how we would be together.
“We’re at the beginning,” I remind myself, scratching her tiny little head, “and Mommy is going to see where this can go. I like him, Natasha. I think he could be special, but I won’t know yet for a long time, will I?”
Natasha purrs in approval.
“I’m glad you approve. I do, too. Tonight is a big deal, though. I’m going to see Maxime play hockey. It’s huge that he asked me, don’t you think?”
Natasha rolls over and exposes her belly to me, so I smile and rub it.
It is a big deal, I think happily.
And I can’t wait to see him play in a few hours.