Maverick

“Fuck, I missed you.” I pulled Lo closer, tracing my tongue down her neck, sucking and biting, feeling my dick stir to life.

“Maverick, we’re supposed to be studying.” She pressed her hand into my chest shoving hard.

“Spoilsport.” I slipped my arm around her waist and hugged Lo closer, breathing her in, refusing to let her go.

Two weeks of stolen glances and sneaking around sucked. Watching the guys at school watch her, working up the courage to ask her out. I’d lasted a couple of days before I shut it down. Just because they thought I wasn’t with her anymore, didn’t mean she wasn’t still mine.

And no one touched what belonged to a Prince.

Maybe it was a jerk move—getting the guys to spread the word she was off limits—but if it meant I wouldn’t get arrested for beating the shit out of my classmates every time they so much as looked in Lo’s direction, it was worth it.

“Come on, the SAT is in two weeks.” Lo slipped out of my grasp and made a beeline for the desk. I flopped down on my bed, plotting ways to get her over here. But when her eyes met mine, bright with determination, I sat up, grumbling under my breath.

True to her word, Lo had stuck by me. Playing by the rules. In public, at school and games and parties, we were back to being step-cousins. Family. But behind closed doors, nothing had changed. Well, nothing except Lo’s insistence I study for the SAT.

“Fine,” I huffed. “Let’s study. But you know I work so much better with positive reinforcement.”

“You do, huh?” Her lips curved in amusement and I pouted, letting my eyes run down the length of her body. A body I knew almost as well as my own.

“Maverick,” she snapped. “Eyes up here, buddy.”

“Buddy?” My brows shot up, and she chuckled. Smooth and easy, her laugh was one of my favorite sounds lately.

“Okay.” Lo leaned forward. “How about for every ten questions you answer, you get a kiss?”

“Just a kiss?” I tilted my head, swiping my thumb across my bottom lip, a move I knew drove Lo crazy. A move I knew would have her begging for me.

“Maverick.” Her voice was breathy, the skin along her neck blushed. I inched closer until my lips were hovering close to hers.

“You were saying?” It came out low, husky, and Lo swallowed, her eyes glazed with desire.

“I… hmm…”

My lips barely touched hers before I tore away and threw myself back on the bed, unable to stop the rumble of laughter in my chest. Lo sighed, throwing me a stern glare. “Not funny, Prince.”

“I thought it was pretty funny.”

“Ten questions. Now.”

“Yes, boss.”

We worked in easy silence, used to the routine now. Lo knew short sessions were better for me before the words blurred together and the letters became muddled. My girl had slaved away familiarizing herself with the SAT and the types of questions they asked. She’d even asked Miss Tamson for some old papers. Lo went above and beyond. But she didn’t need to. Just her being here, believing in me, was all I needed. Between the two of them and Coach Callahan’s regular words of encouragement, even I began to believe I could do it.

Forty-minutes later, I was done. “That’s it.” I threw the pen down and shoved the stack of papers away from me rubbing my temples trying to ease the dull ache. “I can’t do anymore. It doesn’t make sense.”

“Yes, it does,” Lo’s voice was soft. We’d been here before, more than once. “You’re just tired. You need a break.”

“No, I need you.”

“Maverick.”

“Come on, Lo. We’ve been at this every day for the last two weeks. You know I can’t work at your pace.”

“No.” She placed down her textbook and strode over to the bed. Then she was climbing over me, straddling my legs. I slid my hands up her thighs but Lo snagged my hands, holding them in place. “You can do this. If you need a break, take a break. If you need some help, ask. But don’t quit, Maverick. You’re a Prince, and Princes' don’t quit.”

“You sound like him.”

She flashed me a harsh glare, and I used her irritation to my advantage, slipping out of her hold and running my hands up the curves of her waist.

“Okay, we take a break. Just a quick one.” Lo leaned down, ghosting her lips over mine and I groaned. Fuck, she tasted good. Like vanilla and strawberries. I moved to deepen the kiss, but she hovered out of reach, smiling down at me.

“My dad and Stella are going out of town at the weekend, I thought you could stay over. If you wanted?

I went rigid at Lo's words. I'd been trying to find a way to tell her, but things were good between us. I didn’t want to rock the boat. And I was a coward. Worried about what this would do to her.

To us.

“Maverick?” She searched my eyes. “What is it?”

“I, hmm, shit this isn't how I wanted to do this.”

“Do what?” Her body recoiled, the small action burning through me. 

“My father called a couple of days ago. There's this thing this weekend...” I swallowed, forcing myself to maintain eye contact despite the words almost choking me. 

“Thing? What thing?”

“A business thing. With Gavin Holloway...”

Lo went still, her eyes boring into mine. We were close, our bodies touching, but I felt the distance grow between us. “When were you going to tell me?”

“Lo, it's not li—” She was gone. Off the bed and out of the room. I heard the bathroom door slam, the sound vibrating deep inside my chest. My head sank back into the pillows.

Fuck.

I hated this. Hated that the one person I wanted to break free from still held so much power over me. Over my relationship with Lo. ‘A means to an end’, I'd called it, but part of me wondered if it would be the end of us. Because if our roles were reversed, I would have lost my shit at the very idea of Lo rocking up to some business dinner with another guy. I wouldn't have been able to stand it: the jealousy, the soul crushing pain at the idea of someone else even breathing the same air as her. Yet, here I was, asking her to do the one thing I knew would push me over the edge if it were me in her shoes. 

I was a selfish bastard.

The worst kind.

Lo deserved more. She deserved better than me. Better than my father’s games.

Scrubbing a hand over my face, I let out a frustrated groan before pushing off the bed and going to the bathroom. Greeted with the door, I tested the handle. It clicked open, and I slipped inside. Lo met my eyes in the mirror but she didn't speak. She didn't need to. Anger rolled off her in ferocious waves. But I was willing to brave the storm if it meant touching her. Soaking up her comfort. Reassuring her that she was the only person I wanted. Now. Tomorrow. And all the days after that. 

Eyes locked on hers, I approached slowly until I was right behind her. Lo's hands were braced on the counter, knuckles white with frustration. I reached for her, ghosting my hand up her spine, brushing her hair off her shoulder to reveal smooth skin. Her eyes fluttered shut, but I said, “Look at me, London.”

Surprise flared in her gaze. She hated when I called her that, but I could handle feisty Lo. I could handle the girl who had given me a run for my money during her first few weeks in Wicked Bay. I could handle the push and pull between us. 

I couldn't handle this.

Pressing closer, I wrapped my other arm around her waist pulling her flush against me. Soft and hard. Rough and smooth. “I was going to tell you, I promise,” I whispered into the curve of Lo’s neck, and her pulse fluttered wildly while my fingers glided down between the valley of her tits. Heat flashed in my stomach and I pressed harder, showing her what she did to me.

Lo fought back a soft moan. “I thought I could do it,” she choked. “I thought I could be okay with this, but now I'm not sure…”

I spun her around and slammed my lips down ending the conversation, sliding my hands down to her thighs and lifting her onto the edge of the counter. 

This was all I needed. Her. Us. Desperate kisses and shallow breaths. 

As long as I had this, I could walk on water. I could do whatever my father demanded. Because my future was only worth fighting for if Lo was in it. 

I couldn't lose her.

Not over him.

Not over this.

“I love you,” I said between needy kisses. “I love you, I love you.” 

She had to know. She had to feel it. To sense it.

Silence met my words but Lo didn't pull away either. She kissed me harder, her fingers digging into my shoulders. How things had reversed. Four months ago, she'd been the one desperate for my touch, but now I couldn't get enough. I'd bled out in front of her, literally, and she still couldn't say the words I needed to hear. 

I dragged my hand down her body, pressing and kneading until I reached the juncture of her thighs. Breaking the kiss, I stared at her. Cheeks flushed. Eyes half-mast. Lo watched me as I pressed the heel of my palm against her warmth.

“Oh God,” she panted.

“Only you, Lo,” I reminded her as if I was the one in control. As if I held her heart in the palm of my hand. But I didn't. 

She owned me.

Every broken fucked up little piece. 

Her eyes told me what I needed to know. She felt it too. She just couldn’t say it. Something was holding her back and for as much as it stung, I wanted her to protect herself. To keep those words locked away until this shitstorm blew over. Until she knew, without doubt, that I was in. All in. Because the idea of hurting her, of breaking her heart, killed me. And I knew it wouldn’t only be her in tatters.

I wouldn’t survive it either.

“Kiss me,” she whispered.

And I did. Deep and slow, exploring her mouth with my tongue. I would have climbed inside her if I could have. My fingers dug into her ass, dragging her closer to me until her legs were wrapped around my waist.

“Too many clothes.” She swallowed my words as I lifted her off the counter and set her down on the floor, my hands wasting no time undressing her.

Her hoodie went first. Then her t-shirt. My jersey was next. Jeans. Until there was a pile of clothes at our feet and nothing separating us but our underwear.

“You look a little bit dirty,” I said raking my eyes down her body at the inches upon inches of smooth milky skin.

“I do, huh?”

My hungry gaze landed on Lo’s wide-eyes and I smirked. “Oh yeah. I think we need to get you cleaned up.” I took her hand and pulled her toward the shower.

“Maverick, we’re supposed to be studying.”

“Shower. Then study.” I reached in and turned on the jets. We hadn’t done this yet. But now I’d thought of it, I couldn’t unthink it. Lo. Wet and soapy. Skin on skin. Her pressed up against the tiles while I—

Her hand glided over my junk and I almost came right there. “Jesus, Lo,” I hissed, and she giggled. We made quick work of stripping off the rest of our clothes and then we were stumbling into the shower unwilling to come up for air.

I chased the water over her body with my fingers, my tongue, while my fingers slid between her legs, warm and wet and tight. Fuck. This was going to be over quicker than I planned if she kept up her whimpers and moans.

“Maverick… Maverick… Rick...” Lo chanted. Over and over. As I explored every inch of her. “I need…” Her teeth dragged over her lip.

“What? What do you need?” I lowered my face to hers, crowding her against the tiles, cupping her jaw as the water rained down on us.

Lo’s eyes flickered open. Heavy with lust. Glittering with what I wanted to believe was love. “You, I need…” I hooked my fingers inside her, rubbing my thumb over her clit, slamming my lips to hers, swallowing the string of moans. Her whole body coiled tight as she clung to me, and I knew she was close.

“Hold tight,” I whispered into her ear as I withdrew my fingers and hitched Lo's legs around my waist, pressing her back against the wall. Her arms wound around my neck while I worked to get us in position and then I eased inside of her, slowly, inch by inch until I could feel nothing but her. Think nothing but her.

Her.

Her.

Her.