I tasted passion between her lips. Desire coursed through her touch. I hadn't imagined it. The truth was in the way she moved, molded, melted with me, in the way she sighed and moaned.

My hands shook as I opened another drawer in the bathroom. All my blood had targeted on one area. The rest of me was numb, possibly including my brain, while I sorted through cabinets and drawers in search of a condom. Then it hit me, Travis would have a bunch. He always had a box or two stuffed in his luggage. He claimed he'd rather be prepared than sorry. I'd never brought one because chasing tail was never my goal these days.

I hit the lights in the bathroom and passed my slightly ajar bedroom door, about to tell Maggie it would only take another moment, and I would make it all worth her wait, when I heard her undeniable loud sobs. My heart plummeted.

Did I hurt her?

Was this not what she'd wanted? Did I read the situation wrong?

All thoughts of the search for a condom escaped me, and I approached Maggie, slowly, carefully. Her body curled away from me. The mattress groaned as I put my entire weight on it, sitting awkwardly beside one sobbing girl.

"Maggie?" I reached out to touch her, but I thought better of it, and let my hand hover over her right hip. Had I thought wrong? Had I been delusional? Disillusioned by my own desires for her that I hadn't stopped to think what she'd really wanted from me? She was hurt, and I did what? I practically forced myself to her. I bit the inside of my cheek to stop from cursing myself, and said her name again in the semi-darkened room, "Maggie."

She half-turned. Her eyes, red-rimmed and puffy, welled with tears. Then she went back to crying in her hands again. What had I done?

I couldn't help myself, I had to touch her, comfort her in some way. First, I pulled the sheet over her. Then with my body stretched along hers, I wrapped her in my arms and urged her to turn to me. My lips ghosted over her hair. "Maggie, I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking properly. I thought...I thought...."

She shook her head. Her hands covered her face, and through them, she mumbled, "It's not you, Zach. It's never you."

It’s never me. What did that mean? I could take her words in different ways, but for now, I heard it as a cry for help. I rubbed her back underneath her shirt, which I'd ripped earlier from blinding excitement. The sweetness of her skin had seared itself on the tip of my tongue, and it kept me in a full-mast erection. I squirmed my hips away from her. No need to embarrass myself further.

"Tell me," I whispered into the curl of her ear.

Maggie wiped tears from her reddened cheeks before she pressed her face into my chest. Let her hear the echoes of her own name in my heart, so she’d be aware that she’d never left me, my thoughts, my mind, and I would never leave her. I twirled wayward strands of wavy hair between my fingers while she spoke.

"My boyfriend...ex-boyfriend...his name is June. We were supposed to get married over a month ago." My heart squeezed at the thought of her married to another. "He didn't show up. He married my friend instead, because he got her pregnant. And they took my baby name."

I remained quiet, listening to her and trying to steady my rapid heartbeat, but inside, I blazed with anger. There weren't plenty of people I remembered in my past, but June was one whom I couldn't forget. Even when we'd been younger, he'd been nothing but a bully. Anything he'd touched, he'd hurt. How could someone so vile end up with someone like Maggie?

Even without her explaining to me the significance of the name Kathy, to this day, I distinctly remembered where she'd read it from. If I closed my eyes, I could still see her with the book clutched in her hands. She was never without a book as a companion, even on the first day I'd come to meet and fallen for Maggie Stewart.

My father had never come home drunk. He'd never touched any illegal substances. His only vice was to control and hurt his family, every which way he knew how. Only a month after we'd moved to Fresno, with Ma and I thinking it could bring on a new hope for us, his abuse had begun again. It wasn't like the first few times when all he did was throw a glass or a plate against the wall and let it break and shatter all over the place and shout profanities at Ma. As soon as he returned home from work that day, the yelling started. He blamed me for whatever was wrong with his life, but then Ma had always taken the beating.

I hadn't made any friends at school. I was too shy or ashamed. What if they didn't like me? What if they thought I was a loser? What if the kids in my grade figured out I was two years older than most of them?

Like my father had said, I was slow, dumb as a doorknob. Numbers gave me headaches. Words were always a jumble of nonsense. Since my father's job required him to move around a lot, he'd always taken us with him. Which was why I'd never been able to keep friends. I tried making friends, but then we would leave the town and at that age, none of my friends, nor I, ever bothered to keep in touch.

Ma had also tried. She used to bring baked goods to neighbors and introduce us to them. But just like me, she hadn't been able to bond well enough with anyone to actually stay in contact. And when my father had decided to turn her into his personal punching bag, she'd refused to take a step out the door. Too afraid to leave me alone, in case my father came home, ready to pound anything in sight. She'd been my only friend, and I'd been hers. Until the day I met Maggie.

Most of the brightest moments of my life didn't start in a positive light. After school, a bunch of kids had decided to make me their target. I still didn't know why. It could have been the way I dressed in clothes two sizes too big for me, or how my hair was always a mess. June was the leader of this group. He was a big kid with new, clean clothes, expensive shoes, and socks that matched. His father owned a successful car dealership. He lived in the richer part of town. He'd called me names and threw sand in my hair. But when he pushed me down on the ground, an angel in pigtails stepped in and fought for me. Maggie.

She wasn't any taller than me, and she was just as skinny. But she braced herself with her feet firm on the ground, fists up in the air, and determination set on her shoulders. If I believed in miracles then, I thought it was in the form of a little girl. Somehow, she made June and his gang disappear. She turned to me, offered her hand, and when I reached for it, I never wanted to let her go.

"I'm Maggie. You're my new neighbor. Wanna have ice cream in my house?"

To me, it was like she had offered me the world.

Tonight, all I could give her was a shoulder to cry on, even though deep down inside, I wanted to pummel June's face until he wasn't identifiable anymore. It wouldn't at all be difficult to find June. Chances were he'd still be living in his family's mansion in Fresno. I could leave tonight, get the job done, and return before breakfast. All I needed was Maggie's permission to beat the shit out of that asshat. But ever since the day she'd seen Ma with a purple hue around her eye, Maggie had been against all forms of physical violence. My body was trembling with fierce rage.

Her sobs quieted down, and the only sounds in the room were the ticking of the clock and the grinding of my teeth. When I sucked in a breath of air to soothe my rage, her sweet scent calmed me.

"I'm sorry for interrupting our...you know," she said sweetly, looked up at me with tear-soaked eyes, and buried her face into my chest.

I cleared my throat, and held her tighter. "Don't worry about it."

Maggie looked up to me again, this time with a near-smile in her eyes. "I guess you'll have to take another cold shower?"

Would it be wrong to say I loved this woman? "I love cold showers," I said instead, loosened up the muscles in my jaw and smiled. "How about I get you one of my shirts and a glass of water first?"

"Okay." Instead of pushing away from me, Maggie circled her arms around my torso and pressed her body closer. "Thanks for listening, Zach." Then she kissed me again.

Her lips fluttered first on my top lip, and then she nibbled on the bottom. Then she trailed an open-mouthed kiss down to my chin and my throat.

"You're trying to kill me again, aren't you?" I squeezed my eyes shut, tamping down any form of response to her sensual kisses.

"Maybe a little." Maggie let out the tiniest giggle.

I groaned and lay on my back, unlocking her arms around me. Before I lost the blood in my head back down to my groin, I stood and grabbed a shirt for Maggie. She sat up with her hands cupping her naked breasts. She captured her lip between her teeth while she followed my movements. I leaned over. One by one, I kissed the tips of her fingers before removing her hands from her chest. Without taking my eyes off hers, I removed her ripped shirt. Maggie lifted her arms as I pulled my t-shirt over her head. I ran my hands through her long hair and released it from the back of the shirt, letting it fall over her shoulders.

And because I was weak when it came to Maggie, I felt the urge to kiss her again. We faced each other, with an inch of space between us. Before I could take advantage of the moment, I said, "I'll be back with your water." And left with the two of us gasping for air as I stumbled back into my sweatpants.

Even while I poured water into a glass, I couldn't stop the smile from forming on my lips. My heart beat erratically. Her name sang through my veins. Maggie was back in my life. She was hurt. She was healing. All I had to do was wait, and I could ask her to be mine.

When I reached the bedroom, I asked, "Would you like to stay over?"

But on my bed, wrapped in my sheets, she was already asleep. I placed the glass on the table. And with that stupid smile on my lips, I curled into bed with Maggie. She mumbled a sleepy 'good night, ' and I closed my eyes and hoped this wasn't just another dream.

* * *

My natural alarm went off in my head, forcing me to wake myself up. It was all part of the discipline. Early bird and that sort of thing.

There was warmth on my chest, coming from Maggie's cupped hand over it. Her hair spread all over the pillow, over her face and some tendrils tickled my throat. I pushed her hair away to see her beauty. I would give my soul to wake up beside her for eternity.

The stirring in my pants reminded me of what almost happened last night, but the pinch in my gut reminded me of her recent painful experience. If I did the math, she'd been with that asshat, June, for most of her teen years. And only him. Once, she had admitted. Her lack of sexual experience didn't bother me. I adored her more because of it. Maggie was no ordinary girl. She could have any man kneeling at her feet, set to do her bidding, with a promise of a kiss from her lips. I am that man. But I could be more. I'd like to be more.

A noise outside my door took my thoughts away from a possible future with Maggie. Travis was a big guy, and he wasn't a graceful morning person. If I didn't get up to warn him, he'd cause a tornado in the living room.

I leaned over at Maggie and kissed her forehead before I shifted my body off the bed. The hand that was on my chest dragged down to my abs, dangerously close to where I wanted it to be but where it shouldn’t be, not yet at least. I should be called a saint with all my restraint. I removed her hand and carefully placed it on the bed. Maggie turned on her side and tucked both hands under her head. As she did so, the blanket pulled away from her and her shirt—my shirt, which I loved seeing on her—lifted to expose her bottom half. I groaned into the back of my hand. The things I could do to her right now played in my head.

Before I did anything stupid, I shot myself out of the bed and strode quickly to the living room, where I found Travis sucking faces with a girl under him on the couch.

"Oh, for god's sake, Trav, do that in your room."

My friend raised his head and looked over his shoulder to me. The girl pinned under him looked on too.

"Bailey?" I was surprised by this. Bailey had been after me for a while, but Travis had lusted after her for so long. Seeing the two of them together should be a cause for celebration, if only they weren't doing it out here in the living room.

"Ah, hey, Zach." Trav pushed off Bailey, who was thankfully dressed. "I didn't think we were being loud."

I pointed at him. "She wasn't, but you were. I'm gonna get ready, but keep it down. Maggie's still asleep."

"Maggie!" Travis exclaimed to which I gave him a stare down. "That's huge! Isn't that huge?" he asked Bailey. She raised an eyebrow but smiled sweetly at him then at me.

"I think we stepped on her keys by the door," Bailey said. She reached over, grabbed the keys from the side table and threw them at me.

"Yeah, thanks." I didn't even remember her dropping those on the floor. I couldn't recall what else she had brought. I took the keys with me to the bathroom and started the ice-cold shower.

When I was done showering, the couch was empty. Down the hall, I could hear laughter from Travis' room. If they were going to be serious, I should open up and tell him about that one night with Bailey. He'd probably kill me.  And I wouldn't blame him. It was one huge mistake, and hoped he would see it that way too.

Maggie stayed in the same position since I left the bedroom. I watched her shoulder rise and fall for a moment, thrilled at how it made my heart thump madly in my chest, before I got dressed. As soon as I pulled my shirt over my head, her sweet hushed voice greeted me.

"Good morning."

Maggie stretched her arms over her head and brightened up my day by sending off a smile that could melt the ice caps. My hand flew to my chest, and I rubbed over my shirt. My heart was about to explode from the rapid heart beat Maggie had caused.

"Go back to sleep, you, it's too early," I said, joining her in bed, on top of her with my bent arms resting on her sides. I wasn't ashamed to show her how happy I was that she shared a bed with me.

"What time is it?" She scrunched up her face and looked around.

The drapes were shut, and the room was illuminated by a single lamp I kept on. It could very well be dark or foggy outside, but with Maggie in the room with me, wearing only my shirt and her panties, it was a constant perfect summer day for me. I nibbled at her bottom lip.

"It's 5:30 in the morning. Travis and I have to be at the gym in half an hour. You can sleep in and lock the door behind you afterward."

"No, I'll leave with you guys. Do you need a ride?" She tried to push herself up, but I used my body to block her and keep her in bed, where I wished she would stay for the entire day until I returned from training.

"You need sleep, Maggie. Please rest," I urged.

Maggie shook her head. She managed to release an arm from underneath me, and she ran her fingers through my wet hair. Her face turned contemplative. "Nica doesn't know I'm here. I can't stay... I want to, but not without you here with me." She licked the middle of my lips before her tongue entered my mouth.

I got lost in Maggie. My muscles tightened and a ripple of current shot through my spine. She mewled as I rubbed against the front of her hips, and moved a hand underneath the shirt, finding her pert under my touch. She deepened her kiss and tugged at my hair. The strain in my jeans was too hard to ignore. I began trailing my fingers from the side of her chest and all the way down to the apex of her thighs. Maggie responded well to my touch. All I needed to do was hook my finger in, and neither of us would want to stop.

Then Travis chose that moment to bang on my bedroom door. "Zach, hurry up in there. We gotta go! We're running late!"

Maggie released her hold of me and giggled. "I guess it's not a good time."

I pressed my forehead to hers, and looked her squarely in the eyes. "One day, Maggie, nothing will stop us. One day," I promised and finalized it off with another searing kiss.