Free Beyond Eighteen by Gretchen de la O

Camille said after she cleared her
throat.
    Suddenly the thought that Joanie hadn’t
called or texted me yet flashed across my mind.
    “I haven’t heard from Joanie,” I whispered
to Max. In all the things I was dealing with, it hadn’t crossed my
mind that she was still over at the Browlers’ with Nick.
    “Well, why don’t I take your bag upstairs
and you can have some privacy to call Joanie,” Max said loudly.
    I looked over at Nancy. She was preoccupied
with plopping fish into the power-marinade concoction that was
supposed to make it desirable. Camille had her head buried in the
fridge, and Calvin was standing glued to his iPhone. Nobody would
even notice if we left.
    “See, they want us to be alone,” Max
breathed as he retrieved my suitcase and snatched my hand before
dragging me through the dining room and up the stairs.
    “Damn, I feel like I’ve done this before,”
he teased as he hoisted my suitcase in front of him. I watched in
reverence as his shoulder blades and biceps flexed.
    “That’s because you have. But the second
time…is a charm,” I answered as I slipped my hands low on his waist
and felt the muscles of his butt as we climbed the stairs
together…again. God, I love to watch his body move and feel his
ass flex.
    When we reached the landing I tugged at his
crisp white dress shirt, pulling it loose from his black pants. He
stopped, inviting me to slide my hands across his lats and up to
the first button on his shirt.
    Without warning, Max twisted and bent down
in front of his door, dropping my suitcase. He stayed crouched
longer than expected.
    “Are you okay?” I asked, bending down low to
talk to him. He raced his hands up the outsides of my legs. Quickly
he caught my hips, lifting me up and causing my feet to leave the
floor. I felt my body begin to sway back as he pinned me to his
bedroom door. His lips were automatic and hot against the bend of
my neck as he mapped his way around my skin. My phone fell to the
floor as my hands tangled in his hair. My breath soared above me as
I lifted my face to the ceiling, exposing more places for him to
explore.
    His breath scorched my skin as he growled my
name, the suggestive motion of his hips converging with mine as my
body slid down between the door and every bit of evidence
that he wanted me. Max ran his hands across my arms and down to my
fingers before he pushed them up and over my head, trapping them
there. My shirt lifted, exposing the space between my navel and my
jeans. Chills licked at my waist as my lower body steamed.
    “I’ve missed you,” Max said breathily. His
lips caressed my ear before he traced a line down to my mouth. He
kissed me like never before, biting and pulling my bottom lip
between his teeth before he tangled his tongue with mine, kissing
me with such passion that the apex between my legs dampened and my
knees buckled.
    Max skimmed his hands down my arms, around
my body, and toward my waist. He dragged his fingertips across my
exposed stomach, causing goose bumps to ripple across my body. I
shivered.
    “You cold or just turned on?” he asked
before floating his hands up under my thin shirt, stopping at the
front clasp on my bra.
    Ohhhh my God, let’s pray nobody decides
to come upstairs and look for us. Wait, don’t stop! Please touch my
breasts . My nipples instinctively surged in anticipation of my
appeal. I wanted to feel the warmth of his mouth devour my body. I
just needed him to take me out of that hallway and into his room to
make love to me. I didn’t even realize my hands were still against
the door above my head. I dropped them and tangled my fingers into
his hair as I moaned in a low, bawdy tone.
    “Maaxxx, God, I want you,” I exhaled
achingly.
    “Tell me how much you want me,” he
growled in a visceral breath against my neck.
    “I want you so bad; in the worst way.”
    “In what way? Against this door or in
my room?”
    “I want you to take me—in your room. Please,
Max, let me in. I