Levitate (19 page)

I PRETTY MUCH just laid my cards out on the table. I have no filter when I’m this close to her. Fuck, waking up with her in my arms is something I could do forever. Believe it or not, it’s not the thought of forever that induces panic. It’s the thought that it might never happen again.

Kensington smiles and all is right in the world. “Let’s start with breakfast. Besides, I’m sure you have better things to do than hang out with me all day.” She sits up to get out of bed. I immediately miss the warmth of her in my arms.

“Stop!” She turns to look at me. “Don’t do that. Don’t act like I’m doing you a favor by spending time with you.” Cupping my hand behind her neck and bringing her closer, I whisper, “I can’t get enough of you, Kensi.” My lips lightly press against hers then skim over her jaw, her neck. I can feel the rise and fall of her chest.

“Breakfast,” she croaks out.

Reluctantly, I pull away, even though I want to keep going. I want my lips on every inch of her creamy skin. “Breakfast,” I whisper.

Kensington hops out of bed and dashes out of the room. I wait a few minutes to think about puppies and unicorns and shit.

When I finally get myself under control, I find her in the kitchen. She has music playing while she sways back and forth to the beat at the stove. I’ve heard the song, something about players and shaking it off. It plays a lot at the bar. I focus my lust filled gaze on her hips as they shimmy from side to side. I want her next to me.

In three long strides, my hands are on her hips and we are rocking to the beat. She looks over her shoulder at me and smiles, never stopping the sensual assault that her hips are playing on me. I reach around her and pull the pan she was preparing for omelets off the burner, turning the burner off. The heat between us is enough; we don’t need to burn down the apartment.

Kensington turns in my arms and places her hands around my neck, clasping her fingers together. I’m so much taller than her; I automatically drop my head, just to feel closer to her. She stands on her tiptoes and our lips meet. Our hips thrust in a steady rhythm, bringing me closer to my breaking point. I don’t stop. I can’t. The feel of her in my arms as she’s moving against me. Not stopping.

The song changes to a slower one. Kensi starts to pull away and I want no part of it. I lock my arms around her and pull her against my chest, where she belongs. It only takes a few beats before she’s softly singing the words. This song, it’s perfect. I glance over at her iPod— Cole Swindell - “I just want you.” I make a mental note to download this song.

As I listen to the lyrics, I feel it deep in my soul. I just want her. Any way I can get her, I want her. I’ve never been more sure of anything in my entire life. I smile, thinking how Dad was right. I get it now. I understand how he dealt with all the bullshit for years, how he could give her all of him and let her do the things she did. It’s in this moment that I can admit Kensington James owns me and I’m good with it. Now I just have to work on her, slow and steady. I need to give her time to get where I am; then I can make her mine. In my heart, she already is. I just need for her to catch up.

The apartment door opens just as the song ends. I don’t pay attention to what comes on next; my attention is on her. I remember her words this morning. How she was afraid I would be upset that Nicole saw us together. With my recent revelation, I couldn’t care less. I’m all in. Kensi places her hands on my chest and tries to pull away with weak effort. I can tell she doesn’t want to, but she thinks it’s what I would want. She thinks it’s what she should be doing. I hold tight and slightly shake my head no. Leaning down so my lips are next to her ear, I whisper, “I just want you.” I then hug her tight. That’s how Nicole and Bright find us, in a tight embrace with my fucking heart on my sleeve.

“Hey, you two,” Nicole says brightly. I can’t help but chuckle as I turn to face them. Instead of letting go of Kensi, I pull her to stand in front of me and wrap my arms around her waist. I’m going to have a hard time not claiming her as mine.

“Hey, how was breakfast?” Bright grins at my question.

“Good, but not as good as yours,” he says.

My face hurts from the grin I’m sporting. “Kensi was making omelets; then we got distracted and, well… yeah.” What else could I say? That her sexy swaying ass turned me rock-hard and I had to have her next to me? That a single country song opened my eyes to years of not understanding my dad and that I… I just want her? Yeah, I doubt Kens would appreciate the honesty. Besides, she doesn’t know all the details yet.

“I see,” Nicole quips. “So what are the two of you getting into today?”

“Breakfast,” Kens says, tearing out of my arms and facing the stove.

“Not sure yet. We’ve haven’t really got that far,” I answer.

“I’m taking Nic to the house. Thought we could hang out there for a while,” Bright says.

“Yeah, I need to check in at the bar. Technically, it’s my night to be there,” I mumble this last part. I’m so wrapped up in her that I forgot about the bar.

“Why don’t the two of you come too? You need to go home to change and Kens can just hang out with us until you get back?”

I’m mentally high fiving my best friend right now. He’s a fucking genius. I turn to face the stove and place my hand on the small of Kensi’s back. I lean in so only she can hear me. “Babe, do you like that idea? Coming to my place and hanging out while I check in on things at Cooper’s? You could even come with me, if you want to.” I like the thought of that even better, but I’ll let her decide. I hope she doesn’t come up with a third option on her own, one that does not end with the two of us in the same place at the end of the night.

“Maxton.” Her soft voice pleads. “You don’t have to worry about me. Go do what you need to do.”

Crazy girl. “I want to spend time with you, Kens. Does this plan work for you? If not, we can figure something else out.”

She flips the omelet and turns to face me. “I can go with you, if that’s okay?” she hesitatingly replies.

YES! “That sounds good to me, beautiful.” I kiss her cheek and turn back to Bright.

“Kens is going to come to the bar with me. It’ll give her a chance to get familiar with the place before she starts her extern.” That’s not why, but I know the excuse will help her handle the situation a little better. She can avoid what’s obviously happening between us a little longer, well, at least to them. She can’t avoid me; I won’t let her.

“Sounds good, man.” Bright turns to Nicole. “Baby, go grab some clothes and we’ll head out.” She stands to kiss his cheek and walks out of the kitchen. His eyes finding me again, he motions his head to the living room.

“Kens, I’m going to go wait with Bright in the living room. I’ll be back in a few. You need me to do anything first?” I ask.

That earns me one of her soft smiles. “No, I’m good here. Breakfast should be ready in about five minutes.” She turns to focus on the skillet.

I find Bright in the living room sitting on the arm of the couch. “Look, man, I don’t want to get in your business, but please don’t be fucking with her,” he blurts out.

What. The. Fuck. I ball my hands into fists. “I am not fucking with her,” I grit through my teeth.

“I know you might not think you are, it’s fun right now, but, really, she’s—”

He doesn’t get to finish because my anger takes over. I grab him by the collar and pull him up from the couch. “It’s not just fucking fun, asshole. I’m fucking falling in love with her.” I freeze as soon as the words leave my lips.

Bright is grinning. I release him from my grip and slouch against the couch. “I know,” he informs me. “I can see it. I see the way you are with her, the way you look at her. I know. I just wasn’t sure you did.”

I don’t say anything as I let the words I just spoke settle inside me. I’m falling in love with her. “She’s different.” My voice is tight. I’m trying to fight back the emotion of my revelation.

“I’m right there with you, man.”

“Have you told her?” I ask him.

“No. I’m scared as hell that she’s not with me yet. I don’t know if I could handle her not saying it back. I’ve never said it, you know? When I do, I want to know that the other person feels the same. She’s getting there, I hope,” he laughs.

I understand. I know exactly how he feels. Hell, just today I was able to finally admit to myself that I want her, only her. I’ve known for a while, but have been too damn afraid to admit it, even just to myself. However, in the heat of the moment, my heart spoke for me and it speaks the truth.

Truth… five letters, one word.

My heart knows the truth. The truth is that I’m already in love with her.

AS I’M SETTING breakfast on the island, Nicole walks in. “Hey, so I guess I’ll see you a little later,” she says.

“Kens, I’m so happy for you. I can see how much you like him and he adores you. It’s cute to watch the two of you.”

“We’re just… I have no damn clue what we are,” I tell her honestly.

“What do you want to be?” she questions.

“I’m not sure. I know he surprises me daily. He’s sweet as hell and he holds me all night long, never asking or pushing for more.”

Nicole smiles. “Girl, he’s got it bad for you. I would say just as bad as you’ve got it for him. Just take it day by day. Learn to trust each other.”

There it is that word—trust. Five letters, one word summing up the existence of my love life, or should I say, non-existence of my love life. I’ve never been able to let myself trust anyone to get as close as I’ve let Max. I trust him. With everything in me I know I can trust him. Justin’s brother, he took that away from me, until now. Dread fills me when I realize Max has no idea. He knows about the scar and I said one day I would tell him about it. I have yet to do that. I can’t. Nicole must see the panic in my eyes.

“Hey. Breathe. It’s okay. Max adores you, take it slow.” She soothingly rubs my back. Nicole has been my rock for the last four years.

“He doesn’t know,” I whisper.

She nods in understanding. “I know that too. I know that when you’re ready to tell us, you will. Just know that you’re not alone. You have people who love you.”

“What’s wrong?” Max strides into the kitchen and stops at my side at the island where I’m sitting. He drops to his knees. He places a gentle hand on my thigh. “Kens, what’s wrong, sweetheart?”

My heart aches at his concern for me. Nicole’s words just minutes ago filter through my mind and I can see it. He cares; Max really cares about me. The thought is humbling and scary and exciting all at the same time. Placing my palm against his cheek, I admit, “I was just thinking about the past.” My other hand goes to my chest, right over the scar. His eyes show recognition.

“No one,” he grits out, “no one is ever going to hurt you again. I don’t know the details, and I don’t need to, not until you’re ready to tell me, but I can promise you no one will ever lay a hand on you again without going through me.”

He scoots in close and wraps his arms around my waist, burying his head in my chest. “Do you hear me, Kens? I mean it. You are safe; with me you will always be safe.” His voice is pleading.

I look up to gauge Nicole’s reaction to the scene before her and tears are streaming down her face. “He loves you,” she mouths.

Her words shock me. I don’t have time to process them before Max is rising to his feet, dropping a kiss to the top of my head, and pulling our plates to the edge of the island. “Eat before it gets cold,” he says. There we are—his arms still around me as he stands beside me on the stool as we eat our breakfast. It’s situations like this one that help push the bad memories away. I don’t even want to think about how bad they will be once Max decides he’s done with whatever this is between us.

“All right, you two, we’re heading out,” Bright says, joining us in the kitchen. He has no idea what just happened. I’m sure Nicole will fill him in.

“I think we’ll head on over to the bar so I can do what I need to do and then head back to the house,” Max tells him.

“You’re not staying all night?” Bright questions.

Max looks down at me, his eyes filled with emotion. “Nope, just going to go over last night’s register, check in with the staff, and head out,” he replies, never taking his eyes off me.

We finish our breakfast, which is now cold, in silence. Max takes our plates, rinses them, and places them in the dishwasher.

“I guess I’ll hop in the shower real quick, if we have time.”

He turns to face me. “We have time. I’ll just finish cleaning up.” He reaches out his long arms and grabs me by the waist, pulling me against him. He hugs me against his chest, kisses my temple, and releases me. Taking that as my cue, I head toward the bedroom.

I close my bedroom door and head to my bathroom, taking off my clothes as I go, dropping them on the floor. I reach in and turn the shower on, letting the water warm up. Getting the temperature where I want it, I step under the hot spray. Tilting my head back, I close my eyes and get my hair wet. When I lift my head and open my eyes, he’s there. Max. He’s standing in the doorway staring though the glass door of the shower.

I watch as he pulls off his shirt and kicks his jeans and underwear off to the side. He’s now standing before me, all of him. My breath catches at the sight of him. His strong muscular body is a work of art. I could stare at him all day. Although right now, I want to do more than stare. I want to touch him… everywhere.

Max doesn’t move closer. He just stands there in all his naked glory. His chest is heaving with each breath he takes. I want to touch him. Hell, the truth is, I want all of him, now. I watch as he takes himself into the palm of his hand and lightly strokes. That image will be with my until the day I die. I need him now.

I slide open the door, which causes him to suck in a sharp breath. If not for the look on his eyes, I might have been offended. I’m not. His eyes tell me he wants me, which is convenient because I plan to hand myself over for the taking.

I hold my hand out to him. I’m dripping water all over the floor and he’s just staring at me. Did I read him wrong? I thought he wanted this, wanted me. “Maxton,” I whisper his name. I’m surprised he heard it over the spray of the water.

He blinks a few times, and with his free hand, reaches out to take my hand. He laces his fingers through mine and walks toward me. He stops right outside the shower door. My gaze trickles down his hard abs and stops. I watch as he slowly pumps himself a few more times then stops. He lifts my chin so he can look into my eyes. “Kensi,” he breathes. Leaning down, his lips assault my neck. “Do you want this? Tell me what we’re doing here. I… I’m sorry I walked in on you, but I came in to grab my shoes and saw your clothes on the floor and…” He swallows hard as his voice trails off.

“I want this; I want you,” I tell him honestly. My words spur him into action. He reaches in and turns the shower off. “What are you—” He shushes me as he helps me step out of the shower and wraps a towel around me. He takes another and runs it over my hair.

“As hot as the idea is, I’m not going to have you in the shower the first time I get to be inside of you. I need you in a bed. I need you under me,” he says as his lips return to my neck. The next thing I know, the towel that’s draped around me drops to the floor and I’m in his arms. He carries me to the bed and releases me. I immediately slide over and make room for him. He climbs in, pulls the cover over us, and gathers me in his arms.