Page 15 of Blurry Little Lines
“I need to pour bleach in my eyes after witnessing my sister move like that.” He kisses Lauren’s cheek. “I think we need to tuck you into bed.”
“Just to sleep.” She holds up a finger and slurs her words a bit. “I’m still sore and sensitive from last night.” He smirks to himself and they head out.
What the hell did they get up to yesterday?I turn to Max, who mimics the same questionable face as me. I should be glad my brother found his soulmate and that he goes to bed happy every night. I am, but I don’t need to hear about every detail.
They close the door after a quick goodbye. Just a blink later, the alcohol hits me hard. My head feels light and my cheeks hurt from grinning. I begin to trace my finger along the wall to help guide me to another piece of lasagna and some water to sober up.
Max’s hands hold my shoulders, guiding me to a kitchen chair. A glass of water is placed in front of me. Instead of lasagna, because he can’t fully read my mind, he hands me a slice of fresh bread, and my weakness, strawberries. I could eat a tray a day, and to be honest, I usually do. Max takes a seat on the couch and eyes me carefully. His head is slightly turned away, but I notice his eyes tracking my hand every time I bring a strawberry to my mouth for a bite. For the hell of it, I play innocently, as if I don’t realize my next bite is deliberately slower. I hum a small moan as my lips close around the strawberry.
Curiosity has gotten the best of me since the mention of the orgasms he can deliver, but I’m not comfortable to let just any man near me. He takes a sip from his beer and shifts on the couch like he can’t get comfortable. I’m not bold enough to ask my thoughts out loud, so after I inhale the bread and down my water, I walk to the back of the couch. My hands rest on each of his shoulders as I bend my head upside down, peering over him. I did this all the time, followed by a ‘boo’ when we were teenagers. Only this time, when my hair falls in his lap and my eyes are less than an inch away from his lips, the air changes.
Max attempts to swallow, and as his breath halts, he steals mine along with his. We are nothing more than friends, yet the way my body is reacting to everything is the opposite of friendly. My vagina commences a heartbeat for the first time and this man hasn’t even touched me. I glance down and notice his bottle is empty and reach to take it, wanting to break my own damn spell. His large fist tightens around the glass bottle so hard I watch the veins in his forearm bulge like when he’s lifting weights. My head lifts as I attempt to pull the bottle again.
“Come on, let me put it on the counter for you.” With a sigh, I jerk the bottle up, catching him off guard as his arm lifts with it. As quickly as I move, I let go when my eyes meet his hard erection. His tongue darts out, wetting his bottom lip before tipping his head back to meet mine. We stare at each other, waiting to see who will speak first and debating bringing up what is bobbing in his gray sweats.
I open my mouth, taking the bold move to speak first, and decide humor can break the tension. “Adam must be right about you not getting laid lately. That beer bottle must have quite the assets.”
“Kelsie.” Humor is stripped from his voice, causing my nerves to rise. “Don’t act like you didn’t know what you were doing with those damn strawberries.”
My stomach flips with giddiness that he was watching my every move, but there’s a mix of fear with the unknown about what happens next. “I wasn’t doing anything.” The way he stares tells me he knows I’m flat-out lying, but he chooses not to call me out on it. “I’ve eaten food in front of you plenty of times and it’s neverraisedattention.” My laugh is slightly forced, and I instantly feel pathetic.
“Feigning innocent doesn’t do it for me, Kelsie.” But his gesture tenting his gray sweats shows otherwise. “I don’t toy around with the innocent, subliminal guessing game.”
“I’m not innocent.” Embarrassment waves through me as he calls me out on my action, but he doesn’t act on it. “It’s obvious I’m not a virgin, thank you very much.”
“Yes, you’ve already enlightened me about that last time you drank.” His voice alters between breathy and bored, and my teeth clench as annoyance builds in my stomach. Max is starting to piss me off.
“What got your little guy going, then?” Okay,littleis offensive as I sneak a second glance. “I know it’s not my looks or dialect…” This is becoming too personal and maybe I am more drunk than I thought. He doesn’t take the bait to show me how I’m reading the signs wrong.
“Out of curiosity”—he speaks slowly and deliberately, but his manly scent consumes me too much to hold my own collectiveness—“why do you keep labeling yourself as not my type?”
“Because you have never been with anyone who looks the slightest bit like me,” I bluntly state, with a real giggle this time. “Not even a single brunette.”
He remains seated, gazing up at me intently as my pulse picks up speed from the silence. I can feel the beat of my heart in my throat with uncertainty as his eyes captivate mine with unreadable thoughts. I hate how I can’t grasp a proper reading of him. I’m perplexed by how I want him to respond. I can’t break away from his stern blue eyes willing me to obey. His large hand reaches around the back of my neck with a firm grip and draws my head back down. His lips ghost my ear in a breathy whisper.
“Have you ever thought there might be a reason for that?” There isn’t enough time to register the moment before his grip is gone and he’s rising from the couch.
I bite my lip to stifle my gasp at his possible implication. If he had interest, he wouldn’t have waited this damn long, or he would enlighten me, given our moment. My cheek aches as my teeth continue attempting to gnaw through it. I am not sure if I release a laugh or whimper of need, but the sound is one I’ve never heard travel through my lips.
“Yeah, I have given it thought.” I hear my voice go up an octave. “I’m either repulsive, or you don’t want to think of yourbest friendas you bend a woman over for a quick fuck.” Well, I guess gin makes both mine and Lauren’s tongues loose.
Max’s jaw ticks, but his lips curl upward into a smirk. His hand runs through his soft dirty blond hair and rests on the back of his neck. He gives a slight nod, and I assume he’s impressed with my comeback. “We can leave your guess up in the air, just like you eating strawberries in a particular way has me up in the air. You even hovered your face right over mine.”
“I have leaned over you plenty of times before. You’ve also seen my lips wrap around delicious things more than once.” And the alcohol is fully talking now. “There was nothingup in the airabout what I did.” Maybe Iamtesting his intent tonight. “I guess I won’t eat in front of you again.”
“Oh, you can.” He walks toward the door and turns back to face me. “But next time, there will be nothing up in the air about my reaction.”
“You reacted quite normally, considering I sort of humiliated you.”
“What is so humiliating about a dick that knows how to work?” Max eyes me cautiously.
“What was the reaction you had to suppress earlier?” Curiosity is getting the best of me, but I can blame it on the gin tomorrow.
Max smirks with his eyes as they lock onto mine. He lifts the beer bottle to his lips, tipping it back for a final drop, hypnotizing me to track every movement. Setting the bottle on the counter, he reaches for the door handle. With a final once-over of my body and a bite of his bottom lip, he clears his throat. His face returns to his normal easy-going self.
“Sleep well, half pint.” He leaves my unanswered question up in the air with my unsettled heart. And just like that, I guess we bounce back to being the same old best friends again.
Chapter 8