Chapter 20
Maddox’s surprise lasted all of three milliseconds before their eyes fell shut and they kissed Denise back with abandon.
Her lips were incredible: lush and full and delicious, and Maddox’s whole body thrilled at the contact. Fuck, how long had they been wanting this? Wanting her? Hungering for even the smallest taste.
Maddox broke the kiss long enough for them both to catch a breath before diving back in, this time nibbling and sucking on Denise’s luscious bottom lip. She opened her mouth, allowing Maddox to slip their tongue inside, and Denise’s tongue met theirs without hesitation.
While their tongues danced, Denise’s arms slid around Maddox’s back, causing them to groan as her soft curves and generous breasts pressed against them. Heat from her skin seeped through the fleece of her sweater to Maddox’s bare arms when they encircled her.
An image of the day they’d helped Denise with her microphone and what they’d wanted to do then sprung to Maddox’s mind.
They pushed the hem of her sweater up slowly…
slowly enough for her to stop them if she wanted.
But she didn’t. Their hands made contact with the bare skin of her lower back, and her entire body jolted in Maddox’s arms.
Yes…she’s so sensitive there.
Denise whimpered into Maddox’s mouth then pulled away to pant for air. Maddox gazed down into her hazel eyes, which looked a little bleary at the moment. “Is this okay?”
She nodded once, and Maddox moved in for another kiss while scraping their short nails across the small of her back.
Denise's fingers clutched at Maddox’s shirt, and she pulled them in closer.
Her kiss turned sloppier, more frantic, and Maddox matched her fervor.
Maddox’s lips slid away from her mouth to her jawline where they dotted kisses down, down, down until they were kissing the soft, heated skin of her neck.
When they began to lick and suck at her collarbone, Denise gasped. “Maddox!”
They pulled back and studied her. “Are you all right?”
Denise’s chest heaved, and she bit her kiss-swollen lip. Maddox couldn’t have dreamed up a more alluring sight if they’d tried. She stared straight into Maddox’s eyes. “I’m ready for you to take me to your room now.”
Maddox’s breath stuttered in their chest. Holy shit.
“Are you sure?”
She reached up to wrap her fingers around Maddox’s neck and pulled them down for another quick but hot and breathtaking kiss. Their eyes met again. “I am if you are.”
As they led Denise inside their suite, Maddox was glad they kept the room in fairly good order. Although with the way she was looking at them, she probably wouldn’t have noticed a few dust bunnies or a stack of dirty dishes.
Part of Maddox had thought Denise might have second thoughts now that they’d had to put some space between them to walk through the Sycamore Lodge’s halls and down to the older wing where Maddox’s room was.
Or maybe Maddox should be the one having second thoughts.
Even though they’d had a few steamy nights with guests in the past, this situation was a completely different story.
There were about a dozen reasons why they shouldn’t be standing here with Denise Farrington, nearly salivating at the thought of ripping off her sweater and pants and laying her flat on their bed beneath them.
But they couldn’t bring themself to dwell on those reasons, and Denise didn’t seem to want to either. Still, they needed to be certain.
“Denise, are you sure you want to do this?”
The lustful expression on Denise’s face cleared some and a small smile lifted the corner of her lips. “I appreciate that you’re asking, but yes, I want this.”
“I…I need this.” She glanced away quickly, as if her unguarded words had come out more candidly than she’d intended. “If you want it too.”
Maddox walked over and placed a hand on Denise’s cheek, gently urging her to look up again.
Even if it was only for a night, she needed to know this was a safe place to be honest. When she looked at them with questioning eyes, Maddox answered in a raspy voice, “I can’t remember the last time I’ve wanted anything this much. ”
Then Maddox bent down, and their lips reconnected with hers. This kiss was softer and more purposeful than the previous ones, and it lasted. They simply hovered there together, exploring each other’s mouths, touching one another through their clothes.
After a few minutes, Maddox guided Denise backward, so her back settled against the wall, and they made use of the leverage from the new position to press into her body more fully.
Denise widened her stance, allowing Maddox to slip their leg in between hers.
She rocked against them, making them both groan at the friction.
Maddox kissed a path to Denise’s ear and murmured, “Tell me what you like.”
“What?”
They nipped at her earlobe, making her shudder.
“I asked what you like,” they repeated.
Denise closed her eyes and drew in a shaky breath. “I-I like to be touched. And not just for a quick release.”
Her eyes opened again. “Really touched. All over.”
They placed their hands on her hips and then slowly ran them up and down her waist, keeping their eyes focused on Denise’s face. “Do you?”
She nodded. “I spent too damn long hating my body. Trying to force it to look a certain way for the wrong people. After I learned to appreciate it, I promised myself I’d never be with anyone else who wouldn’t.”
That flash of insight and the quiet ferocity in Denise’s voice stunned Maddox into silence for a moment.
Her words turned over in their mind, and they wondered what kind of jackass would ever try to make this gorgeous woman feel that way.
And how much work had it taken for her to get to a place of confidence and strength?
But did Maddox really have the right to ask questions? That’s not what tonight was about. They squeezed Denise’s waist. “Well, I intend to appreciate every single inch of it.”
They leaned in for a kiss, but Denise stopped them with a question of her own. “What about you?”
“Me?” Maddox repeated.
“Yes,” she slid her hands up around their shoulders. “Is there anything I should know about you?”
The question caught them off guard. It wasn’t something they were used to with these brief encounters. Normally, there seemed to be an understanding with whatever woman they slept with that Maddox was focused on her pleasure. On making her stay at the Middle Waters Resort a memorable one.
Maddox shrugged. “I got tested after my last partner. I’m clean.”
Denise narrowed her eyes. “Good. So am I, but that’s not what I meant, and I think you know that.”
Her warm, graceful fingers stroked the fine hairs at the back of Maddox’s neck, and her tone grew softer. “Come on. Tell me.”
“I don’t always like to get undressed right away,” Maddox blurted out. “Some days, how I feel in my skin, in my body…it distracts me, and it takes me longer to get turned on. Keeping my clothes on is better somehow.”
They swallowed and tried for a flirty grin. “But that never stops me from giving my partner whatever she wants.”
Yet Denise wasn’t diverted so easily. She continued to rub their neck. It was soothing. “That’s okay. You can take off as much or as little as you want whenever you want.”
“Really?”
Denise raised an eyebrow. “Of course. Isn’t that what your other partners have said?”
“It hasn’t really come up. There’s usually—I don’t know—an expectation,” they muttered.
“Not with me,” Denise answered firmly. “I only expect you to do what feels good and to communicate when something doesn’t. And I’ll do the same.”
Her assurance left Maddox speechless, so they simply nodded and pulled Denise close for a kiss. Finally. It felt like their lips had been apart too long.
This time, Maddox moved things forward. They guided Denise toward the bed and wound their fingers in the hem of her sweater. When they looked up for permission, she gave them a sultry grin that made their pulse kick up a notch.
Slowly, they pulled the sweater over Denise’s head and then stood back to admire the sight of her standing in their bedroom in only her pants and a silky beige bra that cupped her lovely, full breasts.
They were staring so much, they barely noticed when she removed her shoes and rolled down her pants.
Snapping out of it, they moved forward to help. They gave her shoulder a light push, so she fell backwards on the bed, and they worked together to pull her pants off the rest of the way.
Now that she was lying on their bed in only her lingerie, they could finally drink in those glorious curves that had caught their eye the moment they’d seen her in the Sycamore lobby.
They sat on the bed beside her and ran an appreciative hand over her calves and lovely, thick thighs.
They slid their hand between her legs and caressed the smooth inner skin.
They looked up into her face and saw that her eyes were closed and a hint of a smile played across her lips.
Those lips called to Maddox, so they bent down to capture them in a kiss as their hand reached her panties.
They massaged the outside for a minute and moaned into the kiss as they sensed the heat and moisture waiting beneath the silky fabric of the underwear.
Mmm. Not yet.
Maddox sat up again and slid off their boots and socks before crawling back up the bed to straddle her hips. Denise’s eyes widened, and Maddox asked. “Is this uncomfortable?”
“No,” she murmured. “I like the way the denim feels against my skin.”
They grinned and went back to exploring her body. They massaged the bare, heated skin of her waist and the soft roundness of her stomach then bent down to press their lips to her belly. Denise’s whole body jerked beneath their mouth, and she released a tiny, “Ohhh…”