thirty-four #2
Nate sucked on her bottom lip, a tug that felt like pure electricity had been poured into her veins. Her hands released his shirt where they had been holding on for dear life, and found their way into his hair, where she gave it a tug of her own, causing Nate to hiss against her mouth.
Maddy felt the wild grin of satisfaction that took over her lips and Nate’s answering one, before she angled his head and he fit his mouth against hers in a move that was grounded in instinct.
He parted her lips with his, and in that moment there was no reason, only molten heat, only the need for closer and tighter.
Breathing was insignificant.
Distance was unfathomable.
There was only this.
She didn’t even realize when she started moving over him, her body taking over where her mind had stopped.
The sound that left Nate’s lips was barely human, a deep growl that tapered off into an anguished moan, and that was the only anguish she wanted from him.
She wanted to live in that sound, and drown, drown, drown in it.
She wanted to stay right here with Nate’s hands tightening now so hard on her hips they felt like brands.
As if from miles and miles away, a phone started ringing, the sound piercing the fog she had willingly surrendered to.
Their moves slowed and their touch became lighter, as air rushed in where their mouths separated.
Maddy opened her eyes only to find Nate already looking at her with so much undisguised longing, a lock of his hair falling on his forehead.
He raised his hand as if in a trance, and cradling her face traced his thumb over her cheekbone and the edge of her smile.
“I’m going to throw that phone out of the window and then kill whoever was calling,” he said in a gruff voice while still caressing her wherever he could reach.
“I’ll go with you,” Maddy said softly before they both chuckled at their predicament.
“I don’t want to get up.” Nate’s voice was barely above a rough whisper.
“Me neither,” she exhaled.
“But, if we do, I can make us something out of that bag I brought with me.”
Maddy’s eyebrows bunched in a skeptical frown. “There are extremely limited things that could make me want to get up right now.”
“I can make us hot chocolate from scratch.”
“And you just named one of those things.”
Nate’s unrestrained laughter filled her with a warmth that had nothing to do with the previous heat.
“Come on, then,” he said before he basically picked both of them up in a move that had no business being that hot.
“Aren’t you going to see who called you?”
“It’s okay, that was my work ringtone and it’s Saturday. They can wait. Plus,” he said, pulling her close to him with a tug on her hand, “I want to see if the chocolate I make is as good as the ones we had back then.”
“I’m sure it will be.”
Because this one would be made by him.
***
It was the best fucking chocolate Maddy had ever put in her mouth.
And she was pretty sure that the way she was rendered almost incapable of coherent sentences was proof of that.
Apparently, what she had been drinking was an absolute travesty because what he had put together, was like drinking melted chocolate in a cup. It was so thick and heavenly that it was death by chocolate.
Nate had even put whipped cream on top. He’d just pulled out the can he’d put in her fridge like it was nothing, like whipped cream should be on the top 3 of groceries.
“You are so organized,” she said in a voice that showed a lot of awe and some trepidation.
He chuckled. “You make it sound like it’s a bad thing.”
They had returned to her couch because the floor was all nice and good for spontaneous acts but long-term situations like savoring the magnificent creation she was holding called for comfort.
“It’s definitely not a bad thing. I just meant that you’d thought all of it through in such short notice.”
Nate chose to drink a big gulp of his beverage instead of answering straight away, but she didn’t miss his sheepish expression.
“Yeah, well, um... actually I thought that we never got to drink the ones I’d made for New Year’s Eve.”
Her breath left her in a whoosh. Just when she’d thought she’d filled her quota of things to swoon over in an evening.
“Fuck, Nate.” She shook her head.
His smirk was positively sinful.
“Now that is definitely a good thing.”
Maddy’s laughter was interrupted by her own phone ringing this time.
“God, what is it with people today? It’s like they’re doing it on purpose,” she mumbled as she leaned over the living room coffee table to peek at the name calling her.
She winced seeing Stacie’s name. Stacie almost never called unless it was something important, she usually just texted.
“Uh, I’m sorry I think I should get that,” Maddy said, turning to look at Nate. “It’s Stacie and maybe it’s something important.”
“I’m not stopping you from talking to her. I value my life too much.”
She grinned, just as she accepted the call.
“Hey, friend, what’s up?”
“Oh, I’ll tell you what’s up. You were supposed to call me to make plans for tonight. You know, coordinate what we were going to wear and stuff like that.”
Oh no.
“Oh shit, Stace, I’m so sorry, I completely forgot.”
She heard Stacie sigh. “It’s okay, Maddy. I was the one who told you to take it easy since you hadn’t been feeling well these last few days. It’s you who insisted.”
“I know, I know. I just didn’t want to be a shitty friend.”
“You couldn’t be a shitty friend if you tried. So what are you up to?”
“Oh, um,” she stalled eloquently.
“Wow that’s a very good answer, Maddy.”
“Well, actually, I’m not alone right now. Nate is here.”
Silence.
“Stacie? Are you there?”
“I wanna squeal so hard in your ear right now, but I’m a good friend, so I won’t.”
“Appreciate it.”
“What do you mean he’s there?” she fake-whispered as if anyone could hear her.
“Well, I needed some help with some things and he came to help.”
More silence.
“Ooh. Help huh? Did he help you nice and right?”
“Oh, shut up,” she told her even as she felt her cheeks warm up, a blush creeping up from her neck.
Nate was doing a very bad job at hiding his smirk. He could probably piece together what they were talking about.
“You’re not my friend anymore.”
“Yeah, sure. Now put me on speaker.”
Maddy choked.
“Why would I do that?”
“No questions. Put me on speaker. It’s nothing embarrassing, I promise.”
She really hoped not.
“Hey, guys, I thought it would be better this way, so you could both hear me.”
“Hey, Stacie, it’s nice to talk to you again.”
A brief pause.
“Okay, you’re polite, I’ll give you that.”
Maddy and Nate both chuckled.
“So, Maddy and I were supposed to go out tonight along with a couple of people from work but things got a bit derailed. Which works out perfectly for what I just thought of.” She paused, probably for dramatic effect. Her friend sure had a flair for theatrics.
“How about we arrange for all of us to go out for some clubbing next weekend? Me and Maddy, Nate can bring his friends, a couple of people from work, it could be fun. Plus, I’m always the one foisting my friends on Maddy, it’s high time I met some of hers, too.”
That minx knew what she was doing. She made it sound all innocent and shit but Maddy knew her and knew her well.
“What do you think, guys?”
Maddy tried to communicate wordlessly with Nate, maybe warn him of the DANGER, DANGER, but he simply shrugged and nodded as if it was nothing.
Well, if he was on board.
“Okay, Stace, we’ll fix something up for next weekend.”
“Great! Okay, I’ll let you go then. Feel better, sweetie. Bye, Nate!” And she hung up, just like that.
“Boy, you have no idea what you got yourself into.”
“Nah, it will be fine. I’ll tell Coop and Liam to come. I’m sure they’ll be happy to see you again.”
Maddy couldn’t help but smile at that. It would be nice to see them, too.
“The most important question is,” he continued with a sly smirk, “since when do you go out for clubbing? Has this all been a lie? Are you in fact a party animal?”
Maddy threw a decorative pillow at his stupid face, which he grabbed easily while laughing.
“No, idiot, it’s just that now and then I like to go along with some things Stacie likes because I know it makes her happy when I join some of her outings. So here we are now, I hope you’re prepared.”
The smile he directed at her could have stopped traffic.
“I don’t need to be prepared, Mads. We’ll be together and that’s enough.”