Chapter 20
TWENTY
MAISY
“I want you to myself,” Sterling growls, his voice rough, breath scorching against my throat as his hips drive forward, filling me in a rhythm that makes my whole body tremble. “All mine.”
He sits back on his calves without pulling out, one hand gripping my hip as his other smooths down my stomach. His gaze drops, and he watches himself slide in and out of my pussy, completely transfixed, like he’s hypnotized by the way I take him.
I let myself drink in every detail of him, and God—he’s beautiful.
The sharp cut of his jaw is clenched in concentration, sweat beading along his brow and trickling down his temples.
His chest heaves, muscles straining, every ridge of his abs shining with a sheen of sweat that makes him look carved from stone.
My eyes trail lower, over the deep lines of his V, down to where his body joins mine, and my pulse skips wildly.
A moan slips from me, helpless, and I arch my back to draw him even deeper.
“Sterling…” His name tumbles from my lips on a needy sigh.
He thrusts harder, jaw locking like he’s barely holding himself together. “Maisy,” he grits out, voice strangled.
“Maisy.”
“Yes,” I gasp, nails digging into his arms. “Yes?”
“Maisy, wake up.”
My eyes snap open, and the fog of my dream fades.
The heat of Sterling’s body is gone, along with the pressure and pleasure.
Instead, I’m sprawled across the couch in the dim light of the living room, my book lying open on my chest. And Sterling—real Sterling—stands over me with a glass of water in his hands. Shirtless.
His bare skin gleams faintly in the light, those same muscles I’d just been dreaming about on full display. My cheeks burn hot.
“Fun dream?” he asks, a knowing smirk curling his lips.
Mortification slams into me and I jerk upright too quickly, the book sliding off my chest and thumping onto the carpet. “Oh my God.”
Before he can say anything else, I bolt off the couch, abandoning both my dignity and my book, sprinting for my room while his low chuckles follow me down the hall.
“Why are you being so weird?” Levi asks me from across the kitchen island.
He’d shown up at the chalet way too early, arms full of takeout breakfast. Before I could even make up an excuse, he practically dragged me out of bed—where I’d been cocooned under the blankets, avoiding Sterling—and shoved me into the kitchen with a plate of food.
“I’m not,” I mutter, the lie flat even to my own ears.
My eyes betray me as I look next to Levi and find Sterling. He’s leaning against the counter, a steaming mug of coffee in his hand, and that stupid, lazy smirk tugging at his lips.
That smirk is the exact reason I’d been hiding out in the first place. It’s like he’s fully aware of what’s going on in my head when he looks at me like that.
“You definitely are,” Levi says, narrowing his eyes as he studies me. His gaze darts between me and Sterling. “Did something happen between you two?”
“What?” I blurt out, a little too loudly.
“No,” Sterling answers smoothly at the same time.
The way our voices overlap makes Levi pause, brows drawing together as if he’s piecing together a puzzle he doesn’t want the answer to. A beat of tense silence stretches out before he finally exhales, the corner of his mouth tipping down in reluctant relief.
“Okay, good,” he says at last, leaning back against the counter. “Because the last thing this world needs is another Maisy-and-Sterling shitshow.”
I bristle instantly. “What does that even mean?”
“Exactly what it sounds like,” Levi shoots back without missing a beat.
“The last time you two messed around, it wrecked everything. Left you both in pieces, and left me feeling like I’d lost not only my sister, but also my best friend.
So, forgive me if I want to make sure you’re not repeating history. ”
Heat creeps up the back of my neck, equal parts embarrassment and anger. I stab my fork into the nearest breakfast sausage like it personally offended me, the metal scraping against the plate.
But Levi turns his attention to Sterling now, his voice firm. “Or breaking promises.”
The words hang in the air and when Levi glances away, Sterling’s eyes find mine. For the briefest second, I see guilt etched across his face before he looks down, jaw flexing.
I force myself to look back at Levi. “Is there a reason you’re here, brother?” I ask, my tone a bit more aggressive than I intended.
He arches a brow at me, lowering his plate with exaggerated slowness.
“Yes, sister,” he drawls, rolling his eyes. “I’m throwing a party here tonight.”
“What?” I ask, blinking at him.
Levi lifts a finger as he chews another bite, taking his sweet time before answering. “Sterling’s leaving in a week so I figured we could give him a proper send-off this time.”
The room goes quiet, like someone’s sucked all the oxygen out of it. My stomach knots painfully, my fork frozen halfway to my plate. Has it already been almost a month of him being here?
“You’re not staying?” I ask Sterling, my voice small, betraying me.
“Why would he?” Levi answers for him, frowning like it’s obvious.
Sterling chews his food slowly, watching me the whole time before finally speaking. “Well, you know how to snowboard now,” he says, voice light. “And I don’t exactly have a reason to stay.”
Ouch.
The words reverberate in my chest like a bruise that’s spreading deeper.
“Yeah, Mais,” Levi adds, his tone mock-playful but lined with a hint of truth. “We’ve already learned that friends aren’t enough of a reason for this guy to stick around.”
He shoves Sterling’s shoulder like it’s a joke and Sterling just rolls his eyes, brushing it off, but Levi isn’t wrong.
I’d been the one who said we could be friends with benefits, nothing more.
So why am I surprised that he’s not giving up the life he built for himself in Saltwater Springs… just to stay here with me?
“Party starts at eight,” Levi says, rinsing off his plate before loading it into the dishwasher.
“Need a hand getting stuff for the party?” Sterling asks after a beat, his voice casual.
He doesn’t look at me when he asks, like he’s suddenly afraid of being alone with me now that Levi’s reminded him of promises and past mistakes.
Levi’s face brightens. “Yeah, actually. Let’s go.”
I watch the two of them head toward the door, leaving me behind in the kitchen with nothing but a cooling plate of food and the sour taste of regret on my tongue.