38. Summer
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Summer
I glance at Alice and Rafe as I stand up. They are both still sleeping like the dead. I glance at my phone as I walk past it, noting that the smashed screen is already repairing itself. Doubtless, it is his doing. How dare I make it so he can’t harass me?
The anger is still so raw inside me, and I have no idea how to channel it appropriately, no idea where to store it, no idea how to siphon it into a more manageable emotion.
I want to punish him, to punish myself, and I need to get rid of the anger, so I fall back on what I do know.
Changing into my gym gear, I quietly leave the house, careful not to wake Alice or Rafe, though after what they’ve already slept through, I’m not sure I should be worrying.
I need a good workout, but I’m not planning on sparring today.
Max looks up when he sees me. He’s in the middle of training someone else, but I couldn’t care less.
“Summer. Hey.”
I storm up to him and grab the back of his neck. Yanking him down, I kiss him hard. He turns toward me fully, his hands gripping my waist. I pull back, nipping at his lower lip. “This is the last time,” I say, panting softly against his mouth.
Max groans in answer and kisses me again.
He lifts me easily, and I wrap myself around him as he carries me somewhere.
I think it’s his office, but even if he decided to fuck me in the middle of the gym, I wouldn’t care.
Anger fuels me, but it’s the unleashed desire deep in my core that needs to be tamed.
I hear a door close, muting the garbled, frustrated words of the sorcerer he was training.
Max sits down on a small sofa, frantically trying to shift me on his lap to get my shirt off.
Growling low in my throat at the delay, I stand and tear at my clothes.
Max watches avidly as I strip for him. There is no grace or elegance to it, just pure hunger.
Never taking his eyes off me, he pulls a condom from his pocket and shoves his pants down.
I grab the small foil packet from his hand and rip it open, sliding the condom over the tip of his cock and down his thick length.
I straddle his thighs again and slam my pussy down on him, taking him to the hilt.
Max throws his head back and roars, a shudder rolling through his powerful body.
His eyes glow green, and he digs his hands into my sides.
They’re larger now as he battles for dominance with the berserker inside.
I’m so wet and ready, my pussy dripping liquid heat over his balls.
I desperately try to convince myself that I didn’t emerge from that dream like this, but when I changed my panties before I left, I’d seen the stain of my arousal slicking the white lace.
I grip his short hair and tilt my head, pressing his face against my neck, silently demanding kisses.
Max doesn’t just kiss. He bites hard, and I moan, my eyes rolling back in my head as I ride him hard.
The throbbing pain as he sucks, grounds me and brings a sliver of awareness.
The moment I become conscious once more of our surroundings, I can feel his gaze boring into me.
Slowly, I open my eyes to find that I am facing Max’s office window, and I have a clear line of sight out into the quad.
I can’t see him , but I know he’s there, those furious eyes locked onto me.
His rage is like a laser, cutting into me.
“Fuck, Max,” I moan, deliberately turning my attention away from him.
I roll my hips, rocking against Max and forcing him even deeper.
He groans, and I grab his face, pulling his lips back to mine.
I kiss him deeply, his tongue dancing with mine.
He slides his hands to my ass, cupping and squeezing, grinding my hips closer.
A dull throb accompanies his firm hold, inadvertently drawing my attention to the ache the stranger left behind.
I moan, leaning into the pain and working to focus on the berserker beneath me. Max bites my lip, and the metallic taste of blood tingles against my tongue. It spurs me on, driving me to bounce harder on him.
Max growls and pulls me against him, shifting to put me beneath him.
Laying me down on the couch, he pulls my legs high and thrusts hard and deep, setting a brutal rhythm that takes my breath away.
My body arches beneath him, welcoming and succumbing to the pleasure I have been desperate for since last night.
Even before then, if I am being honest. The couch groans as the feet drag against the floor, the back banging against the wall over and over.
“Harder,” I growl against his lips, and he obeys, fucking me with primal abandon.
I drag my nails down his back, and his cock swells that impossible bit more.
Max snarls, and I know he’s getting close.
I’m starting to recognize his cues. Pleasure sings through me, my core clenching rhythmically, and just as I feel myself teetering on the edge of my release, he flashes into my mind.
I close my eyes, trying to banish both the image and thought of him , but the shape of his body is burned into the back of my eyelids, every nerve I have remembers his touch, and the way he calls me brat echoes in my ears.
I cry out, coming hard around Max’s cock.
My release triggers Max’s, and he roars, every muscle in his body pulling taut as he comes. I moan, my body going limp beneath him. Max buries his face against my neck, his breathing coming in hot pants, tickling me. I open my eyes and stare over his shoulder, looking up at the ceiling.
After he catches his breath, Max pulls back, a satisfied smirk on his face.
“What?” I ask, my voice sharper than I mean it to be.
His smirk doesn’t falter. If anything, it deepens with my prickliness. “You’re going to give me a complex.”
I quirk a brow.
“That’ll be the third time you’ve told me this is the last time.”
I glare at him and push at his chest. We both hiss when he slips out of me and sits back on the sofa. I roll clumsily off the couch and gather my clothes, forcing my legs to remain steady.
“Okay, well, that was the last time,” I say, glancing at Max as I pull on my shorts. His arm is slung along the back of the couch, and he is still naked, seemingly in no hurry to get dressed.
“Sure,” he snorts.
“It was,” I say, tugging my shirt on, needing the armor of clothes. This was a mistake in so many ways, but the one that is making the guilt claw down my spine is that I left Alice and Rafe to come out for a quick fuck.
“Uh-huh,” he says, his smirk unwavering.
“Fuck.” I look away, running my fingers through my hair. “I shouldn’t have even left.”
“Why not?” Max asks .
I look at him, feeling my whole body sag at the reality of my situation. He must see something change in my expression, because concern fills his eyes, and he grabs his shorts and pulls them on.
“It’s Rafe,” I say, pulling my hair back into a ponytail.
Max blinks and sits back down. “Rafe? Morningstar?”
I huff and slump onto the couch next to him.
Even my limbs feel exhausted from the emotional upheaval of the last few days.
This will be my first time telling anyone other than the headmaster or family, and the words lodge in my throat.
“He’s Fallen,” I finally manage to choke out, looking down at my black-painted nails in my lap.
Max blinks and blinks again. “Shit. He survived?” he asks, genuine concern lacing his voice.
I nod and lean my elbows on my knees, burying my face in my hands. The vulnerability that I am able to feel with Max somehow refines the pain, anger, and fear, leaving only the truth and me feeling raw and open.
The weight of Max’s arm drops across my shoulders, and he pulls me into his side. I release a long breath and lean against him, exhaustion tugging at me.
“I’m here,” he says, rubbing my arm, and a tear slides down my cheek. “I got you.”
We sit like that in silence until I manage to rebuild my armor. The wounds carved into my soul are not healed, but they are no longer so exposed to the cruel elements.
I look at Max, giving him a small, watery smile. “Thank you,” I whisper, our faces close.
Max wipes the tears off my cheek. “Friends first.” They are just two simple words, yet I’ve not felt this safe in a very long time.
I nod.
“How can I help?” he asks, his eyes locked on mine, gentler than I’ve ever seen them.
“You are helping.”
His lips twitch. “Yeah? Tell that to your tear ducts.”
I roll my eyes and brush away another stray tear. “I should go.”
Max tugs on my ponytail playfully. “How is he?”
I shrug. “He’s only woken up a couple of times.”
Max’s face turns contemplative. “I’ve met a couple in the past,” he says. “Demons, I mean. ”
“Oh?” I’m not sure why that surprises me. Demons and berserkers share many traits, so it makes sense that they would travel in similar circles.
He nods. “Not for a while, but you should bring him here. When he’s stronger.”
I smile. “Thanks, Max.” I stand up and give him a small, sassy smirk. “Thanks for the ride too. For the last time.”
“We’ll see,” Max says, rolling his eyes. “You know, I have a sister, so I get it.”
“You do?” I ask, my eyes widening.
Max nods. “Yeah, she’s a handful too. She’s not a newly Fallen angel, but she’s got a problem with substances.”
“That’s really tough, Max. Do you see her often?” I ask, stepping closer to him.
Max snorts. “Only when she needs money or protection, but I’m trying to say that I know how you’re feeling. It is difficult to be the responsible one to a sibling who wants to fight against you.”
My lips twitch. “I’m not sure I’ve ever been labeled the responsible one before.”
“First time for everything.” Max looks out the window dramatically. “Yeah, the realms are still there, so they haven’t suddenly ended with Summer Tuatha De Daanan becoming a responsible sibling. Would you look at that?”
I laugh and roll my eyes. “See you later, asshole. Thanks again.” I flip him off as I leave his office.
Back at the house, I check on Rafe and Alice. They’ve barely moved, both still deeply asleep. I scoop my restored phone off the floor.
Unknown
He won’t ever be enough.
His message flashes up on my screen the moment I touch my phone. I barely look at it and I refuse to acknowledge it, the flutter in my stomach, or the heat lower in my core.