Turn It On: Turner Twins, Book 1 (18 page)

Maxine writhed under him, panting with excitement. Her hips lifted toward him, moving closer to his seeking tongue and he rewarded her enthusiasm by flicking her clit. She screamed out loud as her climax hit. He took advantage of the moment and pressed one of his now wet fingers into the tight rosette of her ass. The walls of her pussy pulsed with her orgasm on the other side of the thin membrane separating her passages as he slowly slid the digit in all the way.

“Hmmm, feels wonderful good.” Maxine’s voice had a slight slur as she wiggled against his hand.

“You’re getting sex drunk, aren’t you, sweetheart?” Ryan shifted position, added more lube to his fingers and squeezed a generous amount on top of her hole. “I love the sultry way you sound when you’ve just had an orgasm. You sound satisfied and seriously well fucked.” He leaned closer and whispered as he slipped two fingers into her ass, working the lube inside. “I can hardly wait to hear what you sound like when we’re done tonight.”

“Oh, yes. Oh, you’re killing me. Ohhhh!” Maxine lifted her hips higher, her knees spread to the sides. Everything was wide open to his vision, his touch. His cock. Ryan lined up with her sopping wet passage and slipped inside with one smooth thrust. Heaven wrapped around him with close, hot pressure. Her tight grip eased the pain of waiting, but threatened to pull him over the top. He pulled back slowly, rocking in and out only an inch or two while he concentrated on preparing her ass.

She groaned and leaned his direction.

“You’re getting to be nice and loud in the bedroom. I like that, it lets me know what you think feels good, and what feels great.” Carefully he added a third finger, fighting back the need to move faster. Slowly, carefully, he stretched her.

Maxine slammed a hand on the mattress beside her head and gave a throaty cry. “Shit, you want me to tell you what would feel great? Fuck me already. I need more, I need—”

He heard nothing more with the blood roaring in his ears. She wanted it now? Oh hell yeah, he could do that. He replaced his fingers with the head of his cock, and pressed. The sight of her hole stretching open around him was intoxicating. The sensation of the tight ring of muscle slowly relaxing until the fat head of his cock eased through numbed his brain. The slow hiss of Maxine’s exhale broke through his fixated mind and he glanced up to see her staring over her shoulder at him, a happy smile on her face.

“Oh my God, I’ve never felt so full in my life.”

“You’re good?”

He watched carefully as her eyes rolled back in response to him pushing in another inch. “I’m fucking wonderful.”

He gripped her waist, the softness of her skin reminding him to control the thrust of his hips instead of driving all the way in one hard blast. He squeezed his eyes tight and forced his way in, one small stroke after another. When his groin hit her ass he swore. It felt like he was inside a tightly fisted hand, massaging and heating him. Urging him to move.

Long, slow rocking movements followed, dragging him back and forth through her body. He reached around to manipulate her clit and Maxine gasped again. He was close, so close to blowing his wad before she had enough time to finish rising to another peak. At least that’s what he thought until she threw her head back and gave a loud keen of delight. Her muscles grabbed him, attempting to lock him in place. He’d never been happier to release his control. Three final thrusts were as much as he lasted before his vision blurred and he slammed them together, his cock spurting semen deep into her ass as he cried out her name.

It was hell to leave her body. Hell to leave her on the bed to get a cloth to clean her up, but heaven to be able to arrange her boneless body so he could curl around her. He stared at her flushed skin, her glassy eyes and the sated expression on her face. She was beautiful to start with, but the look of her bathed with the afterglow of their lovemaking touched him deep inside. Longing for more of her, all of her, rose in his heart. He needed someone like Maxine to make him whole.

“Holy shit, that was the most incredible sex I’ve ever had in my fucking life. I need a nap. Two days, maybe three. Fuck.” It took a few attempts for Maxine to get all the words out as she stopped to suck in air, tremors still rocking her body.

“You’re getting to have quite the potty mouth, sweetheart,” he teased.

Maxine blushed and Ryan roared with laughter. He rolled her under him. “Damn it, never change. You’re delightful and sexy and you rock my world.” He kissed her sweetly before turning her around to spoon against him, her calm breathing letting him know she was soon asleep.

“I think I’m in love with you,” he whispered, just to try it out.

It sounded pretty damn perfect.

Maxine closed the door behind her, thrilled at the progress she’d made in redecorating the main-floor bedroom. Carl’s head therapist had come over and made a few suggestions for final changes, but on the whole he thought she’d done a fantastic job of preparing the space for Carl.

She examined the posters and furniture. Everything was as close a duplicate as possible to what he had at the nursing home. It would make him feel more comfortable and increase the likelihood he could spend a night. After talking with the nurses and physicians, she understood Carl needed to remain at the care center most of the time. She wanted to at least attempt to provide an opportunity for the occasional overnight visit. Ryan had looked very surprised when she proposed setting up the room, yet she knew he’d been quietly pleased.

She ran down to the basement to grab a load of laundry, humming a carol. Walking back through the living room she could see the results of her morning’s work. The house had begun to feel festive. She’d set up her laptop in the kitchen, working on a project while she baked cookies for Christmas. Last night Ryan had brought down the first couple of storage boxes of decorations and she’d already emptied them. She passed the garlands and streamers wrapped around the railings of the staircase and many happy memories rose to the surface. There was a lot of house to decorate still, and yet she looked forward to it all. It was another chance to introduce Ryan to some of her family traditions.

Satisfaction welled up inside. He’d been much more careful to ask instead of order her around lately. Except in the bedroom. There he seemed to be getting bossier than ever, and she loved it.

She paused in the middle of folding towels in the master bathroom. She loved
him
. Time passed unnoticed as she stood silently, watching her refection in the mirror as the knowledge swept over her. She was in love. And she suspected he might feel the same way about her.

While neither of them had said it, there was more to their relationship than the friendship they shared. Far more than the sexual games they played. The feeling inside when she woke in the morning with his arms around her, and the expression in his eyes when he kissed her good night—it was love.

Now she needed to find the right time and place to tell him.

She burst out of the bathroom filled with excited energy. A sudden movement to her left caught her attention just before pain exploded in the back of her head. She slammed into the nearby dresser, rolling off to crash onto the hardwood floor. Her arm and shoulder hit hard, there was a loud cracking noise and searing agony linked her head and her arm. Blackness enveloped her.

The world spun, pain throbbed through her arm and head, and something liquid and sticky clung to her forehead. Maxine rolled over and was violently sick, the vomiting racking her body with pain. She attempted to rise to her elbows to stop the splitting agony from taking over. She waited until the spasms stopped, gasping through her sobs, trying to focus. It took a while to remember where she was and the muted light around her echoed with the rasping sounds of her frightened breathing. The stabbing shards of pain that drilled through her every time she moved made her cautious, hesitant to shift position.

What the hell had happened? Had a floorboard collapsed? She found her mind flitting from idea to idea. Was it an earthquake, or had she fainted? None of it made sense and the world wavered again. Brightly colored swirls hung before her eyes, and she blinked back tears. She drew a shaky breath and let it out as slowly as possible, reducing the noise she made to listen for the sound of anyone near by. If she didn’t move the pain in her head and shoulder reduced to a mild throbbing. It ached, but not enough to make her scream. Oh hell, she didn’t think she could cry out for help, the idea of making any noise above a whimper hurt. She lay on the floor, cold creeping into her body. Shivers started, triggering the pain to return stronger.

She had to get help for herself. Ryan wouldn’t be home for hours and she was sure she would lose consciousness before then. Nausea rose again and she fought it off. It was impossible to reach the stairs and crawl them. Her cell phone was downstairs. Slowly Maxine rolled to her belly, crying as she released the pressure on her injured arm and shoulder. Something trickled down the back of her neck. She realized it was blood and shuddered. Lowering her forehead to the floor, she cried as quietly as she could, attempting not to move, not to let her body become aware of the fear hovering around her.

She wanted Ryan. He’d take care of her; he was always taking care of her. She remembered his expression as they’d made love that morning, the passion and the tenderness wrapped together, their bodies and souls connected. A tear rolled down her cheek and landed on her arm, and suddenly there was a thin glimmer of hope.

The sensor.

Ryan had installed a moisture sensor in the bathroom. If she triggered it, the alarm would call someone to check the house in less than fifteen minutes.

Dragging her body along the floor took forever, but when Maxine attempted to rise the room spun so hard she toppled to the ground, exacerbating her arm and shoulder injury further. Guiding herself with her good hand she stuck as close to the vanity as possible until she finally reached the other side. She had to get the sensor wet for long enough to make it react. Her mouth was dry, the water taps too far above her head to try and reach. She stared longingly at the tub, even the toilet, but the water in them was as good as being a mile away. Blackness covered her vision again and she laid her head on her arm willing it to pass. Just a little longer. She needed to stay conscious for just a little longer.

She shuffled closer to the wall to feel her way to the sensor. Desperation drove her and gave her more strength than she thought possible. It was there, the narrow tube, low to the ground. Touching her fingers gingerly to the back of her head, she drew them away sticky with moisture. It took a few repeats to gather enough blood. It was cold on the floor, her head ached, and tremors racked her body before the blessed sound of a faint beeping from the main floor reached her ears.

Maxine put her head down and let the pain wash over her, numbness and darkness taking control.

***

Machines hummed in the background, low and unnatural, and there was a lingering odor that reminded Ryan of antiseptic cleansers and recycled air. Hospitals tried to make their rooms as pleasant as possible but they still were fucking awful places.

He stared at Maxine, tightly clutching her hand that lay on top of the pristine white sheets.

“You should go get a coffee or something. They said they don’t expect her to move for an hour with all the drugs they’ve pumped into her.” Maxwell Junior slid into the chair next to him.

Ryan glanced up in surprise. He’d never been so distracted on a mission to miss the arrival of another person into his immediate area. Of course, he’d never been distracted by having to sit and watch someone he loved lie in a bed, beaten, with a concussion. “You’re one to talk. Don’t you have a wife and baby to go home to?”

Junior nodded. “I’ll head home soon. I hoped I’d still be here when she woke. I need to know she’s okay.” He hesitated for a minute before lowering his voice. “You’re going to make sure she’s okay, right?”

This was about more than the injuries that caused Maxine to lie so still and pale. “You wondering about my relationship with your sister? That’s a matter between us. I thought I made that clear the last time we talked.”

Junior sighed. “I’m not asking what your intentions are or offering to meet you for pistols at dawn. I love my sister a lot and she means the world to me, but she’s got a mind of her own. I’m just curious if you’re planning on sticking around. The ass she was with before was all wrong for her, but there’s something about you I like.” Maxwell leaned back in his chair. “Even if you do cheat at cards.”

Ryan laughed quietly. It felt good to release a little of the tension wrapped around his brain. He liked Maxwell, liked how the man wasn’t pushy but quietly stuck to his guns until he got what he wanted.

Kind of like having a mosquito in the room—you had to pay attention.

“You’re jealous because you haven’t figured out how to count cards. Stick on a nineteen, it’s a very basic rule…” Ryan forced the light-hearted conversation out, but what he wanted to do was kick some ass. He’d known there was danger, and he’d screwed up somehow and let her down. She’d been hurt and it was more than he could bear. He twisted his body to be able to continue holding her hand and face her brother better. He considered for a moment.

“My first reaction is to say again it’s none of your business what’s between me and Max and tell you to fuck off, but your family is one of the tightest knit groups I’ve ever met. I can understand why you’re asking and I’m willing to share I’m planning to do my damnedest to make her happy. I’m also going to figure out what the hell is going on around the house so we never end up in this stinking hospital again.”

Junior nodded slowly in response. “That’s more than I was asking for, and about what I expected.” He rose to his feet, brushed a kiss on Maxine’s cheek and headed to the door. He turned back to stare at Ryan. “For what it’s worth, I like you. I think you’ve got a good heart. You might even have the nerves it takes to be part of this family.”