Page 33 of Hearts on the Line (The Maverick Key #1)

“Just thinking,” I whisper. “About how happy I am right now.” He starts to open his mouth. The phone on his nightstand buzzes again.

“Can’t a man get some rest?” He grumbles and picks it up, streaming through the missed messages. He shakes his head. “Well… I know who we heard drive up earlier.”

“Who?” I ask.

“I think we’ve scandalized Margaret.” We both glance up at the open window and laugh.

He calls his team to let them know they have a few days off.

We lay in bed chatting for a little while, sharing funny stories and even some of the boring things about our lives. Comfortable, my eyes grow heavy. I start to drift off. Scott shifts, pulling me closer, his voice rough with sleep.

“Don’t get shy on me now.”

I tilt my head to meet his gaze, catching his half-smile and his hazel eyes gleaming at me. “I’m so happy, Scott.”

His smile deepens, and his irresistible dimples make my heart flutter. “That makes two of us.” He kisses my forehead tenderly, and a warm flush spreads through me, leaving me weightless.

Last night is still a dream. The festival, the beach, the sex. I don’t want this to end.

Scott’s hand strokes my back, slowing down each time he reaches my ass. His touch is both soothing and electrifying. “I have an idea.”

“Oh yeah?” I raise an eyebrow.

“Let’s stay here the whole day. No phones, no interruptions. Just you and me—maybe some food. Although I’m going to be honest that I don’t want to get out of bed.”

“Don’t you have something you need to do today?”

He shrugs. “It can wait. I’m on vacation.”

“You too?” I tease and sit up.

He jumps on me and rolls us over in one smooth motion, pinning me beneath him. Mischief dances in his eyes. “Hey, I deserve a break and some fun, too.” He raises his brows. “Especially when I have you.”

His words make my heart skip, and my breath catches as he kisses my cheek. He leans down to capture my lips in a languid kiss. “I’ve fallen for you. I want to do this right.”

My breath hitches. “Me too.”

He gives me a naughty look, then lifts his palms in the air, counting the fingers on both hands.

“Six.” He flicks my nose mischievously.

“What?”

“That’s how many times we’ve done it so far,” he says, howling with laughter. “I knew you were trying to do the math.”

I smack his chest and push him back to his pillow. Slowly, I crawl toward him, lowering my head between his legs. I blow out a teasing kiss. He squirms as I hold him down.

“Let’s make it seven.”

His face lights up, making it impossible for me not to smile back.

Our vacation has been a sanctuary. Mornings are soft kisses and tangled sheets, followed by lazy breakfasts we prepare together in his small kitchen.

In the afternoons, we stroll along the beach and explore the island hand-in-hand, our laughter carried by the ocean breeze.

Each night, we end up in bed, making love and exchanging promises.

Word travels fast on the island, but neither of us minds.

Today is Scott’s thirty-sixth birthday, and I’ve got a special surprise planned for him.

I’m in the kitchen cooking his favorite breakfast as he takes his shower.

I touch the chain around my neck and caress the jade elephant pendant.

After we made love the first time, I took it off.

He insisted that I put it back on. That he loved to see it against my skin.

When the water shuts off, I take my place at Scott’s piano. The piano was built in the eighteen hundreds, a birthday gift from his father, who was an old west enthusiast. The professional restoration makes it possible to play, and while not perfect, its sound is unique.

“I smell something delicious…” Scott’s cheerful voice carries down the hallway toward the living room.

When he enters the room, he stops dead in his tracks.

His hair and skin are still damp from the shower, and he’s wearing a towel around his waist. His eyes widen, and his mouth opens, but no words come out.

I curl my fingers, motioning him to come to me.

He doesn’t move at first, then takes a deep breath, clears his throat, and walks toward me. When he reaches the piano, I meet his heated gaze.

“I tried to think of a gift that you’d like.” I bite down on my lip. He swallows. I can feel him through the towel. I’m tempted to pull it down, but refrain.

“What I finally decided on was this.” I lower my gaze and gesture to myself. “And a song of your choosing.” I look back up, locking my gaze on his.

He takes a sharp breath and reaches out to brush his fingers across my face.

“What do you think about my gift? Do you like it?”

“Oh yeah.”

“What song?”

Crouching down, he whispers huskily into my ear. “Play the song you played that night at the bar. The one I can’t get out of my head.”

He sits next to me, gently clasping the chain around my neck before letting it go.

“Play it for me while I touch you.” He brushes the back of his hand beneath my chin.

I gasp. My fingers run across the keys, creating the first notes as Scott slowly slides his fingertips down my back, murmuring as he savors the softness of my skin.

He moves his hands back up to the back of my neck and removes the blue silk ribbon tied around it.

The pretty bow falls to the floor. Revealing his birthday present.

My nipples are hard, and I whimper when he squeezes them.

He curses and removes the towel, moving behind me and putting me on his lap. I pause, which prompts him to command.

“Keep playing. Please, baby.” I focus on my place in the music and keep going until Scott moves his hands around me to my center and he plays music of his own.

This is impossible. His hot breath moves along my neck as he tilts my head and takes my lips.

The piano is forgotten as he kisses me urgently and moves himself inside me.

Grasping my hips, he guides me up and down.

I try to take over, but he isn’t having that.

He takes my breasts into his hands and squeezes them hard in warning, playing with my nipples as he rolls his hips.

“Do you feel that?” He groans into my back. “Tell me. Do you feel that?” he repeats, louder this time.

I let out a needy whimper.

Pounding into me now, our movements become so frantic we tumble off the bench.

Laying in a cluster of limbs, we laugh.

After we catch our breath, Scott picks me up and gently puts me on the rug, taking one of my legs and wrapping it around his neck.

I follow his lead. He hisses in pleasure and thrusts.

Gradually, he picks up speed and urgency.

I pull him closer, then gasp in surprise when I clench around him.

I cry out as Scott finishes with a deep groan.

We lay there, silent and content in each other’s arms, breakfast forgotten.

“Happy birthday.”

Scott kisses me tenderly. “I love you.”

He looks down at me with his beautiful eyes, open wide with his love for me. My heart skips.

“I love you.” Tears stream down my face, their soft trace pulsing off my skin.

We both believe what we’re feeling right now will never change.