Page 11 of Invisible String (The Underground #1)

MAX

T he sunlight pours in through the gaps of the open blinds.

Sharp pressure crushes my ball sack. I try to cup them, but I grip a fist full of hair instead.

Lifting my head slightly, Rainey’s head is on my crotch, and her arms wrap around my thigh.

All I remember is her reading the first three chapters.

Then I drifted off. They were fucking long chapters too, but it was the sound of her voice that calmed me.

I’ve never felt a sense of tranquility in my life.

As to why I suggested she stay the night, it’s also because if I see Peter close to her, I’ll rip his face off.

The feral beast in me wants her close, wants to feel her breath, her skin on mine.

I was so close to tasting her again until her friend showed up, which was good because we can’t get close.

The taste of her lips will only consume my need for her.

She moans into my junk, moving her head sideways, rubbing all over it.

Fucking hell.

She’s in a deep sleep. My gaze goes to her lips—pouty and suckable. Her hair flops to the side. She’s beautiful. I saw her beauty from the very first time, but now, as a woman, she’s a breath of fresh air.

Blood rushes to my dick, and it grows under the weight of her.

I try to maneuver her head by running my fingers through her hair, but she holds on to my leg tightly.

The tip of my thumb caresses her soft cheek.

Her eyes open slightly, then close. “Ugh, what time is it?” she groans. Then she snuggles into my junk. Damnit.

“Get off,” I say gruffly, holding the groans that want to vibrate in my throat.

“Hmm?”

“Sunshine, either get off my cock or suck it.”

She jumps off so fast that she rolls on the floor. Her eyes widen at my engorged package in my shorts.

“Oh God, I don’t know how I ended up there.” She points to it. “I fell asleep reading.” She looks away. “I’m so sorry. You must think I’m some perv.”

A loose laugh leaves my mouth. Like if I would think that of her. “Nope. Didn’t think that. You’re a wild sleeper.” My lips twitch.

She giggles. “I guess I am. I’ve never woken up on a guy’s hard”—she waves her hand—“thing.”

“It didn’t help that you were grinding your face in it and moaning.”

“Oh, stop it.” She blushes. “You obviously didn’t mind.”

Nope. Not at all.

I stretch my hand out for her to take to lend her a hand to get her off the floor. She takes it. “Well, I guess I better get back. I need to go shower and change. Do you want to go tubing with us?”

As I enter the kitchen, I reach up to open the cupboard and grab a cup from inside. “Nah.” Turning on the faucet, my gaze goes back to her. “It’s not my thing.” Socializing is not for me, especially with a crowd. I’m not a people person.

“Come on, Max, just come. It’ll be fun.”

“No, I’d rather hang out here.”

She sighs. “Okay, well, if you change your mind, you know where I’ll be.”

I nod at her. She opens the front door. A male voice greets Rainey. “Hey, sweetness.”

Da fuck.

I slam the cup on the counter, and to my surprise, it doesn’t shatter. Rainey makes her way to the house with the dipshit behind her.

“Rain.”

She turns. Fuck, what the hell am I doing?

“I’m going. Come get me when you’re ready.”

Her smile grows.

“See you in a bit… champ.”

I run my fingers through my hair. This woman has diminished my capacity to think logically. The dude—Peter, I guess that’s his name, turns back. I jut my chin at him and close the door.

I head back to the kitchen to find something in the bare pantry. A part of me wants to head back to Vegas to find a job. I’m running short on money. Then there’s that invisible string connecting me to her.

After two hours, I find myself sitting in Rainey’s SUV despite my insistence that I should be the one driving.

Perhaps she doesn’t want to ride in an old car that desperately needs a new paint job.

Rainey’s car has leather seats and air vents blowing on my ass.

Fancy. She ran inside to get her bag and something about getting sunscreen.

The back door of the car swings open, and Peter slides in.

I turn and cock an eyebrow at him. He’s shirtless and flexes as if he has guns to show off. Pendejo.

“What do you want?” My tone is gruff.

“Hanging with Rainey,” he says, annoyed, tossing his head back and flipping his hair to the side.

I unlock the car door for myself, then his. “Peter fucking rabbit.” I yank him by his noodle arms. “Fuck off, why don’t you? She doesn’t want you near her.”

A loud, girly laugh sharpens my eardrum. “Peter Rabbit? That is hilarious.”

I look over at Lana.

“He can come with us, Max.”

I let go of his stretched-out collar.

Peter stands before me, his eyes scanning me from head to toe, as if assessing a challenge. To me, that signals he’s looking for trouble. I straighten up and move closer to him.

“Peter, you must be out of your mind to pick a fight with a boxer. He’ll shatter your skull.

” She leans in close and whispers to me, “By the way, Rainey mentioned you’re a boxer.

That’s how I found out. She also shared some other things, but I can’t spill those secrets. That would break the girl code.”

“I’m coming. Sorry to keep you guys waiting. I couldn’t find my sunscreen.” Rainey comes out, running down the porch stairs. Peter flexes again to gain Rainey’s attention.

“Good thing you found it, girl. You turn into a lobster in the sun. By the way, Peter here is trying to fight your guy. I told him it was a dumb thing to do since Max is a boxer.” Lana laughs while Rainey runs to me and then jumps in front of me, blocking me from punching his face.

Her warm hands cover my cheeks, pulling my gaze toward her. “Let’s get in the car, Max.” Her fingers caress me tenderly. “He’s not worth it,” she whispers.

My gaze goes back to Peter. His friend, the guy Lana is seeing, pulls him into their car.

“Look at me, handsome.”

Well, that gets my attention. I peer into her eyes, then her lips.

The red lipstick paints her mouth like a polished red Corvette.

I’m not the territorial type, but I can’t ignore it with her.

My hands cup her neck like a necklace and pull her close.

Her chest lies on my abdomen. I know I’m not experienced in kissing, but with Rainey, it comes naturally.

Our mouths collide, tongues tangle. She tastes sweet, like vanilla.

Remembrance of our first kiss fires my insides.

She sinks into my body, her hands gripping my biceps.

This kiss is different. Desire drives it—the urge to touch her, taste her, lose myself in lust. With one hand on her waist, I pull us up against her car with me leaning on it.

“You go, girl,” Lana screams. “You’re all she talked about.”

Rainey pulls away, panting. “Lana, shut it, you big mouth.” They drive off, leaving us behind. Her beautiful brown eyes peer at me. “Was this kiss for me or Peter?”

With my hand still on her waist, I respond, “I sure as hell don’t want to kiss Peter.”

She throws her head back, laughing. “Max, you know what I mean.”

“Both,” I admit. I’m not a man who admits much, and it does not come easily to me to express myself. “I owed you a kiss from last night…and he’s eyeing you. Didn’t you say you didn’t like that? He was waiting for you like a creep.”

“Oh, and here I thought you were being territorial.” She steps back, her eyes downcast and hands deject from my chest. Disappointed with my response.

Deep down, I was being territorial. Deep down, I want to hold her close. But I don’t know how to tell her, nor if I should, because I don’t understand it myself. There’s no point in it if we are both going our separate ways in a couple of weeks.

“We should go,” I say instead.

She nods with a small smile. “Okay, Max.”

I open the door for her, and she slips in. I jog around to the passenger door. She starts the engine, fixes her rearview mirror, and fastens her seatbelt. She backs out, puts the car into drive, and reverses again. My focus stays on my car.

“Rai—”

It’s too damn late. With a jolt, she collides with the side of my Nova. The loud thud echoes through the parking space, and she puts the car in park. Her hand goes to her chest. I run my fingers through my hair to keep calm. It’s just a car. “I’m so, so sorry. I’ll pay to get it fixed.”

“Fucking hell, woman. That’s fine. Don’t worry about it.” It’s not like I have the money to buy another mirror. I’ll have to find a way to fix the dangling mirror. There’s no way I would take her money . Cálmate Max

“No, I’ll pay you for the damage.”

I wave a hand. “Nah, it’s fine. Come on, let’s go tubing. I’d like to get it over with.”

“You don’t have to come.”

“I said I wanted to. I just don’t want to hang out with Peter.”

She backs out smoothly, leading us onto the road. “It will just be us. You will have your own tube, and I will have mine.”

I would much rather have her sit on my lap.

As we descend, she increases her speed, causing me to grip the handle above me instinctively. She abruptly breaks, then accelerates again, repeating this pattern multiple times. I notice a large utility truck in front of us. Sweat moistens my forehead with a memory I long buried.

“Maximilian, we need to hurry. Get your shoes on,” my mom yells as I put on my football cleats.

I begged my mom to let me play football. She said it was too rough of a sport for me at my age, and she wanted me to be older. Also, because my mom worked cleaning houses and offices, it was hard for her to take me, and my dad worked long hours. I finally convinced her.

“Sweetheart, you don’t need to take him. He can wait until next year. You have to get back to work. Or you can quit. I work long hours for a reason: to take care of us,” my dad says to my mom in a soft, loving voice.