Making the Book Boyfriend (Book Boyfriend Builders)

Chapter 20

MAVERICK

Laying here with Ava, I’m imagining all kinds of scenarios where this doesn’t have to end. I’m imagining the look on Jay’s face when I tell him I slept with the hot, annoying author, and I’m imagining Nina’s squeals of delight when she finds out I really like her friend.

Because I do really like her friend.

I stifle a laugh as I realize the moment she wakes up. Her heart begins to race, and I can feel her body tense as she turns my way. I lay still, pretending to sleep, trying to hold back a chuckle about her nervousness and the way her face probably reads sheer horror. I feel her shift under me, trying to roll out.

“Deep breaths, princess.” I let out a laugh as I feel her head snap toward me.

“How long have you been awake?”

“Long enough to wonder if you were going to pull a coyote ugly to try to get out of here.”

I turn to face her and she pulls the blanket higher. I stretch before wrapping my hands around her waist and yanking her on top of me as I roll to my back.

“What are you doing? Let me go!” She covers her mouth, mumbling the words.

“Never!” I tickle her ribs, feeling her naked body on mine, and I tilt my hips into hers knowing she feels my morning excitement. “What are you thinking, princess?” She shakes her head and looks away. “You had half a beer at the game, which I’m sure wore off with your adrenaline when we got caught on the stairs. The rain washed away any sense of hatred you had toward me. And the four orgasms I gave you must have you thinking with clarity again. So the only thing left to understand about why you’re still here is because you like me.”

She still has her hand covering her mouth, but she tries to answer me, so I pull it away.

“I can’t understand you when you mumble, and your hand is over your mouth.”

She whispers something about morning breath and I laugh.

“Princess, with where our mouths were last night, morning breath is the last thing I’m worried about.”

She slaps at my chest, pushing away. “Why do you have to be so gross?”

“There’s nothing gross about it. You’re just not used to having a man tell you exactly what he’s thinking or what he wants. You’re not used to allowing someone else to take control. But you let me take control last night. You let me take you into the corridor, you let me dance with you in the rain, and then you let me worship your body all night. Which is what I’m supposed to do.”

“Well, thank you for that,” she says sheepishly, and I chuckle again. She pushes away once more, but I hold her tight around her waist until she looks me in the eye. I give her a wink, a kiss on her forehead, and then I reluctantly let her go.

She scurries off me, grabbing all the blankets, leaving me lying there naked .

“If you wanted to see it again, you just had to ask.”

She flips me off, pulling the blankets tighter before running into the bathroom.

“Is that an invitation? If you need my finger, you know I’ll give it to you!” I chuckle to myself when I hear the door slam. I sit up, snatching my boxers from the floor and stepping into them. But when I see her jersey lying on the floor, all the memories of what we did for hours last night come flooding back.

And I want to relive them again. Daily.

I sit down on the bed and take a breath.

What are you doing, Maverick?

My internal battle of never wanting to go further than a date or two versus wanting to find someone I click with is strong. I don’t want to like this chick because she makes me feel things I’m not supposed to. And yet I want to experience all the things I’ve never felt with someone else before. And I want her to feel the same way as me.

Knowing she’ll probably need a minute to adjust to the morning light and all that comes with it, I call out to her.

“I’m going to make us coffee. Come out when you’re ready.”

I go out into the hall and into her kitchen, fighting with myself over what I’m doing and how we handle moving forward. Moments later, she enters her kitchen in a pair of spandex pants and her running top, and my heart sinks just a bit. I left my T-shirt on the bed, hoping she would come down in just that. Then I’d know for certain she’s interested and wants more than just what we had last night.

I’m in way too deep. Maybe it’s time to pull back.