In a Heartbeat (Heartbeat #1) (14 page)

I’ve never been so fucking jealous in my entire life, Stella ... I wanted to drag that asshole out of the club and beat him to an inch of his life because he had his hands all over you. And when he kissed your neck ... I thought I was going to explode, Stella.

He was jealous of Rico, which was ridiculous. Stella didn’t feel even remotely attracted to the guy, let alone anything else. Her eyes softened and she decided the best way to deal with the situation was to calm Max down. She didn’t owe him any explanation, but somehow the need to have him relaxed and happy in her company overcame her.

“Max, let’s not spoil a perfectly good evening because of Rico. What’s done is done. Just forget about him. I already have.”

He nodded and the anger evaporated from his eyes, but he still wasn’t at ease.

“Let’s just get the bill and go have ice cream somewhere else.”

Max nodded again and took out his wallet.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m taking out money for the bill.”

“It’s on me – remember?”

“Stella ...”

“Don’t even try it, Massimo.” She fixed him with an icy stare and Max laughed, shaking his head and putting his wallet back in his pocket.

“I shouldn’t have told you my full name. It sounds so sexy coming out of your mouth that I can’t resist it. I’d do anything you ask.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Max laughed wholeheartedly and after Stella had paid the bill, he took her hand and led her out of the restaurant.

They got ice cream from a small stall and walked along the busy street, enjoying the dessert as well as the warm evening.

“Are you going to university next year?” Max asked. Stella had been hoping that any future plans wouldn’t come up in a conversation, because she really didn’t have any. But how could she say she didn’t have plans for studying or working and not sound like a lazy moron?

“I don’t know; haven’t decided yet.” She hoped that would be enough and he wouldn’t press it.

“No? Have you at least thought what you’d like to study? Or work at in the future?”

Yeah, I’d like to survive long enough to be able to make that choice.

“No.”

He looked at her, surprised at her single-word answer.

“What do you like? Any hobbies?”

He wasn’t giving up, so she decided to give him something. At least that way he wouldn’t think she was completely hopeless.

“I like books. And writing. And fashion. Making things, like jewellery and accessories. Interior design.” Before he had a chance to ask another five questions on the topic, she said, “How about you? Any plans for university?”

“Yeah. I’d like to go to uni next year. That’s why I’ve been working two jobs for the past two years. I didn’t want to take any student loans, so I decided to stay at home with Mum and Gia, work and save as much as I can and then not have to worry about money while I’m at uni. It made sense, because we have this huge house which is empty all the time with Mum travelling and Gia’s long hours at the restaurant.”

If there was any chance for the street to open up and swallow Stella, she’d take it. There she was, the complete unambitious, lazy idiot, walking along with this guy who worked two jobs to save money for university.

“Do you know what you want to study?” she asked, refusing to drown in self-pity and shame.

“Architecture. I love buildings, however weird that may sound. I’d like to restore old buildings one day. Bring them back to their former glory. Keep the outside as original as possible, but make them sleek, comfortable and modern on the inside.”

“That’s amazing.” Stella said. “I’m sure you’d be very good at it.”

He smiled and licked his ice cream. “We’ll see.”

*

Max parked the car in his driveway and killed the engine. It was dark inside the house, Gia was probably still out and his mum wouldn’t be back until late Sunday evening. He glanced at Stella, who suddenly seemed a bit uncomfortable. It wasn’t completely unfounded – they were in front of his empty house, all alone, and if she could peek in his head and see all the things he imagined he could be doing to her when he got her through the door ... Let’s just say, she’d be much more uncomfortable than she was right now.

“You OK?” he asked.

“Yeah. I’ll ... I can wait here if you want.”

“Get out of the car, Stella. You’re not waiting outside. It won’t be a minute – I just need to find the shirt and I’ll drive you home.”

That seemed to relax her a bit and she opened the door and got out.

Once they were inside, Max switched on the lights and Stella looked curiously around.

“You have a lovely house.”

“Thanks. Come on, let’s go up to my room.”

“I can just wait here ...”

“For fuck’s sake.” Max rolled his eyes and, taking Stella’s hand, dragged her up the stairs. It made her laugh. “What kind of a monster do you think I am?”

Without waiting for an answer, he swung his bedroom door open, switched on the light and dragged Stella inside before he let go of her hand. Thank God he’d made his bed this morning. It was relatively clean and tidy. His room was quite big, with a king-size bed at one end, and a sitting area with sofas and flat-screen TV at the other. He also had a walk-in wardrobe, which came in quite handy for storing stuff out of the way.

“Please – sit, make yourself comfortable. I’ll be just in there looking for the shirt.” He pointed at the closet door. Stella nodded and headed for the sofa.

Max walked into his closet and left the door open. He knew exactly where his football shirts were, but he wanted to take his time and prolong Stella’s presence in his room for as long as possible. Fortunately for him, she didn’t sit down and stare nervously at him. She started walking around, looking at photos and exploring. Max valued his privacy and couldn’t remember when the last time was that he’d had a girl in here. But somehow Stella’s looking around didn’t seem like an intrusion. It seemed like opening up to her in a different way, and he liked it.

Pretending he was looking for the shirt, he followed her around with his eyes. She seemed to relax a bit; her body wasn’t so rigid anymore. Good: that was exactly what he wanted. He wouldn’t dream of making a move when she was expecting it. But he fully intended on kissing her tonight. The thought of spending another day without having tasted her lips was unbearable. He needed her. He couldn’t explain what it was exactly that he needed from her. All he knew was that the pure need to be close to her was so strong that it had a mind of its own and pulled him towards her. Trying to restrain it took a lot of effort.

Stella didn’t ask any questions. She looked silently around, but didn’t say anything. Max wondered what she was thinking. Eventually she sat on the sofa, turning to face him. His search became more concentrated now that she was looking at him.

“I know you’re stalling,” she said and made him smile. Of course she knew. “Why do you want me here?” she asked, her voice losing its playful edge.

He picked up the shirt with one swift movement and came out of the wardrobe. He sat opposite her on the sofa, mimicking her pose – his arm propped on the back cushion, one leg folded in front of him, the other one planted on the floor.

“I don’t know,” he said and gave her the shirt. She took it.

“Thanks.”

They remained silent for a while. Stella was looking at him expectantly. Max felt he had to say something, but he didn’t know what. All he knew was that he didn’t want her to leave. But how could he stop her?

“I think I’d better go,” she said and stood up. Then, she hesitated for a second and it was all Max needed to realise exactly what he needed from her. Something inside him snapped and the urge to hold her in his arms flooded his veins and set his whole body on fire. Slowly he got up and loomed over her.

“Do you want to stay?” he whispered. It wasn’t meant as a flirtatious or suggestive comment. He didn’t want to tease her. He wanted to know the honest answer to that question. Somehow, she knew that because she didn’t smile or roll her eyes.

“Yes.” Her answer was positive, but her body language was definitely not. “But I won’t.”

“Why not?” He brushed her hair back over her shoulders and stroked her cheek with his knuckles. Instantly her arms were covered in goose bumps. She didn’t reply straight away; her eyes remained thoughtful as if she was trying to figure out what to say and what to leave out. “Why not, Stella?”

Again, silence. Well, if she couldn’t find a reason to leave, then maybe Max could play this to his advantage.

He cupped her cheek with one hand while the other caressed her arm and slipped to her waist. Still nothing. No words, no reasons why they shouldn’t be together. Dipping his head down while keeping his eyes focused on hers, Max cut the distance between their lips until they almost touched. He was so close that he could feel her warm breath. His restraint was wearing thin and unless she spoke in the next two seconds, he was going to ...

“I don’t want to fall in love with you,” she blurted out.

He jerked back as if she’d slapped him. She closed her eyes in regret.

“I’m sorry, Max. I didn’t mean to ...”

“I’m not asking you to fall in love with me, Stella.” He couldn’t help but sound a bit defensive, bitter even. He didn’t even know why that statement bothered him so much.

“It’s not a matter of you asking. You’re ... amazing. Every minute I spend with you I realise how great you are. I wouldn’t be able to help it.”

“Then don’t. I want you to be as obsessed with me as I am with you.” He moved closer to her again, the fire inside him rekindled by her words. He hugged her close and kissed the top of her head. She circled his waist with her arms and Max sighed contently. “Don’t go. Stay here tonight,” he whispered in her hair. She shook he head slightly as she pulled away from him. Unwillingly, he released her. She took a step back and then hesitated. Again.

Bad move.

Extending his long arms, Max grabbed her and pulled her to him, their lips colliding. He sucked on her lip as she did the same to him. When he thrust his tongue not too gently inside her mouth, she welcomed him eagerly, meeting it with her own and then sucking on it. Max groaned with pleasant surprise, as Stella continued to gently suck on his tongue inside her mouth. Now all he could think about was her mouth on every part of his body.

They kissed the life out of each other, surrendering to the moment, surrendering all control. Max buried his fingers in Stella’s long hair, pulling her head backwards and exposing her neck. He trailed his tongue down her neck and kissed her collarbone. His other hand moved down her body and stroked the side of her breast. Stella gasped and let out the most erotic sound Max had ever heard.

If there was any control left in him, it snapped at that very moment. He picked her up and fell back on the sofa with Stella straddling him. She fell forward on his chest and pressed her body into his, cupping the sides of his face as she kissed him. Max palmed her thighs and slid his hands underneath her dress. A tremor rolled through him as Stella left his mouth and traced her tongue down his jaw.

And then her phone rang.

The noise was so loud that it shook them both out of their bliss. Stella took it out of her pocket and frowned at the display.

“I swear if that’s Rico I’m going to kill him,” Max growled, and Stella shook her head.

“Hi, Lis. What’s up?” she said, breathlessly. “No, everything’s fine. I guess we just lost track of the time.” She looked at him and smirked.

God, she was so sexy! Max slid his hands up her thighs again, moving the hem of her dress further up until he reached her hips and her panties. Stella closed her eyes and bit her lip. Is that phone call ever going to be over?

“I’ll be home soon. Yeah, me too. Bye.”

She hung up and suddenly the silence in the room was too much. Max sensed that it wouldn’t be a good move to kiss her again, because her mood had changed. As if Lisa calling had been a reminder of why she didn’t want them to be together.

“I have to go,” she said and moved away from him.

“Stella ...”

“I can’t talk about this now, Max. Please – I need some time, OK?” He nodded and stood up. Sliding up one of the straps that had slid down her shoulder, Max smiled and tried to fix her hair. Then, to reassure her, he gave her a hug. She returned it and at that exact moment, it hit him.

I don’t want to fall in love with you.

He knew why those words had struck him so hard and so unexpectedly.

Because he was already there.

Chapter Eleven

The next morning Stella woke up with a start. She looked around frantically, because in the first couple of seconds she wasn’t sure where she was. Had she stayed in Max’s? No. She was in her own bed.

There was something about being with Max that blurred reality. It was a nice kind of blur, a blur where there were no reasons why they shouldn’t be together. A blur where there was no cancer, only plans and dreams for the future.

Unfortunately, the moment the blur cleared, reality hit Stella like a hurricane. What had she done last night? Why had she allowed things to go that far? Max had kissed her and it was ... epic. It was a kiss that made her whole body tremble with desire. It was a kiss worth forgetting reality for.