Thank You for Loving Me Bonus Chapter
The storm had finally passed, leaving the night sky clear and sharp with stars. The house was quiet, tucked against the mountain after a long day’s adventure.
Devlin stood by the window, her arms crossed as she gazed out into the ink-black night. Her hair was loose, tumbling over her shoulders, warmed by the firelight. She didn’t hear him at first—the quiet tread of his bare feet across the wood floor—but she felt him, that hum in her chest that only happened when Max Sumner was near.
“You’re thinking too much,” he said, his voice low and rough with amusement.
She smirked, still facing the glass. “What if I like thinking?”
“You don’t,” he countered. “Not when I’m around.”
Her pulse jumped when his hands slid around her waist, his chest pressing warm and solid against her back. He lowered his mouth to her ear, the scrape of his stubble brushing her skin. “When I’m around, the only thing you like is forgetting.”
Devlin tilted her head back against him, closing her eyes as his lips skimmed down her neck. “Cocky, aren’t you?”
“Confident,” he murmured. His hands spread over her stomach, anchoring her to him. “And right.”
She turned then, forcing space between them even though her body protested the loss of his heat. “You think you’ve got me all figured out.”
Max slowly sat on the couch behind her, crossing his arms, bare chest glistening faintly in the firelight. “I don’t think. I know.”
Her laugh was breathless. “God, you’re impossible.”
“And yet…” His gaze tracked her from head to toe, burning with hunger. “You’re still here.”
The tension crackled, thick and undeniable, pulling her to him like gravity. Devlin hated how much she wanted him. She hated how her body betrayed her, heating and softening at just one look, one word. And God help her, she hated that she loved it too.
When he held out a hand, she didn’t resist. She never could.
The second her palm touched his, Max tugged her down onto his lap. She landed with a startled gasp, straddling him, her knees braced against the couch cushions. His hands slid up her thighs, possessive, reverent, fire and promise all at once.
“Better,” he said, voice a low rumble.
“Bossy,” she shot back, even as her body leaned into his.
He grinned. “You love it.”
And damn him, she did.
His mouth found hers, the kiss deep and hungry, just like every time their bodies connected. Devlin melted into his heat, threading her fingers into his hair, tugging him closer until she couldn’t tell where she ended and he began. He tasted like desire and need, like sin dressed as salvation.
Max groaned when she rocked against him, the sound raw, guttural, and it shot straight through her. His hands cupped her hips, guiding her movement, pressing her down against the hard, insistent proof of his desire.
“Max,” she gasped against his lips, “this… this is a bad idea. What if the babies wake up.”
He pulled back just enough to meet her eyes, his hazel gaze dark and fierce. “Sweetheart, this is the best damn idea you’ve ever had. They’ll go back to sleep. Trust me.”
She pulled back, staring down at his mesmerizing eyes. “How do you know?”
“I had a talk with them.”
She laughed and he smiled, that expression that ramped up her heart rate with every curve of his lips.
And then he kissed her again, slower this time, deep enough to undo her completely.
Her sweater was gone before she realized he’d pulled it over her head, his big hands greedy on her bare skin, tracing every curve like he was memorizing her all over again. She arched beneath his touch, shameless in her need, every nerve ending alive under his palms.
“You drive me crazy,” he whispered, trailing kisses down her throat, across her collarbone, lower still. “Do you even know what you do to me?”
“Probably the same thing you do to me,” she breathed, shuddering when his mouth closed over her breast through the thin lace of her bra. The sensation was too much and not nearly enough.
He smiled against her skin. “Then we’re even.”
Devlin tangled her hands in his hair, pulling him closer, reveling in the scrape of his stubble, the hot drag of his tongue, the way he worshipped her body like he had nowhere else in the world to be. She’d had lovers before—plenty—but no one had ever made her feel like this, like she was both a feast and the only drink that could quench his thirst.
By the time he stripped away the last of her clothes, she was trembling, caught between impatience and surrender. He leaned back to look at her, and the firelight reflected in his eyes, hot, unyielding, hungry.
“You’re beautiful,” he said simply, and the sincerity in his voice made her chest ache.
“How can you say that? I’m bigger after the babies.” She resisted the urge to touch her still protruding stomach.
He cupped her jaw, forcing her to meet his eyes. “Your body is perfection. And get used to it. I’m not stopping.”
And then he kissed her again, leaving her no chance to argue, no breath to protest. Just fire. Just Max.
The world blurred, dissolved into sensation—the scrape of his hands over her thighs, the burn of his lips at her ear, the deep, relentless rhythm as he finally, finally claimed her. Devlin clung to him, nails digging into his shoulders, head thrown back as pleasure consumed her.
She’d never felt this way before—wild, undone, cherished and ruined all at once. And when Max whispered her name like a vow against her skin, she shattered, pulling him with her into the fire.
Afterward, she collapsed against him, her cheek resting against his chest, their breaths ragged in the hush of the house. His arms wrapped tight around her, holding her as though he’d never let go.
For a long moment, neither spoke. The fire popped, wind brushed against the cabin walls, but inside it was only them—hot skin, tangled limbs, hearts hammering together.
Finally, Devlin tilted her head back, smirking even though her body still trembled. “So much for keeping things casual.”
Max chuckled, low and satisfied, pressing a kiss to her damp hair. “Sweetheart, nothing about us was ever casual.”
And Devlin knew he was right.
She was in deep.
Too deep to ever climb back out. Not that she ever wanted to.
“I love you, Minx,” Max whispered.
She kissed him, gently, then pulled back. “I love you more.”
He shook his head. “Not possible.”
She smiled, knowing he would never relent. And wasn’t she the better for it. Being loved by Max Sumner, loving her Stud Muffin, finally gave her the real freedom she’d been searching for her whole life.
*****
I hope you enjoyed Max and Devlin's bonus chapter. To receive a free novella, just join my email list and one will be sent directly to you. CLICK HERE TO JOIN NOW and receive your FREE novella.