His eyes locked with hers, narrowing slightly as he saw her intent.
‘Evie, you’ve no idea how much I want you, but we can’t. Not yet. Your incision—’
‘Is fine,’ she cut him off before he could finish. ‘I checked today. They said it’s up to me. It has been almost a month.’
Then she saw it. That brief moment of hesitation before he shook his head.
‘No, it’s been three weeks, five days. I won’t let you risk it. Not yet.’
Too late. She grinned inside. She’d seen all she needed to see. Max wanted her as much as she wanted him, and tonight she didn’t intend to wait any longer.
‘What difference will two more days make? They’re satisfied the wound is healed, that I won’t cause any damage or stress on the site. As far as they’re concerned, now it’s all down to when I feel ready. And I feel ready now.’ She chuckled weakly, hoping to cover up her nerves.
‘That’s why you asked me to get Imogen whilst you had that last appointment,’ he exclaimed. ‘You wanted to ask them without me there.
’
‘I knew you’d argue we should wait for the full six weeks. But it’s my body and I know how strong it is. And I can’t wait. I don’t want to. I need you and I know you feel the same.’ She grinned to soften her next words. ‘So will you please just shut up and kiss me, Max?’
She barely had time to exhale after her hurried monologue before his mouth crashed down on hers with a ferocious desire, chasing every other thought from her head. He slid one hand around to slip between her legs. Gripping hold of Max’s shoulders, Evie just clung on and prepared to let herself be swept away, but then she recalled the split second before he’d kissed her, and the air was sucked from her chest without warning. The way he’d looked at her—no man had ever looked at her with such intense longing before, making her feel more confident than she ever had.
Summoning all her strength, she pushed him away and took the unused body puff from his hands as she turned the water off. It wasn’t exactly what she’d planned but in some ways that made it even better to know that neither of them were completely in control.
‘Shall we take this through to the bedroom?’ she managed hoarsely before giving an apologetic smile. ‘There’s protection on the nightstand.’
She might be feeling good enough to bring forward the sex part of things, but she knew there was no point in being stupid and risking a pregnancy on her still-healing body. And by the expression now crossing Max’s face that had been one of the worries holding him back.
As if to prove her point, he suddenly bent down and scooped her up into his arms, carrying her out of the shower and through to the bedroom in an echo of that previous encounter. Only this time, Evie was confident it wasn’t going to end with him depositing her on the bed and walking out.
She was right. Lowering her down, Max immediately joined her, intent clear in his dark eyes as he began to move down her body trailing whorls on her stomach with his tongue as he moved lower. She fought the urge to simply give herself up to him.
‘Uh-uh,’ she croaked out, catching his head. ‘This time it’s my turn. Get on your back.’
Max only paused for a moment before obeying, but when she straddled him and began to move down his body, just as he had with her a moment earlier, he let out a deep groan.
‘I don’t think I can hold out much longer.’ He gritted his teeth. ‘You really got me in the shower before, and I’ve wanted you for too long.’
‘I feel the same,’ whispered Evie.
She could save that for later; right now she just wanted a release with him. To recapture some of the connection she was sure they’d made a year ago, and to remind them both how it had been before all this transplant business had tarnished things.
Leaning over him to retrieve the condom from the bedside table, she wasn’t prepared when Max reached up and cupped her breasts, his mouth moving from one tight nipple to the other. She shifted to offer him better access, her hands fumbling as she distractedly tried to open the foil packet whilst sensations jolted through her body.
‘So beautiful, so perfect,’ he murmured against her skin.
But this was about her taking control, she reminded herself through the haze. Pressing her hands to his shoulders to keep him down on the bed, Evie sat up, sliding down his legs enough to access his solid length, putting on a slight show as she languidly sheathed him and revelling in his shallow, faster breathing as his eyes were riveted to her every move.
Everything about Max screamed strength, power, masculinity, but having him lie here now, allowing himself to be at her mercy, gave Evie a sense of control, which she desperately needed. She felt capable, reassured and absolutely all-woman again as she met Max’s intense gaze and held it, not allowing herself to look away as she covered him, running her hands over his taut, muscular chest as she slid carefully down to take all of him inside her. As if they were designed to fit together perfectly.
Even as he gasped, his hands gripped her hips to hold her from moving and Evie could feel him holding back, worrying about hurting her. She traced a pattern down his lower abdomen, over his Apollo’s belt, and placed her hands over his, lifting them enough to stop him restricting her movements.
‘My timings,’ she reminded him shakily, before rocking over him and feeling his reaction deep inside her.
‘Evie. You’re so tight, so wet,’ he muttered, finally gripping her hips as if he meant it as he thrust up to meet her movements.
She was too primed, too ready to hold out for long and it seemed that Max hadn’t been lying when he’d said the same. Within minutes she felt him stiffen as she exploded, climaxing together as wave after wave crashed over her.
There was no doubt any more that she loved Max, completely and utterly. But if he didn’t love her back the same way then she would still always be grateful to him for showing her that, kidney transplant or not, she was still all-woman.