Chapter Four

Maxom

Her house smelled of lilies and sweet tea and freshly cut grass. All the scents that made up a home, or so they said. I wouldn't know, never having had a home to fall back on in my life. Maddie might not like the fact she was on a free ride scholarship leaving her as the poorest pleb in a sea of wealth, but the three women who surrounded me as I perched on a pristine white sofa sure as hell made a good interim family unit for her.

As far as families go. Because again, I wouldn't know.

I sipped the too-sweet tea and swallowed like I was supposed to, watching each girl as they studied me in return. All bright colors, jeans and tees and rainbow tights, nary a twinset in sight. I was relieved. That crowd never felt like home either, though I frequently socialized with them to maintain my family heritage. No, those people were never my home.

But this … had the beginnings of one.

"What are your intentions toward our Maddie?" The Aussie chick snapped her fingers in front of my nose. "Pay attention, elder brother of the ex."

"Is that what I am?" I asked, then sighed when she rolled her eyes. "Fine. A little levity before business but Australians aren't known for their finesse. I'll ruin her reputation, torment her until she's on edge, and fuck her brains out in my brother's bed." I added that little tweak for pure shock value with no intention of following through. "How does that sound?"

The Aussie popped gum in my face. "Can ya believe this cunt?"

Everyone in the vicinity—including me—winced.

"Harper," a soft-spoken, dark-haired girl, admonished. My brother would love her. No fight, sweet acquiescence, and all the soft reprimands he could ignore. "Give the boy a chance. I think he's telling the truth."

"Lying won't get me anywhere." A pensive silence fell as we all pondered the point I threw out there as a sacrificial lamb, and accidentally killed the conversation.

Maddie saved it by opening the door with her butt, her arms bundled around groceries. "Jesus, that was tough. Quiz after fucking quiz. Are we getting rotten tonight?" She shut the door and froze when no one replied.

"Uh, Maddie?" the mousy brunette ventured at her back.

"Shit." She hung her head and twisted about, dumping a bag on the floor to glare at me. "I'm so sorry."

"You're welcome," I replied graciously.

"Not you. For them. You shouldn't be here."

The tall girl with pink-blonde hair wiggled her eyebrows. "Twins."

"What?" I frowned, turning back in time to see Maddie Sutcliff blush red as a beet.

"Stop that," she hissed furiously. She strode across the room of the tasteful plantation mansion to snare my wrist. "You. With me. Now." She twisted my shirt in her fist and was off.

Rather than let her damage my favorite shirt—that also happened to be a limited-edition design—I traipsed up the plush carpeted stairs behind her, admiring the view.

"Close your mouth," she snapped halfway up. "Drool ruins the carpets."

"It's not your house."

"No. It's not my house. But where I'm from, frat boy," she sneered, knowing I wasn't one, "we take care of our things." She closed the door behind her and swung about to face me, a pretty blush creeping along her cheeks. "Why were you terrorizing my friends?"

I backed her into the door in a few short steps. "I could take care of you, you know. Scream for me, Maddie Sutcliff. Find out what it's like to be on your knees … and like it."

"Back off." She ducked around me and I let her go, turning in a half-circle to survey her room.

Everything was bright white, even the orchid blooms centered on her otherwise minimalist desk.

She sat on her bed, yanking off her boots. "Why are you here?"

"Let me." I knelt before her, pushing her hands aside while she gaped at me.

Working the zip, I slid one boot off then the other and rolled her socks down, massaging the balls of her feet.

She moaned softly and flopped back on the bed. "I have no idea why you're doing that, but please don't stop."

I told you you'd beg.

But crowing now would ruin the mood. I focused on her feet, tracing the arch with my thumb and fighting a smile. "Your day sucked, huh?"

"Why are you here, again?" she asked but there was no vehemence in her voice this time.

"You've seen my house. I wanted to see where you lived."

"You saw it. The night you photographed me and spread my ass all over campus."

I laughed softly. "No, I was watching you that night."

"Do I dare ask why?"

"Because you're sexy, you hurt my brother, and against everything that I shouldn't do or need or desire … I want you."

"You want me?"

The innocent confusion in her voice propelled me onto her bed. I caged my hands around her shoulders, arcing my body over hers. Not touching her, giving her space to breathe but stealing her air all the same. Enough to be threatening.

Arousing.

"I want to rip half the clothes off your body and fuck you into oblivion. Then take the rest off and do you raw."

She shrugged away my harsh style of seduction, staring at the ceiling beyond me. "I'm on the pill. And I'm clean. He checked."

The words came as a slap in the face. I stilled. "The fuck did my brother do to you?" I closed my hand around her jaw, forcing her chin down, but it wasn't enough. "Look at me, Maddie."

Her gaze slid to meet mine, taking as much time as she thought she'd get away with before she obeyed me.

"He was … clinical. Cold."

I laughed. "It's a family trait." No hugs served here, thank you very much.

"I tried to help." Her voice ached, and I ached with her, hating myself for feeling anything for her.

"How did that go?" I mocked, sliding one knee between her thighs.

"Not well," she whispered back. Her voice broke, the slightest crack in her facade.

I nearly backed off. Almost. But not quite. Her broken brand of strength wasn't enough to deter me this time.

"Why did you want to help him?" I nudged my knee further between her thighs as she lost herself in memory.

"Because that was my job. I was his girlfriend and I was supposed to be the one who helped him find some sort of humanity."

"No. You were his regular fuck. The one he came to for bodily needs, not mental ones."

"You know nothing," she flared.

"He's my twin."

"And he was crying the night I met him!" she shouted in my face. A single tear broke free, clinging to her lashes like a perfect jewel before it tumbled along her cheek.

I rocked back an inch. "What? When?"

"The night before you—I saw you in the kitchen wearing his shirt," she mumbled, breaking my gaze.

I pressed a knuckle beneath her chin. "Up here, Maddie."

"I took him home. I wanted to make sure he got there safe."

"No, he took you home and fucked you."

"Why are you so damn cruel?" she cried, twisting her face away. "I tried to help! A friend of his d—was hurt and he was upset. I'm sorry you don't know your own brother!"

I stared at her. "Apparently not."

"Good. So get off me."

"No." I leaned into her space, trailing my lips along her cheek, tasting the tear she shed for the brother who didn't love her. "How can I earn a scream from you? Tell me what you fear," I cooed seductively.

"Stop…" Her eyes flared wide a second time as I pushed my knee against her crotch and smiled. Her soft whisper of a sigh fueled my need to ruin her.

"Tell me what you like."

Or don't tell me at all and I'll take everything from you anyway and make you mine.

I pressed my knee in pulses against her core, utilizing that seam in her jeans to my advantage. Heat warmed my thigh. "Aren't you wearing panties, sweetheart? Pity."

I shook my head in mock disapproval but I really couldn't be more pleased. Bare skin on denim made getting her off a whole lot easier.

She gasped, arching her back. My eyebrows rose. That hadn't taken half as long as I expected. Maybe she was as needy for me as I was for her.

A soft mewl left her lips and I placed my mouth just over hers, barely contacting her skin, and swallowed her whimper.

"Don't want your housemates running up here to save you from me, do we?" I leaned back, skating my lips down her body until I pressed them over the crotch of her jeans. "Fucking heavenly." I inhaled the scent of her fresh orgasm deeply and hopped off the bed.

"Maxom?" she murmured, her gaze heavy and a little lost.

My cock rose when she called to me, the perfect siren. I pushed the flood of desire back with effort before I did exactly what I promised her.

Not yet.

"Sleep, sweet girl. I'll be there when you need me to fuck you," I whispered back. A smile swept over my face as I reached her door, putting one and one together. "Twins, huh?"

The last thing I saw before I shut her door was her outraged face obscured by a pillow she flung my way, the sexiest hint of her orgasm still filling her eyes as she mouthed my name in a silent scream.

I was one step closer to claiming her.