Page 20 of Maverick
We were a job to him.
Moving into the kitchen, I couldn’t help but see something under the door of the room Van was in. Was he awake? The little shit.
I headed that way, tiredness clawing at me, and yet I was wide awake. Anxiety was a bitch. I looked over at the crack inthe door, only to see Maverick laying down next to Van, my son laying on his bare chest, passed out.
Actually they both were. My heart cinched in my chest at the vision of them. Maverick’s arm was around Van’s body, holding him close, a book open on his lap. This was what I had always wanted. A father for Van, someone who he felt safe with, who gave him the attention he needed. I moved over to the bed, and pulled the book from Maverick’s lap, folding it up and putting it on the bedside table. When I brushed past him to leave, I caught sight of what the light was.
A neon green nightlight with a bike sat in the plug on the wall. It was similar to the one I’d had for him at the house but his was just a basic nightlight. My breath caught in my chest when I realised he’d done that. He’d gone out and bought him a nightlight so he could feel safe.
Emotion clogged in my chest and I held back the sob that I could feel forming.
“What time is it?” I heard him ask, his voice a deep whisper, so as not to wake Van. I turned to face him, swiping the tear threatening to fall over.
“Late, I didn’t know you came back.”
“Yeah, I…promised him a bedtime story. I did have to wake him up for it though.”
I chuckled softly, knowing just how hard it was to resist giving Van promises. Maverick lifted Van with ease and laid him back on the bed, still dead to the world.
“Have you eaten?” I asked him, busying myself as I headed toward the kitchen.
“Tavi…”
I couldn’t turn back around, my tears were already falling down my cheeks. Luckily, I had become accustomed to hiding them through doing housework.
Once I got in the kitchen, I set about making him some food when I felt his hand grip my wrist and turn me around. His face was right there, looking down at mine, his eyes softening when he saw my tears. Maverick backed me up against the kitchen counter, his heat wrapping around me. I was very aware he was shirtless, his hot body pressing against mine.
“Why are you crying?” he asked, softly.
“You bought him a nightlight,” I found myself saying in an almost sob. Fresh tears fell down my cheeks. Maverick’s thumbs swept my tears away, before he tilted my head up to look at him.
“He told me he used to have one, that he missed it, and didn’t like the dark. It’s not that deep.”
“Yeah, it is,” I insisted. “You wouldn’t understand.”
“Then explain it to me. Why did it make you so upset?”
“I’m not upset,” I chuckled as I took a deep breath that ended up on a little sob in my chest. “I’m just…Hardy would make fun of him for being afraid of the dark. He never let me leave the nightlight on long, only until he fell asleep.”
Maverick growled, low and deep. Enough to startle my senses alive. “He’s a kid, being afraid of the dark is fucking normal. That kid can have that nightlight on as long as he fucking wants, okay.”
There I go again, my tears falling freely down my cheeks. Maverick swept them away again.
“Stop crying,” he said. “You’re safe here. You and Van will never have to do anything you don’t want to do. Never have to be afraid again. I’ll make sure of it, Tavi, I promise.”
I already felt so safe with him. How did I tell him that?
His eyes dropped to my lips, and I felt the heat rise between us. My thighs trembled with need. I licked my lips, forcing him to look up at me. His eyes were deep, dark and stormy.
“Your lips are healed,” he said, his voice full of husk, which only sent signals to my pussy to throb.
“Yes,” I managed to get out. His hands gripped my jaw tighter, his thumbs smoothing over my lips, like he was contemplating what his next move should be.
“I should go,” he grumbled, his eyes travelling back to my lips, a furrow forming between his eyebrows.
My heart was racing. I needed him in a way I hadn’t needed anyone before. Old flames ignited under my skin, setting my entire body on fire.
“Maybe you should stay?” I asked.
