Page 111 of A Little Complicated

“Mm-hmm,” I hum. “And when you’re finished, I’ll be waiting for you in my bed. Naked.”

“And dinner?” he questions.

“I thought you just ate?”

He chuckles as his hand finds the back of my neck, and he pulls me into him, kissing me roughly. “I’ll pick up tacos.”

Smiling against his lips, I whisper, “Deal.”

34

OPHELIA

Dragging my fingertips along Maverick’s bare chest, I trace the dark ink and snuggle closer to him on the couch in the family room. My friends will kill me when they find out I’ve been using the community sofa for sex, but we had a blanket down, and it’s not like we were planning to screw each other’s brains out. We’d been watching a murder documentary. That has to count for something, right?

Yeah, they’re definitely gonna kill me, but that’s a future Ophelia problem.

The entire left side of his torso looks like a black and tan page stolen from those iSpy books my mom used to read with me. There’s so much to look at I could spend days studying the damn thing andstillfind something new hidden in the swirling ink. Gotta give the guy credit. They look awesome.

“So when did you get these?” I ask.

His abs flex as he lifts his head from the armrest, watching me trace his tattoos. “After prom.”

“Duh.” There’s a tiny hawk the size of a quarter by his sternum, and I trace it softly. “I think I’d remember if you had them before you blasted my heart to smithereens.”

“Never gonna let me live it down, huh?” he grumbles.

“Not a chance.”

A breath of laughter hits the top of my head, and he squeezes his arm around me. “I was going through some shit and decided scratching ink into my skin was a good distraction.”

“A good distraction from what?” I ask.

“Life.” He lifts his head from the armrest again, kisses my hairline, and settles back into the cushions as I stay sprawled beside him. Honestly, I’m surprised we fit, but I’ve never been more comfortable.

We’ve been doing this a lot lately. Screwing each other’s brains out and snuggling in my house, talking about everything and nothing at all. There’s only so much a secret couple can do, but I’m not going to lie. I love it. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say Maverick and I have fallen right back into our old habits, playing boyfriend and girlfriend in every way without the title or the spotlight.

It should feel weird or like we’re taking a step back in our relationship, but instead, it feels like visiting a favorite destination. I’m not dumb enough to think I can stay here forever, not when he hasn’t made me any promises. But who doesn’t want a chance to revisit their favorite place? To soak up every moment while you can until reality calls you back home and you only have the memories to keep you warm at night.

Oof. That just took a turn.

I clear my throat and examine a delicate skull I hadn’t noticed until now. “So, what do they mean?”

“Some mean nothing. I just thought they looked good.”

“And the others?” My fingers pause on an itty-bitty silhouette of a bird hidden between a hockey stick, a rose, and Maverick’s jersey number.

He stays quiet while I study the hidden pieces making up Maverick Buchanan in all his messy glory.

“Seriously, the detail is insane,” I add. Sitting up, I throw my leg over his lap and straddle him, letting my curls fall around us in a curtain of strawberry blonde. He threads his fingers through the locks and pushes them over one shoulder, tugging softly on the ends as he stares up at me.

“I was right.” I tap my finger against the bird silhouette. “This is a goose.”

He doesn’t even bother looking at which tattoo I’m referring to. “Is it?”

“Uh, yup. It most definitely is.” My cheeks pinch as I grin down at him, squinting at the dark smudge over his heart. Yeah, it’s definitely a goose.

No. Freaking. Way.

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