Page 66 of Savage Beauty

“None of the bad stuff.”

“Why would you take any of it?”

“I guess you could say I’ve always had an obsessive personality.” His fingers comb through my hair. “I start a hobby and I dive deep. In the military, you’ve got to be strong and fast, so it doesn’t work to bulk up. After I left the military, some of the muscle builders in the gym kickstarted me on some stuff. I’ve always been one to focus on the protein.”

“That’s why you’re so into food?”

“I’ve been an athlete most of my life. Always into food. Supplements. Have played around with performance enhancers here and there. Truth is, a lot of the guys do a little something.”

“Isn’t that against the rules?”

“It is. Mostly it’s overlooked. But we got this new CO, and he was gonna be a stickler.”

“So that’s part of why you went ahead and left?”

“Part of it. Not all of it. It was the right time. Do you think less of me?” His thumb brushes softly over my shoulder. I don’t know enough about it to have an informed opinion.

“No. But I want to research it. Will you tell me what you’re using?”

“You don’t trust me to do my own research?”

“I just…I might see something you don’t. I always double-checked Sage’s doctors. You don’t mind, do you?”

“No.” He presses his lips to my brow. “I think it’s sweet, actually.”

Is it sweet? Double-checking medicine and medical advice is wise. Doctors are human, and all humans make mistakes. And Max isn’t even a doctor.

He taps my nose. “What are you thinking about?”

I blink, bringing myself back to the moment. I should be thinking about our next steps. “Now that you’ve been to the lab, has your team developed any other theories as to who could be behind this? Since it’s clearly not my lab.”

“What exactly did you see that eliminates them from suspicion?”

I give that some thought. “Lack of evidence. And even though Anton Solonov was on the island, he never went to the labs.”

“A guy like Anton is a skilled assassin. He’s not going to visit the workplace of someone who hired him to chitchat.”

“I just can’t see anyone I work with doing this. They’re scientists. I mean, yes, admittedly, some of our work will ultimately be used for skin care, but our efforts will benefit humankind.”

“Tell you what. Let’s agree to disagree on this one.”

“That’s what you said about pizza.”

“Exactly. You call it a nutritious meal, and I call it a snack. At least you aren’t vegan. Then we couldn’t share a pizza.”

I don’t like vegan cheese either. The texture is like dairy cheese, but it’s the aftertaste that gets me.

His lips curve into a smile, and my gaze travels up to his blue irises for the briefest of seconds. And then he’s kissing me again. Slowly. And all arguments and thoughts flee as I melt into him.

CHAPTER21

Max

Sloane is a nymphomaniac. All my life I’ve dreamed of finding one, and I found her. Last night she blew my fucking mind.

My cock is sore from all the fucking we did yesterday, and last night, and the night before that. Blissfully, blessedly worn the fuck out.

Yet, somehow, he’s painfully engorged and ready to go again. Of course, I know the how. I’m entangled with a leggy bombshell, and my throbbing erection is perched between her ass cheeks.

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