I put up a hand. “You may not want to go in there. It’s flooded.”
He eyed me. “That bad?”
“It looks look like somebody threw lamb vindaloo all over the walls.”
He made a face.
“Yeah. You don’t want naan of that.”
“Thanks,” he said, not even laughing at my pun before turning and leaving again.
Maggie rounded the corner a second later, and I smiled and jerked my head as I pushed the door open, laying a hand on the small of her back as we ducked into the bathroom. I grabbed her hand and pulled into the far stall, pressing her against the tiled wall in a breath, not giving her a moment to speak, needing her lips — lips I’d been thinking about every minute since I’d walked into Habits. Lips I was always thinking about.
I picked her up, keeping her back against the wall as she wrapped her legs around my waist. My hands slipped up her bare thighs to her ass, fingers splayed against the purple panties I’d ask her to wear.
She smiled up at me. I leaned back, pinning her against the wall with my hips as I lifted the hem of her dress to get a good look.
My fingers trailed up her thigh. “What did he say to you?” I rolled my hips, pressing my length against her.
Her voice was ragged. “He wanted to buy me a drink.”
I cupped her cheek and ran my thumb across her bottom lip. “And what did you say?”
“I told him I wasn’t thirsty.”
“Good.” I took her mouth, my lips crashing against hers as I slipped my tongue into her mouth, demanding her attention as my mind cycled a single word, over and over.
Mine.
The bathroom door opened, and I broke away when I heard West and Patrick.
Maggie’s eyes were wide, swollen lips gaping. I laid a finger on them, mouthing Shh before laying kisses along her jaw and neck.
West was drunk, talking too loud, going on about the ramifications of power and ambition using Macbeth as an example.
Maggie was tense against me, but I just kept kissing her, soothing her, all while my heart raced, hoping to God they were too drunk to realize they weren’t alone. Seconds later, they were washing their hands, and we heard the rise and fall of the crowd in the bar as the door closed behind them.
I kissed her hungry lips again. I thought about her talking to the intruder as I slipped my fingers in the leg of her panties and inside of her, pressing my hips against the back of my hand. Heard her laughing at what he’d said as she fumbled between our bodies for my zipper and freed me. I shifted my hips until my tip rested against the slick line of her, picturing her hand on his chest as I flexed and filled her to the hilt.
Mine.
I couldn’t breathe as I pulled out and slammed back in.
“Harder,” she breathed, and I gave her what she wanted.
My fingers gripped her thighs as I held her still, driving into her, flexing my hips until she tightened around me, her arms, her legs, her body. One thrust, then another, and she came — one more and I followed.
I held her against the wall with my body, and my hands cupped her cheeks, fingers in her hair as I covered her mouth with mine and kissed her deep.
When I broke away, she looked up at me with hot eyes. “I cannot believe we just did that,” she said with a breathy laugh. “I’ve never done anything like that before.” Her eyes widened. “And West … oh, God, Cooper.”
I thumbed her flushed cheeks. “Don’t worry about West. He’s too drunk on whiskey and Lily to notice us.”
“We shouldn’t have done this. Not here. We could have been caught so easily.”
The door opened again, and someone went about their business. I brought my lips to her ear. “You’re safe with me, Maggie.”
“Am I?” she whispered, the question loaded, and my chest ached.
So of course, I made a joke. “I’d never risk the pants that I’m the boss of.”
She stifled a laugh, and I kissed her again, hoping she could feel the truth as the door opened and closed again.
I put her feet on the ground and kissed her once more before we cleaned up quickly, and I moved to the door to check the hallway, which was clear. I motioned for her to follow.
She blew past me and down the hall, looking back over her shoulder at me with a smile before she disappeared.
I leaned against the wall again, my hands in my pockets, staring at the flyers stuck on the wall like wallpaper, layer after layer of them, trying to get a handle on the thoughts spinning through my brain.
I was jealous, I realized curiously. I was possessive of her. The feeling of ownership hadn’t left me, though it was quieter than it had been, an undercurrent instead of a tsunami. It wasn’t something I’d felt before — not at this level. And I had no idea what that meant. But until I figured it out, I’d play it cool, starting then.
And so, I put on The Smile and headed back into the bar, focusing instead on a plan to get Maggie to come home with me.
MR. M
Maggie
MY HEART CHUGGED LIKE A freight train as I walked through the bar and back to our friends, feeling like a sexy-ass criminal. Who knew sex in a public restroom could be so hot? And Cooper jealous? I mean, if that hadn’t set off my libido, I might have thought about seeing a doctor.
Cooper was right about West — he was smiling with Lily in his arms, completely oblivious. Rose and Patrick laughed as Astrid told a story, and I sidled in, catching the tail end of it. I laughed when they laughed, half listening, my body still humming from Cooper.
He was beside me again a minute later, and I had to stop myself from looking at him. He brushed against me to take a seat, sending a shock through me.
I glanced at Lily, who stared at me with her brow quirked. She looked at Cooper, then at me once more, and her smile slowly fell, eyes widening.
I watched it all click like detonators going off behind her eyes, and I silently begged her not to say anything.
She threw on a fake smile and looked up at West, turning him so his back was to us.
I glanced over at Cooper, and he met my eyes. And in that moment, I decided.
I was officially the queen of bad decisions.
I didn’t know what to do, standing between Cooper and my brother, amongst my friends who I’d been lying to. Lying over a guy who I couldn’t have, who I shouldn’t want.
There was only one thing to do. I had to get the hell out of there.
I smiled. “Hey, y’all — I’m gonna head out.”
Rose and Astrid whined and pouted.
“I know, I know. But it’s late, and I’ve got a big day tomorrow. If I go in hungover and tired, I’ll never make a good impression.”
The girls conceded and gave me hugs, and West patted my head like I was a puppy, wishing me luck. Cooper gave me a long, lingering look, and Lily whispered something into West’s ear. He smiled like an idiot and blushed a little, giving her a quick kiss.
“I’m out too, guys. Gotta be up early in the morning. I’ll walk you home, Mags.” She turned to me and grabbed my arm, hauling me out of Habits under the guise of a smile and a wave at our friends.
The second we hit the sidewalk, she spun around and let me have it. “Oh my fucking God, Maggie. Tell me that Mr. M is not Cooper. Please. Please, please, please.” Her eyes pinched closed.
I bit my lip.
She cracked her lids. “Please?”