“Thank you for dinner. Are you ready for show and tell?” she asked. His smile grew huge. “Not that kind of show and tell. You said you would sit still for my questions,” she elaborated.

“I like the ideas popping in my mind better,” he told her with a wiggle of his brows.

“What gives you your self-assured, arrogant attitude?” she asked. He looked at her almost dumbfounded for a moment. She figured she’d start with the hard stuff, then move on.

Max narrowed his eyes, trying to figure out if she was serious, or kidding with him. There was no way she could make love all day, then call him arrogant.

“I’m certainly confident, but not arrogant,” he finally said.

“Hmm, I don’t know. You tend to make assumptions about people, expect things to always go your way, and don’t stop until you have what you want. That sounds like arrogance to me,” she said with the same expression on her face.

“Let’s just skip that question and move on to the next. At the end of your month with me, we’ll see if you still think I’m arrogant,” he conceded. She gave him a huge smile, which allowed him to release the breath he’d been holding. She was just seeing how tough his skin really was.

“Do you plan to follow in your brother’s footsteps, get married and have kids?” The question was asked because her readers would want to know the answer, but she was surprised how much she wanted to know as well.

She refused to start thinking of herself as that fictional wife. They’d have their fling, then she’d be cast off as so many other women before her. She knew this going into the short affair and couldn’t fault him on it. If she got too attached it was her own fault.

“I never pictured myself as the settle-down-with-wife-and-kids kind of guy, but watching not only my brother, but my cousins as well, has me changing my mind on that. It’s becoming more appealing,” he said evasively. He didn’t really say yes or no, but left it as a definite possibility. Her stomach tightened. She had to change the subject to more non-personal issues, or she’d be a wreck by the end of the day.

“Do you consider yourself active in the community?”

“I like to be the guy behind the scenes. I don’t see community service as something you do to flaunt your name or money. I see it as a service that everyone should do because they have a passion for service. Now, off the record, I will show you a few projects that are dear to me, but only if you promise not to print it,” he said.

“Max, you should be proud to let people who adore you know who you really are,” she said, not wanting to commit to that.

“I won’t budge on this, Cassie. I know I can trust your word, so if you want to see some pretty cool stuff, you have to promise it doesn’t get printed,” he said, his words firm.

“Fine,” she pouted. She wanted to know the real Max. She may not be able to print his actual projects, but she could get a more rounded view of him, which would in turn make her article better.

“Now, it’s my turn. Tell me about your childhood,” he demanded. She was caught a bit off-guard.

“That’s a broad subject. What do you want to know?” she evaded.

“What happened to your parents?” he asked. Cassie didn’t want to talk about herself, but a deal was a deal.

“I got to have my parents until I was technically an adult, at least. It’s the same old story you’ve heard a million times, but it really sucks when it happens to you. They were coming home from a New Year’s party at their friend’s house when a drunk driver slammed into them. The EMT’s said they died instantly, at least, and didn’t suffer. It was the worst pain I’ve ever gone through in my life,” she said. She couldn’t help the tears gathering in her eyes. She hated reliving that tragic moment in her life.

“I’m sorry, Cassie. I can’t imagine how I would make it through that. It was awful watching my mother slowly die, but at least I got to say goodbye,” he sympathized with her.

“Yeah, I’ve had to grow tougher skin since then. I was an only child, and don’t have any other relatives. I think I have some cousins somewhere, but I’ve never known them,” she said sadly.

“Your parents would be very proud of the daughter they raised. You’re a remarkable woman,” he told her. He wasn’t helping her get herself under control. She really wanted her parents to look down on her and be proud. She wasn’t where she wanted to be in life, but she was getting there. She was determined to make a success out of her life.

The evening flew by with them talking about their lives, both of them letting their guard down. Cassie knew it was a temporary reprieve from the real world, but she was going to enjoy her time of being locked inside a small cabin in Alaska. She hoped they weren’t rescued for at least a few days.

Chapter Eight

They’d been in the cabin for three full days, without any word from the outside world. Cassie was in a completely blissful state of mind. Her body ached all over, but in a good way.

“So, what shall we do today?” Max asked with a mischievous smile.

“I was thinking we should take a stroll through town,” she answered. They’d gotten used to being trapped. They were also doing well at conserving the generator since they spent most of their time in bed.

“Sounds great. I’ll find the shovel, you find the picnic basket,” he said while wrapping his arms around her.

“Perfect.”

“I do have good news.” She waited for him to elaborate. She couldn’t imagine what the good news would be.

“Are you going to tell me, or just lay here with a silly grin on your face,” she finally said.

“We can use the fireplace tonight. I can see some light peaking from the top. I think the storm may be over. Now, in about a month this should all melt off, allowing us our freedom,” he said good humoredly. She was surprised still by how well he was taking their situation. It would be easy to become frustrated and take out anger on each other.

“That’s great,” she said, inserting as much enthusiasm as she could muster into her voice. She was enjoying their entrapment. Once the real world stepped back in she didn’t know what would happen with their short romance, but she didn’t want it to end yet. She knew the end was inevitable, but she wasn’t ready to let go, not just yet.

“We still need to conserve energy, so why don’t you share a shower with me,” he said while caressing her.

“Well, we should conserve energy,” she agreed with a big smile. He led her toward the shower, where he began to slowly take her clothes off, sending chills down her back.

“Your turn,” she said, placing her hands underneath his sweater and slowly drawing it up and over his head, then moving her hands down the smooth muscles of his chest. She bent her head forward and swirled her tongue along one of his hard pecks, smiling when he let out a rough groan.

He quickly stripped the rest of their clothing off and pulled her into the oversized shower with him. Cassie was assaulted with sensations as the water cascaded down her body, and Max’s hands roamed.

He turned her around, letting the spray run down her back while he bent his head and took her lips in a gentle kiss, his tongue teasing her lips, his teeth gently nipping them. She tried to move forward, wanting them closer, but he placed his hands on her water slicked hips, holding them a scant few inches apart as he loved her mouth. She groaned her frustration, needing to be closer.

“Patience,” he whispered as he brought his head to her neck, and licked along her collar bone. She reached her hand down, grasping his engorged arousal, causing him to let out a gasp. She ran her hand up and down his length, rubbing her thumb over his sensitive head.

“This is going to end way too soon if you keep doing that,” he cried out in pleasure. She smiled again at the power she held over him in those moments. She didn’t even care if it ended too soon.

His hand gripped hers and he brought it to his lips, gently kissing her knuckles, before he grasped her other hand, incapacitating her, making her feel helpless. Then he brought his head down and swirled his tongue over her hardened nipples, pulling her deep within his mouth. She shuddered in pleasure as he continued to caress first one breast, then the other.

“Enough,” she pleaded. She wanted him deep within her. She was ready and didn’t want to wait any further. “Please, Max.”

“Tempting,” he groaned as he released her hands. She immediately placed them around his neck, pulling his body tightly against hers. He reached behind her and picked up the soap, then stroked her back, his slick hands moving from her shoulders down her backside, and along her sensitive thighs. He moved them around her front, rubbing the soap into her stomach, then up and over her breasts, taking extra time to rub circles around her already over-sensitive nipples.

She was going to climax before he ever entered her, just from his sensual touch. She couldn’t keep her eyes open, or even move her body. The only thing keeping her standing was her grip around his shoulders.

He gripped her hips and slowly turned her around so his hard manhood was pressed into her backside. His hands came around and continued to rub against her breasts. She placed her hands on the shelf to keep from falling. Her knees were trembling as his hand roved over her body.

Max slipped his hand down her stomach, while his knee spread her legs apart. She felt exposed, completely open to him, but instead of being embarrassed, she felt exotic, beautiful, and desirable. He slipped his hand lower and her body tensed as his fingers rubbed over her most sensitive area. He swirled his thumb over her nub, as he slowly pushed his finger inside her. She cried out as the pleasure built higher.

“I…I can’t…” she cried out as he moved faster in and out of her hot, wet body, his thumb keeping rhythm. She yelled out as her body shook in pleasure, gripping him tightly as he slowed his movements, making sure she was fully pleasured before stopping.

He pulled his hand back, gently running them up her stomach, over her sides and slowly toward her breasts. With one hand he caressed her front, moving up and down her body, slowly building her pleasure again. His other hand gripped her slick hip, and she felt him push closer toward her opening, the head of his erection pressed close.

He slowly pushed forward, entering her from behind. When he was completely inside her, she felt more full than ever before. She’d never had sex in that position before and found she loved it. He was so deep inside her, his hips pressed into her backside, his hands roaming over her hips, stomach and breasts. All the sensations were quickly building her toward another earth shattering orgasm.

He began to push in and out of her tight heat, both of them crying out in pleasure. The water continued to cascade over them as he moved faster and faster with each thrust. Her body began tightening around him as the pleasure built. He thrust deep within her heat and she exploded around him, gripping him tightly, not wanting him to pull out. Needing him to stay deep inside.

He pulled out, making her cry her displeasure, only to thrust back inside of her and stay as he pumped his own release deep within her folds. He gripped her hips almost bruisingly tight as he groaned in pleasure. His body pumped endlessly, and she felt every single quiver of pleasure pass through him. Her legs couldn’t hold her any longer, and her knees started to buckle.