Accident Prone

6:49 AM

Elizabeth shifted in her sleep. Correction, she tried shifting in her sleep, but she was unable to do so. She was holding onto a large bolster pillow, but somehow, the bolster pillow was holding onto her as well… tightly.

"Ugh…", Liz groaned while refusing to wake up and at the same time trying to wiggle out of the entrapment of the bolster pillow (aka Max"s hold).

Max mumbled something drowsily and loosened his arms. In the next second he was awake and realized that Liz is shifting away from him. He swiftly extended his arms and pulled her back. There is no way he is letting go of her.

Last time they made progress and he let go, she ended up in New York!

This time, Max is determined to stick to her like a postage stamp.

In her sleep, Liz felt that her bolster pillow is pulling her back and she woke up in panic.

"Ah!", she exclaimed but she cut it short when she confirmed that its Max"s chest pressing on her back.

She cleared her throat and asked softly: "Are you awake?"

Max hummed in confirmation: "Mhm…"

"Can you let go?"

"No."

Liz could not believe that he rejected her request. "What…?"

"Last night you said that you will not run away. So… don"t move and let me hold you.", Max explained matter-of-factly.

Liz"s eyes darted around and she remembered that she did say something like that. She was very bold last night.

She took a deep breath and tried to find a comfortable position. As Liz wiggled around, she felt something hard pressing on her bottom and she froze.

Max knew why Liz suddenly stopped moving and he grinned. He tightened his hold on her and his husky voice splashed through her hair at the back of her neck: "As a doctor, you should know that healthy males experience arousal in the morning due to elevated levels of testosterone. But don"t worry, more than once I was in a worse condition by your side and I managed to control myself."

Liz swallowed hard. Somehow, his words didn"t make her feel better. She was not sure how to respond to this, so she kept quiet but internally she screamed: "Yes! An arousal is normal and as a medical worker I"ve seen all kinds of things but... is it normal to press yourself on my bottom?!"

Liz was not sure if his erection is growing or is he pressing himself harder, but she knew that she can"t stay still. It"s too embarra.s.sing!

She turned to face him. Good, now he is not pressing on her. But why is his face so close? Ah, this is also embarra.s.sing.

Max pushed a lock of her hair from her forehead before planting a kiss on it.

"Good morning.", he wished her with a smile.

"Good morning…", she responded awkwardly. "Why did you kiss me?"

"Shouldn"t it be normal to kiss?", Max asked and saw that Liz is blankly looking at him. He decided to clarify: "Now that we are dating, I can kiss you."

Liz"s eyes shifted. "Who said that we are dating?"

Max took a deep breath to compose himself. "Last night you said that you know that I am romantically interested in you and that you will not run away."

Liz thought about his words. Well, he is not lying. "Yeeees, but… that does not mean that we are dating."

Max forced a smile. "What does it mean?"

"I wanted to let you know that I accept your presence in my life. And that I will not run away. But we are not dating… yet."

Max narrowed his eyes. She said that they are not dating YET! That means how even though she said they are not dating, she is not opposing to it. There is NO WAY Max will let this opportunity slide.

He observed her expression carefully before asking: "What needs to happen so that we start dating?"

Liz found herself in a predicament. She really does not have an answer to this question.

Teenagers usually start with a verbal agreement like "will you be my girlfriend – yes" and then it begins… but Max and she are too old for that. And older couples start by hanging out and then they kiss, and the relationship rolls from there. Well, they are spending time together, and he kissed her once. Are they dating since then? No, she didn"t respond to his kiss. To start dating, both parties need to be actively involved but is that all there is to it? Liz could not figure it out, however Max should know.

Liz looked Max in the eyes and saw said: "I don"t know. You are a dating expert, so you tell me."

Max"s lips twitched. Is she reminding him of his rich dating history? That can"t be good. It will backfire big time. He told himself to focus. At this rate, Liz will slip back into the we-are-friends mode.

He returned her gaze, but his was more intense while he spoke softly: "As an expert, I am telling you that we ARE dating."

Liz paused and her confusion was obvious. "Oh… so… then... why did you ask me if we are dating?"

"Elizabeth…" Max took a deep breath to compose himself. This woman is testing his patience BIG TIME!

And why is his signature captivating gaze combined with a seductive soft voice not having any effect on her?

He is not sure if Elizabeth is immune to his charms, or is she rendering him unable to charm a woman.

Max reminded himself that she never had a boyfriend, so even though she is a fully grown woman, in terms of relationships, she is like a middle-school girl.

He spoke in a low voice while trying to hide his frustration: "Yesterday you asked me about having fun. Dating is all about fun with someone. So, let me ask you: do you like spending your time with me?"

"Yes.", Elizabeth answered without skipping a beat.

"There! We are dating!", Max exclaimed and added: "And I get to kiss you! And you can kiss me back anytime you want! Any more questions?"

"Yes."

Max regretted asking if she has more questions. This is Liz and of course she has more questions, but as long as she does not go back to the we-are-not-dating story, he can handle it. "What?"

"What do we do now?"

Max laughed half from frustration and half from joy that she didn"t deny that they are dating (again).

"What do you want to do?", Max asked dotingly.

"Shower and go back to my place.", Liz honestly responded.

Liz is aware that no matter how nice is on this boat, Mia and Brianna are visiting. And they will head to the airport around 10:30 AM, so she should head home before that.

"OK. But as a designated dating expert, I say that we must stay in the bed at least half an hour…", he pulled her close to him, "…just like this."

Liz found herself again in Max"s embrace. She already checked the time and knows that it"s early so they can stay in the bed longer.

Liz leaned her head on his chest and rested her palm on his toned abs. Through his t-shirt she can feel his firmness and his scent is intoxicating. Combined with the slight swaying of the boat, it is very nice and soothing, but does it need to last half an hour? Isn"t that a waste of time? She decided to try and make this bed-lying shorter.

"Max, what if I need to use a restroom?"

"Hold it."

Liz stifled a laugh. "You can"t be serious."

"Elizabeth, I was never so serious in my life. I want to be close to you as much as possible. I will not force you into anything you are not comfortable with, but I expect you not to run away. If anything is bothering you, talk to me. OK?"

Elizabeth smiled. "OK... Max?"

"Mmm?"

"Can we not stay like this for half an hour?", Liz whined.

Max knew that he will regret this question, but… "Is that a problem?"

"Well, we are just lazing around. Why not get up and make use of this fine Sunday morning?"

Max smirked and moved lower in the bed until their heads aligned. His nose brushed against her cheek before he spoke while his gaze didn"t leave hers: "I can think of few things we can do to make use of this fine Sunday morning. But I also said that I will not force you, so I will give you few options. Tell me, what do you want to do? On a fine Sunday morning. In the bed. With me."

Liz realized that her options are whatever she wants, as long as it"s in the bed, with him. She felt his grip on her waist intensifying and a heavy blush invaded her face and even her ears were burning. She swallowed hard.

"There is nothing wrong with lazing in the bed…", she said weakly.

Max kissed the tip of her nose before moving back up and pulling her into his embrace. He took a deep, satisfying breath. Her reaction just now told him that she sees him like a man. Not a friend or a neighbor, but a man. Finally, he is making a progress.

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