The Room - A Sensuous Experience

bed and padded barefoot over to the floor-to-ceiling window. At some point, the fire had died down. The cold marble floors weren’t unwelcome. He needed something to jolt some sense into him. Maxwell stood with one arm raised above his head leaning on the window watching the snow fall. Briefly, he closed his eyes and ran his hand down his face and slowly inhaled. His hands smelled like her. Hell, he smelled like her. Thinking about all the things they’d done to each other caused him to go from a semi-state of arousal to a full hard-on. Sex hadn’t been this good in a very long time.
Glancing back over his shoulder to look at the naked beauty who slept in his bed, Maxwell mumbled to himself. “This is going to get complicated.”
The grounds were covered several inches deep in snow. He knew it was going to storm but didn’t realize the extent of it. More than likely, it would be awhile before someone could come and plow the drive. If he was snowed in with Robyn, that could make the rest of his day either heaven or hell. More than likely, it would be the latter. He should have known his plan would backfire.
He fucked up. One night. His time with Robyn was only supposed to be for one night. Years ago, she had stolen his heart. All he wanted to do was take it back so that he could move on. Maxwell had hoped to get Robyn out of his system once and for all. He wasn’t a whipped little boy anymore. He was a grown man. As many times as they’d had sex, he thought that would have done the trick. But, damn it, if he didn’t want to wake her up and slide inside her body again.
Marissa deserved a commitment. They weren’t dating exclusively but had known each other for a while. He knew she wanted more, but Maxwell couldn’t commit, and the reason was lying in bed just across the room.
He hadn’t heard Robyn wake up and get out of bed. It wasn’t until she came up behind him and pressed her body into his back that he knew.
She wrapped her arms around his waist and held on tight. She spoke softly. “I often wondered what a sunrise in this room would look like. It’s even more breathtaking than I imagined.”
Maxwell grudgingly agreed. It made him angry that everything about this moment felt right. He’d never been this complete with any other woman, and he hated it. His voice was gruff. “It’s nice . . . I guess.”
Robyn sensed something was off but ignored it. “I still can’t believe how much of my dream home you remembered.” She pressed her lips to the center of his back and held on tighter.
“Did I? Honestly, I didn’t have as much input on the planning as you might think. Marissa worked closer with the architects than I did.” It was a lie, but it was a necessary. He didn’t want Robyn to think what happened between them was going anywhere or that this house meant more to him than it did.
Robyn stiffened. “Marissa? W-who is that?”
Maxwell didn’t answer.
She let her arms drop and stepped back. “You didn’t tell me you had a girlfriend.”
Maxwell turned to face her. “You didn’t ask.”
Her voice was starting to rise. “What? Ask?” She almost choked. “Are you serious?”
He walked past her to pick up his cell phone from off the table. He turned the ringer back on and checked the messages. As Maxwell scrolled through his phone, he said. “I can see you haven’t lost your knack for the dramatic.”
Robyn’s head was spinning. What was happening? Last night couldn’t have been more perfect if she had planned it herself. “I’m sorry . . . wait. I guess I got lost with all the bullshit you were spewing about finding the right one.”
Maxwell didn’t look up from his phone. “The right one wouldn’t only be interested in me now that I’m a successful businessman.”
“You can’t honestly believe that. You do realize, I have my own money, right?”
He snorted. “I guess if you want to compare a few million with a few billion, you can do that.”
“Wow. WOW! The Maxwell I knew wasn’t a dick!”
He finally looked up. “You knew Ian, the poor dumb dude who thought he was going to spend the rest of his life with you! The fool who built you a little house at the base of this hill! The idiot who was prepared to ask you to marry him the same night you told him to kick rocks and that you were leaving this small ass town and everyone in it. I built this house to show you that I could. You didn't respect me then, but I bet you do now!”
For the second time, he’d managed to sucker punch her. Robyn swallowed. “I respected you and didn’t know anything about what you had planned back then. I would have . . .”
Maxwell did all he could to keep his anger under control. He was about to erupt. He hadn’t known his emotions were bubbling this close to the surface. “Of course you didn’t. But, if you did, what would you have done considering it was always about you and what you needed. But, I’ll grant you this . . . I wouldn’t be the person I am today if hadn’t been for you.”
Her eyes filled with tears. She was angry, humiliated, but most of all remorseful. “Maxwell, I don’t know what else I can do or