Sophie dangled on the edge of a precipice. As a teenager, she loved walking down to Battery Park, right to the edge of the island. She'd lean against the metal railing and concentrate on the water crashing against the rocks below. After a while, she'd get dizzy with the mesmerizing clash between liquid and solid. One world ending. Another beginning. With Max above her now, his dark eyes like black pools, the same heady sensation overcame her.

His palm rested against hers, their fingers laced together in a tight weave. The heat of his skin against hers felt like a brand. No amount of effort could draw her gaze from his, their eyes locked together. Her heartbeat slowed to match the pace he set and everything but him faded away. Everything but them.

This differed from their previous nights together. Perhaps because they both knew this would be their last time to touch, taste, give and take for six months. Maybe the drama of the evening, his kindness at taking her to the city on a proper date, mixed with her panic attack, sharpened the reality of what was happening between them. No matter the cause, every nerve in her body felt exposed, raw, and vulnerable.

But not in danger. Because this was Max. Kind and considerate as ever, he never pushed, never demanded more than she offered. Always took care of her and with her. Like he was made for the role. From the first kiss, they'd simply fit together. Yet this was more than physical and as she arched her back to meet his thrust, a string that hadn't vibrated in her chest for ten years threatened to crack her heart in two.

A sliver of panic sliced down her spine. Her brain warred with her body, screaming out a silent no. This couldn't happen. She couldn't feel this way. Not with Max. Not with anyone other than Thomas.

"I ... I've never..." Max's whispers choked with an emotion that reverberated in her soul. "...never felt like this. With anyone." Desire and something else, a sentiment Sophie didn't want to recognize, bloomed in Max's eyes.

She tried to glance away, not see the way he regarded her, saw her. It was impossible. She was completely under his spell.

Every inch of his long, even strokes elicited tremors of ecstasy and Sophie's body betrayed her mind, giving in to the connection with Max, giving herself over to him. More so, she commanded all of him, desperate for more. Max thrust into her and her heart split open, the guardrail she'd put in place after the devastating loss of Thomas crumbling with Max's gentle caress. He slipped past her defences and set a stake of ownership. A space she was certain he'd occupy forever. A tear slid across the side of her face.

"Sophie?" Max's movements slowed and her muscles contracted, holding him tight. Not yet. He couldn't leave her. The need to tell him what was in her heart pushed against the lump in her throat. Yet the words couldn't break through. She squeezed his hand, communicating through touch.

He fastened his fingers around hers.

Deep inside her, his cock twitched and the tiny flutter sent her over the edge, tumbling through time and space with Max. Her fingers curled around his, holding on for dear life.

More tears spilled from her, part agony at betraying Thomas, part joy of finding this feeling again. Convinced love would never strike twice, she'd denied herself for a decade the ecstasy of loving another person, of being loved by another, of being loved by someone who deserved to be loved back. A small sob escaped her lips.

The gentle pressure of Max's forehead against hers made it easier to breathe.

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

The desperation in his apology choked her throat again. She didn't want him to be sorry. She didn't want him to regret this night, any of their nights. Their time together. Any future they might have. Because they had to have a future together. He couldn't tear down all her defences, worm his way into her heart and then disappear. She wouldn't survive this time.

His thumb traced the curve of her cheek. "Please don't cry."

She shook her head. He must have misunderstood as his chest inched away from her. Unable to bear being separated, she snaked her free hand around his neck, tugging him back to her.

The tension in his body evaporated as he tumbled to the side and wrapped himself around her, arms and legs entangled with hers. Strong and solid, his pulse beat against her cheek. She pressed her face into his neck and let the tears flow. He breathed into her ear, "I got you."

That was the problem. He did have her. Heart and soul.

***

In the distance bells pealed through the haze of the warm bliss Sophie languished in. The heavy weight on her hip shifted and the hard surface beneath her rattled with a moan. She snuggled into the sound with the hopes it would drown out the annoying chimes.

"It's too early," she groaned.

Beneath her, the toned chest she used as a pillow tensed. "Sunshine?"

Her eyelids dragged open to the glorious site of a still naked Max, his dreamy face doing its best to wipe away his drowsiness. She could wake up like this every morning.

"Damned alarm." She stretched across his torso, fumbled for the old-fashioned alarm and shut it off. On her way back, she caught Max staring at her. "Morning."

The chords in his throat constricted. "You stayed with me." He brushed a strand of hair away from her face.

Her heart rattled at the awe in Max's voice. What had she been doing to him while she protected herself? She swore then and there to make this up to him. "Trying to get rid of me already?"

Confusion laced his eyes. "No, I—"

She stopped his words with a kiss, drinking in the taste of him. His hands clamped onto her hips and a hard length erupted against her thigh. The cells in her body snapped to attention, ready to be electrified, willing to give into him. The newly minted place in her heart rippled and what had happened last night crashed over her like a wave, the undercurrent desperate to pull her under. Instead, she dragged her mouth from his and pushed out of his grip. "Time to rise and shine."

Max caressed her cheek. "Go back to sleep."

On the edge of the bed, she held her hand out to him. "I'm not letting you out of my sight."

He followed her into the bathroom. Sophie turned on the shower, stepped in, and positioned Max under the water. Soap in her palm, she massaged the liquid into his torso.

Max reached for her hand. "I can do that."

She brushed him off. "Let me." Quickly, she washed off their night together, carefully scrubbing Max clean. Then she wrapped a towel around herself and worked on drying every inch of his body. He watched her every move like it fascinated him.

In the bedroom she slipped into her sleeping shorts and tank top, then helped him dress in the uniform he hadn't worn since the day he walked into the lake house two months ago. She bit the inside of her cheek to stop her hands from shaking as she buttoned the jacket over his chest.

She brushed some non-existent dust off his shoulder. "One hundred and eighty days."

"Six months." Max swallowed and hefted his duffle bag.

Sophie nodded and laced their hands together. "Not a day more."

Max shook his head. He seemed to say a silent goodbye to the room and, hand in hand, they made their way down the stairs to where Finn and Emily waited by the door.

Sophie reluctantly let go of him and hung on the last step

"Thank you for staying with us. For everything." Emily embraced Max. "Be safe."

"Yes, Ma'am."

She playfully slapped his arm. "So formal already. It's always Emily?"

He kissed her on the cheek. "Yes, Emily."

Finn opened the door, and a frigid blast of winter air swirled into the foyer. "Time to leave."

Max turned to say goodbye, and she launched herself at him, arms flung around his neck. Strong hands cinched her waist, then slipped under the material of her top. He hugged her to him, his chest rising as he took a deep breath. Her mouth found his ear. "Promise you'll come back to me."

"Nothing can keep me away."

Sophie clutched Emily's hand until the jeep drove out of sight.

Hey DL here. I know, I know. I went a bit overboard with this chapter. It's just I had this scene written from Sophie's perspective and I didn't want to cut it.

Was it to much?

And can you believe Max actually left. I cried a little.