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Leila:

you culd stop here and let us live in their happiness

Nice try. I can't stop here.

Luluzita:

sex therapist?? yeahh i see her doing thattt perfectly

Perfect job for her.

chinkyeyes45:

I almost feel bad for Max, it's disturbing. You shouldn't feel sympathy for satan.

Maybe that means he's not Satan. Maybe that means he's just . . . Satan's little helper?

I wonder how Maria's mom will react to her career choice.

She thinks Maria's a virgin, so . . . sex therapy isn't something that she's going to see coming.

Nicola: Thanks for reading, girl!

emza: They're going to keep having sex in public places, too.

Lume:

Michael and Maria's first time was so beautiful, and original, too. Plus it showed so much of their personalities, like Michael thinking he was going to drown in the pool, hahaha!

lol, yes! I love that you notice the little subtleties like that.

You always find a way to get them into a crazy or funny scene, the whole novel is written so perfectly, I love it.

Thanks! Maria's going to get them into another crazy, funny scene in this next part.

And what do you mean you don't feedback properly? I think you're doing just fine!

valentinebaby:

Kyle is hilarious as always, they are both so obsessed with Brittney Spears I don't know whether they should seek therapy for it or what but it's adorable.

Well, their obsession with Britney Spears is based off my own obsession wtih Britney Spears. lol

Mag:

A sex therapist... hmm, yeah, that could work. But it means more studies, more classes for Maria, it's not just a fun job. I hope she'll be able to stick with her decision.

Yeah, that's true. Changing your major means that you're going to have to do some extra work, and Maria's aware of this. It's going to take her longer to graduate now, but as long as she's got Michael supporting her, she'll be able to do it.

emadaps:

now for Maria's career, i don't even know what to say. a sex therapist? seriously? is there even such a thing?

Oh, yeah! And I heard that sex therapists really are all the rage these days, and they really are in high-demand right now, lol



Thanks for the feedback, everyone! I really appreciate it!

I'm going to be the first to admit that today's part is . . . well, it's really about nothing. Nothing significantly dramatic happens, but a lot of fun stuff happens. Including the missionary scene you pervs were all looking forward to. Really, it's the foreplay to that scene that makes it hot, I think.

And this part is slightly longer because I just couldn't find a good place to stop.

Anyway, enough rambling from me. On with the fic! Enjoy!








Part 44

"I want Tess to move in with me."

Michael stared at Kyle, mouth agape, and even though he knew what he was hearing, he pretended he didn't. "What?"

"I want Tess to move in with me," Kyle repeated.

That sounded like a bad idea. "Whoa, slow down."

Kyle rolled his eyes. "I want. Tess . . ."

"No, I mean . . . slow down. You guys have only been together, what a week now?"

"Uh, a week and a half, thank you very much," Kyle corrected.

"Well, that's too soon."

"Says who? Maria?" Kyle grunted. "I won't believe it 'til I hear it from her."

As if on cue, Maria walked in the door. "Hey, guys," she greeted. "What kind of bromantic discussion am I interrupting this time?"

Kyle glanced nervously at Michael, then back at Maria.

"Oh god," she frowned. "You're not sharing sex tips, are you? 'Cause that would seriously creep me out."

"Kyle wants Tess to move in with him," Michael blurted out.

"What? You idiot," Maria said.

"Why-why am I an idiot? Things are going great. She spends a lot of time at my place anyway, it's more economically feasible . . ."

"Kyle, you guys are in the honeymoon phase right now. Why would you wanna ruin it?"

"Ruin it?"

"Yeah, once you move in together, it all goes downhill," she informed him.

He wrinkled his forehead. "It does?"

"Yeah, it does?" Michael echoed. Nothing had gone downhill for him since his roommate acquisition.

"Oh, not for us," Maria assured him, giving his arm an affectionate squeeze. "But trust me, Kyle, you're making a mistake if you ask her to move in with you so soon. A potentially relationship-ending mistake. You don't want that, do you?"

"No," he replied emphatically.

"Alright, then give it a few months. Wait 'til you guys are an established couple instead of just an emerging couple. And for God's sakes, do something about your hair. This 1950s slick-back 'do does nothing for you."

Kyle shook his head and grumbled to Michael, "She can never just be nice, can she?"

Michael shrugged. "Not to you."

"Now go," Maria said, giving him a little shove towards the door. "Fix your hair."

"What's wrong with my hair?" Kyle asked on his way out the door. "My hair's fine."

Maria rolled her eyes, but the moment he was gone, she squealed and jumped up and down excitedly. "Ooh, can you imagine how fun it's gonna be when Tess does move in with him, though? 'Cause I bet she will eventually."

"The neighbors are gonna be so pissed at all of us," Michael remarked, trying to give the elderly woman across the hall some consideration.

"Oh, for the sex sounds? Yeah." She nodded. "Oh, well. They can deal. Or . . . we could try to be quiet."

He looked at her like she was crazy and shook his head. "No." She was a loud, loud person in bed, and he liked it that way. She was amazing.

"No, that's not possible, is it?" she agreed.

"Not possible." He bent down and wrapped his arms around her legs, hoisting her up in his arms.

"Michael!" she exclaimed, laughing as he slung her over his shoulder and carried her towards the bedroom. "Oh, you muscle man!" She definitely didn't give a damn about being quiet anymore.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Michael was lying on his stomach, asleep, when he felt a light, tickling sensation on his back. It sort of felt like a feather at first, but then it started to feel sort of wet and gooey. Like paint. "What're you doing?" he asked Maria, opening his eyes slowly.

"Painting," she replied simply.

"You're painting?"

"Uh-huh."

"And you're painting my back?"

"You betcha."

Wasn't that what he did? Not paint backs, but paint in general. He smiled as she dragged the brush in lines across his shoulder blades. "Why?"

"What can I say? After living with you for all these months, I realized it's my destiny to be a great artist."

He chuckled. "Or . . . you feel like bein' kinky."

"That, too."

He grinned and kept his head down on the pillow, cushioned further by his arms. "What're you writing?" he asked. He kept trying to figure out the letters, but he couldn't.

"Property of Maria," she replied.

"Oh, you wish."

"Oh, it's true." She drew the brush around in a circle, then dragged it downward slightly to form the last letter of her name. "There." She leaned forward and whispered in his ear, "Masterpiece." She nibbled on his ear playfully, sexily, careful not to let her naked body come into contact with the wet paint. He groaned and rolled over onto his back.

"No!" she gasped, sitting up. "Michael! You ruined it!"

He smiled and apologized. "Sorry."

"You do realize you just got paint all over the pillow, don't you?" She smirked. "And the sheets."

"That's fine."

"That's fine?" She laughed and swung one leg over his midsection, straddling his hips. She held the paintbrush up in her right hand, the palate with black paint up in her left. He lay back and let his eyes soak in the sight of her beautiful, naked body.

"Yeah, that's perfectly fine."

She grinned mischievously. "You really are less uptight these days."

"Well, I'm up." He placed his hands on either side of her hips and pressed his pelvis up against hers. "And you're tight."

Her eyes fluttered closed as she took in a sharp breath. The paintbrush fell from her hand and landed on his stomach, smearing black paint above his bellybutton. He picked up the paintbrush and lowered his hips, thrilled that he could have such an effect on her. "Give me that," he said, referring to the palate.

"This?" She held the palate up out of his reach.

"Yeah." He rubbed his cock in between her warm, wet folds, and her arm involuntarily lowered, bringing the palate closer towards him. As he reached for it, though, she snapped her arm back up, still keeping it from him.

"Uh-uh," she teased. "Not for you."

He liked this. He liked this a lot. Rolling around in bed like this combined two of his favorite things: art and sex with Maria, which was an art form in enough itself.

He circled the paintbrush around her belly button. Her stomach muscles flittered as he did so, and the circle ended up looking like more of a shaky hexagon instead. But it looked good on her.

"If you're gonna use my body as a canvas, I should get to use yours," he reasoned, lightly sliding the brush up between her breasts and back down again.

"Says who?"

"Everyone."

She laughed a little and pressed all five of her fingertips on her right hand against the swirls of black paint on the palate. Then she dragged her fingers in a straight, horizontal line below his belly button, hovering dangerous close to his package. Five thin lines were left in their wake.

"I'm the artist," he reminded her.

"I can paint, too," she pointed out.

He supposed she could. And he wanted her to. But he wanted that palate even more, so that he could paint her.

He sat up quickly, starling her, and wrapped his arms around her, kissing her deeply. She moaned into his mouth and began to lower the palate distractedly. He seized the opportunity to grab it from her and lay back down.

"Dammit," she swore, smiling.

"Let's see here." He swiped the paintbrush against the palate, collecting some fresh black paint. "What should I paint?" His eyes travelled downward to her entrance.

"Don't you even think about it," she warned.

"I'm a professional." He urged her legs farther apart with his knees and contemplated how he was going to do this. His eyes locked wantonly on the inside of her right thigh, and he instructed, "Lie down."

"Uh-uh," she refused.

"Maria." He gave her a look. Either she was going to lie down voluntarily or he was going to envelope her in his arms and maneuver them so that he was on top.

She swirled her hips around in a circle for a moment, driving him mad with desire, then climbed off him and lay down on the mattress. He sat up again, noticing the big black splotch on the bed where he had just laid, tucked his legs underneath him, and moved lower on the bed so that he was positioned in between her legs, right where he wanted to be.

"Oh god," she said, spreading her legs out wide. "What did I get myself into?"

He grinned and pressed her right knee farther outward with his elbow. When her thigh was at a perfect angle, he used the paintbrush to draw out each letter painstakingly slowly.

"What're you writing?" she asked, trying to peer forward.

He kept silent and focused as he drew out the next letters.

"That tickles," she said.

Michael's, it read. He finished it off by drawing a small arrow pointing to the juncture between her legs.

"What the hell?" She craned her neck forward and laughed. "You wish."

"It's true," he returned, mimicking what she'd said about 'property of Maria.'

"Well . . ." She blushed. "Maybe a little bit."

He set the brush and palate aside and bent forward to taste her. She gasped suddenly and bucked her hips forward the minute his tongue slid against her crease. "God, Michael." He spread her legs wider with his hands, careful not to mess up his artwork, and delved his tongue deeper. She tasted sweet. And spicy.

She bent her arms back and clung to the paint-covered pillow with both hands. She dug her head back into the pillow and groaned gutturally, and the sound almost made him lose his cool. Not that he had a whole lot of cool under normal circumstances, but he miraculously did in the bedroom. She slammed one hand down atop the palate as she bucked her hips wildly against his mouth, covering the palm of her hand in paint. She grabbed hold of his shoulder with that hand and smoothed it downward, smearing black paint down from his shoulder to his elbow.

He growled low in his throat and sat back up. He picked up the palate and brush once again and got back to work on his masterpiece. He covered the brush in paint, then held it up over her breasts and shook it, watching droplets of dark paint fall onto her smooth white skin. The colors stood in stark contrast to each other and fascinated him.

"Looks like chicken pox," she remarked.

He moved forward and plastered his body against hers, kissing her. His chest pressed against hers and mixed the paint in between her skin and his.

"Mmm," she moaned as their lips gently parted. "Now it looks like war paint."

If this was indeed a battle, it was battle of the artists, and as good as she was, he was definitely winning. It wasn't very often that he got to take control and be the dominant one in bed. He wasn't going to waste the opportunity.

She rubbed her leg against his side, causing the Michael's design that he had painted disappeared into a smear. He hooked one hand under her knee and hiked her leg up higher, positioning himself comfortably in between her legs, the head of his cock nestled inside her.

"Condom," she whispered.

As much as he didn't want to move away, he knew it was a good idea. They were pretty sporadic with their contraceptive use. Thank God for the pill.

He swung his legs over the side of the bed and sat on the edge, reaching for the drawer. He quickly took out a condom and rolled one on, and as he was doing that, he felt Maria's hands on his shoulders, urging him to lie backward.

"Wait, wait," he said, lying back despite his will to be on top. He had a personal mission this time: make Maria DeLuca finally have an orgasm in the missionary position. He wanted to be the one to shock her. He wanted to be one of her firsts.

She climbed all over him, finger-painting all over his body. She touched herself as well, rolling her breasts beneath her fingers. That sight alone made his cock stiffen to the level of pain. As much as he loved the foreplay, he couldn't take it much longer.

She sank down on top him in one swift motion and took a moment to adjust to the feel of him. She started to move her hips almost immediately, and as much as he wanted to just lie back and watch her do her thing, he couldn't let that happen.

"Shit," he cursed, forcing his limbs to work. He sat up and gathered her in his arms, securing her against him as he reversed their positions in one swift flip. She gasped in surprise. "Michael," she said. "You know I can't have one this way."

"Oh, you can," he assured her, gazing into her eyes determinedly. "And you will."

She smiled skeptically but excitedly and cried out as he began to thrust into her. He usually started out slower than this and built up to this frantic pace, but sometimes this was better. Rough sex didn't mean they cared about each other any less.

"Oh!" she cried, her body moving back and forth underneath him. "Michael!"

He snaked one hand down in between them to massage her clit with his thumb. He moved his thumb in circles, causing her eyes to shoot open with pleasure. He gazed down at his girlfriend. In that moment, she was the most wildly beautiful painting he'd ever seen. He was a painting, too, but not like her.

She gripped his shoulder with one hand, gripping the paint-covered sheets with the other. She scrunched up her face in frustration as though she were purposely trying not to find her release.

"Ugh," she groaned. "Why don't you just cum already?"

"Why don't you?" He changed the angle of his thrusts, and it must have been by chance that he found her g-spot, because her eyes shot wide open and she gasped.

"Oh, Michael!" She clamped her vaginal muscles around him, and he groaned. He could feel beads of sweat dripping down the side of his face. This was just too good.

"I can't . . ." she mumbled almost incoherently. "Uh!"

He pressed his forehead against hers as he sped up the pace of his thrusts. He hoped he wasn't hurting her. She didn't seem to be feeling any pain.

"Oh, shit," he cursed as he felt himself getting closer. He wanted to hold out. He'd never live it down if he didn't.

"Just cum," she told him, panting for air.

He grinned. "You first."

She climaxed almost instantly after he said that. Her entire body clenched around him, triggering his own release a moment later. He buried his face in her neck so that she couldn't witness his embarrassing orgasm face and spent himself gratefully. He took a moment to collect himself, then pulled out of her and lay down beside her, breathing heavily.

"Fuck," she swore. "Not having a missionary orgasm was the one thing I always used in 'I Never.'"

He chuckled, grinning. "I'm sure we can think of something else you've never done. And then we can do it."

She laughed, too, and turned her head to look at him. "You look so ridiculous," she remarked.

"Yeah," he agreed. They were both covered in sweat and black paint. "But you're a pretty good artist."

She smiled. "You're the best artist I know."

"Yeah? Pay up."

She frowned. "For what?"

"For the sex."

She propped herself up on her elbows, her chest heaving with every breath she took. "Are you a hooker now?"

He laughed. "You owe me five bucks, remember? For cumming in the missionary position. We had a bet. Pay up."

She huffed. "Seriously?"

He nodded.

"Oh my god." She rolled her eyes and hopped out of bed. How she could still walk after the sex they'd just had was a mystery to him. He lay in bed and waited as she headed out of the bedroom. He heard her rummaging around in the living room in her purse, and she came skipping back in a moment later. She pounced on top of him, straddling him, and flicked the payment down atop his chest.

He picked up what was supposed to be a five dollar bill and was surprised to see George Washington's face instead. "This is a dollar," he pointed out.

"I know." She bent forward and pressed her lips against his ear, whispering sexily, "I'm gonna pay you in other ways."

He groaned as she rubbed her lower body against his. He was going to be hard again in no time.

God, he loved this girl.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Maria went over to Tess's and made a girl's afternoon of it since Michael had to work the next day. They tried studying statistics for a little while but quickly decided toenail painting would be more fun.

"I'm telling you, Tess, he's amazing." Maria couldn't stop raving about her boyfriend's sex abilities as she brushed pink polish onto her left big toe. Seeing the color appear instantly reminded her of the paint all over Michael's and her skin. "Like amazing. I always knew he was great in bed . . . or in the pool, as the case may be. Or in the shower." She smiled fondly as memories of her back against the slick shower wall invaded her. "Really great in the shower." Her legs ached merely at the thought of being wrapped around him while he pounded inside her, and she had to shiver in arousal. "God, but the whole painting adventure yesterday took it to this whole new level of pleasure. I mean, who would've thought Michael had it in him to let loose and get kinky and wild and animalistic?"

"He was an animal, huh?" Tess grinned, not glancing up from her toes as she painted them.

"Yeah, I almost came twice in a row. In freakin' missionary of all positions." That still astounded her.

"Wow," Tess remarked, grasping the significance of that. "And this is the same guy who used to freak out if you didn't use a coaster?"

"Well, he still kinda gets pissed about that," Maria mumbled, "but yes, it's the same guy."

Tess set her nail polish down and blew air onto her toes, fanning them so that the polish would dry more quickly. "It's kinda hard to fathom, you know," she said. "He's so nice and wholesome."

Maria grunted. "A nice and wholesome sex god. I'm telling you, he gets in the bedroom and he just, like, turns it on."

"And by 'it' do you mean 'you?'"

"Yes!" She accidentally brushed the nail polish brush against the side of her second toe and grabbed a tissue and some nail polish remover to rub it off. "And you know how he's usually got such a clean-cut mouth, doesn't hardly ever say a bad word?" she went on.

"Yeah, that's so cute."

"It's adorable," she agreed, "but when we get it on, that boy has a potty-mouth like you wouldn't believe."

"Really?"

"Yeah. And it's so hot 'cause I don't even think he realizes what he's saying half the time. You should've heard the flurry of expletives that left his mouth when we were doing it in the shower this morning. God." Fuck had definitely been his word of choice. Which was appropriate.

"It's nice being in the honeymoon stage, isn't it?" Tess teased.

"Totally. I don't ever wanna leave."

"So don't. Kyle and I are still honeymoonin'." Tess smirked. "You know, Max and I never had that stage. We went straight from meeting to being miserable."

"I know, I witnessed it."

Tess shook her head and emphasized, "Really miserable."

"I can't believe you stayed with him so long," Maria said, finally moving onto her next toe. She'd only gotten a few done since she'd been rambling so insistently. Tess was already done.

"I wish I hadn't," Tess admitted. "You know, if I'd known what he did to you, I never would've . . . I never would've stayed, Maria. You know that, right?"

She nodded, not a doubt in her mind nowadays. "I know." There was no way Max would've won out against her on such a serious issue. No way.

"It's just, we never really talked about it," Tess went on. "I just want you to know--"

"Tess," she cut in. "I know. And I wish it hadn't happened, but it did. Nothing I can do about it now. All that matters is that you're with someone better now. Nerdier and poorer, but way better."

"Way better," Tess agreed. "God, who would've thought we'd actually be with guys who respect us and care for us and don't just use us for sex? And make us laugh."

"And make us scream," Maria added, grinning.

Tess rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "Yes, mind-in-the-gutter-girl, and make us scream."

"I sure didn't. At times like these, I'm glad to be me."

"Me, too. And glad not to be Liz," Tess added.

"Why's that?"

"Well, besides the fact that I'd hate to be a boyfriend-stealing bitch, I'd hate to be a brunette, and I'd hate to never get out."

"Get out of what?" Maria inquired.

"Oh, Max's twisted web of affection. He's in love with her, you know."

Maria found that hard to believe. "What? Is that even possible?"

Tess shrugged. "Apparently."

"Well, time for him to get a taste of his own medicine, don't you think? 'Cause it's over. She's gone now."

"She may be gone," Tess acknowledged, "but trust me, if he fell in love with her . . . it's not over."

Maria shuddered, so unbelievably happy not to be the one in Liz's position. Having Max take advantage of you physically? Horrible. Having Max take advantage of you emotionally? Wretched. Having Max fall in love with you? Worst thing ever as far as she was concerned. "Again, glad to be me."

Tess nodded emphatically in agreement. "Mmm-hmm."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It had been a long time since Max had slummed it at a college party. He'd actually forgotten how fun they were. Plenty of drunk, stupid girls willing to take their clothes off. The white-collar parties his father threw didn't come with women like that. They came with women with husbands.

He walked inside a fraternity house and scanned the room. Lots of blondes. Or bleach blondes, more precisely. If he'd wanted a blonde, he would have just knocked on Tess's door again. He was fairly certain Kyle Valenti didn't have as much of a claim on her as he thought he did, and all he'd have to do was look at her and apologize for everything he'd done wrong for her to get down on her knees.

There was a redhead, too, who had an incredible body. Perfectly shaped breasts and hips and ass . . . sculpted by the hands of God Himself that body was. But if he'd wanted a redhead, he could have just banged his secretary. She had a thing for him. She was an idiot.

He knew exactly what he wanted-or rather who-from the moment he walked in. But since she wasn't there, he'd have to make do with the next best thing. He scoped out a girl with long brown hair, wavy, free-flowing. She was short, petite, but perfectly proportioned. She was wearing a grey halter top and black pants. Her jewelry wasn't too over the top. Neither was her make-up. She looked like Liz. Sort of. She was standing with a female friend.

He approached her boldly and asked, "What's your name?"

She turned around, surveying him up and down before replying, "Melrose."

He cringed inwardly. Melrose? Liz's name was better. It was easy to say when you were cumming. One syllable. Liz.

"And you're Max Evans," the girl went on. "I've seen you around."

Of that he had no doubt. Hell, he was practically in the newspaper once a week. "Are you with anyone tonight?" he asked. Even if she was, it didn't matter.

"No," she replied, her gaze indicating that she was fully absorbed in him already.

Good, he thought. This was a good thing. He put his arm around her shoulder, underneath her long mane of hair, and told her, "Now you're with me."

She smiled, apparently excited by the thought.

A half an hour later, Max found himself back in his suite on top of Melrose in bed, pounding into her cavern, trying desperately to find release. She wasn't much better than the call girl he'd had around New Year's. At least she wasn't making fake sounds of pleasure. She wasn't making any sounds, actually. She was silent and obviously bored to tears. So was he.

Had she not bore some resemblance to Liz, he wouldn't have even cum. He felt his orgasm hit him like a wave, but just a small one. Not anything that he had to resurface from. Melrose didn't cum at all, and he didn't care. He was pursuing his own sexual needs; he hadn't the slightest regard for hers.

He slid out of her and lay down beside her, flat on his back, staring up at the ceiling. "Get out," he ordered, leaving no room for debate.

She looked over at him, clearly disgusted, and grumbled, "Jerk," as she climbed out of bed, readjusted the clothing he'd been too impatient to remove, and stormed out. He flinched as the door slammed shut. Oh, well, he thought. She shouldn't be insulted. Liz was the only person he would have asked to stay.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"There you go," Maria said, handing Michael a stack of photographs she had just finished printing out. "A collection of all the hottest pictures of me." She hopped up on the desk and watched as he fanned them out and looked at them. He held up one picture of her as a ten-year old showing off her first ever bikini at the beach and gave her a quizzical look. "I was a hot kid," was her response.

He chuckled and handed that picture back to her. He probably would have found it weird to paint the girl he was currently banging at age ten. He probably would have felt like he was painting his daughter or something, or the daughter they might have someday.

Now there was a head-spinning thought.

"Hey . . ." He held up a picture of her lying in bed, the scandalous parts of her body covered only by a thin white sheet.

"I thought you'd like that one."

He pretended to slip the picture into his back pocket, then chuckled and said, "No, just kidding. Alright, well, thanks for these. This is great. I'd have you pose for me like we did that one time, but something tells me I wouldn't get any painting done."

"Well . . ." She hopped up on the desk, urging the moving the printer aside with her butt. "You wouldn't paint the canvas. You might get distracted." She grinned and extended her leg so her foot could rub against his package. "You might paint me instead."

"That was so fun."

"Mmm-hmm." She lowered her foot back down and got back on track. "So is Mr. Buckley, like, totally harping on you to get your collection finished?"

He shrugged. "A little. I've been busy."

"Distracted." She smiled, loving that sex was the distraction. Best. Distraction. Ever. "You're exhibit's gonna be during March, right?"

"No, it's in April so I have more time to get it ready," he explained. "I told Mr. Buckley there's an artist by the name of Kyle Valenti who'd love to put together a collection for the March student exhibit."

"Oh, that was nice of you." Kyle probably already had an expansive collection back from his sort-of stalker days. "Tess paintings one month, Maria paintings the next, huh?"

"Well, we kinda like you girls, so . . ."

"Just kinda." God, she thought, he's so adorable. And she was completely smitten with him. Smitten. She'd never been smitten before. "Alright, well, have fun painting today," she said, hopping down off the desk. "Tess and I are mall-bound." She grabbed her purse and rummaged around inside for her credit card, just double checking that she had it.

"There's a Victoria's Secret store in the mall, right?" Michael asked quietly.

"Right."

"And are you-I don't know-maybe gonna stop in there and maybe-I don't know-buy something?"

If it was possible, the way he'd stammered over that question just made him even more adorable. "I've turned you into such a pervert," she realized. "And yes." She kissed him quickly on the lips before heading out.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

After ransacking at least a dozen of their favorite stores and sliding their credit cards over and over again, Maria and Tess sat in the food court of the mall, each eating pizza and breadsticks while they discussed their purchases for the day. Maria held up a lacy, lavender bra she'd bought from Victoria's Secret, and Tess laughed.

"Okay, I love skimpy lingerie as much as the next girl," she said, "but how can they even call that a bra? It's two cups and a string."

Maria dropped her new bra back into the sack. "What about that thong you got? It's, like, vapor."

"I know." Tess smiled. "That's why I love it."

"Oh, we're two of a kind."

"Yeah," Tess agreed. "It's kinda weird, isn't it?"

"What?"

"How much we're alike. We're both hot enough to pull off barely-there lingerie. We both like Britney Spears."

"But you're obsessed."

"We've both had some loser guys in the past but have nice, artistic boys now. Kinda nerdy, but sexy."

"Yours is nerdier."

Tess ignored that and concluded, "It's no wonder we're besties. We have so much in common."

"But you like pink more than I do," Maria pointed out. "And you like Kyle way more than I do."

"Stop it," Tess said, "you like Kyle, too."

"Yeah, in the way you like a little, annoying brat of a brother, not the way you like him."

Tess laughed a little. "Well, I don't like Michael quite as much as you do, either."

"Uh, good, we'd have a catfight if you did." Maria laughed, too, took one more bite of her last remaining breadstick, and set it down atop her half-eaten pizza. "Okay, we have to get out of here before I spend more money. I spent, like, my entire paycheck today."

"Me, too. Damn clothes," Tess swore. She took one last bite of her pizza and remarked, "Ew, mall food," before standing up and collecting all her bags.

They walked towards the west entrance of the store, towards the parking lot where they had parked, and Tess said, "I'd suggest we make it a slumber party, except . . . I have a new vapor thong that needs to be worn by me and removed by Kyle's hands tonight. Or his mouth. Definitely his mouth."

Maria shook her head, amazed that anyone could find Kyle to be a sexual being. "Scary visual place."

"Oh, please, like you're not gonna have Michael do the exact same thing. Two of a kind, remember?"

"Oh, I do constantly long to crawl in bed with Michael," she confessed, "just get on top of him and-or underneath him, because that works, too, these days-and just . . ." She trailed off, and her eyes caught sight of something around the corner. Something black and shiny. Four wheels. "Oh my god!"

"What, is that your orgasm sound?"

"No. Well, yes. I was talking about that." Maria grabbed Tess's hand and pulled her around the corner. "Oh my god to that." In what used to be the Steve and Barry's store was now a car sitting up on top a large rotating platform. Above the platform was a gigantic arched banner that said 'Drive-Away-a-Winner.' There was a large crowd gathered around a nearby booth that had KSFR plastered all over it, as in the radio station. Video and sound equipment was everywhere, and there were a couple of radio DJs and other workers handing out forms to anyone who wanted one.

"It's a car," Tess said. "On a stage. Fascinating."

"It's a car competition. Weren't you listening to the radio on the way up here?"

"No, I was driving and, like, almost rear-ending the truck in front of me on the way up here." Tess cringed.

Maria rolled her eyes. "KSFR puts on this car competition every year. Remember we were gonna participate last year but we both got food poisoning?"

"Oh, that's right!" Tess exclaimed. "We should do it this year."

"We should," Maria agreed, quickly scurrying towards the crowd. She made her way to the front of the pack and listened as one of the DJs told everyone the rules.

"The guidelines are simple," he said. "You put one hand on the car, and you don't take it off until you're the last one standing up on that platform. If any other part of your body touches the car, you're out."

Tess cupped her breasts in her hands and muttered, "That puts females at a disadvantage."

"If you lift up your hand, you're out," the DJ continued. "Now if you're interested in taking part, I need you to fill out this participation agreement form. It shouldn't take too long, but do keep in mind that we're not going to have enough space for everyone. First come, first served." He handed out a few more forms, and Maria seized four of them.

"Oh my god, we have to call Kyle and Michael," she said. "Strength in numbers."

"That's right, we could better our odds." Tess whipped out her cell phone and dialed away. Maria called Michael and waited impatiently for him to answer. This competition would be so much more fun if he were there.

"Done shopping already?" was how he answered.

"Kind of. Look, I know you're painting and all that, but you need to get to the mall ASAP," she told him urgently.

He immediately sounded concerned. "Why? Is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine," she said, looking over at the car longingly, the beautiful, sleek, brand new car. "But you need to touch something."

After only a moment of silence, Michael said, "I'm on my way," and ended the call. Maria smirked. Perversion was a weakness for all men, even the most gentlemanly of them.

"Michael's coming," she told Tess.

"So is Kyle."

Maria nodded, suspecting her friend had employed the same tactics. "Did you make him think he'd get hot sex when he got here?"

"Yeah," Tess replied unabashedly, "did you?"

"Yeah." She laughed and took a pen out of her purse to begin filling out her participation form. "We're so mean." But if she for some reason couldn't win that car and Michael somehow did . . . he'd have a hell of a lot of stuff to touch.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Michael rushed to the mall after Maria's phone call. All he could think about was the time they'd been in the dressing room together and she'd made the fake sex sounds. Now she was going to make real ones. Awesome. She was teaching him to love sex in public places.

Just as he was racing towards the west entrance, he saw Kyle running towards the same destination. They both stopped outside the doors and stared at each other confusedly. "What're you doing here?" Michael asked him.

"I'm here to touch Tess," Kyle replied simply.

"Well, I'm here to touch Maria."

They stared at each other some more, each one puzzled, and Kyle finally declared, "Weird," and rushed inside the mall. Michael followed him, and they found Maria and Tess almost instantly, standing with a crowd of people next to . . . Michael squinted just to make sure he was seeing things straight. Was that a car?

"Kyle!" Tess exclaimed, bounding towards her man. Maria skipped towards Michael, smiling excitedly.

"Whoa, is that where we're doin' it?" Kyle asked Tess, gesturing towards the car.

"Hopefully," she replied. "We have to win it first."

"And to do that, you have to beat me," Maria said. "And Michael. Hey, Michael."

"Hey." He bent forward and gave her a distracted kiss on the cheek as he looked over the car. "I'm confused," he said, wondering when the dressing room scenario would come into play. "What is this?"

"KSFR's third annual Drive-Away-a-Winner contest," she replied, pointing out the banner above the car. "See? A brand new Lincoln MKZ. Yea radio."

"Huh." It didn't sound like a bad deal, take part in a little contest, win a car. "You're gonna do it?"

"Yep," Maria chirped. "And so is Tess and so is Kyle and so are you." She handed him a form to fill out, and Tess handed Kyle one as well.

"What am I fillin' out here?" Michael asked as he wrote in his name.

"Standard participation agreement. So you can participate."

"What're the rules?" Kyle asked, sloppily filling out his. "I wanna get my game face on."

Maria raised a skeptical eyebrow. "You have a game-face?"

"Oh, yeah," he said, "and it's sexy."

Tess giggled, squeezing his arm gently, and explained, "You have to touch any part of the car with one hand, and you can't lift that hand up or you're out. And if any other part of your body touches the car, you're out. You have to be the last one left standing to win. It's like Survivor without the island."

"Apparently last year it lasted twenty-four hours," Maria said.

Upon hearing that, Michael stopped filling out the form and gave her a look. He wouldn't mind a new car, but he didn't want to stand there for twenty-four hours or more.

"Oh, come on," she urged, "it'll be fun. We can all do it together."

"Oh, no," Kyle said. "No. I know orgies among friends were all the rage in the seventies, but this is the new millennium now. Times have changed."

Maria rolled her eyes exaggeratedly. "We can all do the competition together, Kyle."

"Oh." He returned to filling out his form and said, "That makes much more sense that way."

"What happens if one of us wins it?" Michael asked. "We take turns with it Monday through Thursday, group joyrides on the weekends?"

"No, whoever wins it gets it and that's that," Maria decided. "If one of you wins it, you can haul me around."

"Same goes for you, Maria," Tess said. "Oh, I think they're getting ready to start. Come on, guys."

Michael was just finishing filling out his participation form as they neared the platform. Maria and Tess brought him and Kyle up to the DJs and Tess laid on the charm. "Um, excuse me, Mr. DJ, sir," she said, "can these guys participate? I know there aren't a lot of spots left, but they won't take up too much room."

The main DJ smiled at her and said, "Sure thing, sweetheart," accepting both of their forms.

"What, sweetheart?" Kyle spat as Tess pulled him up onto the platform. "Nice try, buddy. She's sweet on my heart. And my body."

"Kyle, focus," Tess said.

"Right."

The four of them stepped up onto the rotating platform-luckily it wasn't rotating too fast-and took their places on the left-hand side of the car. Michael placed his left hand on the driver's side window. Maria faced him and placed her hand next to his. Kyle stood with his back to Maria, his hand on the backseat window, and Tess stood in front of him, her back to him as well.

"This is DJ Reiko broadcasting live from KSFR's third annual Drive-Away-a-Winner competition. We've got thirty-two contestants here, all vying for this brand new Lincoln MKZ. I'm tellin' you people, I'm psyched about this. We've had some real great competitions in the past. Personally, though, my favorite part's always seein' who drops out first. Talk about humiliation."

Maria grunted and said, "That'll be you, Kyle."

"No way," he said. "I'm in it for the long haul."

"Looks like everyone's got a hand on the car," DJ Reiko said, "so that means the competition is officially on."

Three seconds hadn't ticked by before Kyle lifted up his hand to scratch his eyebrow.

"Oh, and you're out!" the DJ exclaimed. "Wow, we've got our first casualty already, folks. That might be a new record low for this competition."

Michael couldn't help but laugh a little.

"Kyle?" Tess said, glancing back over her shoulder.

"I knew it," Maria said, snickering.

Kyle threw his hands up in the air, clearly not in it for the long haul anymore, and muttered, "Son of a bitch."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Maria lost track of time. She wasn't sure how long she'd been standing on that rotating platform with her hand on the car. All she was sure of was that people kept dropping out gradually, either due to lack of will to proceed or an involuntary mistake. She could barely contain her excitement every time the competition dwindled. All they had to do was keep dwindling.

Kyle sat on the floor near the platform, offering words of encouragement to his friends-mostly Tess-every time they came by on the platform. "Hang in there, Tess," he said.

Tess groaned, and Maria looked back over her shoulder at her. She was holding one leg up the way a flamingo did when it slept. Not good, Maria thought. She wanted Tess to drop out eventually, but not yet.

"Oh, my feet are killing me," Tess mumbled in discomfort. "These shoes . . ."

"Want me to take them off for you?" Kyle asked, approaching the platform. The DJ got in his way, though, putting an arm out to stop him. Kyle backed away and said, "Or not."

"Sorry, we can't have anyone interfering," the DJ said.

The skinny, pimply guy named Bobby standing on the other side of the car with his hand on the hood grunted and said, "Looks like that little girl needs assistance just to stay in the game."

Maria rolled her eyes at him. They had all gone around and introduced themselves towards the beginning of the competition, just because they'd been bored. Bobby had seemed cool at first. Flamboyantly gay and effeminate . . . like Marty. At first. But then he started getting mean. It quickly became apparent that he wasn't adorably, loveably gay. He was bitchily, annoyingly gay.

"Shut up, Barney," Tess snapped.

"It's Bobby, bitch."

"Whatever."

Maria took a look at Michael. He looked strong, ready to hang in there with her. He smiled at her, one of those adorable smiles that always made her melt, and she looked away so she wouldn't get distracted.

"Two hours, guys," DJ Reiko announced. "You've been hanging in there for two hours. Eighteen of you left."

"Droppin' like flies, baby," Bobby remarked smugly.

"This guy is so annoying," Maria said quietly to Michael. He nodded in agreement.

A few moments later, Maria heard a sort of trickling sound, almost sounded like running water. When she heard Bobby start to say things like "Oh, yeah," and "That feels better," she figured out it wasn't water so much as urine.

"Ew," the girl standing next to him said. "Did you just piss yourself?"

He shrugged uncaringly. "Desperate times."

The girl made a face of disgust, shook her head, and lifted up her hand from the car, practically running out of there.

"Seventeen left," the DJ said. "Urination could be a good strategy."

"Ew," Maria said, "that's gonna start to stink." She wasn't going to go that far. Probably. Maybe she would if Michael or Tess did. Although Tess probably wasn't going to last that long. "How you doing, Tess?"

"Not good," Tess admitted. "Why on earth did I wear three-inch heels to the mall? My feet hurt before we started this thing."

"What about you?" Maria asked Michael.

He nodded confidently. "I'm solid."

"But not solid enough," Bobby was quick to add. "No way does he have the stamina to outlast me."

"Hey, Mr. Soils Himself, I'll have you know, he has tons of stamina," Maria growled competitively. "And if I don't win this car, he's going to. The only thing you're gonna win is least popular."

Michael stared at her for a moment without saying anything, then smiled and said, "You are so hot right now."

"Hey, keep your focus, man," Kyle said as the platform rotated around to where he was sitting again. "Don't get distracted like I did."

"Right, I'm focused," Michael said.

"Me, too." Maria smiled at her boyfriend. If they won this car, they would have to christen the backseat immediately.

"Oh, you two," Bobby said. "Your hormones will be your undoing. You see, I don't have to worry about that. There aren't any other gay men here."

And that was when a very good idea occurred to Maria. If Bobby was anything like her-or even Michael-sex could do him in. She motioned with her free hand for Kyle to approach the platform and said quietly, "Kyle, come here."

He walked up to the platform, staying far enough away so that the DJ wouldn't stop him this time.

"Call Marty," she told him.

He nodded in understanding and took out his phone and dialed.

Maria shrugged and said to Michael, "If you can't play nice, you gotta fight dirty."

"You can definitely be dirty," Michael said, grinning.

"Damn straight."

"Alright," DJ Reiko said, speaking into his microphone again. "Here's a little incentive to drop out. And I'm not gonna lie, I'm jealous. The next person to go is gonna win these two tickets to see Britney Spears live in concert in Houston."

"Oh my god," Tess gasped immediately.

"Mommy," Kyle whimpered, closing his phone just as Marty picked up.

"Tess, don't give in," Maria said. "You don't need those concert tickets. Michael gave us some for Christmas, remember?"

"I know, but I could use these tickets with Kyle."

"Yes, please," Kyle squeaked.

"And if that wasn't enough," the DJ continued, "you'll also have backstage passes to meet the pop princess herself."

"I'm so there!" Tess shouted victoriously, throwing both hands straight up in the air.

"Yes!" Kyle exclaimed, leaping up onto the platform even though he wasn't supposed to so that he could hug her.

Maria sighed disappointedly. But she should've known nothing could get between Tess and Britney.

"Well, well, well," Bobby said, smirking, "another bitch bites the dust."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Maria had to go to the bathroom so bad, but she refused to stoop to the low that Bobby had. No, she would just hold it. As long as she had to. Hopefully not much longer. She and Michael now made up fifty percent of the competition. Bobby unfortunately was still holding his own twenty-five percent.

"We shouldn't have faced each other," Maria said to Michael.

"Why not?"

"Because." She looked him up and down, and her body ached for him, to be lying in bed with him instead of standing on that endlessly rotating platform. "I so wanna get on you right now."

Temptation flared up in his eyes. "Don't say that."

"Why not?"

"'Cause, we gotta stay focused. We're down to the final four. We gotta beat that kid."

"Seriously," she agreed. She looked down at Kyle as they rotated past him and asked, "Where's Marty?"

"He said he'd be on his way," Kyle replied. He and Tess were sitting together, practically falling asleep. "Although that was five hours ago."

Maria sighed impatiently. The competition was wearing on her. She needed help.

"Dammit," a girl named Valerie cursed suddenly. She'd been the last one standing down by the trunk of the car. Maria didn't see the mistake she made, but it didn't matter. She was out now.

"Oh, and just like that, we're down to three," DJ Reiko said, yawning. Clearly he wanted somebody to just win the damn car already.

"Oh, good try, Valerie," Maria said as the girl hopped down off the platform. She looked at Michael and squealed excitedly. "Sweetness. We've totally got this. You and me against this guy? He doesn't stand a chance."

"I heard that, you bitch," Bobby snapped.

"We have amazing teamwork," Maria bragged. "We should go on The Amazing Race."

"That's an exhausting show," Tess informed her. "You guys wouldn't even have time to have sex."

"Oh, we'd make time."

"It's high-stress," Kyle added. "You wouldn't even wanna do it."

Maria rolled her eyes. "Fine, Survivor then. I heard they supply the castaways with tampons and condoms." She smiled. "That's all you really need."

"Yeah, who needs food when you got those bare essentials?" Michael joked.

She laughed.

"Hey, hoes!" Marty exclaimed suddenly, making his entrance known. Maria felt relief surge through her when she saw him. "Sorry I'm late," he apologized. "I was in the middle of a sack session. You know how long Francis and I spend on foreplay."

Bobby's mouth gaped. "Martin?"

"Bobby?" Marty made a face. "Oh, fantastic."

"They know each other?" Michael whispered.

Maria nodded. "Marty knows every gay guy in the state."

"My god, how long has it been?" Bobby said, clearly distracted but not distracted enough to take his hand off the car. "Three years? Four years?"

"Two years," Marty corrected. "Not long enough."

"It feels like a lifetime," Bobby went on. "I never forgot your face."

"Funny, I forgot yours." Marty waved him off and skipped around the platform to the other side of the car where Michael and Maria were standing. "Hey, lovebirds," he said, walking along with them as they rotated. "Whatcha doin'? Fondling a car?"

"We're actually trying to win the car," Maria explained, giving him a pleading look. "Help."

Marty nodded in understanding. "Oh. Gotcha." He strolled back around to Bobby's side of the car again and said, "You know, Hot Stuff, to be honest, I never really forgot your . . . nose."

Maria had to stifle her laughter.

"And you have perfect lower ears," Bobby raved.

Marty nodded with a serious expression on his face when he agreed, "I've often thought so."

Michael looked away, starting to laugh as well.

"Now what do you say you forfeit this little car thing to my sister and her Big Boy, and we go have some nice, long, sexy reconciliation sex?" Marty proposed. "Hmm?"

"Well . . ." Bobby smiled anticipatorily, blushed, and hopped down off the platform.

"Oh, yea!" Maria exclaimed, jumping up and down, still leaving her hand on the car. "Yea, Michael, we did it! Woo-hoo-hoo!" She couldn't stop smiling. "Thank you, Marty."

"Glad I could be of assistance."

Bobby gave him a questioning look. "Martin?"

"You know I was just kidding, about the sex, right?" Marty shrugged and skipped off. "Toodles."

"And after ten hard-fought hours, we're down to the final two," DJ Reiko said. "Thank God. It's going faster than last year."

As Bobby sulked away from the platform, Maria couldn't contain her glee. "Oh, this is so great," she said. "Okay, so . . . give up, Michael."

"What, give up?" he echoed questioningly. "Why should I be the one to give up?"

"So I can win."

"But what if I wanna win?"

She laughed a little, confused. Michael always let her get her way. It was how their relationship worked, and it worked very well. "Well, I was here first," she reasoned. "You wouldn't even be here if I hadn't called you. Besides, you won the missionary bet."

"Hey, guys, relax," Kyle said as he and Tess rose to their feet. "It doesn't really matter, does it? One of these days you'll be married, and then you'll each get half."

"Let's go, Kyle," Tess said. "The mall's gonna close soon, and I wanna get home so we can have kinky, funky fun."

"Ooh." Kyle grinned goofily and waved at Michael and Maria as he and Tess headed out.

Maria groaned impatiently and said, "You don't even need a new car."

"Neither do you," Michael pointed out.

"I just wanna win."

"Well, then, you're gonna have to beat me."

"Dammit, Michael . . ." She shook her head, hating (and sort of loving) that he picked the most inconvenient times to be competitive. First prolonging sex, now prolonging the car competition . . . she needed to find a way to win. Again.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Michael." Eleven hours. Eleven hours had passed. The mall was technically closed now, but the competition continued. "Michael."

He wouldn't even look at her. He had turned to face the car now and wasn't even glancing in her direction.

"Come on, Michael, please," she begged. Her bladder was about to burst. She was going to do something very Bobby-ish and therefore unattractive if he didn't give in soon. "If you let me win, I'll reward you."

"You'll reward me no matter what," he mumbled, still not looking at her.

"Are you saying I'm easy?"

"I'm saying you like me, Maria."

"Not right now." She sighed impatiently and glanced back over her shoulder at the DJ and everyone else running the competition. They all looked bored to tears, like they couldn't wait for the damn thing to be over with.

"That's it," she decided. "You've made me do it."

Finally, he looked up at her again. "Do what?"

She smirked and reached down with her free hand to unbutton her jeans. His eyes immediately followed her hand, and he stared as she unzipped her jeans and began to shove them down her hips. It was hard to do with one hand, took her awhile. It wasn't graceful, but she had no doubt it was arousing. Michael's eyes grew wide and the DJ Reiko and his friends all seemed to perk up a bit.

"Well, now," one of them said, "this just got interesting."

With a sort of awkward determination, Maria urged her jeans down her legs to pool at her feet. She kicked off her sandals then stepped out of her jeans, kicking them off the platform. She was wearing a thong and was well aware that she was mooning DJ Reiko and everyone behind her. Didn't matter. This would work. It had to work. It was kind of like the carwash fantasy. Michael loved the carwash fantasy.

Still making sure to keep one hand on the car, she bent her left arm inward and tucked her hand into her sleeve. She brought her left arm down and out the side, then pulled the shirt over her head. She pushed it over to her dangle on her right arm and stood before Michael in nothing but her bra and underwear. He stared in astonishment, then turned to face the car again. She didn't say anything. She figured it was sexier if she didn't.

He kept his eyes glued on the car for a minute or so. He moved in close to the vehicle as if to dissuade himself from moving any closer to her, and she just waited. Only a matter of time, only a matter of time . . .

She paid special attention to his groin area. He got hard pretty fast, and since he was wearing sweatpants, it was pretty damn noticeable. The minute his manhood was erect enough to brush against the car, she shouted, "His penis touched the car!" knowing that she had won.

"What? No. No," he said, looking down at his erection. "Damn."

"I win," she sang. "I win. I win, I win, I win." She still wasn't going to lift her hand up until he did, though. Just in case.

"Eleven hours and we've got a winner," DJ Reiko said. "Innovative strategy, definitely one of the best I've seen. Kudos to you, thong lady."

Maria smiled proudly, and Michael reluctantly lifted up his hand.

"Yea!" she exclaimed, jumping up and down, throwing her arms all about. "I won a new car! I won a new car!"

"Congratulations," Michael said. "I gotta pee."

"Me, too." She grabbed all her clothes and they rushed off to the bathrooms. A few minutes later, they returned. She had put her clothes back on, but now that the competition was over, she felt like taking them off.

DJ Reiko came up to her and said, "We're here with our winner . . ."

"Maria DeLuca," she filled in as he thrust the microphone under her mouth.

"Maria DeLuca, tell me, how's it feel to drive-away-a-winner in a brand new Lincoln MKZ?"

"It feels amazing," she said, locking eyes with Michael. She knew of something else that would feel amazing, too.

"Did you think you could really pull this off? You ever have any doubts?"

She kept gazing at Michael, her body aching for his. There would be paperwork to fill out, sure, and she probably wouldn't actually get to drive that car for a couple of weeks at least, but it was hers now. And she wanted to make it theirs.

The DJ looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to answer. "Maria?"

She grabbed Michael by the shirt collar and yanked him back up onto the platform with her. She opened the door to the backseat of the car, and climbed in, pulling him in with her. He slammed the door shut and immediately got to work pulling her shirt upward.

"Mmm, I like you again," she told him in between wild kisses.

DJ Reiko tapped on the window and said, "Maria?"

She leaned forward into the front seat and pushed down on the horn, honking it loudly. That was a good enough response.

"Wait, we're not actually gonna do it here, are we?" Michael asked as she reached down to undo his jeans. "They're all watching us."

"It's okay," she assured him. "The windows are already getting foggy."

"I can't believe I'm doing this." He grinned and kissed her. She had to admit, she felt pretty wonderful. A new car and great sex? Not bad for a day's work.








TBC . . .

-April