Chapter 44: Lilly

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A wave of smoke washed over Max as he entered the club. The smell of alcohol mixed with perfume assaulted his nose and he grimaced. He shoved his way through the forest of bodies making his way to the bar.


Scantily clad girls flowed with the music using their bodies as bait for hormonally driven males, and the young men in the crowd scanned the girls, trying to choose the best looking one who would give them any attention.

Max snickered to himself.

/Armatures/, he thought.


Through the smoke he spotted Tabitha sitting at the bar. Her cheeks swelled as she smiled at the bar tender and ran her finger around the rim of her bubbly drink. Max walked through the smoke and dancers and slid onto the bar stool beside her.


"There you are," Tabitha said. "I thought you'd gotten into and accident or something."


Max ordered a drink and then turned to her. "Must not have been too worried," he said. "You seem to be enjoying yourself."


She brought the glass to her red lips and the sparkling liquid disappeared. The soft light made her tan skin glow and her eyes sparkle. Max almost wished that he had asked Tabitha to come over but the mystery of Lilly tickled his brain.


"So," Max said when Tabitha made no move to answer him. "Where is this mystery girl?"


The two blue diamonds scanned the dance floor. "When you didn't show up at seven thirty she decided to go dance-oh there she is!"


Max followed the direction of Tabitha's red nail. There, in the middle of the dance floor, surrounded by men, danced the mystery girl. Her blond hair slapped her back as she moved with the music, and her tan skin sparkled when the lights flashed over it. She danced over to one of the guys in her circle and for a moment danced hip to hip with him.
Her lips neared his but then she spun away as if he had simply loaned her some change.


A grin stretched Max's lips. I picked a good day to be bored, he thought. Tabby was right; Lilly looks way better than she does.


"Don't drool on the floor Maxi," Tabitha said. She popped the back of her hand under his chin. "So, you ready to meet her?"


"Sure, I guess so," Max said.


"Let's go cowboy."


They weaved their way through the crowd. Every once in a while girls would glide up close to Max flashing smiles at him that most guys would have gladly followed, but Max had a destination, Max had a mystery. Lilly was set off. Lilly looked unattainable. Max liked that.


When they reached the circle of men Max and Tabitha pushed their way through, without any qualms. When the guys saw the size of Max's muscles they did not even try to pick a fight. Tabitha grabbed Lilly's arm.


"Hey Lil' this is my friend Max I was telling you about," she yelled.


The whole world stopped for Max as the pink lips parted into a smile.


"Hey cowboy," she said taking the hat off his head.


Max grinned a crooked grin and grabbed her hand as she spun away. He pulled her back in and flipped his hat off her head with a flick of his finger. It came to rest on his own and he whispered in her ear, "Wearing the hat is a privilege." He spun her out again.


She moved closer to him with her arms raised over her head, her hips swinging. Her shirt came up and he noticed a belly button ring winking at him. For a moment he worried that Tabitha was left out some where in the crowd, but then he caught sight of her a few feet away dancing with the guy Lilly had rejected earlier.


Lilly stole back his attention as she slid her hands up his chest and then around his neck. "So, how does one earn the privilege of wearing the hat?" She asked.


He slid his hands down her sides to her hips. "Hmmm, that's a good question." He took her hands and twisted her around so she danced with her back against him. "It's a long and rigorous process." Lilly spun out and he pulled her back in, this time closer. "You would have to be judged very strictly."


"Oh really," Lilly said gliding a long nail back and forth across his throat. "What would I be judged on?"


Max's eyes scanned her body. "Well, let's be honest; appearance is important. Of course, the skin has to be firm, and smooth, and soft."


Lilly smiled and then pushed him away. "You're qualifications are too high for me cowboy." She glided past him, grabbed his hat, and danced to the bar.


Max raised his eyebrows. Not many girls ever made him run after them, and the few that did never intrigued him as much as she did. He followed her and slid into the stool next to her. When he reached for his hat she flicked it off and caught it behind her back. She waved over the bar tender. With a smile that would have made a priest stumble she ordered a Dubena with a twist. She ignored Max until the bar tender slid the drink before her.


"Umm, can I have a straw?" She asked the bartender.


His eyebrows came together in confusion but he reached down and dropped a red straw in her glass. Lilly leaned over the bar and holding the straw with two fingers downed half the glass.


She then turned back to Max. "You want your hat back cowboy?"


Max pushed his bottom lip out. "Yes," he whined.

"You do? Well come and get it."


Max eyed her for a moment, but then smiled. He slid off his bar stool and reached behind her for his hat. In one swift movement she plopped the hat on his head, brushed a kiss against his lips and disappeared into the crowd.

For a moment Max stood stunned.

/This is new/, he thought.

He licked his lips and smiled.

/Kiwi mango, very sexy./


Again he followed her into the crowd, but then stopped dead in his tracks. In the middle of the dance floor, Lilly danced hip to hip with Pietro Maximoff. They danced so close together Max was surprised that either of them could breathe. Then, Lilly sent a shard of ice through Max's heart, her tongue slid out of her mouth and she licked Pietro's ear.

Max's eyes nearly left his skull.


He felt a hand on his shoulder and new by the smell of Chanel perfume that it was Tabitha. "So, what do you think?"


"She's dancing with Pietro Maximoff."


"I take it you like her," Tabitha said. "I did well."


"Like isn't exactly the word I would have picked," Max said. "I want her, there's a difference."


Max walked over to the couple and danced up behind her. He leaned forward and whispered in her ear. "I'm through playing your games. I'm leaving. If you want to come follow me."


Lilly brushed Pietro on the nose and followed Max.

Later…

When they reached the hotel the temperature around them had gone up about twenty degrees. Max and Lilly nearly broke the coffee table as they entered the room. They fell onto the bed and Max rolled on top.


Lilly laughed and flipped him over, "I don't think so cowboy." Before Max even knew what was happening she had both their belts ripped off and his hands tied to the railing of the bed.

When she was done she sighed and sat upright, still straddling his waste.


"Uh, Lilly," Max said. "I'm not too sure I'm into this kind of thing. I kind of like being on top."


Lilly unbuttoned his shirt, licked up his chest, brushed her lips against his then rolled off the bed. "Sorry, cowboy. No pony rides for you tonight." The hotel door shut with a bang.


"Wait," Max yelled. "Lilly? Lilly? Come on Lilly! This isn't funny. Tabitha, is this some sort of joke? Lilly? Lilly?"