Total pages in book: 68
Estimated words: 64887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 324(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 324(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
He shakes his head. “No sparks. At least, not on her end.”
I palm my forehead. “Oh, shit. Did you ghost her after you two hooked up, and she’s still pissed about it after all this time?”
Before Max answers, the bartender says, “Drinks, fellas.”
We grab our cups and move a few feet away to continue our conversation.
“I didn’t ghost Marnie,” Max says on an exhale. “We never even got each other’s numbers or last names.”
“Oh. So, why is she pissed? Do you think she’s upset at you for not even wanting her number?”
Max puffs out his cheeks. “No, that’s not it. She’s not pissed at me. Everything’s fine.”
“But you said there’s no spark on her end.”
He pauses. And then, “I lied to you, Gray. When I said I wasn’t interested in seeing her again. The truth is, she blew my mind, and I totally wanted to see her again. In fact, the next morning, I asked her out to dinner, and she said something like, ‘This has been a lot of fun, but let’s not ruin what’s going to be an amazing memory by pretending there’s any real potential here.’”
“Holy shit.”
“Yeah, I was shocked,” Max admits. “I mean, okay, no dinner. Fine. But at the very least, didn’t she want to hook up with me again? The sex was fire! Off-the-charts for both of us. Plus, I’m positive she didn’t wake up and realize she’d been wearing beer goggles, because when we woke up the next morning, she practically attacked me. And the sex was fire again, even when we were both completely sober.”
“Wow.”
Max runs his hand through his hair. Clearly, the dude’s at a loss. “After we had sex in the morning, we started talking about where we should go for breakfast . . . So, I know she was feeling it. Why else would she talk about having breakfast with me?” He shakes his head. “I went into the bathroom to do my thing, while Marnie stayed in bed looking at nearby breakfast places on her phone. And by the time I came out, she was dressed and clearly heading out the door. If I hadn’t come out when I did, I’m positive she would have been gone.”
“Without even saying goodbye?”
Nodding, Max looks over at Marnie’s table, where the women are chatting and drinking. “I asked her what’s wrong and she said something came up. I said no problem, let’s do dinner tonight. And that’s when she said that thing about not ruining a memory.”
“Oof. Brutal.”
“What am I missing? Is she married? While I was in the bathroom, did her husband text that he was home early from a work trip?”
“That can’t be it. Marnie’s been single as long as I’ve known her. She’s always got funny stories about her dating life.”
Max murmurs, “What, then? What the fuck changed?”
I twist my mouth. “Did she maybe have access to your phone while you were in the bathroom? God knows what she might have seen on it, Max.”
Max shakes his head. “I had my phone in the bathroom with me. I’m not an idiot.”
“Is today the first time you’re seeing her since that morning?”
He nods.
“Okay, so pull her aside and ask her what the fuck happened. If it were me, I’d go crazy if I didn’t get some kind of closure.”
Max gazes at Marnie’s table for a long moment, before shaking his head and saying, “Nah. When I first sat down at her table, I was kind of hoping she’d flirt with me. Maybe even make it clear she’s down for another hookup. But nope. She barely looked at me, even when her friends were talking directly to me. So, fuck it. There’s no point in asking her about it. I’m not going to give her the satisfaction. If she’s not feeling it with me, fine. It’s her loss.”
Max’s face doesn’t match his words, I notice. No matter what he’s saying, it’s clear to me Max thinks this situation with Marnie has been his loss.
“I’m sorry, Max. That’s a bummer.”
He shrugs. “Such is life. I mean, it’s not usually my life, but I guess there’s a first for everything.” He says something else, but I’m abruptly too distracted by a figure walking into the party to hear it.
“Motherfucker,” I mutter through clenched teeth. “Andre. He’s crashing my birthday party.” Indeed, the asshole is striding into the back yard like he’s got an engraved invitation in his pocket. And worst of all, he’s heading straight for Selena.
21
GRAYSON
Max follows my gaze to Andre, who’s quickly closing the gap between him and Selena. Clearly, she’s his destination.
“Don’t let him spot me,” Max mutters, stepping behind my back. “I’m supposed to be prepping one of Andre’s cases today.”
My jaw muscles pulse. “He’s not here to crack the whip on a lowly associate, Max. He’s here to ruin my girlfriend’s good time.” Shit. If ever there was a time when the word “girlfriend” felt wholly insufficient, now is that time.