“Just for a little bit,” he said with a wink.
“Why the fuck are you winking at me, bro?”
“I didn’t wink at you, man. It’s more like a wink for the sake of being a wink.” Trevor took a sip of his beer and then said, “Damn, you’re cranky. Seriously, what the hell is wrong with you?”
“Nothing,” I told him. He made a face like he knew that I knew I was full of shit. “Okay, fine. But if I tell you, have to promise not to say anything to Veronica. Or Jack.”
“Why the fuck would I tell Veronica? Or Jack?”
“Because you always tell Veronica every little fucking thing there is to tell her. You’re a unit now, like Jack and Avery. Haven’t you ever noticed whatever you tell him, she ends up finding out about it?” He slowly nodded. “See? If you tell Jack something, you can bet your sweet ass that he’s going to run and tell Avery all about it as soon as he can. So, by the laws of relationship physics, whatever I tell you, I already know that you’re going to go and blab it to Veronica the moment you get a chance.”
“Huh. What about you then?”
“What about me then, what?” I asked. “And who is on first, by the way.”
He raised his beer glass to mine and gave it a little clink. “Good one, bro. But what I meant was, where do you fit into this whole game of telephone?”
Smiling, I said, “That’s the beauty of being single, Trev. I don’t have to fit in to jackshit.”
“Don’t knock it until you try it, Max.” He winked at me again, this time he did it so over the top obvious, that I had to laugh at the big idiot. “Anyway, that kind of brings me to the reason I asked for you to meet me in the first place.”
“I knew there had to be a reason. You never ask me to meet you out of the blue. So what did you do this time? Did you need me to help you grovel like the pansy ass you are for something you did wrong to get in Veronica’s good graces?”
“You’re never going to let me live that down, are you?” he asked.
“Nope.”
There was no way in hell I was ever going to forget Trevor’s stunt to win back Veronica at the beginning of their relationship. He asked me to videotape him groveling on his knees for her to take him back. And I aired it on my then cable access show. It worked, sure, but man oh man did he look like an idiot.
“Of course you’re not. Anyway, I called you here to give you the good news before anyone else. And yes, that includes Jack and Avery.” Trevor smiled and it actually looked the fucker was happy. Like he couldn’t be happier about whatever he was going to tell me if he tried. “Veronica and I are getting married…and having a baby. Not necessarily in that order.”
“Congrats, man!” I leaned in and gave him a bro hug. Patting on the back extra hard when I yelled in the bar, “Holy shit! You’re going to be a dad?!”
Trevor looked genuinely giddy like he was a little kid on Christmas morning waiting to open his presents. I honestly couldn’t remember the last time I had seen him this happy in my entire life. And as cynical and full of shit I was half the time…okay, yeah, most of the time, it gave a person like me a glimmer of hope that there was someone out there for me, too.
“I’m going to be someone’s father, Max. That’s crazy, right?” he asked half serious, half joking.
“It’s crazy, yeah, but kind of awesome, too, bro!” I waved down Pixie, the bartender. She came practically bouncing over to us, just as I expected so I wouldn’t have to wait that long. “Two shots of Jameson, please.”
She poured and served them up in record time. And when she saw that neither of us was going to give her the time of day, she rolled her eyes in frustration and left us alone again.
“Here’s to being an uncle again and to you guys getting married,” I said as I raised my shot glass to his.
Trevor was grinning so wildly that he could have been the Joker’s twin. “Here’s to you being a godfather and the best man at our wedding.”
“Wait, what?! You want me to be the godfather to this kid and the best man at the wedding?! Seriously? You’re not fucking with me right now?!”
He was laughing but I was dead serious. I just automatically figured he would have asked Jack because he was older, they worked together, and he had his life together more than any of us and…I don’t know, just because I would probably pick Jack, too, dammit. He’s the most responsible, the most reliable, and the most knowledgeable about life and shit.
“I’m not fucking with you. The way I see it, if it weren’t for your help, I wouldn’t be here to begin with. And Veronica feels the same way, buddy.”
He raised his shot glass once more in the air with that big beaming smile of his. His happiness was kind of infectious so I raised my shot glass even higher than his. “Here’s to you and Veronica. And may your first child be a masculine child.”
“I knew you would start quoting The Godfather,” he groaned and then took the shot of whiskey with a wince.
“I’m smart! I can handle things! I’m not dumb like everybody says!”
“Okay, I get it. Now please stop with The Godfather quotes.”
“The moment I stop, they pull me back in.” Grinning like the annoying little brother I was, I kicked back the shot of whiskey and slammed the glass onto the bar. “Fine, I’ll take a break on the movie quotes. For now.”
“All right, so I don’t mean to chew and screw. But I have to run. Veronica’s not been feeling too good with the morning sickness and I promised her I would pick her up some concoction of ginger and tofu shit over in Chinatown before heading home. Wish me luck,” he said and went to fish out a couple of bills from his wallet.
“Your money is no good here, Trev. It’s on me.”
He leaned in to give me a bro-hug goodbye and said, “Thanks, Max. Next time it’s on me.”
“Next time, dinner and drinks are on you.”
“You got it. See you soon.”
I tracked the back of Trevor’s head the whole way out of the bar until he disappeared out unto the city streets.
The smile on my face was still planted there thanks to his news. I was genuinely happy for him and Veronica. Along with Jack and Avery, they were the only other couple I knew of that seemed to be made for each other.
Wait a second…made for each other…where had I heard that before?
While I tried to remember where the hell I had heard that phrase recently, the bartender came over and leaned in front of me against the bar on her elbows. I already could tell that she purposely was trying to squeeze her tits together to show off her cleavage. Which, yeah, she had a great rack and I could motorboat her for days if given the chance.
“Are you all alone again, handsome?” Pixie asked.
For a second, I thought, why not? Take her into the backroom or the bathroom and fuck the living daylights out of her. I’d definitely get off, and she might get off if I was in a giving mood. I already knew I wasn’t in any such mood, but whatever. And then just as I was turning the idea over in my mind, that phrase popped in my head again: made for each other. More than that, I finally remembered where I had heard it before: Oliver’s office, and it was in relation to Daphne and me. We were, according to some random viewer, “made for each other.” Which was funny, since at the time Oliver told us that, we both hated each other. Now a few weeks later, that hate seems to have developed into something else between us. And that something else had been driving me nuts lately. Not because Daphne was annoying—because she was, as she always would be if I had to guess. It was because that something else was the attraction I felt for her that I had never felt with any woman before her. That alone should scare the shit out of me. But it didn’t at all. In fact, it made me want to pursue her more than ever. And it was enough for me to look Pixie straight in the eyes and tell her, “Thanks, but no thanks. I’ve got to go see about a girl.”
I threw a few bills on the bar that I knew covered the tab and left Pixie with a nice enough tip. As I walked through the crowd, I was already fishing
my phone out of my pocket before I stepped outside.
Something told me she was still in the office. That something might be because she was a bit of workaholic. I was too, but even I could admit that my work ethic wasn’t anywhere near Daphne’s level. I respected and kind of hated her for it. Either way, I took a chance that she was still within walking distance and not on some subway car halfway to Queens right now.
After I typed my message, I double and triple checked it to make sure it covered all my bases. It couldn’t sound like I was coming off as prick-like or too demanding. At the same time, I had to sound confident. And more than anything, the text needed to convey how much I wanted her for the right reasons without making it seem like I was desperate. After reading it again for what felt like the hundredth time, I pressed send knowing that my text was going to hit all the right buttons with Daphne. Either that, or she was going to hate me just a little bit more than she did yesterday.
After watching and re-watching an early version of last night’s segments edited together perfectly by Adam, I was super exhausted. But then, as I was getting ready to leave the office and head home, Max ended up ruining that. Because the annoyingly gorgeous idiot texted me out of the blue about fifteen minutes ago.
Max: I need to see you. Please tell me you didn’t leave the office yet.
When he left a little early saying something about needing some air, he barely even mumbled good night to Adam or me. So, a text from him asking to meet him was the last thing I expected. I had been staring at my phone ever since…and at his text that I still hadn’t answered.
The logical part of me, was shouting in my head to stay the hell away from Max tonight. But the other part of me that loved the constant push and pull between us, was jumping for joy at the idea of meeting him somewhere that wasn’t work related.
That could be dangerous.
The line between us was drawn in the sand for a reason.
I couldn’t keep pushing my luck by flirting with him like I had been. And I wasn’t doing myself any favors by letting him lead me away earlier today to do God knows what. The scary part was that I wanted him to drag me away and do things to me; things that I’d only read about in books and seen in the movies, things that I had been imagining with Max in detail even before last night’s kiss. Things that those perfectly delectable and lush lips of his would make a whore blush.
Wait, what?!
I wasn’t a whore by any stretch of the imagination. But damn it all to hell if the thoughts and images I was having involving one Max Allen were absolutely decadent and yep, slightly whorish.
But the pushing and pulling of that invisible line drawn in the sand between us was getting worse. And we—I, couldn’t afford to take that risk.
Or could I?
Chewing on my lip, I started to pace in a circle inside the shared cube space like a slightly unhinged person. Sometimes that helped to clear my head; running too. I got that bit of advice from my grandmother. She would catch me deep in thought and worrying like the worry-wart that I was and would tell me to get up off my butt and go outside. According to her, fresh air would help to clear my head and organize my thoughts. Nowadays, I’d be out walking or running at the park by my building before my mind got too crammed with things that I couldn’t make heads or tails of on my own. And she was right. For the most part, after “clearing my head,” I’d feel a million times less stressed about whatever had me worried in the first place. It didn’t always bring me the answers to my problems. But it sure as hell let me see them in clearer light.
About to make my fifth pass around the small space, I asked myself quietly. “What would a sane person do?”
Adam, who was still seated at his cube being all stealth-like, answered me without turning around. “Just admit you like the guy and go.”
“What?!”
The swivel of his chair creaked as it turned ever so slowly all the way around. Adam seemed as uncomfortable and as irritated as possible all at the same time. Taking the signature “Quick Stop” baseball hat off his head, he scratched at his scalp before slapping it back on in frustration. “Look, I don’t know you that well. Hell, I don’t even know Max that well and I’ve been working with him a bit longer than you. But what I do know is that the two of you click. I see it on film and I see it in person.”
“You really think so?” I asked. Then, because I really didn’t want an answer to that question, I plopped back down in my seat as if I had no intention of ever leaving. “See, I’m not so sure about that, Adam. I mean, yeah, of course I’m attracted to Max. Pfft, who wouldn’t be? But we’re always fighting and then making up…and then fighting some more and then making up again…it just keeps going over and over until my brain feels like it might explode. Sometimes, no lie, I want to punch him in the face so hard that I can’t think straight. Other times, I want to kiss him until he can’t breathe. I don’t know, man. It’s really confusing to me, you know?” I took a big gulp of air because I was on a roll talking myself out of whatever I thought I had talked myself into before Adam dished out his advice. “I’m sure you’ve heard us talking and arguing, so I know you know what I’m talking about. And yeah, opposites attract and all that. But we are sooo opposite, it’s not even funny.” Another quick breath. “The guy comes from another world. A super, duper rich world, too. And I’m just this…this…I don’t know, this random woman from Queens who probably made the same amount of money last year that Max made last week sitting around at home doing nothing. How would that even work? He’d be ordering caviar and champagne while I would be ordering croquetas and a Jupina, you know?”
I had run out of steam and was waiting for Adam to answer me, or say something. Anything that would help me to make sense of this thing with Max. His answer was to swivel his squeaky ass chair back around until his back was to me. For a second, I thought that he was just looking something up for me on his computer or something because he started typing away like a madman.
No such luck. I had lost him for good. Served me right for going off on a tangent. But that’s what Max did to my brain sometimes. He turned it into straight up mush, and I became this babbling idiot who second-guessed every look, every smile, every word, every freaking sentence…everything!
Standing up, feeling way more confused and exhausted than before, I hiked my messenger bag over my head in resignation to head home. I wasn’t going to text Max back. I was going to head home and have leftover rice and beans that my abuela had made for dinner last night, which I also missed because I was working late again. With this new job, I found myself working later and later. Yet when I was working two jobs and did the YouTube channel on the side, I was at least home every single night for dinner with my family. I know my abuela would never say anything about how often I’d been missing dinner recently. But she wouldn’t have to because I already felt the guilt all on my own.
After saying goodnight to Adam, I was dragging myself through the half full office until I reached the bank of elevators in the lobby. Absentmindedly, I stood and stared at a set of elevator doors until I heard the ding signaling its arrival at my floor. And when the doors opened, I took a step forward but then jumped back a step in shock. Standing there—more like leaning against the back of the elevator as if he owned the joint, was Max.
“What the hell? How did you get here so fast?”
He tsked and crossed his arms on his chest. “Oh, so you did get my text message and simply chose to ignore it. Real nice, Daphne.”
I still hadn’t boarded the elevator. It was as if my feet were glued to the floor. There was already a tension in the air between us. It felt electric and dangerous. And for a moment I thought I might choose to take the stairs. He was very tempting; I’d give him that.
“Are you getting on?”
“Aren’t you getting off?” I asked.
Max tilted his head to the side and smirked at me. “If you get on this thing, probably.”
“You’re disgusting.” I rolled my eyes at
his cock-sure response even though a part of me found his arrogance more than slightly amusing. Boarding the elevator, I decided to stand as far away as I could from Max. “Whatever, I’m going down.”
“That’s what she said.”
After pressing the button for the lobby, the doors closed and we started our descent. In my head I was already thinking of smart-ass comebacks to say if Max started up again, because sometimes you had to be one step ahead of him. Suddenly, Max reached from behind me and pressed the emergency stop button. My scream of surprise was slightly drowned out by the bright red telephone on the panel that started ringing almost immediately.
“You idiot!” I yelled. “What the hell did you do that for?!”
Max totally ignoring me, reached for the phone. Calmly and completely even keeled, he answered it. “Hey Paulie, it’s me, Max.”
“I can’t believe you just did that! I mean, who the hell stops a goddamn elevator!”
As he spoke to this Paulie person, I kept yelling at him. Max wasn’t paying me one single fuck either. He kept right on calmly talking on the phone with a smug smile like he was catching up with an old friend. And dear Lord above and all the saints and everything in between, my patience with him had reached its limit.
Max hung up the phone with his eyes on me as I started to pace in the enclosed space feeling a little like a caged panther. I had to do something to keep me busy until the elevator started moving again. If not, I was afraid that I would reach up and choke his annoyingly stupid neck my hands.
“Why are you all the way over there?” he asked all playful and light like we weren’t stuck in a freaking elevator. “Come on, you have to admit this is kind of fun, right?”
“No, it’s not!” I took a long calming breath. “I swear to God, Max. It might be in your best interest to just keep your mouth shut until we start moving again. So I’m going to stay over here and mind my business. And you can stay over there and mind yours.”
“You can’t be serious?” he asked.
“Um, yeah, I can be because guess what? I’m totally being serious right now!”
The Better Man (Allen Brothers Series Book 2) Page 14