Page 73 of Can We Skip to the Good Part?
Max’s donation had been a generous one, but she had a similar affinity for Doug’s. They all did. And then with one final conservative smile and nod, she disappeared into the mingling attendees, leaving Ella in a very different state than she’d found her.
She helped the next two customers, attempting to smile and interact, and let them know about all the ways their purchase would contribute to assisting Doug in first cleaning out the store and then slowly inviting contractors in to start the rebuild. She was failing miserably with phrases likeWhat was I saying again?andUm, what I mean is ...infiltrating her speech.
Finally, she tapped Morgan in and stepped back, attempting to reset herself. It was only a moment until Rachel was by her side. “So, that was brutal.”
“What was?”
“Watching the two of you dance around each other.”
Ella closed her eyes, absorbing the information. It still hurt Rachel to see them interact. “I’m really sorry.”
“No. I didn’t mean brutal in that sense.” She shrugged. “More like I don’t want to see you go out of your way to be unhappy. And that’s what staying away from Max is doing to you.”
Ella turned to her, head tilted as she tried to understand. She searched Rachel’s face and saw a newfound softness to her features and what seemed to be the beginnings of a brave smile. “Here’s what I think. You stop circling each other and put us all out of our misery.”
“No. Rachel, if you’re at all?—”
“Did you hear me? Max is standing right over there like a wounded puppy lost on a busy street.” Ella followed her gaze to see Max holding her drink and watching the crowd from the perimeter. “And you’re standing over here like a broken copy of yourself glitching all over the place. I’m certainly no better off for either of those things.”
“I don’t know what the solution is here.”
“I do,” Rachel said quietly. “I’m going to have to put my big girl pants on and remind myself to, every once in a while, think of other people. Girl code is way less important than my best friend’s happiness.” She shrugged with a wry smile. “Now, go talk to Max Wyler before I change my mind and become incredibly selfish again.”
It was a gesture that Ella wasn’t sure she deserved. This new reflective Rachel was a little bit jarring. But when someone extended kindness, it was important to acknowledge it. “I don’t know what to say other than thank you, and are you sure? You’re my friend, and I want you to be comfortable. I want you and me to be okay.”
“Shut up,” she said with a half-smile. “It’s the right thing, and we will be. Go. And then get back to this line already. We need you to close out the night strong.”
An automatic smile appeared on Ella’s face and slowly grew. “I guess I’ll be right back.” She took a few steps into the crowd,then turned back to Rachel, only to receive a dramatic shooing gesture. This felt like the biggest improvise ever, but she surfed her way to Max, arriving behind her.
“Excuse me,” she said, going up on her tiptoes and positioning her mouth close to Max’s ear so she’d hear her over the chatter all around them. Max turned, and her eyebrows rose when she saw Ella there. “I don’t know what your week looks like, but I was hoping we could grab a coffee or a glass of wine. If you have time.”
She watched every muscle in Max’s face relax. A small smile emerged. “If I have time? Of course I have time, but …” She trailed off, and her eyes shifted to where Ella had left Rachel. She was attempting to piece together the series of events.
“Yeah. Rachel and I are working things out. And I want to see you. Very much.”
“Then, yes.”
Ella laughed, feeling lighter, as if she might float away at any moment. “When are you free?”
“Right now. Later tonight. Tomorrow.”
“Oh.” They shared a smile, and a nervous flutter hit her midsection as if she’d swallowed Tinkerbell. She was a teenager all over again. “Well, um, I have the event.”
Max didn’t waver. “I’ll wait. I’ll help clean up. I’ll sit in my car. Whatever you want.”
“Really? You’re willing to wait? Don’t you have work in the morning?” The gesture was a big one.
Max stepped closer, the determination in her eyes bypassing flutter and sending a full-on shiver. “I’ve waited this long. Waiting a few more hours just means I get to want you more. I’ll wait all night.” Her voice was low and quiet. Sexy for days. Ella blinked, but words had fled the scene. She swallowed, rebounding, searching for even ground because she’d almost forgotten the potency of Max’s presence.
“I bet I’m done by 10:30. I just have to offer some instructions to the volunteers from the museum, but with everyone helping, we should have the books packed up in no time.”
Max smiled. “You’re not going to have any books left.”
Ella looked behind her. “I don’t know. We brought so many.”
“There’s an hour left. Just wait.”
Not only was Max correct about every last book leaving the event with a new owner, but their grand total was three times the goal they’d set going into tonight.
