Page 54 of Four Weddings to Fall in Love
There’s an odd quiver in my stomach.I don’t like feeling so unsure of myself.What if he’s decided I’m not relationship material?I doubt he’d be keen on a friends-with-benefits situation, and if I’m honest, I don’t want that, either—not with him.
He notices that something’s up.“What’s wrong?”
When Max asks a question, it feels like he really wants to know; he doesn’t just want me to brush it off and move on, even if the topic is a bit awkward.
“Do you…do you want to go on another date?”I ask.
“Of course.I’d like to take you out next time, if that’s okay?Maybe next weekend?”
I can’t help grinning.“Yes, that would be great.”
The corners of his lips turn upward.
Huh.This is going remarkably well.Why did I swear off relationships?
As I pour myself some coffee at work on Monday morning, I can’t help recalling the way Max hummed as he made coffee in his kitchen.I smile.
“Whatcha thinking about?”Iris asks, walking over with a smirk on her face.“You look awful happy for this time of the week.Have a good date?”
“You went on adate?”
Suddenly, Tessa is here, too.
“Uh, yeah,” I say.
“With who?”
I didn’t tell Iris last week, but now, it feels hard to keep it to myself.“Max Mok.”
Iris’s eyes widen.
“I knew it!”Tessa says.If we weren’t at the office, she’d probably have an even more effusive response.“You acted like nothing was happening, but Iknewit.”
Iris raises an eyebrow.I bet she has questions, but she won’t ask them in front of Tessa.“So, Max is the guy giving you that mushy expression?”
“Yeah, I guess he is.”
The conversation soon turns to work, but the same cannot be said of my thoughts.Max pops into my mind on a regular basis.I’m not used to mooning over a guy, but here I am.
It’s kind of nice.
When I get back to my apartment on Monday after working out, I head to the washroom, where I strip off my dress and underwear, memories of Max undressing me running through my mind.My skin feels flushed and sensitized.I shiver as I think of the way his gaze raked over me.
After showering, I take his food out of the fridge.He cooked extra on Saturday night and insisted I take it home.I don’t think this is a regular part of a first date.I got the sense that he was trying to take care of me, and I appreciate it.
Before I can put the food in the microwave, my mother calls.
“Wah, did you know about this?”she asks.
I sigh.“Know about what?”How can I answer if I don’t know what you’re talking about?
“Freddie and his girlfriend broke up!I told him to bring her for Thanksgiving—he can’t use the excuse of snowboard season in October—and I’d send money for her ticket.I said I wouldn’t take no for an answer.And he said they’d broken up, but he hadn’t told me yet because he didn’t want to upset me.Do I sound upset?”
I wonder why Freddie decided to end his lie.Perhaps Mom’s insistence that they come for Thanksgiving was starting to scare him.Perhaps he was afraid she’d fly out to B.C.for a visit without warning, just so she could meet this so-called girlfriend.
“How could she do this to him?”Mom wails.
“Are you sure she dumped him, not the other way around?”
