Page 61 of Yo Ho Ho
When it didn't hurt anymore to think about Logan.
She had to tell him they couldn't pursue anything. She had to let him walk away. If she wanted any kind of reporting job again, she needed to get Logan out of her life. But the idea of that hurt as much as the idea of her newsroom being quiet and dark now. It was the right thing for her to do, but that didn't mean it was easy.
But when Max thought about it, was it really the right thing to do? Sure, she couldn't be a journalist who mixed up her personal and professional life, but did she really want to be a journalist? The industry was going through a tough time, but it wasn't going to get better anytime soon. She knew about her friends who had tried to go to bat for her, maybe get her a spot in another newsroom or working at a blog like Charlie. All of them had struck out.
She was heartbroken about her job, but she was also heartbroken about Logan. Things had changed between them these past few weeks. It wasn't just about that one night a year ago in Denver. It was about so much more. Even after she had walked out of that locker room, he hadn't really said goodbye. Maybe because he knew he would see her again when he dropped off her gift. Maybe because she knew she wanted to see him again. And she did want to see him again, more than anything. She knew he was probably at Jordan's place for the New Year's party. She wondered what he was doing right now or if he was as miserable as she was.
Although she knew the answer to that. She watched him walk out of her apartment. It took all her strength to stop herself from telling him to come back. All she had to do was tell him not to go, and he wouldn't have opened that door. He would've pulled her close and told her they would figure this out together.
Instead, she was at a bar staring at a nearly full beer that she paid for but didn't even want. What she wanted was Logan.
"Hey, I got more chips." Amanda slid into the chair across from her, dropping the basket between them. "How long have you been drinking that beer?"
Max shrugged. "It's warm so I don't know."
Amanda's face crinkled in disgust and she took a chip from the basket. "So this sucks."
"Yep."
"Jobs are gone, my miserable in-laws are showing up early tomorrow for breakfast, and you never even got to kiss Logan Moore."
Max closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She kissed Logan Moore — a lot — and she liked it. She could be kissing him tonight if she wasn't so messed up.
"What was that?"
Max looked up to see Amanda staring at her. "What was what?"
"That look you just had." Her eyes narrowed. "Did you kiss Logan Moore?"
"Shh!" Max's gaze darted around, making sure no one was paying attention to them. "Don't say that so loud."
Amanda leaned in and whispered, "Holy shit, Maxine. Did you kiss him?"
She ran her fingers through her hair and took another deep breath. "I…" She had kept quiet about this for so long and was so worried about what would happen if anyone knew the truth. But this was Amanda, who wasn't her editor — at least not anymore. Amanda was just a friend now, and it was time Max told her friend the truth.
"I slept with Logan."
"What?" Amanda hissed. "Hold on." She took a big chug from her beer and slammed the glass on the table. "OK, I'm ready."
"Should you have drank that so fast?"
Amanda violently waved her hand in the air. "Evan is over talking to the business guys about innovative marketing or some crap. He's driving me home. So start telling me about this one-night stand with Logan."
"It wasn't a one-night stand."
Amanda took another large swig of her beer dropping the glass on the table. "OK, keep going."
Max took a deep breath and started talking. She told Amanda about that first night in Denver last year. She rehashed the fight she had with Logan in the parking lot and his apology the next night. She even told Amanda about getting drinks with him and then taking him home.
Then she told her about the gifts from the team.
"Barry was there and told me I couldn't take the gifts. You know, corporate policy."
Amanda sadly nodded her head. "That sucks."
"So Logan came by my apartment to give them to me."
Her friend gave her a mischievous grin. "And you had sex with Logan Moore again."
