Chapter 25
Chapter Twenty-Five
CARI
Max shows up right on time again, outside my apartment with another bouquet of flowers and her camera around her neck.
I run the roses upstairs, adding them to the vase with the others for now.
Max is dressed in all black, her usual color, but she’s donning a dark green flannel over it.
Despite it being March, it’s a randomly hot day, and we’re going to soak in as much sun as possible.
I’m wearing the tiniest pink romper I could scrounge up, knowing I would probably be sweating the second I stepped into the sun.
“You look beautiful.” Max smiles as I step outside.
“Thanks.” I blush.
Her praise catches me by surprise. It might be the first time she’s ever complimented me while I am still wearing clothes. Maybe the first time it wasn’t immediately followed by ‘good girl’. The nerves I’m feeling flutter to the surface.
“I thought we’d eat in the park if that’s okay? I sort of cheated and asked River what you like to eat,” Max says, holding up a bag of takeout. I sort of hate that she didn’t know what I liked without asking, but I choose to focus on the fact that she asked River at all.
“That sounds good.” I nod.
My apartment is a short walk uptown to Central Park. Through the hordes of tourists on a Saturday morning, we make it to the edge of the park.
Max surprises me by taking my hand. Her long fingertips delicately hold onto my manicured hand.
I blush, looking toward her, and I realize she’s blushing too.
Is it possible she’s feeling as nervous as I am?
I had thought she was always too cool for that.
But it seems like I am finally breaking down those walls she always had.
Her cheeks are a rosy pink I’ve never seen before. Something I hope to see more of.
“You’re quiet today,” Max muses.
“Just taking the day in,” I say softly.
“How was work yesterday?” Max asks.
“Good.” I go into detail about the day. Explaining how I had a meeting with another brand for a collaboration and had to visit four fabric stores before finding enough of the color Ellie was looking for.
And somehow, it was still an amazing day.
It was always an adventure and I never knew what I’d be doing when I went into work.
We walk past the playground and the baseball field which is empty for now.
There are couples holding hands and families looking lost while arguing about which way to go.
There are babies being pushed in strollers by nannies and kids running away from their parents.
But what keeps my focus the most is how Max’s attention doesn’t leave me.
In the past, I’ve had to bother her to get her to listen, paying attention to other women. But she is hanging on my every word, nodding at the right times, and her face changes when I say something surprising. It’s amazing to feel so listened to for the first time from someone other than River.
“Is here okay?” Max asks, nodding toward one of the large rocks. There is a group of teenagers nearby, but otherwise, this spot is secluded. There are a handful of trees creating enough shade for us too.
“Sure.” She helps me climb up the side. It isn’t steep but it’s still sweet.
Max takes a moment, placing down a wrinkled sheet before pulling out some bagels, fruit, and pastries. To top it off she pulls out a bottle of orange juice and some champagne.
“I know I promised you brunch, but I wasn’t sure if you’d like a mimosa or we can just have the juice,” Max offers.
“If I ever turn down a mimosa, please check me for a fever,” I tease.
I take a seat on one side of the spread, and on the other Max sits pouring the orange juice into two small plastic cups. She pops the champagne, the cork going flying, but she manages to find it and tosses it in the bag she has. She pours some and hands me a cup.
“So, tell me something you’ve never told anyone,” I say. It’s something I probably should’ve thought about before asking, but this new Max is making me slightly uneasy.
“You never were someone to ease into things.” Max laughs nervously. “Well, it’s not no one, but it’s only my therapist who knows this. I probably should provide you with some background, though.”
“Okay…” I pick a strawberry, taking a bite while I look at her hesitantly.
“So, I was left at the altar a while ago. It’s part of why I moved to New York with Aspen.
But a few months ago, my ex-fiance was in New York, and I honestly don’t even know why.
She asked to see me, and I finally got to tell her off.
I think it gave me the closure I didn’t think I needed,” Max says before taking a small sip of her mimosa, then glancing my way.
“Wow,” I say quietly.
I was not expecting a confession like that at all.
I thought she was going to tell me something stupid or from, like, college.
I need a moment to process this. Max was going to marry someone!
? Max? Max was left at the altar by this woman, and she wasn’t the one who did the running?
That in itself is a shock. I mean, the queen of no commitment was going to marry someone?
I’m sure my face isn’t hiding my shock because she’s smirking at me while I think. I’m trying to be polite and think about what I say next, but I’m having trouble taking this all in.
“I know, probably explains a lot of my shit, doesn’t it?” Max chuckles.
“Well, yeah,” I mumble.
“Go ahead, ask me anything.”
I have a million questions, a million things I want to ask.
But I don’t. Knowing that the answers won’t change the past, and if anything, it would keep things the same.
It might even make things worse. My time in therapy has taught me that some questions are better left unanswered.
I don’t want to ask Max how I compare to her ex.
If her ex was the reason she didn’t want to be with me in the past. It doesn’t matter.
“I-I’m glad you told me. It helps me understand you more.” I smile and touch her hand, squeezing it lightly.
Max looks at me surprised, raising an eye but not say anything more.
“Now you tell me something no one knows,” Max counters after a bit of silence.
“You know that’s much harder for me, I’ve always been an open book.”
“What if you tell me something you wish people didn’t know?” Max takes a bite of her bagel.
“Hmm, now that’s a tough one…” I pause, taking a large gulp of my mimosa, thinking of my past mistakes. “Maybe, it would be nice if a million people didn’t see my tits when I got drunk and posted them.”
Max coughs, choking on her drink. “Excuse me?”
“Ah, yes, I didn’t think you knew about that,” I admit with a grimace.
“Most definitely not.” She chuckles.
“It was in the midst of my…uh…spiral… shall we call it? I took some half-naked selfies. I was drunk, I think, or maybe high, and posted them. Which is what caused me to lose my account,” I explain.
“Well, shit, it definitely beats mine then. I was going to say the time my jeans ripped during a photoshoot, and I had to do the rest of the shoot with a huge tear,” Max says, and this time I’m the one cracking up.
“Stop, please tell me it was one where you were almost done?” I wince.
“Nope, it was at the very beginning. I played it off, but Aspen was laughing her ass off by the end. And it was summer, so it wasn’t like I had a jacket on or anything to cover it.” Max laughs.
“At least you can joke about it now.”
“For sure, I have to laugh at most of my past. Life’s too serious otherwise.” Max shrugs.
I nod, looking up at the cherry blossom trees nearby.
The petals fall down delicately with the breeze.
It’s just cool enough where I’m the perfect temperature, the sun shining on my face, but the rest of my body is covered by shade from the trees.
Max takes her camera off her neck and holds it up to me.
I start to pose, but stop myself. I know I don’t have to with Max, so I just look at her, smiling and feeling light as she takes my picture.
She moves the camera away, taking some shots of the park and the trees.
“You really should’ve gone into modeling because the camera loves you,” Max says looking through the photos she took. She moves some food out of the way to come closer to me.
“Oh, shush.” I roll my eyes at her.
“I’m serious, you’ve always been too easy to capture.” Max shows me the photos, but I’m looking at her. Her smile, the way she’s talking about me, and the way she’s looking at me with such awe is captivating.
I reach to touch the side of her face, tracing my hand on her sharp jaw.
Her eyes jet to match mine, dark irises looking straight into mine.
I trace my thumb across her chin, and I can hear her breath change.
She looks torn, like she’s not sure if she should kiss me or not.
So this time I take the lead. One kiss wouldn’t kill us.
I lean forward, pressing my glossed lips on her naked ones. She groans lightly, and I giggle. We try again, this time a light kiss on the lips and my stomach ignites.
It’s somehow better than it ever was. Feeling her lips touching mine, her hands running through the curls at the nape of my neck.
I relax, letting her tongue find its way back to mine.
It’s like returning home after a long trip.
These kisses are softer somehow, not an intensity or a need for anything more but both of us enjoying this moment.
I hold my hands on the sides of her face.
When we finally pull back, we’re both smiling.
“That was definitely worth the wait,” Max murmurs quietly. I run my fingers through the tips of her dark hair and rest my forehead against hers.
“Come take a walk with me?” I ask.
We clean up the brunch, tossing the garbage into one bag on the way off the rocks. Max takes my hand and follows my lead through the park. Somehow her hand is just cool enough to keep mine from overheating.
“Do you think I can see you again this week?” Max asks.
“Is this date over?” I ask, stopping to look at her.
“No, I was just thinking about how I’d like to see you again.” Max shrugs.
I bite back what I’m really thinking. Max isn’t just saying she’s enjoying our date; she’s planning ahead to see me again.
The same Max who I used to have to beg for more than an hour’s notice to get attention.
Here she was asking me when I could make time for her.
I mutter a quick response, letting the rest of me spiral in my head. Oh, how things have changed.
One thing is for sure: my therapist was right, and this is definitely a brand new Max. I didn’t know her as well as I knew the other one, but from what I have seen so far, I know I am a fan. She is easy to get to know, fun to kiss, and wants more than just my body.