11. Max
11
MAX
“ W hat’s the deal with that dude?” Rafe asked me as we drove to the restaurant.
“What do you mean?” I gripped the wheel a little tighter and glanced his way.
Rafe shrugged and looked out the window. “Just asking.”
I knew Rafe didn’t “just ask” anything. Our conversations rarely ventured into what was going on in my life, so if he was asking, that meant he really wanted to know.
“Theo is a client.”
Rafe laughed. “Yeah right.”
“ What ?” I was confused by the shift in our chat. “Why would you say that?”
He swung his eyes back to me wearing a mischievous grin. “You acted all … I don’t know, weird and fluttery around him.”
My stomach dropped. Was the fact that I found Theo ridiculously attractive that obvious? I tried to maintain some sense of professionalism around the man, especially at his office, but here was my self-involved teen brother calling me on it. If he noticed, then that meant it was practically written on my forehead.
“So that’s it? He’s just a client?” Rafe pushed.
There was no way I could tell him the truth about my arrangement with Theo, that he was paying me to play his girlfriend. I could picture Rafe mentioning it to Mom, who would in turn tell Nick, which would cause him to say something inappropriate about what I was doing and kick off a fight.
“Fine, okay, you got me. We’re … dating.” I had to force myself to say the word because it felt so weird to lie to my brother. But that’s what Theo and I were doing: being dishonest with the people closest to us.
“Cool,” Theo said simply. “You smiled a ton while we were at his office. I sorta like it.”
I frowned in response. I did ? There was nothing really smile-worthy in the brief interaction between the three of us. But again, Rafe wouldn’t say something like that out of nowhere.
“Here we are,” I said, pointing at the full parking lot and happy to drop the subject. “Looks like we’re going to be waiting a bit. Hope you’re not too hungry.”
Rafe smirked at me. “I’m always hungry. You know that.”
I chuckled. “Oh do I. Just be nice, okay?”
“You be nice,” he joked back at me.
I loved it when he dropped the surly fa?ade and had fun with me. I wasn’t sure how the meal was going to go down, but if Rafe kept this lighter attitude up, maybe I wouldn’t have to act as the teen grunt translator the whole time.
Theo was waiting in the crowded lobby with his back to the door when we walked in. Damn he had a great ass. He must not have had other meetings on his calendar because he was in a slim-fitting golf shirt that clung to his upper arms and showed off his sleeve of inkwork. I hoped I’d have time to study the design over lunch, so I could get some insight into him.
“Popular spot,” I said when he spotted us and came over.
“Best lunch deal in town, plus the food is incredible.”
I hid a smile over the fact that the billionaire bothered to notice lunch bargains. But then again, he’d come from humble roots, and that can stick with a person.
“How long is the wait?” I tilted my head toward Rafe, who was already studying the specials on the chalkboard.
“No wait. Rosa is getting my regular table ready.”
I glanced around the small room and saw people who looked like they’d been waiting for ages. Theo seemed to understand my thought process. “I didn’t ask for special treatment. It’s just that I bring them a ton of business by having them cater lunch meetings at my office, so bumping me to the front of the line is how they thank me.”
I nodded as the pretty hostess beckoned us to follow her. I pushed Rafe ahead of me and gave him a look that translated into an order that he needed to at least try to be sociable. He widened his eyes back at me in protest.
The table was right by the open patio doors and gave us the perfect view of the entire restaurant. No surprise that Theo managed to snag the best of the best, even in a little neighborhood joint.
“Rafe, how do you feel about enchiladas?” he asked.
“I feel like I could eat four,” Rafe said, pulling the menu from the clip in the center of the table. “Are they good here?”
“You don’t even know,” Theo said. “Beyond good. But I think one is enough, they’re huge.”
I laughed. “The kid can eat. A budding X Games pro needs to keep his energy up.”
“Oh yeah?” Theo asked. “Which sport?”
“Skateboarding,” he replied, still studying the menu.
“He’s really talented,” I added.
“Huh. I used to board a little back in the day. Then I got older and realized that I like my bones unbroken.”
I rapped the wooden tabletop with my knuckles. “He’s all clear so far.”
We went silent as we figured out what we were going to order, and my stress level ratcheted up. I’d expected the meal to be a little awkward, but it was starting off at level nine. I felt unsure of myself now that I knew Rafe was paying attention to how I acted around Theo. That meant I needed to walk a fine line, trying to look like we were a real couple without overdoing it.
“What are you going to have, T?”
Theo glanced up at me and raised an eyebrow at the impromptu nickname. “Um, I think some guac to start, then the enchilada platter. Do we all like guacamole?”
Theo actually asked our opinion. Quite a difference from our first meal at the Salty Pelican.
Rafe shook his head.
“Okay, how about salsa?”
“That works,” Rafe answered.
Once we’d ordered, Rafe excused himself, no doubt to go outside to check his phone since I always forbid them during meals. I guessed he’d be gone for at least ten minutes. I took advantage of the alone time to fill Theo in on what had gone down in the car.
“I’m trying to keep our arrangement as uncomplicated as possible, like we agreed to, but it turns out Rafe is more perceptive than I expected. He asked about you … about us, so I told him we were dating.”
I studied Theo’s face for any sign of disapproval, but his expression didn’t shift as he shoveled chips into his mouth. “Yeah, that’s fine. We need to be prepared for hiccups like that. Does he usually get protective of you like this with your boyfriends?”
Protective? I hadn’t thought of it that way, but now that Theo had brought it up, it sounded like it fit. I couldn’t help smiling a little, thinking how sweet it was that Rafe was trying to look out for me—in his own surly way, of course.
Then I realized I hadn’t answered Theo’s question. “Oh, um…it hasn’t really come up. I haven’t had many relationships get to the ‘meet the family’ stage.” Theo’s eyebrows shot up, leaving me wondering how he interpreted that. I hurried to move the conversation on. “Anyway, as far as I can tell, he approves.”
Theo smiled back at me. “I’m happy I passed the test. He seems like a good kid.”
Our eyes met and I cursed the shiver that ran up my spine. I needed to keep reminding myself that this was a business deal and nothing more, but sometimes the way Theo looked at me gave me other ideas.
“ Theo !”
A voice rang out from across the room, loud enough that the noise in the place died down for a few seconds.
“Oh no,” he said, closing his eyes.
“What?” I asked, craning my neck to see who’d called him. “Who is that?”
“Shit,” he muttered. “Talk about needing to be prepared. Brace yourself.”
“Theo, honey, what a nice surprise!” A sweet-looking older woman with a blonde bob and gigantic smile swept up to our table and stared at me with an expression that almost looked hungry. “And who is this ?”
Theo cleared his throat and shot me an uncomfortable look. “Hi Mom. Um, I was going to introduce you two at Jess’s engagement party but now is as good a time as any. This is Max. Max, this is my mom, Elena.”
I gulped down my shock. How many more family meetings were going to be thrown at us today? I thought I’d have time to prepare to meet his people, yet here she was, the most important player of all, the reason why we’d entered into this fake relationship. I turned on my smile and got ready for the performance of a lifetime.
“Hi, Mrs. Barnes, it’s so lovely to meet you,” I said, which seemed to snap her out of her trance.
“Oh my goodness, you’re so beautiful ,” Elena said. She took my hand in hers and held on, rubbing the top of it. She glanced at Theo. “Are you two seeing one another? You must be if you’re coming to the party! Oh Theo, she’s wonderful.”
The way she was studying me made me feel like a prized cow at a state fair.
Theo took one look at my expression and did his best to choke back a laugh.
“And you can call me Elena.”
“Why don’t you join us?” I said, looking around so I could pull an extra chair up to the table. Theo coughed and shook his head almost imperceptibly, and I realized I’d made a mistake.
“I wish I could but I’m off to a manicure in a little bit, and my girl Gia is always booked weeks in advance. I can’t miss it, but I have a few minutes to spare.” She dropped into Rafe’s seat and noticed the glass of soda on the table. “Is someone else with you?”
“Max’s brother is here too.”
Elena nearly swooned as she placed her hands over her heart. “A family meal. How precious. And where is he?”
“He excused himself for a few minutes, I think he might be outside on his phone.”
She nodded sagely. “Just like my Theo, aways working.”
I grimaced, realizing she’d assumed Rafe was around my age. I could explain his actual age, but then Elena might wonder why I’d brought my brother along on a lunch date, and I didn’t want to get into the specifics of why it was a bad idea for Rafe to be home right now.
“And what do you do, Max?”
“I’m a photographer.”
Elena clapped her hands and beamed at Theo, almost like he was acing a game show. “How wonderful !”
“Max is very talented. She did the photos for my new marketing campaign and website.”
“May I see?” She held her hand out to me.
I chuckled at the sweet but bossy woman. Now I knew where Theo got that confident, steamroller personality. “Sure, I have a few on my phone.” I scrolled to Theo’s folder and handed my phone to her.
“Oh …” Elena flipped through the images. “These are incredible! It’s a shame Jessica already booked a photographer because you’d be perfect!”
“Thank you, that’s kind of you,” I said. “But I don’t actually do weddings. That’s a special skill.”
“And Mom, Max is going to be a guest at the wedding. I wouldn’t want her working it.”
“Of course, that’s right. You two need to have a chance for dancing and romancing. Maybe you’ll catch the bouquet, Max?”
It hit me that Theo’s Mom was an old-school romantic, which meant we were really going to have to sell our relationship.
“And don’t forget this part,” she continued. She picked up a knife from the table and started tapping Rafe’s glass, the way people did at weddings to prompt the newlyweds to kiss.
“Oh, no, no, that’s for the bride and groom,” I said quickly with a nervous laugh, glancing around the room to see if people were watching.
Elena beamed at us but didn’t stop tapping the glass. “Just pretend. For me. Consider it practice.”
Theo’s expression was completely unreadable. We glanced at one another as the clanging continued and before I could figure out what to do, he leaned over and gently palmed my cheek, drawing me closer to him. I wasn’t sure if Elena stopped tapping or if all of my other senses shut down as Theo pulled me in.
Here we were, in a brightly lit, busy dining room, surrounded by people, and Theo was about to kiss me again. Worst of all, I was so hungry for him that I’d take it.
He pressed his mouth to mine, a gentle ghost of a kiss. When he pulled away, I nearly followed him, desperate for another taste of his soft lips. I blushed when I realized that I probably looked desperate, and in front of his mother!
“Oh, you two,” Elena sighed. “Young love. I wish I could stay with you, but I’m going to be late. Max, you are everything I dreamed of for Theo. It’s wonderful to meet you!”
She gave me a kiss on the cheek, bustled over to hug Theo, then swept out of the room like a retreating hurricane, nearly running into Rafe in the process. I breathed a sigh of relief that I didn’t have to navigate that introduction.
He plopped into his chair then glanced between me and Theo. “What? What did I miss?”
Theo and I glanced at each other with shell-shocked expressions, both looking like we’d just endured a prizefight.