“Max?”
She turned toward the door with a coy smile on her lips. “Yeah, Max. Just a guy I’ve been seeing for a little while.”
“Seeing him? Want to go into detail because I’m getting the impression you’re downplaying something?”
“I’m seeing him in the loosest sense possible.” Kari laughed over her shoulder as she made her way toward the front of the house.
The door opened and closed, and a deep male voice drifted into the kitchen, whetting my curiosity.
Since getting her heart broken by a surfer from Australia, Kari had been a loner. She’d refused even to consider settling down with one man. She operated on the premise of keeping men as close as necessary for maximum sexual pleasure—until said pleasure ran its course. Then she simply found another eager participant, and it never took long for a replacement to show up.
The fact that Max was dropping by and Kari was okay with that spoke volumes. I was a little shocked.
The voices coming down the hallway grew louder, and I ran my fingers through my hair, hoping that I didn’t look as much of a mess as I felt. I patted beneath my eyes, feeling the puffiness beneath my dark green orbs from lack of sleep.
I took a sip of my coffee as Kari appeared in the doorway, a man next to her that I presumed to be Max. I guessed him to be well over six feet, as he towered over Kari. He had a chiseled face, golden tan, and jet-black hair. His eyes were a bright green and they held my gaze.
He quirked a brow, seemingly surprised to see Kari have company.
That makes two of us.
“Jada,” Kari started, her voice shaking ever so slightly, “this is Max. Max, this is my sister, Jada.”
I smiled hesitantly at the man looming large in the doorway. “Hi, Max. It’s nice to meet you.”
“It’s nice to meet you, too.” His voice was smooth, with just a touch of a Southern drawl. It was the type of voice that made women swoon.
“Do you want a drink?” Kari motioned for Max to take a seat at the table.
“No, thanks. I didn’t realize your sister was here already. I can always come back.”
Kari walked around the table, pulled out her chair, and took her seat. “You aren’t interrupting anything. We were just reminiscing a little.”
Max placed his large hands on the back of the wooden chair across from me. He watched my sister intently, his features softening as she fiddled with her cross necklace. He was imposing, and his tall, dark, and mysterious appearance would generally have me on edge. But there was just something about him that put me at ease. It was a complete paradox.
“If y’all are sure. I know you haven’t seen each other in a while.” He looked at Kari and pulled a chair out as she nodded. He sat down and looked at me, tilting his head to the side with a slight smile on his handsome face. “It’s nice to finally meet Kari’s sister.”
“It’s nice to finally meet Kari’s boyfriend.” I pointedly ignored the look Kari gave me and continued watching Max’s reaction.
He seemed entertained by my synopsis of their relationship. “Oh, I am not Kari’s boyfriend.” He glanced at my sister, who was giving me a death stare, his grin growing wider. “Isn’t that right?”
Kari kept her eyes on me, refusing to look at Max.
“Oh, okay. So you’re just friends then. Got it,” I said.
“Nah, I wouldn’t say we were just friends either. That would imply she liked me.” He strummed his fingertips against the table, a smile creeping slowly across his face. “We fuck.”
“Max,” Kari shrieked, her jaw dropping in disbelief. “Seriously?”
Max chuckled and shook his head, amused by her reaction. “Did I misrepresent something, sweetheart?”
“Well, no, but …” Kari looked between us, her face reddening by the second.
“My point. You just want me around to deliver the goods. We may as well call it like it is, right?”
“Okay,” I said with a small laugh. “I think that was more than I needed to know.”
Max and Kari exchanged smiles, and as they seemed to come tosome sort of nonverbal agreement, I felt like I was intruding on a conversation I couldn’t hear.
