I shift the bag on my shoulder and wink at him. "You did say I had a murderous vibe. Is it out of the realm of possibility for me to think that maybe I started to wear off on you?"
That makes him chuckle as he guides me out of my office, flicking off the light and closing the door behind us. "I guess not. But no, I did not kidnap Howard. I called my mother for help."
My feet stall out, stopping any further movement down the hallway. "Max… we said we wouldn’t let her meddle." My eyes widen to the point of watering. "I love Mabel, cherish her even. But we both know she’s like a hound on the hunt when she smells gossip in the air." He runs his hand down my arm in soothing strokes, guilt wrinkling his brows. "I promised Howie. No meddling from anyone. Ollie promised, too."
"I know, Sade. But this is nuts. He can’t stay with us forever. It’s cramping our—"
"Hey, you two heading out?" Levi swaggers down the hall toward us, probably going to grab Alex from her office. "Great job today, Max. Thanks for falling for him, Sadie. We’d be lost without him."
I smile at Levi, and Max’s cheeks turn an obnoxious shade of red. I can’t tell if it’s from the compliment or the fact that he was about to tell me how having a houseguest has forced us to be more creative with our sex life. I’d wager it’s the latter since Levi has made a habit of thanking me nearly every day in some form or fashion.
"You’re welcome. And yeah… back to Mage Hollow but just for the weekend. If you need anything, please call me."
Levi nods. "I won’t. Have fun." With that, he continues past us, and we pick up the pace toward the parking lot.
My mind spins, a rush of racing thoughts thanks to my ADHD medication wearing off and Max’s confession. Mabel can’t force Howie to make an appearance at a gender reveal party anymore than I can convince him that maybe Ariella moving on is forthe best—that someone more willing to give him what he needs is bound to come along. But that doesn’t mean she won’t try. Between watching the girl he loves go on dates and our uncle Lonnie deciding he's going to retire after Thanksgiving, my cousin needs a break. His whole life is one big question mark—I get it, as I was there not so long ago myself.
We walk silently out of the arena and toward Max’s truck. He opens the door, hoisting me in per usual, then hops in the driver’s seat.
"Sade, she’s not going to do anything crazy."
His attempt at reassuring me falls flat. I know she always means well. But the last time she got involved, we ended up with half the town of Mage Hollow standing in our apartment. The group of them gave us advice about everything from where to put the end table lamps to Beatrice Bushnell listing the reasons we shouldn’t be sharing the master in our tiny two-bedroom. The woman doesn’t even drive, yet she found a way to get thirty miles down the road to Golden City, climb four sets of stairs, and root through nine boxes all in the name of shaming us forliving in sin. That has Mabel written all over it.
"All I’m saying is… if she does, you’re taking the fall for it." I sink into my seat and roll my head so I can stare at the utter work of perfection he is.
"I wouldn’t have it any other way, Sade." Max leans to the side, eyes still trained on the road as he kisses me briefly. "I love you."
"I love you too, Max."
Max
"Benny…" Sadie grumbles from beside me, her words trailing off as she pulls a pillow over her head and points her finger at the beagle in question. With sleepy eyes, I watch as Benny leaps on top of her, licking at her arms and nuzzling his head under the pillow to get to her face.
My dog—who becameourdog the first day he met her at the dog park—could give a rat’s ass about me at this point. It’s Sadie who he goes to for his morning walk, every time he wants his bowl refilled, and for all the puppy snuggles.
"I can feel you smiling over there." She removes the pillow, propping herself further up on the pillows while glaring at me. "If your auntLenorahadn’t insisted on opening that last bottle of wine, I’d willingly take you out, sweet baby." She strokes Benny’s head and kisses his nose. "But it's your dad's turn since he failed to tell me his sister’s government nameandallowed me to drink a third glass of red."
The glare is back, pointed at me, but this time with a hint of amusement in it.
I hold up my hands in surrender. "Literally no one calls her that. She’s been Nora in this family forever. There’s only ever been one guy…"
"One guy, what?"
"One guy who called her…"Fuck, what did he call her?
I wrack my mind—fucking memory loss. Was it Nori? No, that doesn’t feel right. It was something with theLe.
"I’m on the edge of my seat here. What did he call her, and why is this relevant?" She rolls her eyes and flips her hair over her shoulder.
Reaching over, I scoop Sadie into my arms, tickling her as I blow a raspberry on her bare chest. "Give me a second. It’s relevant because it’s her name."
The door to my childhood bedroom bursts open, followed by a shriek, then laughter. "Jesus, get a room, you two. My headhurts too much for boobs at seven in the morning, which is precisely the time I was instructed to come in here." Nora throws something and quickly leaves the room as an envelope lands on the bed.
Sadie and I exchange looks but quickly fall into laughter. She picks up the envelope, turning it over in her hand. "How are we getting mail here?"
"Lenny! He called her Lenny. My mom hated it, but she liked the guy anyway."
Sadie doesn’t respond to my outburst. Instead, she slips her finger under the flap of the envelope and opens it. My heart beats wildly in anticipation of her surprise. We might be in town for my brother’s party, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have a few tricks up my sleeve.
