Page 29 of The Sidekick

“What if he thinks I’m trying to seduce you like everyone else?” I whisper with wide, horrified eyes. “I don’t want him thinking I’m in here getting naked and throwing myself at you.”

I quickly turn and open the door as Max groans as if he’s in pain. Too bad if he thinks I’m going to ignore his relationship status and jeopardize it.

“Deal with it,” I shrug haughtily, returning to the frustrating filing cabinet.

He mutters something I don’t catch as I open the first drawer, determined to get back to work.

He doesn’t say anything for a while, and I get into a groove with the music playing softly behind me. As I sing and sway along, I start making a pile of all the misfiled pages I find.

When I glance over, I find him fast asleep with his face turned towards me, and I’m a little tempted to drop something and wake him, but I bite back the urge. I end up lowering my voice so I don’t disturb him instead. Who knows how long he was up last night cleaning? He probably wanted the door shut so Trevor wouldn’t catch him sleeping instead of working.

Which is what I should be doing instead of standing here drooling like a creeper.

By the time I’m done with the horrible filing cabinet, it’s getting late, and people are starting to grumble about being done for the night. I leave the office to see who is left.

Andi spots me and gives me a hesitant smile. “We’re about to head out and eat. Would you like to come?”

“No, thanks,” the words come out before I’ve made a conscious decision, and I immediately want to take them back as her face falls. It isn’t that I’m not willing to go. It’s the fact that the restaurants they go to are expensive, and I don’t have the money right now. I would never say that, though. When we started hanging out, I made it a point to pay for my meals. I’m not going back on that now.

“Oh, um, I’ll see you tomorrow then?” Her voice trembles, and I frown as I study her.

I glance at Trevor to find him staring at me with a raised brow. “Do you need them to help again?”

I’m hoping he says no because this is awkward and painful. I feel like I’ve done something wrong. It isn’t like she’s been super mean to me or anything. She’s just cut me out of her life and returned for some unknown reason. I can’t help looking to Trevor for guidance because I don’t know how to proceed.

“We do have some things to get done before we open back up,” he rubs his jaw as his eyes narrow on me.

“Then yeah, I’ll see you tomorrow,” I give her an awkward smile and a tiny hand wave.

I turn without acknowledging anyone else and hurry back to the office. If everyone is leaving, I need to wake Max up before Trevor finds out he’s been sleeping.

He’s still in the same position with his mouth open. He looks like a kid without all of the grumpiness. I snatch up my phone and take a quick picture before gently shaking his shoulder.

“Max, wake up. Everyone is leaving,” I lean close to whisper in his ear.

“Good,” he grumbles and turns his head away from me.

“Yes, so get up now.”

He doesn’t move.

“Max!” My voice gets a little louder, and I shake his shoulder again. “Trevor is going to catch you!”

He suddenly turns towards me with a grin, sliding an arm from under his head to around my waist, and pulls me over him. It’s an awkward position, one arm trapped underneath me as my feet slip in my stupid shoes. I end up scrambling to try and get off of him as he laughs.

“Max!” I yell in frustration and struggle without purchase. I knew these shoes were a bad idea.

He puts the other arm around me and twists, trapping me between his body and the back of the couch.

“What are you doing?” I shove his shoulder, but he hardly budges. My legs are over his hip, and I curl them in defensively. I doubt Max would pass up a chance at tickling me.

Being pressed against him isn’t as bad as it should be. He’s warm, and his cologne is nice and subtle. Not to mention, he’s rocking a serious body underneath his loose clothes. I have to remind myself that he’s in a relationship and is just playing around. I should not snuggle close and bask in his attention. Unwell people do that, and I’m trying not to put another foot over that thin line. One is enough.

“Good morning,” he smiles and rubs his nose against mine while my eyes cross.

“It’s evening now,” I try to pull my head back, but the couch cushions only have so much give. This is one of the hardest couches. How could he be comfortable here?

“True. I guess we should get some sleep then.” He promptly closes his eyes and pretends to snore.

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