Page 36 of Max

“Nah, I’m still on duty. I’ll grab one before I go to sleep.” Cole stood and stretched. “If you’re going to be down here for a while, I think I’ll walk around the property and do my nightly check.”

“Sure. Can’t sleep, anyway. You take all the time you need.”

“There’s a barn and several outbuildings I want to check, so I’ll be a while.”

Max waved him off and locked the door behind him before claiming the seat Cole vacated on the couch. The beer was cold and crisp, and after a few minutes, he relaxed. The edge of anxiousness lessened but wasn’t gone. He normally wouldn’t touch alcohol while on a job, but he knew Cole and Jasper were both here. And the house was locked up tight. One beer wasn’t going to dull his senses to the point he couldn’t function.

“Hey.”

He jumped out of his skin. Fuck. No more beer for him tonight.

Shay was behind him, her eyes as haunted as he felt.

“Are you okay?”

She nodded and came to sit next to him. He wanted to inch closer to her but kept his distance. “Just worried about tomorrow.”

“It’ll be fine. You have to have some faith in the doctors.” Without thinking, he reached over and took her hand and squeezed it gently. He marveled at the softness of her skin. And she smelled really good, like apples.

“I talked to Desi earlier, and she said the same, that everything will be okay.”

Max made a note to call his sister. She had the same nightmares he did about their mother. Probably not the same in content, but the same feelings of guilt assailed her at leaving her alone. Hearing about Shay’s dad must be bringing all that up for her too.

“If Desi says so, then so shall it be.”

Shay arched a brow in question.

“She was a hugeCharmedfan and went around saying ‘so shall it be’ for the longest time.”

“Never watched it.”

“It’s not a bad show. I kind of…liked it.”

“The rough cowboy admitting to watching a girlie show?”

“Hey, there were demons and sorcerers and all sorts of cool shit.”

“Sounds like you more than liked it,” she teased, very much aware he still had hold of her hand. Did he even realize it? Should she slide closer, or would that make him retreat again?

He smirked. An honest to God smirk. She hadn’t seen a real one in…well, forever. It was hot as hell.

“Did you eat?”

“Yeah. Thanks for the food.” Desi kept telling her he was a flirt and a trickster, but so far he’d been nothing but strong and kind. Gentle and sweet. He didn’t seem like a player to her. More like the gentleman her aunt always told her to be on the lookout for.

“You’re welcome.” He didn’t mention her mad dash of embarrassment into the house either. Another sign of a gentleman.

“So…”

“So…”

They said it at the same time, causing them both to laugh.

“Want to watch some Netflix?” Shay asked after they’d settled down.

Max glanced at his watch. “You sure you don’t want to try to get some more sleep?”

“No. We have to be at the hospital soon anyway, so all I’d do is lay there, stare at the ceiling, and worry.”

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