Page 6 of The Charming Checklist
His résumé, such as he’d described it,wasimpressive. In addition to all his military service in Special Forces, he’d worked as CEO for a high-tech company in Austin and started half a dozen businesses including the Salty Dog. He had an MBA in business, which surprised even her. All this and he was only thirty-four. And she thought she knew Max. Lord help her, like Cole, he’d been a former navy SEAL, but she’d had no idea he was also this educated and accomplished. Her family would adore him. He wasn’t a doctor, sure, but one could almost call him a doctor in the field of business.
She scrolled through a few photos and found one of him holding a surfboard. The board hid most of his amazing physique, and the fading sun gave his face an almost average look.
“I’d makethisyour profile photo.” She tapped the phone. “This way, the woman also knows that you can look and do casual. And that you love the water.”
“Good idea.” He took his phone back with a look of surprise.
“Well, don’t give me that look. I givefantasticadvice.”
“Yeah? How much do you know about these dating services?”
“Nothing.I’dnever do it.”
“Why not?”
“Love doesn’t work that way!”
He chuckled. “What way? Do you mean two people finding whether or not they’re compatible and have similar goals choosing to date and see what materializes?”
“Well, sorry, but that sounds a little too logical for love. Love justhappens, Max.”
“To idiots.”
“Are you calling Valerie and Cole idiots? Because I swear, I’m telling.”
“Love doesn’t just happen.” One side of Max’s mouth curled in a smirk. “They beat the odds.”
And maybe Ava could, too. Maybe this birthday dinner wouldn’t be about explaining how she’d once again failed to start her own business and become the next Martha Stewart of the coffee bean world. At least she could demonstrate that she was associating with the right people.
Ava studied Max as he scrolled through his phone and finished his IPA. If she took him to her birthday dinner as her date, dressed in this suit, and her family sawhisrésumé, they’d be suitably impressed. He was one of them. She would at least be dating someone who her family would approve of, even if they wouldn’t approve of her.
“Um, Max?”
He gave her a sideways look as if surprised to still find her there. “Yeah.”
“Would you like to go to dinner with me next Saturday night and meet my parents?”
He blinked. “Meeting the parents on a first date? No thanks. That’s a little fast even for me, but hey, thanks for asking.”
Ava laughed a bit maniacally. “Oh, ha! No. You misunderstood me. I meant come to dinner with me as a friend. But maybe... I don’t know...pretend to be more than my friend? Just for one night.”
“Pretend?” His brow furrowed giving him a highly concerned look.
He was probably wondering how fast he could get out of this without hurting a friend’s feelings.
She waved her hands in front of her like a crazy woman. “Let me explain. My family is from Dallas, but they all come to Charming to take me out to dinner every year on my birthday.”
“That’s nice.”
“Nice? No, notnice. It’s an inspection. They’re going to analyze my life. Suggest what career might be best for me.”
“But you already have a career.”
“Do you think that matters to them? It’s not good enough for Dr. Long, Dr. Long, and don’t forget Dr. Long and Dr. Long.”
He squinted. “You’re repeating yourself.”
“No, those are my parents and my two brothers. All medical doctors who excel in their fields. My brothers are married with Stepford wives. Cocktail parties, one-thousand-dollar-a-plate fundraisers, perfectly behaved genius children, you name it. My family are a bunch of snobs.”
