Page 34 of Deal Breaker
My enthusiasm withered like one of the discarded balloons at the side of the dance floor. Her face was hard to read. She’d be damn good in a poker game. She wasn’t going to make this easy for me, now that I’d finally come to a decision as to what I was going to do.
“Hey, Autumn. Everything okay?” I plastered on a smile, hoping she wouldn’t be able to hear the hammering of my heart.
“I’ve been talking to Max.”
My mouth formed anOshape. “What did you—”
She held up a hand. “I didn’t say much. Only the pertinent stuff, obviously. He needs to talk to you himself.”
Now I was desperate to know what they’d spoken about. Whether it tied in with what Trent had told me.
“Where is he?” I asked.
“Last seen upstairs in the Gentlemen’s Suite.” Autumn leaned in and gave me the briefest of hugs. “When did you last see Jodie?” she asked.
I pointed to the other end of the bar, where Jodie had moved on from the barman and was now flirting with one of Brianna’s cousins. From her posture, it was clear she’d had several drinks and wasn’t feeling any pain.
“Good. She’s hammered. What I have to tell her might not hurt quite so much now.” Autumn gave me a wry smile. “I’ll catch you later.”
Still no clearer as to what the hell she was talking about, I continued my search for Max. A walk around the dance floor brought nothing. He wasn’t with Joshua or Evan, and neither of them had seen him for a while. The foyer was mostly full of the older crowd milling around and catching up with friends and family they hadn’t seen in a while. I even hovered outside the restrooms for a few minutes to see if he was in there. When it was clear he wasn’t, I went in myself, suddenly desperate for a pee. That last vodka and soda had gone straight through me.
After I’d washed my hands, I took my time in touching up my makeup, just in case I happened to find Max soon. The reflection which stared back at me radiated hope and optimism, tinged with a little anxiousness. My stomach churned with nerves, not really knowing what I was going to say if and when I finally saw him.
Drawing back my shoulders, I popped my lip gloss back into my bag. I had to find Max before I totally lost my nerve.
Purposefully stepping back into the foyer, I saw Max head back into the reception room, and I faltered.
There he was.
Now was the time.
Now or never.
When I walked back into the room, I noticed Max had found Trent at the bar. Their heads were bent close together, but from my vantage point, I couldn’t make out what they were saying.
Step.
One step closer to knowing whether Max and I could ever work out.
Step.
One step closer to potential humiliation.
Step.
Shit. I was at the bar.
“There you are.” Max beamed at me. “I’ve been looking for you.”
What did that mean? Was he going to apologize for this morning? Or…?
“Me too,” I blurted out.
Neither of us said anything. We just stood there, grinning at each other.
“For Christ’s sake, will the two of you sort it out already?” Trent laughed. “I don’t want to be in my 80s when I’m atyourwedding. Max, don’t screw it up. Sophie, if things don’t work out with Max, you know where I am.” He winked, then waved at someone on the other side of the room and made a beeline for them, leaving Max and me staring at each other.
“Just the Way You Are” by Bruno Mars started up. It was practically the theme song for my teenage years. When all this had started with Max.
