Page 36 of Four Weddings to Fall in Love
Max:That was a joke, in case you weren’t sure.
Me:Next time, please add a winky emoji so I know.
Me:I just did a search, and some people do recommend ironing your underwear.Seems like a hassle.Anyway, what are you actually up to?
Max:Reading
Me:Don’t let me keep you.I’m just dicking around on my phone.
Max:It’s fine.I finished a chapter.
Me:Do you ever stop reading in the middle of a chapter just for funsies?
Max:Only if the chapters are really long.Then I stop at a scene break.
I picture him sitting on a recliner, wearing dress pants and a button-down shirt.An empty mug and a novel on the table beside him, his brows drawn downward as he looks at his phone.
I find the image appealing, truth be told, mainly because of the contrast with the filthy things he whispered to me at the last wedding.I shouldn’t be so intrigued by the idea of sleeping with him again, but I am.
I set down my phone and gaze at the building next to mine.
Mmm.This chair feels really nice…
“The wedding’s this weekend, right?”Tessa says to me on Thursday.We all work from home on Fridays, so we tend to talk about our weekend plans on Thursdays at the office.The two of us are in the break room for lunch.
“Yeah,” I say.
She makes a face.“The forecast doesn’t look good.”
“It doesn’t.Luckily, the wedding is inside.”Isobel and Daisy are getting married in a church, and the reception is at a Chinese banquet hall.Still, the torrential downpour won’t be pleasant for going in and out of venues, and it’ll limit some of the pictures.
“Max will be there?”Tessa asks with an expression of innocence.
“Mm-hmm.”
I’m not sure what Max has told Malcolm, and if Malcolm has, in turn, shared that information with his wife.Tessa knows we slept together, and she knows I had the surprise of my life when Max turned up at the last wedding I attended.But I’ve abstained from telling her some of the details I told Iris, since Max is Malcolm’s friend.
I don’t dread seeing Max again.In fact, a part of me might even be excited.
Tessa pokes me in the side.“Are you daydreaming about him?”
“Of course not.”I hope the forcefulness of my denial isn’t suspicious.
“I can’t wait to make a speech at your wedding and tell people that I’m the reason you met.”She claps her hands.“It’s justperfect, since you caught the bouquet.”
“Don’t remind me,” I mutter.
I’ve known Tessa for years.She doesn’t usually try to convince people that they’ll change their minds about love, but ever since her nuptials, it’s like she wants to see romance everywhere.
I’m glad my friend is happy, but it’s not for me, even if the thought of glancing across the apartment and seeing Max ironing his underwear is rather endearing.
Hmph.I think my brain has gone rogue.
Chapter 15
Max
Ilookinthemirror.My tie is lopsided, and the color isn’t quite working, either.Sighing, I return to my closet and after much deliberation, select a tie in a slightly different shade of blue.Emphasis onslightly.
