The library was closed and Matt rarely worked on Sundays, so she didn’t want to bother Hailey. Max, even if she was ready to face him again, would have a houseful of people. She ran through a mental list of her other friends, but Sundays were for couples.
With a sigh, she walked back to her apartment, slowly, since her stomach wasn’t sure about ice cream sundaes of doom for brunch. As soon as she closed her door, her gaze fell on the bed and her mind filled with memories of last night.
She needed to work. But first she yanked the quilt off the bed and tossed it onto the couch. Then she stripped the sheets and pillowcases, shoving them into the laundry hamper in the bathroom. Taking another set off the shelf, she remade her bed with crisp white sheets that wouldn’t smell like Max. She smoothed the quilt over the top, then brewed a cup of coffee and prepared to get her head screwed on straight.
*
Max spent the morning worrying and overthinking, until he finally caved and hit the button to call his oldest brother, Colin. He and Ben were both married, but Colin had had more experience with women before settling down. And, when push came to shove, he was the oldest.
“Hey, Max! How the hell are ya?”
Colin’s voice was deep and booming in his ear, and Max smiled. His brothers were definitely loud. “I’m good. Do you have a few minutes?”
“Sure. Let me head out to the man cave.” Which was a garden shed the size of a half-bath, but it worked for Colin. “What’s up?”
“I need some advice. About a girl.”
“I had this talk with you when you were like twelve years old.”
“I remember. I also remember Chelsea something-or-other punching me in the face because girls do not, in fact, like when a boy pinches her ass to get her attention.”
“Ben must have told you that one. I’d never steer my little brother wrong.”
Max laughed and refrained from reciting the many entertaining moments Colin had engineered for his own amusement thanks to having a gullible and very literal younger brother. “In all seriousness, there’s a woman I want to spend the rest of my life with.”
“Damn, Max. It’s about time. Does she know about this?”
“She knows I’m attracted to her.”
There was a long silence. “Because it’s you, Max, I have to ask. Are you sure? How have you expressed your attraction?”
“We had sex last night.”
“Oh. Well, that’s a good indicator. So what’s the problem?”
That was a complicated question. “She was helping me find a wife, but now I don’t want to find somebody else. I want her, but her parents are assholes and she doesn’t believe in love anymore.”
“Whoa.” Through the phone, Max heard the pop and hiss of a can being opened. “Slow down and start from the beginning.”
He talked for twenty minutes, starting with his growing awareness of being lonely and wanting somebody to share his life with and meeting Tori and his dates with Nola and, finally, the Halloween party and taking her home.
“She was very firm about it being a casual thing, because that’s all she wants. So this morning I behaved very casually, and she was disappointed. I should have stayed in bed. I should have pushed.”
“Are you sure she was disappointed? You know sometimes you’re not good at reading people.”
“I know her and I can tell. That’s the thing, Colin. She knows me, too. She likes me. She doesn’t think I’m boring and weird. She recognizes when I need a minute to process what’s going on and she doesn’t push me. She drags me out of my comfort zone, but it’s okay because she’s with me and she makes me laugh.”
“Wow.” His brother was quiet for a long moment. “She sounds like she might be the one for you.”
“She is. Should I send her flowers? I don’t think Whitford has a florist. I could order them online, but... Should I send her flowers?”
“No. That’s too generic. It’s easy. I think you need to spend time with her and put the friendship back on solid ground. That’s the foundation of your relationship.”
Max sighed. “What about the fact she doesn’t want to get married ever?”
“That sounds like something only time and trust between you can make happen. But the opportunity for that to happen will only come if you keep the friendship solid.”
“I don’t know how to do that.”
“What have you been doing together for the last month?”
“Practicing me going on a date with another woman.”
“Oh. You should probably stop doing that.”
Max laughed. “It’s something of a unique situation.”
“You’ve always been unique, little brother. Can’t expect anything less when it comes to problems with women. So we need a reason for you two to get together, but not something that puts too much pressure on you.”