“I know.”
“They’re a different kind of family when you can’t go to your actual family.”
“I get that, Max. I do.”
“So whatever’s going on, fix it.”
I snickered. “I will, when she realizes she can’t control me.”
“What’s she wanting you to do?”
I sighed. “Leave you while I still can.”
He nodded slowly. “She’s not wrong.”
I was taken aback by his words. “What?”
“Let me guess. She thinks I’m dangerous, that I’m no good for you, and that I’ll pull you off your path.”
“Yeah. In not so few words, but yeah.”
“Well, she’s not wrong.”
“So you agree with her.”
He shook his head. “I never said that.”
“So you're on my side?”
“I didn’t say that either.”
“Then what are you saying?”
He grinned. “That she’s not wrong. What you choose to do with that is your business. But know she’s not wrong.”
“So you think you’re no good for me.”
He shrugged. “I’m no good for anyone. That’s beside the point.”
“How could you think that about yourself?”
“Easy. I just do.”
I pushed at his chest a bit. “I don’t ever want to hear you saying that again. Got it? You’re a good man, Max. A great one.”
He chuckled. “Oh, boy, d
o you have a lot to learn about me.”
I paused. “What does that mean?”
He smiled wolfishly. “It means that truly great men don’t do what I do. Means you still have a lot to learn.”
“So you want me to stick around?”
“When the hell was that ever in question?”
I blushed. “Fair enough.”