Jack
Istare at the text Charlotte sent. It’s dangerously brief and too simple to be complete.
Talk to Max. He’s drinking your bar.
As I shake my head, determined to focus on checking things off my to-do list so Charlotte can have my full attention tonight, I realize that she wouldn’t have known about Max if she wasn’t there…with him. Just like Serena had been there with him just once and left me less than a month later.
Half of me wants to run to the restaurant, throw Charlotte over my shoulder, and carry her back to my apartment where Max can’t get his hands on her. The other half… Well, the other half is curious about why Charlotte would bother to mention Max at all.
After trying to weigh my options carefully, I toss reason to the side and head to the restaurant. As I pass the docks, I hope to see Charlotte. She takes photos here regularly, but of course, today, she’s nowhere to be found.
My hackles rise. She wouldn’t be the first girl to leave my bed for another. But Charlotte isn’t just some girl. She’s fiercely independent, sassy, and selective of whom she gives time to. I like her because of it. I can’t let this worry or paranoia take over whenever she’s away. Which means I have to trust her. No matter how uncomfortable it feels.
I scratch my beard. Something was bothering me about the dead-calm water. I head to the restaurant and ask the bartender if he’s seen Charlotte. He shoots me a look and shakes his head. “She left, man. I’d give you a warning if I thought she’d be back.”
“No warning needed,” I assure him.
“Chef said thanks for cleaning the kitchen.” He catches my arm. “And said you’re a terrible cook, so stay out.”
I roll my eyes but fight a smile. If nothing else works in this yacht club, the employees do. It’s the one saving grace I’ve been able to rely on for these last years—surrounding myself with people who know how to enjoy themselves while actually getting work done.
After making sure that nothing at the restaurant or in the kitchen needs maintenance, I promise myself again to hire a permanent handyman and return to the breezeway. Texting Charlotte only gets me an even drier reply.
Jack: Where are you? No one’s at the bar.
Charlotte: Working.
I fight the urge to groan and head for the docks. Before I get far, I notice a messy figure sitting with their legs off the side of the pier. Max? I haven’t seen him so tired and frail since college. It looks as if someone sucked all the hope out of him.
“Max?” I hesitate to ask.
His face turns to me, unshaven and still in what he slept in last night, I’m sure. This is a throwback to every bad breakup he endured in college whenever he fell too hard and fast for a girl who wanted nothing but a good night.
“Jack.” He nods to me once, looking me over slowly. “How’s your day?”
“Better than yours, I’m guessing.”
“You don’t look that much better.” He snorted, then pushed himself up, stumbling slightly. “At least through beer goggles.”
“That’s not beer I smell on you,” I argue.
Hell no, especially considering he didn’t have a drop spilled on him. I try to stabilize him with one hand on his back, but I feel a tremor roll through him. He exhales slowly. “For all the good it’s doing me, it might as well be water.”
“Come on, man. Let’s go talk.”
It takes effort, but Max and I make it inside the restaurant. He stares at the menu without seeing it once we’re seated. I try to get him to consider a burger, some fries, anything at all, but he just blinks at the menu for a long while.
“What is it about Serena…?”
“Oh no.”
“That makes you hate her, but still want her? I swear, I can’t stand her at all, not one bit. But not waking up to her, and knowing she’s going after you when I’m right here… It tears me up. I still want her, but I don’t.”
“I think people call that grief,” I murmur, not sure what to say to Max after all this time. “You could just leave her behind, you know.”
“Nah.”
“You left me behind.” It slips out before I can catch it. I close my eyes for a second, then meet his resigned gaze.
Max nods. “I did. I left you behind and didn’t tell you why.”
“Hey, it was years ago, man. It’s fine.” I don’t know how to have this conversation with him. “It happened and—”
“No.” Max meets my eyes, dropping the menu. “It’s not okay, and I owe you an explanation.”
Max took a deep breath. “I wish I could say it was for some noble reason, but honestly, I was fucking jealous. You were engaged, happy, had your whole life mapped out and ready to start, and I felt like I was lagging. Like I could see myself being swallowed by…insignificance. Maybe I thought I’d force the situation and harden myself before you got the chance to do it.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because it sounds stupid as hell to say it out loud.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Even after this long.”
We sit in silence for a while as I process it. He thought I had a future? He thought I had anything under control? I chuckle, look at his surprised face, and laugh harder. “Max, I had no clue about my future. I was engaged and didn’t even have a date for the wedding. Didn’t see anything beyond the ring.”
“What?”
“Sure, my dad had set up job interviews and his name gave me some weight, but I didn’t have a clue what I wanted to do.” I shake my head as things seem to fall into place. “Honestly, if you hadn’t swooped in, I would have ended up at that company and never would have left home. I just would have kept doing what I was told to do.”
“So why didn’t you reach out?”
“Apparently, I haven’t gotten much smarter.” I roll my eyes. “And after Serena left me, I decided that part of my life was over. Other than my family, I haven’t spoken to anyone from back then.”
The waitress comes just as Max opens his mouth to say something. He runs his hand through his shaggy brown hair, giving it at least some sense of organization. He orders the wings and lets me place my own order before sighing heavily.
“Serena is…”
“A flighty, high-maintenance woman who can’t stand the idea of commitment.” I shrug and lean back, raising my beer to him. “And we are both better without her.”
Max looks out the window, ignoring his frosty glass. “I’ve been with her—and only her—for seven years, Jack. She’s not that easy to write off. Not as easy as I am, apparently.”
“Have I interrupted a pity party?”
We both look up at Charlotte’s voice. Her skirt barely reaches the middle of her thigh and is paired with a thin white top that I want to rip off her. Her straight blonde hair falls over her shoulder as she leans forward.
“That’s what this is, right? It’s what it sounds like.” Charlotte pulls up a chair and sits between us.
“Be nice. I’m grieving here,” Max grumbles.
“I haven’t known Serena long, but I know you can do better.”
I arch an eyebrow at her. She looks at us and groans, a sound that brings back memories of last night, of my body wrapped around hers, taking everything I want without thought or restraint.
Dragging my eyes from her lush lips, I shake my head. “It’s heartbreak, Charlotte. Be nice.”
“I can be plenty nice.” She shoots me a wicked smile. “But nice isn’t going to fix this, Max.”
“What am I supposed to do with myself, then? It took Serena one conversation with Jack, not even a successful one, and she ran back to him.”
Charlotte leans forward, clearly focused on what he’s saying. Max’s eyes water. “It’s like the years, the ‘I love yous,’ and everything else didn’t matter. Am I that forgettable, Charlotte? Like a bookmark saving a spot someone will never go back to?”
“You’re not.” She puts her hand on his arm and rubs gently. “You’re handsome and successful, and any woman would be lucky to have you.”
“Thanks for the words.”
I slide my hand over Charlotte’s knee, enjoying her shiver as I do so. “She doesn’t give out compliments easily. Trust me.”
Max looks at us and leans back. “You aren’t engaged, are you?”
“No,” I say.
Charlotte shakes her head. “Not even twenty-four hours and you’re dumping me? You’re a dick.” She can’t quite manage a straight face. She giggles and pats Max’s hand. “No. I’m surprised we sold the idea for even a lunch.”
My hand slides farther up her leg. A part of me is jealous of her instant kindness toward Max, but I like how open she’s being, how warm. I definitely like her legs parting for me under the table.
“Why wouldn’t he want to be with you?” Max asks, looking at us. “Unless he’s gone completely blind or has brain damage. Has he had a stroke?”
“Hey!” she snaps. “I have more than my looks, thank you very much.”
I grin as I watch them argue with one another, even around their food. It’s like they’re teenagers, teasing and flirting via insults. Just as Charlotte finishes her third Sex on the Beach, I notice the lack of people around us and the darkness seeping in from outside.
Excusing myself for a moment, I let the staff know they can close up early. When I return to the table, Max and Charlotte are watching each other intently. I lift Charlotte easily, despite her squirming, and place her across my lap. Her knee bumps Max’s as she makes herself comfortable.
“What did I miss?” I purr in her ear.
“Max said he doesn’t even know how to flirt anymore. That he’ll never have a rebound.” She says simply, “I think he’s an idiot.”
“Nonstop positivity with you, isn’t it?” Max grumbles despite his eyes roaming her.
He sits a little straighter, but his tongue darts across his bottom lip. He’s practically fucking her with his eyes and instead of pissing me off, it’s making me proud. Of course, Charlotte is gorgeous, but her sass is entrancing. It’s nice to know Max recognizes it too.
I rub Charlotte’s hips and meet Max’s eyes. There’s a question there, like he’s asking permission. I smile and kiss her neck without dropping Max’s eyes. Charlotte squirms. “Don’t tease me, Jack.”
“You like giving orders.” I chuckle. “Why don’t you try taking some.”
“Give one worth following and I will.” She stuck out her tongue.
“Flirting in front of me helps. Thanks, guys.” Max huffs.
“Want me to flirt with you, Max?” Charlotte asks despite rubbing her ass against my lap. “Or do you want me to lay more compliments on you?”
“I suck at flirting.”
Charlotte runs her hand over his knee as the toe of her shoe slides around my calf. “So, don’t flirt, talk to me instead. Otherwise, Jack and I can be a learning experience.”
“A learning experience, huh? Sounds kinky.” Max barely hides his smile. “I don’t know if I can handle that.”
“I don’t think you’d be able to handle me,” Charlotte teases. “Jack barely can.”
“Hey.” I dig my fingers into her thigh. “I had you begging last night, didn’t I?”
Charlotte bites her lip and shrugs. “I don’t know. Can’t remember.”
Max chuckles and shakes his head, but then he slips his hand under Charlotte’s chin, drawing her toward him even as she continues to grind on my lap. “I can think of at least one thing you wouldn’t be able to forget.”
“Is that a fact?”
Meeting my gaze, I see the heat in Max’s eyes. I can blame the alcohol for agreeing to the idea of sharing Charlotte. I can blame the fact that I’ve finally come back to my best friend after nine long years of no communication, but more than anything…I want to see Charlotte obedient, begging, wet, and eager.
“Maybe two things.” Max winks at me.