So I forced a smile, took a deep breath, and replayed the look on Brian’s face when I’d soaked him with ice water.
42
LOLA
Max and I arrived outside Christian’s Manhattan apartment. I hadn’t thought I’d ever see the place again, but Max forgot her phone charger and Kate didn’t have the right kind. Apparently, Max still had a key so she said we could just pop in real quick and get our things. According to her, Christian had texted that he was back in Colorado, so there was no chance of an awkward encounter.
Max went off to her room once we were inside and I paused by the table. There was a note and a pile of cash. A big ass pile of cash, like something you’d see in a movie with drug dealers. It was stacks of bills wrapped in paper denoting the amount. I pushed it aside to read the note, heart pumping.
Girls,
Take this money and split it. Stay in NYC as long as you need. Please use the apartment. I arranged to have a place for Max at Highpointe Prep. It’s two blocks down the road and one of the best schools in the city. She can go there if she wants or you can continue tutoring her–whatever you two decide. I know the last thing either of you want is to see me right now, so take as much time as you need. Your job at Stone Financial will be waiting if you still want it, Lola.
I had no idea how he knew we’d come back. Maybe he didn’t and just hoped.
Something at the bottom of the note was scratched out so heavily the paper was almost torn. It looked like about a sentence or two. I tried lifting the paper to read it and even turning it to get a better angle with the light, but it was no use. What the hell had he written that he’d wanted to erase so badly?
My stupid heart whispered that it was probably an apology. Maybe he’d written that he was sorry for how things ended and hoped we could still be… friends? Except I didn’t think he and I had ever really been friends. We’d gone straight from enemies to casually fucking to dating. There wasn’t any in between. Or maybe he’d written that he wanted to talk when I did come back to Colorado, or said that he’d enjoyed the time we had together, or–
I pinched the bridge of my nose and set the letter down. It didn’t matter what he’d written. He tossed me aside and now it was over. And maybe he was right. Maybe it would be better for me and Max to stay in New York. I could make up for lost time with Kate and we could let her try out this private school. I’d have to fly back and maybe do a road trip to bring Termite home, but that wasn’t such a big deal. I wasn’t sure about leaving behind all the people I’d met in Colorado, though. There was Paisley, Cassie, Chase, the Ashford family, and dozens of other people, even down to my weird landlord.
“What’s that?” Max said. She had the charger dangling from her hand as she studied the money and note on the table.
I handed her the note and she read, eyebrows furrowing. “He wants us to stay here?”
“It sounded more like he thinks we’ll want to stay here.”
“Do we?” Max asked.
I frowned. It was strange to remember how different she’d seemed when we first met. She was the prototypical kid who didn’t respect or need authority. And now she was sweetly asking me to make a decision this big for her. I felt the weight of that responsibility and didn’t want to let her down.
“Don’t you have a boy back in Fairhope?” I asked.
Max sighed. “I’m not sure if I do anymore.”
“What? You didn’t tell me that.”
“Yeah well you and Uncle Stones were so busy being gross I didn’t… I don’t know. But it’s complicated and he’s pissed at me again. That’s why I’ve been disappearing into my room so much since we got here. We’ve been texting a lot because he won’t get on the phone with me right now.”
“Why don’t we take a few days to think about all of this, then? There’s no reason we have to decide right now. But I want to make sure we both agree, because it’s not just me on the line here.”
Max worked her lips to the side and I was surprised to see tears welling in her eyes. She pushed them away and then rushed up to hug me. I wasn’t sure what that was about, but I also felt like I could really use a hug, so I squeezed her back and rested my chin on her head.