“I knew you’d probably be there. I saw the invitation at Travis’ house. I knew you’d probably hate me for what I’d done, but I wanted to see you. I couldn’t help myself. I kept moving closer, but I didn’t think you’d recognize me.”#p#分页标题#e#
“No chance of that. I could sense you,” Max answered, disgruntled. “But the disguise was good enough that no one else did. Did you cut your hair that day?”
“No. I had it done about a year ago. My long hair was used as a weapon too many times. I did it to feel better. It was kind of like therapy. It felt good,” she told him.
“He pulled you around by your hair?” Max snarled.
That was putting it mildly, but Mia didn’t tell Max that. Her father had done the same thing. She simply answered, “Yes.”
Lethargy and exhaustion tugged at Mia’s body. Yawning, she closed her eyes.
“Tired?” Max inquired.
“Very. I didn’t sleep last night. I wanted to savor the feeling of being together one last time, even though you were three sheets to the wind,” she teased. “I can only imagine the whopper of a hangover you must have had this morning. Do you even remember last night?”
“Not much,” Max admitted reluctantly.
“Do you want me to fill you in how you accused me of being with another man and how you wanted to hate me?” she teased with a grin. “And why did you bring Tucker? I’m assuming my brothers left and took Tucker with them, but I thought you and my dog barely tolerated each other.” Mia knew that wasn’t true anymore, but she wanted to hear Max actually admit that he had become buddies with her dog.
“I did think you had a boyfriend. I didn’t exactly get the whole story before I laid into your brother. All I heard was that he’d been responsible for taking you away from me. We didn’t talk much after that.” Max repositioned her so they were lying face to face on the couch, covering both of them with the blanket and wrapping his arms tightly around her. “And the only thing I have in common with that ugly canine is the fact that we both love you. I couldn’t leave him at the house alone. I was being humane. He’s still a pain in my ass.”
“Do you talk to him? Tucker’s a good listener,” Mia cajoled him.
“He’s judgmental. I hate that in a dog,” Max grumbled.
She sniggered as she realized that Max was actually talking about Tucker as if the dog were a person. Yep. They had definitely bonded, even if it was an antagonistic relationship. “You adore him,” Mia accused.
“He irritates the hell out of me. Blames me because you went away,” Max argued.
“You could have dropped him at the neighbor’s house,” she reminded him. “They love Tucker.”
“He wanted to come,” Max said grudgingly. “He was whining. He missed you.”
Obviously Max wasn’t quite ready to admit that he loved Tucker and that the dog had become incredibly attached to him. So she asked, “Did you make peace with Travis?” She stroked her fingers lightly over the black-and-blue mark under his eye.
“Yeah. We’ve agreed not to kill each other,” Max said with a grin.
“And Kade?”
“I still owe him for laughing at my hangover,” he replied menacingly.
Mia cringed. “Was it bad?”
“Bad enough to make me want to be a teetotaler. I’m not sure I can ever drink another drop of alcohol again,” he answered unhappily. “Now I know why I’ve never gotten drunk. I had some sense before I met you,” he teased. “The thought of you betraying me and happily living your life somewhere else made me crazy. I remember how I felt before I got drunk.”
Mia sighed. “I can’t believe you’ve never been drunk. Not even in college?”
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“Nope. I studied while everyone else was partying.”
“Oh God. You really are perfect,” Mia said with mock disgust. “And there could never be anyone else, Max. I even had your name tattooed on my ass,” she reminded him jokingly.
Max rubbed the marking possessively. “Yeah. You did. And it’s fucking beautiful.”
Mia laughed. “I forgot that you curse now, so I guess you aren’t perfect.”
“I always cursed. I just never did it in front of you. My dad never swore in front of my mother,” he replied remorsefully.
“Feel free to let it fly,” Mia replied with a smile. “I have two brothers. I’ve heard every profanity in existence and like to use a few occasionally. But since you never swore, I tried not to let one slip.”