Last on the List (Wait With Me #5)(104)

I recoil at the humiliation of that notion. Suddenly, I’ve gone from Cinderella to Pretty Woman, and I’m pretty sure Julia Roberts left that money on the table. I glance down at my hands, fiddling with the hem of my shirt. “You don’t have to pay me.”

“That’s non-negotiable,” Max tuts, turning to look out the window toward the backyard. “And I realize this is coming up sooner than anticipated, so you are welcome to stay in the tiny house until your next residence opens up.”

Residence sounds like a swear word coming from him right now.

I fill my lungs with as much air as possible. This entire exchange is horrifying, and I sink under the weight of it. I feel like a child or worse, an employee. Not the woman who shared a bed with him for several weeks and fell in love with his daughter.

Fell in love with him.

That painful realization causes tears to spring into my eyes, so I quickly look away, pressing the back of my hand to my nose to try to stave off the emotions. My voice is garbled when I respond, “I won’t need to stay.”

“Really, Cassandra, it will be fine.”

“No, it won’t.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Because you can barely look me in the eyes right now.” I laugh, but it’s pained as the ache in my throat threatens to tear me apart. This is Max’s opportunity to cut ties with me. He’s low-key firing me, and the cold, detached way he’s delivering this news proves that. I’ve ruined any chance we had at something real. A man like Max isn’t someone who forgives easily. Look how long it took for him to get over his ex. All his rules about no sleepovers and no relationships. God, I’m such a fool.

I lick my lips and add, “It’s clear that you don’t want me here a second longer than I have to be, so I will move out this weekend.”

Max stands to his full height, his eyes twitching at my remark. “We can be professional about this.”

“Professional,” I croak, feeling my chin tremble at another seemingly pedestrian word that feels like a curse from his lips. “Maybe you can be professional.” I lift my hands up, my eyes stinging with unshed tears. “But I’m willy-nilly, Max, so you never know what to expect from me.”

His eyes tighten. “Need I remind you that this entire situation we’re in the middle of is your choice?”

“Is it?” I ask, my voice barely a whisper. “It didn’t feel like a choice. It felt like a forgone conclusion,” I reply honestly.

Kate’s words about my strength as a survivor play on repeat in my mind. I was strong enough to let Max go, but I’m clearly not strong enough to keep him.

Max shakes his head and moves toward me. “I’m not doing this.”

His arm brushes mine as he walks past, and even though I’m sure I’ll regret it, I reach out and grab his hand.

He freezes, facing away from me for a moment that feels like an eternity as an electric current flows between our hands, shooting up my arm like a shock. I hear his breath hitch and his jaw grow taut before he turns around to look at my hand clasping his, like it’s some sort of puzzle he can’t quite work out.

His eyes lift to mine, scoring over my face like a hot branding iron, showing me every emotion coursing through his veins. Pain, frustration, disappointment, confusion, desire…

Oh God, the desire.

I inhale sharply when Max’s gaze drops to my lips, and before my heart beats again, his hand skates up my chest and fingers my neck in a tender caress as he backs me into the bookcase.

He pauses a moment, biting his lip as he stares at me like a cherished possession, his fingers reverently stroking the sides of my neck and jawline, immediately confirming my submission to him.

I want to submit to him. I want to be claimed by him, lost in him. I want to trust in what we can be together.

A guttural noise escapes his mouth as he seals his lips over mine. His hand maps around to the back of my neck as he angles my face upward to deepen the kiss. His body bows over mine as his tongue thrusts between my lips, harsh and demanding, taking what it wants. And I moan into it, giving him all of me. Every possible inch.

I want to give more. I want to give everything. I want to be strong enough to believe these feelings won’t break me. Strong enough to let go of my past.

My hands wrap tightly around his waist, pulling him to me, the tightness in my muscles unfurling at the familiar pressure of his body flush against mine as an ache throbs between my legs.

I could kiss him forever.

Cool air blasts my damp lips as Max pulls away, a tortured look on his face as he shakes his head. “Goodbye, Cassandra.”

“What?” I gasp, grabbing his suit coat and pulling him toward me, panic dotting my eyes as he pulls away from me. “You just kissed me.”

“It was a goodbye kiss.” He grips my hands and uncurls my desperate hold on him, piercing my heart with the horrible realization that I’ve ruined any chance we had. “This was never the part that was broken.” He pins me with a look that silently says…it was you.





“Why do you seem sad today, Cozy?” Everly asks, stretched out on a towel in the sand by the creek.

“What makes you think I’m sad?” I push my sunglasses into my hair and peer down at her from my seat on the Adirondack chair.

“’Cuz every time you look at me, you get tears in your eyes.” Everly blinks those baby-blue eyes at me, and my eyes start stinging again.