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She spreads her arms. “The one and only.”
“No! Max mentioned your name, but I didn’t know—this is so fun!” My smile is real and happy and I can’t stop smiling. The bundle of nerves that tightened as I walked in instantly disappeared at the sight of Malcolm. What Marcus told me about Noam is there, but I push it aside to process it later.
Noam is dead. He can wait until later.
“I’m so glad you’re here,” I tell Malcolm.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” he says as he pulls back, an expression of concern on his face. “Are you—?”
“Hey. Cady?”
“Nia.” I smile at Malcolm’s girlfriend, and after a tiny pause, hug her as well. “No,” I say to Malcolm. “I’m not working. It’s a long story. I’m here with Max Steele.”
Malcolm’s eyes widen and he tracks Max through the crowd. “Really? Like a date?”
“She came to a wedding in a foreign country, where she doesn’t even know the bride,” Nia says. “I think it’s more than a date.”
“It’s not—I’m doing him a favour. Long story. I’ll explain—”
“Now?” Malcolm demands.
“When we get home,” I concede. “Let me see how it all ends up.” And I smile.
Malcolm’s eyes widen even more. “Well, then, I want to hear all about it,” Nia says with a wicked smile. “And I might need a drink.”
32
Maximus
Cady has friends.
Cady has friends at the wedding.
One friend, she explains as we eat fish and rice, amber eyes sparkling. Her best friend Malcolm knows Callie, Marcus’s bride-to-be. They’re in a book club together, of all things. I’ve met Callie a few times, and she doesn’t seem the book club type.
The entire book club is here and they’ve adopted Cady as one of their own.
Callie and Marcus are ecstatic at the ease with which the friend group merges, thanks to Cady.
Cady, who is glowing with happiness. I’ve never seen her look so beautiful.
Everyone in the place notices her, especially when she gets up with Callie and others to dance.
“She’s…”
I glance over to see Dexter’s mouth open as he takes in the view. “Yeah.”
I know Cady used to be an exotic dancer, but she doesn’t move like one. There’s no raunch, no check me out, I’d expect from a former stripper.
But there is a whole bunch of sexy. I especially love how Cady throws her head back and laughs.
“Your new girlfriend is hot,” Marcus says as he downs half a bottle of beer.
“I know.” I don’t feel like explaining that she isn’t technically my girlfriend. Like, not at all my girlfriend. Because I keep thinking that it might not be a bad thing. Having Cady in my life…
I’m not sure how that would work, though.
But mainly I just want to touch her.
