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“I disagree.”
“Phoebe. Tie-breaker!” Thad waves his hand. “You’re our witness. You’ve seen all the evidence. So, you decide. Who had the shittiest birthday? Max or me?”
Max smirks at him. “You’re pretty hot when you play lawyer.”
“I learned from the best,” Thad says with a wink.
They stare at me, expecting my vote.
Who had the shittiest birthday?
Was it me, with the phone call from hell from my parents?
Was it Thad, with his stupid, sexy dad suddenly showing up out of nowhere?
Or was it Max, with his vicious parents who refuse to let him be happy?
“I’m hungry,” I answer. “Is there food?”
Thad pecks my cheek before hoisting himself off the bed. “On it!” he says as he exits the bedroom.
I notice the rose petals beneath him for the first time. “Have those been here this whole time?” I ask Max.
He nods. “Yup.”
“Aw, man.” I sigh, noticing the candles, too. “I’ve been pouting so hard, I completely missed all the pretty things you guys did for me.”
Max kisses my forehead. “Don’t worry about it,” he says. “You had a rough day.”
I shrug. “It wasn’t that bad… by comparison.”
He smiles. “Mine was worse, though, right? It’s okay. You can tell me.”
I look back again, feel the waves of emotions spanning those two days. “I don’t know,” I say. “I mean, your mother saying those things to me was awful.”
“I’m so sorry that happened.”
“But then…” I smile. “I immediately think about the moment after when I walked into your room and I saw you and Thad together.” I pause, the feeling so precious. “I do that, and all the badness goes away. Sure, our families are crazy, but… our family. You, me, and Thad. It brings me so much joy that all the other shit doesn’t matter.”
Max kisses my forehead again. He stays close, his lips brushing down my cheek toward my mouth. “I agree,” he whispers with a kiss. “Happy Birthday, Phoebe.”
I tilt closer to him, kissing him back. He cups my face, his touch sending shivers down my arms. I touch him, my fingers crawling beneath his shirt to feel his skin. He pulls me closer, his arm curling around my back, his kiss firmer, deeper.
I reach for his zipper.
He hums, playfully scolding me even though he pulls the zipper down the back of my dress, too. “No, no,” he says, chuckling. “We’re not supposed to do this right now.”
“Says who?” I tease, reaching my hand into his pants.
He inhales sharply, pleasure taking hold. “Says Thad.”
“Is Thaddy coming out tonight?”
He chuckles. “He might if he comes up here and catches us.” He kisses me again, his tongue wild and free. “Right now, you’re supposed to be naked in a warm bath.”
“Sounds like heaven.” I stroke him in my palm. “But you better dirty me up first.”
He draws my dress down past my shoulders to kiss the exposed skin. “You make a good argument,” he says.
