Note to self…never wash tiny house sheets.
“Coffee,” Max answers, straightening his long black tie over his white button-down and charcoal suit.
I look inside the cup and see that it has creamer. “Did you—?”
“Is that not how you take your coffee?” His brows pinch together, and he points up to the second level. “Everly said that vanilla creamer in the refrigerator was yours.”
My lips part with a silent…holy fucking shit, are you serious? Instead, I clear my throat and respond, “Yeah…this is how I take my coffee. Thank you.” I was going for cool as a cucumber, but I fear I might have given off an air of regal Queen of England at teatime vibes. Hopefully, he didn’t notice.
He slides his hands into his pockets, an amused look on his face as he stares down at me.
Is he waiting for me to take a sip?
He is…he’s waiting.
My eyes widen, and I hurriedly jostle the mug up to my lips, taking an inelegant slurp that I swear echoes off the walls. I smile up at him. “Tastes great.”
“Good.” He smiles and continues standing there.
Jesus, now what? My tongue darts out to wet my lips. “Are you going to the office today?”
“Yes.” He tilts his head, his eyes narrowing imperceptibly at me.
“Cool, cool.” I chew my lip nervously. “What did you and Everly do yesterday? I didn’t see much of you two.”
“Oh, we went to my parents’ house for a visit. We often go there on Sundays if we’re in town.”
I nod and pick at a chunk of flesh I’ve broken loose on my lip. “I did nothing like usual! I’m getting really good at it.” I laugh a bit too loudly and then flinch.
The sexy smirk on his face is completely disarming. I open my mouth to say more, but then my phone begins vibrating on the sofa. My face falls when I see my sister’s name on the screen.
“It’s my sister!” I hiss, setting the cup down and staring at the phone like it’s going to catch fire at any moment.
Max frowns. “Rebecca?”
“Yeah, that’s the only sister I have!” I snipe, shooting daggers at him for being so dense because seriously, this is bad news! “What do you think she wants?”
Max leans forward with a serious look and dips his voice low to say, “Oh, I emailed and told her we had sex this weekend.”
Chills erupt over my body.
His straight face cracks into a broad smile. “Cassandra, I’m kidding. I have no idea what she wants. Just answer the phone and act normal.”
“Act normal,” I repeat in a mocking tone as I stand to stare down at my vibrating phone. Seriously, why does it have to be vibrating? I feel attacked. Like the universe is mocking me along with Max.
“She totally knows,” I croak nervously.
“How could she know?”
“’Cuz I’m like a ram at mating season!” I exclaim with wide, manic eyes. “She can smell that I’ve had sex!”
Okay, that was maybe dramatic, but seriously, Rebecca has a weird big sister radar that just always seems to know when something insane is happening in my life and she needs to call to insert her unrequested opinion.
“What are you talking about?” Max’s shoulders shake as he silently laughs at me while rubbing his warm hand up and down my arm, slightly disarming me. Does he realize he’s touching me so…familiarly? I mean, it feels nice, but…what if my sister can see us? “You’re freaking out over nothing. She’s probably just calling to check in.”
I nod and rub my lips together aggressively. The vibrating phone triggers other vibrator memories, so I need to get my shit together and pick up the call.
I crack my neck and swipe the screen to answer. “Hello, this is Cozy Cassie, nanny extraordinaire.”
Max’s lower lip juts off to the side as he slashes his hand across his neck, silently telling me to cool it.
“Cozy?” Rebecca’s voice breaks into the line. “Why are you answering your phone like that? You sound stupid.”
I clear my throat and try to chill out. “Because I’m doing super good at my job.”
“That’s what I hear,” Rebecca replies smoothly. “Despite the way you just answered your phone.”
“Come again?” I inquire, my head jerking back.
“Max Fletcher emailed me with a glowing review of you so far.”
My eyes snap to Max, who’s watching me with a heated look. A look that makes me feel like he’s seen me naked. “What did he say?”
“He said he’s never seen his daughter happier.”
Chills erupt over my entire body as a knot forms in my throat. My eyes hold his as I say, “He said that?”
“Yes, that’s what his email said. He also said that I should consider requiring my nannies to have lifeguarding experience. What’s that all about? He didn’t elaborate.”
My lips purse together as I turn away from Max to focus on my response. “We had a little incident. Not with his daughter, just me. I was fine, though. Crisis averted.”
Rebecca sighs that big sister sigh into the line. “Just be careful, okay? Be responsible.”
“Yes, Bec, I know.” I pause for a moment before whispering under my breath, “When did he send that email?”
“Hmm, let me look.” I hear clicking through the line, and then she replies, “Early last week. Why, did something bad happen since then I need to know about?”
“No, Becca,” I answer quickly, the smile on my face feeling damn near permanent. Something about Max saying all that before we slept together makes it feel that much more real.
“Everything else with you good?” she chirps lightly, and I can hear the clicking of her keyboard in the background again. “Anything personal to report?”
Oh, sis…if only you knew. “Nothing of interest. Does Jacob miss me yet? I could come over some night this week and play gin rummy with him again.”
“Jacob does not miss you, Cozy,” Rebecca drones. “You’ve only been gone a few weeks.”
My lips smush off to the side. “Well…tell him to call me if he gets bored watching Housewives with you.”
“Bye, Cozy.”
“Bye, Bec.”
I end the call with a smile, feeling like I won some major points with my sister for once. When I look up to thank Max for the email, I notice he’s frowning at me.
“Who’s Jacob?” he asks, walking toward me with his brow furrowed, looking strangely like a lion approaching his prey.
“My sister’s husband.”
Max stops walking. “You play cards with him?”
“Yeah.” I shrug, walking over to the sofa to resume my position. “I lived with them before I moved here, so we became card buddies.”
“Huh,” Max huffs, eyeing me curiously. “Have you always lived with your sister?”
“God, no!” I exclaim with a snort. “She barely tolerates me. I was there six months and totally outstayed my welcome.”
“Where did you live before that?” he inquires, his eyes doing that probing thing again that makes me shiver.
I shake my head and shrug again. “Just…an apartment.”