Make It Right (23 page)

“I disagree with that. My stuffing was amazing.” Max puffed out his chest.

Cal turned and stared at him thoughtfully. “Okay, I’ll give you that.” He turned to Lea and winked. “Max makes a mean stuffing.”

She smiled at Cal. “I’m looking forward to eating it.”

Cal returned her smile. “Glad you’re here to eat it.”

She turned to Max. “Is that what’s in your dish? Stuffing?”

“Yep.”

“That’s really not that secretive of a dish to make on Thanksgiving.”

“I know. I just like to keep you guessing.”

C
AL ENDED UP
not burning down the deck when he fried the turkey. Max gleefully showed her the burn marks on the old wood where the flame and oil had gotten a little out of control. Cal glared at him, and Jack marked to be thankful the house hadn’t burned down and so that had been the end of that.

During dinner, Jack was quiet while Brent chattered the most to Max about the shop and about girls and Lea listened, but really, she enjoyed a full house.

She’d thought Max’s family was so different from hers and it was, because it was noisy and full of deep voices and curses. But she realized that, at the core, they all cared about each other. So in that respect, his family was just like hers.

Afterward, they sat in the living room watching football. Max helped her cut the pie and they delivered it to the other guys on paper plates with scoops of vanilla ice cream they’d found wedged in the freezer.

Jack probably ate half the pie himself and patted her shoulder, his hand heavy and calloused. “Good pie there, sweetheart.”

And Max had stared at her, eyes wide, mouth. full of pie, open in shock.

When Jack left the room so use the bathroom, he leaned in to her. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard him use that word.”

Lea took a sip of milk she insisted on pouring. Because apple pie was always served with milk. “Does he date?”

Max wrinkled his nose. “Ew.”

“Well—”

Max held his hand up. “Please, just stop.” He fake gagged and she rolled her eyes.

“Do you have a girlfriend, Brent?”

“Huh?” His mouth full of ice cream.

“Girlfriend? Boyfriend?”

He narrowed his eyes. “I like girls and no, no girlfriend. Cal and I like to keep our options open.”

Cal, who’d been intent on the game whipped his head to his younger brother. “Speak for yourself!”

“What?”

He shrugged and turned back to the game. “You don’t know everything about my life.”

“Whoa oh oh!” Max cried, hand over his mouth. “Cal’s been keeping a secret!”

“We live together, dude!” Brent sat up in his recliner. “How the hell do I not know you have a girl?”

Cal shrugged.

“That’s all you’re gonna do? Shrug?” Brent exaggerated raising his shoulders in a mocking gesture.

Cal smiled and picked at the label on his beer bottle.

“Bullshit, man,” Brent said, flinging himself back in the recliner. “Gotta go find a new wingman.”

“What’s the hollering about?” Jack said, walking back into the room and taking his seat in the other recliner.

“Cal’s got a girl or something.”

Jack’s eyes narrowed on his oldest son, and Lea squirmed because those eyes were knowing. Then they shifted to Max, and then to her, where they lingered.

Finally, he turned to the TV and lifted his beer to his lips, taking a swig. When he lowered the bottle, he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Don’t mess it up if it’s important.”

He spoke like a man who knew what he was talking about, and his sons must have known, because they all went quiet.

And then Max looked at her out of the corner of his eye. He smiled and placed his hand on her thigh, palm up. She twined her fingers with his and smiled back. She rested her head on his shoulder and they watched the game with his family, while Wayne’s broken purr sounded on the couch beside them.

Chapter 25

M
AX STRETCHED HIS
legs in front of him as far as the bleachers would allow and braced his arms behind him on the metal bench.

Kat looked up at the blazing sun behind wide sunglasses and fanned herself with the graduation program. “I should have put on suntan lotion,” she grumbled.

Max picked at his shirt, wafting it away from his sticky skin. “It’s hot as hell, and I’m hungover.”

Kat grinned at him. “I know, I’m kind of enjoying your pain.”

He bumped her with his shoulder. The stadium was packed, full of friends and family of the graduates. Music from the university orchestra drifted through the speakers and Max took a gulp of his bottled water, squinting his eyes at the sun. He drifted his eyes to the sea of empty chairs on the field below.

He wished he was in the gymnasium of the rec center right now, sweating in his gown, blowing the tassel of his cap out of his face, laughing with Cam and Alec.

Shooting Lea heated looks.

But he knew when he changed his major that this would be his consequence. He managed to load up on classwork during the spring semester and was taking classes over the summer. So in the fall, he could student teach and if all went well, he’d graduate in December. Only a semester behind.

It wasn’t so bad. He’d keep Kat company during her last year. He’d support her in a way he hadn’t when he was her boyfriend.

“Zuk’s probably pissed the cap is messing up his hair,” Max said.

Kat laughed and pulled a lock of her hair over her shoulder, rolling it between her fingers. “I don’t think he wanted to admit it, but yes. He grumbled a lot when he put it on.”

Max smirked. Alec was probably hungover, too. And Cam. Last night was a little bit of a blur for Max. They’d gone to
Hot Spot
last night, drunk way too many mind erasers, sung drunken karaoke and then . . . well . . . the mind erasers kicked in.

He was pretty sure Lea had to undress him like a baby while he tried to grab her boobs.

God, he loved her.

He turned to Kat. “It’s awesome Zuk is going to be close for law school.”

Kat twisted the program in her hands and her lips turned down. “Yeah.”

Her low tone bugged Max. “What’s wrong?”

She shrugged. “Nothing, it’s fine.”

Max leaned forward, propping his elbows on his knees. “Okay, no you’re not, what’s up?”

She turned her head and he could see the faint outline of her eyes through her shades. “You always let me get away with saying ‘it’s fine.’ ”

“I’m not that guy anymore.”

A small smile. “I guess not.”

“So . . .”

She picked at the skirt of her sundress. “I don’t know. I guess I’m just nervous. I know he loves me and wants to be with me, but it’s scary to think of him on another campus, with all these pretty girls with massive brains and . . .” She blew out a breath and then shoved her shades onto the top of he head. Her blue eyes shone crystal clear as she bit her lip. “I’m being dumb, aren’t I?”

Max would always care about Kat. She was a great girl, a beautiful girl, but they weren’t right together. She and Zuk? A perfect pair.

He shook his head. “Nope, not dumb, babe. Never dumb.”

She smiled, her lip popping out from between her teeth.

“You’re what he wants,” Max said. “He’s going to miss you like crazy and he won’t be far away. You can visit each other all the time. Zuk’s as faithful as they come. You know that.”

“I don’t think he’s gonna—“

Max cut her off. “I know you don’t. I’m just saying. He doesn’t even look at anyone else.”

She shifted her lips back and forth. Then launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I’m glad I get one more semester with you.”

Max hesitated, then dipped his nose into her citrus-scented hair and hugged her back. “Me too.”

She squeezed and then pulled away and he let her go. “So proud of you, Max,” she said.

He tugged the end of her hair. “Proud of you, too, babe.”

They separated as a voice over the loudspeakers welcomed the crowd to the spring Bowler University graduation and then asked the murmuring crowd to welcome the graduating class.

More than six hundred students shuffled in, and Max assumed Alec and Cam weren’t the only hungover ones.

They filed in alphabetically, so first they saw Danica, who wore high platform wedge shoes and lavender hair. Then Cam, who shot Max the middle finger, because he was classy like that. Kat squealed when Alec came into view and took rapid fire pictures on her phone. Max suggested she switch over to video and then she proceeded to narrate Alec’s progress into her phone speaker along with the video.

Max spotted Lea easily because of her unique walk and watched as she scanned the crowd. He’d told her where he’d be sitting and he wore his Cross Keys Bowling shirt, so when he stood up and waved his hands, she waved back and blew him a kiss.

Max zoned out during the speeches while Kat listened intently, nodding along to the dean’s reading of some inspirational poem. But after a while, she grew bored too and began playing some game on her phone.

They whooped loudly when their friends’ names were called and they walked across the stage to receive their diplomas.

And at the end of graduation, when they turned their tassels and threw their caps in the air, Max smiled. Because that’d be him in less than a year, as long as he played his cards right.

And instead of dreading graduation, he was looking forward to it. To his future doing what he wanted, with the perfect girl.

The crowd of friends and family waiting to leave the stadium bleachers was packed. Max hauled Kat on his back and hopped down the bleachers rather than use the stairs. Kat giggled in his ear about butting in line but he didn’t care. She wanted to get to Alec as much as he wanted to get to Lea.

And when they were finally on the field, Max spotted lavender hair next to a pompadour and made his way over.

He let Kat down and she ran and tackled Alec, nearly taking him down. Danica stood with her arm around Monica and Cam laughed with Lea.

Max walked up to her and wrapped his arms around her, picking her up and swinging her into the air. “You’re a college graduate now, doll.”

Lea stuck her tongue out between her teeth and gave a very un-Lea-like squeal, throwing her arms in the hair. “Whoo hoo!”

He kissed her then, full on, lips moving and tongues tangling, and didn’t stop until a voice cleared behind him.

He set her down gently and placed his arm over her shoulder. When he turned around, Lea’s parents stood behind him.

“La-La,” her dad said, holding out his arms and Lea squeezed Max’s hand and then went to her father.

As she chatted with her parents, Max slapped Cam on the back. “You made it, buddy.”

Cam had entered Bowler a semester late, but he’d loaded up on classes to graduate at the same time as Alec. He wore a pair of cut off camo pants and a tan T-shirt, his gown thrown over his shoulder. “Hell yeah. Sometimes I thought I’d be in school forever.”

Max pointed at himself with his thumb. “Uh, that’s me. Super senior here.”

Cam smiled. “Hey, you got a good reason.”

“What’s going on with you job-wise?”

Cam blew out a breath, his lips fluttered and ran a hand through his sweat-damp black hair. “Man, I was gonna take this job up in New York, but Mom . . .” His jaw clenched. “I gotta go back home. I’ll find something there.”

Max frowned. He knew Cam had never wanted to return home. That was the reason he’d entered the military at eighteen, so he could afford college and a job and get the hell out of his small town.

“If you need anything . . .” Max began, but Cam cut him off with a dimpled smile and a friendly shove to the shoulder. “I’m cool, man. I want to celebrate today, not think about where I gotta be this summer, all right?”

“Yeah, man, I get that.”

“Max,” Lea called and he turned around. She waved him over to her parents and he joined them, shaking her father’s hand and accepting a hug from her mother.

He’d met her parents a couple of times now. Her dad seemed very protective of Lea but never made Max feel uncomfortable or unworthy. He made Max want to show him he deserved Lea, to be proud of him.

“So, this’ll be you next year, right son?” Mr. Travers said.

Max loved that he called him son. He gripped Lea’s hand. “Yep, hope so.”

“Ah, you’ll make it.” Her father smiled at him and Max returned it.

They held a graduation party back at the town house. By the time the sky had begun to darken, all the parents had gone home. Max sat on the recliner with Lea tucked into his side. Kat sat on the couch talking quietly with Cam, Alec’s sleeping head in her lap.

Max ran his hand through Lea’s hair and leaned his head back. Wayne was perched on the back cushion on the recliner, one of his favorite spots, and Max didn’t mind because he made an excellent pillow. Even if the purring gave him a little bit of a headache.

“So I have an idea on where I want to go first.”

“Hmmm?” Lea mumbled sleepily.

“On our road trip.” They’d made plans to take some time together, just the two of them, before Max’s summer classes started. Lea had been offered a job at the school where she student taught, which was about a half hour away from Bowler, so Max was thrilled she’d still be close.

She played with his fingers, running her hands over his calluses. “Okay, where?”

He glanced over at Cam, who was still in discussion with Kat. He’d noticed that while Cam had appeared happy, a gloom had settled on his shoulders, kind of a dread. And Max hated seeing that. “Let’s go visit Cam at home.”

“I’d like that,” Lea said.

“Then . . . maybe I thought we’d go to New York.”

Lea straightened so she could look him in the eye. “Oh yeah?”

He nodded. “I mean, it’s not winter, but . . .”

“Can we ride the subway?”

He laughed. “Uh, sure.”

“And I want to watch some street dancers.”

“I’ll put out an alert for them.”

“And go to museums and libraries.”

Max exaggerated a pained groan and Lea scowled and smacked his chest. “Oh stop.”

He grabbed her hand and kissed her palm. “Okay, as long as we can then hole up in a hotel room and order lots of room service.”

She twisted her hand so she shook his. “Deal.” Then she smiled slyly. “You just wanna get me naked in the bathtub so we can reenact our ‘I love you’s,’ don’t you?”

He pressed his lips to hers and mumbled against them. “Don’t forget the rose petals.”

The End