Page 236 of Sorrow & Strangers

“Did you eat Mira?” I blink. “Uh, wait. Not in that way . . . You know what I mean.”

“I bit her. A lot,” Rafe says, flushing a deep red.

I quirk a brow. “Okay. But you didn’t eat her. Again, I am not talking about eating her out because⁠—”

“Can we stop talking about Mira?”

“As soon as you stop being a moronic asshole.”

“I’ll just leave, then.”

“Leave if you want, but you will be going back to school.”

“With safeguards,” Rafe hisses.

“Rafael, there is no way I will ever let you wear a muzzle.”

Rafe storms past me and stomps upstairs, and I huff when I hear his bedroom door slam. I leave the house in a similarly sour mood, and I think Max can tell when I arrive at the gym.

“Sparring?” Max asks as I step into the gym, the cold AC blasting me in the face.

I nod, and I walk through to the sparring room.

“How are your muscles?” he asks.

“Not bad,” I say, bending into a deep stretch.

I feel Max’s eyes on me and turn my head to meet his gaze. “You’re still building your strength back up. Don’t push too hard.”

I straighten and face him. “Hey. Did I make you uncomfortable yesterday?” After our almost-kiss yesterday, it felt like Max might be a little uncomfortable with the situation. The last thing I want is for things to be awkward between us.

“Me? When?” he asks, quirking a brow.

“When we were on the couch. I know we were close, but⁠—”

“No,” Max says, shaking his head.

“Okay.”

“Why do you ask?”

“You just seemed it,” I say, lifting my leg and reaching back to grab the back of my ankle, stretching out my leg.

“Were you?” he asks. “Uncomfortable?”

I shake my head and get into a basic fighting stance. The last time I was here, Max mentioned he wanted to do some more hand-to-hand combat.

We spar for a little over an hour, and surprisingly, I manage to keep up with him pretty well.

“Good,” Max says, barely winded. “Your strength is coming back.”

I nod, running my fingers through my hair as I catch my breath.

Max stretches, cooling down. “Another few hand-to-hand sessions and we’ll move back to weapons, combining the moves.” He reaches out and pinches my upper arms, feeling for the muscles that are slowly rebuilding. “Make sure you ice. Your muscles vanished over the summer, and we’re working double time to get you back into shape.” Max pauses, working his hands up my arms to my shoulders, his strong fingers kneading away the tension. “I like being friends first.”

“Me too,” I say, gently pulling away to stow my sai again, and I’m about to leave when I pause at the door, hesitating. I glance at Max, who is still watching me.

“Sum? Is there something wrong?” he asks, searching my gaze.