But Patsy stayed where she was—sitting on the floor beside Sadie.
Sadie reached into her mug and pulled a mini marshmallow out with her fingers. She held out the tiny sweet treat to Patsy, who gleefully ate it in a split second, then licked at Sadie’s fingers.
“Sadie! She doesn’t eat marshmallows!”
“I think she does, in fact, eat marshmallows. Three, so far,” Sadie retorted, scratching under the dog’s chin.
“Well, before today she’s never had a marshmallow. Who knows what that’s going to do to her digestive system.” Max pointed at Sadie. “You are cleaning up the mess if anything goes sideways.”
“Deal,” Sadie replied. “You know, I don’t blame you for running away here.”
“I didn’t ‘run away,’ ” he said. “I needed to think, to work without distraction, and this is where I feel my best, okay?”
Sadie took another sip from her mug. “Why this place?”
“My mom was from Canada. Did you know that?” Max swallowed hard. Some days he couldn’t believe she was gone, even if it had been years now.
“I didn’t.” Sadie blew across the surface of the cocoa, keeping her eyes on Max.
“Grew up on Vancouver Island, then came to Nashville to do what singers do—try to hit it big.”
“Well, she certainly followed through on that plan,” Sadie said. Max felt pride at that, and gratitude toward Sadie for recognizing his mom’s talent even though her career had been short. By the time Max was born, Maren Brody—poised to be nearly as famous as her husband, Holden—had happily left the stage for the title of “Mom.” She had been the most constant, loving force Max had ever known, and part of him had disappeared after she died.
“You must miss her. I understand why you ran—sorry, came back here. This is where you feel closest to her.”
“It is,” Max said softly, then he cleared his throat. “So, how about a refresher?”
Sadie held out her mug, a bit of sticky white marshmallow fluff above her upper lip.
“You’ve got a little...” Max put his finger on his lip.
Sadie looked at him in confusion. “What?”
“Here. Let me.” Max took a napkin and shifting closer to her, gently pressed it against Sadie’s lip.
Their eyes locked—and Max held his breath. Her eyes still on his, Sadie leaned forward slowly and gently brushed his lips with hers.
Oh. My. God.He cupped her face with his hands, kissing her deeply. Forget what everyone said about the magic that happened when they sang.Thisput their onstage chemistry to shame.
All he could think about was how good her lips felt against his, the tantalizing taste of her: sweet cocoa and marshmallow. Until he heard her whisper, “Wait... Max.”
Immediately, he pulled back. “Are you okay?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Are you going to throw up on me again?”
“Oh my God... Did I throw uponyou?”
“Stop your fretting,” Max said, laughing gently. They were inches apart, the heat of their bodies adding to the warmth of the space. Max wanted nothing more than to keep kissing Sadie, but only if she wanted the same thing. “You don’t have to, you know, do this.”
“I will say the same to you.” Sadie raised an eyebrow, and when he raised an eyebrow back she laughed, before kissing him again.
Once they broke apart, Max touched his forehead to hers and closed his eyes. “I... I need to tell you something.”
Sadie looked at him in concern. “What is it?”
Max could barely concentrate. His heart raced, knowing he was about to let his guard down and not knowing how his next words would be received.
