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He stood, his frown still deep, unshed tears in his eyes, and spoke rather loudly. “I thought you cared about me, about my art.” Then he stormed out of her restaurant and, Anna hoped, out of her life.
“That was intense.” Myra sighed dreamily as she refilled Anna’s coffee. At eighteen, Myra still thought dramatic scenes were romantic. At twenty-seven, Anna just found them exasperating and time-consuming.
She rose to her feet and let the tension drain as she glanced at Myra. Short and small-boned, with fair skin, light blue eyes, and pale blonde hair, Myra always reminded Anna of a fairy or water sprite.
“Not really,” Anna said, reminding herself that she had been a wide-eyed innocent at one time.
“Hey, did you hear about that Jensen Wulf?”
Anna blinked, wondering if she knew of anyone by that name. She couldn’t think of any Wulfs in their town. “Do I know him?”
Myra laughed, her blue eyes dancing with humor. “No. He’s some rich guy from England. Cousin or something to the royal family.”
“Oh, well, no, I haven’t heard about him since I don’t even know who he is.”
Myra pulled out her phone and found a picture of him. He was gorgeous, as in movie star pretty, with a bit of an edge. “He’s Jakob Wulf’s brother. You know, the actor who does all the action movies.”
“And why are we talking about him?”
Myra rolled her eyes. “TMZ was reporting he was arrested, but there’s no official report.”
The excitement in the younger woman’s voice almost made Anna laugh. “Then maybe it’s not true. I mean, itisTMZ.”
“But he showed up in some fancy rehab place in New York. You have to prove you’re at least a millionaire to get in.”
Anna bit back a sigh. Celebrity gossip was never her thing. Any kind of gossip was never her thing. Myra seemed to obsess about it constantly.
“Why don’t you take your break, Myra? I can handle this crowd for thirty minutes.”
Myra looked ready to agree, but something over Anna’s shoulder caught her attention.
Anna turned, annoyance boiling in her belly. Sure, it was Brad returning to give it one last try. When she saw Max striding toward her, all that irritation melted into warmth. Because he was her friend, herbestfriend, and she loved him like a friend.
Friends had scorching oral sex dreams about each other—didn’t they?
She smiled. He responded with a grin that sent a wave of heat tingling along her skin. Every hormone in her body did a little jump to stand at attention. She hoped he attributed her hard nipples to the AC as she forced herself not to rub them.
“Max, what are you doing here in the middle of the day?” Anna hugged him. The familiar scent of his aftershave, mixed with whiskey, surrounded her. Something was up because Max never drunk before five.
“Took a long lunch.” His absent tone told Anna his mind wasn’t really on her or their conversation. “You busy?”
“I was going to let Myra—”
“Don’t worry, Anna. I can wait a little bit.” Myra eyed Max with her usual guarded admiration.
Myra was wary of Max. Most people were. Over six feet tall and big-boned, Max hardly ever smiled, giving the impression that he was always serious. Which was true in a lot of ways. But he did have a wicked sense of humor, drier than the Arizona desert. With his chocolate-brown eyes and wavy blond hair, Max should have looked like a big teddy bear. He appeared lethal, dressed in a slate gray suit, a black shirt, and a red tie. And dangerously sexy. Oh God, was he sexy.
Anna cleared her throat. “Want something to drink?” He shook his head. “Okay. Why don’t we head on back to my office?” She grabbed her coffee and led Max to the small room behind the service counter.
Entering first, she headed for her comfy desk chair. Max closed the door behind him. When she’d taken over the restaurant a couple years ago, the tiny room had been painted gray, with much of it peeling off. She’d painted the room lavender, giving it a softer appearance, and hung a large mirror behind her desk. It helped give the illusion that the room was bigger. She wanted to ensure she didn’t feel trapped in a square box if she was stuck handling paperwork. She didn’t do well in any kind of box, square or otherwise.
Anna slid her sandals off and propped her feet on the desk, showing off her blue nail polish and the new toe ring she’d picked up in Gainesville. She took a sip of her coffee and set the mug down. “What’s up, Maxwell? You don’t take off in the middle of the day. Ever.”
“Cynthia called off our engagement.”
Of all the things he could say, that was the last thing she expected. For a few seconds, her mind froze, trying to compute what he had just told her. Then, her feet landed with a thud on the floor.
“Shebroke it off?” The woman obviously needed some professional help. Cynthia Myers had been lucky to get a man like Max.
