Jack
Charlotte groans as I move, then takes over the pillow I leave behind. Max is fully passed out, snoring loudly on the other side of the bed. He has the back of his hand against her side. I grin at them and fight the urge to rejoin them, maybe carry last night’s three rounds into today.
Instead, I kiss Charlotte’s forehead and head to the shower. If I’ve ever needed the chill of cold water on me, it’s today. Once out of the shower, I get dressed and return to the bedroom, ready to wake both Charlotte and Max so we can go get some much-needed breakfast.
Charlotte stretches, then bites her lip as she looks me over. The blanket is left around her hips, revealing her beautiful bouncy breasts. I smile and kiss her gently. “How are you feeling?”
“Shockingly obedient.” She giggles.
“Good.” I take her hand in mine. “The shower and all the hot water I have to offer are waiting for you.”
“Thank you.” She rubs her eyes and then fluffs her hair a little bit. “Maybe I should shower at my place, though. Where I have clothes and everything.”
I don’t want to let her go, to lose the moment, but her eyes flick to Max again as he grumbles in his sleep and tries to jerk the blanket from her. Her lips turn up slightly and she pushes his hair away from his eyes.
“Plus, it will give you guys time to talk, which I’m assuming is…necessary?”
I want to tell her that everything is fine, but instead, I have to dodge Max’s foot as he rolls over. Max groans and huffs. “What fucking time is it?”
“Late enough that you should be up.” I roll my eyes and settle for rubbing Charlotte’s thigh. “We can meet again at the restaurant. Do whatever you need, baby.”
“See you soon.” She kisses me quickly on the lips, then hugs Max, giggling when he squeezes her. I catch her squirming into her shirt and skirt, not even bothering to try with her underwear.
“How are you feeling?” I ask Max, once he’s through a shower, dressed, and we’re heading for breakfast.
He shrugs. “Don’t get me wrong, last night was fucking amazing, but the pain is still there. Just have to ignore it, I guess. All I really want to do is run away from Serena and everything else for a bit.”
He looks over the choppy water and scratches the back of his neck. “Is it bad that I’m not ready to get back to work?”
“No.” I exhale. “Work sounds very unappealing all of a sudden.”
“The three of us could take a vacation. Just see the world together, having fun and enjoying life.” He nudges me with his elbow. “Like we talked about in college.”
“I can’t do that quite yet,” I murmur. There’s too much for me to get in place to sail into the sunset. I need a handyman, I need my manager to come back and take care of things, and I need to talk to Charlotte.”
Max nods. “Yeah, of course. We have a few more responsibilities than we once did.”
I chuckle and nod, opening the door to the restaurant. I catch a wicked smile from the chef, as if he knows exactly what we got into last night. I wink at him and order coffee from the waitress.
Max and I sip our coffee easily until Charlotte comes in. She is wearing a simple day dress, peach with a lace neckline that reminds me of her underwear from last night. I take a scalding drink of coffee to control my lust.
Max beams at her. “Good morning, gorgeous.”
“Hi, Max.” She tucks her hair behind her ear and blushes slightly.
Still, she sits next to me rather than Max. I feel relieved for a moment that I’m still her favorite and then frustrated at the worry in general. I kiss her cheek and whisper in her ear. “You look beautiful, baby.”
“What have I missed?”
“Max wants to show us the world from his yacht.” I chuckle. “Interested in prolonging the fun?”
She bites that delicious lower lip as she looks at us. Her hand tightens on mine. “I don’t know if I understand the dynamic.”
“Why put a label on it, sugar? It’s more important that it works for us and we all feel good about it. And I’m feeling pretty damn good right now,” Max assures her, then winks from behind his mug of coffee.
“Aren’t you easy to please?” She giggles.
“You’d know better than most.” Max grins. “I know you and Jack are together. I can be an adult about it.”
“And what about the trip?” She pours three packs of sugar into her coffee.
“We’d spend a month or two at sea in Max’s yacht, all three of us exploring, enjoying, working if you want to.” I pass her a menu.
She places her order as Max looks at us. “Work?”
“She’s a social media influencer and blogger. She can work from anywhere, honestly.”
“I can,” she agrees before talking to Max more about what she does. When the omelet is placed in front of her, she actually moans. “I’m starving.”
“Are you guys interested? We can leave whenever,” Max offers.
Charlotte considers it as we eat. I can almost read the yes on her face when Serena slaps her hand on the table. I blink at her a few times, not sure how I missed her entrance. I’ve never seen her so distracted and disorganized. Her hair is thrown up in a messy bun, her clothes are rumpled, and there was no trace of makeup on her face.
“Max, I want to go home.”
“Good choice. Plane tickets are cheap right now,” his tone is sharp.
Serena stumbles back and looks at us with obvious hurt. “Don’t make me the bad guy here.”
“You left Jack, then you tried to cheat on me with him. How are you not the bad guy?” Max insists.
Tears well in her eyes. “It was a mistake, Max. Please, I love you.”
“You love the lifestyle, not the person. Go home, grab your shit, and find another bed to fall into,” Max said, truly angry and hurt.
Serena gives up after a bit of whining and runs away, slamming the door behind her as she leaves. I spot her sitting in the parking lot, crying, but also staring daggers at the three of us. Charlotte reaches across the table to pat Max’s hand. “I’m sorry that you have to deal with that. I can’t imagine what you’re going through.”
He shrugs, trying to brush it off, as if Charlotte will let him. She shakes her head. “Don’t ignore how you’re feeling, Max. You’ll either explode later or you’ll forget who you are.” Her eyes lift to mine. “I’m speaking from experience.”
I kiss her gently. Max nods and vents about everything. Serena’s wandering eyes, and how he was so eager to believe she loved him that he ignored her infidelity. He spent two years talking to her about getting engaged before he felt that she’d even say yes to a proposal. Charlotte leaves me to sit beside him, then takes his face in her hands and kisses him.
One kiss turns into two, into three, until she laughs softly and pulls back, her foot finding mine under the table as she shoots me a wicked grin. “I think that Jack and I will join you on your adventure.”
“Not out of pity.” Max points at her.
Her eyes aren’t on him though, they’re on the suddenly furious Serena freaking out in the parking lot. “No pity at all. I’d say being left by Serena is the best thing that can happen to a man. We’ll prove it.”
No wonder I can’t resist her. Since we spent time together, life has felt easier. As if everything in the world is possible as long as she’s there with me with her smile, sass, and a little bit of affection. I only hope I’ve made her feel as empowered as she’s made me feel.
“You know… you could do an entire blog series about traveling, really dive into writing along with your pictures,” I offer.
“If you’d like to, we can plan a world tour.” Max nods.
She looks at us and grins. “Tell me when to pack my bags,” she says, with no hesitation. She then tells me, “As long as this doesn’t get me kicked out of the condo.”
“I think I can pull some strings with the owner,” I tease her.
For the first time in years, I feel like I can breathe easy, not worrying that a problem is lurking around the corner. It’s as if the sun has broken through a hurricane. Charlotte’s joy is infectious, and I can’t imagine my life without her in it. She’s bringing both Max and me some much-needed joy and affection.