In Selene's bedroom, the next hour was spent mostly talking about her situation. Then she asked Lucy about Kyle.
Lucy's eyes twinkled as she said, "I didn't want to say anything with what you're going through and all. Buuuut, I'm going to surprise him tomorrow after I leave your place because he said he'll be working from home. He thinks I'm working a double shift over these couple of days so I'm going to go to his place with a picnic basket. Then we can go to the park near his place for a picnic and then back to his place to…you know, reconnect." She smiled and raised her eyebrows a couple times suggestively.
Selene smiled back and said, "Lucy! You little seductress!" They both laughed, then she went on, "I'm happy for you. You both need some time to 'reconnect' for sure. How long has it been by the way?"
"Too long," Lucy sighed flatly. "But all that ends tomorrow," she continued with determination.
They were discussing the details of tomorrow's date when suddenly there was a knock on the door. Lucy got up from her spot on the bed and opened the door. It was Max and she caught herself giving him a big smile. Max was surprised for a second and forgot to speak. Then he stumbled over his words as he asked, "I'm heading out to grab some takeout for lunch and wanted to see if you guys wanted some too?"
Still smiling, Lucy thanked him. She turned back to Selene and asked, "What do you think? I can go get us something unless you're ok with Max going. Or we could eat here. Up to you."
Selene took a deep breath and considered. She realized if they got the takeout, it didn't mean they had to eat it with them. "Thank you, Max. That would be great," she responded. "Lucy, do you mind going with him? You know what I like. I kind of want to lay down for a little bit."
Lucy was startled for a few seconds but saw how tired Selene looked. So, she looked back at Max, and stuttered, "Umm, Th-That sounds, um, fine." She was worried it might be a little awkward since she didn't know him that well. Plus, they'd had that weird encounter in the elevator, and after…
"Great! I can drive," he beamed as he felt his heart rate increase. This confirmed for him what he had thought after meeting her at the barbeque. In the days after, he couldn't stop thinking about her. He tried brushing it off as just infatuation, but now he realized it was probably more. Still, she had a boyfriend, so there was nothing he could do about it. He felt a stabbing pain in his heart.
She grabbed her purse, waved goodbye to Selene, and followed Max through the hallways, living room, and to the doorway area. They were both quiet on the way. Lucy's first thought was, "Oh wow, he looks so hot from the back." Her second thought was, "Ugh, why am I thinking about him like that?" She told herself to think about Kyle and to think about how romantic the picnic would be, but it was no use. All she could see was his firm backside outlined in his tight slacks. Then she imagined running her hands through his wavy blond hair. By the time they reached the doorway, she felt flushed.
Max asked, "Are you ok—you look a little red?"
She blushed even more. Busying herself with her shoes, she responded, "I'm fine, it just felt a little warm in the hallway." To distract him, she asked, "Where are we going anyway?"
He answered, "The Chili Pepper, a couple blocks away. Do you know it? Or we could go somewhere else if you're in the mood for something else."
"No, that sounds good. I haven't been there. Not sure about Selene," Lucy responded quickly.
He looked at her quizzically as they exited the penthouse. While waiting for the elevator, Lucy didn't want any awkward silence, so she asked, "So, is it a Mexican restaurant or…"
Max filled in, "Yes, it is. And it's really good. I always get the same thing."
They got into the elevator. Max pushed the "Lobby" button.
Lucy naturally followed up with, "What do you get?"
"The Chicken Fajita Especial," he responded. "It is so good. The sauce is incredible."
"Hmmm," she considered, "Maybe I should try this amazing dish and judge for myself. I am a connoisseur of fajitas, just so you know," she taunted.
Max put his hand to his chest and made a pretend shocked face. He said, "Oh, is that right? Well, I'm sure this meal will get a perfect score."
"We shall see, we shall see," Lucy teased with a smile.
They laughed as they exited the elevator and made their way to Max's car, which was parked in one of the visitor's spots in the private underground parking area devoted to the penthouse owners.
As they drove to the restaurant, Max brought up their conversation from when they both first arrived at the penthouse, "Sooo, earlier today you were mentioning how much you love being a nurse?"
Lucy was confused at first and then she remembered what he was referring to. "Oh yes!," she replied, "I do love it. I actually thought about becoming a doctor but when I was pre-med in college, I realized it just wasn't for me. But I still wanted to be in the field and that's when I discovered nursing. I'm so glad I did. It's the perfect fit for me and my personality. I like helping people. I also love the people I work with. I got really lucky in that way. Our charge nurse is great too."
"That is really great," Max said, "Sounds like a great fit for you. Not everyone gets a job they enjoy."
She took a look at him in surprise and questioned, "Do you mean you don't like working for Ben?"
"Oh no! I didn't mean me," he responded immediately, "I just meant people in general."
"Ohhhh," Lucy nodded.
Max clarified, "And I don't so much work for Ben as with him."
"I didn't know that," she said tilting her head, finding this information very interesting. "What does that mean exactly?"
He stared straight ahead, realizing he probably shouldn't have said that. "Uhh, it's complicated…Anyway, I like my job too. I guess we're both lucky in that way. So, umm, what do you do for fun?" He tried to change the subject.
Lucy was on to him though. Still, she figured it was none of her business, so she let him get away with it. She replied, "Oh, this and that."
"I see. What a coincidence!," he said leaning toward her suddenly. He whispered, "I'm also into a little of this and a little of that." Then he straightened back up and laughed.
She laughed too but it was a nervous laugh as she didn't quite know how to take it. When he had leaned in, she had all of a sudden felt a rush go through her. And when he whispered those words, she had imagined this and that referring to certain positions that made a certain part of her throb. What was going on here, and, er, there? Surely, he didn't mean it in that way. Did he? Nah, he was laughing. He was just being funny. Right?
Max thought, "What the hell did I just do?" Why was he saying and doing things he would normally never do to a woman who was taken? I mean, if she was single, he would definitely be hitting on her like this. But she wasn't. He was starting to feel an uncomfortable tightening in his pants and he hoped she didn't see it. He shifted his position a little and tried to talk about something else. He started feeling guilty too.
"But seriously," he said, "what do you do when you're not working?"
They spent the rest of the short ride talking about Lucy's hobbies, which included watching TV (she didn't mention her love of dramas for fear of embarrassment) and going on hikes. She was surprised to learn that when he wasn't sleeping, he was working. The only other thing he did was go on hikes and run. He didn't have time for anything else.
Max was itching to ask her to go on a hike together, but he knew he shouldn't.
They arrived at the restaurant, ordered the meals, and then headed back out. The drive back was a little awkward. Neither knew what else to talk about.
Finally, Lucy asked, "Sooo, umm, how long have you worked for…I mean, worked with, Ben?"
Max let out a breath, relieved that they finally had something to talk about. He had been afraid to say something for fear of flirting with her. But this seemed like a benign topic...as long as he didn't go into much detail. "Hmm. Let's see, it's been about five years now I'd say. Almost."
"Oh, that's a long time," she noted. "What do you do?"
He figured that question was coming and knew how to answer so he described how he mainly helped with negotiations and the development of contracts related to deals with other companies. This also included any partnerships with other organizations or individuals related to technology development and such. He ended with, "And that's pretty much it."
Lucy's face indicated that she was suitably impressed as she nodded. Max saw this when he glanced her way briefly and was glad he had known what to say. Therefore, he was taken aback when she said, "That all sounds well and good. And I'm sure you do actually do that for the company."
Max nodded contentedly.
"But cut the crap," Lucy snapped, and Max was startled out of his sense of satisfaction. She went on "I know that's not all you do. Selene told me about the rescue operation. I don't believe for one second you weren't involved with that. If Johnny was involved, you were involved too. I may look naïve, but I'm not buddy boy." He saw her smirking with a victorious look on her face.
Max didn't know what to say and stammered, "Oh, well, umm…." Then he straightened himself up and cleared his throat. "Ok, you got me. I didn't know how much you knew. It's not like we go around advertising what we do, you know? But since you know, then why did you ask?"
Lucy chuckled and replied, "I just wanted to put you on the spot I guess."
Before he could respond, they arrived at Ben's building. The walk to the elevator, and the elevator ride was spent in silence. Max placed the two bags containing their respective meals on the table by the door so he could take off his shoes. When they were both in slippers, he suddenly pulled Lucy's arms, and forced her back against the wall. He placed his two hands against each side of her head. He looked down at the shocked expression on her face, which was looking up at him, eyes wide and unblinking.
Lucy put her hands up against his chest but was surprised at herself as she didn't push him away. Instead, she waited to see what he would say.
She didn't have to wait long because he came so close to her face that their lips were only an inch apart. He looked into her eyes, then down to her lips.
Raising his eyes back to hers, he gave her a sultry look and whispered, "How does it feel to be the one put on the spot?"
Lucy took a deep breath and held it. After blinking fast a few times, she let it out slowly, and murmured, "Umm…." Then she looked away, unable to think of anything else to say above the rapid pounding of her heart.
He pulled back, gave a lopsided grin, and said, "Don't worry, I won't do anything, though I may want to. I know you have a boyfriend. I admit, I don't know what you see in him, but I'm not that type of guy."
Then he straightened up and picked up the takeout bags. He handed Lucy the bag that belonged to her and Selene and said, "Here, this is the one for you guys." Without another word, he walked away toward Ben's office.
Lucy was left holding the bag and staring after him. "What the hell just happened?," she thought.
She walked quickly to Selene's bedroom and knocked gently at the door, not wanting to wake her if she was asleep. After hearing, "Come in," she opened the door and walked in. The first thing she said, after putting her purse and bag down next to the bed that Selene was lying on was, "Oh.My.God., you will never believe what happened."
Lucy told Selene everything that happened as they ate lunch, which they did while sitting on the bed. Selene hesitantly asked, "So, I mean, does that mean you like Max?"
"No way," she said too quickly. "I mean, he's cute. Definitely. Ok, he's hot. What's not to like? But I love Kyle. I would never cheat on him. I guess we did sort of flirt, but not really. It was more confusing, I guess. I mean, if there was no Kyle, could I see myself flirting with Max?...Yes. But there is a Kyle. And I love him so I would never do something to hurt him you know? This whole thing was just bizarre."
Selene noted her rambling answer and remarked, "I get. It just sounded from what you said that Max was saying he liked you, and so I wasn't sure how you felt. But, like I said, I get it. You've been with Kyle for forever. Why would you risk that?"
Lucy nodded, "Exactly. I wouldn't." Selene nodded as well. There were a few moments of silence as they continued eating.
The problem was that during these few moments of silence, Lucy was thinking about the words Max said: "Though I may want to." And as she was thinking about these words, she wondered what he would have done if she didn't have a boyfriend. She found her mind going down a path that led to one of the bedrooms in this house. "Oh no," she thought as she shook her head.
To get herself to stop thinking, she took another bite and said, "Max was right—this really is one of the best dishes I've ever tasted." She winked and added, "But don't tell him I said that."