Page 87 of Except You

That can’t be true. Eventually he will grow tired of me, but I appreciate the sentiment.

“I mean it, Max. This is enough.”

I nod, wetting my lips. “Okay.”

He smiles softly at me and then presses another kiss to my lips. “You want to finish digging these holes? I feel like you’ve been at them forever.”

I snort a small laugh. “Not really, no.”

“Alright, then want to grab drinks with me and Coop?”

I suddenly feel exposed. Insecure. “You sure you want me to come? You haven’t seen Coop in a while.”

Beau rolls his eyes. “Of course I do.”

I pull my lips between my teeth and glance at the unfinished holes. “You know what, you go ahead and go without me, and I can join you when I’m finished with this.”

Beau looks a little bummed at that, but honestly, I need a minute to breathe. I’ve been so in my head over giving him a blow job—not to mention my fight with Matt—that I haven’t been one-hundred-percent myself the past few days.

And Beau needs to see his best friend without me looming over him. He probably needs to talk about shit without me there.

“Alright. I’ll message you the address.”

He squeezes my arm, and I smile at him.

“See you soon,” I say, and he nods.

“See you soon.”

When I finally meet Coop and Beau at a small, upscale lounge downtown, I’m freshly showered and feeling slightly better.

I’ve decided I’m gonna suck his dick and if I’m terrible at it, then he’ll just have to let me practice on him a few times. That’s the only way I will get any better. I can’t expect to be an expert the first time.

Practice makes perfect.

But when I arrive, it’s not just Coop who Beau is with. There’s someone else sitting with them as well. Another man. A handsome one from what I can tell, with a suit and tie and perfectly styled hair. And what makes it worse is Beau is leaning toward him, a smile tilting his lips up.

Suddenly, the man reaches out and touches his arm, and my stomach churns.

Without thinking, I move, coming to a stop in front of the table, my hands in my pockets. My approach causes Beau to look up, smiling at me.

“Hey, you made it,” he says cheerfully.

His cheeks are a little flushed, and I wonder how much he’s had to drink. Or perhaps it’s not the drinks. Maybe it’s this guy that has him all hot and bothered.

“Oh, glad you’re here,” Coop says and then waves his hand toward the guy. “This is Edward. Beau and him hooked up a few times. Edward, this is Max, Beau’s current fling.”

Beau’s cheeks darken as he scowls at his best friend, but Edward seems unphased by this, offering me his hand.

“Nice to meet you.”

I nod and shake his hand, not feeling the same way, because it’s absolutely not nice to meet this guy. I don’t want to meet any of Beau’s previous hookups—men who are clearly gay and have no problem sticking dicks into their mouths or asses.

I still have a shit-ton to contend with, and there’s a very good chance Beau is going to grow tired of me.

“We saved you a seat,” Beau says, pointing to one opposite him.

I lower myself into it and lean back, trying to act casual, but feeling itchy. My skin feels too tight.