Page 127 of Mr. Charming

I looked across the bare, open office at Max, still not sure what to think about his proposal.

“Huh? What did I tell you? It’s fucking perfect, right?”

“It’s nice,” I said, surprised. “And the location is good, but…”

“But what?” he interrupted.

“I’m not looking for a business partner right now.”

“Bullshit, man. That money we made isn’t going to last forever.”

“Hey, have you heard from anyone in Afghanistan recently?”

“No, why?” he asked.

“No reason,” I lied, wondering why Aamir had only called me.

Was it all a setup of some sort? I shouldn’t trust Max.

“I’m telling you man, the time to strike is now. I got a few high-end clients lined up already.”

“Like who?”

“I can’t tell you.”

“See, what kind of partnership can we have when you don’t tell me shit?”

He took a deep breath, staring into my eyes for a moment.

“You know what, man. You’re right. I have to tell you something.”

Uh oh. Here we go.

“You remember that chick from Afghanistan I liked?”

“Which one?”

I grinned.

“Fair enough. The journalist chick.”

What the fuck?

“Jade?” I asked, feigning ignorance until I figured out what was going on.

“Yeah, that’s her. I hooked up with her recently.”

“Oh yeah? How recently?”

“A few nights ago. Banged the fuck out of her, but she’s not for me. I don’t like the lip on her, if you know what I mean.”

He laughed all by himself.

“Anyway, I moved on to this friend of hers who fucks even better. I’m on a roll, I tell you. The next chick is going to be the best.”

I shook my head. Had she actually fucked him? Logan hadn’t told me anything about that, but I didn’t put it past him. She didn’t seem like the type of woman who would sleep with Max, but how well did I know her? Not very.

“She’s an uptight bitch,” Max continued. “I don’t know what you saw in her over there in the Stan. On a positive note, this friend of hers is fucking intense in the sack. She sucked my dick about ten minutes after we met.”