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“Oh, so Lila’s not going to want to have fun with you tonight if you are sloshed?” I tease him, even though I doubt she'd care. "She’s got that ball and chain waiting for you?"

“Don’t bring up Lila like that,” he says, shaking his head angrily and glaring at me. The man has lost his mind. I would laugh if it wasn't so sad. I never thought I'd see the day when Max Spector lost his shit over a woman. “Have some respect.” His tone is slightly angry, and I realize that he is far more sprung than I’d initially realized. The man is in love. I shudder at the thought. I'm definitely not telling him why I'm here. I don't need him trying to change my mind or talk me out of what I have to do.

“Whoa! I’m not disrespecting her. I was just joking.” I hold my hands up in surrender. “No need to rip me apart like a vulture. I’m not circling your woman.”

“Sorry,” he says, letting off a deep sigh. “I’m just a little stressed out. Things are kind of crazy around the office, if you hadn’t noticed.”

“I noticed there was a little bit of tension. What’s going on?”

“I think Gabe is upset that Kingston, Remington, and I are all in relationships now, and he’s single. We’re all a bit upset that he disappeared, and we still don’t know where he was for all those months.” He frowns. "And now, my sister, Marie, is going to be working for him. Which I think is a crazy idea, especially considering she's pregnant."

“You still don’t know what he was doing?” I look surprised because I am. “I mean, I thought he was gone for months and months.” I don't dare bring up his sister Marie and herpregnancy. I already know, based on listening to whispered conversations between Lila and Skye, that Max is not happy that his little sister is about to become a single mom.

“He was gone for months and months and he's keeping mum about the reason why,” Max says, his voice frustrated. “So you’ll have to forgive me for now wondering what your secret is, as well. I don’t know how many more people around me I can find out are keeping secrets from me.”

I nod slowly. I know I'm not telling him anything right now. I don’t want to put him in an awkward position. And I don't want to argue because I know I'm not going to change my mind. “It doesn’t matter,” I say quickly. “I wasn't going to tell you anything big, just about a business deal, and it's not that important. No need to stress out.”

“You’re going to stress me out if you don’t tell me.” His phone rings then, and I’m grateful for the interruption. I watch as he pulls it out of his pocket and looks at the screen. “It’s Kingston,” he says. “Hold on.” He answers the phone swiftly. “What’s going on? I am at the Mad Hatter with Liam.” I can’t hear what they’re talking about, but Max’s face gets more and more twisted before he hangs up. “I’m in need of three beers right now,” he says, letting out a sigh.

“What’s going on?”

“Just one of the cases that Kingston and Remington were working on has now been appealed successfully, and it looks like we’re headed to the court of appeals.” He shakes his head. Wwhich is not great because I think they’re going to need me to work on the case. I promised Lila that I would go on a trip with her.”

“I suppose it must be really hard being a successful attorney and trying to convince the love of your life that work doesn’t come before her.”

“It doesn’t seem like Lila thinks that. I mean, she hasn’t said it in so many words." He frowns. "Though, I know by the hints that she gives she wants me to spend more quality time with her outside of the office.” He grins. “As much as I like to have quality time in the bedroom alone with her—” He grins and pauses. “Okay, maybe I shouldn’t have brought up the bedroom right after I told you off for bringing it up, but let’s just say that she wants more meaningful dates and one-on-one time.” He sighs. "I need to figure out a better schedule."

“I mean, you love her, and she’s your woman, so I get that.” I chuckle. “That’s why I don’t do meaningful relationships. If I wanted someone to nag and harangue me, I would live with my mom again.”

Max bursts out laughing and shakes his head. “You’re horrible. You know that, right, Liam?”

“I’ve been called worse things,” I say with a grin. “How’s everything else at the firm, aside from this latest stress?”

“I mean, you know, we’re doing pretty well. All of our clients are pretty happy with us. I mean, you’re happy with us, right?”

“As one of your biggest clients, I would say that I’m very happy, and, once again, I want to thank you for letting me use the office and for introducing me to Elisabetta, who’s now going to be my amazing assistant.”

Max shakes his head. “I have no idea what you’re thinking. She has never done a day of work in her life. Don’t get me wrong. I love her. She’s a great friend to the girls, but I don’t think she’ll make a great assistant.”

“Did Lila make a great assistant?” I ask him, pretending it's a serious question.

He presses his finger to his lips and takes a deep breath before winking. “I plead the fifth.”

“That’s what I thought,” I say. “Is there anything else you know about Elisabetta or anything that I should know…?”

"I mean, not really.” He shakes his head. “Her dad is some successful businessman. I don’t really know much about him, just that he spoiled her in taking care of her his whole life, and she goes on a lot of dates and winds up in precarious situations.”

“What do you mean by precarious situations?”

He shakes his head. “It’s not really my information to share. If you want to know about her dating life, you should ask her.”

“I don’t care about her dating life,” I say quickly. “I mean, she’s cute, but she’s definitely not my type. No offense to you and Kingston and Remington, but I definitely do not shit where I eat.” I shudder. "I do not need that drama in my life."

“Uh-huh,” Max says with a rueful grin. “Sure, I’ve heard those words many times before.”

“I’m being serious. I do not play where…”

“Whatever, dude.” He holds his hands up. “I’m not judging you.”