Last Straw

If Only It Were That Easy

Walking into the party with Max earns us more than a few curious glances. And a party it is, it's absolutely teeming with drivers and some of the most beautiful women I've ever seen here. A quick scan of the room tells me Lance isn't in here, and if I know him he's dancing already.

Good.

I don't feel like answering his questions on how I know Max or why I happen to be here with him.

Those are questions I don't even fully know the answer to myself.

All I know is for the few hours we were apart, I fucking missed the man.

Missed him.

Part of me knows I'm in over my head, but the other half of me is promising myself it's just a friendly thing. Maybe Max is meant to be my best friend!

But best friends don't get chills with the slightest brush of skin contact. Shaking that though from my head, "Drink?" I ask Max and he nods, heading that way.

Yup, I definitely need something to take the edge off.

Something weird is happening between Max and I, and I know it. But it's also something.. good. So I don't plan on stopping it. Our conversation flows so easily it's like we've known each other our whole lives as opposed to less than twenty four hours.

We're shockingly comfortable together and I find the man so interesting I could ignore the party around us and chat with him for hours at the bar as if we're the only two people in the world.

But that dream is short lived when a beautiful blonde approaches us two drinks in, reminding me other people do exist. We're knee deep into talk of black hole conspiracies but that is forgotten almost immediately.

"Maxy!" She hugs him fondly and a twinge of jealously I categorically should not feel pulsates through my body. "Who is this beauty?"

Max hugs her side, both of them turning to smile at me now. She's nearly flawless and flaunting a massive emerald on her ring finger, a sure sign she's taken.

Why does that make me feel relieved?

"This is Cat." He introduces me and she pulls me into a hug immediately, squeezing like we're old friends.

"Charlotte, but please call me cat." I tell her.

"Amelia," She beams eyeing my outfit "Is this vintage Chanel?"

If I wasn't stunned before, I am now. She has a hell of an eye for fashion because she's got the nail right on the head "Yes!" I take in her own outfit with a small squeal, a girl with an eye for fashion is a girl after my own heart "Are these the new Loewe?"

It's a question about her shoes but I already know the answer, somehow she got her hands on the summer collection early.

Oh now, this is a woman I need to befriend. We fall into passionate fashion talk like old friends and I love her immediately. Amelia is witty and fun, decidedly passionate about racing and her other half. I can see why Max likes her, hell I've known her under an hour and I like her too.

Max slipped away at some point but I don't even notice, deep in conversation with her.

My phone lights up with Chad's face and I don't want to walk way but I have no choice, because whenever I miss a call or text from Chad, he has this annoying tendency not to answer when I call or text back, even if it's half a second later. I don't get it. Way too many people do that. How are they not available five seconds after contacting me? I swear, it's like they send a text and then hurl their phones into the river.

Not to mention it's going on over twenty four hours since I heard from him.

"I gotta take this," I tell Amelia apologetically, backing away towards the balcony.

"I get it. I'm going to get your number from Max so you can meet the girls though!" She waves at me, and her massive emerald catches the light. I don't know who the girls are, but if they're anything like her I'm sure to love them.

"It's a plan!" And with that, I'm outside.

"Hey," I pick up the phone hastily, scared I'll miss him.

"Hello darling," Chad says sounding groggy as hell. My stomach immediately sinks, mind in the worst places. "Sorry I missed you."

You don't know he's using Cat, don't assume the worst.

But I can't ignore the feeling in my gut, "Everything alright?" I do my best not to pry, he's a fucking adult.

"Could only be better if you were here." He fucks up, slurring his words and my worst suspicions are confirmed.

I want to cry. I'm not sure he'll even remember this conversation in the morning. "Well, turns out I won't be back for a while."

Alarm bells ring in Chad's tone, "How long is a while?"

All of the year, likely. "A while. Dad wants me to join the Aston Martin team."

"Oh," Chad pauses for a long time, and the silence says a lot. A lot I didn't want to hear "Just tell him no."

If only it were that easy.

"I can't, he's pissed about the press," About what you did is on the tip of my tongue but I refrain because that shit won't help anything "He threatened my trust."

"Fuck," The only word Chad can manage in return. "You'd be fine without it right?"

My mouth falls open in shock. Did he really just ask that? He actually thinks I'll risk my trust in order to spend more time in the city with him? Chad is old english money and he's never had to earn it, it's always been his. I know he can't relate but he could at the bare minimum understand "No." I force myself to say, because he can't see my shock from over the phone but surely he can hear it.

"My phone's about to die." All he bothers to say in response.

Not good enough.

Fuck that. How inconsiderate can he be?

"Alright. Bye." My tone is flat when I hang up... Let him stew on that. Much as I hate to think it, maybe dad was right about Chad.

No, no. That I won't worry about tonight. I need to find Max.

Luckily he's an easy find, chatting with the man who can only be Charles Leclerc and Amelia's other half. I beeline through the crowd for him and the moment he spots me his brows push together in concern.

It's like he can read me like a book, one glance in my eyes is all it takes for him to know. I don't know how he does but he just does.

"Hey," He steps back from Charles and nods between us "Charles, Cat. Cat, Charles."

Charles looks almost flabbergasted for some reason, but there's no time for that now. I smile warmly at him, "Pleasure."

"It's all mine." He says but his face says something else entirely. I guess the whole world looks at you like you have three eyes when you're friends with Max.

Whatever.

Straight to the point I tug on his arm now that I've got him "Hey, can we get out of here?"

Max eyes me curiously, "You want another round?"

Not just want after that rollercoaster of a phone call "Need one." I nod and he obliges, passing off his glass to the nearby table. Any traces of my doubts on his form of stress relief faded to nothing after last night, if anything I'm hooked.

"Let's go." When we turn for the door, Max lips his hand onto the small of my back. My dress leaves a lot of skin exposed and when he touches me it feels like my body comes alive.

Oh, this is gonna be dangerous.