When he walks out the door, I sink to the floor and wrap my arms around my knees as I sob. I don’t need to look at my phone again to remember the texts. They’re branded on my brain.
Meredith: You’re seriously going out with Hanna Fat Ass Thompson.
Max: You’re seriously going to start this conversation by being a bitch?
Meredith: Just tell me how this happened.
Max: It’s a temporary arrangement. She needs a self-esteem boost.
Meredith: I had no idea you were taking charity cases.
Max: No worries, I still prefer blondes.
Meredith: So what’s it like to fuck a fatty?
Max: Don’t be a bitch.
Meredith: He dodges the question.
Max: Trust me, I’m not going to let this charade go that far. She’s a sweet girl, but she’s not my type.
Meredith: Am I your type?
Max: You know you are. But last I checked you were still hung up on Will Bailey.
Meredith: That was so last month. Come over here and I’ll prove it.
Max: What do you have in mind?
Meredith: You. My mouth. More specifically, your dick and my mouth.
Max: Shit. Don’t say that when you know I can’t.
Meredith: You said yourself that your thing with Hanna is just a charade.
Max: I don’t want her hurt. Period. I’ll have to take a rain check.
Meredith: I can keep a secret. I know when to use my mouth. And where.
Max: This is a bad idea.
Meredith: I’ll see you in fifteen, then?
Max: Make that five.
WHEN I climb into a cab at the airport and say, “Nate Crane’s house, please,” I almost expect the guy to laugh at me. Instead, he shakes his head, mutters something about tourists, and starts the drive to Hollywood Hills.
“Nate Crane lives right past those gates,” he announces in a bored tone.
The house in question is lit up like Granny’s last birthday cake, and the circle drive has so many high-end cars that it would make the nicest (er, only) dealer in New Hope weep.
“Where ya wanna go next? Eminem’s home isn’t far from here.”
“No. This is where I’ll get out, thanks.”
“You know they don’t just let you come party with ’em, right?”
I smile and hand him cash for my fare. He looks at me like I’ve lost my mind but shrugs as I climb out of the back.