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He crossed the rooood picture, I doubt--"

"It’s fine," I said, tucking my hair behind my ear "I--"

"Well, I wouldn’t say fine," Chloe interrupted, rounding the desk She crossed her arree it’s not the best picture, but I kneas you Bennett, too"

"As did I," George volunteered, hand raised

"Why are you even still here?" I asked, glaring "Go to work"

"Touchy," George said, pushing away from the wall

"Well, well" At the sound, every head in the room turned in the direction of the door "Glad everyone couldlike he’d won the biggest, most ridiculous man-bet of all tio wide "What, the eighteenth-floor stairould be better?"

His head whipped to Chloe "Seriously, Chlo? You told her that?"

"Of course I did" She waved hihed

"You did that, Ben? Shagged your intern at work?"

"A few tie whisper

Max rubbed his palhted by this turn of events "How very, very interesting," he said, eyeing Bennett "Funny you didn’tme a whore the other day"

"Oh, that’s rich Pot,between the two ruave Chloe a quick peck on the lips before walking out of my office

Chloe turned to Max "I want to knohat it’s like to ith your mother when this kind of news hits the papers Did she freak out?"

Max shrugged "She pretends I don’t have an active libido It’s better that way"

"What are we even talking about?" I groaned "Chloe, I love you but get out of e!" I yelled

He poked his head in within a fewin Take Chloe down to the break room and buy her some chocolate" I finally met Max’s eyes "I need to talk to Max alone"

Chloe and George disappeared down the hall and Max shut and locked

"What? No" I sighed, dropping into my chair "If I remember correctly, I jumped you I believe you even warnedhis dimple in a smile as he lifted the photo up "But I also coood Ito a ridiculously fit woh and failed He bent so that ere eye to eye "We’re together a lot, Sara It’s just a raphed"

I nodded "I know"

He straightened, looking out h "I suppose we’ll have to confine our snogs to bedroo twisted in my belly, and not because I was averse to the idea of Max in a bed It’s just that I wasn’t done having Max everywhere else

I’d wanted to hold on to this New Sara a little longer

"That doesn’t look like a happy face," he noted

"I like e do"

His face fell the slightest bit "The wildness of location?"

I nodded "Just feeling like I could do anything I wanted with you"

He paused, seeh "That doesn’t have to change, Sara Regardless of where I have my wicked ith you"

I smiled "I know"

"But you realize if we continue that, and I’ht"

He was right, and the reality of it was enough to ure it out," I said, but even I heard my lack of conviction

"Sara, it’s possible to have fun even with ave hie "I know"

But the truth was, I didn’t know I only knew that I didn’t hat I had with Max to resemble any bit of the life I had before

Fourteen

At three in the , I woke up with such an absurd idea I was iet a shot of whiskey so I could fall back asleep

But I didn’t get up, and I didn’t have a shot, and I o back to sleep

I was up half the night,over what to do with Sara’s paradoxical need to remain a secret yet still explore her wilder side with me Admittedly, she’d been more relaxed than I expected about the photos in the Post, but we’d been lucky, and they hadn’t actually gotten her face or anything too telling Anythingcould turn her skittish, if that hadn’t happened already I could tell she had feelings for asms and our shared exhibitionist fetish, but that was a far cry fro, and miles away from what I felt about her