44. Cash

“So?”I asked as Max came running out of the church.

“She’s not there.”

I rolled my eyes at him. “Well, no shit. I kind of figured that when you came running out without her. Where the hell is she?”

“I have no fucking clue. Her dad said she went to find her husband.”

“Which would be you.”

“Yep.”

“And?”

“And what?” he asked.

I was about to punch him. Hand to God, I was going to deck my newest recruit. How the hell was I supposed to put up with these guys anymore? “And what else did you find out? What airline? When was she flying out?”

“I didn’t ask.”

“Then get your ass back in there and do the damn work!” I yelled at him. Christ, these guys were gonna kill me.

“Yeah, that’s not a good idea. There’s a funeral in there and I sort of interrupted it. And maybe did some kind of devil worship thing. It’s best if I stay out here,” he pointed to the ground.

“Fuck,” I muttered. “Alright, I’ll get Rae on it.” I pulled out my phone and texted her that it was an emergency and sent along the pertinent information. “She’s on it. Now, what are you gonna do when we find her?”

He blew out a breath, nodding several times as he stared at the ground intently. “I have no fucking clue.”

“Seriously? You flew all the way back here and didn’t spend the flight deciding what you wanted to say?”

“It was spur of the moment! I was anxious as hell!”

I stalked over to him and gripped him by the shoulders. “Max, I know the whole concept of not being an island is new to you, but you’re trying to win this woman back. And if you want to do that, you can’t walk up to her and say, Hey, uh…I was thinking I still want you.”

“I know that,” he snapped.

“Do you? Because you don’t sound like you have your shit together! Ask yourself, what is it you want from her? Is it a good time? Do you want to see how things go?”

“I…I want her.”

“Okay, for the next month? For the next bar fight? What?”

“Uh…for a date.”

I stared at him, clenching my jaw. “You flew all the way back here to ask her on a date?”

The window rolled down behind me and FNG stuck out his head. “I think it’s romantic as fuck.”

I slowly turned and glared at him. “No one asked you. Back in your box.”

The window rolled back up as FNG shot me puppy eyes. It wasn’t going to work.

“Look, we met in a bar and did nothing but screw the whole time we were together. If I show up and propose to her, she’ll turn me down flat. We need time to build something together.”

“Wow.”

“No good?” he winced.

“No, it’s actually the most logical thing you’ve ever said. And while I applaud the thought that went into it in the last thirty seconds, I would advise you to show up with some token to prove you’re serious.”

“I can do that. Grand gesture. I can be a grand gesture man. I can pull out all the stops and make her see that I’m the only man for her.”

He said it confidently, but I wasn’t sure he meant it. “Alright, you figure out the grand gesture, and I’ll find out where she is.”

“Right,” he nodded. “So, like flowers or something?”

I rolled my eyes and got in the van, leaving his ass on the side of the road. Sometimes, I really wondered about these guys.