To the Max Read Online Free PDF Page B

kind of person who wouldn’t agree to living in his house for free. And no way in hell was he asking her for money. “By the time I return, the renovating at your place will be done and you’ll be ready to move back there. No biggie.”
    By the look in her face, it was the mother of all biggies. “Thanks, Max. But I have to decline. It’s too much. And I’m sure you can find a better-qualified pet sitter than me.”
    “I don’t leave Tango and Cash with just anyone. Think about it. There’s a big plus: the whole house smells like me. You would get the benefit of a throw-up-free zone without having to put up with me. What do you have to lose? It’s a win-win situation.”
    “This is extremely sweet of you, really, but I can’t take you up on your offer.”
    She might have been sick, but easily swayable she wasn’t, at least not in this matter, so he decided not to push the issue. “Okay. If you change your mind, let me know. Now, first things first: you done?” he asked resolutely, standing and signaling toward the toilet, which she was still hugging.
    She pondered for a second. “I think so.”
    “Good.” He helped her up. “This is what we’re going to do. We’ll gather your things and close the shop. I’ll go home, take a quick shower, and come back to open this place so your kids won’t be disappointed and we can contribute to expanding Mike’s ulcer. I just need a crash course on how to work your cash register, and we’re on.” Although if he could manage the one at Tate’s restaurant, which was a relic her father had inherited from his father, he was sure this would be a piece of cake.
    Annie wasn’t moving.
    “Come on. If you don’t want to go home, you’re welcome to stay at my place. Either way, you’re out of here. Unless, of course, you want me to rat you out to Christy?”
    She shook her head. No, he bet she wouldn’t want that. “Max, you can’t spend your morning—”
    “Are your workers allowed to sample the products while in the shop?” he interrupted her.
    Annie assented.
    “Then I can spend the morning here, I assure you. A dream come true. Let’s get cracking.”
    As he walked out of the bathroom to the cash register, he heard her heaving. “Ace, you okay?”
    No answer. He’d left the door open. Guess his smell had worn off.
    He’d better bring the cash register to the back.
    * * * *
    Annie was lying on a lounger in the yard of her complex, near the pool, her work papers on her lap, when she saw Christy approaching. Damn . “He ratted me out, didn’t he?”
    Christy frowned. “Who?”
    “Max.”
    Christy dragged another lounger to where Annie was and sat beside her. “There was no need for it. You haven’t been checking your cell, have you?”
    She hadn’t. She’d forgotten it inside her condo, and she hadn’t felt like braving the smells to go get it. Especially now that the workers had left and silence reigned. Besides, Max had assured her he’d have everything under control.
    “No. Why?”
    Her friend fished her own phone out of her pocket and handed it to Annie. At that very moment, the chime of a message came in. Then another. And another. “It hasn’t stopped the whole day. It’s crazy.”
    It took Annie a while to understand what she was looking at. There were hundreds of tweets on the shop’s Twitter account. She scrolled all the way down. She normally received notifications of clients tweeting or Facebooking to get the discount. Now all the messages had the word “Max” in them.
    “Your Twitter’s on fire. Your Facebook page too. Instagram and Pinterest are in ashes already.”
    “What—”
    “Halloween has come early, my friend. Your shop is full to the brim. People are all but fighting to get in. Not sure about Alden’s policy, but Sweets and Tweets is way over its capacity. Expect a visit from the sheriff soon. Oh, and be ready for Facebook jail because of the obscene remarks.”
    God, and she’d told Max there wouldn’t be too