As Max opened the door on the condo and stepped inside, he took it all in. “Oh, my God. Look at the view.” He rolled his suitcase passed a dark-wood kitchen with stainless-steel appliances and black granite counters, then into a room with a glass and iron dining table and a modern, wrap-around sectional couch in dark green with colorful throw pillows. He stopped at a wall of windows and sliding glass doors, leading to a wrap-around patio. The ocean spread out in every direction, white caps twinkling in the deep blue as if they were stars in the sky.
Tanner stepped to his side and gazed out the patio door. “I can’t believe it.” He beamed.
Max wrapped an arm around his shoulders and planted a quick kiss on his cheek. “I’m so glad we could be here together.”
Tanner’s gaze met his. “Yeah, me, too.” He opened the patio door, his long, sun-bleached hair billowing out behind his head, and stepped out to an iron railing with Max following. “Holy fuck. Look at that, two pools?”
Max looked over the grounds, some ten stories below them, and grasped the iron railing. Two large pools fed into a circular pool bar cabana. Grass and palm trees made up the landscaping and beyond it all, a set of palapas lined up across the beach. “You ever watch Bachelor in Paradise?”
“What?” Tanner creased his brows.
“Jesus, Max, don’t tell him you watch that. He might find a new boyfriend.” Josh chuckled, sidling up to the patio rail.
“Shut up, you.” Max snickered, dipping his head a moment. “This place reminds me of where they film that show. They put all these couples on the beach and film them pairing up, then breaking up. It’s very dramatic. Anyway, they film that somewhere in Mexico, too.” He studied Tanner.
Tanner stared at him. “You uh, watch The Bachelor?”
Max faced him. “No, if you must know. I watch The Bachelorette sometimes. The guys are hot.” He lifted his chin. He would not be embarrassed about this.
Tanner smirked. “You’re not watching that anymore.”
Carter walked out onto the patio. “Uh-oh, Tanner’s getting his jealous on.” He snorted. “Bet you’ve never seen his jealous side, huh, Max?” Carter slapped Max’s arm.
Max let a wide smile grace his lips, focusing on Tanner’s large, hazel eyes, the flecks of green and brown glinting in the sunlight. No, he’d never seen it and Tanner had no reason to be jealous. “I don’t need to watch it anymore. I have you.” Max placed his hands on Tanner’s cheeks and gave him a long, deep kiss.
Tanner’s chest swelled with the intensity of the kiss, then he grabbed Max’s hips and pulled them close.
“Go do that in your own bedroom.” Carter scoffed, waving his arm, then stomped into the condo.
Josh tsked. “At least get unpacked first.”
Max broke the kiss, searching Tanner’s face. Tonight was the night. There would be a full moon, and everything would be perfect. “I suppose. Let’s get unpacked, so we can get down to the pool bar and the beach.”
With a grin, Tanner brushed his fingers over Max’s cheek. “Let’s do it.”
