Olivia's POV
By the time the rain had lessened enough for us to get back on the road, Maxwell and I were talking like we'd been best friends for years.
The earlier tension had dissolved completely, replaced by an easy comfort that felt both new and familiar at the same time.
"Canada," Maxwell was saying, shaking his head with a rueful smile. "That pneumonia incident was the hardest thing I ever pulled off."
I turned in my seat to look at him. "It was fake? The whole thing?"
"The whole thing," he confirmed, keeping his eyes on the road. "I mean, I was a bit feverish. But it wasn't pneumonia. I just exaggerated the symptoms to get you to take care of me. But what I didn't expect was my entire family showing up."
"Maxwell!" I gasped, but I was smiling. "You manipulative…"
"I know, I know," he said, grinning now. "But it worked. I got to be close to you. Touch you. And kiss you without it looking weird because I could blame everything on the fever."
