LIABILITY.

.

Max wasn’t expecting anyone so when he in the middle of an early dinner heard a knock on the door, he frowned and stared down at his food for a moment before the knocks repeated… Over, and over and over again. His eyes rolled a little as he pushed his chair out and headed to the front door. Tris. Who else? Actually, he hadn’t seen her in quite awhile because of her job taking her out of town and now suddenly she appeared on his front porch out of nowhere without even a hello, how are you?; just her phone pushed up in his face. Not that he was surprised, she’d always been the type to just get to the point.

The man grimaced, staring at his own instagram profile before tilting his head to look down at her. ❛ Why?❜

.

It was the look on Max’s face-- the unamused quirk of his lips-- that drew a smirk onto her own. She watched him as he looked at her phone and delighted in the confusion. Tris didn’t wait for an invitation as she simply slid her phone into her pocket and made her way inside. Fuck, it smelled really good inside. Damn him for actually being talented.

She sauntered her way into the kitchen, foot tapping as she opened his refrigerator and stood before it, surveying the contents. “Hey, what was that thing you made for Thanksgiving last year? I swear, I haven’t stopped thinking about it. God, it’s the one time I was disappointed that you lived so far away.” Grabbing a can of soda from the fridge, she toed the door closed when she sensed his presence behind her and turned back to him with a smirk. “So, here’s the thing. If you’re going to do this Instagram thing-- frankly, I think you’d find a better audience on TikTok, but I digress-- you’re going to need to find your brand, because this--” With her free hand, she reached into her pocket and pulled her phone out again, waving it in front of his face as if it would get the point across better, “--is a mess. As much as it pains me to admit it, you’re...” She tilted her head, scrutinizing him with pursed lips, ”objectively attractive and there is definitely a market out there for objectively attractive chefs. But this is a goddamn mess. Are you trying to be funny? Are you trying to be educational?”  Her lips pressed into a patronizing frown and she punctuated her sentence with the snap of the can as she popped it open, eyelashes fluttering innocently. “Jesus, if I’d have known you needed so much help, I would have come home sooner.”

She hadn’t been back in town long, but she had been back long enough and she’d yet to make it a point to catch up with her stepbrother. There were no real ties keeping them together. They’d been a family by marriage and circumstance, by being too young to have a choice in the matter. But they shared a sibling, they shared holidays, and even if Tris would never admit it to anyone, there was a part of her that had grown attached despite her best efforts not to give a shit.

Plus, she was bored and he was the easiest target.

She rapped her knuckles loudly against the door, her phone in her off hand. Tapping her foot impatiently, she gave him three seconds before she started knocking again. This time, she didn’t stop until she heard the sound of the lock turning and she smiled, triumphant. As soon as Max’s face appeared in the doorway, she held up her phone, his Instagram on display as she cocked an eyebrow. “We gotta talk about this.”