Ballad of Love (Utah Lovin’ Book 1)

7. Braydon

Madison doesn”t say anything the rest of the drive, which is unlike her. But I didn”t want to push her. Turning the radio up a little, I try to ignore the heavy silence that fills the cab of my truck. It is a thick silence, one that you can feel. Finally clearing my throat, I break the silence.

“Mads, if I said something wrong, I didn”t mean to. I just need you to know that I will follow you anywhere.”

She finally turns in her seat to face me. Her blue gray eyes are rimmed with unshed tears.

“Bray,” a single tear trails down her rosy cheek.

I track its path with my eyes. I pull my truck off onto the shoulder and turn to face Madison. I wipe away the single tear, letting my hand linger on her cheek. She nuzzles her face into my palm, taking a deep breath before she looks back up at me.

“Braydon, I want you to come to New York with me, more than anything in the world.”

“But?” I urge, sensing that there is more to her statement.

“But you shouldn”t have to give up your dream in order for me to chase mine.”

“But what if a life with you is all I want?” I counter.

She pulls both of our hands into her lap, and I rub my thumb back and forth on the side of her hand. Madison has wanted to go to New York for law school since she was little. I knew when I started dating her freshman year what I was signing up for, but I didn”t care because I also knew that she was the love of my life. My soulmate. My home. My ballad.

“Bray, can we please just enjoy the rest of senior year together?”

I pull my hands out of her lap to rub them down my face. I don”t really understand where Madison is coming with this, but how hard can it be to put on a good face? A fake it till you make it smile.

“Yeah. yeah, of course.” I shoot her what I hope is my most convincing smile.

“Great!” she says, leaning in to press her lips against mine.

I will never get over the feeling of Madison”s soft delicate lips against mine. When she kisses me warmth spreads from my heart all throughout my limbs. She sits back in her seat, adjusting her seatbelt.

“We can get going now. We don”t want to be late to the movie.” she tosses a wink in my direction, as I shift my truck into drive.

“Yes ma’am.” I give her a mock salute.

I pull back onto the main road and try my best to ignore the sinking feeling growing in my stomach. This might just be the last summer of us, and that scares the hell out of me. I just have to keep my mouth shut and put on a good face. It”s going to be fine. I know for a fact that Madison and I are written in the stars, so I have nothing to be scared of. Plus keeping up a front is the least I can do for Madison. I pull into the drive-in no more than ten minutes later.

“I’ll get the snacks. You get the tickets.”

“Deal! I will text you which row I park in.”

Madison hops out of my truck, and lands on the ground with a soft plop. After I hear the click of the door shutting, I exhale a breath that I hadn”t realized I had been holding. Unshed tears sting the backs of my eyes, but I refuse to let them slip free. Not here anyways. I am supposed to be the strong one, and up until now I thought I was doing a pretty damn good job. I take a few deep breaths, before I get out of my truck and walk to the booth to buy tickets.

“How many do you need?” the older gentleman behind the counter asks.

“Just two.”

I pay and slip the tickets into my back pocket. Making sure not to bend the corners because I know Madison will want to save them for our box. Pulling out my phone, I sent a quick text to Madison letting her know that I am parking in row D. After I park, I open the door to my backseat and pull out all the blankets and pillows that I piled in here this morning. I arrange them all the best I can in the bed of my truck, making sure that all of the softest blankets are on Madison”s side.

“You already set up everything.” Madison”s voice says from behind me.

I turn around to find Madison grinning up at me while carefully balancing a large drink - if I know her at all, its Dr pepper, a bucket of popcorn, sweet tart ropes, and cookie dough bites. She looks gorgeous, and I feel the first genuine smile of the night spread across my face.

“The only thing I am missing are the snacks.” I say, reaching down to take the snacks from her. “Oh, I guess I need the food too.”

“Ha ha, you are so funny.” Madison rolls her eyes at me, but I notice the blush that spreads across her cheeks.

I set the food down, before I jump out of the bed of the truck to help Madison up.

“I am assuming this is my side.” she says, pointing to the side with three fluffy throw blankets.

“Of course.”

She gets cozy under the blankets, and motions for me to join her. I settle in next to her, stealing part of one of her blankets to cover my legs. Wrapping my arms around her, I pull her into my chest. She rests her head on my shoulder, and I place a gentle kiss on her temple.

“I am going to miss you, Handsome.” Madison breathes against my chest.

Emotions clog my throat, but I don”t get a chance to respond because the movie is already starting. Plus, Madison hates it when I talk during movies.

So, I don”t respond. Instead, I try best to soak up all the little details about this moment with her. Like how the stars sparkle in her eyes every time she glances up at me. The way the light from the outdoor screen dances across the soft skin of her face. The crinkles at the corners of her eyes when she laughs at all her favorite parts. I close my eyes and soak up the warmth that radiates from her. I inhale her scent of peaches and vanilla. I try to commit everything I can about this moment, this feeling, to memory. Madison dozes off once or twice, but she will never admit it. The movie ends, and Madison bolts upright like energy is coursing through her veins.

“What are we going to do now?”

“What do you mean, Mads? It”s almost eleven o’clock at night.”

“Which means that the night is still young.”

I let out a chuckle, as Madison picks up her phone and starts typing away furiously.

“There is a twenty-four-hour diner five minutes from here.” she exclaims, turning her phone so I can see the screen.

It takes a second for my eyes to adjust to the sudden brightness, but once they do I see a website for Po’s twenty-four-hour diner.

“Please.” She gives me her best puppy dog eyes and clasps her hands together in a begging motion.

She really doesn”t have to beg me because I would do anything for her. And she knows that.

“I guess if you really want to.” I say in fake surrender.

I jump out of the bed of my truck, and have Madison hand me all the blankets, pillows, and trash. After the trash is thrown away, and the rest of the stuff is once again piled in my backseat, I go back to help Madison down. I place my hands on her waist and lift her out of the bed of my truck. We are standing chest to chest and her breath is hot against my throat. I am overwhelmed with every emotion that I have continually bottled up tonight.

“Hi handsome.”

“Hey.”

Our breaths mix in the air between us. Before I can say anything, her lips are crashing into mine. Madison”s familiar taste of peppermint and home lingers on my tongue. Her hands tangle in the curls at the base of my neck, which elicits a soft moan from me. A chill runs down my spine, and I pull Madison impossibly closer to me.

“Bray?” Madison”s voice is a little breathy, and I love it. I love her.

She drapes her arms over my shoulders.

“Yes, Love?”

“Love?”

“Just trying something new.”

“Well, I love it! See what I did there?”

She giggles at her own joke, which makes me smile even wider. Madison has always had a very dad sense of humor, but I love her for it.

“I do.”

A satisfied smile settles across her face. A light breeze blows through, and Madison shivers in my arms.

“Let”s get you in the truck.”

Madison nods, as I pull my flannel off and wrap it around her. I lead her towards the passenger side door, and help her in. After I am sure that she is settled in, I gently close the door. The heat from the inside of my cab is inviting as I hop in the driver”s seat and click my seatbelt into place. A shiver runs down my spine at the sudden contrast in temperatures, but I adjust fairly quickly.

“Where is this diner at anyways?”

“Let me pull up the directions.”

Madison pulls out her phone, and quickly pulls up the diner. A little while later Madison is trying to give me directions, while singing along with the Taylor Swift CD she insisted I keep in my truck.

“Ok, it should be up here on your right.”

She turns down the radio just as we are pulling into the parking lot or Po’s diner. We head inside and find an empty booth towards the back of the diner. I slide into the side that faces the door. It is an unspoken rule between us that I sit facing the door.

“What looks good?”

Madison picks up the menu and scans it intently, even though her and I both know that she is going to get chicken strips.

“I could go for a good burger.”

“I am sure their burgers are pretty good.”

“Actually, they are the best!” the waitress says. “Hi, I am Peggy, and I will be your waitress for tonight.”

“Hi.” Madison and I both say in unison.

“So, what will it be?”

I motion for Madison to order first. Peggy takes our order and returns a few minutes later with our drinks. Madison ordered chicken strips, just like I knew she would. “This love” by Taylor swift begins to play through the speakers. I stand from the booth and extend my hand towards Madison.

“Would you like to dance with me in this diner, Love?”

An adorable blush spreads across her cheeks and down her neck as she smiles up at me. She nods her head and

slips her hand into mine. Her hand is soft against my calloused ones. I pull her to me, and we dance and sway between the tables. With her head laying over my heart and my arms wrapped around her, this is where I feel the safest. I never want to leave this moment. I never want this, us, to come to an end. I want to say something sweet and profound, but I also don”t want to shatter the bubble we are in.

“Mads, someday I am going to put a ring on that pretty little finger of yours.” I whisper against the shell of her ear.

She may not believe me now, and we may have some struggles, but I know with all my heart that I am going to marry this girl.