Madden (Boston Bay Vikings #17)

9. Madden

9

MADDEN

When I wake, I feel warm and lethargic being cuddled up with Tessa. I feel calm and my mind isn't racing with a list of things to do. I don't even want to get up and go to the arena. Reaching behind me for my phone, I tap the screen to activate it and frown. Numerous notifications light it up. Missed calls. Messages. Social media alerts. What the hell is going on?

Puzzled as to why my phone is blowing up, I gently slide out of bed without disturbing Tessa, pull on a pair of sweatpants, and tread softly into the living room. My phone is unlocked, so I click on a new notification that pops up to see where it leads. The moment the comment on a social media post opens, panic swells in my gut— ‘Madden can do better than her.’

Heart pounding, I quickly find the actual post. It's a photograph of me with Tessa wrapped around me, my hands on her gorgeous ass—taken in the parking garage. My eyes rise to the accompanying words— ‘Madden Tyler must be drugged to be with 'this’.

I feel sick as anger quickly comes over me. Why the hell would someone post something so hurtful? Some of the comments are unpleasant and hateful as hell. A few call out the poster for her blatant cruelty, but the damage is already done. I close the app, feeling a mixture of sadness and frustration at the toxicity of social media.

My eyes wander to the bedroom, wondering how the hell I'm going to keep all this from Tessa. This part of our relationship is new and the trust between us needs to be built. Having bullshit like this come up is not going to help. I don't want these words to drive her away from me. I take a deep breath and remind myself that trust really is the key here. I must be honest and open with Tessa. I refuse to screw up the best thing that's ever happened to me.

"What is it?"

My head jerks in Tessa's direction. "I didn't know you were awake," I say, coming closer. She searches my eyes, a frown forming on her brow. I gently cup her face, then plant a kiss on her forehead before taking her into my arms. "There's a picture of the two of us circulating on social media," I admit. "Some of the comments are uncomfortable." I tilt her face up to mine. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. I should have known we'd be plastered all over the place. I haven't dated since before I joined the team. The fans are curious. I was focused on my career. Until you showed up." Breathing in and out slowly, I say, "I'm sorry," and brush a kiss across her lips.

"Show me," she asks, resigned.

"I'd rather you didn't see it." I wince.

Pushing away, Tessa strides back into the bedroom. "I have to see, Madden. I don't want to be caught unaware of what's being said about me. About us."

My heart drops to my toes. "It's not nice, sweetheart."

She tilts her head to the side, watching me. "Is it about my weight?"

Now I'm angry and I walk toward her. As I cradle her face in my big hands, I say, "There's nothing wrong with you. I don't know who put the idea in your head that you have a weight problem, because you don't." I take a deep breath. "Tell me you believe that, Tessa?"

"I'm not thin, Madden. Even you can see that."

I don't know what to say. "Not once since I've known you, have I thought about—" I break off, giving her a wry smile, "—I was going to say that I haven't thought about your body. That would be a lie. You have been on my mind since we met. Not once have I lied to you about anything. I can't get enough of you. If you don't believe anything else, at least believe that."

"I do believe you. I trust you, Madden. I'm made of sterner stuff, too." She pushes me to sit on the bed as she unlocks her phone. "It can't be that bad." She eyes me through lowered brows. "Can it?"

I grimace as her eyes focus on the phone in her hand. I watch as various emotions cross her pretty face and notice how pale she is. "Maybe I'm not as strong as I thought I was," she whispers, tears in her voice and then on her cheeks.

I reach out and take her hand, bringing her to sit on my lap. I wrap my arms around her shoulders and hold on tight as she sits down beside me. "I'm going to talk to the team's media people and ask them to do something about this."

Shaking her head, Tessa says, "I'd rather just ignore it. It will go away faster. I can hope, anyway."

"Are you sure you want to ignore it? Because I must tell you, I want to hit back hard. No one is allowed to upset you. Not even me."

Inhaling and exhaling slowly, Tessa pulls her face away from my neck and searches my gaze. "If this goes on, we'll fight back." Frowning, she adds, "Why are you up so early?"

"My alarm woke me. I have a schedule I stick to on game day." I stand and press a kiss to her lips. "Why don't you go back to bed? No need for both of us to be up early."

"I'm up and I can't go back to sleep now." She sighs as she wraps her arms around my neck and presses her beautiful body against mine. I wrap my arms around her waist, enjoying the warmth of her embrace. "Are you really okay with me being here?" she asks softly.

Anger flashes in my eyes at the thought of someone questioning her presence in my life. "You have no idea how much I want you here with me. It would scare you away if I told you."

"No, it wouldn't."

I snort at the teasing tone in her voice. "Think of me as your possessive boyfriend. Every inch of that body is mine." I tighten my grip around her. "I hope that's okay."

"It's perfect," she sighs dreamily.

I grab a cheek and squeeze it, enjoying the feel of her skin.

"So how does game day start?"

"A run followed by a shower."

She wiggles her eyebrows. "That second part sounds interesting."

"Control yourself, woman." I slap her ass and head to the bedroom to pull on my running gear. I hesitate. "Will you be okay until I get back?"

"I'm going to have a cup of coffee and curl up with a book while you're gone. So yes, I'll be fine." She smiles, her eyes roaming over my body.

Groaning, I head to the door. "Hold that thought, sweetheart."

Hesitating in the lobby of the apartment building, I glance back toward the elevator as Bradford appears. The first words out of his mouth, "Does she know?" filter into my brain.

I sigh heavily and nod my head. "Yes. We'll ignore the comments for now, even though my first reaction was to tear into the blogger."

"If it continues, you'll have to do something about it." He winces. "You know who she is, right?"

We walk outside, and I'm desperate to vent my anger and frustration, but his question makes me stop. “The blogger isn’t the guy I caught taking photos of us last night?”

He frowns. "I don't know about that. It's that crazy girl who throws herself at you every chance she gets." Bradford takes off at a slow jog.

As I catch up to him, I think back to the dark-haired girl who offers herself to me whenever she gets close. Apparently, I'm the only one she's after, which I find hard to believe. I've avoided going out with the guys for a month or two because of her. Her actions had become more aggressive. I hadn't thought about her when I woke up and saw the content on social media. But then again, I hadn’t looked at the name on the post.

Bradford gives me a sideways glance. "Is Tessa, okay?"

"She seemed to be." I frown. "Fuck me!" I hiss. "Why did this shit have to hit the fan on game day?"

My friend winces. "It's really early in your relationship too. Davina's claws came out super early."

I cringe. "She better stay away from me. Tessa is mine to protect and I'll fucking do it if it's the last thing I do."

"She's not just yours, Madden. We're a team. We protect our own." He taps me on the shoulder before taking off at a faster pace.

I let the tension go for now and go after him.