Chapter Thirty-Six #3
“I will,” Maddie says.
Sophie and Mason say their goodbyes after the doctor leaves, and then it’s just Maddie and me.
“Are you leaving too?” she asks.
“Hell no.” I pull the chair closer so I can sit next to the bed and still hold her hand. “I’m staying here with you until you’re released. It’s the least I can do so the guilt doesn’t eat me alive.”
“Guilt?” She looks confused.
I kiss her knuckles. She slides her hand across my cheek and smiles.
Bowing my head, I say, “You wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for me.”
“I already told you this wasn’t your fault, Liam.” The fact that she’s consoling me has me feeling bad because I’m supposed to be the strong one for her.
“Well, I feel responsible as fuck. Someone’s after me, and you got hurt in the crossfire. I’m gonna find out who did this and make them pay,” I promise.
She furrows her brows and shakes her head. “No. Two wrongs don’t make a right.”
The room grows quiet before she flips through the channels, then stops on Dirty Dancing. “Remember this movie?”
“How could I forget it?” Our eyes meet again.
“You ever had sex in a hospital room?”
I glare at her. “You literally have a concussion and were knocked unconscious a few hours ago.”
She shrugs and lifts her eyebrows. “Well, my lower region feels just fine.”
“You are so bad.” I smirk, wondering if she’s playing with me or not. “We could get caught.”
Laughter escapes her. “That hasn’t stopped you before. But I guess you’re right, although it’s tempting.”
“I might need to call the doctor back in here and make him double-check that you don’t have brain damage or something,” I tease.
She takes my hand again and interlocks our fingers. “I love you. Have I told you that today?”
“You have, but I never get sick of hearing it. Love you too, baby.”
We continue watching Dirty Dancing, and Maddie whispers every line, which makes me smile. Concussion and still has it all memorized.
I lay my head on the bed, and she runs her fingers through my hair, calming me when I should be calming her. I could’ve lost Maddie today, and the thought alone nearly destroys me.
It’s been two weeks since Maddie was released from the hospital.
She recovered fine and the cut on her head is barely visible now.
Two days afterward, she was able to go back to school but was told to take it easy for a week, which meant limited dancing.
I’ve apologized so many times that she’s started slapping my chest to stop me from feeling guilty.
The anxiety I had when Victoria was following our every move has returned.
I’m not sure this feeling will go away anytime soon, not until I find out who’s responsible for this.
Though there’s an investigation, the detectives and police have zero leads.
I’m sure this won’t ever be solved because whoever did it knew exactly what they were doing not to leave any evidence behind.
So until I give them names for people who may want me dead, they have no idea where to start.
The problem is, I’m on too many people’s shit list.
Once Maddie gets out of the shower, I have my final tux fitting for Sophie and Mason’s wedding that’s in two weeks.
Maddie said she’d join me, and we’re making an afternoon out of it.
Honestly, I can’t believe the big day is almost here.
I feel as if I’m losing track of time. Maybe it’s because so much shit has happened in the past year that my head is still spinning from it all.
Soon, Maddie comes downstairs smelling like honey. I want to eat her up, but considering we got naked and sweaty before she went upstairs and my appointment is in thirty minutes, there’s no way.
“What?” She laughs, drying her long hair with a towel.
I stand and cross the room until I’m in front of her. Without saying a word, I dip down and place a chaste kiss on her lips, and she melts into me, releasing a long sigh. “You taste good,” she whispers across my lips.
“You do too.” I want her again.
“You’re insatiable, you know that?”
I lift an eyebrow at her. “You’re not complaining, are you?”
“Of course not!” She pulls me close to her. “But we don’t have much time.”
“All I need is fifteen minutes,” I purr against her ear. “Ten if you scream my name really loud.”
She throws her head back and laughs before grabbing my hand, then leads me to the bedroom.
In a snap, we undress and are on the bed, fucking like our lives depend on it.
Considering we’re home alone, Maddie moans loud enough for the entire neighborhood to hear.
It doesn’t take long before we’re both unraveling and losing ourselves with each other again.
She topples on my chest, trying to catch her breath. “Damn.”
“Same.” I smile, wrapping my arms around her body.
“Can we skip the fitting and stay here all day?”
I chuckle hard. “Sophie will murder us both. You want that?”
She pouts. “No. You’re right. Better get going.”
We clean up and put on our clothes, then we’re out the door. On the drive over, Maddie talks about the wedding and how excited she is for Sophie and Mason.
“So, I wanted to talk to you about something,” I say. “I know you mentioned you’d stay with your parents in Tahoe City, but I was thinking you could stay with me instead.”
Her eyes widen. “My parents will know I’m with you. They wouldn’t approve.”
“Do your parents make all your decisions for you?” I challenge, knowing the answer as she looks down at the butterfly tattoo on her wrist.
“Well…” She pauses. “No, but it’s best if they don’t know about our sleeping arrangement.”
I park the truck, not wanting to put her in an uncomfortable position. “Okay then, never mind.”
“No, no. I’d love to stay with you, but I need to figure out what to tell them.”
Leaning over, I slide my lips across hers. “Tell them you’d rather fuck your boyfriend all weekend.”
She rears back and playfully slaps my arm. “Pretty sure my dad would kill you. Nope, he definitely would.”
“Then I guess he can get in line.” I smack my lips against hers real quick before we get out of the truck and walk inside the shop.
Once we’re through the doors, one of the sales reps named Thomas grabs my tux and guides me into a dressing room.
He gives me shoes and a red tie to complete the look.
It all gives me reminders of Victoria and how she forced me to get fitted for expensive suits.
I push the thoughts away as quickly as they come and adjust my tie before stepping out and showing Maddie.
Her mouth falls open as she studies me from head to toe. “Uhh.”
I smooth my hands down my chest. “Do I look okay?”
Maddie swallows hard. “No words.” She walks toward me and wraps her arms around my waist. “You look like a hot CEO or something.”
“You’ve been watching way too much TV.”
“Mmm,” she says as a throat clears behind us and interrupts our moment.
Thomas flashes a smile, then asks to take a look. He checks the hems and inseam of my pants, then the length of the arms. “Looks like it’s a good fit. Do you see anything you’d like changed?”
I shake my head, moving slightly. “No, feels great.”
“No complaints from me,” Maddie adds, interlocking her fingers with mine. I love that we can be like this publicly after hiding for so long.
“Awesome, I’ll get you to sign some paperwork to finalize everything. Then you can pick it up three days before the event.”
“Perfect,” I say.
Thomas walks away, and I sneak a kiss from Maddie before going to change.
She’s all smiles when I walk away. As I’m putting on my jeans and T-shirt, I think about spending the weekend with her in a small little cabin I rented by the lake.
It’s got the best view I could find. I plan to make all her gushy romantic dreams come true with an unlimited amount of chocolate-covered strawberries, champagne, and a crackling fireplace as the snow falls outside.
Hallmark won’t have shit on me, but we may not leave the bed for days.