Chapter 14
CHAPTER 14
JAX
M y mind was swimming as my truck hummed down the highway. From beer chugging champion and the hot body I was just rolling around with to having my wish of taking in a foster child, all in one day, was almost too much. That’s something coming from a guy who can handle just about anything.
I looked over at Madison, and, as if she read my mind, she unbuckled and scooted close to me; no place I’d rather be. She put her hand above my knee, and I could see her smile in the dim light of the dash.
“This is kind of amazing, you know?” Her fingers tickled my leg lightly. “Have you always wanted to be a foster parent or adopt?”
“When my mom died of an overdose, I was young, but I felt I should’ve been able to save her, and it messed me up. Daisy took me in, a selfless act, and gave me a home and a real parent. I was an angry kid, and it wasn’t a walk in the park for her. I don’t know what would’ve happened to me without her. I want to be that for a kid.”
Her voice was soft. “And you just knew now was the right time, huh?”
“I think it’s always been in the back of my mind, but over the past year, I got my foster license. It was like the universe moved it smack dab in the front of my mind, even when I didn’t really want it to be. When I was with my last girlfriend?—”
“The run-away fiancée?” Her giggle was amazing.
“That’s the one. Well, I thought the timing might all line up, but I was wrong. Now I’m wondering if this is the way it’s supposed to be. When I try to force shit, it all falls apart.” I glanced over the beauty who’d flipped my world. “It’s like some other force is at work.”
She sat straight up. “It’s fate, Jax, I’m telling you. Yup, I think sometimes fate takes over, and while it seems all hell might be breaking loose, maybe it’s in the bigger plan. You know?”
She laughed. “Right?”
I took her hand from my knee, raised it to my lips, and kissed her soft skin. “Maybe you’re right.”
“Well, I’m not always right, Jax, but when I am, it’s usually all of the time. So, there you go.”
My laughter bounced around the truck. “So, you’re always right? Is that what my ears are hearing?”
“I don’t want to seem like I think I’m always right, but I am, and that’s why it comes across that way.”
“I see.”
“Hey, do we have time to stop at the gas station? I have to go potty.”
“Sure.”
While she was in the gas station, my mind went into over drive. In a blink of an eye I had Grant for who exactly knows how long, and Madison had twisted everything leaving me unable to comprehend what was happening.
A short drive later and we were walking up the stairs to Katie’s office. My nerves kicked in leaving my gut fizzier than a shaken soda which was stupid because I already knew Grant and I clicked.
I snuck a look at Madison, the world-traveling, rich, stunning hotel heiress, who, at that moment, tripped up the stairs and laugh-snorted. From the odd game of “I’m broke” to the SpaghettiO addiction, I didn’t know what to make of her. I also didn’t know how I could let her fly out of here on Sunday.
Here I was, embarking on caring for a child in the next two minutes. I was going in not knowing most of the shit I needed to know on that topic, but that didn’t scare me a lick compared to the fear of what I was going to feel like when she was gone.
We reached the reception desk which was empty at the late hour. I ran my finger over the spot on the desk I always did when Katie’s door opened. I inhaled as Madison squeezed my hand.
“You’ve got this.”
As I looked into her enthusiastic eyes, I believed I did have this, at least with her there close to me.
We walked into Katie’s office, and she gave me a big hug for such a tiny lady. Her eyes shifted to Madison as her mouth made an ‘O’.
“Katie and Grant, this is Madison. She’s Jim’s daughter.” And the woman I think I’m obsessed with and can’t let leave Montana. Not in a stalker type of way; well, maybe a little like a stalker. I don’t know what in the hell I’m doing.
“It’s a pleasure, Madison, please have a seat.”
My eyes shot to the little guy sitting in a chair, holding a teddy bear tightly. He jumped up, ran over, and gave me a hug.
“Hey, Grant. So good to see you again.”
He nodded, and I noticed he was wearing a Minnesota Vikings sweatshirt; it was like we were meant to be.
“Grant, do you like the Vikings, man?”
He nodded.
“They’re my favorite team. You know, last season, my brother and I went to a game in Minneapolis. Maybe we could check out a game sometime if you’d want to.”
A little smile appeared. “That would be so fun!”
Katie motioned for us all to sit down in the chairs around her cozy office. “You know, Grant, I met Jax right here in this office when he was just about your age. I had the pleasure of introducing him to his foster mother, who adopted him.”
Grant’s eyes lit up. “You, too?”
His words hit my soul. “Me, too.”
Katie looked over. “I explained to Grant that he’s going to go to your house, sleep in his Spiderman room which he loved, and see how things go. The wonderful thing is that Grant is on fall break, so he can relax with no school and have some fun on the ranch.”
Madison clapped her hands. “I love Spiderman! Do you like Spiderman, too?”
Grant let out a giggle. “Well, who doesn’t?”
Madison’s laughter warmed the room.
Grant gave a knowing nod. “Madison, I’m seven, by the way.”
“I thought you looked seven,” she shrugged her shoulders. “I’m not seven.”
He laughed and shook his head at her.
“Since you were last at my house, I bought a few pairs of Spiderman pajamas if you feel a little wild.”
Katie leaned over to Grant. “Do you have anything you’d like to ask Jax?”
He narrowed his eyes. “How did you get those muscles?”
I let out a laugh and saw Madison put her hand over her mouth. “Well, since I live on a ranch, I do lots of work. I also lift weights. We only get one body. Might as well take care of it, right?”
He nodded as if I had passed his test.
“Now, it’s late, so Jax and Madison are going to take you to his house. I heard from Daisy that you loved the horses. Maybe you can take another ride tomorrow.”
His eyes shot to me. “I can?”
“Yes, sir.”
Katie stood up, and Grant followed. He hugged her and buried his head in her waist.
Katie stroked his hair. “I know it’s been a hard day for you, Grant. But I promise things will turn around. Okay?”
I was at a loss for words, but Madison took a step forward and dropped to her knees in front of Grant. He peeked at her as she reached into her pocket and pulled out packages of candy.
“You know, sometimes when I’m feeling down, the thing that makes it a little better is Gummy Bears and caramel.”
Grant let go of Katie and eyed the candy.
“You know what?” Madison gave him one of those smiles that could knock the wind out of you. “Why don’t you have both?” She looked over her shoulder at me. “That is if Jax thinks it’s okay.”
I nodded as she opened the gummy bears. “Grant, can you believe these were on sale for one dollar at the gas station? One flippin’ dollar. That is quite the bargain. Am I right, or am I right?”
He laughed, accepting the candy from her hand.
Madison and Grant led the way out of the office while I hung back with Katie.
“I’ll check in with you tomorrow.” We both looked over in the waiting area as Grant talked to Madison. She was chatting about something when he suddenly took her hand in his. She looked down at him and flashed a grin.
“I think they both look like keepers.” Katie smiled up at me, and I opened my mouth, but nothing came out as she patted my arm.
Once we arrived at the house Grant was still a little shy, but he went bananas over the Spiderman pajamas and then hopped into bed
“Well, good night, Grant. I’ll leave the hall light on for you, and I’m right down the hall. Okay?”
He nodded. “Madison, can you say goodnight to me?”
My eyes traveled to the doorway, where she was unconsciously pulling off sexy in the way she leaned against the door. I fought my cheesy-ass grin, imagining her standing there in the morning sunlight, with messy hair, wearing my Minnesota Wild t-shirt and socks. Just the thought of seeing her like this every night yanked at something in my gut.
“Well, of course.” She pranced in and sat on the edge of the bed. “Good night, Grant. Sleep tight, okay?”
Grant shot up and gave her a peck on the cheek.
“Well, thank you.” Her smile was soft as she stood and started to tuck the covers around him.
“What are you doing?” He giggled.
“I’m tucking you in. Like a burrito.” She walked the length of the bed, tucking him in all the way to his feet. “Now you’ll sleep like a snug bug in a rug.”
He belly laughed, and it was pretty cool. “You’re silly.”
She made a face. “Of course I am. Being normal is boring, right? Night, Grant.”
“Nighty, night,” he sang.
I followed Madison out of the room before she bounced down the stairs. At the bottom, she spun around and threw her hands in the air.
“You did it!” she whisper-yelled. “You survived your first hour as a guardian!” She jumped up, threw her arms around my neck, and hugged me. “You were so great.”
I pulled back, mesmerized by those emerald eyes. “ We did it.”
An eyeroll and giggle. “Yeah, I was a little amazing, I guess. Those gas station snacks were the bomb, huh?”
I nodded. “And what a bargain they were.”
A dramatic nod. “Right? For a flippin’ buck, we should go back tomorrow and stock up. You could have gummy bears shooting out your ass for weeks.”
“Nice visual.”
“Jax, can I have a glass of water?” Yelled Grant from his room.
“Be right there, Buddy!”
I turned to find Madison in front of me. “I’m going to my dad’s.” She reached up and touched my cheek. “You go and get that boy some water, hear me?”
Panic swirled through me. “No, no, you stay here. I’ll be back.”
She wore a smirk as she pushed me aside. “Good night, Jax.”
I grabbed her hand. “Why don’t we have a sleepover? No hanky panky. Just you and me taking turns watching over Grant while he sleeps. You know. What if he falls out of bed and breaks…”
“He’s seven, Jax. Not a newborn.” She took my hand and started walking toward the door to leave. “You’ll be fine. I promise.” She bumped my shoulder with hers, heading onto the porch and leaving me with the little guy.
I shouldn’t be nervous. He had stayed with me before, but somehow it didn’t seem as real as it did at that moment.
Once she was out the door, I realized my house felt sad too, none of us were the same when she wasn’t there.
* * *
I popped open an eye when the sunlight beamed through the window and onto my pillow, nearly blinding me. Mental note: Never, ever, ever forget to close the damn blinds before bed. I rolled over, trying to regain my eyesight, but instead, found myself face-to-face with Grant. He was leaning on the bed, his chin resting on his hand.
“Do you know you snore?”
I nearly jumped out of my skin. “Well, good morning, Buddy.”
“And your nose hairs move a lot when you breathe. Is that normal?”
I rubbed my eyes, clearing them to better see my new guy. “I think so. Did you sleep well?”
“I like my pillow; it’s super fluffy.”
“How long have you been up?”
“The clock on the stove said five-fifteen.”
I looked at my phone, and it was nearly seven. WTF? “Grant, you got to bed late last night. Why did you get up so early? Miss Katie said you were on fall break this whole week. That means you should chill.”
“I had lots of stuff to do.”
“Really? What’ve you been up to?”
“I emptied my suitcase, walked in every room, and then I ate a ding-dong.”
“Hmmm, do you think ding-dongs are a good breakfast?”
“Heck, yeah.” He grinned. “Finger lickin’ good.” He went to the dresser and grabbed a plate from the top before heading back over to me. “I wanted to make you toast. You like toast, right?”
Grant hopped on the bed and flopped down on the empty pillow beside me.
“Who doesn’t, right?” I grabbed the plate and took a bite. “This is amazing, thank you. It, uh, has an interesting flavor to it.” I was focusing on getting the shit down. “What’s your secret?”
“Grape jelly, mayo, and I stirred in some cheese I smooshed up.”
“Well, this is one breakfast I’ll never forget. That was real nice of you.”
He nodded. “Can I turn on your TV?”
“Sure. Have you ever seen the movie Bumblebee? The Transformer one?”
He nudged my arm with his. “Yes, I like that one.”
I flipped it on and lay back on my pillow, looking over at the little dude. I could get used to this.
Like a whirlwind, Daisy shot through the door, sporting a hot pink bathrobe, cowboy boots, her hair in curlers, and her face covered in a thick layer of white cream or some shit. She ran over to Grant, who let out a panicked yell.
“Oh honey, I’m sorry to frighten you.” She started laughing. “I must look like a nightmare!”
I nodded. “Yeah, a little bit.”
“I was just putzing around the house when Madison got up and told me the wonderful news! I was so filled with joy, I could not wait to run over and tell you how happy we are that you’re here.”
Grant eyed Daisy with a little concern running across his face.
“Don’t panic. This is not a Zombie spa day gone wrong.”
Grant couldn’t take his eyes off Daisy, who looked like an insane asylum escapee. As she smiled, a little dollop of night cream plopped onto the floor.
Grant wrinkled his nose. “Ma’am, I think your face is falling off.”
Roaring laughter came from Daisy as she shook her head. “You’re a funny little guy! How about you boys come on over for breakfast?”
“I had a ding-dong.”
“I can’t believe my ears! If you expect to grow up big and strong, no more ding-dongs for breakfast. How about I make you some pancakes and eggs?”
Grant patted his stomach. “I love me some pancakes.”
Daisy clapped her hands. “Alrighty then, you all get dressed and come on over in thirty minutes, okay?”
Daisy flew out the door, and we both looked at each other.
He chuckled. “Wow, she’s something else, huh?”
“You got that right, Grant.”