Chapter 29 Elliot
My arms wrap tightly around Madelina as I watch her sleep peacefully.
The last six months have been pure hell.
I threw myself into work, pushing myself to numb the pain.
The harder I worked, the more it paid off career-wise.
Billionaires were flying me out to their castles for private events, some on their yachts.
Any and every celebrity party, they wanted me to manage.
Jacques was so impressed that he planned an expansion because the world was at his feet.
But it was all a masquerade—the smiles, the enthusiasm. The moment I lay down each night, all I saw was her.
From the moment I left Cinnamon Springs, I ached for Madelina.
Women threw themselves at me, but not once did I succumb because my head was a clusterfuck of emotions, and the thought of being inside anyone else drove me to the depths of despair.
I hung out with a new crowd of people, and old friends like Matteo were busy moving on with their lives.
He had a baby, and seeing him with a newborn in his arms was a whole other mindfuck.
Mr. Can’t-keep-his-dick-in-his-goddamn-pants was now a daddy.
Then, I reached the breaking point, the same time I got the news Ronald had passed in his sleep. His sister emailed me what happened, which explained why Ronald was sending emails less frequently prior to his passing. He was tired, and knew the end was near.
And despite me living on the other side of the world, he left instructions with his sister for me to take care of Margaret Anne should anything happen to him. He even had a ticket booked for her to travel to France.
I sat down with Jacques and told him how miserable I was, laying all my cards face up on the table.
Surprisingly, he understood. If Jacques is anything, he is a loyal husband and father to his five children.
And that was it.
I got on a plane and left it all up to the universe.
Madelina stirs in my arms, so I gently place a kiss on her shoulder and slide my hand beneath the sheets. Her skin is smooth as silk, the epitome of…
Heaven on earth.
Six whole months of not touching her.
Hell on earth.
Last night, we made love all night. Not once did I let her go, desperate to make up for lost time. Each kiss, each touch, ignited the flame once again, and neither one of us could get enough.
As the memories of last night replay in my mind, my dick stands hard, and the only way to start this day is to take her once again.
So I reach down and rub against her clit, the moisture still lingering from last night.
Without a second thought, I slide myself in slowly, holding on to her as if my life depends on it.
At a slow and steady pace, I move in and out, only for her moans to suddenly echo inside the room. She reaches over, pulling my head into the crook of her neck and exposing her beautiful tits.
“Elliot,” she moans softly. “I have to ask you something…”
I lean in, nibbling beneath her earlobe while continuing to thrust inside of her.
“The answer is no. I haven’t touched a single woman since the moment I left.
You consumed me, and all I could think about was you.
The countless nights where I lay in bed and reminisced over you naked.
God, Madelina, you have no idea how much I needed you. ”
She presses herself against me, but then she removes herself and pushes me on my back to climb on top.
With her tits in my face, I release a groan. “And I know no man touched you since I left.”
“Oh really? Cocky, are we?”
I pull her toward me, wrapping her hair around my fist. “No other man was ever going to make you feel the way I make you feel. And in just a few moments, I’m going to remind you again why you’re mine…”
In a swift move, I flip her onto her back and settle between her legs. My tongue flicks against her clit repeatedly, moans escaping my lips as Madelina arches her back and begs for me.
As I wrap my mouth around her clit one more time, she expels a long moan and informs me she’s ready to come.
Fuck, she’s beautiful.
I press on until her body finally stills, the last shudders fading into silence. In a rush of instinct, I join her, surrendering to a euphoric climax that swells over me like a tidal wave after a vicious storm. I struggle to catch my breath as the room spins and my vision blurs.
With my limbs heavy and thoughts barely coherent, I collapse on top of her. We continue to lie in bliss until Douglas and Margaret Anne stroll into the room, as if they’ve been waiting for us to finish.
“We have an audience,” Madelina points out with a grin, strategically pulling the sheet over her chest.
“We’re dog parents. Privacy as we know it is a thing of the past,” I tease. “Wait until we have kids.”
“You want kids?”
I gently brush my lips against hers. “Everything, Bugs. I want an entire life with you.”
Her lips purse, trying to hold back a smile. “Hmmm, okay.”
“What, you scared?”
She shakes her head with an infectious grin. “Not in the slightest.”
“Good,” I tell her as I tighten my embrace.
A satisfied smile spreads across her lips as she looks up at me, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. “So, what’s on the agenda for today, our first official day back together?”
“I want to stay here, with you,” I tell her honestly. “We don’t need to leave this bed.”
“I like that plan, but eventually, we have to get up. I need to head into the store.”
“Billie has you covered,” I inform her.
Madelina laughs in my arms. “Sounds like you have everything covered.”
“Speaking of having things covered, I want to run something past you,” I begin as she eases out of my arms and turns to face me.
“Jacques, the owner of the restaurant, has asked if I’d be willing to stay in Saint-Tropez for three weeks of the year.
I’d basically be training new staff, and of course, it means we’ll have our own place there by the beach.
The hours won’t be long each day. He’s happy for me to put together a schedule that works for us.
Oh, and I also wrote down a list of bookstores we could visit.
They’re not strictly romance, but they come highly recommended. ”
She falls silent, her expression thoughtful, a soft glow illuminating her face as she processes the idea. “You’ve really given this a lot of thought. Us, I mean,” she finally replies.
“Of course,” I murmur, my voice low and sincere. “It’s our life, Bugs. There is no me without you.”
“I’ll go with you, on one condition.”
I throw my head back into the pillow, a smirk on my face. “Okay, what is it?”
“We bathe nude in Saint-Tropez.”
My gaze swiftly meets hers. “No chance in hell any man is seeing you nude.”
“But it’s part of their culture,” she teases.
“No.”
“Fine.” She shrugs, but a smile creeps across her lips. “I guess I wouldn’t want your big ass dick out anyway. The men would eat you alive.”
“You mean women?”
“Uh, nope. The men,” she exaggerates.
I dig my fingers into her rib cage, causing her to squeal.
We stay in bed a while longer, talking about life and our future. When our stomachs rumble in sync, I head into the kitchen to make something for breakfast. Upon opening Madelina’s refrigerator, I see nothing but an old Chinese takeout box and a carton of milk.
“Wow, you must have been really depressed without me,” I yell from the kitchen.
As I scratch my head while going through her empty pantry cupboards, my phone buzzes on the countertop. Upon seeing Eva’s number, I hit accept call.
“Get your ass to the hospital!” Eva’s voice bursts through the phone like a sudden explosion, laced with urgency. “It’s happening!”
The call suddenly ends, prompting me to check if we are still connected. Madelina walks into the kitchen wearing a black silk robe. She lifts her arms to stretch, her brow furrowing in confusion. “Who was that, shouting like they’re on fire?”
“Eva,” I reply, my heart racing with this sudden need to rush to the hospital. “I think she’s about to have the baby.”
Madelina raises an eyebrow, skepticism etched on her face. “Wait, are you positive?
She thought she was in labor last week, but it turned out she just needed to poop.”
“I have a strong feeling this time is different. We should probably throw on some clothes,” I suggest, glancing at the clock, the seconds ticking away with a maddening urgency.
“I read somewhere that first-time labor can drag on for twenty-four hours or more,” she tells me, a hint of nonchalance creeping into her tone.
“So, what exactly are you saying?” I ask, a mix of panic and hope swirling within me.
“I’m saying…let’s not be too hasty. Maybe we could crawl back into bed for a bit.”
A grin flickers across my lips as I catch her teasing tone. “I guess another hour won’t hurt.”
I lift Madelina into my arms as she wraps her legs around me. Just as we leave the kitchen, Madelina’s phone rings beside the bedside table. She hops out of my embrace and answers the phone to hear Eva’s shrill scream.
“GET YOUR DAMN CLOTHES ON AND GET HERE RIGHT NOW. BOTH OF YOU!”
The call ends again.
Something tells me this is the real deal.
“Is this actually happening?” Madelina questions, her voice suddenly panicked.
“I think so.”
“Oh my God!”
We scramble to find clothes we can wear to the hospital. Margaret Anne and Douglas eye us dubiously, reminding us they haven’t had breakfast yet. We quickly pour their kibble into their bowls, check their water, and then rush out the door with the car keys in hand.
Outside in the cold, Madelina glances over from the passenger side. “You ready to be an uncle?”
A smile graces my lips. “You ready to be an aunt?”
We pause for a moment, taking in the gravity of this life-changing occasion. The world around us fades away, leaving just the two of us, enveloped in shared joy.
“Let’s do this,” Madelina cheers. “Let’s have this baby!”
By the time we reach the hospital, Jeremiah Aston Woods has decided to enter the world.
Nine pounds, eleven ounces, and everything that all of us imagined he would be.
A miracle that just made our family slightly bigger.
As I glance around, watching my sister and Aston dote on their son, I hold Madelina tightly.
One day, and hopefully soon, it’ll be us.
And the truth is, it doesn’t scare me in the slightest.
Everything I want is here, in Cinnamon Springs, the town I so carelessly dismissed when all along…
It was home.