Chapter Six
Trenton
A few minutes after Calvin peaced out, the printer chimed, the sound barely audible over the thunder rattling the windows. I set the paper on Camille’s keyboard for her to review in the morning. “Well, baby, it’s job security, I guess,” I muttered to the empty room, grateful my job involved a different kind of ink. With the rooms sanitized, lobby swept, glass cleaned, lights off, and the back door locked, Skin Deep was officially closed for the night. I twirled my shop keys like a wannabe cowboy on my way out, ready to lock up the front.
A small, dark form stood in the rain on the other side of the double glass doors, and once I got close enough, I realized it was Madison.
“It’s pouring, ya know,” I said, watching her fight to keep her hair from her face. “What are you doing here so late? You lose a bet at the sorority chapter meeting?” I opened the door wide and stepped aside, gesturing for her to come in from the wind and rain.
Lightning flashed, illuminating the lobby for a split second. Outside, the tree limbs thrashed against the storm, and big droplets raced past the beams of the streetlights. I frowned as I pulled out my phone to text Camille to go straight home after leaving Abby’s, and that I’d go to the store instead.
“I’m sorry. I texted you and didn’t hear back,” she said with a sheepish smile. She watched me finish texting and put away my phone. “I thought I’d try to catch you before you left for the night.”
“Spit it out, Maddie. Do you need something?”
She blew out a breath of air, seeming both frustrated and desperate. “I didn’t know who else to talk to.”
“Maddie, if it’s about Mackenzie, I can’t…”
“No, I know.” She shook her head. “I need help. It’s about Aaron.”
“Who?” I asked, genuinely confused. It was like trying to remember how one of my one-night stands liked foreplay, it seemed important at the time, but now that I had a wife to focus on, definitively unimportant.
Lightning crackled across the sky again, highlighting Maddie’s face, now heavy with humiliation. “I told you about him. My ex. We dated all through high school, and once I started college, he was jealous. Really jealous. He demanded all of my free time. It was a fight anytime I mentioned going to a party or even a campus event. He would sit there and watch me study. He wanted me to quit school and move in with him, insisting I needed him to take care of me and life would be so much better and easier for both of us. My parents freaked out. They said he was controlling and wanted me to end it.”
“I thought you said his name was Dylan or… Dayton. Wasn’t it Dayton? And your parents weren’t wrong.”
“I know. I know, and I took their advice. It… it got really bad, Trent. When I told him I needed space a few months ago, he didn’t take it well. At all. So, after a huge and really scary fight, I broke up with him. He goes into these rage spirals and,” her mouth pulled to the side, “he won’t accept it’s over.”
“Did something happen tonight?”
She cringed. “He’s at my apartment. Well, he’s parked in the parking lot. My parents, after Mackenzie, you know, they tend to go overboard about everything and they’ll…” She sighed. “I don’t want to worry them. They’ve threatened to call the cops before. Dad and I got into a huge fight about me moving back home. If I call them and tell them that he’s waiting for me, they’re going to press the nuclear button.”
“Maybe they should.”
“I can’t live under their roof again,” she pleaded. “Do you have any idea what it’s like living with people who act like every time you walk out the door, you’re going to die? It’s suffocating. You don’t know what it took to finally get them to agree to let me move out for college! This will tip them over the edge. They’ll cut me off and I can’t afford an apartment and college on my own.”
“Okay,” I said, thinking. “Maybe we can go talk to them together.”
“You’re not listening!” she yelled. She closed her eyes, exhaled, and continued in a calmer tone. “I can’t tell them, and you… You’re the one person I know who can say a few stern words and he’ll go away. My only other option is to go home and try to convince him myself.”
“It doesn’t sound like that’s going to work. You should call the police, Maddie.”
“You don’t understand,” she said, her eyes glistening. “Aaron won’t just leave. If I have to call the police, I’m afraid he’ll do something stupid and… I mean yeah, he’s got issues but he doesn’t deserve to die. He might push the cops to do something he can’t take back.”
“Who is Aaron? You told me Dayton before. Is this guy new?”
“ No, it’s Aaron.”
I shook my head, confused.
“You’re not listening to me. He’s threatened suicide-by-cop before!”
“You definitely said Dayton. Dayton Wells, right?”
She closed her eyes tight, her breath shaking just enough to seem real. Then she looked at me, her expression wounded—like I’d just kicked a puppy.
She let out a shaky breath, then lifted her gaze, eyes glistening with just the right amount of betrayal. “You know, the only difference between me and Mackenzie is that she didn’t live long enough to see you turn your back on her.”
The floor might as well have dropped out from under me. My stomach twisted, a sick, hollow weight settling in my chest.
Before I could even process, she turned away, sniffling like she was holding back tears. “Forget it. I’ll handle it myself.”
“Okay! Okay, Maddie.” I held up my hands. “I’m sorry, I’m listening.”
She turned back, a mix of relief and something else in her expression. “I couldn’t live with myself if he… If they… It’ll take one conversation with you for him to leave and never bother me again, my parents won’t freak out, and Aaron doesn’t choose his expiration date. You’re my best and only option.”
“So, am I the knight in shining armor in this little adventure, or am I the Rent-A-Thug? Because let’s be real, the latter comes with a price tag and an automatic twenty-five percent gratuity.”
She exhaled, immediately relieved. “Both. Whichever is needed. Please?”
“And then what? What if the kid doesn’t skedaddle? What’s the game plan here?”
“It won’t get that far. We talked about the accident. He knows who you are and he’s terrified of you—of all of the Maddoxes.”
I stared at my truck and thought about all the possible scenarios, and then nodded once. “Okay. I’ll follow you home, but I’m not doing hard time over a punk kid, Maddie. I’ve got a wife waiting for me. If he doesn’t leave, if he gets even a little bit squirrely, we’re calling it in.”
She nodded quickly. “Okay. That’s completely reasonable. Thank you so much.”
“What does he drive?” I asked.
“A white Tesla.”
I squinted one eye and tilted my head to the side, disgusted. “Of course he does. Nothing says scary stalker like a glorified golf cart.”
Rain pelted the pavement as Madison darted to her car, her shoulders hunched and arms shielding her head from the downpour. I hopped in my truck, my thumb hovering over the small ignition button for a second before I pressed it, waiting as the low rumble of the engine came to life. The dashboard lit up, and I could feel the faint vibration through the steering wheel as the truck settled into a steady hum. Headlights reflected off wet asphalt as Maddie reversed, her taillights glowing like embers in the storm. I trailed her out of the parking lot, the wipers thudding against the windshield as we made our way down wet roads to her apartment.
I debated telling Camille what I was up to. Either way, she was going to be pissed. The windshield wipers couldn’t keep up with the beat to the screaming death metal blaring through the speakers to match my mood. I remembered the swell of pride and excitement I felt when Madison first stepped into my shop, but now she was a walking liability. The old me would’ve been itching to jump out of the truck, not thinking twice to teach that little Neanderfuck a lesson he wouldn’t forget. But hiding this from Madison’s parents—and especially my wife? Yeah, that crossed the line from hero to enabling accomplice, and considering the difference in her age from mine—inappropriate, despite any noble intentions. I was the adult in this scenario, and the closer I got to Madison’s apartment, the more my intuition screamed that in the end, I’d be viewed more as a Judas than Jesus.
Madison parked in her spot just in front of her apartment door, and I parked in the row one back, leaving open the drive lane between my Dodge and her sedan to give a nice buffer zone for any potential rumble. I scanned the lot for a white Tesla, keeping Madison in my peripheral. Once she grabbed her bag and purse from her car and made the short walk to the door to unlock it, twistydick slowed to a stop, blocking her vehicle in. His car was still running, the headlights cutting through the spitting rain.
Aaron shoved his hands into the pockets of his khaki pants, still in his work polo, his name badge haphazardly clinging to his shirt. He slowly made his way to Madison, tail tucked between his legs. I watched them for a few moments, observing his body language. He was nervous, not at all like the domineering guy she’d described. Madison kept looking over at me, waiting for me to intervene, but I didn’t see the sense in escalating what looked to be just an uncomfortable conversation. At first, it seemed like he was begging, but when she shook her head no and turned to grip the knob, he grabbed her arm.
I jumped out and slammed the door, jogging over to them.
Aaron turned, hands up like he was surrendering. “Okay, okay, okay!”
“We good?” I asked, glowering down at him.
“Hey… listen… I know who you are, all right?” Aaron stammered, his hands shaking. “She told me she’d talk to me, that there was a chance you’d show up here, and… fuck me, I love her, okay? I’m just trying to understand what’s happening.”
“Aaron, don’t you dare lie,” Madison shot back.
“Lie about what? I just wanted to talk, you promised—”
“Just stop it!” Madison yelled, cutting him off again. “Trent isn’t susceptible to the manipulation you used on my parents!”
“What are you talking about?” he asked, confused.
“Here’s what’s happening,” I said, taking a step toward him.
He turned slightly, eyes squinting like he was prepping for an impact.
I touched my index finger to his chest. “You’re going to get into that toaster on wheels and drive away. Starting the second you leave this property, if I hear you’ve even thought about flipping your turn signal in the direction of this apartment complex, the next time I see you, I’m going to pull your femurs from your hip sockets. Instead of finishing your degree, you’re going to be learning how to walk again. Do we have an understanding?”
Aaron nodded, looking with pleading eyes to Madison.
I leaned into his line of sight. “Don’t look at her, shitbag. Look at me.”
He obeyed.
“Leave, and don’t come back. Don’t ever talk to her again. Don’t approach her, don’t call her, or you’ll be dealing with me, and next time we won’t just talk.”
“Okay,” Aaron said, walking backward. His eyes glossed over as he tried to look everywhere but directly at Madison. “Okay, I’m sorry, I just… She told me she loved me and… Never mind. I’m sorry.”
Aaron pulled away in a hurry, and Madison pushed through her door.
“You were perfect! He was absolutely terrified,” she gushed, practically bouncing on her toes as the words spilled out.
Seeing the thrill in her eyes after Aaron’s humiliating retreat felt like I was watching her high-five herself for tripping a toddler. It made my stomach churn. She’d used me to win a game no one else knew they’d been playing.
She sighed in relief, leaning her head against the edge of the door, practically batting her eyes at me. It was just for a second, but the crack in her performance had betrayed her, the abrupt shift back into character too sharp. Whatever plan she’d cooked up was now spilling out faster than bad chili.
“You saved me. I knew you would,” she said, her voice tender. She looked at me expectantly. “Come in out of the rain, silly.”
“Maddie,” I said, annoyed. “What was that?”
She smiled and blinked, trying too hard to look confused. “What?”
“C’mon, Maddie. I have four brothers. I’ve seen that look. He was heartbroken and confused. Did you tell him to come here? Did you set him up?”
“Are you serious? No!” she said, her voice rising an octave. “Ask my parents. He’s manipulative. He’s fed them lie after lie. Wow, I thought you, of all people, would’ve seen right through him. You're really choosing to believe his performance over all the pain he's put me through—the pain I've trusted you with.” Her tone teetered on the edge of accusation. “After everything I’ve been through—after everything we’ve been through? God, Mackenzie would be so disappointed in you.”
For a moment, I just stared, the sting of her words settling in like a slow, festering wound. She’d done it again—used Mackenzie like a weapon, twisting the knife where she knew it would cut deepest.
I let out a sharp scoff, shaking my head. “You almost had me. You can’t play that card twice. I’m not an idiot. I took one look at him and knew the situation.”
“If that’s true, why did you say all those things to him? Why go through with it?”
I thought about that, unable to come up with an answer.
“I know why,” she said.
Her expression was one I’d seen a hundred times before. Back when I was a single, arrogant prick who only thought about getting my dick wet, I’d tell myself that my reputation was warning enough, and what happened next was the result of an educated guess. I never made promises or even alluded to commitment. I didn’t have to. The misguided hope that they were the outlier about to land me and change my whore ways did all the heavy lifting for me in those days. Madison’s eyes reflected that same knowing look as the women who’d been on the wrong end of my single-use charm. She was convinced there was some steamy romance simmering between us, but this time, I wasn’t even in the kitchen. Hell, I hadn’t so much as turned on the stove.
“Just… please come in, we’re getting soaked. I’ll make us some tea, or I’ve got a few beers left in the fridge.” She waited a beat. “Oh, c’mon. I can prove it to you. I have hundreds of text messages from my parents detailing his tactics.”
I wanted to believe her, if only to avoid acknowledging how gullible I’d been, but I wasn’t going to ignore my own intuition to do it, even if it made me feel like a dupable asshole. “He won’t be back. I’ve gotta bounce.”
“Trent,” she said, grabbing my arm. She slid her hands between my elbows and rib cage, around to my back, and then she squeezed me against her as she pressed her cheek against my chest. “Even if you don’t believe me, thank you. For as long as I’ve known you, you’ve always made me feel safe, and I…” She looked up at me, her face inches from mine, eyes dancing back and forth between my irises.
For the first time, I noticed her appearance. A fresh coat of shimmery gloss on her lips, her damp hair still had a faint smell of hairspray. She was wearing dangerously short cut-off shorts, a low-cut black crop top, and wedge heels. She’d either just come from a party she’d been at for less than an hour or she’d dolled up to watch her ex cower like a little bitch at the mere sight of me.
She rose up on the balls of her feet, closing her eyes, her sweet perfume wafting around us.
I took a step back. “Whoa. Maddie,” I exhaled sharply. “This?” I gestured to the space between us, “is never going to happen. Even if you weren’t too young and weren’t Mackenzie’s little sister, which is already in so many ways fucked up, I’m in love with my wife.”
She blinked, somehow not expecting my answer. “It doesn’t make sense, Trent. I’ve loved you my whole life.” She stared at the sidewalk. “We share something neither of us can explain to anyone else. Cami? ” She glared up at me, her face screwing into disgust. “The whole town knows she can’t get pregnant. Why would you want someone who can’t even give you a family? Why her?”
“She is my family,” I said, trying to keep my temper in check. “Why anyone else when she exists?”
Madison’s eyes glazed over, processing the sting of disappointment from my answer. After a moment, she shook her head, unwilling to accept it. “You actually think you love her,” she muttered in disbelief, almost to herself. “She’s an infertile bartender. Her own dad didn’t want her.”
“Hey,” I warned.
“She’s shared a bed with your brother . Don’t tell me you don’t think about it, Thomas touching her, kissing her, him being inside her. How many times do you think he made her come, Trent?”
“Stop talking,” I demanded.
“No! You have to listen to me!” she begged. A tear fell down her cheek, but then an incredulous laugh escaped her throat, a sound that made my skin crawl. “You don’t really want her. She’s actually fooled you into thinking that by marrying her you’re better than Thomas. That’s all it is. You needed to win. And what did you win, Trent? A trashy, weak, slut who’s embarrassed you in front of your entire family! You can’t see it right now, but I know… I know you’d be so much happier with me,” she said, pressing her fingers against her chest. “You could have a clean slate, respect, adoration. You loved Kenzie. I’ll do anything, be anything for you. I look like her, you know. You’ve said so before. I can be her, if that’s what you want, I…” she trailed off, reaching for me.
“Madison!” I growled, startling her.
She seemed to snap out of whatever conversation she was having with herself. I had to assume that’s what was happening because at no point during her delusional rant did she look me in the eye.
I backed away, just out of her reach and sighed, my anger replaced with pity. The poor kid needed a shrink, a reality check, and a lifetime pass to a pharmaceutical buffet.
I tried to organize my thoughts into words. Admittedly, I wasn’t fluent in Imaginese , the common tongue of Fictasia . “I heard everything you said. I understand now.”
Madison’s shoulders relaxed and she grinned, relieved. “I knew it. You just said I almost had you. I knew you’d stop fighting what we both know is true.”
What? There was no point in explaining—she’d twist it however she wanted. So, I took the direct approach, “I’m going to say this as clearly as I can. Madison,” I began.
Her eyes sparkled with the anticipation of the words she’d been longing to hear.
“Believe me when I say there is no version of you I want. There is nothing you can say or do that will ever make me want to be with you, to want a future with you. Do you understand that? I don’t want you,” I said, emphasizing the last few words. “There are only two women in my life I’ve ever loved: my mom and my wife. You just disrespected Cami in a way I’ll never forgive. Starting right now, whatever friendship we had is done. Don’t come back to the shop. If you need help, call your dad. I wish the best for you, I really do, but no one and nothing is more important to me than Camille. Not your feelings, not helping someone out—”
“No. No! Do you hear yourself? It’s like she’s brainwashed you!” She thought for a moment, and her eyes brightened as if a light bulb had flicked on over her head. She nodded, giggling. “That’s it. You’re just not thinking straight. You need me, Trent. You need me to show you the damage she’s doing. No one else is going to tell you the truth.”
I breathed out a condescending laugh, my patience wearing thin. “Because everyone but you knows that Cami is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Even if she was everything you’ve said and worse, I’d still never want anyone else. If she left me tomorrow, drained my bank account, framed me for murder, and kicked a puppy on her way home from giving the DA a handy, I’d write her love letters every day from prison. Does that compute, Annie Wilkes, or do I need to grab your ankle hammer real quick so you can knock some sense into yourself?”
Madison’s mouth fell open slightly, but I was pretty sure that was just her brain short-circuiting over the Misery reference, not some sudden epiphany about her own obsessive, unhinged devotion.
I turned to leave, but she rushed after me and grabbed my arm.
“Trent, wait. Don’t leave me. Trent…”
I yanked my arm away and glowered down at her, keeping my voice low. “You don’t wanna be the one standing between me and my marriage, Maddie. I don’t care who you are. I’ll burn the whole fuckin’ world down for my wife.”
Madison’s expression froze, her lips parted in stunned silence as I turned away from her a second time.
Just as I climbed into the truck, I heard her apartment door slam, but before I pressed the ignition, a hulk-sized shadow loomed next to me.
I raised my elbow, ready to turn someone’s head into a busted pinata, but Lachlan’s massive hand landed on my arm before I could let it fly.
“Jesus Christ, dude!” I yelled. “What the actual fuck ?”
“You left it unlocked and I wasn’t gonna stand in the rain, mate,” he said, failing to stifle a grin.
“Lach, seriously. Why are you in my truck?”
“Becca left her phone at Skin Deep and I saw you follow Madison, so I rocked up here to stop you from doing something stupid.”
“Dude,” I said, sighing. The adrenaline was still soaking back into my system. I had to give myself a minute to turn off attack mode. “She said that kid was bothering her. I’d never cheat on my wife.”
“I saw that. Well done, by the way. That was a top-tier warning. He didn’t look all that bothersome, though.”
“I told her the same thing. Maybe I’m crazy, but I think she set all this up.”
“Well, it’s a good thing I’m here then, so if she tries to say differently, I can back you up.”
I paused to consider his offer, but quickly brushed it off. “It’s not like she’s some villain with a master plan. She’s a college kid with a crush.”
His expression turned serious. “Trent, you need to listen to me. I train her dad, he’s been my client for years. They talk to me like I’m a fuckin’ therapist, ya know. I know half the town’s deepest, darkest secrets. Madison is devious, mate . She hasn’t been right in the head since the accident, and she’s had a crush on you since before it even happened. That’s why her parents kept her away from you.”
I shook my head. “No, they’ve kept her away because they blame me.”
“They did, for a while. But then they found something in her room. He didn’t say what, whether it was a journal or some type of wild shit like voodoo dolls or a Trent-themed Dia de Muertos altar. I don’t know what the Fatal-Attraction was going on in there, but it was apparently alarming. They don’t hate you, Trent. They know you’re happily married. They were trying to prevent whatever she’s planning, and as weird as it is, this is probably just phase one.”
I cracked my knuckles and nodded, processing his words. “Whoa.”
“Whoa is right. I wasn’t going to say anything, but when I saw her at the shop… Don’t let that moll mess things up for you.”
“I told her after what happened tonight that she’s officially unfriended and banned from Skin Deep,” I made a face, “more or less.”
“Good.”
“You need me to let you in the shop to get Becca’s phone?” I asked, because you know, priorities.
“How about you and Cami meet us for dinner tomorrow night? It’s been ages since we’ve gotten a sitter. Bring the phone and we’ll chat.”
“About tonight?” I raised one eyebrow.
Lachlan chuckled. “No. Not trying to get that far into your business. It’s the weekend. Let’s go have some drinks and you can watch me make two full ribeye steaks disappear.”
“Yeah, okay. Cami would like that. But I am gonna tell her.”
“I know,” he said, smacking his huge hand onto my shoulder. “I know a lot of shit went down, and as tragic as it was, you all lost something that day. Maddie’s healing isn’t your responsibility. And no offense, but you’re no Dr. Phil.”
“Cami said the same.”
“You’d never pull off that ’stache. Even your dead mother would be embarrassed for you.”
I chuckled. “You won’t be able to talk about my mom if your face is one big gaping hole, Down Under.”
“Terrifying, tiniest Maddox,” he rumbled in his deep, Thor-like voice.
I rolled my eyes but couldn’t stop the smirk. Trading insults with Lachlan made me feel like one of my brothers was in the truck with me, and it immediately settled the frayed nerves still firing in my system.
“Hey, if you need someone to give you the green light to walk away from the grieving little sister trying to nuke your marriage, I’m your guy,” he said.
“You’re right. It’s stupid. Cami knew something was off. I should’ve listened to her.”
“You’ve been wrestling with that guilt for years, Trent. No one blames you for feeling conflicted. It just means you’re a good person. And choosing your wife over that guilt? That makes you an even better man.”
“Listen to you, sounding all wise and shit.”
As big as my little brother had gotten while working at IronE, Lachlan barely fit in the passenger side of my truck. I’d always been glad Becca and Cassidy had him watching over them, but it turned out he was keeping an eye on all of us.
“You’re a good dude, Lach,” I said, giving him a nod.
He smiled. “I know that, too. See you tomorrow.”