Chapter Nineteen
Madison
Madison stirred the large pot, her mind wandering through the events of her day. The rhythmic motion of the wooden spoon through the thick, aromatic mixture was almost meditative, providing her a brief escape from the worries of her life.
As she added a sprinkle of salt, her thoughts drifted to Kyle. Working for him, being near him, had stirred feelings she hadn’t anticipated, feelings that were as intoxicating as they were forbidden.
He was digging himself into her secrets, chipping away at her walls.
The sound of footsteps approached, pulling her from her reverie. Kyle appeared at the kitchen doorway, his expression unusually serious. In his hand was the phone.
”Madison, it”s for you,” he said, handing her the phone. His brow was furrowed.
Something was wrong, and fear crept up her throat, almost choking her.
Madison wiped her hands on her apron and took the phone. ”Hello?”
”Mom?” The voice on the other end was small, quivering.
It was Ellie.
Madison”s heart plummeted and dread filled her stomach like acid. ”Ellie, honey, what”s wrong?”
Tears choked Ellie”s voice. ”It”s Miss Helen, she”s in the hospital. We”re all here. The police are here too.”
Panic surged through Madison”s veins. The kids, are they alone? Is Emma okay? She struggled to maintain a calm voice. ”What happened?! Are Emma and your brothers okay?”
”They”re fine, we”re all waiting. A policewoman is here with us,” Ellie managed to say. “Miss Helen got sick.”
Madison”s mind raced with a thousand questions. ”Put the policewoman on, sweetheart.”
As Ellie handed the phone to the officer, Madison turned slightly, catching Kyle”s gaze. His eyes, usually so warm, now held a trace of confusion, a hint of realization dawning in them.
Madison spoke quickly with the policewoman, assuring her she would be there as soon as possible. She ended the call, her hands trembling.
”Madison, what’s going on?” Kyle’s voice was solemn, but his eyes searched hers for answers she wasn’t ready to give.
She looked away, unable to meet his gaze. ”I have to go, there”s been an emergency with my family.” The words were out before she could stop them. “I have to go to the hospital.”
”Your family?” Kyle echoed, and she could see him trying to put it all together in his mind.
Madison”s world felt as if it were crumbling around her.
She turned off the stove, her movements mechanical. She reached for her purse, her mind spinning with all the thoughts and uncertainties. “The food’s all ready. You’ll have to call everyone in. Dock the rest of the night from my pay.”
”I”ll drive you,” Kyle said, his voice firm. He reached out and gently took the car keys from her shaking hands. ”You shouldn”t drive like this.”
Madison wanted to argue, to insist she was fine, but the truth was she felt anything but. Her secrets, her carefully constructed walls, were on the very brink of collapsing.
Everything was coming down around her.
Kyle shot off a message to someone, his fingers flying over his phone as he gathered his keys and wallet. He checked his pistol and then shoved it into a holster hidden on his lower back. She was too dazed to think twice about it.
As they walked to the car, Madison braced herself for the inevitable.
She would have to tell Kyle everything— about her children, about Rob”s death, and the lawsuit from his parents. She prepared herself for his disgust, anger, disappointment, for the loss of her job, and the life she had built here.
As they drove in silence, Madison thought of Christian”s marriage proposal.
It seemed like the only option now, a way to secure a future for her children.
Sitting beside Kyle, who had become so much more than just her employer, Madison felt a profound sense of loss. If only she’d been honest from the beginning.
As the car sped through the night, the silence between Madison and Kyle was thick. Only the rumble of the engine filled the air. Madison”s heart pounded against her ribs.
She took a deep breath. “I lied to you.”
His jaw flexed in the cool dashboard light, and he was silent for several heartbeats. He didn’t look at her. “About what?”
She felt nauseous at the flatness in his tone. “About everything.”
She took a deep breath, her voice barely above a whisper as she began to unravel the threads of her life.
”Kyle, there”s something you need to know about me,” she started, her hands clasped tightly in her lap. ”Rob... my husband, he passed away eight months ago. I never told you because... because I didn”t know how.”
Kyle”s hands tightened on the steering wheel, but he said nothing, his gaze fixed on the road ahead.
”And there”s more,” Madison continued, her voice trembling. ”I have three other children— Ellie, Jackson, and James. They were with Helen tonight, she”s... she”s like a grandmother to them. She keeps them while I work.”
Kyle”s jaw clenched, but still, he remained silent, an unreadable expression on his face.
Madison felt the weight of his silence, each second stretching into eternity. It made the words really hard to get out.
”And there”s a lawsuit,” she added, her voice breaking. ”Rob”s parents, Pam and Don, they”re suing me for partial custody and visitation rights. It”s been tearing me apart.”
The car slowed as they approached the hospital, the bright lights of the emergency room cutting through the darkness.
Madison”s heart was in her throat, her mind racing with the fear of what he was going to say, how he was going to react, and what was ahead of her with the kids. Helen was like a mother to her almost, and she worried for the woman.
”I”m sorry, Kyle,” she finally said, her voice barely audible. ”I never meant to deceive you. I needed that job more than anything and I thought—”
Kyle held up a hand, cutting her off. ”Madison, stop. We”ll talk later,” he said shortly, his voice tight with emotion.
They parked in silence, and Madison rushed out of the car, her only thought now was to find her kids, who were probably very scared.
Kyle followed.
Even as angry as he probably was, he still followed her.
The hospital emergency room was a flurry of activity, but Madison”s focus was singular. She found her children in a small waiting area with a nurse, their faces pale and worried. Ellie was holding baby Emma, while Jackson and James sat close by, their eyes wide with fear.
Madison”s heart swelled with relief and love as she embraced them, her tears mingling with theirs.
”I”m here now, everything”s going to be okay,” she whispered, holding them close.
Kyle stood a few feet away, watching them, studying each of the kids” faces. She wished she knew what he was thinking.
As Madison spoke with the policewoman, reassuring her that she would take care of everything, her mind was racing through everything that she had to do. She knew everything was going to change now, that her relationship with Kyle could never be the same.
She turned toward him, her eyes searching his for some hint of what he was thinking, but his gaze was still inscrutable.
”Thank you for bringing me here,” she said, her voice barely a whisper.
Kyle nodded, his jaw set. ”I”ll wait for you in the hallway,” he said, his voice low. ”Take your time with your kids.”
He left, the policewoman following him out.
“Mom, mom, mom,” Jack said, tugging on her shirt. “They said Miss Helen had a stroge. Is that like the flu? She fell down and Ellie had to call the 911.”
“It’s called a stroke,” Ellie said, tapping her feet on the floor anxiously. “She looked really sick, mom. She couldn’t talk.”
James was silent, holding her hand tight and staring at baby Em, who was happily making baby noises though her diaper was full.
Madison cleared her throat. “Everything is fine. I’m going to find the doctor and then we’ll see what to do, okay? Ellie, can you read Jack and James some of that book for a few minutes?”
“It’s a girl book,” Jack said disgustedly.
“Is not,” Ellie said.
“Is too, too, too, too, too, too—”
“Enough!” Madison hissed. “People are sick here. We need to be quiet, okay?”
Jack nodded, and Ellie began to read. James didn’t want to let go of her hand, and so she took him with her.
Kyle was stationed outside the door. He gave her an inquiring look.
“I’m going to talk to the doctor about Helen, then I’ll need to take them home.” She wondered how she’d get home. Would he offer?
He nodded. “Called the guys. Evans volunteered to take care of the food,” he said wryly. “Murdock is going to watch the house and John will drive your car home. I’ll need your address.”
He was so calm and distant.
She breathed out shakily and gave him her address.
“I’ll take you home,” he said, then nodded across the hall toward a desk. “That’s probably the doc.”
He took Em from her and Madison nodded, her heart still pounding with a mix of fear and gratitude.
She approached the doctor, a middle-aged man with kind eyes that held a touch of weariness. He greeted her with a sympathetic smile and led her to a quiet corner.
“How is Helen?” she asked, afraid of what he’d say.
“Are you family?” he asked, looking over the chart in his hands.
“Yes.” This was a lie she had no compunction over telling. Helen was her family in all ways that mattered.
”She had a stroke,” he explained gently. ”She”s stable now, but the next few hours are critical. We”re doing everything we can. We’re going to fly her up to Turkey Creek Medical Center. They can provide her with the best care.”
Madison listened, her mind racing with questions and worries. ”Can I see her?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
”Not right now,” the doctor replied. ”But we”ll keep you updated. Leave your number at the desk and we’ll contact you and let you know when she gets settled there.”
She nodded, her throat tight with emotion. “Give them my number as her emergency contact.”
“Yes, Ma’am,” he said, going to a computer cart nearby to deal with his next patient.
As she turned to go back to her children, she saw that Kyle had slipped into the waiting room. Madison felt a wave of conflicting emotions— gratitude for his support but fear of the future.
She returned to find him sitting with Ellie and Jack, who were listening intently as he told them a story about his time in the military. His voice was soft, yet captivating, and Madison saw a side of him she hadn”t known before. Ellie was engrossed, her earlier anxiety forgotten, while Jack”s eyes were wide with admiration.
James, however, still clung to her hand, his expression closed off.
Madison”s heart ached to see James”s withdrawn demeanor, but she was grateful for Kyle”s effort to comfort her children.
She cleared her throat, and the room fell silent. ”We can go home,” she said softly.
Kyle nodded and stood up, effortlessly shifting Emma into her car seat. She held James”s hand as they walked to Kyle”s truck, the night air cool against her skin.
The drive home was quiet, the only sound the soft hum of the engine and Emma”s occasional coos from the backseat. Madison stared out the window, lost in thought, her mind a tumult of emotions and guilt.
When they arrived at her house, John was there waiting in her car.
Kyle helped her and the kids to the front door, his movements efficient, yet gentle. His face was unreadable.
John waved and gave her a sad smile, his expression filled with understanding and sympathy. ”Take care, Madison,” he said softly. “Call us if you need anything.”
Madison nodded and turned to Kyle, her voice shaky. ”I don”t know when I”ll be able to come in to work,” she began.
Kyle cut her off, holding up his hand. ”Take your time. We”ll manage,” he said, his voice firm but not unkind. “I’ll call you in a couple of days, see how you’re getting along. Like John said, call if you need anything.”
Madison nodded and swallowed back tears as she watched Kyle and John walk back to the truck, a sense of loss washing over her. Kyle seemed to hesitate for a second before he got in, but eventually, he did.
She had revealed her secrets, and now she had to face the consequences. She stepped inside her home. The kids were clustered on the couch.
James tugged her hand. “Is Miss Helen going to die, like Dad?”
She gathered him up. “I don’t think so, Jamie. The doctor said she was feeling a little bit better, but she’ll probably be sick for a while. They’re going to send her to a really good doctor in a bigger town. When she gets better, she’ll be able to come home.”
He blinked, very solemn, and then went to find Jack while she took care of Em and tried to hold herself together.