You Just Watch
Delaney
As the TV blared loud enough to fill the house, Maisie gave the air a tentative sniff. "Wait…is that popcorn?"
Tessa glanced toward the kitchen. "Probably."
Maisie shifted on the loveseat. "I think I'd feel guilty, you know, munching on popcorn while somebody's life spirals like that." She brightened. "Although…if there's butter, I'm not saying no."
The three of us were gathered in the living room, where we'd spent most of the day glued to the nonstop coverage of Sloane Hayworth's spectacular flameout.
Griff had called it a shitshow. Ryder had called it hilarious. Maddox had called it a problem of Sloane's own making – which, honestly, was probably the most accurate take.
By now, it had been nearly eight hours since the news broke, and the story just kept getting worse.
According to the talking heads, Sloane had staged her own disappearance to promote her new book. The original plan had been to disappear for only a week and come back with some dramatic story about locals rescuing her and nursing her back to health.
Except there were no nursing locals – except Hannah Callahan, that student nurse in Indiana, who'd spotted Sloane hitting a coffee shop in disguise.
Unfortunately for Sloane, Hannah had the cellphone photos to prove it and was turning a tidy profit by selling them to all the media outlets who wanted them.
And then there were Sloane's friends from the yacht, who had already started talking, selling her out one by one to grab a little of the spotlight for themselves.
According to them, Sloane had never been anywhere near Greece. Instead, she'd been holed up in Indiana the whole time, dragging it out longer and longer as the sales of her book continued to climb.
Apparently, she'd been waiting for the perfect moment to come back.
Too bad for her, she'd waited too long. Thanks to an anonymous tip – call it Plan B – she'd been ambushed by reporters instead.
According to Maddox, Plan A had been to let Sloane crash and burn on her own with no help from him. But Plan B? That had involved stopping the fallout now, before it could spread any further – specifically, to me.
That's what he'd said, confessing it in private as we'd gone upstairs to change our clothes. And for anyone who's curious, yes, there might've been just a little nakedness in between.
Or a lot.
From the kitchen, Franny called out, "Hey! Where's your popcorn dish?"
Tessa called back, "I don't have a popcorn dish. Use whatever."
Maisie pushed herself up from the loveseat. "I'll go help."
Tessa shook her head. "Nah, I'll do it."
"Absolutely not," Maisie laughed. "You helped with the whole sandwich thing."
It was true. Around noon, Franny had started making sandwiches for all of us – not for the guys, of course, because all of them had left for Chicago by jet.
As Maisie passed me and Tessa, she asked, "You both like extra butter, right?"
I answered for both of us. "Definitely." After all, I knew my sister.
When the two of us were alone, Tessa turned to me and said, "I still can't believe Ryder never told me who it was – you know, the guy he gave that info to."
"I can believe it," I said. "He probably thought you'd be mad."
"At Ryder? Why?"
Wasn't it obvious? "Because you might've blamed him for Sloane's canceled wedding."
"Oh, stop it," she said. "Why would I blame Ryder? It sounds to me like he did everyone a huge favor. And besides, I'd do the same for you. And Maisie, too."
"So you never asked who it was?"
"Not really," she admitted, giving the TV another glance. "But if I'd known it was this juicy, I definitely would've."
Juicy was right. Before leaving for Chicago, Ryder had filled in a few more details.
Apparently, Ryder had this other friend – some guy named Jamison – who was plugged into all the Chicago gossip. The day before the wedding, Jamison had tipped Ryder off about Sloane's shady financial dealings.
Ryder had passed the info along to Maddox, which had kicked off a deeper dive into everything Sloane had been doing since he'd slipped that engagement ring onto her finger.
What Maddox found – a web of side deals trading privacy for profit – had been the final straw. He'd called off the wedding and kept quiet about the cause, figuring the less said, the better.
Sloane, on the other hand, had gone in the exact opposite direction. She'd cried on cue and told her version of the story over and over – except most of it was a pile of bunk.
And the longer Maddox remained silent, the more outrageous she got – until she was swimming in a sea of nonsense.
The entire thing was beyond ugly.
And yet, I couldn't stop smiling – not because of the fiasco with Sloane, but because of Maddox.
He loved me.
I loved him.
It still felt like a dream.
Today, he hadn't wanted to leave the island at all.
So why had he?
Because of me.
He'd said that if he didn't surface in Chicago, the press would surely come looking – and probably harder than before.
So, he'd gone to them instead.
Apparently, he'd agreed to an interview sometime this afternoon.
By tonight, he'd be back here in my arms.
And in my bed.
Or his.
Either way was fine by me.
As for Ryder and Griff, they'd gone along to Chicago to lend Maddox some friendly moral support, just like I had here.
I was still watching the coverage when Franny and Maisie bustled back into the living room with bowls of popcorn for us all.
I was halfway through my bowl when my cellphone rang. I picked it up and glanced at the screen. Walt.
When I answered, he barked out, "You're watchin' it, right?"
"The stuff with Sloane? Yeah. We've been watching all day."
"So…you still with that guy?"
I smiled. "Maddox? Yes, actually."
"Good."
"Why?" I laughed. "Because he's not the monster everyone says?"
"Well, that too," he said. "But mostly because my grandson's taken. He met someone last month. A helluva gal. I just figured you should know." Before I could reply, he'd already switched gears. "You got popcorn, right?"
I glanced toward the neighboring armchair, where Franny was munching away. "Yeah, Franny made it."
"Who's Franny?"
"A friend. I think you'd like her."
"Oh, yeah?" He sounded intrigued. "So…does she fish?"
I looked over at Franny while I put the phone on speaker. "Franny, by any chance, do you fish?"
She snorted. "Not lately." I was just about to relay that to Walt when she added, "I can't find anyone to take me. I mean…it's not like I can't do it alone. But where's the fun in that?"
Before I could respond, Tessa gave a little gasp. "Delaney, look!" She was pointing at the TV.
And there he was, Maddox McGuiness, looking too delicious for words. He was standing in front of a bunch of cameras, dressed in a dark suit that framed his broad shoulders to perfection.
His eyes were steady. His expression was calm. He looked absolutely lethal. So far, he hadn't said a single word, even as reporters called out questions while the cameras crowded in.
From the sofa, Tessa said, "Wait…I thought he was giving only one interview. There's gotta be fifty people there."
My eyes were still glued to the TV. "Yeah, that's what I thought, too."
Franny said, "It is one interview – just with a bunch of reporters. See?"
Sounding impressed, Tessa said, "You know…that's a smart strategy, getting all of it done at once."
Tessa would know. After all, brand management was her expertise. Still, I held up a hand. "Shush, he's about to say something."
The room went quiet – not only here, but in that Chicago conference room, too.
Maddox's gaze swept the room. "I'll keep this simple." His voice was calm, but it carried. "There's been a lot of noise. Most of it isn't worth repeating."
With no trace of a smile, he said, "I'm glad Sloane was found safe. I hope she gets whatever help she needs."
From the neighboring armchair, Franny muttered, "I hope I can return that book."
On the screen, Maddox continued. "But my decision to call off the wedding was based on information that was private at the time and remains private now. That hasn't changed."
He let the silence settle. "What has changed is the direction this has taken. And let me be clear." A new edge crept into his voice. "I won't allow anyone else to be pulled into it."
From the loveseat, Maisie gave a little squeal. "Oh, my God. That's so romantic. You know he means you."
I didn't answer, because already, a reporter was calling out, "So you're saying you're involved with someone else?"
Maddox replied, "You might say that."
A ripple went through the crowd.
The same reporter asked, "So that's a yes?"
Maddox held his gaze. "Actually, it's a hell yes."
Whoa. I couldn't help but smile.
Another reporter called out, "Does Sloane know?"
When Maddox replied with only an icy look, a different reporter called out, "Well, she does now."
Laughter rippled through the room until Maddox stopped it with a raised hand. "Sloane and I are done, period."
Another reporter called out, "And how about this new person? Can you tell us anything about her?"
"Just this." Maddox paused, his gaze locking on the camera like he was looking straight at me. "When that day comes with her?" His mouth softened just a fraction. "Nothing's keeping me away."
My breath caught. My heart warmed. And I couldn't stop staring.
From my cellphone, Walt's voice called out, "Wait…what day does he mean?"
I startled. In all the excitement, I'd forgotten Walt was still on the line – and on speaker, too.
From the armchair, Franny called out toward my phone, "Oh, come on! You know which day. The big one."
Tessa gave me a puzzled look. "So…are you guys really that serious?"
I looked back to the screen. From that conference room in Chicago, Maddox was still meeting my eyes – even in spite of the pandemonium, in spite of the questions, in spite of everything.
And then he smiled – a perfect smile just for me.
I smiled back as I replied, "Maybe not yet." My smile widened. "But you just watch. We will be."