Page 13 of Forever Focused

Not about my brother tho…

Poppy nearly did a double take.

Madison was drawing a line and protecting him as well – from her? That surprised her. She was always picking on Michael, taunting him, or goading him. The two bickered quite a bit when they were growing up, but now she was acting as his shield?

How about our other favorite subject - Emmett? I got some dirt from Aurora…

SPILL. THE. BEANS. NOW.

LOL – he got hired at the FBI in Tyler. The man is stepping on up in the world, so when are you going to finally talk to him?

Oh, look at the time. I should go…

Dork.

These are text messages. Go where you want now and text me back.

Poppy laughed easily as Madison sent her a winking emoji as her reply. Yup. That said enough. Her crush on Emmett Wilkes was encompassing and had been for a while. Every time she saw the dark-haired tall man, Madison would start tripping over herself to get seen, and Poppy understood only too well now.

* * *

It was almost a week later before Poppy finally corralled Madison into lunch – and she stared at her friend, shocked, as bombshell after bombshell fell from Madison’s lips. Michael’s twin had always been a go-getter and ambitious, but to see the fire in her friend’s eyes and hear the details of what was going on behind the scenes was staggering.

“You are too busy traveling everywhere,” Madison said with a mouthful of salad, pointing her fork at Poppy. “I’ve missed this… us.”

“Me too.”

“I’m going into business for myself – and we open in a month…” Madison said casually, shoving another massive bite of chef salad with too-much ranch on it into her mouth, chewing obnoxiously as she smirked.

“What? You are?”

“Yup! I bought a franchise, and we open on May fourth of this year. Remember that bunker near campus…”

“The old taco place?”

“That’s the one,” Madison grinned. “That’s going to be the newest coffee shop in town called The Coffee Loft – and guess what?”

“I can’t imagine…”

“We are doing a Star Wars-themed opening!”

“Shut the front door,” Poppy exclaimed in delight. “You love Star Wars!”

“Omigosh girl… you have no idea how much either,” Madison gushed openly, closing her eyes and setting down her fork, only to put her hands on her heart dramatically. “Handsome rogues, heroes, feisty heroines, adventure, suspense, romance… all rolled into science fiction. Oh yes, that checks off every single one of my boxes.”

Poppy laughed easily in sheer delight.

“It doesn’t hurt that Emmett looks like a happier version of Kylo Ren, either. Fans were robbed right after our onscreen kiss, you know? There should be a redemption arc for your main squeeze – which makes me curious. Is Emmett the bad guy, or is it all that dark hair, the brooding expression, and the towering height?”

“Oh, mercy, no,” Madison chuckled, winking at her. “Am I so obvious?”

“A little – but it’s our secret.”

Both women laughed, sharing a smile. It took a few moments for Poppy to gather up the courage to bring up Michael, and she did. It was something she couldn’t resist. Just seeing Madison’s familiar expressions reminded her of Michael. The two were not identical but somewhat similar in appearance. It was the little things that were uncanny… a certain smirk or a look were recognizable.

“How’s Michael really doing?” Poppy began. “No one says anything, and I’m worried something is wrong.” Madison picked at her salad for several moments and then looked at her – hard.

“He’s been through a rough spot, but then again, I’m starting to wonder if that is part of growing up,” Madison began sagely. “I think having my backside handed to me by starting up this business has really made me come out of my comfort zone… and I sometimes wonder if that is what my brother is going through as well. He’s changed, and I don’t think it’s bad.”

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