Page 244 of Cowboys & Navy SEALs

“Okay, I’ll try to do that.”

She paused. “Maddox. Are you sure you’re okay? You don’t sound like yourself.”

“I’m just tired.”

“Have you spoken to Addie?”

He sat up, clutching the phone tighter. “What kind of question is that? You know we broke up.” The bitterness in his tone sounded in his ears. Did his mama have some sort of radar on him? It was like she instinctively knew, somehow, that he’d been with Addie.

“I was just hoping that maybe the two of you could, you know, work things out.” Her voice grew intense. “You should’ve seen her at your funeral, honey. The poor girl was devastated.”

An incredulous laugh broke through his throat. “Do you hear yourself, Mama? I didn’t actually die.”

“I know that,” she responded impatiently. “But we thought you were dead. Going through that had to be tough on her.”

Yeah, so tough that she couldn’t get over it, he thought, acid churning in his gut.

“You should bring Addie for Thanksgiving.”

Sometimes it was like his mama didn’t listen to a thing he said. “We’re not together anymore.”

“Text me her number, and I’ll invite her.”

“I’m not going to text you her number.” This conversation was getting ridiculous. He punched the remote and switched through more channels, finally stopping at a basketball game. His stomach rumbled. That’s right, he’d not eaten anything in a few hours. He had very little food in the house. Maybe he’d order a pizza.

“If you won’t text me Addie’s number, then I suggest you call her. A girl like her doesn’t come along every day.”

“All right,” he interrupted. “I’ll talk to her tomorrow.”

His mama’s voice instantly brightened. “Fantastic,” she cooed. “Be sure and tell her I said hello.”

The doorbell rang. Maddox sat up, hope bubbling in his chest. Was it Addie? “I’ve gotta go, Mama. There’s someone at the door.”

“Okay, I love you. I’ll talk to you soon.”

He glanced back at the door. “Love you too.” He ended the call and tossed the phone on the couch as he stood. Had Addie come to find him? He peered through the peephole, his stomach tightening.

“Hello.” Felicity knocked insistently on the door. “I know you’re there. I saw your lights.”

He opened the door, plastering on a smile. “Hey.”

“Hey.” She flashed a large smile as she slid her arms around his neck and drew close, pressing her lips to his. All he could think about was how her perfume was too strong, her hair too stiff, her face too made up.

“Whoa!” He drew back, removing her skinny arms from his neck. “What was that for?”

Her face fell, her lips forming a petulant pout. “I thought you’d be happy to see me,” she sniffed. She strode past him,walked around the couch, and sat down. She draped an arm over the back and looked at him with a come-hither expression. “Come over here,” she purred. “I’ve missed you. You didn’t even tell me you were going out of town.”

“Now’s not a good time,” he began.

“Oh, come on,” she urged. “It’s not like you were doing anything besides watching a stupid game.”

“I happen to like basketball,” he countered, raising an eyebrow.

“We’ll watch it together then.” She squared her jaw. “I’m not leaving, so you’d might as well come over here. Please,” she added, giving him a seductive smile.

His shoulders slumped. He didn’t know which was worse—sitting alone and wallowing in his sorrows or sitting with Felicity.Would you rather be (a) drowned or (b) burned to death? Can I choose option (c)? Oh, and can you throw Addie into the mix?

He grunted. Fat chance of that happening. “Are you hungry? I was thinking of ordering a pizza.”

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