Page 41 of Obsessed Fox

"I go by Maisie now."

Matthew's eyes softened. "Yeah, I heard that, but to me you'll always be my Marmar."

It was easy to see in that moment that Maisie was going to agree to anything her brother said. He wielded that nickname like a damn sword and knew exactly where to hit to ensure she caved.

I, on the other hand, wasn't as easily convinced. Something wasn't right. The information wasn't adding up, but until I had all the pieces, I couldn't make sense of what I was looking at.

"Are you staying in town for a while?" Her eyes shouted she hoped that was the case.

"I'm sorry, I can't. I wasn't even supposed to stay this long."

Her crestfallen look was a punch to the gut. Last night she had admitted all she wanted to see was her brother, but now that she had, she wanted more. Twelve years was a long time to be away from someone who was practically the only friend she had growing up.

"Well, I'm glad I got to see you again. I was moping around all day because I missed you."

"I’ve missed you too, sis, and I swear once this is over, I'll be back. I never expected it to take this long."

I watched the tearful goodbye and knew I'd be spending the night comforting my woman.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Maisie

I'm not sure what hurt more; knowing Matty was in town and not seeing him, or only getting to spend a few moments in his presence.

I know I wished for this but saying goodbye took more out of me than I wanted to admit. I couldn't think.

I went through the motions as Hendrix spoke to Janie about closing up the bakery for me. I didn’t remember the drive back to his house, aside from the silence.

At least I think that was the case. I was stuck in my head, so if he asked me anything, I can't say with any certainty that I responded.

Hendrix also undressed me at some point. I only know that because I was currently standing under the hot spray, with him standing at my back, as the water cascaded around us.

"I hate seeing you so sad, sweetheart."

I let him carry all my weight. It was too much at the moment. I wanted to crawl into bed and not come out for a few days. I hadthe same feeling the first time I was forced to leave my brother behind.

"How can he just walk away?” I mumbled. “I feel like a part of my heart has been ripped out of my chest and he just leaves, as if us being separated isn't that big of a deal."

I knew growing up we didn't have what most considered a typical sibling relationship. We rarely fought but that had more to do with the fact that if we did, then we would have no one. We were each other's person and that continued into adulthood. Some would consider it an unhealthy codependency, but we didn't know any better.

Walking away twelve years ago had nearly killed me, but somehow, today felt worse.

"I can't say for sure, but something tells me he feels the loss just as much as you do."

I didn't know how that could be possible when he was the one to pull away.

"I just want to lie down in bed."

Hendrix placed a soft kiss on my wet hair. "Okay, sweetheart. Let's get cleaned up and then we can go lie down."

There was nothing sexual about Hendrix washing my body. It felt almost clinical the way he moved across my hips, legs, arms, and chest. Deep down, where my body and soul weren’t numb, I felt sad about that. His touch always brought a spark. Set fire to my blood. This was just one more thing taken away from me. From us.

Hendrix towel-dried my body and my hair. He helped me step into a pair of panties and slipped one of his shirts over my head. The soft fabric felt better than any pair of pajamas I owned.

When he settled us in bed, with my back nestled into his front, I knew things would be okay as long as I had him by myside. He ran his fingers through my hair and traced lines across my belly with his other hand. I melted further into his touch.

"Will you tell me about him? Tell me about your life growing up?"

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