Page 11 of A Dangerous Proposal

I should schedule another visit with his pediatrician. Dr. Morse said his lungs were clear, but what if…

Stop.

You’ll give him the medicine, and in less than half an hour, he’ll be warm in his bed.

If Jax took a nap longer than thirty minutes, she might actually get some work done.Murder She Spoke’slast episode had definitely garnered interest. Particularly because she and Cami had essentially named the head of a major movie studio as their prime suspect in a cold murder case.

Taking on such a powerful man wouldn’t typically make Madison nervous, but she was concerned that if he came afterthem, it would affect her custody case. According to her lawyer,everythingdid.

Guilt sprang to life in her stomach. Cami was right. They couldn’t back down, but Madison still felt terrible for letting Cami take the lead, essentially making herself the lightning rod for any fallout.

I’m a terrible friend.

What made it worse was Cami was so sweet about it. She had totally understood when Madison said she had to take a step back. But Madison had never backed down from a fight before. She was usually the voice of the podcast. It wasn’t that she liked confrontation… She just wasn’t afraid of it.

Or at least the old Madison wasn’t.

Lately, it felt like she was losing control of practically everything in her life. Like she was tiptoeing across a frozen lake, afraid to step too hard, not knowing which step would be the one that sent out spiderweb cracks before plunging her beneath the surface.

And no matter what Cami said… Did it matter that she was doing her best if it still wasn’t good enough? Not when Jax would pay the price.

“Ma ma,” Jax whined up at her. She smoothed his blond hair back off his forehead.

“Almost there, buddy.”

The older couple in front of her completed their transaction, the woman giving her another nasty look as she passed by.

Madison heaved her basket onto the counter and tried not to grimace as Jax buried his snotty nose into her chest again. Poor little guy.

Purchase completed, Madison stopped just inside the electronic doors at the front of the store and ripped open the baby cold medicine. She swallowed the curse word thatthreatened to pop out of her mouth as her nail broke on the shrink-wrapped plastic.

As if a sick baby isn’t enough, let’s make the medicine a freaking nightmare to open.

She avoided Jax’s batting hands and quickly squeezed the tip of the dropper to suck up the correct measurement for Jax’s weight and dripped it inside his cheek.

His nose scrunched at the taste, but thankfully he swallowed it instead of spitting it back at her. He thought it was hilarious… Madison, not so much.

Pulling the hood of his baby puffer jacket up, she scooped the bags higher over her elbow while somehow managing to not drop the diaper bag.

Score one for me.

The chilly wind immediately cut into her as the electronic doors slid open, and she tugged Jax’s hood closer. Cold drops of rain pelted her as she hurried through the parking lot.

Madison clicked the key fob to unlock the doors and pulled open the back door, swinging her bags onto the floor and setting the diaper bag on the seat, before putting Jax in his car seat. Dropping the keys in his lap, she struggled to get his arms through the straps.

Not missing his chance, Jax snatched up the fob and immediately gummed it, causing the car’s horn to beep repeatedly as it locked and unlocked. His eyes bright, Jax looked utterly delighted with the noises he was making.

“That’s super gross, buddy. Be glad I’m in a hurry,” she muttered, clicking the belts in place.

In an instant, the rain became heavier, and it felt like ice as it soaked the back of her shirt and leggings as she bent in the car.

Jax’s face contorted in anger, and he let out an ear-piercing shriek when he realized his mobility was restricted. His screamsonly escalated as she took the key from him, his cheeks turning red with his baby fury.

“I hear you, buddy. I’ll get us home quick.”

Jax clearly did not appreciate her attempts to soothe him, because he grasped an enormous chunk of her hair when it swung near him and yanked hard.

“Ow!” She dropped the fob as she freed her hair.

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