Page 55 of A Dangerous Proposal

Alex tilted his head slightly. “You don’t believe it?”

Madison let out a dry, humorless laugh. “Not for a second. I knew him when he was destroying my sister. People like that don’t change. They just get better at faking it. Besides, he let some of his true colors bleed out today.”

He kept a smile on his face even though it felt as if his skin had suddenly become too tight.

“True colors? What happened?” Breathe, he reminded himself. Everything in him wanted to drive over to the man’s house and skin him alive, but he couldn’t. Not yet. Not while Felix was still the leverage over Madison he needed.

“Nothing. He was just being shitty.”

“Did you call the new lawyer?” he asked, already knowing the answer. He hadn’t lied. Amandadidowe him a favor, but Alex had instructed her that all invoices were to be sent straight to him.

Madison exhaled slowly. “Yeah. She thinks I might have a lawsuit against my former lawyer for negligence. His representation was that bad. Apparently, there were all kinds of motions he could have filed and didn’t. Amanda has already gotten several dates pushed back, but she also said that I should prepare myself. A lot of damage has already been done.”

“You won’t lose your son.”

Madison turned her head toward him, studying him. “You say that like it’s a guarantee.”

“It is.”

Her lips parted slightly, her breath catching.

He hadn’t meant to sound so certain. Hadn’t meant to let that edge of possession slip into his voice.

“I’m not going to marry you, Alex.”

“Offer’s still there,” he said lightly. “You’d be helping me out.”

They stared at each other for a moment, the familiar electricity sparking between them, until Jax let out a squeal of delight as he ran toward Madison, arms outstretched. He tumbled forward, landing face first in the mulch. Madison moved, but Alex was already up, crouching in front of the toddler before he could start crying.

“You good, little man?”

Jax blinked up at him, his lip wobbling for half a second before breaking into a gummy grin.

Alex held out a hand, and without hesitation, Jax reached for him. Scooping him up, Alex settled him against his hip. Jax giggled and wiggled until Alex set him on his feet.

“You just happened to see me today?” she asked again in a dry tone.

Alex stood, slipping his hands into his pockets. “Maybe.”

Madison let out a soft laugh and a quiet, “Bullshit.” But instead of getting up or telling him to leave, she picked up a juice box to hand to Jax.

That was enough.

For now.

Chapter Eighteen

“No hitting, Jax.” Madison said sharply as she saw his hand come up after the little boy near him picked up the plastic dinosaur Jax had set down. Jax scowled, but his arm lowered.

“God, I love that kid,” Cami laughed, lifting her arm to shield her eyes from the sun low on the horizon beyond the playground’s sandbox. “Also, not a bad reminder for us.No screaming. No hitting.We might just survive this handoff.”

Madison laughed. “No promises.”

Cami nudged her with an elbow. “I’m here. If Felix so much as looks at you sideways, I’ll accidentally spill my hot tea on him.”

Madison gave her friend a small smile. She appreciated Cami trying to cheer her up. “I thought I would get used to these weekend visitations…” She blew out a breath. “Why does the judge not care that my only free time is on the weekends, too?”

Cami’s face darkened. “Something is definitely going on. You and I worked in that system for too long to believe that this case is progressing normally.”

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