Page 11 of Takedown

Now, I’m across town, sweating and still frustrated over my runaway bride. My phone vibrates and for some reason, I get a sense of hope. Maybe Alex told me to come downstairs for a reason. Maybe that reason is calling my phone right now, ready to talk, but my hopes are dashed when I see the familiar New York phone number flash across my screen.

I hit decline and slide the phone back into my pocket. As soon as I do, it starts to vibrate again, but all I can focus on now is getting inside my truck and driving home. Traffic is light for a Monday evening, and I get to our quiet street in under fifteen minutes.

The gray skies threaten snow, and a few flurries start to fall by the time I pull into my parking spot behind the detached garage. There’s a strange car with New Jersey license plates parked behind Mellie’s Honda Civic, but I don’t give it any more thought than noticing it’s there. Mel and Jason are from New Jersey, and they get visitors often.

I grab my gym bag and nearly trip out of the truck. I cross the backyard and unlock the backdoor. I check my phone again, and there are no missed calls from my wife, but three from the New York number.

“Get a fucking clue,” I say under my breath right before I rap my knuckles against the backdoor. Alex opens, her eyes wide and cheeks pink. Little Addison walks behind her and wraps her arms around her mother’s legs.

“Hi, Ada,” she says, smiling up at me. I hold my hands out to her, and she practically jumps into my arms. I tickle her ribs, and she giggles.

“What took you so long?” Alex asks, her voice hushed. She gestures for me to come in.

“Look who stopped by.” Alex’s voice is high when she addresses the room. Mel’s back is to me while she looks through the fridge, but her body stiffens at Alex’s announcement. Jason’s smile drops, and he automatically takes a step closer to me, putting himself between me and Mel.

“I don’t think we can take anymore surprise visitors,” Mel says, but she turns and for the first time since we said our vows, she looks at me, and not with murderous intent. She looks tired, and part of me feels responsible for that, but there’s something there too. She’s on guard more than usual. Even now, she’s standing behind the open fridge door, almost as if it would provide her with some sort of shield.

“Do you want to join us for dinner, Adam?” Jason turns to his wife, and I can feel the irritation oozing out of him by her invitation, but she doesn’t back down. “We’re all family now,” she whispers.

The smell of home cooking makes my stomach grumble. Jason looks at Mel, as if to confirm Alex’s invitation is fine with her, but a door opens and footsteps approach. Mel’s body goes completely rigid when her mother walks into the kitchen, and she instinctively steps as far away from the woman as possible while remaining in the same room.

“Gamma!” Addison announces, pointing at the woman. I’ve met her briefly before. Diana Dupree resembles both of her children. From their light brown skin to their high cheekbones. The only differences are a few crows’ feet around her eyes and mouth, and her salt and pepper hair, which she keeps in a stylish bob. The only thing they inherited from their father is his height. Their mom barely reaches Jason’s shoulder.

“Flynn, you remember my mother,” Jason says. “Mom, this is Adam Flynn. He lives upstairs.” She smiles at me and shakes my hand. Even the smile is the same as Mel’s.

“What brings you over tonight, Adam?” she asks, but she turns and opens the oven door without giving me time to respond.

Mel lets out a sound, and when I turn to look at her, she gives me a firm head shake while mouthing for me to shut up.

“Just here to get my wife,” I announce.

The room goes deathly silent for about a split second, right before Mel gasps and Alex covers her shock with a series of coughs. Jason runs over to his wife to make sure she’s okay, and Mel turns her glare on me. “Shut up,” she hisses. “Just shut the hell up for once in your life. Please.”

I’d do anything for her but keeping quiet about our marriage is not one of them.

“Who is your wife, dear?” Mrs. Dupree asks. She puts down her oven mitts, turns, and smiles at me again.

“Your daughter.”

Her smile vanishes so fast, it was as if it was never there. She turns her shocked eyes on Mel, who walks around her mother, comes to stand by me, and grabs my hand. The minute she intertwines our fingers, I feel a twinge inside my chest. This is what she did the night we got married. She fell asleep in my arms with our fingers linked.

“What? What are you up to now, Melanie?” Mrs. Dupree says. “You never told me you were dating anyone.” Then, instead of turning to Mel for confirmation, she turns to Jason. “Jason, is this true?”

“Mel is right here,” I say. “Why are you looking at Jason?”

“Jason, is this true?” she asks again, her voice rising this time.

“I’m right here, Mother,” Mel informs her. Jason doesn’t give their mother an answer, so she turns her gaze on my wife. She looks down at our joined hands and back to her daughter’s face. “And yes, I got married. Is that a crime? Millions of people get married every day. What’s really the issue? You’ll miss out on your chance to call me a spinster?”

She puts her hands on her hips and waits for Jason to answer, but when Addison starts to fuss in my arms, Jason comes and takes her from me.

“It’s Mellie’s announcement, Mom. It wasn’t my place to tell you.”

“Surprise! I’m married. It just happened over the weekend, and I was only down here to get my clothes, but I’ll just come back down later. Preferably after you go to sleep or go back to Jersey or wherever.” Mel waves a dismissive hand in her mother’s direction, turns to me, lays a hand on my chest, and says, “Let’s go home…honey.” She coughs after calling me honey. Then, she gets on her tippy toes and drops the quickest kiss on my lips. “I’ve missed you,” she whispers.

So, I do the only thing I can do. I grab the back of her head and give her a kiss too indecent for company. By the time I pull away, she can’t meet anyone’s gaze, Alex is smiling, and Jason is looking at me with an unreadable expression on his face.

Mrs. Dupree looks around the room, her mouth hanging open while looking for confirmation of the information she just learned. When no one answers her, she throws her hands in the air before turning back to Mel. She crosses the room and grabs her left hand.

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