Page 5 of Honey Bun
Not what I’d expected, but then, something was clearly wrong with her. I took the wine menus from the server, who then left us. “Glad I can help with that while we catch up, Maddie.”
She jumped back in her chair. “No one calls me Maddie anymore.”
I placed my hand on top of hers and met her gaze. “I apologize, Madeleine.”
She reached up and brushed my face like we were still kids. “Oh, no. I like hearing you say it. It makes me feel a little like the girl I once was.”
I didn’t let go of her right away. “So I can call you Maddie?” She made me nervous but also made me feel alive.
She laughed. “Yes. Please do.” The shower really must have helped her, because she dazzled.
The server returned, and I let Maddie go as I asked her, “What do you want to drink?”
She sucked on her bottom lip and stared at the wine list. “Wine. Preferably a white.”
Half the menu filled that demand, so I asked, “Any particular bottle?”
Her face turned red. “I don’t know the brands. And I’m more interested in how all your eleven brothers turned out.”
Maddie probably didn’t order wine with every meal as every other woman I’d dated did. Maddie had haunted my thoughts for years—not that she knew that. I picked the best pinot grigio on the menu, and the server left. My attention was on Maddie’s smile.
I was happy too. “I haven’t heard anything about you in years. Where have you been? Are you married? You have a daughter but no ring.”
Her shoulders slumped, and she nodded and met my gaze. “Nothing exciting about Montana.”
That was not a state I went to often. And I was sure from her expression that something bad had happened there. It was just a hunch, but the lines on her forehead that appeared in that split second hadn’t seemed natural. But I was probably just making up a story.
“You went from New York to Montana?”
Her cheeks pinkened. “Virgin Cove is not what people think when they hear New York.”
Something about her gaze and the light in her eyes seemed to need me. Maybe I was making it up out of desire, but I was there if she needed help. My mother and father had always taken care of me, and I would help Maddie now. The server brought the wine and poured our glasses.
I waited till she was done and then said to Maddie, “Fair enough, but it’s hard to imagine you were that far from me. I’m mostly in Manhattan or LA when I need to be. So, what brought you back?”
She shook her head and picked up her glass of wine. “Let’s talk about your brothers now, as you promised.” She sipped it and stared at me, looking interested.
“You gave me nothing about you.”
“I insist.”
I sped through the news about my brothers, and it still took longer than I wanted. “Hmm. Joel is my newly married partner. Cyrus is a heart surgeon now. Elon’s an ob-gyn. Warren started his own trading company. Gerard started his own petroleum company. Kir is like my dad was and became a financial investor. Charles was the rebel and became a pilot. Jeff is the family lawyer. Roman and Xerses started a tech company together. And Adrian’s still in college.”
She laughed and put her glass down. “So everyone’s financially successful with brilliant futures, or they will be.”
“We were, luckily, set up for success.” I hoped that didn’t sound privileged, but she knew I’d never been poor.
She intrigued me. I sipped my wine and remembered her sweet kisses that summer like they’d just happened. The server came, and we ordered. I picked the cod as that was always a good fish, but she only ordered a burger.
Once we were alone, I clinked glasses with her as she grew quiet. “Now, it’s your turn. What happened?”
She sipped her wine and closed her eyes. The lines on her face grew deeper, and my heart sped up. I wished I had the power to erase whatever pain she had.
Then she met my gaze. “Two days ago, I hit the road. My husband has a new girlfriend and a new victim of his anger. I want a divorce and to not have to run.” She brushed her cheek, and I peered closer. Under her makeup, there was a trace of a bruise. “And I have no place to live, no job. I used my last few pennies to get here, and I’m probably dreaming that all will somehow be okay.”
My heart ached for her. Her pain was palpable. I brushed against her hand. “I’d like to help.”
She finished her glass and shook her head. “No. I have my mother. I don’t need a handout.”
