Page 98 of Mad Rivals
Feels Fitting
I don’t know where to go, and so I walk down the block as tears freefall down my face.
I should’ve known from the start that Madden Bradley would never have any interest in me. Of course he wouldn’t. He’s a pro football star. He could have any woman he wants. He only ever wanted to get a look inside Van Buren Construction, not actually get inside Kennedy Van Buren. That was just a hazard of the promise he made his father, I guess.
It feels like my heart is breaking. I wish I knew him well enough to read what the look he gave me was, but my heartbroken brain interpreted it as pity. Pity for the poor, stupid girl who believed he actually had feelings for me when he was secretly working for his dad all along.
I should trust in what we have. Something deep down tells me that. He brought me with him to make that discovery this morning, after all. Or maybe that was all part of the plan, too. Who knows? His dad kicked me out, and I wasn’t about to stay as an unwelcome guest.
I should believe he was being honest and genuine with me and that he misled his father for whatever reasons he had. He’s not close with Thomas Bradley, just like I’m not close withWalter Van Buren. We had each other to rely on for a couple months there, and I thought we had formed something special.
But he has a legacy to protect, and so do I. It might do me good to remember that.
I feel a single raindrop as it splashes down on my head. It’s not surprising that the sky is crying along with me. I heard on the radio on the way to the warehouse this morning that we weren’t going to see the sun today. Feels fitting. There was only a thirty percent chance of showers. I guess this is it. I spot more drops on the sidewalk ahead of me, and I debate what to do. I don’t have my car nearby. I could walk to the VBC office from here, or I could grab a cab and take it to…where?
My parents’ house?
Clem’s new place? I don’t even know where she lives.
I pull out my phone to send her a text when the skies seem to freaking open up, and rain starts to hammer down on me.
Great. Just fucking great.
I slide my phone back into my pocket to try to keep it dry, and I find myself stuck in the middle of an empty sidewalk. I could run for cover, but I can’t seem to make my legs move. It’s like I don’t care if I’m wet or dry. All I can feel is the slice in my chest at the fact that Madden was just using me that entire time.
Starbucks. There’s a Starbucks a few blocks from here. I’m exhausted after getting up early to essentially spy on the Bradley patriarch and uncover his illegal secrets, and coffee will put all this into perspective. Coffee always puts everything into perspective.
I trudge in the rain toward Starbucks. A couple with an umbrella rushes past me, but I can’t be moved to walk any faster.
I’m within a few yards of the door when I feel a hand grip onto my bicep.
I whip around and find myself face-to-face with Madden.
My traitorous stomach flips at the sight of him.
I’m squinting up at him through the rain that’s pouring down on us. He might’ve betrayed me, but goddamn, he’s gorgeous.Those dark eyes look relieved as he pins his gaze to me, and the rain has flattened his hair as little droplets cling on, refusing to let go. I can relate.
“How’d I know you’d wind up at Starbucks?” he asks. There’s a teasing quality to his voice, and honestly I’m not sure I’m quite there yet.
I blow out a breath as I try to yank my arm from his grasp, but I’m no match for a pro football player.
“What my father said…” he says, trailing off.
He pauses as if we’re not standing out here in the pouring rain in the middle of the sidewalk. We could go inside and get a respite from the storm, but somehow this feels like it suits us just fine. It’s been a bit of a stormy path anyhow.
“It’s true. I told him I’d get close to you. But it was never my intention to steal sensitive information, Ken. You have to believe me.”
“How can I trust you after what he said?” I ask.
“Because you know how we feel. You know this is real.”
“And how do I know it’s not just some act on your part?” The rain seems to pick up as a rumble of thunder shakes the sky.
“I’m not that good of an actor. You know I fell hard and fast for you. I’ve never felt like this, and I don’t know what I need to do to prove that to you. Ask you to stay with me when you’re in California? Done. Stand in the rain begging you to take me back?” He holds his hand up to indicate that’s what he’s doing right now. “Tell me what to do.” There’s an edge of desperation in his voice, and the intense sincerity in his eyes tells me everything I need to know.
That twinge in the back of my mind telling me to trust in what we have starts to speak a little louder.
Maybe I need to put my walls back up a bit, but with Madden, I don’twantto.
