Page 43 of Trust Me
“We were just in the neighborhood, so I wanted to swing by. I promised Bean I would stop by to see her costume.” Jake walks over and grabs Brooklyn from Maddox. I overhear him tell her how beautiful she looks in her dress and ask her who her favorite uncle is. I love that each of my brothers try to out-do the other when it comes to Brooklyn’s affections.
Maddox walks over casually, not really making eye contact. “Did she have a good time?”
“Yeah, she drug Travis from house to house and insisted he ask for candy too.” I look over at Travis and Will to see them both scavenging through her candy bag, stealing a few pieces of their favorites. “Hey, don’t take the Snickers,” I yell over at them.
Maddox looks on as Jake and Brooklyn go over and dig through the candy bag with her other uncles. “I’m more of a Reese’s man, myself.” He clears his throat and shifts his weight from foot to foot in a nervous gesture. “So, I won’t get off until late tonight, but I thought maybe you and I could go grab dinner tomorrow night. And maybe Bean can go with us.”
I look up into his chocolate-brown eyes. I’ve never imagined someone wanting to take my three-year-old with us on a date. Is it a good idea to take her with us? She’s already outed our relationship to Will, which Maddox took surprisingly well when I told him about what happened at The Pumpkin Patch.
I weigh my options for a few moments while I watch her with her uncles. But really, there’s nothing to think about. I want to have this time with Brooklyn and Maddox together.
“That sounds like fun.”
“Okay. I’ll text you details when we don’thave an audience,” he says just as the entire gang walks over to us. Will is giving me a pointed look that makes me squirm a little under his scrutiny. It’s like he knows all about our secret plans for tomorrow night.
“Well, we better go,” Jake says. He kisses Brooklyn one more time and then hops into the driver’s seat of the squad car. Maddox gives me a wink while all eyes are focused elsewhere, throws a “Goodbye” to everyone over his shoulder, and gets into the passenger seat.
“Come on, kid. I’ll help you sort all that candy,” Travis says to Brooklyn as he leads her into the house.
“You guys are playing with fire,” Will warns quietly so Travis and Brooklyn can’t hear us. “When this thing blows up, and you know it will, I hope I’m not around to witness the carnage.”
He takes my hand and drags me into the house, my mind filled with different scenarios and outcomes to this relationship. But maybe, just maybe, it won’t blow up. Maybe it won’t end. I reach out and grab on to that spark of hope and hang on to it for dear life.
Chapter 25
Maddox
We have plans tonight to go to St. Charles and eat pizza. I thought maybe we could go to the arcade in the mall when we’re done eating and let Brooklyn play all the games her little heart desires. I never thought I’d be excited to hang out with a toddler during a date, but as I get changed, I can’t believe how excited I actually am to spend the evening with my girls.My girls.I’ve come to realize in the last week or so that they are, in fact, my girls. I want to spend as much time with them as possible.
After I clean out the back seat of the Silverado, I head over to Avery’s. When I ring the bell, she hollers at me to come in. Inside, I can hear the sounds of the girls getting ready in the back, followed by running feet. Brooklyn runs around the corner and flings herself at me. As I bring her up to my torso, I feel this unfamiliar tightening deep in my chest. I love holding her. The thought is alarming and exciting all at the same time. It scares the shit out of me.
“Hi, sweetheart. Are you ready to go?”
“Yep! Mommy’s coming too!”
“I know. Is she still getting ready?”
“Uh huh. She’s wate.”
I smile at her matter-of-fact tone. When I hear heavier footfalls in the hallway, I turn to catch Avery walk into the room. She steals my breath every time I see her. She is, without a doubt, the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. Has there ever been any other woman who gives me this reaction? The answer is no. Hell no! My pants grow tighter below the belt as I follow her approach with my eyes. The gentle sway of her hips; the way her long legs sort of cross over each other as she walks. Her crystal-blue eyes are sparkling and her face is lit up like Christmas morning.
“Hi,” she says.
“Hi.” I lean forward and give her a lingering kiss on the lips. My pants tighten further as our bodies touch ever so slightly.
Brooklyn giggles and kisses me on the cheek. “Me kiss too.” Avery smiles against my lips.
“You want a kiss too?” she asks her daughter as she stands up on her tiptoes to kiss her cheek. “Let’s go! Mommy’s starving.”
After a quick detour to her Jeep to get thecar seat, we secure Brooklyn into my truck. Heading out of town, I reach over and grab Avery’s hand, linking our fingers together. She gives me another one of her killer smiles. I can’t remember the last time I held hands with someone. Ever?
We talk comfortably the entire trip to St. Charles. When we get there, we are fortunate enough to find a parking spot up front. I grab Brooklyn out of the back of the truck, and we head inside, Brooklyn tucked safely in my arm and Avery’s hand tucked securely in my other hand.
“Two and a booster? Booth or table?” the young girl asks as we walk in.
“A booth would be perfect,” Avery says as she shakes her head.
“Right this way.” She grabs a couple of menus and leads us into the dining room. After Avery gets Brooklyn settled in the booster seat next to her, we start browsing the menu.
