“It will never be Nick Winters, though,” Cassidy said.
“No.”
“You don’t know that,” Marla said. “You … .”
“Shut up, Marla.” Everyone said the words at the same time, including Cassidy, and Marla was taken aback. “What the … ?”
“I’ll pay you a thousand dollars if you’re quiet for an hour,” Aaron offered. “I’ll up it to five grand if you keep your mouth shut the entire evening.”
Christy giggled. “I would take it if I were you. That’s the best offer you’re going to get.”
Fourteen
“Will you stop fidgeting?” Christy pulled the eyeliner pencil away from Maddie’s face and waited.
“I’m sorry,” Maddie said. “It’s just that trusting someone else to put something that close to my eye makes me nervous.”
The two women were in Maddie and Nick’s room getting ready for dinner, and because she liked to doll people up, Christy insisted on doing Maddie’s makeup and hair. Nick, dressed in khakis and a button-down shirt, wandered out of the bathroom and smiled as he watched Maddie try to wrestle Christy’s hand away from her face.
“I’m not going to poke you in the eye,” Christy said. “Don’t you trust me?”
“Of course I trust you.”
“Then hold still,” Christy said. She held Maddie’s chin with one hand and swooped the liner over her eyelid quickly, duplicating the effort on the other eye a few moments later. She stood back to admire her handiwork and then started rummaging around in the makeup bag until she found the tube of mascara she was looking for. “One more thing.”
“Oh, come on, I don’t need that much makeup.”
“It’s not about needing it,” Christy said. “It’s about making yourself look hot for Nick.”
“Don’t bring me into this,” Nick said. “I think she’s beautiful no matter what.”
“No one asked you,” Christy said, rolling her eyes. “This is a woman thing.”
“Well, my woman doesn’t seem to think she needs it,” Nick pointed out.
“Just … sit there and look pretty,” Christy instructed, rolling her eyes until they landed back on Maddie. “Hold still.”
Five minutes later Christy was happy with her masterpiece and she left Maddie and Nick so she could dress herself before heading downstairs. Nick watched Maddie study her reflection in the mirror, curious what she was thinking. What does she see when she looks at herself?
“I think it’s too much,” Maddie said, leaning forward and widening her eyes. “I look like a raccoon.”
Nick smirked. “I think we’ve had enough raccoons for one night,” he said. “If it’s any consolation, I think you look … amazing.”
“You always say that,” Maddie said, swiveling in the chair and standing up so Nick could take in the full package. The black sheath was loose and yet it left little to the imagination as it fell to the middle of her thigh. The spaghetti straps of the dress set off the bronze hue of her skin, and the baby pink camisole underneath the dress was giving Nick ideas – most of which revolved around finding out if her underwear matched.
“You look beautiful, my Maddie.”
Maddie tucked a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear, smiling ruefully as she tilted her head to the side. Her adorable mannerisms, including the head tilt, often tugged at Nick’s heart in surprising ways.
“You always know exactly what to say,” Maddie said.
“You always know exactly how to make me feel so I know what to say.”
Maddie slipped into his arms, resting her head against his chest as he swayed slightly. Sitting through dinner with a group of people was slipping down in importance on his evening to-do list.
“It’s too bad we’re not in a real hotel,” he said. “If we were, we could order room service and eat in bed.”
“That would kind of defeat the purpose of me sitting through that torturous makeup session with Christy, wouldn’t it?”
Nick pursed his lips as he brought his hands up and cupped Maddie’s chin. “You do look beautiful, love. I’m excited to show you off to everyone.”
“How about we eat dinner, have one drink after, and then make some excuses about having to go to bed early? We can use my experience with the raccoon this afternoon as an easy out.”
“That sounds absolutely perfect to me.”
“WOW!” Max’s mouth dropped open when he saw Maddie walk into the library.
“Double wow,” Aaron said. “You look hot, Maddie. How come you didn’t dress that way in high school?”
Maddie’s cheeks burned under the praise. “Um … .”
“She was too shy,” Christy said. “She wouldn’t have dressed this way for dinner tonight if it wasn’t for me. I’m thinking of dressing her every day for the rest of her life. She’s like a human Barbie doll. I just can’t help myself.”
“Huh,” Brian said, cocking his head to look at Maddie from a different angle. “Now that you mention it, she does look exactly like a Barbie doll.”
“I do not,” Maddie said, glancing at Nick for help.
“You kind of do look like a Barbie doll,” Nick said, his expression rueful. “As long as no one confuses me with Ken, though, I’m not complaining.” He kissed her cheek and then moved over to the drink cart. “Do you want a glass of wine, Mad?”
“Sure.”
Christy patted the spot on the leather sofa next to her and Maddie obediently sat down. When she scanned the room, she couldn’t help but notice that Cassidy and Marla were suspiciously absent. “Where are … ?”
“The terrible twosome?” Aaron asked, cutting her off.
Maddie nodded.
“They had a bit of a … fight … this afternoon,” Lauren said. “As a distraction, Marla decided to take Cassidy to the fair in town. I’m kind of hoping Marla finds someone else to pique her interest so she doesn’t come back.”
“What did they fight about?”
“Oh … um … .” Christy bit her bottom lip.
“We explained a few things to Cassidy this afternoon,” Lauren said, unruffled.
“Uh-oh,” Maddie said. “I’m not going to like this, am I?”
“I have no idea,” Lauren said. “The simple truth is that Cassidy has been operating in the dark regarding Marla’s motivations. We set her straight on a few things.”
“I’m almost afraid to ask,” Nick said.
“We just explained that you and Maddie were always destined to be together,” Aaron said.
“We also explained that Marla has always had a thing for Nick,” Christy said. “Cassidy had a right to know that Marla would’ve stolen Nick from her in a heartbeat.”
“Okay, you need to stop saying things like that,” Nick said. “The thought of touching Marla … ugh.” He involuntarily shuddered.
Maddie smirked. “Oh, I don’t know,” she said. “I think you guys would’ve made a cute couple.”
“Are you trying to give me an aneurism?”
“I’m just teasing you,” Maddie said. “If you would’ve dated Marla I would’ve felt the Earth tilt on its axis and run back up here sooner so I could kill her.”
Nick wrinkled his nose. “Wow. If I knew that, I would’ve gone out with her just to get you back home.”
“I don’t know,” Maddie said. “I think things worked out like they were supposed to. I shouldn’t have left, but I’m not sorry I came back when I did. I can’t imagine being any happier than this.”
“You and me both, love.”
“Okay, I’m going to puke,” Max said, putting his empty glass down on the coffee table. “We need to have something to eat if I’m going to have something to regurgitate.”
“Well, thank you for that visual,” Aaron deadpanned.
“Hey, blame the sappy twosome here,” Max said. “They’re sweet enough to give me a cavity … and a stomachache.”
“Don’t listen to him, Mad,” Nick said. “You’re just sweet enough to be perfect.”
<
br /> “Ugh,” everyone said in unison.
Nick grinned at his blonde. “Is it wrong that I’m starting to get off on grossing everyone out?”
Maddie shook her head while everyone else voiced their own opinion. “Yes!”
“I THINK I had a little too much to drink,” Maddie admitted, listing to the side and grabbing the bedpost to keep from stumbling.
“I know,” Nick said, lifting his eyebrows and smiling. “You had three whole glasses. I think you’re turning into a lush.”
Maddie’s face flushed, partially from the wine and partially because she was embarrassed. “I’m sorry.”
“Why?”
“Because … well … I’m drunk.”
“You’re not drunk, love,” Nick said, tugging his shirt over his head and dropping it on the floor. “You’re tipsy. Three glasses of wine doesn’t a drunk make, even when someone isn’t used to drinking. You’ll be fine. Trust me.”
Maddie giggled, her inhibitions nothing but a distant memory. “You look pretty with your shirt off.”
Nick cocked an eyebrow. “Pretty?”
“You’re very pretty,” Maddie said, sidling up to him and running her hand down his chiseled chest. “You’re beautiful.”
“All right, maybe you are a little drunk,” Nick conceded. “You don’t feel sick to your stomach, do you?”
“Nope.”
“Is your head spinning?”
“No more than usual when you take your shirt off.”
Nick couldn’t help but smile. She was adorable when she was bubbly. “So, love, what do you want to do?”
Maddie plopped down on the bed and gazed up at him mischievously. “I thought you could try to get to second base.”
“Oh, honey, I have my eyes on a home run tonight,” Nick said, pressing his lips to hers. “Maybe two of them.”
“HOW DID you know this was here?” Cassidy asked, realizing she was a little tipsy as she bumped into a wall in the dark.
“All big mansions have secret passageways,” Marla said, wrinkling her nose as she glanced around the dusty and dim hallway. “I saw Max going through a door I didn’t even know was there last night. I’ve been dying to check it out.”
“Where do you think these passages go?” Cassidy asked.
“I have no idea,” Marla said. “Let’s look around, though. This is kind of fun. It’s like being in an episode of Scooby Doo.”
“But … we weren’t invited to wander around this part of the house,” Cassidy said. After three hours of drinking and talking, Marla convinced her that Christy and Lauren were merely trying to cause problems. Deep down, Cassidy realized Marla was a predator. Right now, though, she didn’t have a lot of people to rely on. She’d decided that hanging out with the shark was better than hanging out alone. “What if Aaron finds out and gets mad?”
“Oh, who cares?” Marla asked, brushing of Cassidy’s concerns. “The only reason he’s being that way is because he wants to get into Christy’s pants. He knows he won’t be able to if he’s mean to Maddie. Trust me. He doesn’t like Maddie any more than we do.”
Cassidy followed Marla down the hallway, fingering her gold cross pendant idly as she considered her friend’s statement. “I’m starting to think that maybe Maddie isn’t the problem,” she admitted.
“Oh, good grief. Not you, too.”
“I’m serious,” Cassidy said. “Don’t get me wrong, I still feel like she was underhanded in the way she went after Nick, but the truth is, I knew he didn’t love me. I kept telling myself that if I could just hold on long enough he would wake up one day and realize that I was the one for him.”
“That could still happen,” Marla said. “Maddie and Nick aren’t built to make it for the long haul. Nick only wanted Maddie because he raised her up in his head for ten years. She was like the white whale and he just had to have her. Now that he has her, he’s going to play with her a little bit, and then he’s going to realize she’s not that great and dump her. You just have to wait for a few months.”
“Do you really think so?” Cassidy didn’t believe the statement, but her heart flopped anyway. Could that possibly be true? If she just sat back and let Nick and Maddie’s relationship run its course, would she and Nick have another chance at love?
“I do think so,” Marla said. “I … holy crap. Look.”
Cassidy snapped her head to the side and followed the sound of Marla’s voice. The lighting in the hallway was dim, the only illumination coming from emergency lights at the top of the various corners and walls. When she rounded the corner, she found Marla standing in front of a huge window. Only … it wasn’t a window.
“Where are we?” Cassidy asked, keeping her voice low as her eyes fell on Nick and Maddie. They were rolling around on their bed, both in varying stages of undress, and they didn’t look as if they had a care in the world – other than each other.
“I think we’re looking through the other side of their mirror,” Marla said, her gaze trained on Nick’s chest as Maddie rubbed her hands up and down it. “Wow. I knew he probably looked good shirtless, but that is just … .”
“What did you say?” Cassidy asked, mortified that she couldn’t drag her eyes away from the tableau playing out in front of her. This was a private moment. No, this was the most private moment any couple could engage in. She shouldn’t be watching this, and yet she couldn’t make herself stop either.
“Nothing,” Marla said, licking her lips. “You don’t think they can hear us, do you?”
“I think, if they could, they would stop doing … that. Wow. How often do you think she works out?”
Nick was dragging the spaghetti strap of Maddie’s dress down as he moved his mouth to her neck. Marla and Cassidy could hear each gasp and soft kiss from where they were standing and yet it seemed as if Nick and Maddie were oblivious to the fact that they had an audience.
“This is wrong,” Cassidy said finally, fighting back the sob trying to wrench itself from her throat. Nick had never looked at her the way he looked at Maddie. While their lovemaking had been good, even hot sometimes, it was never like this. Nick never went out of his way to touch her like he was doing with Maddie. It was as if Maddie was his oxygen and he would die if he couldn’t run his fingertips over her skin.
That’s when the final nail in the realization coffin slipped into place for Cassidy. No matter what she told herself – not matter how hard Marla tried to convince her otherwise – Nick Winters was in love with Maddie Graves. It wasn’t infatuation. It wasn’t a momentary lapse in judgment that he would think better of in a few weeks. It wasn’t a temporary coupling that he was going to get bored with.
This was forever.
“She has to have had some work done,” Marla said, tilting her head to the side. “No one has a body like that without surgery.”
Cassidy shot her a dark look. “We’re done here.”
“Speak for yourself,” Marla said. “I want to see if Nick has stamina. I’m betting Maddie just lays there and lets him do all the work.”
It didn’t look that way to Cassidy. “We’re going,” she said, grabbing Marla’s arm. “They deserve some privacy.”
“They don’t deserve anything,” Marla said, although she reluctantly followed the insistent woman and started moving back down the passageway. “Don’t worry. It won’t be long until you have him back.”
“He’s never coming back to me,” Cassidy said, casting one more look over her shoulder when she heard Nick speak.
“I love you, my Maddie,” he said, cupping her chin and staring soulfully into her eyes.
The sentiment and naked raw emotion in his eyes caused something inside of Cassidy to break. “He belongs with her,” she said. “I get that now.”
Fifteen
“Well, well, well. It looks like someone had a nice night.”
Aaron’s eyes were bloodshot, itchy reminders of the previous evening’s shenanigans. Even though it was obvious he had a raging hangover he was jov
ial when he caught sight of Nick and Maddie walking into the dining room the next morning.
“It looks like you had a late night,” Nick said, his fingers linked with Maddie’s. “How late were you guys up?”
“Too late,” Lauren grumbled, holding her head in her hands as she studied the pitcher of water in front of her. “I have horrible cottonmouth, and yet I’m too tired to pour my own glass of water. How sad is that?”
“How much did you guys drink?” Maddie asked, sinking into the open seat next to Christy and fixing her friend with a sympathetic look.
“Too much,” Christy moaned.
“You smell like you’re still drunk.”
“It’s seeping out of my pores,” Christy said. “These … idiots … started mixing everything on the bar. I can’t even tell you how much my head hurts.”
Max slid the bottle of aspirin down the table in Christy’s direction. “Medicate up, sport.”
“Shut up, tool.”
Nick smirked. He was officially glad he and Maddie retired early – and not just because their evening activities were the stuff of everlasting dreams. Now they could enjoy their afternoon while everyone else grumbled and napped. “See, you guys called us goody-goodies last night, but who is happier?”
“Oh, please,” Brian said. “You two are happy because you were playing hide the salami upstairs all night. You’re not fooling anyone. You’re both all … sparkly. If I wasn’t already nauseated because of the quarts of vodka I drank last night, I would want to puke because you two are so sickly sweet.”
“You’re just jealous,” Nick said, pouring juice into Maddie’s cup as she doled eggs onto both of their plates. “We were good while you were bad and the universe rewarded us.”
“The universe didn’t reward you,” Christy countered. “The universe punished us.”
“You should drink some water,” Maddie said. “You should probably try to have something with sugar in it, too. The juice will probably suffice. I’ve read that a lot of hangovers are exacerbated because alcohol leeches sugar from your body.”
“You read that?”
“Yes.”
“You make me want to punch you sometimes,” Christy said, although Maddie had to smile when she reached for the juice.
Grave Misgivings Page 11
