Mad Love: Madison

by Boone, Lisa

  He was halfway to her table when one of the partners intercepted him to shake his hand. The connection lost, Madison turned back to see Becca looking at her with a smug grin. “What?”

  “I didn’t say anything.” Becca stood up and intercepted Derek who was just about to sit down. Taking her drink out of his hand, she said, “Let’s mingle.” Her gaze shifted to a spot over Madison’s head. “Ethan,” she said by way of greeting.

  Ethan pulled out the chair Becca had just vacated and sat down. “Hi, Becca.” His brow furrowed. “Something I said?” he asked Madison as Becca dragged Derek away from the table.

  “They’re mingling.”

  “I see.” He looked around the nearly empty room. “Looks like I missed the party.”

  “You’re fashionably late.” Her gaze travelled to the cut on the side of his mouth. “What happened?”

  “I finally served those papers on that stock broker that you wanted.”

  She gestured to the cut. “I take it went smoothly.”

  He shook his head with a grim expression on his face.

  “No?” she asked in surprise. “He gave you trouble?”

  “You better believe it.” He rubbed a finger against the cut. “He tried to slug me.”

  She lifted an eyebrow. “Hubert Davenport did that to you?”

  “That’s the guy. He was six-feet four and a good two hundred pounds heavier than I am. It took all I could to wrestle him to the ground, but I eventually got him.”

  Setting her elbow on the table, she propped her head up with her hand and turned toward him. Disbelief coloring her voice, she said, “How terrible.”

  Adopting her pose, he leaned into her, his knees brushing up against her. “I barely made it out of there with my life.”

  “My, Hubert must have had a growth spurt and added on about two hundred thirty pounds since I last saw him.” Madison furrowed her brow. “Was it a week ago?”

  Ethan smothered a grin as he nodded. “A lot can happen in a week.”

  Madison chuckled. “What really happened?”

  “I tripped going down the stairs.” He held up his hand, his face one of wounded masculine pride. “In my defense, they had just waxed the stairs and I was chasing the guy at the time, so I was flying down those stairs pretty fast.” He started to grin, but then moaned in pain as he gingerly pressed his fingers to the side of his lips.

  She winced in sympathy. “Are you hurt anywhere else?”

  “Well, not in any place visible.” His head turned toward the box of presents. “So what did you get for Christmas?”

  “They’re birthday presents. Mainly gift cards,” she said quickly. The last thing she wanted was to show him the picture frame Becca had given her. “My office wants to make sure that I’m well hydrated.”

  “Birthday? You didn’t tell me today was your birthday?”

  “It’s a state secret.”

  He tipped the big box toward her and examined the cuckoo clock with a frown. “Who gave you this?”

  “Keith. Can you believe it? We stopped in that little antique store that just opened down the street after lunch last week and I saw this cuckoo clock on the wall. Keith must have heard me tell Becca that I had wanted one of these since I was a little girl. My grandmother had one.”

  “I know.”

  She looked at him curiously.

  “I had followed you into the store to ask you something. I didn’t get a chance to talk to you though. I got a call and had to run out.” He continued to frown at the clock as he tugged at his tie loosening it a bit.

  “What’s wrong?”

  He let go of the box and smiled at her. “Nothing. I’ve been wanting to ask you something for a while.”

  “Shoot.”

  “Well, I’d rather not do it here. Why don’t we go—”

  Madison’s heart skipped a beat in excitement. “I’d love to go out with you.”

  His eyes widened in surprise, giving Madison the distinct impression asking her out hadn’t been his intention.

  She felt her face redden slightly but she pressed on, as the phrase in for a penny, in for a pound crossed her mind. She had decided while staring out at the night sky earlier that it was time to make a move. “How about now? I didn’t really eat much.”

  He grinned at her eagerness. “Uh, I have a feeling I’m going to be working tonight.”

  Madison caught sight of Nicole marching their way. “Looks like your feeling is right on target. Here comes Nicole.”

  With a sigh, he glanced over his shoulder before turning back to Madison. “I’ll pick you up tomorrow night. Say around eight?”

  “Eight’s fine,” she whispered as Nicole reached them.

  “I’m so glad to see you, Ethan,” Nicole said pressing her hand to his shoulder. She leaned over and pressed her lips to his ear. “I have a job for you. I need you to find someone before court Monday.”

  Ethan’s eyes locked on Madison’s for a fleeting moment, as disappointment etched across his face before finally standing, forcing Nicole to straighten and back up a step.

  Nicole smoothed a tendril of white blonde hair out of her eyes, her diamond ring sparkling under the light. “I normally wouldn’t ask this late at night but it turns out there’s a witness we didn’t know about. Clients,” Nicole muttered as she closed her eyes and wearily shook her head. “He’s known this guy was out there for a month but didn’t think to tell me about him until a few minutes ago.” She took a moment to wish Madison a happy birthday before dragging Ethan away.

  Madison picked up the rest of her cupcake and took a bite. She had a mouth full of cake when a heavy, warm hand gently touched her shoulder. She whipped her head around, her lips coming within inches of Ethan’s. He pulled back slightly with a lopsided smile. His blue eyes softened as he ran his thumb against the corner of her mouth. “Happy birthday, Madison.”

  Her heart beating fast, she swallowed and watched as he walked back towards an annoyed Nicole standing a few feet away.

  Madison licked her lips. Her eyes widened as her tongue darted out horrified to find a layer of frosting on the corner of her mouth. That’s just great, she thought, taking a napkin and wiping her mouth. Expensive dress. Beautiful hair. Flawless makeup, and a mouth full of frosting.

  “Well, that didn’t last long,” Becca said returning to the table.

  “Duty calls.”

  Becca’s face hardened. “Nicole wasted no time in stealing him away.”

  “Don’t be silly.”

  “Bill just texted me. He’s downstairs in the lobby waiting. Are you going to stick around much longer?”

  Madison packed up her gifts and laid them in the box. “Not on your life,” she said, standing up and following her friend to the elevator.

  Becca shook her head in annoyance as the elevator doors closed. “You know, this is the third time you two have been happily getting to know one another outside of office hours, when she suddenly had something for him to do. Now I’m not into conspiracy theories, but I believe she’d like nothing more than to have Ethan Parker all to herself.”

  Madison didn’t disagree but opted to stay silent as they stopped on sixth floor and stepped out into the lobby of their firm’s office suite.

  They passed the front desk and continued to their offices with Becca doing most of the talking. “Nicole took one look at him after our last detective left town and decided he was going to be our go to guy. She barely looked at his resume. Do you want to know why?”

  Madison opened the door to her office and retrieved her coat and purse “I’m bursting with curiosity,” she yelled out to her friend in the office next to hers.

  “Because she was far too busy looking at him.”

  “Wouldn’t you?”

  “There’s a difference,” Becca said stepping into the hallway. “I’m a happily married woman. She is not. Mark my words; she is going to do everything she can to keep you two away from each other.”

  “Well, she’s going
to have a difficult time doing that from Aspen,” Madison said belting her cherry red wool coat at the waist. “She’s going on vacation. She won’t be back until New Year.”

  “I thought she had that trial on Tuesday.”

  “Settled this afternoon,” Madison said, picking up the box of presents and following Becca back to the elevator. “I heard her tell Keith that she was leaving after her court hearing Monday morning.”

  “Interesting.”

  “Ethan and I are going out tomorrow night.”

  Becca lifted her hands heavenward. “About time.”

  “I didn’t have a chance to ask him where we’re going. I guess I’ll call him sometime tomorrow.”

  “I want details. Call me.” Becca pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and smiled down at the screen as they walked into the elevator. “Bill wants to know what’s taking me so long,” she said as she began typing out a message. “I’m telling him it will be another hour.”

  “That’s sweet. Is this how you keep the spark in your marriage?” Madison asked in amusement as she punched the button for the lobby.

  “After fifteen years of marriage, I need to create my own excitement.” She scowled. “No, you are not going to get ice cream. It’s almost midnight,” she said out loud as she texted. “He’s probably already out the door.” As soon as the elevator doors opened on the first floor, Becca bounded out of the elevator towards the lobby.

  Madison laughed as she caught sight of Bill out the lobby windows heading across the street. “Merry Christmas, Becca.”

  Becca waved back as she bolted through the doors.

  Still laughing, Madison pushed the button for the garage.

  A hand reached out just as the doors closed.

  Keith pushed at the doors and stepped inside.

  Madison was taken back at his expression. His lips were pulled tight around his mouth and he played with his tie nervously. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing. Just tired.” He looked down at the cardboard box in her hands. “Going home?”

  She nodded.

  “So am I. The party’s practically over with anyway,” he said as he followed her to her car. He stopped and stared down at her tire as she opened her door and set the box of presents down onto the passenger seat. “Your tire is flat.”

  “What?” She walked around to the back of the car where he was standing. She groaned. “You’ve got to be kidding me. This is the second time this month.”

  “If you’d like,” he said, “I could give you a ride.”

  She smiled in relief. “Thanks, Keith, I’d really appreciate it. I don’t mind changing tires, but I absolutely would hate to do it in an evening gown and heels.”

  “No problem. I have to run back to my office for my coat. I’ll meet you back here in five minutes.”

  “Sounds good,” she said leaning against her trunk. With nothing to do but wait, she pulled out her phone and started going through her messages, only looking up when she heard the sound of an engine approaching.

  She glanced at the far end of the garage where a beat up dark blue sedan turned the corner and began to drive slowly down the lane towards her.

  She returned to her phone. A minute or more went by in silence before she felt the hairs on the back of her arm start to rise. She glanced up.

  The car was still there.

  Probably one of the guests from upstairs waiting for someone. She tried to return to her phone but an unsettling thought struck her. What if it was Paul Harris? She hadn’t ever considered him threatening before, but you never know when someone might suddenly snap.

  She glanced back at the sedan, narrowing her eyes in an attempt to see through the dirty windshield. A figure sat behind the wheel of the car, his or her face hidden behind a scarf. A baseball cap was pulled down low over their forehead. She watched as the person drummed their fingers against the steering wheel.

  Feeling uneasy, she started walking towards the elevators, glancing behind her every so often as the sedan began to follow her slowly. When she reached the elevator, she turned back toward the sedan, shielding her eyes as the car’s headlights practically blinded her.

  The car slowed to a stop only a few feet away.

  Her heart beating fast, Madison glanced toward the exit. She was just about to make a run for it when the car made a right turn toward the exit.

  Madison sagged in relief as the car disappeared from view.

  It was nothing, she thought to herself as she returned to her car. Amused at her own over the top reaction, a small chuckle escaped her lips as a feeling of relief swept over her. She unlocked her car and slid into the front seat, deciding to wait inside the relatively safe confines of her car for Keith.

  Ten minutes later, he dashed out of the elevator. “I’m so sorry,” he said slightly out of breath when he reached her. “Nicole needed my help with something.”

  “No problem,” she said as she retrieved her presents. She bit her lip as she tried gracefully to slide into the passenger seat of Keith’s flashy sports car. Balancing the box on her knees, she clutched at the slit of her dress, which was now revealing quite a bit of her upper thigh, far more than she had intended. She glanced at Keith who didn’t seem to notice and tried to relax, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t seem to forget about that blue sedan and the person behind the wheel.

  They drove to her apartment building a couple of blocks away in a sort of awkward silence.

  “Fancy,” Keith said as he pulled up to the five-story brick building. “I tried to get a place here when I moved to the area, but it was a little out of my pay range. That’ll change soon enough.”

  Unsure of what to say to that, Madison thanked him once again for the present before wishing him a merry Christmas.

  “You know I’ve always wanted to get a look inside one of those apartments.”

  Madison stood on the curb and glanced toward the window on the third floor. “My sister’s probably in bed right now, but you know, I was thinking about throwing a party sometime in the spring. Maybe I could give you the grand tour then.”

  He scowled slightly as he turned his attention to the street. “Well, I’d better get going.”

  She thanked him again for the ride before shutting the door and hurrying to her apartment door, trying very hard not to slip on the light sheet of snow and ice that had accumulated in the last hour.

  Once safely inside her apartment, she set the box on the floor by the door and kicked off her shoes. She was hanging up her coat when the phone rang.

  She glanced at her watch. “Who could be calling now?” she wondered, retrieving the phone out of its cradle. “Hello?”

  Her eyebrows went up when she received no answer.

  “Hello,” she said again in a light singsong voice.

  She was just about to hang up when she heard a soft click and then the sound of someone’s ragged breathing. A man’s strained voice came through the other end in a harsh whisper. “Ten.”

  Madison’s brow furrowed. “Ten, what?”

  Silence greeted her.

  “Hello?”

  Her sister, Sarah, appeared at the door to her bedroom, yawning. She pushed her long blonde hair out of her face and sleepily stared at Madison. “Who called?”

  “I don’t know.” She glanced at the door as she hung up the phone. “Just a wrong number,” she said, pushing the lock into place.

  CHAPTER THREE

  NINE

  SATURDAY, DECEMBER 23RD

  5:45 P.M.

  Sarah stood in the center of Madison’s bedroom and surveyed the clothes laid out on her sister’s bed. She put a finger to her lip. “Hmm…dinner, and maybe some dancing.”

  Madison belted her robe tighter as she stepped out of the bathroom. Bending over at the waist, she dried her long black hair with a towel. “That’s what he said.”

  “He didn’t say where?”

  “Nope, but I have a feeling it’s going to be casual.”

  Sa
rah picked up a pair of designer jeans and tossed them to her sister. “Never assume that.”

  Madison gave Sarah a wry smile as she straightened up. “Thanks,” she said pulling the jeans off her head. A button down shirt and a sweater soon followed. “I can dress myself you know,” she said as she folded the clothes and placed them inside the dresser.

  “You know how I love playing dress up. I rarely get a chance anymore.”

  “Derek would take you out in a heartbeat.”

  Sarah’s blue eyes widened. “Derek, from your office?”

  “Yes,” Madison said as she reached for her comb. “He’s got a crush on you.”

  “Oh, so that’s why he keeps coming by work. I thought he just liked our steak sandwiches.”

  “So?”

  Sarah blinked expectantly. “So, what?”

  “What do you think about him?”

  The younger girl tilted her head to the side. “He’s nice.” A slow smile crossed her face. “Very nice. Friendly. Outgoing. Charming. I bet he comes from a good family too. A fine upstanding boy.”

  Madison looked at her sister curiously, surprised at the slight bite in her tone. “Yeah and…?”

  Sarah shrugged. “I wouldn’t say no if he asked me out.”

  Must have been her imagination. “Good,” Madison said with a grin as she tossed the towel into the hamper. “Becca will be so pleased.”

  Sarah reached forward and picked up a figure hugging purple silk gown. “What does Becca have to do with this?” she asked as she held the dress up.

  “She’s playing matchmaker and I’m not wearing that.”

  “Why not?”

  “I doubt he’s taking me to a gala, besides, I’m planning to wear that for the New Year’s party.”

  Disappointed, Sarah pressed the dress into Madison’s hands before turning back to the bed. “What about this one?” She held out a royal blue backless cocktail dress. “Very sexy.” She nodded to herself. “Yep, this is the one. He’ll love it.”

  “How do you know?” Madison asked carefully hanging her New Year’s Eve dress back up. “You never met the man.”

  “I don’t have to have meet him to know that you’ll look beautiful in this. Are you going to wear your hair up?”