by A. D. Ryan
All I could do was shake my head. “What more could I possibly want? I already have everything.”
Laughing, Madison rolled her eyes. “Cheeseball.”
I leaned in with a wink and extinguished the flames with a single blow before the lights came back on and everyone gathered around us. Setting the cake on the coffee table, I served everyone, and after we all indulged in what had to be the most delicious chocolate cake on the planet, Madison pulled me to the couch to open gifts, starting with the one from my parents.
“We know it’s not much,” my mother said as I ripped the paper envelope open, “but your father and I know how much fun you had a few years back … before everything happened.” She cleared her throat. “Wayne and the everyone else pitched in, too.”
When I opened the long card, two pieces of paper fell into my lap, so I reached down for them. When my eyes landed on the largest font on them, they nearly popped right out of my skull. I blinked a few times to make sure my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me before glancing back up at my parents. “Are you serious?”
“It’s a few months away, still,” Mom said with a sly smirk and a shrug. “But I’m sure someone would be willing to watch the baby …” Her eyes drifted to Madison. “If you’d be feeling up to going, of course.”
Madison looked down at the tickets, a smile forming. She clearly had no idea about this, because she looked just as surprised as me. “You guys want to send us to Vegas?” There was something in the emphasis on “Vegas” that made me wonder if she was maybe hinting at taking that final step while we were there. Her bright eyes lifted to mine. “What do you think?”
“I think it’s a great idea,” I replied before looking around the room. “Thank you all so much.”
“You’re welcome,” Wayne said first, his eyes locking with mine. “Have fun, but not too much. I’d hate for the two of you to get yourselves into a situation that doesn’t sit too well with the entire family.
Catching his drift, I nodded. “Of course.” I could tell Madison knew he was alluding to the possibility of us eloping while we were there, because her cheeks turned pink, and she started nervously tucking her hair behind her ears. Casting my eyes around the room, I noticed everyone was definitely giving us the same warning without having to say a word, and it was making me a little uneasy.
Thankfully, Kyle was able to change the subject to lighten the mood by asking Madison how her “eleven-pounder” was doing.
“Ha ha, Kyle,” Madison retorted, standing up and tidying the table. She leaned over to collect the plates and empty envelopes before freezing for a brief second.
When she didn’t stand up right away, instead using her right hand to brace herself on the coffee table, I grew a little concerned. “Babe?”
Inhaling a deep breath, she straightened up and smiled. “Fine. Just got a little dizzy there.”
“You’re sure?” Wayne asked, looking at her with the same skepticism I was clutching onto.
“Mm hmm. I promise,” she replied before heading to the kitchen.
Excusing myself, I followed her. “Sweetheart, are you sure you’re okay? If you’re scared, I get that … but if there’s any chance this could be it, I’d prefer to be on the way to the hospital.”
“Jensen, I promise you I feel fine. I’ve had some Braxton Hicks today, and I really did get light-headed. I think I just stood up too fast; it’s happened a few times today. I really do feel great.” She paused for a minute. “I’m not scared about going into labor—a little nervous, sure, since I don’t know what to expect. But more than anything, I’m excited to finally meet the baby and be a family.”
Feeling at ease with her explanation, I gave her a kiss and led her back to the living room. “Are you having fun?” I asked, leading her to the living room where our guests were.
“I am,” she replied, smiling. “You?”
I nodded. “Thank you for putting all this together.”
“You know,” she said, looking down at the glass of water in my hand. “You can have a drink.”
Smirking as I brought the icy beverage to my lips, I shook my head once. “You’re right, I could, however, I wouldn’t want to impair myself for any future activities that might happen later. I’ve learned my lesson.”
Madison rubbed her belly and laughed. “I think the only lesson learned there was to never take Kyle on in a round of shots. I mean, it’s the same lesson I learned at your sister’s wedding,” she pointed out, remembering how she passed out the night before the wedding after getting the hiccups.
I laughed at the memory myself, my gaze sliding around the room. “Hey, it looks like Gavin and Jill are hitting it off over there.”
Turning to look in their direction, Madison smiled wide. “Good. It’s about time we tried to get them together.” We watched for a few minutes while Gavin said something to Jill, making her giggle before flirting with him a little more.
A knock at the door surprised both of us, because as far as we knew, everyone we invited was here. Before we could go see who our unexpected guest was, Wayne jogged past us to get it. Curious, Madison peeked around the corner, her eyes widening as Wayne returned to the room with a woman. I recognized her from various functions with my parents.
“Who is that?” Madison finally asked, to no one in particular.
I had to rack my brain to try and remember her name. “Uh … Jodi? Yeah, her name’s Jodi Fisher. She’s a really great woman, involved in the community quite a bit. She’s been friends with my mother for years,” I explained, smiling when Jodi said something that made Wayne laugh. “She must have set them up.”
It was Jodi’s turn to laugh at something he said in return, and Madison’s jaw dropped. “I can’t believe it … He’s flirting. My dad’s flirting.”
“He seems happy …”
Madison’s head snapped toward me. “Oh, no. I wasn’t upset by it. Not at all. It’s just … I’ve never seen this side of him. I can’t even remember the last time I saw him go on a date. It’s a bit of a shock, but I’m happy he’s putting himself out there again.”
Wayne caught us staring at him, so he made his way over to introduce his date to his daughter. Madison was excited to meet her formally and offered her a glass of wine before we stayed and talked with them for a bit. The look on Madison’s face as she watched her father wrap his arm around Jodi, occasionally kissing the side of her head was pure joy for her father’s happiness.
After a while, the music from the stereo shifted until the soft melody of a love ballad filled the room, and Madison looked up at me. “Dance with me.”
Stunned, I looked at her, a goofy smile forming on my face. “Dance with you? You sure you’re feeling okay, love?”
Madison shrugged. “It’s your birthday.”
“Well, I’m not going to say no.” I led Madison to the middle of the living room, where I pulled her as close as possible. There were no elaborate dance moves, no spins or dips; we just simply moved back and forth in time with the music while the dog looked on like we were completely insane, and our guests just smiled.
“This is nice,” she said, placing her right hand on my chest, right above my heart, and sighing when I kissed her forehead.
Madison smiled as the words of the song affected her the way they did me, and I knew that there really was no better moment than right now. Dropping my forehead to hers, our eyes locked. “I love you … so much,” I told her.
Releasing a sigh, Madison rested her head against my shoulder. “I love you, too. And I’m so happy. I don’t want anything to change.”
My courage quickly deflated like a balloon upon hearing her. Not sure I could handle another rejection, I put a pin in my proposal plans. I knew we’d be married one day, but I would wait until she was ready.
Chapter 20. Enter: The Ice Queen
“Well, everything seems to be right on track,” Dr. Smith said, closing up my file. “How’ve you been feeling?”
“Honestly,” Jensen said
before I could speak up. “I’ve been feeling a little nauseous.”
Laughing, I lightly swatted his shoulder. “I’m pretty sure he was talking to me.” Jensen looked at me with an impish smirk, and I rolled my eyes. “I’ve been fine. Having more of those warmup contractions lately, but other than that, nothing too concerning.”
“Good, good,” Dr. Smith replied. “Now, Madison, since you’re in the final five weeks of your pregnancy, it’s wise you continue to slow down on the ranch. Rest and relax as much as possible, because before you know it, you’ll have a baby keeping you up at night.”
The doctor left, and Jensen offered me his hand to help me off the exam table. I looked up at him as I buttoned my pants, my heart fluttering with excitement. “Can you believe how fast this is all going? It’s going to be over before we know it.”
“It is pretty incredible, isn’t it?” Jensen took my hand and pulled me close, kissing me.
It was the most passionate embrace we’d shared in a few days, and as always, my over-active hormones took over, the heat between us escalating quickly until I was on the tips of my toes and weaving my fingers into his soft hair. I momentarily forgot where we were as I started moving us back toward the bed when suddenly Jensen laughed, breaking the kiss.
“What do you say we head home, and we can pick up where we’re about to leave off?” he mumbled against my lips “It’s not like there’s a lot to be done on the ranch today.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
He was right. The last couple of months had been a bit slower, but it wouldn’t be for long. We were all expecting it to really pick up, so we wanted to take advantage of it while we could. The ground had thawed a few months ago, and the rain started early in April, which allowed the lush green foliage to quickly over take what once was brown.
It wasn’t just spring that was going to make us busier, though; Jillian’s abrupt departure a month ago when her father took a turn for the worse and passed away was going to add to the workload. We were sad to see her go, but we understood her need to move back to Texas to be with her family through all of this. Since we were down an instructor, I stepped into her role while still keeping up with my own workload. It was difficult in the beginning, but it became second nature after the first week or two, and we adjusted pretty quickly to the new routine.
Jensen and I were both still buzzing after a positive appointment as we stepped out into the warm spring weather when a familiar voice registered like nails on a chalkboard, setting my nerves on fire. “Jensen?”
I inhaled sharply as I peered around Jensen, who was slowly turning toward the voice. I couldn’t believe it—no, actually I could, because every time something was going unbelievably right for Jensen and me, something had to bring us down.
Enter the ice queen herself: Kaylie.
As she continued to blatantly stare at my stomach, feelings of unease burrowed under my skin, urging me to place my hand over it. Clearly, my hand passing through her line of sight snapped her back to the situation we found ourselves in, and she shook her head before glancing up at Jensen.
“What are you doing in Tennessee?” he demanded.
Kaylie seemed genuinely shocked by his venomous tone, blinking a few times in disbelief before gathering her bitchy composure. “Actually, I’m here on business. Ever since you didn’t come back to Daddy’s company, someone has to do the travelling—”
“And I’m sure you just jumped at the opportunity to fly out here when it presented itself,” I sniped, drawing her attention back to me. “Does Lilah know you’re here?”
The corners of her lips twisted upward, and she huffed lightly, ignoring Jensen’s question. “You know, I wondered how you’d trap him. Didn’t take you very long, did it?”
“Excuse me?” I ground out through clenched teeth, my hand falling to my side and clenching into a fist, my entire body following suit and tensing. I tried to keep myself from lunging forward and tearing her limb from limb, but it was a struggle I worried I might lose.
Looking up at Jensen, she arched an eyebrow and tilted her head in my direction. “You even sure it’s yours?”
That was it; all rationality was lost in a blind fit of hormonal rage, and I rushed forward in preparation to beat the ever-living shit out of this bitch. Thirty-five weeks pregnant or not. My fingers barely brushed her long auburn hair as she stepped back, and before I could move any farther ahead, Jensen’s arms wrapped around my distended middle and held me against him.
“How fucking dare you,” I snarled, struggling against his hold on me.
“Easy, Madi.” Jensen was doing his best to calm me down, but there was no coming back from where I’d gone—not until I told her exactly what I thought of her. “Kaylie—” he started to say.
Turning my head slightly, I stared at him like he was crazy before cutting him off. “No! She has no right …” I turned my murderous stare back on Kaylie, finally ceasing my struggle against Jensen’s firm grasp on me. “Just because you’re jealous—”
Kaylie huffed. “Hardly.”
Seeming to trust that I wasn’t going to do anything rash, Jensen released me. He stayed close, though, just in case. “So, you’re going to stand there and tell me that you’re not the slightest bit jealous that Jensen and I are together?” I began rubbing my hands over my belly in soothing circles the second I felt the slightest hint of tightness—it could have been the unease of the situation upsetting my stomach, or it could have been Braxton Hicks; the feeling was still so new that I couldn’t be entirely sure. “It doesn’t bother you that we’re starting a family? That we’ll spend the rest of our lives together while you stay awake at night wondering what could’ve been had you not fucked everything up?”
Kaylie glanced down at my hands on my stomach and smirked like the bitch she was. “Funny,” she quipped. “I don’t see a ring on that finger. Seems to me he might not be so sure and wants an easy out.”
I knew she was just trying to rattle me, and I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t working just a little, based on Jensen’s strange moods as of late. The only thing that kept me from believing her entirely was the ring in the back of Jensen’s sock drawer. I was hoping he’d have given it to me by now, but I was telling myself he was still waiting for the right moment. God, how I wanted to throw it in her face, though.
Feeling particularly catty, I finally smirked right back. “Pretty weak argument considering you once wore a ring he gave you, don’t you think?”
I saw the exact second my words hit home, because her cocky expression soured. But only for a second. “Think what you want, little girl,” Kaylie snarled, clearly still upset by what I’d said. “He loved me, or he’d never have asked me to marry him.”
“I have no doubts in my mind that he did, Kaylie,” I told her, knowing that Jensen did have deep feelings for her once. “But those feelings evaporated the minute you betrayed his trust and left him when he needed you most.”
Something flashed in Kaylie’s eyes just then as they danced between Jensen and me. “So, you’re telling me I should have put my life on hold because he fucked up?”
Fighting the urge to roll my eyes, I shook my head. I couldn’t believe that she was implying that Jensen going after his sister’s abuser was anything but justified. “You know, I’ve tried seeing things from your point of view, Kaylie,” I told her, sarcasm heavily lacing my voice, “but I just can’t seem to get my head that far up my own ass.”
Kaylie didn’t seem overly impressed by my wit, bravely stepping toward me in challenge. “Tell me, Madison, the weekend of the wedding, you spoke of competing again …” I acknowledged her by raising my eyebrows; I was only mildly curious to see where this was headed. “Are you telling me you don’t feel bitter about your situation just a little bit? That you won’t resent Jensen or that ba—”
Before she could even finish, my hand flew across her face, shocking even myself. The palm of my hand pulsed and tingled as heat radiated through it, and I watched Kay
lie rub her cheek, her wide, disbelieving eyes never leaving mine as I continued to stare daggers at her.
I didn’t get the chance to say anything else before Jensen stepped between us, glaring daggers at his ex. “You need to leave.”
“Oh, so I get slapped and—”
I saw Jensen’s jaw clench from where I stood as he leaned down and got right in Kaylie’s face; I could tell he was teetering on the very edge of control. I’d seen him like this before. “After everything you said? You should consider yourself lucky that’s all that happened.”
“Is that a threat?” she demanded, not seeming fazed by his anger in the slightest.
Jensen shook his head. “Not at all. I’m just merely pointing out that Madison showed a lot of restraint considering the filth that was pouring from your mouth.” Taking a step back, Jensen took my hand again, eyes still on Kaylie. “Now, do what you came here to do and then leave. I’ve moved on, and I think it’s high time you did, too.”
With that, Jensen turned and placed his hand on my waist, turning me around until we were headed back toward the car. I could still feel my anger bubbling just below the surface; apparently, that slap hadn’t quite gotten it all out of my system.
When we reached the car, Jensen turned me to face him and stepped forward until my back was pressed against the door. “Are you okay?”
I nodded solemnly, the tightness in my belly returning. “Yeah. Just … pissed off.”
“Well, you know she was just saying that shit to get under your skin, right?” I nodded again and Jensen fell silent for a moment. “You don’t, do you?” On impulse, my eyebrows pulled together in confusion, prompting him to carry on. “Resent me for forcing you from your career?”
“What?” I asked incredulously. “No, of course not. And you didn’t force me from my career. It took both of us to make this baby, and I can compete next year—if I even want to. But for now? Jensen, I’m more than content to just … be.”
