“Why do we have to?” Carrie protested.
“Just do it.”
“Why don’t you make her leave?” Dottie asked him.
“I will,” he assured her. “Soon. Now go. I’ll be up shortly.”
Reluctantly, the girls obeyed. Madison felt helpless. She wished she could reach out to the girls, but she wasn’t sure it was her place under the circumstances.
Fawn took a deep breath as she looked at Stuart. “I know you must hate me, but if you just give me a chance, I’m sure we can be a family again.” She locked eyes with Madison again.
Madison’s heart sank upon hearing the words family again. She was speechless. Where does that leave me? she wondered. She looked at Stuart and saw that his expression had softened. Was Fawn’s manipulation working on him? And how could she fight their history and the fact that Fawn was the girls’ real mother?
She gazed at Stuart. “I think I should go and let you deal with this....”
His brow furrowed. “You don’t have to.”
“I think that’s a good idea,” Fawn interjected.
Madison bit her tongue to refrain from responding. Instead, she looked at Stuart for guidance.
“Maybe you should go,” he told her. He hated to say it. But the more he thought about it, the more he feared that playing this out in front of Madison might be just what Fawn wanted to drive a wedge between them. As if she hadn’t already with her unexpected presence.
“Fine,” Madison said, feeling a little disappointed. She had hoped he would ask Fawn to leave instead.
“I’ll drive you.”
“I’ll walk. I need the fresh air,” she told him. Fortunately, she had worn her flats for the parade, so walking a few blocks would not be a problem.
Stuart could tell that this situation rubbed her the wrong way and he completely understood. But now that Fawn had decided to show up, he had to deal with her, for the sake of his children.
He walked Madison to the door. “I’m sorry,” he said softly. “Believe me when I tell you the last person I expected to see today—or any other day for that matter—was her.”
She met his eyes. “That doesn’t really change the situation, does it?”
Madison looked at Fawn, who seemed to be gloating, and walked out the door, wondering if she would ever set foot in his house again.
Chapter 18
Stuart rounded on his ex-wife, not believing she actually had the nerve to show her face in his house after leaving them years ago. Now she had disrupted the life he had carefully crafted with the girls and Madison. And why? What could she possibly want from any of them at this point?
He wasn’t about to give Fawn much time to explain herself, either. “You’ve got five minutes,” he told her in his sternest voice. “Then I want you out of my house and out of my life!”
Fawn stepped closer to him. “You look good, Stuart,” she said in a seductive voice. “Life has obviously treated you well.”
He gave her the once-over and admitted, if only to himself, that she was still gorgeous. But that was hardly enough to change the way he felt about her. In fact, he didn’t feel anything for her, other than pity.
“I’m not interested in your compliments,” he said stiffly.
She fluttered her lashes. “I can’t believe the girls have grown up so much.”
“What did you expect, that they would stay locked up in a damned time capsule and look the same way they did when you ran off?”
“I deserve that,” she muttered. “Still, it’s nice to see that you’ve taken good care of them.”
He rolled his eyes. “Of course I did, no thanks to you.”
Fawn sighed. “You can’t say anything to me that I haven’t already said to myself a thousand times.”
Stuart’s brow creased. “In that case, we really have nothing left to talk about....”
“Why don’t we talk about her?”
“Who?” he asked, though he suspected her answer.
“That woman who just left,” she said bluntly.
“She’s none of your damned business!”
Fawn folded her arms defiantly. “She is if she’s going to be a part of my daughters’ lives.”
Stuart might have laughed if this wasn’t so ridiculous. Did she really think she could come there and dictate how he raised the children she had abandoned?
“First of all, you have absolutely no say in my personal life. And you sure as hell are in no position to tell me who my kids can and can’t be around.”
“Uh, excuse me, but they’re my kids, too, whether you like it or not,” she said.
His brows knitted. “Excuse me, but the court granted me full custody when you abandoned ship. You can’t put the genie back in the bottle. You might as well go back to whatever hole you crawled out of and leave us alone.” Admittedly, he had been a bit harsh, but he didn’t want her to think for one second that all would be forgiven and forgotten. He peeked at his watch. “Your time is up....”
Fawn reached up and touched the side of his face. “I never should have walked out on you and the girls the way I did. I’m sorry for that.”
He stepped away from her hand. “You’re years too late for empty apologies.”
“It’s never too late to express regrets,” she said. “I want you back.”
His head snapped backward. “What...?”
“You heard me. I want us to be a family again. At least say you’ll think about it, for the girls’ sake.”
Stuart wouldn’t waste one second thinking about something so absurd. “It’s for the girls’ sake that I’d never put them through that again,” he said. “We’re over and have been for a long time. If you really want to do right by the girls, you’ll do us all a favor and leave this town and never come back.”
Fawn pursed her lips. “If that’s the way you feel.” She paused. “Or is it that bitch that’s messing with your head?”
Stuart held his ground. “The only one messing with my head is you. Now get out of here.”
She stepped forward, getting close to his face. “This isn’t over!” she spat.
He sucked in a deep breath as she stormed out, leaving him a bit shaken. The last thing he needed was trouble from her that would hurt the girls or his involvement with Madison.
He hoped she would back off for everyone’s sake.
Stuart headed upstairs, knowing he faced the difficult task of trying to explain to Dottie and Carrie again why Fawn had left them in the first place and, worse, why she had ever bothered to return. In both instances, he wasn’t clear on the answer. He only knew that he had to protect them all over again and reassure them that their lives would still go forward. He hoped they would continue to be open to having Madison show them the love they deserved.
That was, assuming Madison still wanted that role now that Fawn had come back to try and take it away.
* * *
As expected after Fawn’s dramatic appearance, Stuart found Dottie and Carrie huddled in bed together. He walked over to them, unsure what to say and not wanting to say the wrong thing.
“Are you asleep?” he asked softly.
Both girls looked up at Stuart.
“Is she gone?” Dottie asked.
He nodded. “Yes.”
“Is she coming back?” Carrie asked.
“Probably at some point,” Stuart said honestly, sitting on the bed.
Dottie frowned. “Why doesn’t she leave us alone?”
“I’m asking myself the same question,” Stuart said. “Guess she just wanted to see you girls.”
“We don’t want to see her,” Carrie said.
“I’m afraid that may be unavoidable,” Stuart told them. “Hopefully, we can just let her know that we’re happier witho
ut her, and it will be enough for her.” Or, he wondered, would she try to ruin that, too?
Dottie sat up. “What about Madison?”
Stuart scratched his nose. “What about her?”
“Things don’t have to change with her now that Mommy came back, do they?”
He sighed. “If you’re asking if I want to get back with your mother now that she showed up, the answer is a big NO.” He smiled at the girls. “As far as I’m concerned, nothing has to change with Madison. She’s a very important part of our lives.”
Dottie smiled. “That’s good. I really like her.”
“Me, too,” said Carrie.
“Then we’re all on the same page,” Stuart said, “because I really like her, too.”
Carrie grinned. “We know. She likes you a lot, too.”
He smiled. “I’m counting on that.”
“Don’t let Mommy ruin things,” Dottie said, pouting.
“I won’t,” Stuart promised. Not if he had anything to do with it. “We’ll talk about it some more tomorrow. Time to get some sleep.”
“But we didn’t finish our ice cream and cake,” Carrie complained. “The ice cream’s probably all melted by now.”
“If so, we’ll get more tomorrow,” Stuart said, rising to his feet. “I’m sure you would agree that no one’s really in the mood to start the party again tonight.”
“Yeah, I’m not,” Dottie said.
“I’m not either,” her sister said.
Stuart leaned down and kissed both girls good-night.
It was only after he left the room that he thought more about how disappointed he was with Fawn. Obviously, she hadn’t changed from the self-centered bitch who’d left him for another man and a new life. Ruining the girls’ birthday was about as selfish as it got.
I’ll be damned if I’ll let her ever hurt them again, he thought. Once in a lifetime was enough.
Stuart’s thoughts turned to Madison. She had left in somewhat of a huff, refusing to allow him to take her home. That had fed right into Fawn’s manipulative hands. Whatever it took, he would assure Madison that she didn’t have anything to worry about with Fawn.
What he had with Madison was more real than anything he had ever had with Fawn. The sooner she knew that, the better. Then they could get back to where they were and work on a future together.
* * *
That night, Madison tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep. She envisioned Stuart sweeping Fawn off her feet, as he once must have, and rekindling their love. But if that were the case, where would it leave her? Would Stuart and Fawn wind up being one big happy family again?
Don’t be silly, she told herself. Just because Stuart’s ex shows up out of the blue doesn’t mean he’ll fall for her again.
But anything was possible, right? Especially if his ex threw herself at him. Something told Madison that Fawn had come back to town with a purpose in mind and that Stuart was right in the center of it.
Suddenly the fear of rejection Madison once had threatened to resurface. Could the great love of her life blow up in smoke? Or was this a nightmare that could still go away?
The doorbell ringing gave Madison a start. She glanced at the clock on her nightstand and saw that it was a quarter past eleven o’clock. Slipping into her robe, she ambled down the stairs barefoot. She looked through the peephole and saw Stuart standing there.
She removed the chain, unlocked the door and opened it. “Did you get your problem resolved?” she asked.
“Marry me,” Stuart said simply.
“Excuse me...?” Madison had heard the words quite clearly. But digesting them was a different matter altogether.
“Let’s get married,” he said, shooting past her and watching as she closed the door and approached him.
“Why?” She widened her eyes at him.
“Why? Because I love you and want us to be together with my daughters.”
“I understand that, but why now?” she asked, as if the answer wasn’t obvious.
It was a good question and Stuart did not want to lie about it. “I just think it’s a good time to make our feelings for each other official and legal,” he said evenly.
As much as Madison wanted to believe that, the timing was just a little suspicious. “I can’t marry you,” she said.
Stuart lifted a brow. “What?”
“You heard me. This isn’t a good idea.”
He frowned. “Why the hell not? I thought we were in love.”
“We are,” she conceded. “But asking me to marry you after your ex shows up unexpectedly is not the way I want to get engaged.”
“This has nothing to do with her,” he insisted. She was wearing a short chenille robe, and he couldn’t help but notice how sexy she looked.
“It has everything to do with her,” Madison said. “She disrupts the birthday party for your daughters and the same night you ask me to marry you? I don’t think so.”
“So what? You think I asked you to marry me just to keep her away from the girls?” he asked. “I have full custody of them.”
“I know that.” Madison gave him a hard look. “She wants you back, doesn’t she?” The words Fawn had said rang in her head: I’m sure we can be a family again.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Stuart said.
“I’m not being ridiculous,” she said, an edge to her tone. “What part of wanting to be a family again did you not get? I got it all. Fawn came back to town for you and her children. How do you expect me to feel?”
“I expect you to trust me and my feelings for you,” he told her flatly. “I don’t give a damn what crazy thoughts Fawn has in her head. There’s only one woman I want to be with, and I’m looking at her.”
A spasm of warmth crept between Madison’s thighs at that moment, but she suppressed it. She didn’t want to lose perspective on this situation, no matter how much she wanted to be with him.
“I’m afraid that’s not enough,” she told him.
“So what are you saying?” Stuart stepped closer to her. He hadn’t expected her to reject his proposal. What was he supposed to do now?
She sighed. “I’m saying that you need to get whatever it is that still exists between you and Fawn totally resolved if there’s going to be a real future for us,” Madison said. “And don’t tell me there’s nothing there, because I could see that there was to some degree. And as long as she has that hanging over you, it will hang over us as a couple. Also, it wouldn’t be fair to Dottie and Carrie if we just tried to ignore your ex-wife’s presence and pretend she doesn’t exist. The girls have had enough confusion and disappointment in their lives. Trying to compete with their real mother for their affection would only make matters worse for them and me.” She paused. “I’m sorry, Stuart, but I won’t put them though that, and I won’t put myself through that.”
Stuart wanted to leave it at that, but couldn’t. He held Madison’s shoulders and planted a strong kiss on her mouth, hoping it would show her that they were worth fighting for, no matter the obstacles.
Madison’s nipples tingled from the mouth-watering kiss, leaving her breathless and wanting much more. But, given the circumstances, she fought off the strong desire to fall into Stuart’s arms, make love to him and forget everything else.
Using all of her inner strength, she released her mouth from his and backed away. Her voice shook as she said, “You should leave.”
“Let’s talk about this—” he said.
“Let’s not,” Madison told him. “Just go and be there for your girls when they wake up in the morning. Or is your ex there to take care of them?”
Madison wished she hadn’t said that last comment. But whatever the case, she suspected that Fawn was not going away quietly.
“She gave up that right a long time ago
.” Stuart’s voice deepened. “I won’t allow her to interfere with their lives and send them spiraling in the wrong direction again.”
He looked at Madison’s beautiful face, wanting more than anything to take her in his arms, make love to her and forget that Fawn had ever been there. But he knew that was not possible. He couldn’t push Madison now and risk losing her altogether.
Stuart did as Madison had asked and left, uncertain of where he—or they—went from there.
Listening as his car drove off, Madison wondered how a day that had begun with such promise could be ending with such uncertainly. Why did Fawn have to show up and put a damper on everything?
I’ve never been very good at competing for a man, she thought. So why should this be any different?
She drank a glass of water and then went back to bed. Had she really turned down an offer of marriage from the best man she’d ever known? Wasn’t that what she had wanted?
Yes, but not when it seemed more like an act of desperation than desire, she told herself. Marriage under those circumstances was bound to have trouble down the line. When she tied the knot, she wanted it to be for life.
Could Stuart say the same while the specter of his ex hung over them like a dark cloud?
Madison fell asleep on that dreary thought, unsure what tomorrow would bring.
Chapter 19
“You’re kidding, right?” Holly asked during their video conversation on Sunday.
“I only wish I were,” Stuart said. He’d called her to vent about Fawn’s ill-timed appearance. “She’s in Portland.”
Holly made a face. “That woman’s got some nerve. What on earth made her think she could just waltz in there like it was just another day?”
“Delusional, I guess,” he muttered.
“I hope you told her where to go?”
“Yeah, anywhere but here.” Stuart sipped his green tea. “Unfortunately, I don’t think she listened.”
“I’m so sorry,” Holly told him. “I can only imagine what seeing her did to the girls.”
“They weren’t very happy about it,” he confirmed.
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