“Lionel?” Noah asked with a cockeyed expression.
“Is she crazy?” Dave asked, frowning at the screen. “’Cause that’s my type. I don’t mind taking over for you on this one.”
“Keep going,” Colton growled, fighting that irrational urge to pummel his friend.
“Time frame is evening only, though in that comment field she says, ‘Only because she made me, but believe you me, that bitch wants to go all night.’ Then something that looks like ‘wacka wacka.’”
“Waka waka,” Dave said, pointing at the screen. “It’s what Fozzie Bear says whenever he tells jokes.”
Dick gave Dave a constipated look. “Fine. Whatever. Level of involvement is PG, and that comment is gibberish. This does not sound like the girl who was just in here.”
Colton couldn’t help smiling, remembering how differently Madison had acted with Janie. Then it all became clear. “It’s probably her friend doing up the form—pressuring Maddie into it.”
“Is it Maddie or Madison?” Dave asked.
“I get the feeling she wouldn’t like it if anyone besides Colton called her Maddie,” Noah said.
“You’ve been watching too many daytime soaps.”
“God you’re dumb sometimes,” Noah muttered, squinting at the screen.
“You know as much as I do, and suddenly I’m not getting it? Suddenly I’m dumb?” Dave turned toward him fully.
Noah straightened up and threw his hand toward the spot where Madison had been standing. “She introduced herself as Madison. He called her Maddie, and she melted right in front of our eyes. How long have you been doing this, and you can’t tell when a woman melts all over the floor?”
Dave shook his head. “You’re watching another man’s girl too closely. That’s all I’m hearing.”
Noah took a deep breath, shook his head, and lowered his hand back down. “Clown.”
“Yeah, sure, Days of Our Lives.”
“Can I go on, please?” Dick demanded.
Colton was already smiling down at his phone, reading the email. “I got it,” he said to Dick.
“I want to hear more about this PG date,” Dave said. “We’re witnessing the magic unfold—right, Noah, the magic?—so we need to hear the conclusion. Or should I say happy ending? Noah?”
“Keep going, bro. See what happens,” Noah said.
“He’ll kick your ass again, that’s what’ll happen,” Dick said. He half turned toward Dave and pointed. “Your ass. Just in case that wasn’t clear. Like last time.”
“That was an off day. I hadn’t boxed in a while.” Dave’s lopsided grin worked up his face. “I’m good to try again.”
“Not wise.” Dick turned back. “Under description, she wrote, ‘Watch a movie. My name is Indigo Monta, you killed my father. Prrrepare to die.’ She got his name way wrong.”
“Is that from The Princess Bride?” Colton asked.
All three guys looked up, Noah and Dave with disbelief, and Dick with annoyance.
“Tell me you’ve seen that movie,” Dave said.
“I don’t blame you for canceling if that’s the movie she wants you to watch.” Dick shook his head. “In the comments section at the bottom, she says, ‘Really? You’re going to make my girl pay? Because that shit is degrading to you and her, yo ho. Get it?’ I do not get it.”
“She is essentially using pirate slang to call him a ho,” Dave said. “Which probably wouldn’t be good if it was actually Madison who wrote that and not her friend. Madison, right? Or is it Maddie? Because despite Noah’s crystal-clear understanding from all the mysterious clues, I’m still not sure.”
“Is it too late to confirm that?” Colton asked. It was for the weekend, he noticed, and there was no way he wanted to wait that long. “Or send an email asking to reschedule for a sooner date? Like tonight?”
“Going the anxious route, huh?” Noah straightened up and checked his phone.
He was going the anxious route, which was usually the kiss of death with a girl, but he had to know if she was in, and if she was, he wanted her now. Immediately.
“And tell her I want to change the location to my house. Dinner and a movie. I’ll cook. Tell her she can choose the time, just let me know.”
“Whoa. My man is trying to make an impression,” Dave said, leaning over the counter to see the screen. “If she doesn’t tell him where to shove it, she hasn’t got a chance.”
Dick’s fingers pounded the keyboard, the amount of movement assuring Colton that he was indeed emailing her. A moment later he was done, the message probably short and to the point, as was Dick’s way. “Now you have to see if she’ll forgive you for being a putz this morning.”
All he could do was wait.
Fifteen
Madison sat in her car, gripping the wheel. That had gone well. And it hadn’t. It had and it hadn’t.
On the plus side, his sentiment about no contracts was sweet and great and had hit her right in the ticker. She’d immediately felt all warm and tingly. But then, he knew all the right things to say and do. Experience had taught him well.
On the negative side, that was possibly the most awkward situation she’d ever experienced. What had possessed her to hunt them down and march in there was beyond her. She’d been out of her mind. Asking a gym attendant if his establishment also served as the headquarters of Big Dick Escort Service?
“What the actual fuck?” she asked aloud.
She didn’t know, but that could hardly have impressed Colton. He’d walked out of the back, all sweaty and dreamy and muscly, only to see her in his home base after he had very kindly told her to fuck off. Stalkers were scary, even for guys.
Probably.
They were certainly annoying, at any rate.
“Seriously, what the fuck?” she whispered, shaking her head. “I’ve gone around the bend. I have gone around the bend, lost my way, and set up residence in Insanity-ville.”
She threw her car into gear and headed out of the dilapidated gym’s parking lot. It certainly wasn’t a great face for the business. But then, the other two guys in the front area were lookers! Also sweaty and dreamy and muscly, with gorgeous faces and broad shoulders. Colton had hot friends. A hot guy with hot friends. And she’d played the role of Frumpy Fran, dressed in her least fashionable suit, her hair pulled up, flats, and no makeup. She didn’t care what her coworkers thought of her as long as she dressed to fit the requirements of her position, but Colton?
“He’s probably so relieved I am half his size and pose no real threat. Because wow, I totally crossed a creepy line. Showing up and demanding to pay someone for fucking me? That has got to be a new record in my tally of ridiculous moments in life. I hoped he believed me when I said I didn’t mean to stalk him. How embarrassing!” She noticed a younger gal gawking at her as she walked by.
Madison held up her phone, trying to pretend she hadn’t been talking to herself. Loudly.
The monologue continued until she got inside her office building, at which point it moved to her head space.
“Hey, Madison,” her coworker said as she passed him.
“Hey, Pete,” she said, pushing away the thoughts of Colton and throwing cold water on her inner fires.
In her office, she dumped her handbag in her drawer and banged her phone on the desk. Shifting her focus to work became easier when she clicked into her email and immediately saw a report she’d been waiting for. The product needed to leave the port in China in two days if it would make it to the warehouse before the deadline. The problem was that preliminary tests had shown the product was dangerously close to violating the legal limit of a certain chemical. It might come down to a judgment call, which meant she needed to carefully examine all aspects of the damage report in front of her.
She printed it off as her phone vibrated against the wood. After checking for a text, she realized it was notification of a new personal email. The printer stopped spitting out papers. She dropped her phone and grabbed the document. The mind-
numbing jargon was just the thing to shove Colton out of her thoughts.
Two hours and some hard decisions later, she sighed and sat back in her chair. She needed a breather. This was one of the parts of her job she didn’t enjoy. When a product sat on the line, she had to make her decision based on the best interest of the company, which was rarely in the best interest of the consumer.
There was no telling what lurked in some of the products on the market—something she hated as a consumer.
Such was life.
For the umpteenth time, she thought about changing jobs (an impossibility at the moment—she always kept her eye on the market, and there was nothing out there). She trudged to the break room to fill up her water bottle and take a breather. As usual, everyone acknowledged her with a tight smile and a muttered hello. She didn’t have many friends in the office. Whereas the other directors hobnobbed with the ass-kissing men of the company, as a woman with a commanding tone and presence, she was considered a ball-buster and labeled unapproachable. Which was fine, because that tone and presence got things done. But when she wanted to shoot the shit, like now, people looked at her like she was someone just emerging from quarantine.
Back in her office, the phone vibrated again. This time a text message lit up the screen. Janie, asking for a phone call as soon as possible.
Her friend didn’t make requests like that unless she was worried about something, so Madison immediately fell into her chair and poked Janie’s name.
“Hey, Madison?” Janie answered immediately, out of breath.
“Yeah. What’s up?”
Janie sniffed. “Hey. I need, um, a favor. If you can.”
“Yeah, sure. You okay?”
“Not really. I need to go to the hospital, and they are going to ask me questions, and I don’t really want to do it alone.” Soft sobs drifted through the phone.
Madison sat up so fast the chair bucked. “What happened? Where are you?”
“I’m downtown at Second and Market, in the alley. I’ll just wait here, okay? I don’t have my car.”
“What happened? Should I call an ambulance?”
“No. It’s not that bad. Just come now, please.” Louder sobs rolled through the line. The call dropped.
Heart in her throat, Madison slammed down her laptop, jammed it into her computer bag, ripped out her purse, and headed for the door. That report had to wait.
Fifteen minutes later, she pulled up beside the alley on Second and hoped there wasn’t one on Market that she should be at instead. She reached for her phone, but Janie popped out from behind a dumpster. Madison caught her breath. Eye swollen shut and blood leaking from both nostrils, her friend was in bad shape.
Madison jumped out and ran around the car, flipping off a driver who honked at her. “What happened?” she asked Janie in a soft voice, hiding her panic.
“He went crazy and beat the shit out of me.” Sobs racked her body as she bowed her head, letting Madison lead her to the passenger door. Madison helped her into the seat, noticing bruises on Janie’s arms and one on her leg.
Trying to hold back her own tears, she shut the door and ran around to the other side. As soon as she was settled in the driver’s seat, she slammed the car in gear and stomped on the gas.
“Which hospital?” Madison asked. “The closest? How bad are you hurt?”
“I thought my nose might be broken—I…I heard something crack—but I don’t think so. It mostly stopped bleeding. I don’t think I need the emergency room.”
“We should get you checked out, just in case.”
“Honestly, Madison, I don’t have the money. But…” She choked on a sob. “I should turn him in.”
Obviously!
Madison schooled her expression. “I agree.”
She didn’t really know how to deal with this situation, but something told her that going on a warpath might not be the best solution. A gratifying solution, but maybe not the best.
“I should’ve known he’d never stop,” Janie said quietly, staring at her lap. Tears dripped down her face.
A flash of rage jolted through Madison. Her hands tightened on the steering wheel. “He’s hit you before?” Madison had never seen effects of it, and it killed her wondering if they’d been there and she just hadn’t noticed.
“Not like this. He’s shoved me before. A punch or two every once in a while, but…” Janie sighed and shook her head, her face scrunching up. Another few tears leaked down. “It sounds stupid, because you hear it all the time, but I believed him when he apologized. He always sounded so sincere. He always had a reason that made me feel sorry for him.” She huffed. “He hit me, and I felt sorry for him. Stupid girl. Even now…I’m worried that he hates himself for what he did.” She wiped her good eye. “If I don’t turn from him this time, I won’t at all. He’ll sweet-talk me, and I’ll believe it, and the cycle will start all over again. I don’t take shit from anyone…but him. I don’t know why. I don’t know how he can talk me around. I…” She broke down into silent sobs.
Madison’s heart ached. “Some people are very good at manipulating others, Janie,” she said, terrified for her friend and what she was going through. “They cover up their own faults by putting the blame on others. They use people to get what they want. Sometimes you don’t see it coming, and by the time you realize what has happened, you’re caught in the web.”
“I’m definitely caught in the web, all right.” Janie gingerly touched her puffed-up eye.
“Did he do this downtown?”
“Yes. We were supposed to meet for lunch, and when I got there he was drunk and flirting really hard with some girl at the bar. I argued with him, left the restaurant, and he followed me. He went crazy. Just nuts.” She shook her head and stared out the window again. “He’ll say it was my leaving that set him off. That he was afraid I would never come back. That I shouldn’t do that to him. ‘Don’t you see how that affects me?’ he’ll say. ‘That woman meant nothing. She was nothing compared to you. You are my everything. I couldn’t keep living if you left.’ I can already hear his voice. It’ll spin round and round, with hugs and flowers and kisses, until he has me apologizing for hurting him that way. For making him lash out.”
Madison blew out a breath. “Clearly he put on a great act the few times I met him, because I had no idea he was such an asshole. But I’m pretty sure you do need to go back to him.”
Janie stared over with one widened eye.
“Because how else can we get close enough to poison him and then dump him in the river?” Madison finished.
Janie laughed. “Yes. That’s what I was thinking, yes. Poison. Lake. How will we lift the body?”
“Colton may not want to take my reservations, but I bet someone else will. I saw some of those guys. They’re big. We can wrap up the body—because I don’t think I could cut it up, sorry—and wait until it’s stiff like a board. We’ll pretend it’s…like…I don’t know, something else, then hire them to help us throw it into the water.”
“Your plan needs work.”
“I admit, it is a bit far-fetched. We’ll see what the cops say, but we can definitely circle back to this. Poison is the trend, I hear. On the up and up.”
Janie laughed softly and leaned her head back on the headrest.
Madison put her hand on Janie’s leg, not sure how exactly to help. She was out of her league here. She could comfort Janie just fine, but how did she keep her from going back to that slime? How would she protect her friend long term?
Colton’s face rolled through her memory. The seemingly effortless way he’d consoled her. Protected her. He’d known the exact right thing to do in every situation, and she’d thrown a few at him. Madison would bet he could help here. He’d know what to say.
How to fix this.
Oh Lord, how was Madison going to fix this?
Keeping the tears at bay, she pulled into the police station. “Here we go.” Nervous butterflies filled her stomach. “Just don’t tell them about
the poison idea. I don’t know if cops would find that sort of thing funny. At least not while on duty.”
“Off-duty they’d think it’s a riot?” Janie winced as she opened the door.
Madison ran around the other side to help her out. “They’d have to, or else how could they cope with their jobs?”
“I don’t want to do this.” Tears rolled down Janie’s face. It was terrifying to see her like this. She was the woman who never cried. “I don’t think I can.”
“It’s okay.” Madison patted her arm, forcing each step. Fear rose up, threatening to choke her. This thing was so real. So beyond all of her experiences. “We’ll do it together. Power in numbers.”
“What if they don’t believe me?”
“Well, someone beat the shit out of you,” she said without thinking. “A quick analysis of his knuckles will be more than telling.”
Her brutal honesty seemed to calm Janie. The tears kept falling, but she let Madison lead her.
When they reached the door, a dark-haired, clean-shaven young policeman was coming out. He saw Janie and stuck his hand out behind him, stopping someone else. He opened the door wide. “Do you need assistance, ma’am?”
Janie started to cry harder, and Madison teared up, so grateful for his obvious desire to help.
Men in uniform filled the station. A few women dotted the area as well, mostly behind desks. They looked up as Madison helped Janie inside, their eyes hard, as befitted their employment.
Without meaning to, Madison clicked over into her business persona. Confident. Hard as nails when she needed to be, or sensible and logical. Whatever approach suited the situation. She hadn’t risen through the ranks by waiting for answers to come to her. Janie could stay vulnerable, but Madison needed to ensure the creep who’d hurt her was brought to justice.
“We need to report an assault,” she said at the desk in a loud, clear voice. “She knows him, but it was not domestic.” Madison figured that using the term domestic screamed of women’s problems. Best to go with a case of a violent criminal on the loose. It sounded better.
Thunder (Big D Escort Service Book 1) Page 14
