Dirty Maverick (The Maxwell Family)

by Alycia Taylor

  I saw her assess the counter where I’d put out the eggs and bacon. She smiled. “I’d love something to eat. I had a muffin this morning, but that is long gone.”

  “Did you warm the muffin up in the microwave?” I teased.

  She giggled. “As a matter of fact, I did. I mean, they don’t call me Microwave Madi for nothing. So, what can I help you with?”

  “Nothing. Oh, actually, you can make the coffee while I cook the food.”

  “Now that I can do.”

  Soon we were talking and laughing together with ease. I felt remarkably comfortable with her despite forgetting so much about who she was. Once the breakfast was made, we sat together and polished it off like we had been starving for ages.

  “I’m sorry,” she said as she wiped her mouth. “I’m such a pig. I can’t help myself, though. I’m so hopeless in the kitchen that whenever someone else cooks, I can’t seem to stop myself from overeating.”

  I laughed. “Well, it’s a compliment to me, so I don’t mind at all. Uh . . . Madi, I had a nightmare last night.”

  She looked up, and the concern was written all over her face.

  “A nightmare? About what?”

  “About what happened the night I was shot. You’re all waiting to get more details from me, aren’t you? So that we can capture this guy.”

  She nodded. “Yeah. Did you remember anything?”

  I shook my head. “No. The nightmare was more feeling than memory. I remember feeling scared and hearing gunshots. But I don’t remember detail. It’s so frustrating.”

  “I can imagine. Hey, I’ve got an idea. Why don’t we go to the police station today? Maybe it will help jog your memory. What do you think? Of course, if you don’t feel ready, for that we don’t have to. I’m more than happy to just chill here with you.”

  “Oh, I think it’s a great idea. Anyway, it will be nice to get out a while. And yeah, maybe being surrounded by everyone will help.”

  “Great. How about we have another cup of coffee and then go? The coffee at the station is disgusting.”

  I laughed. “Now that I actually remember.”

  We enjoyed another cup of coffee together and then made our way to the station. I was actually looking forward to seeing the chief again. I briefly remembered seeing him at the hospital, but the memory was so vague that I wasn’t even sure if it had happened. I asked Madison, and she said that he had come to visit often, so she was sure that it was a real memory. That at least made me feel good. I was so scared of false memories that I always wanted some sort of confirmation that I wasn’t making things up.

  When we got to the station, Madison took me for a walk around the place to see if anything seemed familiar. For the most part, I remembered the place, although like my bedroom, it felt as if it belonged to someone else. Like I was living through someone else’s memories. And there were some parts that were just completely new to me altogether. And while we walked, some people were giving me funny looks, as if they had no idea who I was. I tried to stop myself from looking at them. I didn’t want to make eye contact with anyone, and I suddenly wished that we hadn’t come at all. I was grateful when we got to the chief’s office. His office seemed to be the most familiar to me.

  “Max! Wow, it’s so good to see up walking around again. I was so worried that we had lost you. You look well.”

  “Thank you. I feel good. Hey, at least I can say that I was in a coma and came out of it. Not many people can say that,” I joked around. Every time I joked around though it felt wrong. I’d much rather not have been in a coma at all. But thankfully the chief was chuckling.

  “That’s true. That’s true. You’ve got a story to tell the grandchildren one day.”

  “Grandchildren?” I asked in surprise. Surely, I didn’t have grandchildren. I was too young for that. I didn’t even have children. Did I? I turned to look at Madison, and I was sure she saw the look of terror in my eyes.

  Madison laughed. “Don’t worry. You’re not a grandfather or a father yet.”

  I winked at her. “Yet,” I said and saw a small blush creep up her face. The chief gave us both a funny look that I didn’t quite understand and then asked me if I had any more memories about the night of the drug bust.

  I told him about my horrible nightmare but then sighed. “Sadly, that’s about all I remember, though. It’s not even much. Just bits and pieces of images that keep floating my way. Nothing concrete to hold on to.”

  “So, you don’t remember the boss?” he asked. “Nothing at all about him?”

  I shook my head. “No, I don’t remember him. I keep trying, but nothing comes up. Didn’t you see him too?” I asked Madison. I didn’t like that they were all relying on me to come up with the information when I didn’t remember anything at all. I felt like I was letting everyone down. It would’ve been easier if I could remember nothing at all, because at least then they wouldn’t ask this of me. Remembering some things and not others meant that they were constantly waiting for the memories to come back.

  “There were a few guys there,” Madison said. “The whole thing was so confusing. I think I saw him, but not long enough to be able to pull him from a lineup. He ran out pretty fast. But we know that you spoke to him before everything went down. So hopefully that memory will come back.”

  “Yeah, I hope so.”

  “You were always the best when it came to detail,” the chief said. “So, I have no doubt in my mind that you’re going to remember everything soon enough. I just have a good feeling that it’s all going to come back to you.”

  I felt nervous at the thought that I might end up letting them down. I hated that I couldn’t recall the one bit of information that they so desperately wanted, but that I could easily remember how to make bacon and eggs. It was so frustrating. I knew that they were relying on my memory to come back, but I was worried that it never would. I had no control over it.

  We spoke for a little while longer, and the chief told me that he was glad that I was taking some time off to recover.

  “The two of you deserve some time off anyway.”

  “Thank you,” I said. “And I promise to call you the moment that I remember anything from that night.”

  “That would be much appreciated. Call me even if you remember something small. Sometimes something small is all that we need.”

  I stood up to shake his hand and say my goodbyes and was surprised by the emotion in his eyes.

  “It’s really good to see you again, Max. I’m glad you’re out of that hospital. I hated having you in there and not knowing what was going on. You were with a great doctor, though. I’ve heard good things about him.”

  “It’s good to be out. I’m sorry that I don’t remember everything. I’m trying. I really am.”

  “I know you are,” the chief said kindly. “Don’t feel too pressured to remember. Let it just come to you. And don’t worry at all. You’ve done well, and we are all very proud of you. You’ll have a medal coming your way soon. That is one thing you can be sure of.”

  A medal? Why on earth would I be getting a medal for getting shot? Surely that was the last thing that should’ve happened. I thought about asking him but then his phone rang, and he rushed to answer it. I waved goodbye to him and walked out.

  Chapter Twelve

  Madison

  I walked out of the chief’s office with Max and noticed that he looked very confused.

  “Are you okay?” I asked him. Maybe bringing him to the station hadn’t been the best idea. I’d hoped it would jog his memory, but now I wasn’t so sure.

  He looked at me in confusion. “The chief said that I’d be getting a medal,” he said.

  “Well, yeah, I’m sure you will. I have no doubt about that.”

  “But . . .why? I mean, I was shot. That’s a bad thing. So why am I getting a medal?”

  I frowned. I knew that Max’s memory of the night was a bit foggy, but I still thought he knew that he had saved my life. I was sure that I, or at leas
t someone, would’ve said something to him. Maybe someone had told him, and he’d simply forgotten. I was glad to finally have something nice to tell him. I was sure that he’d feel good about saving my life, and that it would make him feel better about what had happened. But before I had the chance to say anything Peter walked by and stopped when he saw us.

  “MAX!” he boomed, and I saw Max jump up in surprise at the sound.

  “Peter, good to see you,” Max said. I was always glad when Max remembered someone, and I was sure he was too.

  “Boy, you sure had us worried,” Peter said in a voice that was too loud and too cheery. “We were all nervous. I kept telling everyone not to worry, though. I knew that my good man Max Aarons would pull through. And here you are, standing in front of us like the picture of good health. Nobody would ever know that you had just been in a coma. You’re forever impressing us,” Peter said.

  Peter wasn’t usually this loud or this vocal, and I couldn’t understand why he was acting so strangely in front of Max. Although, maybe people just had no idea how to act around a guy that had just been shot. The whole thing was ridiculous. I wanted to shout at Peter and tell him that all Max wanted was for people to act normally around him, but I didn’t want to make a scene. So, I just smiled politely and told Peter that we would see him around soon.

  “I don’t remember him being so weird,” Max said as we walked away, and I chuckled.

  “To be honest, neither do I. Look, there’s Blake. He’s going to be glad to see you.”

  I’d never been a huge fan of Blake, but he was Max’s best friend, so I’d always tolerated him and pretended to like him. I saw Max’s face light up, and it made me like Blake a little more. I waved him over.

  “Ah, the man who survived a bullet and came out of a coma,” Blake said and embraced Max.

  Max laughed. “As I live and breathe. It’s really good to see you, Blake. I’ll be honest, I’m haven’t been all that keen on seeing people, but I’m glad to see you.”

  Blake beamed. “That’s nice of you to say. I came to see you a few times in the hospital, but you were still in a coma. Although I thought you were just pretending because I was telling you long stories about my life.”

  “Yeah, I was just pretending. The moment you left, I got up and started partying around the room.”

  Blake chuckled. “I wanted to come and see you afterward, but I knew you needed your rest. The last time I spoke to the doctor, he said you were doing very well but that these things take time to heal. I hope you’re not here because you’re coming back to work? I know you love working, but I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

  I was glad to see that Max shook his head with absolute conviction.

  “No, I’m not coming back to work. Hopefully soon, but I’m definitely taking a few weeks off. I’m starting to get kind of accustomed to sleeping in.”

  We spoke for a little while longer, and afterward I asked Max if he wanted to spend a bit more time at the station.

  “We can go on another trip around if you like.”

  Max shook his head. “I think I’m ready to go home, if you don’t mind?

  I smiled. “I don’t mind at all.” Actually, I was honestly grateful to go. I could see that the whole trip had made Max uncomfortable. “Although, I had an idea. We used to joke around about how we could never understand how anyone had the time to go and see a movie in the middle of the day. I’m not sure if you remember that?”

  “Sort of,” he said and then grinned. “So, does that mean we’re going to see a movie in the middle of the day?”

  I laughed. “Let’s do it.”

  I wanted to be there to look after Max, but I wasn’t sure what we were going to do all day at his house. A movie was a good way for me to look after him while taking our minds off everything that was going on. Thankfully he seemed to love the idea of a midday movie. I was still full from breakfast, so I just ordered a drink, and we made our way inside.

  “Why do I get the impression this is the first movie we’ve seen together?” Max asked as we sat down.

  I looked at him and chuckled. “What a funny mind you have lately. Yeah, you’re right. This is the first time. We’ve watched movies before, but not at the cinema. You always told me that you didn’t understand why people would waste money on going out to watch something that they could just watch at home.”

  He chuckled. “Wow, I really am very boring. Maybe it’s better if I don’t remember a few things. I’m happy to be here,” he said and leaned back in his chair.

  “Me too,” I said and smiled as the room went dark.

  The movie was one of those action-packed adventure types that were so completely over the top, they moved into something closer to comedy. I liked it. Max clearly liked it too, as I could hear him laughing through it all. Afterwards, when we made our way out, he was still chuckling to himself.

  “You know, I don’t actually think that movie was supposed to be funny,” he said.

  I giggled. “I don’t think so either. And somehow that just made it even funnier to me.”

  “Yeah, same here. Hey, I understand why people go and see movies in the middle of the day now. That was a great way to spend the day, don’t you think?”

  “I agree. Hey, why don’t we become professional day time movie watchers? We can get a film crew to follow us, and we can make our money by becoming reality TV stars?”

  “Microwave Madi, you are more than just a pretty face,” he said, and I tried not to get embarrassed by the compliment.

  “Coffee?” I suggested when I saw a little café at the entrance to the cinema.

  “Always,” he replied.

  I ordered us each a coffee, and we sat down in a small booth overlooking the street. We spent some time people watching and playing a game of ‘what do they do?’ where we came up with different professions for people based on what they were wearing. I was surprised that Max remembered the game and within no time our suggestions were getting more and more absurd, just as they always did. It was good to laugh again with him. I’d once tried to play the game with someone else, and it hadn’t worked. The game was meant for Max and me, and nobody else.

  “This is nice,” Max said. “And hey, when I said to Blake that I haven’t been all that keen to see people, I wasn’t talking about you.”

  I laughed. “I don’t really care if you were, though. I mean, I can imagine you want to be alone sometimes.”

  “I’m serious, Madi. I wouldn’t say that about you. You’re actually one of the only people that I really want around these days. I’d prefer to be around you then be by myself any day.”

  “Oh whatever, I bet you say that to all the girls,” I teased.

  “I don’t know what I say, to be honest. But I know for a fact that I enjoy your company,” he said and smiled at me. The smile was a little too intimate for my liking, and it was making me feel uncomfortable. He wasn’t outright flirting with me, but he was being a lot nicer than he used to be. I kept thinking that he was joking until I saw the look on his face. It was a look that he didn’t usually give me. I forced myself not to blush even though I could feel it creeping up on me. I had blushed more in the past week than I had in a very long time.

  “Well, you’re terrible company,” I said and tried to keep things lighthearted.

  After the coffee, we got back in the car and made our way to his house. I couldn’t stop thinking about strange I felt around him. What was wrong with me? He might be acting different, but he was still the same Max I had always known. I needed to pull myself together and sort my head out. I needed to just get away from him for a little while to clear my head. He kept telling me that the world was fuzzy for him, but I was starting to feel the same about my own head. I wasn’t thinking straight. Perhaps the year of stress at work had finally caught up to me. I pulled up in front of the house but left the car running.

  “What’s going on? Not coming in?” he asked. I noted that he seemed disappointed by this.

&
nbsp; “No, nothing is wrong. I’m just going to go and get us something to eat. I’ll be back a little later.”

  “Will it be microwaveable?” he teased.

  “That’s entirely up to you. Would you like me to cook you a meal that might potentially poison you and send you back to the hospital? Or would you like to me to buy you a delicious, ‘we can just pretend it’s home cooked’ meal to warm up in the microwave?”

  “Let’s stick to the microwave,” he said.

  I laughed. “Good choice. Okay, well, I’ll be back a bit later.”

  “So, you’re joining me for dinner?” he asked.

  “A girl has to eat,” I replied.

  “Is it a date?”

  I chuckled. “It’s just food,” I said.

  I drove off and groaned the moment I got around the corner. Is it a date? Had he really just asked me that question. I had never known Max to be like this before. He had always just treated me like one of the guys. It wasn’t that he was being overbearing, but his constant remarks and affections were slowly wearing me down. It was starting to make me realize just how much I might actually like him. Had I always felt this way about him? What if I gave in to his affections? What if he got his memory back and discovered that he didn’t really want to be with me? I was too scared of letting down my guard in case I got hurt. I had to keep reminding myself that this wasn’t really Max flirting with me. Max and I had worked closely for a very long time, and he’d never once tried to hit on me before. He’d had plenty of chances then. This was not Max, and tonight was not a date.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Max

  My flirting didn’t seem to be working. No matter what I said to Madison, she simply didn’t seem too keen on me. It was strange because I could tell that the two of us were close. And yet, she backed away every time I said something nice to her. Of course, I realized that this could be because she simply didn’t like me, but I hated to admit that even to myself. I was sure that there was something between us. I could feel it every time she looked at me. I wasn’t sure how long Madison was going to be, so I decided to take a little nap on the sofa while I waited for her. I still found myself getting tired easily and the day out had wiped out my energy reserves. I sat on the sofa, closed my eyes, and immediately fell asleep.