CHAPTER 16
A week after the charity ball, Maddy was still certain Jack loved her. They had made love every night. In the early hours of morning, before the sun peeked through the windows slowly melting the frost from the night before, Jack would turn to her whispering sweet nothings in her ear and making her quiver before breakfast. She knew they had to talk, but she was afraid any conversation would ruin the fantasy that Jack did love her. Maybe Jack really did love her, but that didn’t mean he would want her to stay. Jack had worked late all week, he didn’t confide in her about what was going on at the office, and she only understood it was a crisis of some sort. Luckily Turner Events had kept Maddy busy enough. She worked late every evening, enjoying the occasional take out dinner with Milly while they planned details and set up client meetings. Milly had proven to be a great asset, she had already secured two events of her own. Maddy had phoned Jack to let him know that she and Milly would be working late, but she would be home to tuck him in later. He had laughed, promising to do the tucking in for both of them. She knew no promises were made, but ever since that night they had made love after the ball, they both knew something had changed. Something that made Maddy believe their marriage stood a chance. That the marriage of convenience was slowly fading into a real marriage. One where you considered the other’s feelings, one where you couldn’t go an hour without thinking about them, without wanting them. Consideration, respect and care had started seeping through the cracks, making Maddy believe that he wasn’t just the right man for her, but she could stay for all the right reasons.
It was nearly ten at night when Maddy finally locked the doors of Turner Events. The snow was thick on the ground and flurries still danced in the air. The streets of Manhattan were deserted, everyone was hiding out from the cold seeking warmth from fireplaces, wine, and good conversation. Small children were already tucked in for the night while adults cuddled on couches. Christmas was only a few weeks away and she still hadn’t decided on a gift for Jack. What did you get for a man who had everything? Maddy knew she wanted to give him her heart, but she needed some indication he would accept it before she offered it freely. She and Milly had a very fruitful evening. They had secured a meeting with event coordinators for four of the most wanted hotels in Manhattan, if those meetings went well it would mean they would be able to secure the venues with more ease. They had planned their schedule and income for the next six months and if her calculations were correct Turner Events would be turning a profit by summer. Maddy was looking forward to spending her first Christmas with Jack, and with the offices of Turner Events closing in a few days for the festive season it meant more time with Jack. Hailing a cab, Maddy smiled as she thought of a specifically naughty gift she could get for Jack. Who said dressing up as a Christmas elf was only for children? Besides, children didn’t get to do it with fish net stockings and edible underwear? Giddy at the thought of Jack’s face on Christmas Eve, Maddy gave the cab driver her address.
Maddy opened the door to the apartment softy, she was earlier than she had anticipated and wanted to surprise Jack. As soon as she quietly closed the door behind her Maddy sensed something was off. All the lights in the apartment were turned low, except for the dining room where it was even lower and soft music drifted over the speakers. For a moment Maddy thought Jack had possibly planned her a surprise dinner. Walking to the kitchen to place her bag on the now familiar kitchen island, Maddy noticed the open bottle of wine. Jack didn’t drink wine on his own, he’d rather have a beer. The only time he would drink wine was if Maddy had wine. She relieved her feet of the high heels that had been torturing her since lunch and walked on padded feet to the dining room when she heard a woman’s low voice and Jack’s laugh.
Maddy wasn’t sure which came first, a feeling of intense betrayal or red hot mad that squeezed her heart. If Jack was tired of her and felt he needed a different female companion he could’ve at least been discreet about it. Maddy stopped as she reached the entrance to the dining room, and realized neither Jack nor his companion had noticed her. The woman had blonde curly hair bouncing on her shoulders and looked to be slightly older than Maddy. Her shoes were kicked off and she sat with one stockinged foot folded under her. She looked comfortable and was looking at Jack with hungry eyes. Maddy only recognized the look since she looked at Jack exactly the same way. The centerpiece on the dining room table had moved with her from the apartment in Brooklyn. It was an assortment of scented candles on a pewter tray. The flames danced happily on the candles as Maddy smelled the scents of cinnamon and juniper floating through the room. Maddy approached them and came to a standstill a few feet from where they were seated.
“Honey, I’m home.” Maddy’s voice dripped with sarcasm. Jack jumped up guiltily knowing exactly how it must look to Maddy. The blond merely pulled a hand through her curls looking bored.
“Hi, I’m Cecile.” She smiled briefly at Maddy before turning to Jack. “As I was saying…”
Maddy felt her temper balancing on a narrow bowed stick before it snapped. Turning to Jack she sneered. “Sorry for interrupting.”
Maddy all but ran to the bedroom where she pulled her suitcase out. By the time Jack reached the room his own temper was flaring both at Cecile for mocking Maddy and at Maddy for making assumptions. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
Maddy hastily pulled clothes from hangers and threw them in the suitcase bundled. “Leaving.”
“Fine, if you want to be childish go! I won’t stop you.” Jack knew he was probably doing the wrong thing but the thought of losing Maddy made coherent thoughts impossible.
“You think I’m being childish because I don’t want you flaunting your blonde in my face, in my apartment?”
“It was a work dinner Madison, we were discussing work.”
“Bullshit, unless all your employees want to fuck you. She was all but drooling over you and you sat there laughing with her. If that isn’t flaunting her in my face then I don’t know what is.”
“I wasn’t flaunting, if you’d just give me a minute to explain.”
Maddy walked to the bathroom and hastily grabbed a few things and tossed them into the open suitcase. “Sorry I don’t have a minute. I’m actually in a hurry to get away from you!”
“Madison! Stop.” Jack’s voice was low laced with a temper of his own.
Maddy looked up just as she zipped her suitcase and hefted it off the bed. Resignedly she looked at Jack, fighting the tears pushing up her throat. “Stop what Jack? I come home early to find you wining and dining a blonde and you have the gall to call me childish. If you were tired of me, tired of this –“ Maddy waved her arms between them. “Whatever you want to call this since it hasn’t just been a marriage of convenience the past week you could’ve told me. You could’ve found your balls and talked to me. Not go behind my back and start interviewing replacements for my side of the bed.”
“Goddammit Madison, I wasn’t interviewing replacements. For fuck sakes, didn’t the last week mean anything to you?”
Maddy smiled at Jack sadly. “Obviously more than it did you to you, Jack.”
Pulling out the wheely handle of her bag Maddy walked to the kitchen, gathered her keys and her purse before slipping into her shoes. “Goodbye Jack.”
Jack told himself to calm down, not to run after her. She needed time to cool down until he could talk to her. At the state she was in she wouldn’t hear a word he said anyhow. He walked into the dining room where Cecile had unbuttoned the top buttons of her blouse which was now hanging seductively over one shoulder.
“I think you should leave.” Jack said as he collected their plates and glasses.
“Why? She’s not coming back tonight, and I’ve got nowhere to be.”
Jack had somehow completely missed that Cecile had been coming on to him the whole night. Now looking at the situation with fresh perspective, he realized he had misread the situation completely. Before Maddy he had a fine tuned radar when a woman came onto him, but ever since he had fallen in love with his wife his radar had completely crashed, only confirming his suspicion that he only wanted Maddy. “I’m married, Cecile, in case you missed that. And I’m faithful. Those good enough to get you out of my apartment?”
“I like married men, and pleasing them in ways their proper wives wouldn’t think of.” Her perfectly make-upped face suddenly seemed overdone and sluttish to Jack. Months before the thought of dirty sex with no strings would’ve turned him on, now the thought only repulsed him.
In a very low voice he turned to Cecile. “Go Cecile, if you leave now we can pretend none of this ever happened. Don’t embarrass yourself even further, we have to work together in the morning.”
Cecile shrugged before picking up her bag and heading for the door. She turned back and smiled coquettishly at Jack. “It could’ve been fun.”
When the door closed behind her Jack let out a sigh of relief and wondered if he had just lost Madison for good.
Outside as the snow was falling Maddy sat in the cab on her way to the airport. She had nowhere else she wanted to go tonight, she wanted her mother. Jules would try to make her feel better and convince her to talk to Jack. Maddy didn’t want to feel better, she didn’t want to talk to Jack. She wanted to stop loving him. She wanted to stop yearning for a life with him. The only way she knew how to do that was to get as far away from him as possible. Morocco seemed like a good idea.
She purchased a ticket leaving to London a couple of hours where she would layover for a few more before flying to Marrakech. She thought of phoning her mother and telling her she was on her way but on second thought decided a surprise visit would be better. That way her mother wouldn’t have a chance of convincing her to talk to Jack first. She picked up her phone and phoned the only person that needed to know she was leaving the country.
“Hello?” Milly sounded groggy.
“Milly, it’s me Maddy. Sorry I woke you. I just needed to let you know I’ll be out of town for a couple of weeks. I know Turner Events is only closing next week, but I was hoping you could cover for me?”
“Sure, where are you going?”
Maddy wanted so much to pour her heart out but she knew Milly would tell Mike, who would tell Jack. “I can’t tell you. If you need me for anything I’ll be available on my email.”
“Okay.” The line was quiet for a few seconds before Milly spoke again. “Maddy, are you all right?”
Maddy sighed deeply not knowing if she ever will be again. “Not at the moment, but I will be. Thank you for covering for me.”
“Okay, bye.” The line went dead as Maddy felt a tear slip down her cheek. She knew she had to let Jules know, but knew it would be safer to phone her from another country. She wouldn’t put it past Jules to hogtie her and take her home.
After checking her bags, Maddy switched off her phone. She had ignored several calls from Jack and couldn’t face hearing more fake apologies just now. Once she got to Morocco and had some time to clear her head she would decide if she wanted to hear more, otherwise she would just have to see a divorce lawyer when she got home.