Chapter Twenty-Seven
Elliot
I don’t want Madison taking up all of my thoughts, but fuck if I can’t stop thinking about her. She’s been in every single one of my dreams for the past three weeks. I picture her at her desk constantly. I imagine her naked and pressed against me a million times a day. I’m not exaggerating this. I’m a finance guy. I know about numbers.
I wonder what she’s doing right now. I’ve been fucking wondering it for the past hour. It’s Friday afternoon and I’m getting shit done because the only thing I want to do is be in the same room with her. I miss her to the point of pain. Seriously. My chest hurts. Maybe I should have reached out immediately after she quit.
Maybe I should have done a lot of things differently.
It’s not too late.
Screw it. I shut down my computer and tidy my desk. I have to see her, if for no other reason than to find out if she received the flowers I sent. I’d hoped the gift would spark conversation between us again, but I didn’t hear a word back. I’m so damn proud of her for starting her own business. I couldn’t have timed a call to Joaquin better. He’d just finished a meeting with her and filled me in. If he knew my history with her, he probably wouldn’t have.
“Rita, I’m leaving for the day,” I tell my assistant on the way out. “Why don’t you go home early, too. Have a good weekend and I’ll see you Monday.”
“Okay. Thanks. You, too.”
Rita is the third assistant I’ve had since Madison, and I’m thinking she’s a keeper. For thirty years she assisted a finance exec at Disney. She retired to spend more time with her family, only to find herself bored. She’s no-nonsense, smart, and has no trouble putting me in my place in a motherly sort of way. I like her.
I’m out the door, in my car, and steering toward Madison’s parents’ house a couple minutes later. I’ve reached my breaking point, expecting a response from her about the roses for the past week. You’ve been hoping for any word from her since she quit, you fool.
Traffic sucks, so I’ve got time to think on the drive over. I’ve always enjoyed working, even on tough, nothing-goes-my-way days. It’s more than a source of income. It’s what gets me excited about waking up every morning. It’s what gives me purpose and a sense of accomplishment. More so since I started at ZipMeds. But in the past couple of weeks, I’ve lost something. Something I didn’t even know was missing—someone to share it with.
Going into work every day knowing Madison was there made it better. Being so familiar with someone, and counting on that someone, eliminated the shitty days I’d occasionally have.
The more I recall the weeks we worked together, the more I remember all the things we talked about. It was impossible not to get personal with her, our conversations during lunch or in the break room or over a chocolate croissant in the mornings slipped into friendly territory without us realizing it. Madison was more than my assistant, she was my…family.
It’s fair to say that recognition has me almost continuing to drive past her house. I’m no chicken, though, so I park my car. I am nervous when I knock on the front door. I’ve no idea what to say to her, only that I need to say something. The door opens and a woman—I’m guessing Madison’s mom—says, “Hello. Can I help you?”
“Mrs. Hastings?”
“Yes. And you are?”
“I’m Elliot. It’s nice to meet you.” I extend my hand. Her expression remains friendly, but neutral, which leads me to believe Madison hasn’t said much about me. “I’m a friend of your daughter’s and was hoping I could talk to her.”
Her expression turns skeptical. “A friend?”
Maybe Madison did mention me more than in passing. “We also worked together at ZipMeds. Is she home?”
Mrs. Hastings crosses her arms. “You were her boss.”
“Yes.” I give Mrs. Hastings my Boy Scout smile—it’s sincere and sweet and usually gets me what I want. Right now I want entry into the house. The woman is an exceptional door block.
“And the one who sent her flowers.”
“She got them?” Great. One question answered, a few more to go.
“Yes.” She drops her arms to take a more relaxed stance, but her eyes narrow, like she’s contemplating turning the tables and asking me a bunch of questions.
I tug at my shirt collar. I wasn’t expecting a discussion with her mom and don’t want to screw it up. When she doesn’t immediately say anything else, I jump in with, “Would it be okay if I come in?”
“She’s not here.”
“Oh. Will she be back soon?”
“She doesn’t live here anymore.”
For a second I’m sucker punched. How come I didn’t know this? She’s wanted to move out of her parents’ house for a while and this is big news I should have known about. Who helped her into her new place? Is she living alone? Where is she?
“She moved last weekend,” Mrs. Hastings supplies, picking up my slack. It’s taking me a minute to find my voice.
“Can I get her new address?”
“Of course. Give her a call and she can share it with you.”
Smart answer, I suppose, given Mrs. Hastings has only just met me. The thing is, if I call her I lose the element of surprise and risk her turning me down. Wait a second. I bet my dumbass roommates know about this and their girlfriends probably asked them to keep their mouths shut.
“I’ll do that. Thanks.” I turn to go, then pause. “Your daughter is an exceptional human being and I hope I see you again.”
She smiles. It’s warm, appreciative. “Thank you. We think so, too.”
My grip is tight on the steering wheel as I drive home. I’ve hated myself for how things ended with Madison, but it seems our parting of ways was the best thing to happen to her. She’s unstoppable—new career, new place to live. Is it selfish of me to reach out to her now? I don’t want to complicate her life again.
Fuck it. Yes I do. I want to be her must-have, the essential part of her day. Because that’s what she is to me, and if she gives me a second chance, I’ll never let her down again.
As luck would have it, Mateo is at the house when I get there. Perfect.
“Hey, you’re home early,” he says from the couch. As usual, my mind takes a detour to Madison and all the places I had her naked. Since spending the weekend with her, the house isn’t the same. Her essence fills every room, sparking memories and a desire for more.
I sit down next to him. He’s got his laptop in his lap. “Yeah, I thought I’d go see Madison only to find she doesn’t live there anymore.”
He stops typing, looks at me. “Go ahead and say it.”
“You’re an asshole.”
“Feel better?”
“No.”
“Look, she asked me not to tell you.” He quickly types something, then his attention bounces back to me.
“I’m your best friend.”
“She’s my oldest friend and like a sister to me.”
“Fine.” I settle back into the couch. We’re both quiet. Mateo is loyal to a fault, and I don’t want to come between his and Madison’s friendship, but this is a special circumstance. “I understand.”
“Do you? This is why I warned you to stay away from her. I didn’t want to be put in the middle when she was hurting.”
“I’m hurting, too,” I admit aloud for the first time. “I can’t sleep. I lose focus at work and can’t remember details I never used to forget. I…I love her.”
“What?”
“You heard me.” God, I feel like a weight has been lifted. I love Madison. I love every single thing about her.
Mateo takes a minute to study me. “If this is for real, then there’s nothing I’d like more than for you guys to be together. But are you sure?”
I glare at him. “What do you mean am I sure?”
“Let me clarify that. Let’s say you had to choose between her and your job. Which would you choose?”
“Is this a trick question? I already chose both.”
“How’d that work out for you?”
He’s got a point. “Things are different now. The job is irrelevant.”
“True, but Madison’s been hurt enough, and the person who gets her has to be willing to give up everything for her. So. Door A is Madison. Door B is ZipMeds. Which one do you walk through?”
I take my time to think about this. I love my job. I’ve said it all along. It sets me apart. From my siblings, my friends, the coworkers I left behind at my old job. Yet things are different. The drive is there, always will be, no matter the company I’m working for. It’s that further realization—no matter the company—that makes my answer easy. That and the fact there is no other girl like Madison. She’s what matters most. She’s what makes love worth having and keeping. She makes me feel like I’m enough just as I am.
“A.”
“That’s what I wanted to hear.”
“So you’ll tell me where she’s at?”
“I will, but…” He sighs like he’s still indecisive. “Shit, man. She’s got a date tonight and I set it up.”
“What the fuck?” I say, all indignant as I turn my body toward him like I’m gearing up for a fight.
“Chill, dude. It isn’t like I knew you were going to come to your senses.”
I take a deep breath, hold it, let it out slowly. “You should have asked me first.”
He grunts. “I hate to tell you this, but you’re not the keeper of her social calendar. Plus, it just sort of happened. There was no premeditation. I was at her apartment when I got a call from a guy who coaches summer soccer with me. Madison was laughing at something and he heard, asked who it was, and a minute later I had them set up.”
She does have a great laugh.
“I don’t want her to go out with him,” I say. This makes me a childish and possessive prick, I know, but the thought of any other guy near her is agonizing. “Can you cancel?”
Mateo laughs. “I’m not going on the date, so no.”
“How well do you know this guy?”
“Not well, but enough to think he’ll be nice to Maddy. She deserves a good night out.”
There’s not a chance in hell she’s having a good night with anyone but me. I run my hand down my neck, thinking. I’ve crashed her other dates, why not this one? “You know where they’re meeting?”
“Yes, but—”
“You’ve got to tell me.”
“Elliot.”
“I love her, remember? If our roles were reversed and we were talking about you and Teague, you’d demand the same thing.”
I’ve got him now. He spills the time and place. “Don’t mess it up,” he says.
I promise him I won’t. Then, “I forgot to ask you, did you get the ring?”
My roommate smiles bigger than I’ve ever seen. “I did. I can’t fucking wait to make Teague my wife.”
“What’s the plan?”
“I don’t know yet, but I’m thinking about asking her when we’re in Vegas next month and then actually doing the deed there, too.”
“Bro, she’ll never go for that.”
“I know, but like I said, I can’t wait. I’m hoping she’ll agree to get married there, then come home to plan a big wedding and we’ll do it again, this time in front of all our family and friends.”
“That could work.”
“Odds would probably be higher if I had some backup.”
“Meaning?”
“Go get your girl, and then you and Madison and Levi and Harper can join us. Having our best friends there will make my plan much more doable, not to mention more special for Teague.”
“The six of us. I like the sound of that.”
“Me, too.”
I can’t help it—I hug my best friend. He hugs me back.
Love found me by accident. I wasn’t looking for it when Madison showed up at my office, eager, innocent, and so beautiful. I think back on all the times I saw her before that morning but never really looked at her. She belonged to someone else, so I never ventured beyond a brief “hello.”
Now she belongs with me.
I hope I’m not too late.