After searching the front lobby of the country club for any clues of where the spa area might be, I spotted the girls through the glass doors that led onto the patio.
All of them were laughing, Kristen shaking her head and Kiki clapping Kendall on the back. But my gutter mind suspected Kendall had lost her filter with her potent long island iced tea and voiced a naughty thought they shared, because every one of them held a guilty expression.
I’d been outnumbered by women enough to know when girl talk went wild by casual observation. My gaze trained on Hannah, however, the one girl I hadn’t been around long enough to read all her little nuances. After the Madison encounter in the hall, I wanted to be sure Hannah was okay.
It didn’t take rocket science, however, to know she wasn’t her comfortable free-spirited self. A subtle sign was in the smile that failed to hold true. But the moment she saw me approach, she tilted her head and her concerned expression changed into a reassuring smile.
“How did it go? Are you okay? Do I need to knock Selfish Bitch on her ass?” Hannah’s eyebrows raised in hope.
I wrapped an arm around her shoulder. “What I wouldn’t pay to see that happen. And yeah, I’m good. Madison may be trying to change, but I saw glimpses of her old self shining through.”
“Selfish Bitch?” Kendall snorted. “That shit’s hilarious.”
Kiki blinked. “Am I missing something? We know you guys broke up. But do we need details? Should I deck Selfish Bitch too?”
I shook my head, needing to diffuse the situation. This wasn’t the time or place. “Someday, I’ll fill you guys in. Let’s just say, it’s a bitch of a story. That’s why I’ve never shared it.”
Hannah asked, “What’s she even doing here?”
I cleared my throat. “We have the luck of Madison being GM of the club.”
Kendall shook her head. “How is that even possible? Wouldn’t the club want years of experience in a GM?”
I shrugged, not wanting to give more brain cells to the matter than necessary. “We were all born with country club silver spoons in our mouths, raised in a place like this. That’s a qualification right there. When we dated, she took a handful of undergrad courses in hotel and restaurant management. Maybe she got a degree in Europe. The place seems to run smoothly, so she hasn’t botched things up yet.”
Kristen crossed her arms as understanding washed across her expression. Of all my sisters, she likely suspected how bad my breakup with Madison had been. She glanced at Hannah, then looked pointedly at me. “Cade, what’s your gut tell you? Is she the one behind the games?”
I exhaled a slow breath, thinking about it again. “Madison is plugged in to the industry. Our suppliers are likely the same as hers. With her connections, she could probably draw our network map in the span of a lunch hour.”
I glanced at them all. “It’s possible. Can’t rule it out. But we also can’t do or say anything about it without proof, so keep your eyes and ears open. If it’s her, and there’s an opportunity for us to catch her, we need to jump on it.”
Kristen pursed her lips, staring hard at me. “You still good with running point on this?”
“Yeah.” I nodded, giving Hannah a tight squeeze of reassurance. “If Madison decides to meddle, we’ve got her. And if she catches wind that I’m running the show, she might be more inclined to toss a wrench in the gears. Besides, you’ve got too many other things on your plate to take this on too.” Plus, the business side of me railed at the thought of stepping aside because of Madison.
“Madison attempted to flex her authority already. She tried to dictate how a detail was going to go down. But I snapped back full force, reminding her who her client was and that we didn’t operate from under anyone’s thumb. She either gave us unrestricted authority to serve the client who hired us, or we didn’t play ball at all. Still, I’m willing and able to handle the project in spite of her being a nuisance. I’m more motivated than anyone else because of it.”
“Good. Let’s get out of here.” Kristen nodded, then turned, leading us out through the lobby.
Kiki pulled on the door heading out the front of the club, but then paused, glancing back. “What detail did she try to dictate?”
“We use her baker, not Hannah.”
“Fuck that!” Kiki scowled, whirling around.
Kendall’s and Kristen’s mouths dropped opened.
Hannah simply shook her head and huffed out a laugh.
Kristen’s deepening scowl was epic. “We’re in this together. Period.”
I grinned. “Damn straight.” I gave Hannah another tight squeeze as I guided her through the door. I squinted in the midafternoon sun, then unclipped my sunglasses from my T-shirt and slid them on.
Did I feel bad about my sisters and Hannah calling her Selfish Bitch? Fuck no. I didn’t like being surprised in the hallway earlier. Madison should’ve known that would set me off. And besides, she’d put me through the ringer years ago. Madison had earned the nickname. The vulnerable side she’d shown at the coffeehouse last week was too new—foreign.
It would take a lot more than that for me to trust she could be different.
***
The ride back to my place was quiet with the wind tunnel around my bike and helmets on our heads, which gave us both mental space to process what had happened at the country club. Hannah didn’t say much during dinner prep or the main course, but I didn’t want to have a heavy conversation in front of the guys. Yet, even with Ben and Mase being in rare comedic form, her difference escaped no one’s notice.
I began to worry, and was about to say something, when Mase spoke up.
“Hannah, you okay? You’re poking that fish like you expect it to swim away at some point.” Mase slipped a scrap under the table to a whining Ava. The sounds of chomping quickly followed.
Hannah glanced at me like I understood.
And I thought I did, if being unsettled was the source of her hardened expression and quiet demeanor. Sure as fuck was for me.
She shifted her gaze to Mase. “Yeah. Just got to see the notorious Selfish Bitch from afar.”
Ben choked on the wine he’d been swallowing. “What? Who’s ‘Selfish Bitch?’”
“Madison,” I muttered as I scowled at my empty plate.
The guys stared hard at Hannah. Ben put his wineglass down. “Hannah, that ‘Selfish Bitch’ could only hope to be anything remotely close to you.”
Mase gave a single hard nod. “Never liked her. Cold. Calculating.”
I agreed with Mase and Ben. “Is that what’s wrong? They speak the truth, babe. You are amazing.”
She let out a hard sigh and pushed back from the table, straightening. “No, it’s not like that. I’m just pissed. I’m mad that she may be trying to hurt Cade. The business. What we’re all working so hard to create.”
“Madison can’t hurt me. She can’t hurt us.”
Hannah’s gaze dropped down to her plate, frowning.
Frustrated at seeing her unfazed by our words, I scraped my chair back and stood. “That’s it.” I scooped Ava up into my arms. “My room. Now.”
I towered beside her, pointing in the direction of the hall. When all Hannah did was glance up at me, raising her eyebrows with a challenging expression, I plopped Ava into her lap, yanked her chair back, and lifted Hannah out of it, puppy and all.
Hannah squealed, then laughed as Ava drowned her face in puppy-bath licks on our way down the hall. I shouldered through my half-open bedroom door, kicked it shut, and leaned over the bed, carefully depositing my cargo on it. Ava raced around on the comforter, tail wagging on her fuzzy little body as she vibrated with excitement.
Hannah grinned. “What was that all about, Neanderthal?”
“Sudden puppy-love therapy. I’ve heard it’s effective.” I crossed my arms.
Hannah straightened out, reclining on the bed as she extended a welcoming arm toward me. I took her hand and stretched alongside her, kissing her softly. Ava, however, wriggled her cute little ass in between our chests. Then, once she got situated, she collapsed from her effort with a soft chuff.
Ava’s eyes drifted shut while Hannah stroked a soft ear before kissing it.
Not wanting our sudden happiness to subside, I lifted Hannah’s fingers and kissed the back of her knuckles. “I meant what I said. You are amazing. You are everything to me.”
“You are my world too. I’m just frustrated. On how to protect you from her. It doesn’t matter to me what she said to you at the coffeehouse. About her having changed. The stunt she pulled at the country club doesn’t show it. I don’t trust her.”
When she exhaled on a heavy sigh, I tucked a finger under her chin, forcing her gaze to mine. “You don’t have to trust her. Hell, I don’t. Just trust me. Believe in my ability to protect us—to handle everything.” I leaned forward, careful not to disturb Ava, and kissed Hannah, long and slow.
When I pulled away, she said, “I’m sorry little things keep throwing me. Especially surprises from our past.”
Irritated that any shit from my past was affecting Hannah, I took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly. I had to stay calm, bolster her. Not get sucked under by it. Because the damned surprises were throwing me too. “No, Hannah. Don’t apologize.” I shook my head. “Pissed and frustrated, but staying here to fight with me—that’s being strong.”
She lifted a corner of her mouth in an attempt to smile but it fell. “I hate that you have to see her. I don’t like any authority she has over us.”
“She doesn’t have authority over us. Not real power.”
“Okay, but I can’t promise that I won’t get frustrated. Or angry, if she keeps pulling stunts like she did today. Or want to knock Madison on her ass.” She gave out a dry laugh. “I may need more puppy therapy.”
With care not to wake Ava, I lifted her limp body and tucked her into a far corner of the bed, up against the pillows. Then I sidled next to Hannah. “Actually, if we have this discussion again, we need to ramp up the method of therapy.”
She smiled, then bit her lip. Her gaze dropped to my mouth, then lifted to my eyes. “Oh? And what’s the next step above puppy therapy?”
I leaned forward, giving her a hard kiss.
Hannah moaned.
The kiss wasn’t an answer in and of itself, but I needed the contact.
I pulled back and sucked on her lower lip before releasing it. “I’m thinking the next step above puppy therapy is kitchen-island-condiment therapy.” When I’d first teased her about it, I’d imagined her on her kitchen island. And had told her so.
Her body shuddered. Had she pictured herself naked, exactly as I’d described? I hoped so. I imagined her shivering for my touch, waiting for me to cover her with various condiments before slowly licking her body clean.
I sucked in a breath, the fantasy affecting me.
A seductive smile curved her lips. “And if that doesn’t work?”
I barked out a laugh. “If I can’t make you forget the chaos in the middle of it, then I’m ditching the rest of the world, kidnapping your sexy ass, and we’re doing private-island therapy.”
“Mmm…” She nestled close, pressing her lips into my neck. “Love that idea. Let’s go now.”
I chuckled. “So tempting.”
She wanted to chuck the rest of the world and have life as we knew it be about only her and me. I did too. But not yet.
I wasn’t about to fly off to a private island on our first vacation because either of us needed therapy. We had events to plan, businesses to run, in spite of a potential nuisance. Then we would make time for play.
***
Later that night, after I’d dropped Hannah off at her place, I stretched out in bed listening to “Hurricane” by Thirty Seconds to Mars. Sure as fuck felt appropriate. Chaos. Emotion.
I sighed heavily, staring at my ceiling. I never expected life to be easy. But Hannah and I were due for some kind of an easy stretch after the struggles we’d had. Hers. Mine. Ours.
My phone vibrated, and my heart jumped. I smiled, thinking Hannah wanted to wish me a good night. Would the text have three naughty little dots? Our secret code always made me smile.
Fuck.
Not Hannah. Madison.
“Really?” I grumbled into the darkness as the song ended, leaving me in silence. “Is all this shit some kind of test? Because I didn’t sign on for this.”
I wanted to be with Hannah. Only Hannah. Yet all this garbage threatened to taint our new relationship.
Frustrated, I clicked into my phone to read the text.
Hey, Cade. Sorry about today. You were angry. I should have told you.
Fuck yeah, you should have. I slammed the phone back down on my nightstand. For a moment, I considered not replying. But when all I did was get more pissed, I grabbed the damned thing and fired off a reply.
You’re right. You said you’ve changed. Prove it with actions. No more surprises.
I hit {SEND} and was about to put the phone down when a reply came through.
Could we meet for coffee again?
I sighed, struggling with my thoughts. I’d grown up with Madison. In hindsight, she burned through guy after guy as we grew up. Then she turned to me to figure out what went wrong. Once we’d crossed the friend line in college and our relationship grew into long term, I felt lucky being the guy she chose—at least I’d thought I was. I had planned on spending my life with her. There was good in her. Back then, I’d fallen in love with that part of her.
But what I didn’t know then was that need can change a person from the inside out—addiction can be a bitch.
Convinced clear boundaries were needed, I replied.
No. I have a girlfriend. Meeting privately is off the table.
Wide awake, I waited. No way I’d be able to sleep until I knew she understood. Her reply came through.
Coffee isn’t meeting privately. It’s public. Drinks and talking. But I understand. We need to meet for business soon anyway. It will have to do. I’ll email details.
Did she understand? With all the mixed signals between vulnerable Madison and business Madison, I sure as hell didn’t.