Maddox around Nolan. He’s dangerous .”
But Nolan was more dangerous if only because no one suspected how evil he truly was.
“I’ll call you later,” I said. “But do me a favor?”
“Yeah?”
“Pull the file on my shop again. Just…make a copy of everything you have for me.”
“The more you dig around, the more you’re going to realize the truth.” Delta shrugged. “It was Maddox who torched the place.”
“Then you won’t have a problem getting it for me.”
“I hate to see you get hurt,” Delta said. “But I’ll see what I can pull.”
“Quick, okay?” I hugged her goodbye. “We might not have a lot of time.”
“Time before what?”
I didn’t want to answer that question. I didn’t know the answer.
Time before Maddox took his revenge. Time before Nolan hurt Maddox. Time before it didn’t matter who destroyed my shop.
If I didn’t find the real arsonist soon, I’d lose more than stone and brick, sugar and spice.
I’d lose the only man I ever loved.
Chapter Eight – Maddox
I kicked the nightstand.
It shattered on the hotel wall. Josie stopped talking. The phone must have picked up the crash.
Damn it.
“I’ll come over.” I wasn’t used to begging. My voice barked too hard, like an order. Not what I needed to convince Josie to let me in her life.
Why the fuck was she still pushing me away?
“ Maddox…not tonight .”
“When? Tomorrow? I’ll wake you up with pancakes.”
She sounded tired. “ Be serious .”
I was. Didn’t she realize? Christ, the time apart ruined us. I had to rebuild our relationship brick-by-brick, but all I had were ashes and flame-lashed timbers.
“Sweets, I just gotta see you.”
“ I’m not ready. ”
“Something’s wrong.”
“ Nothing’s wrong .”
“Bullshit.” I paced the room, but I couldn’t destroy anything else. Last thing I needed was word to pass around the town that I was trashing hotel rooms, especially since Rhys For State Representative signs still littered the lobby. “You’ve been hiding something since I got back.”
“ I’m not hiding —”
“You’ve been hiding something since before then too.”
“ Maddox, I’m really tired, I had a long day, I should get some rest —”
“Why did we break up?”
“ I’m not getting into this now. It’s ten o’clock at night .”
“I spent a lot of nights in jail trying to solve that little mystery. Kept me up a lot later than ten. ”
“ I’m not picking a fight .”
“I deserve an explanation. A year ago, before the fire, you said we needed to take a break. Some time to think about us .” I gritted my teeth. “Why then? Why the day before we eloped?”
“ Maddox —”
“A week after we started trying for a baby .”
Josie’s voice cracked. “ Just stop. It was a long time ago. A lot has changed .”
“You think my feelings have changed? That I want anything different than what we agreed that night? I was ready to take you away. Ready to be a husband.” I quieted. “I wanted a baby with you.”
Josie said nothing. Neither did I.
Christ, it was never this hard before.
She was the only person who ever understood me. We’d never needed to talk anything out. We clicked. Whether we were soulmates or just fucking lucky, Josie and I were in love. I had no idea why a girl like her would ever lower herself to love a bastard like me, but we were meant to be together. Meant for something more.
A family. She promised me a baby. I wasn’t ready to let that dream die yet. Not when I knew it’s what she wanted too.
“You know I never had anyone I could trust,” I said. “No one I could rely on. No one who loved me more than whatever junk they injected in their veins.”
Josie’s voice softened. “ I know .”
“I want a family. That…closeness. I’d be a good father and husband, Sweets. We could do it, you and me.”
“ I know .”
Someone knocked on the door. I checked the time. Half the town went to bed an hour
But Nolan was more dangerous if only because no one suspected how evil he truly was.
“I’ll call you later,” I said. “But do me a favor?”
“Yeah?”
“Pull the file on my shop again. Just…make a copy of everything you have for me.”
“The more you dig around, the more you’re going to realize the truth.” Delta shrugged. “It was Maddox who torched the place.”
“Then you won’t have a problem getting it for me.”
“I hate to see you get hurt,” Delta said. “But I’ll see what I can pull.”
“Quick, okay?” I hugged her goodbye. “We might not have a lot of time.”
“Time before what?”
I didn’t want to answer that question. I didn’t know the answer.
Time before Maddox took his revenge. Time before Nolan hurt Maddox. Time before it didn’t matter who destroyed my shop.
If I didn’t find the real arsonist soon, I’d lose more than stone and brick, sugar and spice.
I’d lose the only man I ever loved.
Chapter Eight – Maddox
I kicked the nightstand.
It shattered on the hotel wall. Josie stopped talking. The phone must have picked up the crash.
Damn it.
“I’ll come over.” I wasn’t used to begging. My voice barked too hard, like an order. Not what I needed to convince Josie to let me in her life.
Why the fuck was she still pushing me away?
“ Maddox…not tonight .”
“When? Tomorrow? I’ll wake you up with pancakes.”
She sounded tired. “ Be serious .”
I was. Didn’t she realize? Christ, the time apart ruined us. I had to rebuild our relationship brick-by-brick, but all I had were ashes and flame-lashed timbers.
“Sweets, I just gotta see you.”
“ I’m not ready. ”
“Something’s wrong.”
“ Nothing’s wrong .”
“Bullshit.” I paced the room, but I couldn’t destroy anything else. Last thing I needed was word to pass around the town that I was trashing hotel rooms, especially since Rhys For State Representative signs still littered the lobby. “You’ve been hiding something since I got back.”
“ I’m not hiding —”
“You’ve been hiding something since before then too.”
“ Maddox, I’m really tired, I had a long day, I should get some rest —”
“Why did we break up?”
“ I’m not getting into this now. It’s ten o’clock at night .”
“I spent a lot of nights in jail trying to solve that little mystery. Kept me up a lot later than ten. ”
“ I’m not picking a fight .”
“I deserve an explanation. A year ago, before the fire, you said we needed to take a break. Some time to think about us .” I gritted my teeth. “Why then? Why the day before we eloped?”
“ Maddox —”
“A week after we started trying for a baby .”
Josie’s voice cracked. “ Just stop. It was a long time ago. A lot has changed .”
“You think my feelings have changed? That I want anything different than what we agreed that night? I was ready to take you away. Ready to be a husband.” I quieted. “I wanted a baby with you.”
Josie said nothing. Neither did I.
Christ, it was never this hard before.
She was the only person who ever understood me. We’d never needed to talk anything out. We clicked. Whether we were soulmates or just fucking lucky, Josie and I were in love. I had no idea why a girl like her would ever lower herself to love a bastard like me, but we were meant to be together. Meant for something more.
A family. She promised me a baby. I wasn’t ready to let that dream die yet. Not when I knew it’s what she wanted too.
“You know I never had anyone I could trust,” I said. “No one I could rely on. No one who loved me more than whatever junk they injected in their veins.”
Josie’s voice softened. “ I know .”
“I want a family. That…closeness. I’d be a good father and husband, Sweets. We could do it, you and me.”
“ I know .”
Someone knocked on the door. I checked the time. Half the town went to bed an hour
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