decision, but this was a game changer. How the hell could he dismantle a company when Maddie’s dad was sick and disabled?
Every cell in his body knew the answer. He couldn’t. But he had to .
The family was outside roasting marshmallows. He searched the flickering faces around the fire. No Maddie. Nick tried to act laid back and calm as he hugged Cat and shook hands with her fiancé, Robert. Mrs. Kingston moved over on the outdoor couch and offered him a seat and a skewer.
“Want a marshmallow, Holter?” Derrick asked like he was really challenging him to a duel. Jenna rolled her eyes, making Nick wonder if being tight-assed was this guy’s usual state of being.
“No, thanks. Actually, I was wondering if anyone knows where Maddie is?”
Derrick, Jenna, and Maddie’s mom shrugged, but Cat just stared into the fire.
Judging by the times Maddie mentioned her sister on the long car ride, they were close. “Can I speak to you in private?” Nick asked.
“Sure.” Nervously tucking her hair behind her ears, she got up and followed Nick to the driveway, where they stood out of earshot of the others.
“Tell me where she is.”
“Well, it’s nice to see you, too. How long’s it been? Ten years?”
“Congrats on your engagement. Where’s Maddie?”
“I don’t know.”
Nick paced, his loafers crunching on the gravel driveway. He ticked off items on his fingers. “I’ve checked the hospital parking lot, the rehab center, drove through downtown, and stopped at the park. I need to talk to her.”
Cat lowered her voice. “Look, I’m the only one who knows about the auction and the shares. I’m sorry if you have things to discuss with my sister. But if she doesn’t want to get found, I’m not ratting her out.”
Clearly stubbornness ran in the bloodlines of this family. But Kingston Shoes was no longer just a mismanaged company circling the toilet bowl. It was a family in crisis. Somehow, he’d managed to land smack dab in the middle.
“Please.” He was incapable of begging. This was as far as he could go.
Cat crossed her arms. “Why should I?”
Well, maybe he’d have to go a little further.
“She never told me about your father. I had no idea.”
“She didn’t want to tell you. She didn’t trust you enough to tell you.”
Her words stabbed like dagger pricks. Nick had grown up not trusting. He’d heard it over and over from his grandfather that trusting leads to getting screwed. Yet he always thought of himself as a person others could trust to be honest, work hard, and do the right thing.
The fact that Maddie didn’t, hurt him. A lot.
“You may not believe this, but I haven’t got a penchant for revenge up my sleeve. I am sorry about what happened to your dad.”
Cat sighed. “Honestly, I don’t know if you’re a friend or an enemy. But if you want to find her, you might try the dock.”
“Thanks.” That’s all Nick needed to take off at a jog down the sloping yard to where it ended in a wall of woods. It was fully dark now, and he wasn’t sure he’d be able to find the path he remembered that led to the lake.
The air still held its humid heaviness, but it was pleasant in that hot-summer-night kind of way, with bullfrogs blurping and crickets skreeing and the spilled-puddle Milky Way in full view above the treetops. It reminded him of being young and carefree but also brought into bitter contrast how much had changed. When was the last time he’d taken a few moments to enjoy nature? Or have someone to enjoy it with?
Instinct served him well because he found the path using his cell phone light, and a minute later parted his way through the brush to a clear view of the lake. Maddie sat on the far end of the dock, her knees bent up, head bent low and her arms encircled around her calves. A muffled sniff sounded over the frog melodies.
A sickening feeling swirled in his stomach. Any kind of crying made him feel helpless and vulnerable, two things he’d vowed never to
Every cell in his body knew the answer. He couldn’t. But he had to .
The family was outside roasting marshmallows. He searched the flickering faces around the fire. No Maddie. Nick tried to act laid back and calm as he hugged Cat and shook hands with her fiancé, Robert. Mrs. Kingston moved over on the outdoor couch and offered him a seat and a skewer.
“Want a marshmallow, Holter?” Derrick asked like he was really challenging him to a duel. Jenna rolled her eyes, making Nick wonder if being tight-assed was this guy’s usual state of being.
“No, thanks. Actually, I was wondering if anyone knows where Maddie is?”
Derrick, Jenna, and Maddie’s mom shrugged, but Cat just stared into the fire.
Judging by the times Maddie mentioned her sister on the long car ride, they were close. “Can I speak to you in private?” Nick asked.
“Sure.” Nervously tucking her hair behind her ears, she got up and followed Nick to the driveway, where they stood out of earshot of the others.
“Tell me where she is.”
“Well, it’s nice to see you, too. How long’s it been? Ten years?”
“Congrats on your engagement. Where’s Maddie?”
“I don’t know.”
Nick paced, his loafers crunching on the gravel driveway. He ticked off items on his fingers. “I’ve checked the hospital parking lot, the rehab center, drove through downtown, and stopped at the park. I need to talk to her.”
Cat lowered her voice. “Look, I’m the only one who knows about the auction and the shares. I’m sorry if you have things to discuss with my sister. But if she doesn’t want to get found, I’m not ratting her out.”
Clearly stubbornness ran in the bloodlines of this family. But Kingston Shoes was no longer just a mismanaged company circling the toilet bowl. It was a family in crisis. Somehow, he’d managed to land smack dab in the middle.
“Please.” He was incapable of begging. This was as far as he could go.
Cat crossed her arms. “Why should I?”
Well, maybe he’d have to go a little further.
“She never told me about your father. I had no idea.”
“She didn’t want to tell you. She didn’t trust you enough to tell you.”
Her words stabbed like dagger pricks. Nick had grown up not trusting. He’d heard it over and over from his grandfather that trusting leads to getting screwed. Yet he always thought of himself as a person others could trust to be honest, work hard, and do the right thing.
The fact that Maddie didn’t, hurt him. A lot.
“You may not believe this, but I haven’t got a penchant for revenge up my sleeve. I am sorry about what happened to your dad.”
Cat sighed. “Honestly, I don’t know if you’re a friend or an enemy. But if you want to find her, you might try the dock.”
“Thanks.” That’s all Nick needed to take off at a jog down the sloping yard to where it ended in a wall of woods. It was fully dark now, and he wasn’t sure he’d be able to find the path he remembered that led to the lake.
The air still held its humid heaviness, but it was pleasant in that hot-summer-night kind of way, with bullfrogs blurping and crickets skreeing and the spilled-puddle Milky Way in full view above the treetops. It reminded him of being young and carefree but also brought into bitter contrast how much had changed. When was the last time he’d taken a few moments to enjoy nature? Or have someone to enjoy it with?
Instinct served him well because he found the path using his cell phone light, and a minute later parted his way through the brush to a clear view of the lake. Maddie sat on the far end of the dock, her knees bent up, head bent low and her arms encircled around her calves. A muffled sniff sounded over the frog melodies.
A sickening feeling swirled in his stomach. Any kind of crying made him feel helpless and vulnerable, two things he’d vowed never to
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