Page 30 of No Going Back

Maddie gave him an assessing look, as if she were trying to make up her mind about something, and huffed out a sigh. “Would you like some coffee? I think we could both probably use some.”

A shot of caffeine wouldn’t come amiss, and if he was honest, the offer took some of the wind out of his sails. “Thank you.”

“Make yourself comfortable, and I’ll see to it.”

Guy took a seat on the sofa. If this really was the end of them as a couple, he wanted Maddie beside him while they had the conversation. When she returned with the mugs and set them down on the coffee table, he caught hold of her hand. One glance at the seat beside him, and he achieved his objective. Her obedience gave him a grim satisfaction.

“Talk to me, Maddie.”

She shook her head “What do you want me to say?”

“I want you to be honest with me. Do you really want to end things between us?”

Indecision was written all over her face, a truth she couldn’t deny. She was torn, and it showed.

It also gave him hope.

“I shouldn’t have let it start in the first place.”

Okay—not the response he was expecting, but he could work with it. “Why not?”

Her fingers twisted in nervous knots. “There are complications… I can’t explain.”

“Are you married? Separated? Already in a relationship?” His stomach solidified into a rock. A pre-existing partner was something he’d never factored into the equation.

Her denial was instant. “No. I’ve never been married, and the only relationship I have is this one.”

At least she hadn’t put them in the past tense. “Then what?”

“I can’t tell you.”

“So the complications are real.”

She closed her eyes, lips pressed tightly together. “I walked into that one. I must be getting old.”

Now that was a slightly odd response. Guy frowned. “Meaning?”

“Meaning nothing. Yes, the complications are real. No, I can’t tell you, and the reason why I can’t tell you is the reason why I can’t see you.”

Guy assessed what he’d been told. “You still haven’t answered my question. Do you want to end our relationship?”

Her chin dropped to her chest. “It’s not a case of wanting to, it’s a case of having to.”

“You don’t have to do anything you don’t want—you’re a grown woman, it’s allowed.”

She shot to her feet and put an unacceptable amount of distance between them. “Even if it hurts… someone else?”

Another telling hesitation. “You mean me? I’m a big boy, Maddie. Whatever it is, I can handle it.”

“Men! You always think you can handle everything.” She spun around, fury vibrating from her. “Well, I have a newsflash for you—you can’t handle this! You shouldn’t have to handle this!”

Guy’s sixth sense for trouble went on high alert. Something serious was going on. Maddie wasn’t overreacting to something trivial—he had a feeling that, if anything, her reaction to whatever it was erred towards understated, and that disturbed him even more. Whatever it was, he wanted Maddie to confide in him and share the burden, but right now, she was teetering on the edge of flight.

And she was doing it to protect him.

The revelation urged him to his feet to go to her. Though he wanted to take her in his arms, he needed her to be all right with it first. Instead, he settled for tilting her chin up so he could look into her eyes.

The fear in them chilled him to the bone. She was afraid, but it wasn’t for herself—it was for him. “Tell me what’s going on, Maddie.”