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Sophie sits in the recliner. “So. How’s the millionaire quest going?”
Maddie shrugs. “Still working on the listing. I ordered a new bikini for some new photos. Then I’ll work on my sales pitch, which they probably won’t even read once they click through my photos.”
I snicker at her humility. “Want me to take the pictures for you? I do take them for my job and all.” Granted, they’re for crime scenes, but still.
“Don’t encourage her,” Sophie scolds, but she knows Maddie’s stunt is all an act.
I look at Liam, who tenses as Maddie talks about selling her virginity nonchalantly like it’s an antique piece of furniture she can sell for top dollar.
“Well, you actually have to go on dates if you want to find someone,” I throw in.
Maddie snorts and straightens, putting her feet underneath her. “I have! I’ve gone on a handful of them, and they’ve all ended badly the moment I don’t let them hit a home run. It’s all fun and games until I tell them no. Plus, most of them wouldn’t know how to treat a woman right even if it was spelled out for them. I’m not trying to get taken advantage of by some idiot who can’t even spell Mississippi. This way, I can be in charge of my own body, and it will strictly be a cash transaction. No feelings, no dates, no disappointments.”
I watch Liam tense and wonder if maybe it’s because Maddie has never discussed dating anyone.
Maddie continues, “I nearly castrated one guy who didn’t understand that no meant no. I’m not kidding. I’ve never pulled a knife off a counter so quickly. I wasn’t afraid to use it either.” She holds her hand up like she’s about to shank someone.
Sophie looks horrified.
“Oh, the stories I could tell,” Maddie goes on between taking bites . “One douchebag thought he could get me drunk, but I didn’t take a sip of anything he offered because I had a feeling he was trying to drug me, which he was.”
“You’re not dating the right kind of guys,” Liam interjects. I can tell he’s pissed, but hell, so am I.
Maddie turns toward him with an eyebrow popped and a fork in her mouth. “So what kind of guys should I be dating? Strong bounty hunter bad-boy types?” She puckers her lips, daring him to argue.
Maddie’s a firecracker and gives zero fucks about being blunt. She’ll cross boundaries anytime she feels like it, which is why shit’s always interesting when she’s around.
He shakes his head, then stands. “I’m done with this conversation. I’m going to bed. Night.”
With a pout, Maddie tells him good night. Once he’s out of sight, she looks at Sophie. “Think I pushed him too far?”
I chuckle. “I think you did.”
“Do you want a ride home?” Sophie asks, yawning.
“No, I was thinking I’d stay. I know you’re a bed hog, so I’ll sleep out here. You have an extra pillow and blanket?” She grins, but I know she’s not joking when she stretches her long legs out until her feet touch me. I look down at them and am terrified. They’re what nightmares are made from.
“What? You’ve never seen a ballerina’s feet before?” Maddie giggles, wiggling her toes and trying to touch me with them. “Man, these springs might kill my back. Think I could share Liam’s bed with him?”
“Oh my God.” Sophie stands, shaking her head. “Bad idea,” she tells her before going to her room to grab an extra pillow and blankets.
“You’re pushy as hell,” I scold Maddie.
She shrugs, not caring. “Gotta be, especially when he treats me like I’m his little sister.”
“You kinda are,” I admit.
“I am not. You all treat me like I’m a child when I’m a grown ass woman. Just because you’re a few years older than I am doesn’t mean anything. Age is just a number, and neither of you guys knows what I’ve been through.”
I can tell she’s getting upset, and I give her a soft smile. “We’re just in a different place in our lives than you, Mads. He’s five years older and has a tough and demanding career. He’s been through a lot too, and relationships aren’t easy for him. You’re still in college. Your age doesn’t discredit anything, but you have to realize where Liam is in his life right now. I mean, what do you expect, to get married before your twenty-first birthday?”
Sophie walks back in then and notices Maddie looks pissed and hands her everything.
“I don’t expect wedding bells. Just a chance and not to be treated like a kid. To be looked at like the woman I am.” She glances at Sophie.
“You will always be my little sister. You’ve still got a lot to learn about relationships,” Sophie says, sitting down on the couch next to Maddie.
“I know,” she says, then looks at me. “Sorry. I’m just sexually frustrated.”
