AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"Oh, hey." Maddox smiled, stepping off the pool deck and onto the grass. "I was..." I brushed past him, not stopping. "Addison?" I ignored him, storming into the house and straight towards the exit. I'd had enough for one night. "Addison!" Maddox's fingers curled around my wrist, jerking me to a stop in the front foyer. I whipped around. "What the hell, Addison?"
"You need to deal with your shit, Maddox," I growled, shoving my finger into his chest. "We are too old for this high school drama."
"Addy, I have no idea what you're talking about?"
"Are you fucking Casey?" His eyes widened as his jaw dropped. "Yeah, that's what I thought." I jerked my wrist out of his grasp, twisting to leave, but he caught me by the waist.
"I'm not fucking her," he whispered in a low growl pulling my body flush with his. "But... We have... fucked!"
I huffed out a laugh. "Really?" I placed my palms flat on his chest to hold him at a distance. "Because she seems to think differently."
"You've got it wrong."
"Okay," I cocked my head to the side. "When was the last time?" I prepared for him to say years or at least months ago, and then I would feel ridiculous for being so angry, but I hated nothing more than being the fool.
His throat flexed on a hard swallow. "The first night you came back with me. I was with her when I disappeared." My head snapped up as my brows slammed together.
"Wait," I hissed. "What?" My gaze flicked around rapidly as I replayed the night. "You mean while I was sitting at your house alone?" He nodded. "You were fucking her?"
"Addison, I'm sorry," he apologized. "I was a mess, and it didn't mean anything."
"No," I cut him off. "NO!" I shoved him away. "No wonder she thinks the way she does." He reached for me, but I dodged him and bolted towards the door.
"Addison, please, do not run away again. Let's talk about this."
I didn't respond as I stormed straight up to Maddox's driver, who was still standing in front of his limo.
"I would like to leave now, please," I demanded. Maddox's driver flicked a look over my shoulder, and I knew he was looking for permission from Maddox.
"Addison," Maddox sighed. "Please don't leave like this."
"Maddox, tell him to take me home, or I'll call an Uber and have it take me to the airport." His dark blue eyes locked on mine as his jaw flexed, but after several long seconds, he nodded to his driver.
"Take her home," Maddox said, and the driver opened the door for me, and I slid in. "I'll get a ride with Cas..." My gaze snapped up as he cut off his words. "I mean, come back once you drop her off. I'll be ready by then." I wrapped my hand around the door handle and jerked it closed.
I wasn't entirely sure why I was mad. We weren't together when that happened. In fact, he'd been very clear. He didn't even want to be my friend. He was free to fuck whoever he wanted, but I hated being in the dark. I guess I felt like Maddox hadn't grown up over the years that he was playing the same stupid games.
The limo's engine purred to life. My gaze flicked out the window, locking on Maddox with his hands shoved into the pockets of his slacks, watching as the limo pulled away, a mixture of anger and sadness wrapped tightly in his brows.
SEVENTY-SEVEN
ADDISON
By the time I returned to Maddox's house, all I could think about was getting out of that dress and heels. I was still angry; I'd been made the fool again, but not as mad as when I'd gotten in the limo. That was the funny thing about anger; it faded over time.
Maddox and I had a complicated history, and I wasn't sure that I was ever going to be able to let the past go and move into the future with him. I was tired of being the fool when it came to Maddox Parker. I was tired of that constant feeling of dread, knowing that I was not good enough for him. I never was. I was tired of waiting for the imaginary rug to be ripped out from beneath me to feel the same hurt I did when I saw those pictures in high school when he betrayed me. I thought I'd let those feelings go a long time ago, but that was exactly how I felt tonight to find out he'd slept with her the same night he'd brought me home, and I knew nothing about it. I knew the thoughts and feelings were irrational in my head, but convincing my heart was more of a struggle. Convincing my heart that Maddox was truly in this was so much more complicated than I thought it would be, even all these years later.
How do I convince myself that I am enough?Sometimes, when I looked in the mirror, I still saw that dorky girl with glasses who wore too big clothes to hide her body, to hide herself from the rest of the world, to be invisible.
After changing into something more comfortable, I stepped out of my room. Maddox hadn't made it back yet. Not that I expected him to. There was still over an hour left of the fundraiser.
Strolling down the long, dark, quiet hallway, I passed Maddox's bedroom door and froze. It was the only room in the house I hadn't been inside yet. Pressing my lips into a thin line, my gaze fixed on the doorknob as I contemplated whether I should open it.
"That's an invasion of privacy, Addison," I scolded myself, but my hand still reached out, twisting the knob before pushing the door open. My heart began to race, knowing what I was doing was wrong, but even knowing that, I couldn't stop myself. My gaze flicked around the dark room as I stepped inside.
His room was neat and organized, but it looked the same as the rest of the house—like no one lived there. Everything was grey and white, even his bedding. There were no pictures or anything personalizing the bedroom. It looked more like an Airbnb rental than a lived-in house.
I flicked on the lamp beside his bed so I could see before I started to snoop through his things. I wasn't sure what I was looking for or what I was expecting to find. Maybe I thought I would find something to confirm my suspicion that Maddox was a player just like he'd been in high school. Something that would confirm I wasn't good enough, but I didn't. I opened each drawer on his nightstand, plundered through his closet, and each of his dresser drawers, but there was nothing. There were no drawers full of women's panties or condoms. There was no little black book full of women's names and numbers. There was nothing!
