Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 78576 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 393(@200wpm)___ 314(@250wpm)___ 262(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78576 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 393(@200wpm)___ 314(@250wpm)___ 262(@300wpm)
“Oh…”
“You could come get me.”
“Yeah. I’ll come get you. But then we’re going to my place, okay?”
“All right.”
He hangs up without saying goodbye.
His voice was weird. And he said he wasn’t doing well.
Whatever the Steels were called home for…
It wasn’t anything good.
Chapter Seventeen
Dave
I’m on autopilot as I drive to Maddie’s place. The Pike land is adjacent to our land, on a parcel that was exempt from the liens that Wendy Madigan held on all the property in Snow Creek that wasn’t ours.
I can’t worry about that now.
Uncle Joe…
I don’t think any of us ever thought anything would happen to him. He was always so big, so strong. He and my father are so close, like brothers.
This is going to kill my father. I could see it in his eyes today at the meeting. He was holding it together—being strong for Mom and the rest of us—but losing Uncle Joe will fucking kill him.
It will kill all of us.
So much to digest.
Pat Lamone is a member of our family.
Uncle Joe will probably be dead within a year.
It’s just too fucking much.
I pull into the driveway of the Pikes’ ranch house, exit my car, and walk to the door. I knock softly.
No response, so I ring the doorbell.
Maddie opens the door, and my God, she looks beautiful. She’s wearing simple jeans and a bright-green sweatshirt.
I want to grab her and kiss her.
“Let’s go,” I say.
“Wait a minute,” she says. “I need you to say hi to my mom.”
I raise my eyebrow. “Maddie, I can’t right now.”
She widens her eyes at me. “Dave, please. My dad’s out working, but you do need to say hi to my mom before I can leave with you.”
Fuck.
I’m going to have to paste on a smile like we’re dating.
Which I suppose we are. But pleasing someone’s mother right now is pretty low on my list of priorities.
I sigh and follow Maddie through the small foyer into the great room. Maureen Pike is sitting on the couch reading a magazine.
She stands. “Hello, Dave.”
“Mrs. Pike.”
She narrows her gaze. “Please call me Maureen. Where are you and Madeline off to?”
I’m thinking she’s looking for an answer other than my place to fuck.
I blink. “We haven’t really discussed it.”
“Maybe we’ll just walk around town and then have some dinner,” Maddie says.
I nod quickly. “Yeah, that sounds good.”
If walking around town having dinner means fucking like rabbits at my place.
Mrs. Pike crosses her arms. She’s not fooled. “That sounds great. When will you be home, Madeline?”
Maddie rolls her eyes. “I don’t know, Mom. I’ll be home when I get home.”
Mrs. Pike smiles, but her eyes are betraying her true mood. “All right. But if it gets to be too late, please at least give me the courtesy of a call.”
“Sure, Mom.” She kisses her mother on the cheek. “Bye.”
We leave the house, and I open the car door for Maddie. Then I get in on the driver’s side.
We’re quiet for the first few moments, until—
“I’m sorry about my mom,” Maddie says.
I shake my head. “It’s okay. I’m just not in the mood for putting on an act today.”
“There’s no reason to put on an act with my mother. Just be yourself.”
“That’s the problem, Maddie.” He sighs. “Right now myself is a mess. It’s certainly not someone you want to have talking to your mother.”
I place a hand on his upper arm. “You want to tell me about it?”
He takes a deep breath. “I do. But not just yet. Right now, what I need, Maddie, is you in my bed.”
She smiles. Sort of. Her lips twitch. It’s like she wants to smile but doesn’t want to.
“That okay with you?” I ask.
“Yeah.” She scratches her arm. “I mean, I love being with you. But at some point, we have to—”
“Talk about us?” I blurt out.
She swallows. “Well… Yeah.”
“Sure, Maddie.” I tighten my grip around the steering wheel. “We can talk about us. But quite frankly, in order for there to be an us, I have to know who the hell I am first. Right now, I just fucking don’t.”
She bites on her bottom lip, and I keep my eyes straight on the road.
She doesn’t say anything else for the rest of the drive.
When I pull into the driveway of my place, she finally turns to me. “David—”
I raise an eyebrow. “David?”
“David, Dave, whatever.” She grabs my hand. “I want to be with you. Totally. I’m already wet thinking about it.”
“Good, because I’m already hard as a fucking rock.”
“But…I don’t want to just be a fuck to you.”
“You want to be my girlfriend?”
She doesn’t reply.
But she’s right.
“Maddie, last night I told you that I could give up being a Rake-a-teer for the right woman. I wasn’t yanking your chain. Obviously I was referring to you. But man, my life has been turned upside down in the last couple of hours. So could we please just fuck now and talk later?”