Another nod.
“The same Dexter Stone who is waiting back at your house?”
I’m going to turn into a bobblehead at this rate.
“Fuck me,” he murmurs. “I was right.”
Say what now?
“I knew he was in love with you.”
“What?” I fall off my board, the blast of cold saltwater nowhere near the shock to my system that is the insanity that just came out of my best friend’s mouth.
My hair sticks to my face as I scramble to fold my arms over my board. Water makes the view through the lenses of my aviators distorted, but I still see the way Sammy is clutching his stomach while he laughs at my expense.
“Wanting to kiss me and being in love with me are two entirely different things.” I tread water as I try to make him see reason.
“That sexy SEAL wants to do so much more than kiss you, Madison Belle. If eye-fucking were an actual thing, he would have fucked you six ways to Sunday before you even finished your coffee this morning.”
“Wanting to fuck me and being in love with me are also not the same thing.” I swing a leg around and use my arms to hoist myself up until I’m sitting in a straddle position.
“Who’s to say he doesn’t want both?” A brow arches above the frame of his Wayfarers.
What the hell am I supposed to say to that?
I’ve barely wrapped my head around the idea that Dex sees me as anything other than Baby McClain; I can’t even begin to fathom the idea that it could be more.
Jase called me the happily-ever-after expert, but outside the book world, that is a fraudulent title.
“It doesn’t matter.”
And it doesn’t. I learned years ago that I don’t know how to be in love. I love—fiercely if The Coven and the rest of my squad are any indication—but romantic love? The type where the hero and the heroine ride off into the sunset together and stand the test of time? That only exists for me in the stories I write and read.
I’m okay with it. I’ve made my peace. I’m surrounded by it enough on a daily basis to at least get to live vicariously.
“Maddey…you need to put yourself out there again.” Sammy softens his tone. “People break up. It happens. It’s the circle of life and all that.”
“Don’t you try buttering me up with Disney.”
He chuckles and reaches for me, tugging me in by the ankle, our knees bumping as the waves rock us gently.
“You also need to get laid. Stop telling yourself you’re cheapening your relationship with Ryan by dating and maybe have a few sweaty sessions of meaningless sex. If the breakup had been so terrible, I wouldn’t constantly have to battle it out with Ryan for the title of your bestie. You”—he pokes my chest—“are the only one who hasn’t moved on.”
He’s right. I know it, and he knows it.
Still…
Where does that leave things with Dex?
Chapter Twenty-One
Jab. Jab. Jab-cross. Jab-cross. Jab-cross.
I hit the punching bag in Maddey’s garage with enough force that the swack of my fists against it can be heard over the Birds of Prey song I have blaring from the sound system.
Jab. Jab. Jab-cross. Jab-cross. Jab-cross.
I need the physical outlet to help make sense of Sammy’s parting shot. I’m not sure what it says about me as an operator that he can read me so well, but what is it he’s trying to tell me?
Jab. Jab. Jab-cross. Jab-cross. Jab-cross.
“Did you know this is the first song Sammy produced for us?”
I whip around to find Sammy’s husband, rock god Jamie Hawke, leaning against one of the support pillars. There’s a smug smirk on his face, as if he knows he caught me unaware and is taking great pride in it.
“He’s good at what he does,” I say as I hit stop on the iPod. Sammy has gone on to produce two more albums with BoP since the one that led him to meeting his husband.
“He really is.” Pride beams across Jamie’s face. “But I didn’t come here to gush about my husband.”
He pushes off of the pillar and nods for me to follow, not saying anything else until we are seated on the lower deck overlooking the beach.
“I came to offer my help.”
I arch a brow, not sure how a rock star thinks he has more to offer than the police officers in Maddey’s family.
“No, no.” Jamie waves me off with a laugh. “I’ll leave the Magnum PI stuff to you, but I do have resources you can take advantage of since you aren’t here in an official capacity.”
Shifting back, I cross my arms over my chest and wait for him to explain. As a SEAL, I’m trained to use anything available to me to my advantage if it helps complete my mission. With Maddey’s case at a virtual standstill, I’ll take whatever break I can get, no matter the unlikely source.
“I know you don’t really know me—”
“You love Sammy—that makes you family.”
There’s a flare of surprise in his purple eyes at the simple statement.
“Thank you. I know you’ve seen me more through a computer screen than in person over the years, but that means a lot to me.”
My gaze follows Jamie’s to where Sammy and Maddey are making their way up the beach.
“First, I want you to know if I thought we could have gotten away with it, I would have had guys protecting her.” Jamie points at Maddey, who’s now sitting side by side with his husband. “But Vince learned the hard way how easily she can suss out a security detail.”
It’s my turn to smirk as I recall when Justin told us how Maddey blew the cover of the security guys Vince tried to have watch Holly without her knowledge at the end of last year.
And now I’m shifting in my seat for an entirely different reason. I’m really starting to question what it says about me that I get turned on by Maddey being such a badass.
“I’ve already paid a retainer for a small team to be dedicated to help with anything you need. A lot of the guys are ex-special forces so I suspected you’d be comfortable with them, but they won’t be working in the field unless you feel you need the manpower.”
“They were okay with that?”
“You are the only person Madz hasn’t balked at having protect her. Trust me, we’ve all made countless attempts since this shit started. It’s time we put a stop to it once and for all.”
I cannot help but agree, and I thank Jamie for his support as he takes his leave.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Photoshoot days are some of my favorite, and I think a lot of it has to do with getting to use my closest friends as most of my models.
Today’s is even better because we are doing an on-location shoot at Jake and Jordan’s house, and those tend to turn into one of the shit-shows our squad is known for.
The thing I’m most excited for is the surprise guest who will be in attendance. Well, she’s not a surprise for the shoot as she tends to come to any of the local ones she can, but I’m dying to see how Dex reacts.
I finish zipping up my strappy tan stilettos and adjust the band at the top of my strapless romper. The cotton material and lined pattern keep my outfit from coming off too dressy. I also needed something a little extra to help break me out of the funk I’ve been feeling under the weight of stress.