“Raf—”
“No, don’t,” he pleaded quickly. “I mean, look where we are. And that’s on me.” He placed a hand to his chest. “It stings, but at the same time, seeing you this way hurts me for you. I want you happy, Madison. That’s all.”
Tears built in my eyes. Everything coming up to overwhelm me. “I did love you.”
He pulled me into his arms and held me close as he whispered, “I never questioned that. We got a really great girl in the next room because of it.”
A soggy laugh tumbled from my lips. “Yeah.”
“I hurt you. I know that. I should’ve done a lot of things differently. But what we had was real while it was there, and I’ll always love you because you gave me her.”
I wiped at my eyes as he released me, nodding when I couldn’t get my throat to work.
“He’s an idiot for giving you up then and now,” Raf said after I’d collected myself.
My chest shook with a ragged exhale. “It isn’t that simple. It never has been.”
The front door slamming shut stopped him from responding. In an instant, everything about Rafael shifted. His body went tense. His expression tightened. His eyelids slowly shut as a hissed curse escaped him.
“You’re marrying her,” I murmured.
He opened his eyes and sent me a mocking grin. “You were easier to deal with.”
A startled laugh burst from me just as Avalee came running into the kitchen, heading right for me. “That . . . is not a compliment.”
“What is she doing here?” Madelyn demanded when she rounded the corner into the kitchen, arms weighed down with bags.
“They’re having lunch before they leave,” Raf said placatingly.
“And where is all the stuff?” she went on as if he hadn’t answered her. “I told you I wanted to be here when the movers came to make sure they didn’t ruin everything.”
I held back a laugh while Raf just stared at Madelyn as if she’d grown another head.
“Babe, I couldn’t just tell them to wait for you,” he finally said. “And where were you anyway?”
“I told you I was having a self-love day.” She placed all the bags on the counter, and I couldn’t stop my sharp inhale when I noticed the label on the stores’ bags.
The name.
Raf looked from me back to Madelyn when she continued. “And then I decided to get a little pre-wedding gift for myself.” She was downright giddy as she clapped and then carefully started digging through the first Hermès bag.
When Raf narrowed in on the bags—when he finally noticed—he drove a hand through his hair in that way he did when trying to stay calm.
He’d bought me Hermès jewelry for one of our anniversaries, so he knew the prices that went with that store. He had to know she’d just spent a fortune with the amount of bags sitting on the counter. Between his salary, winnings, and endorsements, Raf made millions. But he didn’t spend money the way she just had.
“Maddie, what did you buy?” he asked as she took out three rings and then reached for another bag, his tone a soft warning I wasn’t sure she knew yet.
“Pre-wedding gift,” she repeated distractedly as she pulled out another box.
I watched in horror as she filled the counter with three sets of rings, earrings, necklaces, and bracelets. And that was before she moved on to the bags she’d bought.
“Oh my gosh,” I whispered as my eyes caught on something else. Something I was sure Madelyn hadn’t been wearing any of the other times I’d seen her.
I absentmindedly grabbed Avalee’s hand when she reached for one of the rings and glanced up to find Raf staring at me. Question swirling in his frustrated glare, but I forced my mouth into a firm line.
Raf slowly looked back to Madelyn, his gaze moving between her, the awaiting bags, and the jewelry before he saw what I’d seen. He reached out and grabbed her hand, stopping her from revealing one of the bags she’d bought.
“Oh! Isn’t it cute? This lady next to me at the nail salon had one, and I had to have it,” she said flippantly. “I got it on my way to Hermès.”
Bringing Madelyn’s wrist closer to inspect the Rolex there, Raf stared for long seconds before releasing her just as slowly. “How much did you spend?” he asked as she set the first bag on the counter.
“Compared to what you just gave that charity?” She scoffed. “Nothing.”
It took everything to choke back the gasp that threatened to rip from me. But Raf went utterly still.
I needed to leave.
I needed to get out of there before I said something because it wasn’t my place. His money wasn’t my problem. What he and Madelyn did with their lives wasn’t my problem as long as it didn’t affect Avalee.
“Madelyn . . . how much did you spend?”
At his use of her full name, I turned, wrapped my hands around Avalee’s shoulders, and started steering her out of the kitchen.
“I don’t know. About a hundred?”
My head slowly turned their way. Shock filling me at how casually she spoke, as if money was nothing. How she looked at him as if she was mad that he wasn’t sharing in her excitement.
Madelyn huffed when Raf just stared at her. “What does it matter? You dropped that on a car!”
“A car, Madelyn. A car gets us places.”
I ushered Avalee even faster when a hard knock sounded, echoing through the empty house. “I’ll get it,” I murmured.
“This is not your house anymore,” Madelyn snapped.
“Jesus Christ, Madelyn, stop,” Raf barked as his furious, reverberating steps followed me to the door after I left Avalee at her picnic area.
“So many red flags,” I said softly, knowing he could hear me.
“Not the time, Madison.”
I didn’t respond as I continued into the large entryway. Needing to get away from him and Madelyn for at least a second before I said more than I should.
But then I was opening the door, and my chest was seizing. My lungs aching and screaming for oxygen that I didn’t know how to pull in because I couldn’t move. I was frozen. Staring at where Hunter Dixon stood on the porch, staring at me. Looking like he’d been every bit as miserable as I had.
“Can I help you?” Raf asked as he came up beside me, but Hunter didn’t look away from me. Didn’t respond.
“What are you doing here?” I finally managed to ask, my voice twisting with emotion.
Raf held up a hand as he quickly put it together. “Wait, are you the reason Madi looks the way she does? Are you Texas?”
Hunter’s jaw ticked as his gaze shifted to the man beside me long enough to ask, “You the asshole who cheated on her?”
A sharp, disbelieving laugh fled from Raf. “Yeah, all right.”
He grabbed the door and started moving me out of the way so he could close it on Hunter, and I reacted. Putting one hand on the door and the other on Raf’s chest. “Stop.”
“Madi—”
“Raf, stop.” My eyes bounced over his apprehensive stare, and I lowered my voice to a whisper. “You don’t get to insert yourself in this.” When Raf turned to leave after a second of hesitation, my stare moved back to Hunter. Locked on the way he was looking at me like he was never going to let me out of his sight again. “What are you doing here?”