Twenty
Maddox
Later that night, I knocked on my sister’s front door.
“Come in,” Kelly called from the other side.
I entered the modest ranch house and looked around. My sister had done okay for herself since I was gone. Her home was small and the furniture older, but it was clean, and whatever she was cooking in the kitchen smelled delicious.
“Hey,” she said, peeking her head around the corner. “I’m just finishing up. Come help me.”
“What do you need help with?” I asked when I walked into the room.
She handed me a bowl of mashed potatoes. “Put this on the table, will ya?”
“No problem.”
“Serena, come and set the table,” she yelled too close to my ear.
I rubbed my offended drum. “Damn, that was loud.”
She laughed. “Sorry.”
“No, you’re not.”
She smiled over her shoulder.
Serena walked into the kitchen. “Uncle Maddox, you made it.”
I loved how this kid’s face lit up when she saw me. “Sure did. Why would I want to miss this?”
She beamed. “You wouldn’t. Mom makes the best pot roast in town.”
“So, that’s what smells so good.”
“Serena, table,” Kelly reminded her daughter. “You can put the beans on the table, Maddox.”
“What do you want to drink, Uncle Maddox?”
“I’ll take a beer if you have one.”
Kelly shook her head. “We don’t have any alcohol in this house.”
“Because of when Mom visits?” I asked.
“Because I don’t want to be like her,” Kelly said.
I wanted to tell my sister I was proud of her, but her shoulders were squared, and I could tell she didn’t want me commenting.
“I’ll just take a water, please,” I told Serena.
A few minutes later, we sat down to eat.
“Thanks for having me over.”
“Yeah, well, you’re my little brother. I can’t be mad at you forever.”
“Love you, too, sis.” I looked at Serena. “So, what have you been up to this week? Having fun on your summer vacation?”
Her eyes rounded with excitement. “Well, since Addison took the day off on Monday, I went to the beach with my friends. And then yesterday—”
“Hold up. What does Addison have to do with anything?”
My sister looked guilty, but Serena didn’t seem to notice.
“I work for her,” my niece said.
I swung my head toward Kelly.
She shrugged. “It’s a good gig. She pays Serena well and is flexible. She’s going to let Serena stay on when she goes to class this fall.”
Serena’s face grew grim. “What’s wrong with me working for Addison?” she asked, confused.
I narrowed my eyes at my sister. She knew Addison had ditched me all those years ago, and she’d let her daughter go and work for the woman.
“What the fuck?”
Kelly narrowed her eyes. “Language. And stop looking at me like that. I know you gave Addison a ride today. I know your car isn’t the only thing she’s riding.”
I sat back in my chair.
“Don’t look surprised. This is Brook Creek, remember? Everyone knows what everyone else is doing.”
I scowled back. “I know I gave her a ride. It’s just…” I still felt betrayed. It was one thing for me to involve myself with my ex-girlfriend, but I was hurt that Kelly had let Serena go work for Addison without any regard as to how I’d feel.
It especially stung after what had happened when I brought Addison home this morning. There was a moment when she was playing with my hair that I thought she was remembering us together. I almost kissed her. Something I’d been avoiding doing since I came back in town, even when we had sex. Kissing involved something more than just sex did.
But, when I asked Addison what she was thinking about, she responded with nothing. I’d thought she’d wrung all the pain she could from me, but there I’d been, with a fresh wound.
Serena’s revelation was like pouring salt into it.
My sister sighed and looked apologetic. She set her fork, tongs down, on her plate. “Look, I’m sorry. I know she wasn’t there for you when you needed her. But I had to think about Serena first. And it’s not like you were around to ask. Please try to understand.”
I took a deep breath. I couldn’t stay mad. “I understand. Please, next time, tell me, so I’m not blindsided like that.”
Kelly nodded at the same time Serena said, “What are you two talking about?” She was eyeing the two of us like we were going to tell her something bad.
I smiled at my niece. “Nothing. It was a long time ago.” I took another bite of food and swallowed. “Continue with your story. What else were you going to say?”
Serena’s grin returned. “Well, Tuesday, Addison got a phone call that a project she’d been working on was going to happen.”
“Oh, yeah? What’s that?”
“Some big company is going to build a golf course here. It’ll open up jobs for the community and bring in revenue to our town.”
“You sound like a brochure,” Kelly said.
Serena shrugged. “I’m just repeating what Addison said.”
“A golf course, huh? That should be fun.”
My sister’s jaw dropped. “You play golf now?”
“Fu—” I looked at my niece. “Hell no. But it might be fun for others.”
Serena laughed. “You’re funny, Uncle Maddox.”
“Thanks. I think.”
“So, Addison didn’t tell you any of this?” Serena asked.
“I think they’re too busy for work talk,” Kelly said.
I shot her a look. I knew Serena was eighteen, but still, she didn’t need to hear about her uncle’s sex life. Or her boss’s.
“Um, no. Addison was preoccupied with one of her clients I took her to see this morning. We didn’t really discuss anything else. Then, she went to work, and so did I. I didn’t see her the rest of the day.”
Serena shrugged. “Oh, well, you’ll have to ask her about it sometime.”
“I might do that. But I don’t think it’ll be anytime soon. Her car is going to be ready tomorrow.” I looked at Kelly. “I won’t be giving her any more rides.”
That night, after I returned home from dinner, I stayed strong. I didn’t give Addison’s place a second look as I went upstairs to my own.
Twenty-One
Addison
Thursday started out like all my mornings the last few years had. Alone.
I’d heard Maddox come home last night, and I had lain in bed for what felt like hours, but he never came to visit me. I’d even gone to bed early in preparation for some hot sex.
When he hadn’t shown, I’d been upset, and then I was freaked out that I was upset. The man hadn’t even been back in town for a week, and I was already planning things in my life around him. Hadn’t I already learned that he couldn’t be counted on?
Thank God I didn’t have any panicked phone calls this morning, and I didn’t need to go anywhere that I couldn’t walk to. Although, at this point, I would ask someone else if I could borrow their car before I asked Maddox to take me anywhere.