Page 43 of Long Hard Road
“She ran back that way,” Chase said, pointing toward the office. “Go find her. I can help Rhys man the bar.”
“Thanks.” I pushed my way through the crowd until I reached the narrow hallway that led to the office. It was cracked open and I heard a sniffle inside. “Madison?”
“Yeah.” She let out another sniffle as I pushed open the door. Her back was facing me and in the darkness I could only make out her silhouette. “I’m fine, Nate.”
“I always cry when I’m fine.”
Madison laughed and that was all the encouragement I needed to step behind her and slide an arm around her waist. My other arm wrapped around her chest and I pulled her tight against me. “Did I scare you, angel?”
“A little bit.”
“I’m sorry.” I dropped my face into the curve of her neck and breathed in deep. “I have a bit of a history with Jimmy Macalister. Seeing him touch you like that triggered me.”
“Have you really killed people?”
I forgot that I’d let that slip during my tirade. It wasn’t something I would ever admit when I was in control of myself. But Madison deserved the truth. “Yes.”
“How many?” Her voice was so quiet it wasn’t even a whisper, it was more like a breath.
“I don’t know. I didn’t count. It was war, Madison. It was kill or be killed.”
“But you chose to enlist.”
“I did.” I pressed my lips to the spot just below her ear. “I’m not proud of everything I’ve done, but I didn’t join the military because I wanted to shoot people. I enlisted to serve my country and be a part of something bigger than myself. I wanted to have a purpose and do good in the world. For the most part, that’s what I did. I’m not ashamed of my service.”
“You shouldn’t be. I’m not judging you or shaming you, Nate. I just want to know more about that time in your life so I can understand you better. Maybe understand how you went from being the kind man who treats me sweetly to the guy slamming someone against a wall and threatening to cut off his balls.” She brought her hands up to my forearm. “It didn’t seem like you even knew I was there.”
“I didn’t at first. But I felt it when you touched me, Madison. Your voice brought me back.” I touched my lips to her earlobe and her whole body shivered. “You don’t have to be scared of me. I’ve never lost control and hurt someone and I would absolutely never, ever hurt you.”
“We can’t be back here. Rhys can’t handle everything by himself.” She squirmed to get away but I kept my arms tight around her.
“Madison, I need to know that you heard what I just said. Even if you don’t believe it yet, I need to know that you heard me when I said that I will never hurt you.”
“I heard you.” Her fingers pressed harder into my forearm. “I’m not afraid of you hurting me, Nate. Not physically anyway.”
It hurt to hear her admit that she thought I would hurt her in any way, but I understood. I felt the same way about her. After our third day together, I knew that there was something special between us. Something that, given the right circumstances, could be incredible. But we both knew she would be leaving Crestwood in a few weeks and the closer we got now, the harder it was going to be to say goodbye.
“I’m going to head back out there. Take more time if you need it.” I refrained from kissing her cheek and reluctantly loosened my arms. She was quick to step away from me, another thing that hurt.
“I’ll come with you,” she said, not meeting my eyes.
Chase was living his best life behind the bar, pouring liquor into a glass with dramatic flair. Rhys let out a relieved breath when I stepped behind the bar. “He broke three glasses while you were gone.”
“I’ll handle it.” It was nice to focus on something familiar– my brother acting like an idiot. That was something I knew how to handle, unlike the persistent tugging in my chest every time I looked at Madison.
The rest of the night passed uneventfully. Madison stayed behind the bar and Rhys handled all the cleanup of the tables. I was glad to know she wouldn’t be manhandled by any more drunk men, but being confined to such a small space with her was akin to torture. A completely enjoyable, erotic torture.
Chase and Ronan stuck around after last call to help us close up the bar. Madison laughed at Chase’s pathetic attempt at sweeping the floor and Ronan caught me watching them.
“You’ve got some drool, man,” he said, throwing a rag at me.
“Shut up.” I snatched the rag and used it to wipe the table in front of me.
“I like her.” He nodded across the bar. “Madison. She’s funny. Sweet. Doesn’t get easily offended by Chase’s ridiculousness.”
“She’s a great girl,” I agreed as casually as possible.
We both watched as Madison bent over to pick up a beer bottle that had rolled under one of the tables. She got on her knees and ducked low, sticking her ass straight at us. It was a perfect ass. When she reached the bottle, she let out a happy little yelp and held it up triumphantly as she turned to smile at us. The desire pooling low in my stomach dropped straight to my dick.