Page 98 of Finding Fate
“Maddox, calm down until we talk to someone that will give us straight answers. You’re going to wake him up,” Gabby whispers behind the wall we built to give them privacy from someone walking down the stairs.
“Fuck that, Gab. I pay bills here too. I’m not freeloading. If they wanted to kick me out, they could have at least given me a notice. I thought everything was fine when we left.”
“Kick them out? Oh my god. Is that seriously the first conclusion he would come to? He should know better.” Riggan told me this would likely happen by keeping it a secret. Maddox has a short fuse and packs a mean punch when his anger is set off. He doesn’t like being blindsided. Saw that once. But I’d rather calm the storm than spoil the surprise. Do now and ask for forgive later kind of thing. It’s worth it to me.
I won’t lie. Sometimes I’m jealous—in a good way—that Gabby and Konnor have a separate friendship and Maddox and Sayler do. I feel left out in ways. It doesn’t seem to bother Riggan all that much. My guy friend is in Hawaii living it up. Landon is hard to get close to. He’s closed off. He’s identical to my sister. I saw it early on. They’d be perfect for each other. I’m hoping this will bring me and Maddox closer in a friendship like Riggan and I slowly have since that day he came in mine and Konnor’s office after he got back from taking Sayler to his mom’s and the New York trip where he took Abby’s things to someone.
My belly flutters as the door swings open to Maddox charging in with a little boy attached to his front sleeping. I could blame it on the baby since I now know what it feels like when it moves inside of me, but I’m almost positive it’s related to nerves instead.
I love the look of fatherhood on a man. It’s this weird little fetish I’ve developed. I can’t wait to see Konnor like that. It’s a recurring nightmare I used to have after the abortion. Konnor was always holding the baby I got rid of. At the end of the dream the baby always vanished out of his arms and I would wake up in a sweat. It tormented me for a year.
Maddox halts when he looks at all four of us. Gabby holds out her hands to avoid crashing into him. He looks around at the main space that is likely much smaller than he remembers since it’s no longer an open floor plan. It’s definitely a much different look. “What is this?”
“Your apartment,” I answer, when his eyes fall on mine. Konnor wraps his arms around me, his hands cradling my small bump, and places his chin on my shoulder.
“What?” he whispers, like he’s trying to sort that out in his head.
Why the hell am I so nervous? Maybe because I’m like some crazy cat lady, only instead of hoarding cats I’m hoarding people. “Tell them, baby,” Konnor urges me.
“You came to me and asked if you could stay with Madden until you could find a place big enough for all of you. What bothered me the most is that you felt you needed to ask, like this isn’t your home too. It made me realize that maybe somehow I haven’t made you feel like this is your home since you were single when you moved in. I thought it was obvious when I brought you here, and when I wanted Riggan and Sayler to stay despite the pregnancy and what I was going through at the time, giving them free reign to bring the baby in whichever way they saw fit. Riggan’s old room is the nursery because that’s what they wanted it to be. I’ve never felt overcrowded, even knowing we are about to bring three babies and a child into the mix. Then I thought that maybe somehow I haven’t made Gabby feel welcome enough and you weren’t telling me something. The truth is, I’m not ready for either of you to leave. I know one day all of you are going to buy your own house and there is nothing I can do about that, but it’s too soon for me. I know our lifestyle isn’t typical, but it’s ours, so I came up with a damn good argument to hold you here. Space is what you needed. We made a way by sectioning off the square footage into a master bedroom, a small bedroom, and a recessed nook big enough for a crib and dresser and maybe an armoire to hang clothes. It’s a shared bathroom but it’s a full bath. The kitchenette is enough to give you your privacy if you want some small family quick meals while still having to come to dinner with the rest of us. This place is yours for as long as you want it to be. The main door has a lock with a key. The way I see it, Madden is just coming home. He has a bedroom with furniture. There are gift cards on your nightstand to go shopping for anything he needs. I wasn’t stupid enough to offer you cash. I know Maddox is like the other boys with his pride.”
Maddox clears his throat. “How much do I owe you?”
“It’s a gift, not a handout. I don’t give a damn about the money.”
A tear runs down Gabby’s cheek. “Why would you do this for us?”
My own emotions spike, but I force back the tears. “Because you’re my family, and family helps family, especially during a time of need. All I want in return is for you to stay. I was looking forward to us being together while we raised our babies. It’s not every day you see friends pregnant together. I’m taking it as a sign we were meant to find each other.”
Gabby starts walking toward me at a quick pace and throws her arms around me a moment after Konnor steps back, as if he already knew what she was going to do before she did it. I return the hug. “Thank you. I’ll never forget this. And I’ll always be thankful that you befriended me when you had every right to hate me. He was really torn up without you, and now I know why. Your heart is unforgettable, Presley.”
“I could say the same about you. I’m happy you got your son back.”
“Thank you.” She pulls away as Maddox passes by silently, mumbling he’s going to lay Madden down, finding his room easily. “He’s not being rude. I promise. He gets quiet when he’s emotional until he sorts through it.”
Riggan stands and helps Sayler up. “We’re going to turn in and give y’all some privacy.”
Konnor takes my hand. “We have business to finish,” he says, already pulling me away. I wink at her, laughter erupting as we walk through the door and hit the stairs.
As we come into our room and shut the door, he jerks his tee shirt off, pushing me toward our bed. “Have you changed your mind? If you have, I totally understand, baby. No pressure.”
I sashay over to him, my hands already working his jeans open. My turn to show him how grateful I am for him. “Hell no. The thought of sucking your dick makes my mouth water.”
He groans. “How is this my life?”
I drop to my knees and jerk his jeans down, already tasting the tip. I look up at him, his impressive size taking up so much of my small hand. I smile. “And to think, this is only the beginning.”
Then I wrap my lips around it and use his compliment as motivation. He grips my thick hair on the first pass. “Fuck, baby, that mouth. All those years I pictured this never even came close to the real thing.”
Funny how that works. I could say the same exact thing.
Gabby
The space is quiet now that we’re alone and the only lights that were on in the main area when we came in are the lamps on the end tables that anchor each side of the couch—which has track marks on all the cushions as if it was steam cleaned. Thank you, Presley, because I’ve heard what this space used to be used for, and no man would ever think of cleaning it.
Madden’s ceiling light turns off, but enough light shines out to confirm some sort of lamp must be on. I wait a few minutes, but Maddox doesn’t come out, so I walk to the door to him sitting against the wall on the floor across from the small twin-size bed, watching Madden sleep in his own adorable room with tears running down his face. My heart stalls. “Baby?”
He breaks like he was barely holding it together, placing one large hand over his eyes to shield them, his shoulders shaking, and it breaks my heart like the day he was having an anxiety attack after I was a bitch to him about the two girls he slept with the day after we got back together when my dad took me. This isn’t a few tears this is a full breakdown.