Take a Chance on Me(51)

Shit. He reared away, moving to the edge of the bed. Dropping his head into his palms, he fought to find his normal composure. But it was a lost cause. Not when the truth was so clear, he’d need to be blind, deaf, and dumb not to see it.

Soft fingers touched his back as she moved behind him. He clenched his jaw, fighting equally powerful urges to lash out and possess. Instead, he didn’t speak, didn’t dare move. He was immobile with an unfamiliar torrent of emotions.

He was an idiot.

All this time, he’d been telling himself he was protecting Maddie, taking it easy on her, taking it slow so she wouldn’t run.

It was all bullshit.

He wasn’t protecting her. He was protecting himself. He was waiting for the control that was always so damn easy for him to kick in, waiting for the distance he always experienced to make Maddie safe for him. But that was never going to happen, because she wasn’t safe, and never would be.


“Mitch.” Her soft voice was a whisper against his skin. “Please tell me what’s wrong.”

What was he supposed to say? That he was too emotional to have sex with her? That he’d thought it’d be fun to show her a good time, but now it wasn’t enough? That after three measly days he didn’t know if he could handle being her five-day fantasy f*ck before she went back to Chicago to start her real life?

He laughed, a harsh sound so bitter that he cringed.

No one could know how fast or hard he’d fallen. No one. Least of all Maddie, who didn’t need one more reason to nail herself to the cross.

He needed to get the hell away so he could think without her distracting presence. He took a deep breath before he picked up her hand and pressed it to his lips. “I’m sorry, Maddie.”

“Please,” she said, her tone threaded with worry. “Talk to me.”

He wanted to explain that it wasn’t her, it was him, but he couldn’t utter the cliché-ridden words. He stood up and walked to the bedroom door. “I’ll be back and I promise we’ll talk.”

He didn’t know what he’d say, but he’d figure that out later. Not waiting for an answer, he walked out of the room and down the stairs, and slammed out of the house like the devil chased him.





Chapter Fourteen



Arms wrapped around her knees, Maddie peered into the dark night. A warm breeze blew over her skin as she sat on the front porch, searching the shadows for any clue to where Mitch might have run off to. The shiny, black BMW sat in the driveway, so he hadn’t driven away, but where was he?

Throat tight, she swallowed hard. She didn’t understand what had happened. One second, everything had been hot and passionate, exactly the way she wanted it, and the next, it was like she’d had the plague.

A heavy weight sat on her chest as she blinked back tears. Maybe she just wasn’t cut out for this? Everything had gone crazy the second she’d climbed out the window, and no matter how hard she tried to take control of her destiny, something always got in the way.

She bit the inside of her cheek. Maybe God really was punishing her.

With her mind racing, she tried to determine her next move. She felt lost. Alone. Sad. All her previous bravado sifted through her fingers like grains of sand.

What did she do now?

She stared up into the night sky until the bright stars blurred. No answer was forthcoming, and the mysteries of her life continued to elude her.

Headlights turned into the drive next door and a pickup truck slowly pulled up to the side of the Roberts’ lemon-colored house. The engine shut off and Sam jumped out of the cab. Lips pressed together, Maddie didn’t move, hoping he wouldn’t see her as he walked around to the passenger seat and pulled out a big duffel bag.

He shut the door and went still. His head cocked to the side before he slowly swiveled in her direction. The moon hung low and bright in the sky and his blond hair almost glowed as he caught sight of her.

He waved. “Hey, Maddie.”

“Hi, Sam,” she said, hoping she sounded friendly but not approachable.

He watched her, not making any move to come closer, but not heading in the direction of his house. One hand slid into tight, faded jeans that fit his lean body like a second skin.

Maddie didn’t like the way he studied her one bit.

He took a step, and her heart leapt with hope, only instead of heading toward his house, he came toward her.

Ugh! Not now.

“What’s-a matter? Can’t sleep?” His words were casual, friendly.

She released her hold on her knees and relaxed, putting her hands behind her on the floor of the porch. “Just restless.”

He walked over, dropped the bag at the bottom of the steps, and then climbed to sit down next to her. “You’re one of those overthinkers, aren’t you?”

Maddie stared into the night sky, trying to devise a way to get rid of her uninvited guest. On the surface, he was all harmless charm, open and affable. All lazy, satisfied cat. Yet somehow Maddie didn’t quite buy it.

He sat there for a while, staring up at the stars with her, his elbows propped on his knees. Finally, he sighed. “What happened?”

“What makes you think anything happened?” she said, her tone stiff.

He glanced at the door behind them, then gave her a wide, aw-shucks smile. “Lucky guess.”

She wanted to curl into a protective ball, but she kept her posture open. “Everything’s fine.”