Take a Chance on Me(95)

Mitch raised a brow. “He’s really that good?”

“Yeah, he is. He’s the guy they call when they want things off the record.”

People that talented cost money. Big money. Mitch’s gaze narrowed. “How was this information paid for?”

Shane steepled his fingers, his expression inscrutable. “She wants to save you. Let her. But it might not be a bad idea for you to take over with that trust fund of yours.”


Mitch’s lips tightened. “Have him give back her money and send me the bill.”

“Figured you’d feel that way.”

“I’m going to get her.”

“I told you I was going to be stuck with you.”

Mitch stood up, the alcoholic haze evaporating as adrenaline kicked in. “Don’t come looking for her anytime in the next couple hours.”

Shane’s eyes narrowed. “I’m not much of a take-orders kind of guy.”

“Tough. Where Maddie’s concerned, get used to it.”

“Understand that if you hurt my sister, there’s not a place on earth you’ll be able to hide. I’d better never see her cry like that again.”

Mitch ground his teeth as a muscle jumped in his cheek. He’d made her cry. He nodded. “Understood.”

Shane looked him up and down. “You want a job? I’m not as picky as those high-priced, old-school firms about reputation. You can’t get far in life without bending a few rules. I’m sure my legal team could put you to good use.”

Mitch laughed. There was no way in hell he’d be under this guy’s thumb. “Fuck, no.”

Shane shrugged. “Yeah, that’s probably stretching it.”





Mitch drove with record speed, pulling into his driveway and screeching to a halt. He was out of the car before the dust settled. He barreled through the door, yelling Maddie’s name, even though he hadn’t seen her car in the drive.

If only he hadn’t refused to talk and told her to leave. He’d been so damned sure that she’d be at his house. He hadn’t even contemplated being too late. His heart pounded as he yelled, “Maddie!”

His mom came rushing in from the kitchen. “What’s wrong?”

“Where’s Maddie?” Panic already clogged his throat.

Charlotte’s eyes widened. “She said she was going to see you at the bar.”

“And she hasn’t come back?”

“No,” she said, shaking her head “Did something happen?”

“I’ve got to find her.”

Charlotte put her hand on his arm. “What happened?”

He stiffened and looked down into his mother’s eyes. They were filled with concern, with loss and sorrow. They were sad, troubled eyes. He took a deep breath and said, “We got in a fight. I told her to leave.”

“Oh, Mitchell,” she said, whisper soft.

“I have to find her, Mom.” His voice shook. “She can’t be gone—all her stuff is here.”

“You’ll find her. Everything is going to be all right.”

It didn’t ease his anxiety. “What if she went home?”

His mother’s fingers trembled on his arm. “Then you’ll go get her.”

His throat grew so tight that he thought he might choke. “What if she won’t come back?”

“You’ll find a way to make it work. I promise.”

“How do you know?”

Her eyes grew bright and she blinked rapidly. In thirty-four years, he’d never once seen his mom shed a tear, even at her parents’ funerals. “Because you love her and she loves you.”

He couldn’t speak. Couldn’t even breathe. He managed a sharp nod.

She gave him a watery smile. “Now go and do whatever you can to fight for her.”

“I will,” he croaked out. Maddie Donovan was a woman worth fighting for, and he’d move heaven and hell to get her back.

His days of giving up were over.





Chapter Twenty-Seven



Her mom opened the front door of Maddie’s childhood home, looking like she’d aged ten years. Her faded strawberry-blond hair curled messily around her ears, ending at her chin. Fine lines etched her mouth and worry creased her forehead. Her blue eyes, rimmed with dark circles, widened. “Maddie.”

Maddie had cried the whole way from Revival to Chicago and thought she’d had no more tears left. She was wrong.

She burst into sobs that shook her body and caused the hiccups to start all over again.

Shannon Donavan took her daughter in her sturdy arms and pulled her close. “Baby girl, I’ve been worried sick about you.”

This caused a fresh batch of hysterics that left Maddie a weeping mess as her mom shuffled her into the seldom-used formal living room and nestled Maddie into the couch. She sat down next to her, and once again wrapped her into a warm embrace.

With a wrenching cry, Maddie said, “I’m s-so s-s-sorry.”

Shannon hushed her and rocked back and forth as she had when Maddie had been a child.

Maddie cried.

Her mom held her.

She sobbed uncontrollably for her father, her past mistakes, her abandoned wedding, and most of all, for Mitch.