by Queen Pen
I hadn’t realized I was staring until I heard him clear his throat. He was off the phone and looking at me from where he sat confidently smirking at me. “You ready to go?”
“Yes!” I squeaked out before blushing profusely.
He stood up and pushed the elevator button. The ride down to the club was silent as I awkwardly tried to avoid his eyes while he stared intently at me. He chuckled softly and my head whipped up so I could meet his gaze. “Did you just laugh?”
He had the same menacing smirk on his face, but I wasn’t afraid of his hardened face anymore. Instead, I found myself wanting to stare at it more, just as long as he was looking away from me. His gaze was too intense for me to handle, but I loved the moments where he wasn’t looking at me and I caught him deep in thought. I found myself longing for more of those moments.
“Yeah,” he said defensively.
“I was—I mean I just…I didn’t know you were capable of laughing.” I sputtered.
He gave me a puzzled look, which was somehow still mixed in with a menacing look. “Everyone can laugh.”
“I know, I just have never seen you actually smile, let alone laugh. That’s all.”
He eyed me for a moment and thankfully the elevator dinged indicating we reached our floor. I walked off the elevator ahead of him. I could feel his eyes on me, and my cheeks reddened again. Catching up to me he said, “It takes a lot for me to smile.”
I was surprised that he was continuing the conversation, but I took it in stride and asked, “well what was so funny, then?”
“You.” He said as he navigated us through a crowd of people.
“Me?” I asked. I didn’t like the fact that he found me funny. My feelings were honestly a bit hurt.
“Yeah, the fact that you hate being stared at, but you never tell me to stop.” He said nonchalantly.
I stopped in my tracks and he halted as well as he looked down at me. My first instinct was to look away, but I maintained eye contact as I asked, “who say’s I hate being stared at? I mean, it is rude to stare, but maybe I don’t mind it. I mean…I do, but I don’t.”
I knew I was rambling now and Maddey’s smirk just got bigger and bigger as I became more flustered that he was downright smiling now. It was the most beautiful site I had ever seen. His teeth were perfect and straight, and he had a set of dimples that were so deep, I was sure my pinky finger could fit right into them. His eyes sparkled as I got lost in his smile.
Finally, I broke the silence and softly said, “okay, New rule. No more staring.”
He laughed down at me and I was lost in the sound of it. This man…the man they called The Beast, the man that killed innocent people, the man that had my father locked up in a room, and the man that I thought was incapable of feeling anything, but anger had the most beautiful laugh I had ever heard. His eyes crinkled as he let out a deep belly laugh. Somehow, I didn’t feel insulted that he was laughing at me. Instead, I was enamored and delighted that I got to witness this moment.
“Was that you putting your foot down?” He asked with his head cocked to the side.
“Yep. I tend to use the tactful approach rather than scaring people into getting what I want,” I said, still staring up into his eyes.
He nodded his head, his smile gone as he broke the little staring contest we were having. He took a step away from me and I was worried that I had ruined his good mood, but was relieved when he reached his hand out for mine. I hesitantly took it. His hand engulfed mine as he guided us towards the club entrance.
It was still fairly early, so the line wasn’t too long to get in but Maddey lead us to the front of the line and through the door. We walked through the club and into the restaurant without waiting to be seated. He guided me to the back of the restaurant to a secluded area with a curtain for added privacy.
We sat down across from each other and I noticed Maddey was staring again. “Didn’t we just have a conversation about staring?”
He grumbled but looked away as I grinned to myself at my small victory. Maybe people never got what they wanted from Maddey because they were too intimidated to tell him what it was, they wanted. I liked this side of Maddey. He was almost being playful, but in his own way, of course. I glanced over at him and he was distracted with the menu, which gave me the chance to study him. His beard was trimmed and lined to perfection. His thick lips were always knotted up in a grimace, but at this moment his features were relaxed as he contemplated the menu. His dark brown eyes focused, and his brows knitted together, something I noticed that he did when he was in deep thought. A waitress bustled through the curtain and startled me. I quickly pulled my eyes away from him as I grabbed my menu and scanned it.
“How are you tonight, Mr. Adams?” The waitress asked. Her tone was heavy with seduction and it caused me to look up at her.
Maddey didn’t seem to notice. He was still looking at the menu when he responded, “fine. Can we get the best bottle of Sauvignon Blanc and the truffle risotto cakes to start?” He looked at me and added, “was there anything else you wanted for an appetizer?”
For the first time, the waitress glanced at me with a scowl on her face. I smiled up at her sweetly, “can we also have the lobster tacos?”
“Sure,” she mumbled before turning her gaze back on Maddey who was now staring at me again. “Anything else, Mr. Adams?”
“Nah. Give us a few minutes to put our entrée order in.” He didn’t look her way again, so she finally realized that she had been dismissed.
I giggled to myself as I watched her fling the curtains out of the way angrily. I wasn’t even sure why I was so elated at the fact that Maddey hadn’t even looked her way even though the girl desperately wanted him to. It wasn’t as if Maddey and I were here on a date, either, but I looked up and realized he was still looking at me. He had eyes for only me right now, which caused my heart to flutter. I blushed and looked back down at my menu.
“What’s so funny?” Maddey asked as I buried my face in the menu.
“Nothing,” I responded, hoping that he would let the subject drop.
He reached his hand out and lowered my menu so that I was forced to look into his brown eyes. “You giggled, I just wanted to know what was so funny.”
Maddey wasn’t someone that you could easily say no to, so I sighed and said, “our waitress was trying hard to get your attention. I laughed because you didn’t even notice.”
He grinned at me, “but you damn sure did.”
I blushed again and lifted the menu up again to distract me from his intense stare. I was thankful that he left me alone this time. A few minutes passed and the waitress came back with our appetizers and the wine. She was still doing the most to catch Maddey’s attention. I’d noticed that she hiked her skirt up and unbuttoned a few top buttons on her uniform. I rolled my eyes, but kept quiet.
When she left again, she had taken away the menu as well as my excuse not to look at Maddey. Our eyes met and we got lost in silence as we looked at each other. Not knowing what else to say, I blurted out, “thanks again for the library. That was really sweet.”
His head snapped back as if I had slapped him, “sweet?” He asked.
“Yeah…you know, nice?” I wasn’t sure what was so confusing about my appreciation towards what he had done for me.
“Nobody has ever told me I was sweet before,” he said.
I laughed, “I suppose people wouldn’t.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” He asked sitting back in his chair.
“You must know that you aren’t the friendliest person to be around,” I cocked my head to the side.
His brow furrowed as he thought about what I said. He didn’t respond. He just shook his head and popped the cork on the wine bottle. He poured some into my glass, and then his own. I grasped my glass and gulped it down. Being with Maddey was draining because I never knew what his responses would be when I said certain things, or anything for that matter.
Maddey and I grabbed a lobster t
aco and a risotto cake and dug in. By the time our entrees came, I’d had three glasses of wine and I was buzzing. I stuffed my face with the pasta I had ordered, and we surprisingly had a good conversation. Maddey mostly asked questions about me and avoided talking too much about himself, but still, I was loosening up around him.
When we got up to leave, we’d drank the whole bottle of wine between the two of us, so I was definitely feeling myself. I giggled as I swayed on the spot, causing Maddey to hold me sturdy. He smirked down at me, “are you sure you want to go to Twin Stonerz?”
“Yep! I haven’t smoked in days.”
“Why do you like smoking so much?” He asked with his hand still on my lower back.
I shrugged, “it helps me escape reality.”
“And why would you want to do that shit?” He grimaced.
The curtains flew open again and our waitress walked in, which I was actually thankful for this time. I didn’t want to talk about my past or the many demons I harbored within myself.
“Is there anything else you need, Mr. Adams?” The waitress purred. She even went as far as to walk her fingers up his massive biceps and lick her lips up at him.
He smacked her hands away from him and growled, “Nah, but if you want a tip, here you go. Don’t ever flirt with your fuckin boss while he’s on a date. You’re fired.”
Her jaw dropped and she stood there shocked as Maddey placed his hand on the small of my back and led me out of the curtains. I was well over tipsy at this point and sober me would have felt bad for the girl but intoxicated me took one more glance over my shoulder and stuck my tongue out at her as I pranced along with Maddey out of the restaurant.
Eleven
A few days passed since our little outing and I had to admit to myself that I was enjoying Maddey’s company more as each day wore on. The morning after dinner in the restaurant and smoking until the sun came up, I woke up to some edibles on my nightstand which made me smile. It was a little weird that someone crept into my room, when I was sleeping to put those there, but the gesture was heartwarming all the same.
Ms. Keddle came in that morning all smiles and let me know that Maddey was giving me free reign of the house, except for his office, which was located in the west wing on the second floor. I spent my days playing with Chip, eating lunch with Luken and Cornelius and looking forward to dinners with Maddey. I stopped feeling dread about dinnertime, but instead, I became excited with butterflies in my stomach.
Each day I woke up to edibles and yesterday he’d even included a little note that read I’m changing up dinner tonight. Be ready at eight. I’d spent all day trying to pry the surprise out of Ms. Keddle. I even asked Chip, but they were sworn to secrecy. I met Maddey in the lobby of the suit at eight on the dot and he brought me up to the rooftop where we watched the sun set and enjoyed chicken and waffles which he’d learned was my favorite meal the previous day.
Last night, I’d tried to stay up and sneak a peek at who was leaving me the goodies on my nightstand table, but around one in the morning, sleep over came me and I woke up to Maddey sitting in the chair by my bed. I was a little taken aback, but not angry. I’d gotten used to his ways. He didn’t know what privacy was, apparently, and I’ve accepted it by now.
I groaned, “what are you doing in here, Maddey?” I pulled the covers up to my chin and looked at him.
He was staring at me intently, “get yo ass up, Bel.”
“I am up, and how long have you been sitting there, creep?” I smiled so he would know I was joking.
He ignored me, “sit up. I have some shit I want to talk to you about.”
I nodded my head seriously and sat up. I was a little self-conscious of the tank top I had on since I didn’t have a bra on, but I crossed my arms over my chest and waited for him to start talking.
He pulled something out of his pocket and my eyes widened. “Before you say anything, I want you to listen to me, Rebel. I’m giving you yo shit back, but I would hope that you wouldn’t tell anyone about why you’re really here. I know shit was rough when you first got here, but we’ve been vibin for the past week and shit, so I want to put that shit behind us.”
I didn’t know what to say. I guess I had been living in this fairytale land where I didn’t have to worry about the outside world. I felt bad to admit that I had even stopped thinking about my daddy and how he must be going insane wondering if I was okay or not. I looked deep into Maddey’s eyes and knew that I wouldn’t betray him like that. Underneath the hardcore, rock solid exterior was a thoughtful and kind man. He’d grown to become my friend and as crappy as it was when I found my father locked up like a criminal in this very hotel, I was able to forgive him for that.
Of course, the elephant in the room was the impending case against him and how I was supposed to help him win it, but I hadn’t even thought about that as we were getting to know each other these past few days. I sighed and looked at Maddey who was waiting for me to respond.
“Madden, I won’t tell anyone why I am here. Not the real reason, anyways. I won’t call for anyone to come rescue me, either. I just want to talk to my dad…make sure he’s okay and reassure him that I’m okay, but Maddey…we do need to talk about your case. I want to help you, but I need to know what happened. I need help. I need to know what you plan on doing to me if we lose…”
I let the end of my sentence trail off. Maddey sighed and ran his hand over his face. “Aight, man. We can talk about that shit at dinner.”
He stood up and his tall frame loomed over me as he walked towards the bed and handed me my phone. “I’m trusting you with this shit, Rebel. Don’t let me down.”
With that, he walked out of the room and left me in a swirl of emotions. I was excited to talk to my dad, scared to hear more about Maddey’s case, but most of all I felt a yearning for Maddey like I had never felt before. I shook that feeling off and unlocked my phone.
I had hundreds of texts, missed calls, and voicemails. I was too overwhelmed to check them all. Instead, I took a deep breath and called my dad. It barely rang once before he answered.
“Hello? Bel?” He said frantically into the phone.
“Daddy, it’s me,” I whispered like a child that was about to get into trouble.
“Rebel,” he said with relief. “Baby, are you okay?”
“Daddy, I’m fine. I swear,” I assured him.
“You have to get out of there, Bel. You need to leave.” He said forcefully.
“No, it’ okay, dad. I’m fine and Maddey and I are getting along just fine and—”
“Getting along?” My dad yelled. “Honey, that man is a monster. You have to leave before he gets mad and hurts you! What if he catches you on the phone? How did you sneak it back, anyways?”
“He isn’t like that with me, daddy. He gave me my phone back so that I could check in with you.” He remained silent so I continued, “He isn’t a bad man, dad. He’s taking really good care of me and we are even making leeway on his case.”
That last part was a lie and I didn’t know why I felt the need to say it, but I did. I just didn’t want my dad to think that Maddey was a bad man, that much I knew.
“Rebel, what has he done to you? Do you not remember the shape I was in when you found me there? Him and his men are monsters and they will kill you if you lose this case for him, which you will, because it’s an impossible case.” He sighed heavily. “Why did you switch places with me?”
“I couldn’t stand to see you hurt, daddy.” I said with tears forming in my eyes. The simple thought of my dad starving and living like an animal was enough to choke me up, but I now knew the man that had done it to him, and the scenario just wasn’t adding up in my head. With me, Maddey was kind and thoughtful. He was taking good care of me and wanted me to be comfortable. He wasn’t the monster that everyone made him out to be.
“And you think that I can?” He asked.
“No, but I can handle this. He’s different with me. You have to trust me.”
; “I do trust you. It’s him I don’t trust.” He was silent for a moment before saying, “Will you have your phone with you from now on?”
“Yes, I’ll be able to answer for you day or night, dad.”
“Are you sure he’s taking care of you?” He asked warily.
“I tell you what, I’ll FaceTime you later so you can see for yourself. I just woke up and haven’t even gone to the bathroom yet. Give me an hour, okay?”
“Okay, Bel. One hour.”
“I love you, daddy.”
“I love you too, baby.”
I hung up the phone before I allowed my tears to fall. A part of me felt bad for not thinking about how my father was feeling. He hadn’t even known if I was alive or not while I was carrying on with Maddey like all of this was normal. The other part of me was sad that my dad refused to see that Maddey wasn’t a bad man at all. Not with me, anyways. The phone call with my dad left me confused and with a headache.
I grabbed my vape pen, which Maddey supplied with new THC, and took a long drag before calling Ryder.
“Rebel? What the entire fuck is wrong with you? Do you know how worried I’ve been?” She screamed.
I winced and pulled the phone away from my ear as I let her rant on. I finally heard her ask where I was, so I put the phone back to my ear and said, “I’m at my dad’s house, Ry.”
‘Think again, bitch! I’ve been in contact with your dad. He told me that he was fine, by the way. Why would you tell us something was wrong with him if there wasn’t? He wouldn’t tell me where the fuck you were, though. I swear to God I was about to come find your ass! Pregnant or not!”
I smiled, “So you went to the doctor? How are you feeling?”
“Don’t fucking change the subject!” She screeched. “I swear if it isn’t Briella and Noella, it’s you! What the fuck is wrong with you?”
I winced. Ryder always had so much on her plate and I didn’t want her to worry about me, especially while she was pregnant. I decided to tell her the truth. Well, part of it, anyways. “Ry…I’m in Vegas.”