by Jamie Carie
Jake’s eyes were full of mirth. He took her hands into his and squeezed lightly. “I can’t believe you picked the Elvis wedding over the gondola,” he whispered in mock horror.
“What can I say?” Maddie shrugged a bare shoulder. “I’m a fan.”
They both laughed.
“Shhhh!” Elvis took his place in front of them. “Now, Jake, Maddie, continue to hold hands, just like you’re doing there, and gaze lovingly into each other’s eyes.”
Maddie’s chest quivered with laughter.
“This is a special occasion and one not to be entered into lightly.” He looked up at the nonexistent crowd. “Any objections? No? Good.” He looked down at an open book. “Jake Hart, do you take Maddie to be your wedded wife? Do you promise to love and protect her, cherish her and comfort her, in sickness and health, rich or poor, forsaking all others for as long as you both shall live?”
Jake’s face grew serious at the words and his gray-green eyes darkened. “I do.”
“And Maddie, dear, dear lovely Madeline Faith Goode.” Elvis looked down with serious eyes beneath his big sunglasses. “Do you promise to love and cherish, comfort and care for, in sickness and health, rich or poor, forsaking all others for as long as you both shall live?”
Maddie looked back into Jake’s eyes, took a big breath and nodded. “I do.”
“The rings.”
Oh no. They didn’t have any rings, did they? Jake had thought of everything but that. Just as she thought it, she saw him take two rings from his pocket. He pressed one, a silver band that must have been for him, into her palm. Maddie’s brows rose, shock filling her, as he positioned the other ring, a huge diamond engagement ring, round with stones all around it and running halfway up the sides of the band, over her left ring finger.
“Wow, that’s a blinder,” Elvis remarked in a genuinely awed voice.
Maddie felt her breath catch as Jake slid it further down her finger. It was the most gorgeous ring she’d ever seen.
Elvis cleared his throat. “Repeat after me. With this ring, I thee wed.”
Jake slid it into place and gripped her fingers. “With this ring, I thee wed.” He leaned toward her and whispered. “I hope you like it. Sasha sent me some photos.”
Maddie just stared at him and then at the ring, unable to speak. He’d told Sasha? She couldn’t think about that now. Elvis was giving her directions.
“Madeline, put Jake’s ring on his ring finger please and say, with this ring, I thee wed.”
She took the simple band, thinking she should get him something nicer later, and slid it down his long, basketball-playing finger. He had such long fingers, such elegant hands. The way he could handle that orange basketball, flipping it and tipping it into the basket. Just the thought of it made her flush with warmth. Those hands would be all over her soon.
She felt faint and tried to shake herself out of it. “With this ring, I thee wed.”
Elvis leaned toward her. “I didn’t think you were going to get that out, pretty lady.”
Maddie laughed. It was—truly—like a dream, a funny, out of body, wonderful dream.
“You may now light the unity candle.”
He started singing Love Me Tender while Maddie and Jake lit their individual candles and then held them together over the larger candle that sat on a marble stand. Maddie watched as the flames melded, became one and ignited the wick of the larger candle, thinking the song was right—all her dreams were being fulfilled in this moment and she would always love him. Always.
They sat close together in the limo on the way back to the hotel. Her skin flushed every time she thought about what was to come. She and Brandon had not waited until their wedding night, having been college sweethearts for two years before marrying and not really thinking it was that big of a deal. But now, she realized, it was a big deal. Having that moment to look forward to—coming together for the first time as husband and wife—made it so much more than a physical act. And she was nervous.
They sipped champagne, kissing until Jake’s lips were almost as red as hers.
“Here, let me wipe that off before we get out.” Maddie pulled a tissue from her sparkly clutch and wiped Jake’s mouth with it, laughing.
Jake’s eyes were heated. “I hope you’re not hungry.”
Maddie shook her head, the champagne making it feel light and weightless. “I’m not hungry.”
They made their way to the elevators, everyone staring, some people recognizing Jake and saying his name. She saw a few people pull out their phones and take pictures. Once inside the elevator, Jake pulled her to him and kissed her again, long and deep, their breathing becoming ragged.
They rushed to their room, laughing. Jake threw open the door and then turned and lifted her into his arms, carrying her over the threshold.
The room turned on by itself—the lights came up, the fire started—and Maddie gasped from his arms. The room was filled with flowers and balloons.
Before she could protest he carried her up the stairs and to the bedroom. She shrieked with delight.
“Now, to undress my bride.” He lowered her feet to the floor and lowered his lips back to hers.
Maddie took a shattered breath.
She’d never been so happy in all her life. And this was just the beginning. Jake Hart was so much more than a NBA star and all-around wonderful guy—he was now and forever her husband.
~~~~~~
It was nine o’clock Monday night when Jake pulled into Maddie’s parents’ driveway to drop her off.
“You’re sure you are okay with this?” Maddie asked, feeling bad.
“I don’t like it, but I understand. You want to talk to them alone.”
Maddie leaned over to kiss him, saying, “My parents will never understand that we ran off to Vegas to get married and it was so…special and romantic that I don’t want anyone sullying it with questions and judgments.”
“But you’ll tell them we’re engaged?”
“Yes, we’ll just tell everyone we’re engaged for a little while. We need to ease Max into this.” She gave him a quick kiss. “They will really think I’ve lost it if I tell them everything at once.”
Jake got out and opened the back to pull out Maddie’s luggage. He wanted to take her home now, go in there and scoop up Max and take them both home, but she was right. They could announce their engagement and then plan a small wedding for immediate family, slipping in moments to be together as often as possible. He told himself it was the right thing to do, but it wasn’t easy. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”
Maddie nodded, both excitement and apprehension in her eyes. “My parents are going to be shocked.”
“But happy, I hope?”
“I think so.”
Jake helped Maddie to the door with her luggage, letting Maddie go inside alone.
Driving home, he thought about the plans they’d made on the plane. His schedule was incredibly busy for the next weeks, so they had decided to wait until February, when there was a break in the schedule, right around Valentine’s Day, for their second wedding. Jake wanted his parents and sister there. He wondered what their reaction to all this was going to be. His father would say it was too early, that they didn’t know each other well enough, and his mother would likely be upset about the quick and simple nature of it. Her only son getting married had always been something she had looked forward to, talking about it when he had dated Jessica for two years in college. His sister, Valerie, would be great—thrilled with the romance of it. Jake grinned, thinking of her face when he told her. She would love Maddie.
He thought he would invite some of his teammates, but the likelihood of very many of them making it was slim. Most had families of their own and plans for those small breaks in the schedule, but there was Marcus, he would probably come.
Maddie was inviting her parents, her sister from college and Sasha, who already thought they were engaged.
He walked into his condo and stood in his living room,
looking at it with new eyes, the eyes of a husband and father. God help him, he was suddenly, literally overnight, a father. Would he be any good at it?
As his gaze roamed over the bachelor pad, the art deco style so different from Maddie’s office—the glass, the art, the breakables—he came to a quick realization. “This will never work.” They were going to have to move. He was faintly surprised that he didn’t mind. He imagined the three of them in a nice house up in Carmel, where many of his teammates lived with their families.
He would call his realtor first thing in the morning.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
The weather was dark, foreboding for a December morning. The wind gushed against Maddie’s small car on the highway, making her grip the wheel with white knuckles. She passed semi trucks, feeling their pull and the wind try to drag her into the sides of their vehicles. Maddie slowed down and switched the radio channel to the morning news. The weather was just wrapping up, saying that a snowstorm was brewing.
“And now, for a story from Muncie, Indiana. First Old Bank of Indiana has just announced a criminal suit against bank vice-president Sabrina Bridgestone for the embezzlement of $655,000. The bank explained in a statement that the prime perpetrator, Brandon Goode, allegedly committed suicide six months ago after learning that he couldn’t keep the crime going. They wouldn’t comment on the man’s wife, Madeline Goode of Indianapolis, but said that they were still investigating. The bank is determined to make an example of those left behind, issuing a statement of retribution to the full letter of the law.”
Maddie jerked the steering wheel back to the left, realizing that she had almost run into the side of a mini-van. “What?” She inhaled the cold air of the car, trying to focus on the road. A criminal investigation? Sabrina arrested?
She switched lanes, trying to get off the highway, finally able to pull onto a side street. She stopped the car and leaned over the steering wheel, her stomach rolling. It hadn’t ended. It wasn’t going to end. She was going to have to get an attorney.
Maddie reached for her cell phone, wanting to call Jake, wanting to lean on him, but she stared at the phone instead, thinking what if he wouldn’t want her now? She hadn’t even had a chance to talk to him more about Brandon yet. She hadn’t told him she had been questioned or that they might still call her into question. Dear God! What if she went to prison for this? She would lose everything. She could lose Max!
~~~~~~
Gloria clutched Max to her on the couch, not wanting to believe what she had just seen on the news. She had asked Maddie if she could keep Max with her today, knowing how much she and Simon were going to miss having their daughter and grandson living with them after Maddie married Jake, and wanting to spend the full day playing with him. Max had crawled up into her lap after breakfast and was sucking on his thumb, snuggled against her chest, his favorite blanket pulled up over him. She’d just felt his forehead, wondering if he was feeling well, when the perky news reporter, standing in front of the bank her son-in-law had worked for, began speaking.
Her heart lurched as they flashed a giant-sized photo of Brandon and then switched to footage of the woman Jake had been having the affair with. Outrage grew inside her seeing the tall redhead for the first time. She was glad to see the police handcuff her and haul her away in the squad car. When she heard the reporter say that the case had become a criminal case and that the wife, Madeline Goode, was also under investigation, she gently slid Max off her lap. “Grammy is going to make a phone call, Max. I’ll be right back.” She handed him a book and one of his favorite stuffed animals before hurrying for the phone.
Just as she reached for it the doorbell rang. Putting the phone back down, her heart hammering inside her chest, she wrapped her robe more securely across her chest and opened the door. Three men in black suits stood staring at her.
“Yes?” she asked through the crack in the storm door.
The man in front flashed his badge. “FBI, ma’am. Is this the house where Madeline Goode resides?”
“Yes. She’s my daughter. But she isn’t here. She is at work.”
“We have a search warrant, ma’am. We need to come in and search the house.”
“I would like to see that warrant.” Gloria opened the door a little wider. “And your badge. I’m not letting strangers into my house without being sure you are who you say you are.”
The man pulled out his badge and let her study it. He unfolded a piece of paper and handed it over through the crack. Gloria stood there trying to decipher the legalese, making the men stand out in the cold as long as possible. Max climbed down from the couch and hugged Gloria’s leg, staring wide-eyed at the agents.
Finally, Gloria stepped back. “I’ll show you to Maddie’s room.” Gloria opened the door to her daughter’s room, the room she’d grown up in as a little girl and felt tears threaten her eyes. “I don’t know what you expect to find among her things,” Gloria commented, shaking her head. “Aside from her work clothes, she doesn’t have much.”
One of the agents nodded his head once. “Does she store other things elsewhere? A storage unit, perhaps?”
Gloria wanted to curse at herself for opening her mouth. “Yes. She has a storage unit. Mostly furniture, I think.”
“We’ll need the location and key.”
“I don’t have a key and, like I said, Maddie is at work.”
“You might want to give her a call and ask her to come home immediately. The more she cooperates in this investigation, the better things will go for her.”
“She didn’t do anything wrong. Except marry a fraud.”
The man stared at her while another, younger-looking man stepped forward. “That call? This shouldn’t take long.”
“Well, don’t make a mess of it. There’s no reason to trash the room you know. Just take your time.” She lectured them like they were little boys.
“Come along, Max. Grammy will get you a snack while she talks on the phone.”
“Cookies!” Max exclaimed. It was a distraction that usually worked.
In the kitchen, Gloria got Max settled and picked back up the phone, her hand shaking. How was she going to tell her daughter that the FBI was in her bedroom?
~~~~~~
Jake was sitting in his living room, killing time before he was due for practice, his feet propped up on the coffee table, swaying back and forth, excited to begin the day and hear back from his realtor. He picked up the remote, took a big spoonful of cereal and crunched down on it as he clicked through the channels. The news was recapping when he heard the name “Brandon Goode.” Everything in him stopped as he sat up and turned up the sound. “Yes, Steve, reports are that the man responsible for the embezzlement is dead—committed suicide, some suspect, because he knew he couldn’t keep the scam going.”
“Who, then, is the criminal case against, Angie?”
Angie, the cute reporter, standing outside of a courthouse, replied in clipped tones. “Well Steve, apparently there is a mistress and a wife involved. Sabrina Bridgestone, the girlfriend of the deceased and fellow bank employee has been arrested and is now out on bail waiting a court date. The wife, Madeline Goode, is still under investigation. No word yet as to an arrest.”
“Sounds like a movie I saw once. And right here in Indiana.”
“Yes, Steve. We’ll be watching this case very closely for further developments.”
“Thank you, Angie.”
Jake sat frozen as the news moved on to more mundane stories, his body locked in shock, his cereal growing soggy. He looked at the phone, wanting to call her, but changed his mind. She would freak out when she heard about this and he wanted to be there in person for her. She was going to need him.
~~~~~~
When Maddie arrived at the Founders Level, it was to find the police already there waiting for her. Two uniformed officers stood with her boss, Jordan, as she walked out of the elevator. Her face felt like chalk, ready to break off into white chunks of humiliation, and her ste
ps faltered as she imagined them cuffing her right here in front of everyone.
“Maddie, the police have some questions about your husband,” Jordan said softly. “Let’s go into your office.”
Maddie nodded, leading the way, her knees knocking together, her jaw hurting from holding her mouth so tightly closed. Her cell phone started ringing from her purse. “Excuse me,” she said, answering it. She walked to the far corner of her office, Jordan talking to the police in loud tones to give her a little privacy.
“Hi, Mom. Is Max okay?”
“Yes. He’s fine. That’s not why I’m calling. Maddie, something terrible has happened.”
“I know.” Maddie said low into the phone.
Her mother didn’t appear to be listening. “The FBI is here. They’re searching your room.”
“What?”
“I just watched the morning news and heard they arrested Brandon’s mistress. They said the case had been turned over to the authorities, then the doorbell rang and there they were with a search warrant wanting to look through your things. They’re in your room right now. Maddie, are you listening? They are investigating you! They want the keys to the storage unit!”
“Okay, Mom. I gave dad a key, see if you can find it. The police are here now. I need to go.”
“Need to go? I’m coming down there.”
“No.” The last thing she needed was her hysterical mother in the middle of this mess. “I need you to keep Max safe and calm. I don’t know when I’ll be home, but I will call you as soon as I know something. It’ll be okay, Mom. I didn’t do anything wrong.”