Need You Now (Love in Unknown)

by Lunsford, Taylor M.

  As expected, Mel looked mildly horrified. “This weekend?”

  “Well, tomorrow night, actually. She and Dad will fly into the Maddox County airport on their plane tomorrow morning and stay the night at my place." He shrugged helplessly. "I did everything I could to change her mind or put it off, but she's fixated on the idea."

  She sighed and gave him a disgruntled look. “You’re lucky this is a really damn good bribe, Caine Maddox. The chocolates were a nice touch, too.”

  Relieved, he set aside the dress and pulled her into his arms. For the first time all day, everything melted away and he relaxed. “Thank you. I really appreciate it.”

  “Yeah, well, play your cards right and I might even let you spend the night here tomorrow night so you don’t have to have breakfast with the Wicked Witch.”

  He laughed at that. Wicked Witch had been their code name for his mother growing up. Whenever she went out of town, Mel would sing “Ding, Dong, the Witch is Dead.”

  By the time Caine picked her up the next night, neither of them was laughing.

  “You look amazing,” he told her, helping Mel into his Aston Martin. “Mother’s going to turn pea green with envy when you tell her you’re wearing a custom Tessa Styles creation. Tess refuses to make anything for Olivia.”

  Mel’s smile wasn’t as bright as usual, but she relaxed a little. "I think I might like this Tessa Styles for more than just her designs. Whatever happens, you and Gage are not allowed to leave me alone with the Wicked Witch."

  “Don’t worry. We won’t.”

  For the first time since he’d redone the place, it didn’t feel like he was coming home when he pulled up to his house. Caine knew why. Behind the front door, it wasn’t his personal space. No, tonight it was home turf for his mother. Gage sat on the front steps, tugging at his gray tie.

  “Big bad police chief too scared to go inside without back up?” Mel teased as he helped her out of the car.

  Gage nodded. “Scared. Smart. Same difference. You ready for this?”

  The look Mel gave his brother spoke volumes. She didn’t want to be here anymore than they did. At least if Caine had to suffer through an evening with his parents, he’d have her by his side. It also helped that she looked phenomenal in that dress. The aqua silk gleamed again her skin and barely skimmed her knees. Long legs stretched down to what he’d heard women call “fuck me” heels that were doing their job by putting all kinds of ideas in his head. He kept his gaze away from the cleavage revealed by the low dip of her scooped neckline. The last thing he needed during this dinner was a hard on.

  “It’ll be fine, sunshine,” Caine said. “Just remember that nothing she says has any effect on us. She doesn’t even line in Unknown anymore. The Wicked Witch’s powers are severely limited. This is all for show.”

  Gage and Mel didn’t look like they believed his speech anymore than he did. Wrapping an arm around Mel’s waist, Caine led the way into the dragon’s den.

  Just as she had for so many other agonizing dinners, his mother waited for them in the formal living room. For some perverse reason, when he’d redone the house, he kept the front room as the “formal” living room. Rather than the well-worn leather furniture of the great room, he’d bought a dark brown velvet couch, a brocade covered sofa in the same color, and two dark blue club chairs covered in a metallic looking fabric. A big glass coffee table stood in the center. He never came in here without getting flashbacks to his childhood. Now it replayed before his eyes.

  His mother sat on the couch in an elegant, overpriced black dress that was so structured he thought her shoulders might poke someone’s eye out if they got too close. Joseph Maddox lounged in one of the chairs, long legs crossed, his suit—immaculate as always— was the same shade of gray as his once dark brown hair. Unsurprisingly, he already held a tumbler full of Caine’s best scotch in his hand. What did surprise Caine was the third person in the room.

  Shit.

  Portia.

  “There they are. My sons.” Olivia’s recently botoxed lips stretched into a feline smile. “So nice to see you. It’s been too long.”

  Caine clenched his teeth, tightening his hold on Mel in attempt to keep himself grounded. “Mother, you didn’t tell me that you were bringing a…guest.”

  “Your mother realized right before we left that we’d have an uneven number for dinner and apparently that is bad luck.” Joe shook his head.

  Olivia sniffed. “And Portia graciously agreed to save us from that faux pas.”

  “Mother, Dad, you remember Melody, don’t you?” Gage stepped in when Caine couldn’t come up with anything to say that didn’t start and end with an expletive.

  “Of course. The baker’s daughter, right?” Joseph stood and shook Mel’s hand. She looked at Caine, obviously expecting him to release her, but he didn’t—couldn’t.

  Portia stood, her short fire-engine red cocktail dress barely covering her ass. “Melody, was it? Hello. I’m Portia, Caine’s fiancée.”

  #

  Mel blinked at the tall, overly made-up Barbie in the tiny excuse for a silk dress. Fiancée. That was a new one. Mel lost her breath for a moment. Oh, she’d known he’d had other relationships, but engaged? That was a horse of a different color. Mel darted a look at Caine. She turned in Caine’s grip to meet his eyes, which were almost as black as his expression.

  “Ex-fiancée, Portia. Ex.” Mel couldn’t remember the last time she’d seen him so mad. It might have been the day her father kicked him out of the house. She’d spied on him from the window and she would swear that he looked exactly like he did now. “Melody’s my girlfriend now.”

  Caine steered her towards the couch, sitting on one side of her while Gage sat on the other. Portia sat down, crossing her legs so that her dress rode up her spray-tanned thighs. Mel watched a lascivious expression come over Joseph Maddox face, confirming her suspicions that from a certain angle someone could see up Portia’s dress.

  A chill crept up her spine as Portia’s sharp green eyes swept over her in a calculating assessment. “Charming. Such a lovely dress. Did you get it from one of those cute little boutiques we passed on our way through town? They look so rustic and charming.”

  Mel pasted on a smile she’d perfected when she and Caine first started dating. She used it as armor against women like Portia, women who only saw designer labels and model-like features. “Actually, Caine got it for me. He’s good friends with the designer and he asked her to make a dress for me as a surprise.”

  “A designer? Caine, sugar, since when do you know a fashion designer?” Portia’s voice, full of Southern twang sounded brittle with tension.

  “I’ve known her since I was a teenager. Tessa Styles. She’s the only one I trusted to make a dress pretty enough for my girl,” Caine said, pressing a kiss to Mel’s forehead.

  Portia’s lips pursed in a mix between a pout and a sneer. “It must be nice for you to have such generous friends, Melanie. I understand that doctors can’t afford much when they’re first starting off.”

  “Yes, the Carrs have never had much,” Olivia added. “Gage was always driving you around during high school, wasn’t he, Melody?”

  Charming. It took Mel a minute to adjust. She’d forgotten how euphemistically insulting Caine’s mother could be. She took a deep breath, remembering not to feed the trolls. “He did for a while, but that’s because I was too young to drive. I skipped a few grades.”

  “Still, Caine’s such a sweetheart for getting you an expensive designer dress like that.” Portia’s lips curled up in what Mel thought was meant to be a smile. “He was always spoiling me when we first started going out. I think I still have that Harry Winston necklace he gave me for our three-month anniversary. It’s so nice to have a man who can pick out jewelry.”

  Caine gave Mel a reassuring squeeze before speaking. “If memory serves, you picked that necklace out and insisted I buy it for you, Portia. Gaudy diamonds are not something I’d pick out. Elegant, but understated ha
s always been more my taste.”

  Thankfully, a man in a chef’s coat came into the living room and announced that dinner was served. Keeping a firm grip on her hand, Caine led Mel into dinner, seating her as far from his mother as possible. Unfortunately, that left poor Gage sitting between Portia and Olivia.

  Mel tried to recall a more awkward family dinner, but she came up blank. They were only through the salad course and already she was praying for it to end. A steak knife couldn’t cut through the tension in Caine’s dining room. Her mind drifted back to the last meal they’d shared in here, searching for a happy thought. Yeah, that was a good memory. Good food, conversation that led to great sex. So different from the awkwardness and years of resentment festering between the Maddoxes tonight. Caine and Gage sat stoic and silent. Joe Maddox ate without much concern, although she saw him shift back and forth uncomfortably on occasion. Portia picked at her plate, but Mel was pretty sure she never saw a morsel of food enter her siren red lips.

  “So, Melody. My sources tell me that you’re having a bit of trouble settling in as the town doctor,” Olivia said.

  How did she do that? Mel wondered. Keep her tone so cool and neutral as she went on the offensive? That took some serious talent. It certainly explained why every other rich matron in town feared her. Unless you looked past the cool smile and the measured words, you’d never know the woman had the heart of a snake.

  “It was a bit of a rough start, but I think I’ve found my feet. Just took a little patience and hard work.” A concept the Maddox queen knew very little about. From what Mel knew of local lore, Olivia’s parents were wealthy socialites from Houston. Olivia had ensnared Joe Maddox while he visited the family brokering a business deal. Apparently, they’d found it easier to reach an agreement at the altar rather than in the boardroom.

  “Work. Yes. Does your family still own that charming little bakery in town?” Olivia’s smile could have turned the lobster bisque in her bowl to an ice cube. Mel bit her tongue, fighting not to remind Olivia that her family had been in the town just as long as the Maddox clan and a hell of a lot longer than she’d ever been in town.

  “They do,” Caine interjected. “In fact, Mel’s brother’s in charge of it. He trained up in New York under some of the best pastry chefs in the world.”

  That shut his mother up. But only for a minute. “It’s so nice to see local children coming back and contributing to the community. We were so proud when Caine graduated first in his class from Harvard Law.”

  “Well, when we were at Brown together, he always did his best.” She smiled at Caine, who took her hand and squeezed it reassuringly.

  Joe Maddox looked at least a little impressed. "I didn't realize you and Caine were at Brown together. You were there for pre-med?"

  “Yes, sir,” she said.

  “I didn't realize your family could afford to send you to an Ivy League school. I didn’t know there was such a fortune in carbohydrates."

  Portia pretended to sip her soup, a vapid smile dimpling her cheeks. “I’m sure you must have met so many eligible men there. I’m surprised you didn’t snap one of them up.”

  Mel didn't miss a beat. She'd handled worse from the hypercompetitive girls at med school and the socialites at Brown. She was proud of her family and of her accomplishments. Olivia and Portia might try to disparage many parts of her life, but they couldn’t succeed in this. "I went there on a full academic scholarship. I was really too busy to meet too many guys while I was at Brown, except for Caine’s friends. He dragged me to so many parties, but I always thought he was the best of the bunch."

  “So nice that you had a friend,” Olivia said. “I’m sure it made things so much easier for you.”

  “Yes. It must have been a different lifestyle than you’re used to. So nice of Caine to take you under his wing,” Portia chimed in.

  Mel shot a side glance at Caine and he gave her a nod of encouragement. “Actually, it was bit more than him just being a good friend. Didn’t he ever tell you, Portia? We dated back in college.”

  That got a jaw drop out of both Portia and Olivia. Joe even looked mildly interested.

  “Is this true, Caine?” Olivia bit out.

  Caine laced his fingers through Mel’s as the waiters removed one course and replaced it with another. “We were pretty serious. I was ready to propose, but Mel wanted to take some time apart so she could finish school and make sure she wanted to come back to Unknown.”

  Mel liked the glossed over version of their past Caine presented, but Portia swelled up like a blowfish.

  “Then what was I, Caine? Some brief affair?” she demanded.

  “What else did you think you were?” Gage said dryly. “He and Mel have been friends for years. Anyone who’s known them has known they’d end up together. Love from friendship will always trump a marriage made from money.”

  Bless him. He'd defended her and her brain every day through high school. Good to see that hadn't stopped now. Living in Unknown, everyone knew Olivia Maddox's only friends were the women who fell into line and followed her every whim without question. Portia was obviously cut from the same bolt of cloth.

  Having a brain of her own and no family fortune supposedly meant Mel was unworthy. Olivia treated her mother the same way. Every time they’d bring the boys home, Emma would do her best to be polite, like the good Southern lady that she was, and Olivia would always look at her like she was dirt on a pair of white Louboutins. A teacher was too low to be tolerated in the hallowed halls of Fortune Hill.

  “I must say, Melody, you’re quite a change of pace for our son.” Olivia’s smile took on a venomous edge, ignoring her younger son as usual. “Why, I never expected him to date someone so bookish. All of his other girlfriends preferred to help with charities or work in their family businesses. I believe there was a model or two tossed into the mix. I always expected him to marry Portia. She was born to be a politician's wife."

  Mel almost winced at that. Trust Olivia to home in on one of Mel’s main doubts about their relationship. She darted glance at Caine, to see how he was reacting. His expression didn’t change, just the same steady resolve and fiercely protective light that had been there before. Right now, he was at her side, ready to defend her no matter what. Still, Olivia managed to land a glancing blow.

  Caine’s words came out hard, his knuckles white on his fork. “Luckily, I came to my senses before any real wedding planning could happen. Mel understands better than anyone what it means to be a part of a town like Unknown. She’s happy living here rather than in Houston or Austin.”

  “Being part of the town isn't the only requirement you should have for a wife," Portia purred. "Remember, you won't be mayor of Unknown forever. There's state Senate, Congress, maybe even the White House."

  “You make a very good point,” Joe said, not looking up from his plate. “We expect you to do more with your life than just be a part of this backwater town, Caine.”

  Mel watched a look of complete, bleak frustration cross the face of the man beside her before he shut it down. She hated that look. She'd only ever seen it a few times, but it always emerged after a phone call from his parents. Damn them. Why did they never think his choices were good enough? It was becoming more and more obvious that his relationship with Portia must have been a nightmare if she bought into the Maddox party line.

  “That's what y'all want for me, Dad. I don't know how many times we have to go over this, but I'm staying right where I am. I like my job. I like being mayor and I enjoy being a part of this town. It's the town our family built and I'm damn proud of it."

  “Right, sure. I get it," Joe said. His smile turned into a leer as he raked his eyes over Mel. She fought the bit of bile that rose in her throat. Hearing someone was a sleaze and actually being a victim of his behavior were two very different things. Thank God Gage and Caine took after their grandfather instead of their father. "If I had a girl like this waiting for me, I might want to stay in this town, too."

&n
bsp; Gage scowled at his father, shutting down any further comments. Olivia and Portia continued to make pointed remarks here and there, but the rest of the meal was silent except for the silverware on their plates. Mel had always known that Caine’s parents were awful, but James Maddox had to be rolling in his grave at how horrid his son and his wife were. Before Joe and Olivia, the Maddox men and their wives had ben respected and beloved members of the community. What the hell had happened to turn Joe into this? To induce him to marry someone like her? That question remained one of the great mysteries of Unknown.

  As they walked out of Fortune Hill, Caine’s hand wrapped around hers, Mel’s admiration of Caine grew. Despite his parents, he was a good man. He loved his home, his town. She knew that if he lost all of his family's money tomorrow, it wouldn't matter to him as long as he still had Unknown. His parents didn't understand that legacy. They thought their roots were planted in the upper crust of society. But their boys knew the truth. Their roots belonged in the ground of the town where they’d worked so hard all of their lives.

  #

  Mel rested her forehead against the cool glass of the Martin’s window. Over the course of her career, she’d worked forty-eight hour shifts and studied for three days straight. None of that compared to the exhaustion she felt after spending three hours with Olivia Maddox.

  “Do you always feel like you’ve run a marathon after your family dinners?” she asked. “Every bone in my body feels like I was hit by a mack truck.”

  Caine’s wry chuckle eased a little of the ache that permeated her body. “You build up a tolerance over time. Although I’m a bit worn out myself. The Wicked Witch was in fine form tonight. Didn’t help that she brought her flying monkey along to join in the fun.”

  She didn’t reply, just squeezed his hand and closed her eyes. Not long after, he pulled to a stop in front of the bakery. As usual, he helped her out of the car and walked her to her door. At the top of the stairs, he framed her hips with his hands and pulled her close. He leaned down and rested his forehead against hers.