I laughed. “Well, you and I were pretty awful, and Mom survived.”
“Barely,” Lacey said just as the doorbell rang. Belle fixed her coat as she rushed to answer it.
“Hello,” she said as Maddox and Abby stood on the other side. I was surprised to find Nick slouching behind them, hands buried in his pocket. Belle’s posture was so stiff and formal as she greeted the three of them that I was half expecting her to bow.
“Belle?” Abby asked. Belle nodded. “I’m Abby.”
They shook hands, and all of the adults in the room exploded in laughter.
“Damn, kids are more polite than us,” Nick said as he followed Maddox and Abby into the room. Maddox shot him a glare, and he apologized. “Sorry, I guess Abby’s used to my potty mouth.”
“Belle’s heard quite a few words,” Lacey said. “And repeated one too many.” Lacey was eyeing Nick up and down, her interest evident in her expression.
“I’m Nick.” He held his hand out to me. “We haven’t really officially met.” His blond hair was cut short, similar to Maddox’s, and his eyes were blue and as bright as a sunny day. He smiled, and I could practically hear the flutter in Lacey’s heart.
“Everly.” I shook his hand. “This is Lacey, my sister, and her daughter, Belle, is currently showing Abby all of her Shopkins.” I realized that the two children were making quite the mess in the middle of my living room, but it was good to see them getting along so well. “We might be here a while.”
Maddox was sitting beside them asking Belle about her various Shopkins.
“We can leave within the hour,” Maddox said. He wore a light blue sweater with white cuffs, and dark pants and leather shoes. His gray eyes seemed brighter with the light color of his sweater, and I realized I was having a difficult time not staring at them.
He offered me a small wave, and I blushed as I returned it. I really did feel like a high school girl with a high school crush.
“The lines are going to be long,” Lacey mentioned. “It’s honestly not that cold for once.”
“Good thing Maddox hooked us all up with those VIP, front-of-the-line wristbands,” Nick said. “No lines, no worries.”
“No lines?” I asked. “You didn’t mention that.” He shrugged.
“I’m not one for bragging, you should know this by now,” he said.
“Can we take some of them?” Belle asked Lacey and gestured at the various ingredient items on the floor. Maddox had made several recipes, and he and Abby were looking for the Shopkin to complete a chocolate fudge sundae.
“Yeah, can we?” Abby asked, only this time she looked at me. I shared an expression with Lacey, who nodded.
“Promise you won’t lose them?” I asked. Abby and Belle both nodded. “Okay then, take two each, but if you lose them, we’re not replacing them.”
Nick whistled behind me. “You really don’t know how this whole aunt thing works, do you?” he asked.
“What do you mean?”
“He means that as an uncle, or aunt, you’re supposed to spoil the kids rotten,” Maddox said and walked toward me. I slipped my hand in his, and he squeezed. “Nick lets Abby do whatever she wants.”
“She loses a Shopkin, you best believe I’m buying her the entire store,” Nick said.
“That’s how a kid grows up spoiled and rotten,” Lacey argued. Nick smirked at her.
“Exactly, and that’s the parent’s problem, not the uncle’s.”
“We should probably head out now,” Maddox said. “I have a lunch booked at one of the restaurants around 11, and I want to make sure we work up an appetite.”
“Don’t tell me you have all our morning rides planned out.” Nick groaned.
“Of course I do,” Maddox said. “And the afternoon rides, this way we make sure we get everything done and have time to ride the favorites two or three times.”
“A man after my own heart,” Lacey sighed. “Good luck trying to get Everly to plan out anything, much less a vacation.”
“It’s more fun when you just go with the flow,” I said. “But I don’t mind a planner, either.”
Nick gestured his thumb toward Maddox. “Yeah? Well, try going to Disney with this guy. He schedules our bathroom breaks,” Nick teased. Maddox rolled his eyes but didn’t argue against him.
“You’d learn a thing or two from planning your life,” Lacey said to Nick.
“I haven’t planned a thing, and I think my life is pretty damn good,” he said.
Maddox and I glanced at one another as Lacey and Nick bickered. It seemed as if a small spark was beginning to flame.
“Are you girls ready?” Maddox asked Abby and Belle. There was something about the way he spoke to them that softened my heart.
“Yes, Daddy,” Abby said. They picked out their respective Shopkins and we left for the amusement park.
Nick wasn’t joking about the front-of-the-line wristbands. We rode everything we wanted, our favorites twice even, by 2 in the afternoon. Lunch had been a little cozy restaurant nestled in the corner of the park, and I had shared a tuna sandwich with Belle and Cajun mustard fries with Abby. They both had clung to me throughout the day, and I was forced to take turns riding with each of them. Nick and Lacey were usually left to ride together, and Maddox took his turn between sitting next to Abby and Belle.
Belle grew quiet every time Maddox neared her, and Lacey and I were beginning to recognize the patterns of a child’s crush. She got along great with Abby, at least, and Abby absolutely adored Belle. The few moments Maddox and I spent together were walking hand in hand in between rides until the girls would pull us apart.
“This might be the biggest tease of them all,” Maddox said to me once as we were waiting to be let onto a dark ride.
“What?” I asked and leaned into his arms. Nick was showing Belle and Lacey a few of his paintings on his phone, with Abby pointing out the paintings that she had helped with.
“Your brown sweater,” he whispered into my ear. The warmth of his breath did nothing for the goosebumps on my shoulders. “It makes your eyes even greener.”
I frowned. “And that’s a tease?”
“Your eyes are a trigger for me,” he murmured. “I’ve never been more turned on in my life than when you look at me.”
I shuddered against him as the train arrived. It was a track ride in a dark cavern, and each cart was capable of fitting two adults and one child. I wanted to be in our own cart, but I had to force myself to behave. Still, Maddox kissed my lips just as it was our turn to enter.
“We’ll continue this conversation later,” I said and entered the cart. Maddox sat beside me, and Abby crawled in between us. It was the first time I truly felt like a family.
“Hey, Everly, could you put up your hair?” Nick asked. I tied it up into a bun and turned behind me to apologize. Belle sat in between Lacey and Nick, and I couldn’t help but notice that their knees were touching at the very tip. There was a light blush across Lacey’s face, and a cheesy smile on Nick’s.
“We’re pretty good matchmakers,” Maddox said. So, he had noticed it as well.
Abby slipped her arm in between ours and shuddered.
“This is scary,” she whined.
“This is the third time we’ve been on this ride,” Maddox said. “You can’t still be scared of it.”
“Abby, it’s like that one movie we watched where the girl gets trapped in the cave,” Nick said from behind us.
“I’m going to murder you,” Maddox said as Abby ducked her head into the crook of my elbow.
“What movie is that?” Belle asked.
“Nothing you have to worry about,” Lacey said, and glared at Nick. I lowered my head until I was near Abby’s ear.
“It’s not scary. You remember what happens here, right? We go fast, and then we go slow,” I said. “I thought you liked going fast.”
Abby nodded slowly.
“You know what’s really fun?” I asked. Her blue eyes looked at me. “Putting your ha
nds up when we go fast. It makes you feel like you’re flying. Can you do it with me?”
I raised my arms into the sky just as the train made its first turn, and Abby giggled as she was pressed up against me. She raised her arms on the second turn, and soon, she was laughing the entire way. Maddox was smiling at me as we exited the ride.
“What?” I asked.
“Nothing,” He shook his head. “You’re just incredible, that’s all.”
We ate dinner at a fancy restaurant in the middle of the park. Lacey was asking Nick about his paintings as Abby and Belle played with their Shopkins on the table, and my hand was firmly in the grasp of Maddox’s as we both browsed through the menu together.
“We could try the shepherd’s pie,” I suggested. “The girls might like it.”
“Everything looks amazing.” Lacey sighed. “We haven’t eaten at a restaurant like this since before Belle was born.”
“What’s a shepherd’s pie?” Belle asked.
“It’s like a pie, but for dogs,” Abby explained. “Uncle Nick told me that after Daddy made one.”
He cleared his throat. “That’s not exactly what I said, but close enough.”
Our waiter arrived, and Maddox ordered two bottles of wine and an assortment of appetizers.
“Let’s get a half serving of each entrée,” He said as the waiter took our dinner order. He walked off, and Maddox waved off Lacey’s thanks. “No problem; this way we don’t have to worry about what everyone likes.”
Our food arrived shortly afterward, and I helped Belle and Abby break open their crab legs. I realized Maddox was watching me with a soft smile, and I pulled back and wiped my face self-consciously.
“There’s nothing on your face,” he said. “I just like seeing you with them.”
“What’s for dessert?” Nick asked as we finished dinner. He patted his thin stomach and turned to the girls. “Come on, you both probably want ice cream, right?” They nodded with wide eyes.
“There’s an ice cream parlor across the street,” Maddox said. “Oh, and they have something else I wanted to get.”
He paid the check; it was the first time I’ve ever seen him get handed a bill, and we followed him into the ice cream parlor. Lacey and Belle shared a giant sundae and Abby and Nick each got their own double scoops of ice cream.
“This is what I wanted to share with you,” Maddox said as he brought a cake to our table. I smiled and dug my spoon into it. A thick layer of melted chocolate oozed out and mixed with the vanilla ice cream base.
“It’s not as good as the lava cake at Thad’s,” Maddox said. We both took a bite.
“It might be better,” I said.
We didn’t have much time left before the park was closing. “Can Belle and I go on the scary ride?” Abby asked.
Lacey and I both groaned. “I might puke if I ride anything else,” I said, and Lacey agreed with me.
“Nick and I can take them,” Maddox offered. I looked at Lacey.
“That’s fine,” she said. “Just don’t run off with my child or else you’ll be the ones getting stuck in a cave.”
We followed them toward the ride and separated as they went in through the exit.
“Nick’s a cutie, isn’t he?” I asked. Lacey blushed but didn’t acknowledge my words.
“They’re going to be so exhausted,” she said. “I’m glad Abby and Belle like each other, though.”
“Abby’s already asking to go over your house for playdates,” I said.
“Oh no, they live in a mansion, don’t they? Why would she want to go over to our tiny house?” Lacey yawned. “I’ll have to hire a cleaner.”
“I don’t think a 3-year-old is going to care,” I said. “Maddox isn’t raising her like that, at least. She’s pretty down to earth.”
“The kid of a man who went on a 20,000 dollar date,” Lacey said. “But you’re right; she’s a good child. Maddox is a great dad.”
I smiled, thinking of how gentle and loving he is with Abby.
“He really is,” I said.
“This might be the three glasses of wine talking, but I’m so proud of you, Everly,” Lacey said.
“What for?” I asked.
“For sticking it out and doing what’s right for you,” she said. “You wanted to run away, remember? But I’m so glad you didn’t. Maddox is a great guy, and he’s perfect for you. You did the right thing.”
I agreed with her. Maddox wanted nothing but the best for me, and I could never doubt that. He was patient, loyal, and so incredibly kind. He made me feel things that I never thought were possible, and if it weren’t for him, I never would have had the courage to face my fears.
Maddox and Nick appeared from the exit of the ride with Abby and Belle in between them. Maddox was laughing at something Belle said, his gray eyes twinkling like stars in the distance.
Lacey was right, I realized, as Abby grabbed Maddox’s hand and he squeezed it. They were both right for me.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Maddox
It had been a month of family outings and playdates between our two families, and every passing day Everly was slowly starting to merge with my family more and more. It was almost as if she’d always been with us, and I couldn’t imagine a life without her in our presence. She was a constant figure in Abby’s life, and even took it upon herself to read bedtime stories with Abby and go over her basic numbers and the alphabet. I had told her plenty of times that there was no pressure for her to fill a mother’s role, but Everly had assured me that she enjoyed spending time with Abby. And it wasn’t a secret that Abby enjoyed it just as much, if not more. The two of them were quite a pair.
Everly’s new position in the restaurant family had started two weeks prior, and she was already providing amazing ideas that even Jackie was impressed by. And more importantly, Jackie realized that contacting Everly was a lot easier than talking to me about work. Everything was perfect, and Everly was getting all the experience she would need to one day open up her own restaurant on the pier. It was still her dream, and I was going to make sure it happened for her even if she insisted on doing it all herself. She’d have to get used to me doing things for her. It gave me more pleasure than I’d ever known, and it was hard to explain how taking care of someone, even if it was just by offering them support, could be so fulfilling. Everly had made me see things so differently. Nothing was about me and Abby alone anymore. Anytime I made decisions, I considered Everly, and even sought her opinion. I was finding that we made a good team.
The sun was beginning to shine in my eyes, and I finally woke after a night of tossing and turning. Everly had stayed up in the late hours brainstorming with Jackie and didn’t crawl into bed until 2 or 3 in the morning. I felt the warmth from her body beside me and wondered how much longer we could get away with sleeping.
“It’s no use,” her voice whispered, sore and hoarse. “I can’t fall asleep.”
I chuckled and turned toward her. Her hair was longer than it had been, and the red waves rested against her nightgown, spilling over her shoulders and across her pillow. She hadn’t completely wiped off her makeup, and there were quite a few smudges of lipstick on her cheeks from my incessant kissing. She was beautiful. I kissed her lips and she softly pressed against mine.
A small hand fell on Everly’s neck as Abby curled up against her. My eyebrows rose; I hadn’t realized Abby was in bed with us. Thank God I hadn’t tried initiating anything.
“She crawled in shortly after I did,” Everly said.
“Let me guess,” I said. “Nightmares?”
“Nick and Lacey were watching that one horror movie with the house and mirrors,” Everly explained. “Belle and Abby were supposed to be in their room playing, but Abby convinced Belle to sneak out and watch from behind the couch.”
“Nick would have let them watch, probably,” I said. “Damn bastard.”
Abby groaned as she began to wake.
“The beast awakens,” Everly whispered. I ch
uckled as Abby’s blue eyes popped open.
“Hey, sweetie.” I flattened my palm against her back and rubbed her softly. “How are you feeling?”
Abby rolled over and looked at Everly and smiled, wrapping an arm around her. She was such a little cuddle bug.
“Hungry,” she said, and Everly and I both laughed. These days it was always a safe bet that Abby was hungry.
“I’ll make breakfast,” Everly said. “But then we have to get ready, right?”
“It starts at 1,” I said. Abby leaned on her elbows and looked at me over Everly.
“What does?” she asked.
“I told you already, Nick has an art show today,” I said. Abby gasped, her eyes lighting up as she crawled off the bed.
“We have to get ready!” she yelled.
“Bath first!” Everly said. “And then brush your teeth and then breakfast and then we’ll go.”
“Okay, Everly,” Abby said as I left the bed to start her bath.
Abby and I found the kitchen counter full of muffins, scones, waffles, bacon, and scrambled eggs after we finished getting ready. Everly had slipped into a form-fitting green dress that shimmered like emeralds around her body. It was Abby’s favorite dress, and I suspected she picked it out on purpose.
“Are we feeding the whole town?” I asked and popped a waffle into my mouth. The front door opened and closed, and shortly afterward, Lacey and Belle entered the kitchen. “Ah, that explains it.”
“I wanted to bring some over to Nick before he left,” Everly said. “I know how nervous he is, and muffins usually help calm him down.”
“Oh, I could bring them to him?” Lacey offered. Everly and I smirked as Lacey dumped several muffins and waffles into a tin. “How is he?” Her eyes were full of genuine concern for my friend.
“Nervous as hell,” I said. “This is his biggest show yet, with a lot of top names in the crowd.”
Lacey hurried to the fridge and added a bottle of orange juice to Nick’s to-go basket and left.
Daddy Boss (A Boss Romance Love Story) Page 47