by Alexis Davie
12
Ethan was shocked and more than a little bit upset when Madeline announced she was going to meet Lee. He knew they couldn’t be together, but he hadn’t expected her to jump straight into it with another guy. Especially not the same guy she had been with the night before. He had kind of been looking forward to having some alone time with her, even if nothing could happen between them, once his mom and Vic had gone out. Hearing she had chosen to spend that time with Lee instead of him was a slap in the face, if he was honest with himself.
He considered his options. He knew he couldn’t sit on the information about Lee sleeping with someone else any longer. He pulled his cell phone out and texted Madeline pretty much the second Vic’s car was out of sight.
He sat on the couch holding his cell phone, waiting for a response from Madeline. Ten minutes passed by and he knew no response was coming. He felt like kicking himself for risking his secret coming out to warn Madeline, only for her to ignore him.
For all Ethan was annoyed with Madeline, there was still a huge part of him that wanted to fix this. He was tempted to track Madeline’s scent and find the two of them and tear Lee limb from limb. He couldn’t do that, though. Was what Lee had done really any worse than what Madeline had done?
At the very least, Ethan wanted to chase them down and make Madeline hear him out, make her see that Lee wasn’t worth her time. But he knew he would look crazy if he did that, and the chances of getting Madeline to believe him were slim.
Ethan knew he had to let this go, just like he had to let go of any notion of him and Madeline being together. She obviously had, and he would have to learn to do the same. For a moment there, he had really believed that she felt the same as him, but it was obvious to him now that for her, it had just been a physical attraction.
His wolf wasn’t ready to let Madeline go without a fight, though. As far as his wolf was concerned, Madeline was his now—he had claimed her and she was meant to be his mate. Ethan ignored the stirring of the animal inside of himself and tried to push all thoughts of Madeline aside.
God, why couldn’t she have just stayed at college? Or at least come home as that annoying girl he remembered?
Ethan spent the rest of the day moping around, trying and failing to stop thinking about Madeline. He decided that he was over her and he didn’t care if she got her stupid heart broken. Even as he thought it, nodding his head as though that somehow made it more true, he knew it was a lie.
The last thing he wanted was to see Madeline get hurt, but he had warned her and that was really all he could do without looking like a total lunatic. He would just have to find some way to move on and get over her. She had clearly managed to do that. He thought maybe he needed a Lee, someone to fuck to stop himself from thinking about Madeline. He wasn’t convinced it would work, not after kissing Reese and just wishing she was Madeline, and even if it could work, he didn’t think he would be able to bring himself to do it.
Ethan checked the time. It was almost seven and Madeline still wasn’t back. His wolf howled, worried about Madeline, but Ethan was firmly in control of himself now, and instead of letting himself worry, he chose to be annoyed. They could have spent the day together, but she chose Lee, and he was damned if he was going to still be sitting here moping over her when she did finally come back.
He pulled his cell phone out and texted Cole, asking him if he wanted to meet up at he local bar for a couple of beers. Cole responded almost immediately saying yes, just as Ethan had known he would. Cole could be a little annoying at times—he was kind of over the top—but he was always up for socializing.
Ethan went upstairs to his room. He got changed and ran a comb through his hair and then he grabbed his cell phone, his wallet, and his keys. He was whistling to himself when he went back down the stairs, ready to go and meet Cole.
He pulled the front door open, surprised when he saw Madeline on the other side of it, her hand raised as though she had been ready to push it open. Maybe Cole would have to wait a little bit, Ethan thought to himself.
“Hi,” Madeline smiled shyly. “I’ve just come to get changed.”
Ethan opened his mouth to respond to her, but then he looked up and saw a car at the end of their driveway. Lee’s car. Lee sat inside the car, tapping his fingers against the steering wheel in time with a song Ethan couldn’t hear.
Ethan felt as though someone had dumped a bucket of icy water over him. Madeline hadn’t seen the truth and come back for him. She was getting changed to go somewhere else with Lee. His words died in his throat and he pushed past Madeline without speaking to her.
He didn’t look back, not even when he heard Madeline calling after him. He had a feeling he was going to have more than one or two drinks tonight. In fact, he might get absolutely steaming drunk and crash at Cole’s place.
13
Madeline made her way up the stairs, sighing loudly. She went to her room and began rooting through her wardrobe, trying to choose something to wear. Lee had invited her to another party that night and she had agreed, knowing it would also be another chance to catch up with Charlie.
She finally settled on a short and flowy silver dress and matching silver heels. She got changed and tidied her makeup and hair a little bit and then she sat down on her bed. This just wasn’t working for her.
At first when Ethan had pushed past her and stormed away without a word, she had been annoyed at him, but now, it hit her how she would feel if he was parading some girl around in front of her. What she was doing wasn’t fair to Ethan or Lee, and no matter how much she told herself she wanted to be with Lee, the truth was, she didn’t. Even though she still couldn’t be with Ethan, that didn’t mean she had to drag Lee along for the ride.
She almost hoped that Ethan had somehow found out Lee had been with another girl last night. At least then she wouldn’t have to feel guilty about what she had done. She knew what she had to do. She had to end things with Lee. After tonight, she would tell him she couldn’t see him anymore.
The thought made her feel instantly better, but it still didn’t help her to understand anything about the whole Ethan thing. How was she supposed to get over him, especially now when she had to see him every day? Hopefully it would be easier once she went back to college, but she didn’t want to ruin her whole summer break by pining over him.
And try as she might, Madeline still couldn’t work out for the life of her why she felt so strongly about Ethan. It was like her body took over from her mind when she was around him, and some primal instinct overruled her rational thoughts. Her instincts told her he was the one in a way she found it almost impossible to ignore.
She was done trying to convince herself that what she felt for Ethan was some sort of illusion. She didn’t understand why she felt so strongly for him, but she did. And she had given up trying to tell herself she was wrong about the way she was feeling. She just had to hope that the whole “one true love” thing was a myth and that actually, there were options. And that she would manage to meet one of the other options too.
Madeline sighed again and then she got up off the bed, conscious of the fact that Lee was waiting for her. She left the house and went to his car. After she got in, he pulled away. They drove for a few minutes, Madeline looking out of the window, her thoughts going back to Ethan. Even when he had been shoving her aside and ignoring her, he had looked so good, and had sent sparks through her body.
“Madeline? Are you alright?” Lee asked.
She turned to him and gave him what she hoped was a reassuring smile.
“Yes, I’m fine. Why?”
“I don’t know. You’re just quiet. You have been all day, but especially since you went to get changed,” he said.
“I guess I’m a little tired. The last few days of college and then the ride home and the party last night… it must all be catching up with me a bit,” Madeline told him.
He seemed to accept her explanation and he grinned at her.
“You’ll soon
liven up after a few drinks.”
She smiled and nodded her head. She debated telling him now that she didn’t want to see him again, but the way he was smiling at her and checking that she was okay made her feel bad for him. She thought it seemed worse to agree to go to the party with him and then end things on the way there than it would to just do it at the end of the night. She was really starting to wish she had just said no to lunch and ended things then.
After a fairly long, pretty awkward drive, Lee finally pulled up his car behind a bunch of others. The party tonight was at a beach house belonging to the parents of one of Lee’s friends, so it was far from the city center. It was the ideal location for a party as all of the beach residents were in holiday mode and there would be no complaints about the loud music. Madeline always enjoyed parties here as they tended to spill out onto the beach.
They got out of the car and headed to the house. The back doors were propped open and music drifted out from the house, but already most of the action was on the beach. An impromptu volleyball game had erupted, girls versus boys, and many people sat around on the sand watching the game and cheering on the players.
“Maybe you chose the wrong shoes for tonight,” Lee smiled, nodding down at Madeline’s heels.
“Maybe,” Madeline laughed. “But I’m not planning on playing sports, so it’s not so bad. I’ll just take them off on the beach.”
Lee led Madeline through the open doors and grabbed them both a drink. He handed a red cup of beer to Madeline which she thanked him for.
“Do you want to stay inside rather than mess around with your shoes?” Lee asked.
Madeline shook her head.
“No way,” she laughed. “It’s boiling in here.”
What she didn’t add was that it was also almost deserted, and she didn’t want to end up having a makeout session with Lee. She put her drink down on the side and slipped her shoes off. She picked her drink back up and smiled at Lee.
“All good,” she said.
He nodded and led her outside, down the grass and onto the sand. She quickly spotted Charlie and Scott. She opened her mouth to point them out to Lee, but he was already going that way and Madeline realized he had seen them too. She sat down on the sand beside Charlie, who gave her a quick hug.
“What have we missed?” Lee asked.
“The girls are winning the game seven to two,” Charlie said.
“Only because they’re cheating,” Scott said.
“It’s not cheating. It’s a distraction technique. And the girls can hardly be blamed for the guys’ team having no will power,” Charlie laughed.
Madeline turned to watch the volleyball game for a moment. She burst into laughter as she saw what Charlie was referring to. One of the guys went to serve the ball and one of the girls lifted her top up to wipe her face, flashing a tanned, flat stomach and a quick flash of her bra.
“Cheating,” Scott and Lee said together.
“Distraction,” Madeline and Charlie said together.
All four of them laughed. Scott and Lee began having a conversation and Madeline gave Charlie a look that she hoped she could read. One that meant ‘we need to talk alone’. Charlie read it easily.
“Fancy a walk down to the rocks, Mads? I’ve been sitting here for ages and I need to stretch my legs,” she said.
“Sure,” Madeline said gratefully.
She pushed herself back to her feet. She left her shoes with the guys, but she took her drink.
“What possessed you to wear heels to a beach party?” Charlie asked.
“I was distracted while I was getting changed. I forgot we’d be on the beach,” Madeline replied.
“Distracted by thoughts of a certain someone?” Charlie teased.
Madeline sighed and nodded.
“I thought the sex would get him out of my system or whatever, but it’s only made me want him more. I know we can’t be together, and I’ve accepted it, but it doesn’t change how I feel.”
“No, that’s what Lee is for right?”
“Right. Except it’s not working. And I feel awful about it. I’m telling him tonight I can’t see him again,” Madeline said.
“It’s probably for the best. I mean, it’s not Lee’s fault you’re into someone else and it seems he’s the one being punished if you keep stringing him along,” Charlie pointed out.
“I know. And it wasn’t meant to be like this. I mean, I can see Lee’s cute and everything, and he seems really sweet. I guess I thought I could grow to like him, but the more I see of him, the more I’m conscious of the fact that he’s not Ethan and I just keep comparing the two of them.”
They reached the rocks and sat down looking out to the sea.
“I really didn’t expect to hear from him after running out on him last night, to be honest. But here we are. So I’m just going to play it cool tonight and then when I tell him, he’ll have already seen it coming. With any luck, he’ll get drunk and hook up with someone else tonight and save me the trouble.”
“Well, according to Scott, he does kind of play the field a bit, so maybe you’ll get lucky.”
Madeline laughed at the absurdity of it. Charlie looked at her like she’d gone mad.
“Sorry,” Madeline said as her laughter faded. “I just thought of how weird it is that I’m at a party with a guy, hoping he’ll ditch me and hook up with someone else.”
“When you put it like that, it is kind of crazy,” Charlie agreed and the girls started laughing again.
Madeline managed to spend the first few hours of the party sticking with Charlie and mostly avoiding Lee without it looking too obvious. She hadn’t drunk as much as she had last night. She wanted a few drinks for Dutch courage, but not enough that she wasn’t in total control of herself.
The party had mostly moved indoors now. Madeline spotted Lee walking over to where she sat on the couch with Charlie.
“Charlie, can you give us a minute, please?” Lee asked.
Madeline knew there was no way for Charlie to refuse his request without looking rude and when she glanced at Madeline out of the corner of her eye, Madeline gave her a barely perceptible nod. She knew this was it. She had to tell Lee they were done. She didn’t really know what she was so worried about. They’d been on only two dates. It wasn’t like he was going to be heartbroken over her.
“You’re avoiding me,” Lee said, sitting down beside Madeline in the spot Charlie had just vacated. His words weren’t a question. He was just stating a fact.
Madeline debated telling him she was just catching up with Charlie, but she thought she owed him the truth if nothing else. She nodded her head slowly, looking down into her lap.
“Yes,” she said. “It’s not you. I thought I was looking for a bit of a fling or whatever, but I’m really not and I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner.”
“You’re into someone else,” Lee guessed.
Again, it was a statement rather than a question. Madeline just shrugged, which was really all of the answer Lee needed. He stood up and Madeline thought he was going to storm off, but instead, he surprised her.
“Come on. I’ll drive you home,” he said.
“Oh no, honestly, you don’t have to do that,” Madeline insisted. “I’ll catch a ride home with Charlie.”
“You don’t want to be here. Just let me drive you home. I’ll come back to the party afterward, so you don’t have to feel guilty that I’m missing out on anything,” Lee smiled.
Madeline felt herself nodding. She got to her feet.
“Thank you. That would be great.”
She didn’t particularly want to suffer through a ride home with Lee, a car ride that would be even more awkward than the one here, but he seemed determined to make sure she got home okay, and it was easier to just agree than it was to argue with him.
“Let me just go say goodbye to Charlie,” Madeline said.
“I’ll meet you at my car,” Lee replied.
Madeline dashed over to Charlie an
d quickly told her what had happened and that she was leaving. Charlie double-checked she was okay with the lift situation, saying she would take her home if she preferred, but Madeline told her it was fine. She said a quick goodbye to Scott and began pushing her way through the crowd. She glanced back as she reached the door. Scott was leading a giggling Charlie upstairs by the hand, and Madeline was glad she hadn’t pulled Charlie away and ruined her night.
She made it outside and went to Lee’s car. He was sitting in the driver’s seat and she found herself suddenly nervous to get in. She told herself that was stupid. It was only going to make it more awkward if she took forever about this, especially if Lee had spotted her approaching through his mirrors. She got in the car and pulled the door shut. Lee started the engine and pulled away without a word.
They were almost halfway home when Lee pulled the car over at the edge of a deserted road. Madeline felt her stomach tighten as fear washed over her. Lee turned to her, his face angry.
“So, what’s this other guy got that I haven’t?” he demanded.
Oh, I don’t know—everything, Madeline thought. She stayed silent, looking down into her lap.
“What, I’m not even good enough to deserve a fucking answer now?” Lee shouted.
Madeline looked up then. She had to find a way to appease him enough so that he would just start driving again.
“It’s not like that, Lee. I’m just not in a relationship place right now,” she said.
“Oh God, me neither,” Lee said.
He laughed and the anger went out of his face. Madeline felt herself relaxing and she smiled at Lee. She realized, too late, that she had let her guard down too quickly.
“So why don’t we just have a bit of fun together and then I’ll take you home,” he said.
He smiled at her, a predatory smile that made her feel sick. She started to shake her head, but quick as a flash, Lee unfastened his seat belt and pushed himself across the gap between their seats. He pressed his lips against hers, his tongue trying to force itself between her closed lips. She shook her head more violently now and shoved Lee away from her.