Marking Madden: Hearts of Hollis

by J. L. Leslie

  I was a total dick to her, though. Rude, unfriendly, suspicious. Not my best moment, I can admit. I’m sure she’ll be avoiding me as much as she can. Good. In all honesty, that’s probably for the best.

  My phone buzzes. Amelia. Again. This time I answer.

  “Madden, where are you? Everyone’s worried,” she says. Her voice sounds like she’s been crying. It’s clear she’s upset. At least, I think she is. I thought I knew her, but I don’t.

  “Is he with you?” I ask, quietly.

  My mind goes back to two days ago when my world came crashing down. My graduation celebration at the Country Club was supposed to be a good day. It was supposed to be the day. I would stop fucking around and tell the woman of my dreams how I felt about her.

  “He’s inside. I came outside to call you. Please tell me where you are,” she pleads.

  When Amelia would say please before, I would do anything for her. Please help me study. Please take me to Mills Pizzeria for pizza. Please rub my shoulders. She was my closest friend. We graduated college together. She even grew up just three houses down from me. We’ve known each other our entire lives. She was mine.

  That’s what I thought anyway.

  “I...can’t.” My voice breaks as I answer.

  “We didn’t mean to hurt you, Madden. I thought you knew.”

  I don’t believe her. “You kissed me back, Amelia! You can’t tell me you didn’t feel anything in that kiss! I know you did!”

  “Madden, I...I don’t know. Will you please come back?”

  I don’t say a word. Instead, I pull the phone away from my ear and disconnect, turning the phone off. Knowing my father, he’ll figure out a way to trace my cell phone. Anything to get his precious money returned.

  I thought you knew. How can she even say that? Her and Keegan never said a word to me. No one did. I’d stood in the Country Club banquet hall with my family completely oblivious to their relationship. I listened as my brother stood up and announce his engagement to Amelia Kensington, the woman I’m in love with, in front of hundreds of guests who were supposed to be there to congratulate me.

  But before all that, I told her how I felt. When I’d kissed her, she let me. For just a moment. Then, she devastated me. She told me she was marrying my brother and went back inside.

  I stood there and watched that whole charade. Watched as everything I had planned dissipated into thin air. I couldn’t stand there anymore and see them together. See them happy and in love.

  I went home, packed as many clothes as I could fit into a bag and tossed my toiletries on top of them. I walked into my father’s bedroom. and took down the Picasso painting. I entered the code to the safe without thinking twice about it.

  I drove like a bat out of hell out of Dallas and I didn’t look back. I’ve wandered around a couple of days now, holed up in the cheapest hotel I could find until the clerk told me about this town. Said if I wanted to go somewhere no one would look for me, this is the place. This is where I’m supposed to be. I feel it in my bones.

  Fuck them. Fuck them all. Keegan can have Amelia. They can get married. Make babies. I don’t give a fuck.

  I’m starting over. I don’t need Steele Industries. I don’t need my family. I sure as hell don’t need Amelia Kensington.

  Even though a small part of me knows she wants me too by the way she kissed me back.

  Chapter Three

  Jade

  I hate that I’m back upstairs, knocking on the new tenant’s door. He wasn’t super friendly when I brought him up here an hour ago and he hasn’t been back down since. It’s obvious he wants to be alone. Get settled in. But he’ll have one hell of a shock if I don’t give him the message I found.

  When he opens the door, the white shirt he had on is untucked and unbuttoned, exposing his bare chest. My eyes drift down, and I blink quickly, making myself look at his face.

  “Yeah?”

  “Madden, right?” I say, flustered.

  “Yep.”

  “I know I mentioned earlier that the hot water is iffy, but I found a note Jack left behind the bar that it’s out completely. He’ll be fixing it tomorrow.”

  “You’re fucking with me, right?”

  “No,” I say and hand him the note, which is now soaked, most likely with beer or whiskey, maybe both. “I didn’t see it until now or I would’ve told you sooner.” He holds up the wet paper with a look of pure disdain on his face. “So, you can take a shower. It would just be a cold one.”

  My eyes drift to his abs again, completely on their own volition, I swear, and when I look back up, he has a slight smirk on his face.

  “I may need a cold shower anyway.”

  With that, he shuts his door. Holy cow. I’m blushing as I head back down to the bar. It’s almost closing time, so everyone is finishing up and Casey and me are already cleaning up so we can get out of here.

  “Hey, gorgeous,” Brady says, sauntering up to the bar. He leans against it, flashing me a grin.

  Although I try not to be taken in by that lopsided smile of his, it instantly reminds me of the summer and the good times we shared. That smile was the source behind many of my dreams... and fantasies.

  I keep a blank stare on my face when I really want to climb over the bar and wrap myself around him. I’ve had a lot of heartache in my life and Brady Thompson was the first guy I thought was going to mend all that.

  “What do you need, Brady?”

  He glances over his shoulder where Caleb and the rest of the construction crew are. Casey is cleaning their table while sneaking kisses to Caleb.

  “Just coming to close out my tab.”

  I know this is only an excuse to come talk to me. Casey handled his table all night. She’s the one who’s supposed to close out his tab. Regardless, I go to the computer and get his total. When I hand him his receipt, he covers my hand with his.

  Not wanting to be pulled back in by his charms, I pull my hand away, but I notice his offended look. I start to apologize, but I don’t. He shouldn’t blame me for my behavior. He’s the one who left without an explanation. No official breakup, no goodbye.

  I got to hear all about how much fun he was having and with who while he was working out of state. He didn’t miss an opportunity to meet some new people.

  “Jade, don’t let it be like this between us. You haven’t spoken to me since I’ve gotten home.”

  I cross my arms over my chest. “What is it that you want me to say? I don’t remember you coming to find me when you got home. Didn’t want to tell me about your trip? About all those new friends you made?”

  I’m bitter and it’s clear in my tone. Being bitter keeps me from admitting I miss him. I absolutely refuse to admit that.

  “I want us to be friends. Hollis is too small for us to avoid each other.”

  Of course, he doesn’t bring up his extracurricular activities. He’s not the type to outright rub that in my face.

  But he is right. We can’t avoid each other in Hollis. The construction crew eats here for lunch almost every day. His mom works here. Christ, it was easy to pretend I wasn’t heartbroken when he was in another state.

  “I get it, Brady,” I admit. “But I can’t be friends with you.”

  At my admission, he cocks his head to the side a bit, giving me that charm that won me over before. It doesn’t escape me that the exact charm he’s turning on now has won over many more before me, and well, during me.

  “You can’t be friends with me? Come on, Jade. We started out as friends, remember?”

  How could I forget? I moved to Hollis three years ago and Brady and Casey were my first friends here. Along with Caleb, they are the only people in this town who know where I came from. Some of what I went through to get here.

  Living on the streets of Houston was not an easy life and I did what I had to do to survive. The moment I arrived in Hollis, I knew I was here to stay. Jack gave me this job and let me rent the apartment. Casey acted as though we had been best friends our
whole lives.

  “We were friends, Brady. But I can’t forget the things that happened between us and just go back to the way things used to be.”

  He grins at me, those damn dimples flashing. “I’m not going to give up. We’ll be friends again. You’ll see.”

  “Don’t bet on it.”

  He goes back to his table, completely confident in his mission to gain my friendship back. I just don’t see it happening.

  I’m still reeling from our conversation when Casey walks up. “How bad was it?”

  I shrug and start running the water in the sink so we can wash up the dishes from our shift. “He thinks we can be friends again.”

  “So, he wants to act like there was nothing going on between the two of you last summer? Like he wasn’t giving you false hope for a real relationship?”

  “Pretty much.”

  “You want me to nut punch him?” she asks, and I burst out laughing, knowing she’s absolutely one-hundred percent serious. “You know that I will. You deserve better than that shit he pulled, Jade.”

  “You’re one to talk,” I nudge her side as she rinses. “I thought Caleb kind of pulled the same stunt.”

  “Yeah, well, I’m an idiot when it comes to Caleb Randall. I have been for a very long time.”

  I nod knowingly. “You have history. That’s hard to walk away from.”

  “Okay, I’m changing the subject. Tell me about the hot new tenant upstairs.”

  “Not much to tell. Doubt he’ll be here long.”

  She shakes her head. “Don’t underestimate Hollis’ charm. It pulled you right in.”

  “Something tells me this guy won’t fall for it.”

  In fact, something tells me he’ll be running right back to whatever, or whoever, it is he’s running from as soon as he gets the chance. He’s a runner, that’s for sure.

  I look longingly over at Brady as we finish up. Yeah, I’ve had enough of guys running to last me a lifetime.

  Chapter Four

  Madden

  I’ve made two laps around this shithole town – which took all of fifteen minutes – before finally spotting the grocery store the cook at Jack’s told me was “just right around the corner.”

  This has to be the place because there aren’t any other buildings around town large enough to be a grocery store. I look at the dilapidated building as I step out of my F250. The exterior paint is chipping. There are only two other cars in the tiny parking lot. One lone shopping cart. A faded sales paper is stuck to the bottom of it.

  I walk over to it and mutter a curse. It wobbles when I push it. I hate wobbly shopping carts. I’d much rather use a grocery delivery service, but then I’d have to use a credit card. Not doing that. And I doubt that’s available in this podunk town. They don’t even have car services here, much less online shopping.

  I make do with the shitty cart and go inside the shitty store. The solitary cashier eyes me as I walk past her lane. She’s a teenager chewing bubble gum and apparently she can’t chew and slide groceries over the scanner at the same time. Chew, bubble, scan. She chews with her mouth open, too.

  I look above the aisles and frown when I realize there aren’t any signs indicating where the items are located. You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.

  I just go to the first aisle and start there. The store’s so small, it can’t be that hard to find a few groceries and shampoo. Maybe I’ll get a hot shower tonight. I sure as hell don’t want to take another cold one. My balls can’t handle shriveling up that small again.

  I push the cart around, practically dragging it because the wheels refuse to roll. The meat section is limited. That’s putting it nicely. Who the fuck eats pig feet? That’s the most disgusting looking thing I’ve ever seen in a grocery store.

  Wait. I take that back. They actually have pig snouts packaged here. This town is turning into a damn nightmare. I escaped one to live in another. At least my father isn’t here and I don’t have the constant reminder of Amelia in my face either. For a brief moment, I wonder if she’s excited about the upcoming wedding.

  Fuck it. I’m not thinking about Amelia and Keegan. I’m grocery shopping.

  I stick with the safe bet of ground beef and chicken and then move on from the meat section. Unfortunately, the other aisles aren’t much better. I feel like it’s an essentials only grocery store. If it’s not an essential, you sure as fuck won’t get it here. It’s obvious this town has never heard of salmon or caviar. They don’t even have lobster here.

  Now, if I could just find some soap and shampoo, I can get out of here. I round the corner and the piece of shit cart catches. I slam into it, causing the wheels to screech across the floor. The bar pushes into my stomach, and I wince in pain.

  “Shit!” I curse, trying to get the cart to go straight. I jerk it a couple of times, but the wheels aren’t budging. Just what I fucking need.

  I hear a throaty giggle behind me and see hands grip the side of my cart. Jade gives it a push then a rough jerk and the wheels straighten. She shoots me a triumphant smile.

  “The shitty buggy always stays in the parking lot,” she says, her hands still resting on the side of my cart.

  “Well, no one told the new guy.”

  “Now, you know,” she quips and steps back over to her shopping cart. I notice hers looks newer than mine.

  I also notice the way her ass fills out the shorts she’s wearing. She’s looking down at her grocery list and her strawberry blonde hair is falling over her shoulder. She tucks some of the stray strands behind her ear and marks something off her list. She glances up at me and I swallow when I realize I’m staring.

  “What?” she asks, her mouth tilting up in a half-smile.

  I feel the corner of my mouth itching to smile back at her. “Do you know where the shampoo is?”

  “Shampoo?”

  “I’ve looked all over this god-awful store and haven’t found soap or shampoo,” I explain. “Can’t even find anywhere to buy clothes around here.”

  “Follow me, new guy.”

  I like how she doesn’t just point me in the direction, but takes the time to actually show me. I only watch her ass half of the time.

  “They don’t have much of a selection, but this is my favorite. It smells like apples,” Jade says and holds the bottle of shampoo up for me to smell.

  I close my hand over the bottle and my palm touches her fingertips. I breathe in the apple scent. Not the strawberries Amelia always smells like, but it’s nice. Different.

  “Well, you might not want your hair to smell like apples,” she comments. “Soap is on the bottom row. As for clothes, you’ll have to drive over to Redbud. It’s the next town over.”

  “Thanks, Jade.”

  She slips her hand off the bottle and nods. I toss it in my shopping cart and see her walking away. I grab some soap and head to the cashier. I need to get back to my apartment and get a hot shower.

  Although maybe another cold shower will do me better at this point.

  Chapter Five

  Jade

  I hop out of my car and head inside Jack’s, which is already busy for the lunch rush. And by lunch rush, I mean about thirty people, but hey, that’s busy for Hollis.

  “Your shift don’t start until six,” Jack’s quips as I saunter up to the bar.

  “I know,” I say. “I need my check. Heading to Redbud for some shopping.”

  “You don’t say,” he replies, eyeing me suspiciously. “You messing around with my tenant?”

  My eyes go wide at his accusation and outright nosiness. “No! And even if I was, it’s not your business!”

  He grunts and walks back to his office to get my check. Marlene, the daytime cook, who also happens to be Brady’s mom, comes out and gives me a hug. She always had a soft spot for me, and the feeling is mutual.

  “You see that adorable thing Jack’s got living upstairs?” she asks with a wink and I chuckle. “I hear he’s going into Redbud today. Maybe he can use some comp
any.”

  She nudges my side, and her statement gives some meaning behind Jack’s accusation. As if on cue, Madden bounds down the stairs, his hair still damp from his shower. He still hasn’t gotten the memo on Hollis’ typical attire and is dressed in khakis and a polo shirt. Damn if it doesn’t suit him well, though.

  “I was just telling Jade here how you could probably use some company on your trip to Redbud, honey,” Marlene says sweetly. “Wouldn’t want you getting lost or anything.”

  Madden arches an eyebrow at me. “You going to Redbud?”

  I can feel my cheeks flaming red. “Actually, I am.”

  “Why don’t you two just ride together,” Marlene suggests, not ashamed of being pushy.

  “If you need a ride...” Madden throws the offer out there.

  I shake my head. My trips to Redbud are my time to unwind. Have some me time, so to speak. I hardly know this guy, but something tells me he trouble and I need to stay away from that. Can’t keep following the same pattern and getting my heart broken.

  “No, I’m good. I’d rather drive myself.”

  Declining his offer comes across a touch rude, even I recognize that, but before I can apologize, he’s walking toward the door completely unbothered.

  “Sweetie,” Marlene begins. “I know my Brady was an idiot, but not every man is. I’m a good judge of character. That one there, he’s a good one.”

  I glance toward him as he goes outside. “I’m not so sure, Marlene. See you later.”

  I wait until I figure he’s gone before I go outside and get in my car. I blast my radio, singing at the top of my lungs the entire drive to Redbud. If I were riding with Madden, I highly doubt I could sing to my heart’s desire.

  Music is my outlet. It’s the only fond childhood memory I have of my mother. When she was in her right frame of mind, meaning not strung out on whatever drugs she was on, she was always singing. We had a little radio she kept on our kitchen counter and it was rarely turned off. She would always know whatever song was playing.