Page 125 of Ever With Me

Once again, Dan would have thought about that—and know the reality of the situation here—because of his background.

“There something we should worry about?” Maddie asked with a laugh as they climbed into the back of Dan’s truck.

“I’m just being cautious,” Dan said as he shut the door.

“We’ll probably want to just sit on the floor until we get past where the paparazzi are parked or this is pointless,” Brooks told Maddie as she buckled up.

Maddie raised a brow at Brooks and climbed to the floor. “Is this how you live? Constantly looking over your shoulder?”

Brooks shrugged, trying to relax as best he could onto the floor mat. She looked cute sitting there—and actually fit, unlike him. His knees were by his face.Damn, this is cramped.“Sometimes. I live in a gated community and I have bodyguards when I need them. Mostly, I just drown out the noise when I’m in public and avoid going out.”

Light flooded the garage as Dan opened the garage door.

“Isn’t that lonely, though?”

Dan opened the driver’s side door then and climbed inside. “All set?”

“I think so,” Maddie said and laughed. “I feel like I’m sneaking out of the house or something.”

She’s laughing now because she hasn’t had to live this way for years.In a way, he envied her naivety. The first time someone had asked for his autograph while he’d been out to dinner with Kayla, he’d walked on a cloud for the rest of the day.

Now he didn’t bother to eat at restaurants if they didn’t give him a private room or close off a section for him.

Somewhere along the way, all the attention had stopped being fun.

Maybe it had been the first time his life was threatened.

Or when a fan had broken into his hotel room.

Or when the paparazzi had mobbed his car and made it impossible for him to leave a parking garage in New York City.

He didn’t complain about it—poor, poor rich and famous boy, so sad, how tragic—andmany people withheld sympathy.

But itwaslonely.

He might not have even realized how lonely he was if not for Maddie.

Reaching a hand out, he interlaced his fingers with hers.

As if you get to keep her if you just hold on tight right now.

When would that wide-eyed innocence and laughter about riding on the floor of a truck fade? Would she come to hate him for it eventually?

“I think you all can probably sit on the seats now,” Dan said, breaking into his thoughts.

They climbed back onto the seats and Maddie took the middle, rather than the one a seat away. “Hi,” she whispered, snuggling into him. “You were too far away.”

He wrapped his arm around her. “This is perfect.”

“Have you met the full Yardley clan before this?” Dan asked, meeting his gaze through the rearview mirror.

“Not all of them. Just Logan and Naomi,” Maddie said with a grin. “And don’t scare him off, Dan. I already warned him they can be a lot. At least they’re not like the Klein brothers. You should see the hell Dan and his older brother put Jen through when she was trying to just be a normal teenager and date. Guys practically shit their pants if they talked to her and Dan or Warren happened to see.”

“Yeah, well, it’s no walk in the park to witness your baby sister get knocked up by an asshole, then leave her to fend for herself,” Dan said grumpily.

Brooks’s gaze flicked to Dan’s again.Interesting. I do, actually, know what that’s like.

Maddie winced. “Don’t worry, Dan, I never bought the story that you were a huge bully. I knew why you stood up for her.”

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