Page 45 of Deserving Maddie

"Damn right it has. My poor vagina at one point, was weeping for you. Now it gets to rejoice and be jealous all at the same time."

Talk about dramatic. Kat was no wilting flower. Her best friend had no shortage of men lining up to take her out. She was the female version of Ray before Maddie came into his life.

"I doubt your vagina has anything to be jealous of. It gets plenty of action."

Maddie debated between her dressy sandals or wedges. Both matched the dress well.

Oh, who was she kidding? They wouldn't be on long after she got into the house anyway. With her mind made up, she slipped on the dressy sandals and looked at herself in the mirror. Not bad for a single mother who spent all of her time arguing with a teenager and was barely sleeping because of arguments with said kid. The light touch of makeup hid the dark circles that were now a permanent resident under her eyes.

"I know it does, but getting a lot of action and getting a lot of really good action are two completely separate things. Do you know how hard it is to find a guy who isn't self-absorbed and actually makes it his life's mission to please a woman?" Kat rambled and then stopped for a dramatic pause.

"Hard. Very hard. You hit the one-night-stand lottery with Ray. It took me a ton of hookups to find that unicorn man and I still wouldn't say I found one as good as Ray."

Maddie regretted sharing her sexual exploits with her best friend. After the first time she hooked up with Ray, it felt like an obligation, considering Kat constantly overshared her nightly excursions. Now she knew how much of a mistake that was.

"The right man is out there for you somewhere."

"I keep telling you I'm not looking for a forever man. I'm looking for one who rocks my world the same way Ray rocked yours. And will keep rocking it because your ass is going there tonight and not coming back until it's time to sneak back in in the morning."

She felt the heat travel up her neck. Maddie was never a wild child even as a teenager. There was no sneaking out or back in. It was probably why she married the second guy she slept with. The first one barely even counted since he could barely keep it up after taking her virginity. It was a lesson she would be happy to teach her daughter—find someone with a little experience. Not a virgin himself. It made for a very uncomfortable first time.

"I can't chance Gabe seeing me sneak back in."

"Oh, the irony. The adult worried about the teenager. One day the two of you will look back on this time and laugh."

Maddie scoffed. "I highly doubt that."

"Mark my words. Ray is going to win my nephew over and you, my dear, will have your happily ever after. Sooner rather than later, too."

A woman could dream, for now. But while she waited for that dream, she was going to take the opportunity her friend was giving her and have a nice evening with Ray. It would be the only one for a while since Kat was leaving tomorrow, and they had yet to plan when she would be back.

"How do I look?"

"Amazing," Kat whistled. "Now get that sexy ass out of here and don't let me see you again until the morning. I love you and don't do anything I wouldn't do."

Maddie rolled her eyes and kissed her best friend on the cheek. She wasn't touching that last statement. There was nothing Kat wouldn't try at least once, so really it was a moot comment.

The entire drive over to Ray's house, her stomach somersaulted. The last time she went out with someone was almost twenty years ago. Sex was one thing, but this was something new altogether. Even in her marriage, she couldn't remember the last time she had a date night.

She'd just gotten the car in park when Ray walked out the front door. Maddie took a moment to just soak him in. The dark-wash jeans hung low on his hips and hugged him perfectly in all the right places. She hadn't known a simple light green t-shirt could look so sexy, and maybe on someone else it wouldn't, but damn did Ray look hot. But nothing compared to the pair of glasses perched on his nose or the fact that the man walking towards her was barefoot.

Everything about Ray screamed comfortable and yet sexy. With just a pair of shoes, he would be ready to hit the town.

Maddie waited for him to open her door before stepping out.

"We're making progress." Ray smiled at her. "You didn't look ready to run the other way this time."

"I have nowhere I would rather be at the moment," she admitted rather sheepishly.

"Now, that's what I like to hear. Come on inside. Otherwise, Trista might come out and start harassing us."

She couldn't help it. Maddie looked over her shoulder at the house across the street. It was the same one Falcon had walked out of the last time she had been there.

"She's just looking out for you."

"Oh, I know she is." Ray led her up the walkway. "But she reminds me of an old woman who needs to know everything that's happening in the neighborhood."

Her entire body shook with laughter. "That's not a very flattering comparison at all."

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