Page 4 of Deserving Maddie

Get through to her damn son.

"We need more cereal." Gabe didn't bother to pick his head up from his phone when he provided the only contribution to what they needed from the store.

She was tempted some days to take the phone as punishment for his behavior, but then guilt ate at her. It was his only connection to the friends he had back home. The same ones he had known all his life. She was already the reason he was away from them. She refused to make it worse by cutting him off completely.

"Take your sister and go pick out what you both want. I'm going to head down the pasta aisle and pick up a few things."

A grunt was the only acknowledgment she received before her children took off to grab what they wanted.

She was strolling down the aisle when a voice caught her attention. Not just any voice, either. The one voice she only let herself think about late at night after her kids went to bed, and she needed something to get off to.

"Maddie?"

Oh, shit. Oh, shit. Oh, shit.

No, not here. Not where her kids could come back and see. She needed to get rid of him, and fast.

Something was wrong with him. For a month, he couldn't get Maddie out of his head. He tried to downplay it, but Trista was right. He was hung up on a woman because she was the one to walk out of his bed and not look back.

His bed.

Ray wasn't conceited. He knew that there were women who only used him for a good time, and normally, he would be completely on board with it. Except he was walking away when he was ready. Now he was getting a dose of his own medicine. He had fallen asleep with her in his arms, only to wake up completely alone. Not even a goodbye note or thanks for the good time.

He probably could've handled it if it was just some boring sex, but no. Maddie had rocked his world and made him actually want to stay around and get to know her. Now he was ruined for other women. The first three women he tried to take home after that didn't do anything for him, so he stopped trying. Trista was probably getting a laugh at the fact that there were no more Ubers of shame. His home had never been so lonely.

Hence the reason he was out grocery shopping instead of sitting at a bar, hitting on his latest conquest. Drinking, with no prospect of a fun night, was boring, but sitting at home again didn't appeal to him either.

It was the fourth time he'd walked down the same pasta aisle. There were only two things in his cart and there was a good chance the manager would be calling the police soon. His behavior could certainly be considered suspicious. At least one person probably thought he was going to rob the place.

Ray was turning down the next aisle when shiny black locks caught his attention. He would recognize that hair anywhere. He had envisioned running his fingers through it on more than one occasion. More like so much that it was borderline stalkerish.

He gravitated in her direction before he could fully understand what his body was doing. Maddie wanted nothing to do with him. She had made that very clear. And yet he couldn't stop himself. He needed to speak with her even if it would be the last time.

"Maddie?"

His voice shook. He would be embarrassed if he wasn't so damn desperate to catch just one glimpse of her. Her entire body froze, and that made him feel even worse.

Ray was convinced she was going to walk away. Or maybe it was all just in his head and the woman in front of him wasn't who he thought. Maybe she was a mirage his mind conjured up, since he couldn't stop thinking about her.

Then she turned around and once again his heart did the stupid flipping thing it had done that first night they met. It was a feeling he wanted to both run from and pull close at the same time.

"Ah … Ray! What are you doing here?"

Was that fear in her voice? Why did she sound afraid to see him in public and what was with the shifty eyes, like she was looking around to see if someone would see them?

Oh. Shit.

Was she married? In a relationship? He quickly looked down to where her hands rested on the cart handle. An audible sigh escaped his lips when he didn't see a ring. Just like he hadn't the night they were together.

So then why did she look uncomfortable, ready to bolt at just the sight of him?

"Just doing a little shopping." He looked down at the two items in his cart—a quart of chocolate milk and a package of cookies. Not exactly the healthiest of food choices, but the spontaneous trip had nothing to do with need. At least not the food kind.

"I see." Maddie cleared her throat. "Well, I should—"

Her sentence was cut off by a teenage boy and a younger girl rounding the aisle.

"Hey, Mom!"

---