Page 111 of Mad As Hell

Her lips flattened into a mulish line. “What’s that supposed to mean? I can’t care about the way I look?”

“You absolutely can,” I shot back, some of the heat I’d been trying to rein in filtering through. She was trying to deflect, and that was insulting as hell. “But you don’t. I fucking love

that you didn’t worry about every calorie that passes your lips, like ninety-nine percent of the other chicks around here. And I loved that I didn’t have to feel like I was going to snap you in half if I wanted to pound into you as hard as I wanted.”

Her eyes flashed. “I won’t break because I lost a few pounds.” She looked away from me like she was… ashamed?

I forced myself to stay calm, knowing she was trying to pick a fight. We both had a tendency to jump into fight mode when cornered. “Maddie, stop twisting what I’m saying. I’m worried, baby.”

She glanced away and stared at the wall. “Did it ever occur to you that maybe I haven’t had much of an appetite since you blew my world apart?”

Fuck, that hurt so goddamn much.

She squirmed, and not in the way I’d been craving. A look of doubt crossed her face, and it damn near broke my heart when she whispered, “Can you let me go, please?”

From the handcuffs? Sure. From my life? Never.

“I’m sorry, baby,” I whispered, reaching up and unlocking her hands, because I needed to wrap my arms around her and feel her hold me back. I pulled her onto my lap so her legs straddled me, her bare ass balanced on my thighs as I hugged her to my chest. After a beat, a shudder rippled through her, and she wound her arms around my neck, clinging to me.

I smoothed a hand down her back, before massaging her shoulders in case there was any lingering ache. I felt like an asshole when she shivered. I shouldn’t have pushed her tonight. I’d come so fucking close to losing her for good, and I still probably needed to take it slow.

The problem was, slow wasn’t in my nature. And after what had happened in the locker room and then tonight… I’d thought Maddie wanted more. It had felt like we were moving past the nightmare of the last few weeks.

I cleared my throat. “Why don’t you take the bed tonight? I can sleep on the couch, or crash downstairs so you can be alone.”

Her head snapped back, her cornflower blue eyes wide. “What? No. That’s not what I want.”

“Maddie—”

Her hands came up to frame my face. “I want you, Ryan. God help me, but I do. I shouldn’t. And yeah, there’s still a huge part of me that’s worried you’ll change your mind again and this will all come crashing to an end, but…” Her eyes squeezed shut. “I’m so tired of fighting.”

The corner of my mouth hooked up. “Are you sure? I’m kind of a handful.”

“I want all of you. Every piece. The good and the bad, the light and the dark.”

I hesitated. “My dark is pretty fucking black, Madison. I’ve done shit that if you knew…”

“I can take it,” she said fiercely, her eyes narrowed as if daring me to contradict her. My fucking little warrior.

“I’ll tell you everything. It’s too much to get into tonight,” I added, “but as soon as we’re done at my dad’s tomorrow, I’ll tell you whatever you want to know. But once you know, there’s no going back.”

“Going back stopped being an option the day I took over Madelaine’s life,” she told me. “But I need to know that we’re in this together.”

I nodded slowly. “Okay, baby.”

She smiled at me for a beat, then tilted her head. “So… is break time over?” She wiggled her hips, pressing against my dick. The little bit it had deflated during our serious talk was gone as it turned to fucking stone.

I barked out a laugh. “Ready for more?”

“I’m ready for everything,” she confessed, a little shyly, “as long as you’re with me.”

I smirked and deposited her on the bed before I got up and went to my dresser. I opened the top drawer and found what I was looking for, then turned and went back to her.

Grabbing her left hand, I tugged off that gaudy rock that cost a fortune and meant nothing. Without thinking, I tossed it into the trash by my desk.

“Ryan!” Her eyes widened.

I pushed my grandmother’s ring back onto her finger where it belonged. “I’m with you, Madison. Yesterday, today, and every fucking tomorrow.” I kissed the back of her hand reverently, then I pressed my own hand between her tits and pushed her back onto the bed.

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