Page 67 of Mad As Hell

“We have practice in the mornings now, but you shouldn’t have any more issues in the cafeteria.”

My head snapped up, stunned that he wasn’t pressing me about the sudden change in my diet. There wasn’t a trace of sympathy or judgment in his eyes as he watched me.

I jerked my head up and down unsteadily, watching him with what I was certain were big eyes.

“Lunch and dinner we should spend together. Are you good with that?”

“Yes,” I said softly, hoping he caught the note of gratitude.

“Brylee should be done giving you shit, but if things change, tell me and I’ll handle it,” he told me seriously. “I mean it, Maddie. I don’t want you taking on the fucking school by yourself.”

“You can’t protect me all the time,” I reminded him.

His gaze sharpened. “The fuck I can’t. Watch me.”

Agreeing was easier than fighting him, so I just gave another quiet, “Okay.”

“Okay, you’re trying to shut me up? Or okay, you’ll do what I said?” He smirked at me across the table.

I laughed a little because he knew me too well. “Okay to both? But mainly the first one.”

He rolled his eyes. “Fine. But with Dean gone, things should be easier.”

I squirmed in my seat. “I appreciate you doing that. I know I kind of jumped down your throat—”

“You were right,” he said, shaking his head to stop me. “Dean should’ve been handled before then. Maybe we wouldn’t be sitting here if I’d done something sooner.”

He could be right. But if that was true, then I also probably wouldn’t know what a snake Gary really was. I wasn’t sure if being ignorant of just how cruel my sperm donor was would be a blessing or a curse.

“We can’t change what happened,” I replied, selecting my words as kindly as I could. “But why didn’t you do something? I mean, you were so emphatic that Bex not go to the police when Dean drugged her.”

His eyes drifted shut for a moment. “I thought I knew what I was doing. I thought I had everything under control.”

“What changed?”

His electric blue gaze caught mine and held with an intensity that stole my breath. “The girl I love got hurt. That changed everything.”

My pulse pounded as my heart thundered in my chest. All I could do was stare at him, my insides shaking as what he was saying registered in my head.

“What are you doing if you won’t be cheering?” Ryan quickly changed the subject to something less emotionally charged.

My nose wrinkled as I shook off the weight of the previous topic. Instead of throwing walls up, I tried taking one down. “Studying and planning our wedding? Worshiping you?”

The corner of his mouth hooked up with his smirk. “Well, obviously. Just so we’re clear, I’m expecting something huge and elaborate.”

“Didn’t peg you as a groomzilla,” I teased, letting some of the tension leach from my body as I fell back into our natural banter.

He snorted. “I expect to be the main focus of our big day.”

“Of course,” I agreed with a small smile. “I was thinking of wearing something like a potato sack to make sure no one pays attention to me.”

His eyes warmed considerably. “Baby, if you think burlap is going to dim your beauty, you’ve clearly not been looking in any mirrors.”

I bit my lower lip as my face heated. Two weeks ago, the look in his eyes would’ve had me dragging him into the nearest bathroom for a quickie.

He blinked and the look vanished. “Can I say something without completely pissing you off?”

Slowly, I nodded.

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