“We do,” I agree.
“Do you think he’s at peace?”
I peer up to watch Maddox’s expression. He’s not teary-eyed like he has been the past month, and we can have this conversation without breaking down entirely.
“I think his last moments were spent doing what fulfilled him the most,” I whisper and follow his gaze back to the ceiling above. “That allowed him to be welcomed into a new place of a paradise that’s filled with nothing but peace.” I secretly hope that’s the case.
“I forgive him.”
“You always were going to,” I voice the truth. “All we ever wanted was for him to realize his worth. Even if it meant we had to be the competition in his life.”
“Makes me feel as though you wore the wrong jersey on purpose.”
“Maybe I did,” I admit. “Wore it so he’d realized we didn’t end because I didn’t love him.”
“You wanted him to love himself.”
“The one difference between you two,” I confess and meet his gaze that peers down at me. “You loved yourself, which made it easy for you to love everyone around you and more. Despite the challenges, you knew what you wanted and knew how deserving you were to get what you wanted, despite the world’s objection.”
He leans down to kiss me, the two of us sharing the sweet press of intimacy before we smile at one another.
“Wherever he is, I’m sure he’s at peace and loves the man he is now, and who knows? He could be starting a new era of his own that will bring him the happiness he was always searching for.”
“You know…” Maddox whispers. “He never stopped loving you.”
“I know,” I agree. “But I kind of wished he did. Then he would have seen he was already loved by someone who accepted him long ago.”
Maddox’s phone rings, prompting him to get it out of his left pocket. The FaceTime screen shows Damien, Ace, and Wolfgang.
“Are you guys coming back or what?” Wolfgang demands, which makes Ace chuckle.
“Ignore his grumpy ass. He lost to me in Solitaire.”
“Ouch,” Maddox and I say in unison.
“You guys want us to come over?” Damien inquires. “We’re in the area.”
“You don’t have to,” Maddox admits. “We’re about to leave.”
“We never got a chance to stay in the attic,” Wolfgang complains.
That makes me smirk.
“If you get here fast enough, we can enjoy one more good time?” I offer and grab their attention. “Who needs a mattress when having a bit of fun?”
The three of them gawk at the screen before Damien mutters, “James. Turn the car around.”
Maddox snickers, but his eyes aren’t on the phone but on my cleavage as he purposely unbuttons my black shirt, revealing my red bra with rhinestones.
“I can take the lead while you guys watch.”
“Diabolical,” I snicker, the sound lost by Maddox’s lips.
“James! Drive faster!” Wolfgang calls out.
“Maddox sucks at holding this shit at the proper angle,” Ace whines.
“We should be there in two minutes,” Damien declares. “I call dibs.”