Maddox pulled away so he could look at her. “You’re kidding, right?”
Her timidity threatened to take center stage, but she brushed it aside. “I’m really not. It was so special. It was like I was sharing my soul with you, and you saw me for who I really am. And that you’re still okay with that.”
Setting aside the blanket they’d shared, he rose from the bed and stopped before her, tipping her face to meet his. “I am. And once I brush my teeth, I’d like to kiss you again.”
She giggled, whacking him with a pillow.
“Hey,” he said. Defensively, he gripped her wrists. She giggled again, wriggling, attempting to free herself from his grasp. He bowled her over onto the pull-out bed, and the two of them tangled in the blankets like birds in a nest when his phone on the table beside it buzzed.
Freed from Maddox’s grasp, Adelie rolled over and inspected the screen. All at once, the morning’s elation died. Ruby’s lovely, pouty expression filled his screen.
“She’s calling you again,” Adelie said. “What did you say to her when you answered yesterday? Did you tell her you’re with me?”
Maddox scowled and reached for his phone. “Not yet. I’m just not sure how. Ruby can be a little territorial.”
Adelie sat up. “Even if you aren’t her territory anymore?”
Or was he? All of his playfulness and affection the past few days had to mean something. He couldn’t be acting this way when he was still involved with someone else, could he?
“I’m going to answer this. I can go in the other room, if you want.”
She didn’t want to seem any more insecure than she already had, though inside, Adelie cringed.
“It’s okay,” she said, praying that it would be.
***
Maddox grimaced, wishing he could take the call somewhere Adelie wouldn’t hear. But he wouldn’t push her away again, not after the connection they’d had last night and then again this morning. Unlike Adelie, he’d kissed plenty of girls, but he wasn’t sure there had ever been a kiss like that one. So tender, so vulnerable. It’d had a supercharged effect, like their exteriors had been stripped away and their souls had been connecting. Who knew a kiss could hold that much impact?
“Ruby,” he said. “I asked you yesterday not to call me anymore. You ended things. Two years ago, in fact. It’s time to move on.”
Even as he spoke, he could sense Adelie distancing herself from him. He reached for her hand, latching it with his, and gave her what he hoped was a reassuring smile. Her shoulders lowered, and she returned the expression.
“Duncan told me an interesting bit of news,” Ruby said, ignoring Maddox’s comment. “Is it true you married this girl? Your Front-Page Girl?”
Defensiveness flared inside of him. That made Adelie sound cheap. “That’s not your business anymore, is it?”
“There’s nothing wrong with me wanting to congratulate an old friend on his sudden and unexpected marriage, is there?” Ruby’s voice was an odd mix of sweetness, hissing tones, and sharp edges.
Maddox tried to figure out what spurred her snark. Why should Ruby care who he was with now, unless…
No way. She couldn’t possibly be jealous. She’d been the one to end things, and she’d done it in the nastiest way possible.
“There wouldn’t be if you actually meant it,” Maddox said.
“I do mean it. Your little theme park is really taking off, and you’re celebrating in the best way possible. Honeymoon and all.”
“Goodbye, Ruby,” Maddox said. This conversation was obviously going nowhere. He didn’t want Ruby invading this amazing memory any more than she already had.
“And in France, no less,” she went on. “I’m sure all your new fans will want to know your exciting news.”
Maddox closed his eyes, regretting he’d ever answered the call the day before. He’d confessed where he was, hoping it would be enough to get Ruby off his case.
“If they do, it will be when Adelie and I are ready to announce it. Not before, you got it?”
“Keeping it to yourself? Where’s the fun in that? This is the best marketing gimmick you’ve had yet. Marrying your model? People are going to gobble this up.”
Maddox gritted his teeth and stood, releasing Adelie’s hand in the process. “Hang on a second, Ruby. You’re going too far.”
She laughed, a wicked, familiar sound. “Oh, come on, don’t tell me you actually have feelings for this girl. Didn’t you just meet her at the rabbit event? The one I told you to do?”
He closed his eyes, praying for patience. He should have known she’d take credit for that. But she couldn’t twist this; he refused to let her. His marriage to Adelie wasn’t a marketing scheme. If anything, it was starting to feel like something he wasn’t ready to say goodbye to anytime soon.
He decided to cut to the chase. “What is this really about?”
“I want in.”
“What?”
“On your park. Make me an investor too.”
This wasn’t just unbelievable. This was asinine. Did she forget what she’d said so easily? Maddox had begged for her support when his park was struggling, when he’d really needed it, but she’d shot him down more times than he could count.
She couldn’t be doing this now. Adelie was trying to stay out of the public eye. She was just starting to trust him. What would she do if she thought he’d married her to further his own interests?
“Stay out of this, Ruby. I mean it. I’ve moved on. You need to do the same.”
“You never move on from money,” Ruby said, ending the call and leaving Maddox with a sour pit in his stomach.
He wasn’t sure what had just happened, but when it involved Ruby and her tenacity to land the best business deals possible, he wouldn’t put anything past her.
CHAPTER TWENTY-Three
Adelie wasn’t ready to go home yet, which was funny, considering how a few days before she wanted to scamper away and hide. Now she wanted every moment alone with Maddox she could manage.
He’d changed, though, since Ruby’s latest
