“Well, it’s too late to take it back now,” Cooper said. “We’ll figure out a direction to look. We just need to think. The answer is out there.”
Maddie fervently hoped that was true.
13
Thirteen
Maddie was exhausted by the time they returned to the hotel. She stripped out of her clothes as she walked toward the bed and climbed in wearing nothing but her bra and panties as she buried her face in the pillow.
“I think I’m getting old, Nicky,” she said as she drew the covers around her.
“Yes, I’m going to get you a cane as soon as we get home,” he teased.
“I’m serious. My feet hurt. My back hurts. I still have a bit of a headache.”
“I think all of that is because you overloaded on caffeine earlier,” he noted. “You always get a headache when you have too much caffeine.”
She made a face. “That’s a gross exaggeration.”
He stopped midway through stripping off his shirt and stared at her. “Do I need to remind you of the Mountain Dew incident of 2007?”
“What Mountain Dew incident?”
His amusement was evident as he tugged the shirt over his head. “Let me set the stage. We were at the Firefly Festival. It was the spring of junior year. There was a dance — I remember because Ally Linkletter was wearing a dress that you could see through and she asked me to slow dance with her — and you interrupted my carefully laid out plan to see if she was wearing underwear when you ran up to me and insisted you’d seen a vampire.”
Maddie’s scowl grew even more pronounced. “I don’t want to hear stories from when you were lusting after other girls.”
“Hey, that was only a few months before I realized I was in love with you,” he pointed out. “Besides, nothing happened. I left her in the middle of the dance floor to take care of you because you were so freaked out. When I finally managed to calm you down, you admitted you’d had four Mountain Dews and perhaps you were a little hopped up on sugar and caffeine.”
Maddie rolled her eyes. “I interrupted you because I was jealous. I didn’t like you dancing with Ally. Her boobs were bigger than her brain.”
“All you had to do was tell me how you felt and we could’ve been together then.”
“You just said that you didn’t realize you had feelings for me at that point.”
“Yes, but I’m betting a declaration of love from you would’ve pushed the realization up a bit.” He unbuttoned his pants and dropped them, revealing a pair of plaid boxer shorts that always made Maddie smile. They were one of the first gifts she’d purchased for him when they started dating, and no matter how ratty they got, he refused to throw them away.
“I don’t see what the caffeine has to do with my feet hurting,” Maddie argued. “I’m being serious. They feel ... swollen ... or something.”
Nick’s brow furrowed as he climbed onto the bed and drew down the covers. To his surprise, Maddie’s feet did indeed look swollen. “Do they hurt?” He grabbed the nearest foot and started rubbing.
Maddie let loose a low moan, delighted. “Oh, that’s the best thing in the world right there. Don’t ever stop doing that.”
He arched an amused eyebrow. “I believe you said something similar after the first time we spent the night together. You’re going to bruise my ego if you think this is better than that.”
“Don’t stop,” Maddie instructed, her eyes drifting shut. “That feels really good.”
“Well, we aim to please.” He was silent a bit, his fingers busy. Finally, he asked the obvious question. “Were you really jealous of Ally and me dancing?”
“Yes.” Maddie didn’t open her eyes because she knew she would blush if she met his gaze. “I was crushed because I was certain you were going to fall in love with her and forget all about me.”
“That could never happen.”
“Oh, no? Even I found those boobs of hers mesmerizing.”
Nick barked out a laugh. “You’re so funny. I ... .” He trailed off when he heard a noise at the door that separated their room from the one next door. “Hold that thought, Mad.”
She propped herself on her elbows and watched him stride to the door. Even in just his boxer shorts, he was a formidable sight as he threw open the door ... and came face to face with Maude.
“What the ... ?” Nick was completely flabbergasted.
Maude, already in her ankle-length nightgown, her steel-colored hair wrapped in rollers, looked between them. “They really did give me an adjoining room.” She seemed surprised. “I went down and requested a room change after you complained about me being too far away earlier today. They said they arranged it so we were right next to each other, but I didn’t believe them. I thought for sure they put me next to a pervert. This is much better.”
Nick was absolutely certain he didn’t feel the same way. “You’re right next to us?”
Maude smiled and bobbed her head. “I am. Now it will be just like at home.”
“Except there’s an entire living room, kitchen, stairway, and two spare bedrooms separating us from you at home.”
“Details.” Maude let loose a dismissive wave and turned to Maddie, who had the covers clutched around her chest. “So, listen, I’m not a prude or anything, but I think it would be best for all concerned if there’s no funny business.” She waggled her eyebrows suggestively to let them know exactly what she was referring to.
“Oh, geez.” Maddie tugged the covers over her head and sank low on the bed, causing Nick to frown.
“Now, I get that this is a romantic vacation for the two of you, so I don’t expect you to adhere to my wishes simply because I’m an old woman and the sound of you guys doing stuff could give me a heart attack,” Maude continued. “So, if you get urges that simply cannot be contained, knock twice
