Madi nodded when her father told her mother, “This might be your best batch yet, love,” getting a laugh and agreement from the entire table. She was taking a sip of her drink when her mom asked, “So, what time are y’all leaving for Cancun?” Madi nearly spewed but quickly brought her napkin to her mouth to keep herself from doing so.
“What?” she asked with a frown and didn’t miss the self-satisfied grin on her mom’s face.
“Uh, tonight, after we leave here.”
Madi frowned over at Brett; what the hell was he talking about?
“Oh, you didn’t tell her? You know how I always like to be prepared for trips.” Amelia’s eyebrow arched. “I can’t imagine Madison would be any different.”
“Brett?” Madi asked, her brows drawing.
“Surprise,” he mumbled and took a sip of his scotch in front of him.
“How fun,” Madi’s father chuckled, trying to ease the tension.
Brett took a deep breath in and took Madi’s hand. “Linc and Val wanted to do something nice and unplanned, so they gave me the key to their house in Cancun. We can stay as long as we want.”
Madi gulped. A vacation. So soon? She couldn’t leave right now. She had things to do. Closets to clean out. Hunter’s locker to empty.
Oh, God, she was gonna be sick. She quickly excused herself from the table and ran to the hall bathroom. She pushed the door shut and hit her knees in front of the commode, feeling like she was going to faint. She shoved her head into the toilet and took deep breaths in, attempting to calm herself.
She felt a wet rag come to her neck and her mother’s hand running up and down her back. “It’s ok, baby. It’s ok.”
The chant didn’t help. Madi began to panic. “B-Brett,” was all she could get out.
She heard his heavy footfalls; when she felt his hand hit her back, she turned into him and held on tight as the dam of emotions exploded once again. How did she have any tears left to cry? What the hell? Maybe her mother was right, maybe she needed to be committed.
His stroking of her hair and his words soothed her and soon, she was looking up into his handsome face. “I-I’m sorry.”
“Nothing to apologize for, Sunflower. I shouldn’t have sprung it on you like that. We should’ve discussed it first. It was rather impromptu, and when Linc volunteered, I thought it was a good idea.” He held her face in his big palms, his gorgeous green eyes burning into her own. “Madi, that house hasn’t been good for you. We need to get away for a little while.”
“But…what about his things, his locker, I—” she felt herself pouting again.
“Baby, there’s no rush here. No one will touch his locker until you’re ready.” Madi looked up to her father, who stood in the door frame with his arms crossed over his chest. He nodded, solidifying his words.
“And Madi you aren’t ready. You need this trip. We need this trip.” Brett’s pleading voice beckoned to her. She couldn’t remember the last vacation she’d gone on since her wedding and honeymoon in Ireland five years prior. Their lives had been so swept up in the moment—in football, in the team—that nothing else existed. Madi had gone back to get her master’s degree and worked hard to get to CEO status; achieving that goal had been her sole focus.
Brett was right; they both needed this trip.
“I hope you aren’t mad at me,” Brett said when they got in the car to head out. “I had Maria pack your bag. It’s already on the jet. I figured if you need anything else we can either buy it or have it sent.”
Madi just nodded, gazing out the window. She was used to people doing things for her, just as he was used to the same.
“Madi, I wasn’t keeping it a secret from you; you need to know that. I just wanted it to be a surprise.”
“I know, Brett. I’m glad you made the decision for us to go. It means a lot. You’re so thoughtful.”
“You just now figuring this out?” He winked, trying to ease some of the tension he’d felt all evening.
He knew Amelia wasn’t thrilled at how he’d been handling things, but, contrary to what she believed, Madi didn’t need pills or a shrink—or to end up wasting away in a damn psych unit somewhere for God knew how long before she was deemed “sane” again. She didn’t need rehab, she didn’t need therapy, she simply needed time to grieve. Tragic deaths took their toll, and if Madi was feeling even a quarter of the emotions Brett was—and he knew she was—she was in desperate need of release. She’d never been thrust into a situation like this, never had tragedy hit her so hard, never had her life altered in such a drastic way. That’s all this was. He was planning to give her a couple months to adjust to her new life. He’d been reading books on grieving and talking to his own psychiatrist about it. Brett came to the conclusion that Madi wasn’t depressed, she wasn’t suicidal, and she wasn’t crazy; she was simply mourning the loss of her husband. Plain and simple.
Of course he’d volunteered to drive her to a doctor, he’d offered to have his own come and visit her, but she’d refused. At first, he’d been gravely concerned, then he remembered how she felt about psychiatrists and shut his mouth. He knew all the warning signs; if she gave him any reason to question her mental stability, he would overrule her and get the help she needed. That was what he’d told Amelia earlier.
“Do you trust me?”
“Of course, but this is—”
“She’s just devastated, Millie. That’s all. She lost her husband, suddenly and in a horrible way. She needs to grieve him. It’s gonna take time.”
“She’s gotta get out of that house, Brett. She—”
“I know. I’m taking care of that…tonight.”
He’d proceeded to inform her of
