She opened her eyes and looked up at the house for a moment, not saying anything, and then turned and looked at me and softly smiled. "You are a really great guy, Maddox. Thank you so much for being here."
"Of course. You going to be okay tonight?"
She nodded. "I think so. I'm going to go in, make a cup of tea, maybe watch a little TV, and then try and get some sleep."
"Okay, well, I am only a call away if you need me. I mean it, day or night."
"Thanks, but I will be fine." She climbed out of the truck. and opened the back door, grabbing her bags. "I'll see you in a week?"
"I'll be here," I answered.
“Good night,” she said, smiling at me behind her tears. She shut the door and sauntered up to the front door. I waited until she was safely inside, and then I backed out of the driveway and made my way home.
Tess
One Week Later
I shuffled through the dark house, carrying my mug of coffee and a plate of buttered toast into the living room. I was still in my pyjamas, and I sat down and turned on the TV. It was a little after midnight. Maddox would be here in two hours to pick me up to head to the airport.
I’d finished packing my bags last night, and I pulled my carry-on closer to me to quickly check the front pocket for all our travel documents. They sat there along with my passport and the money I had picked up at the bank earlier through the week. I had spent the entire week packing and repacking and had gone through my bag a dozen times to make sure I hadn’t forgotten anything.
I took a bite of my toast, followed by a mouthful of coffee, when lights shone into the front window. I frowned, took another bite of my toast, and got up to glance out the window. It surprised me to see Maddox climbing out of his truck. "What the hell?" I mumbled to myself, closing the curtain and walking over to the front door, pulling it open as he walked up the walkway. "What are you doing here so early?"
"Couldn't sleep. Thought I'd come by and see if you were up yet."
"And if I wasn't?"
His eyes washed over me as he stepped inside the house, and a sexy smile appeared on his lips. "Well, I guess you would be getting up." He chuckled. "Little overdressed for the plane, aren't you?"
I looked down at myself, my stretched-out T-shirt and dog ladened flannel pajama pants staring back up at me. "I just got up," I said, suddenly embarrassed by my sleep attire.
"I see. I thought we would get an early start. The weather’s supposed to turn bad, and we have at least an hour's drive on good roads."
I stepped to the side so Maddox could come in and shut the door behind him. While he slipped off his coat and shoes, I couldn't help but take in the scent of his cologne. He smelled good enough to eat, but I shook my head to chase away that thought.
"Well, I guess I will run up and get dressed. Help yourself to coffee. I made extra, so we had enough for the road."
"Sounds good."
I watched as his large, muscular frame walked away from me and disappeared into the kitchen, where I heard him pull a mug from the cupboard. I smiled to myself. Maddox always thought ahead. I hadn’t even thought about checking the weather.
"Thought you said you were heading up to shower?" I heard his deep voice behind me.
I jumped, turned, and smiled. He stood in the doorway to the dining room watching me. "I am. Thought you were getting coffee?"
"I did." He smiled, holding up a full mug.
Five hours later, we had boarded the plane. Maddox walked ahead of me down the aisle, my eyes firmly trained on his ass when he halted. I hadn't been paying attention and hadn't noticed that we were already at our seats. He lifted his bag above his head and slid it into the overhead carrier and turned to me.
"Did you want the window?" he questioned, stopping the entire line of people behind me from moving any further, instead of just sliding into the seat.
I shook my head. "No, you go ahead," I said, as the man behind me groaned at the fact that we were going to stand in the aisle and fight over the window seat.
"No, I insist. You take it." He grinned, waiting for me to climb in.
"No, Maddox, seriously, you take it," I insisted, but instead of climbing into the seat, he just stood there staring at me, a small smile on his lips.
"Would one of you take it. I've been up all night and would like to get settled so I can get some rest," the guy behind me gritted.