just teasing, and I took it to heart, because I was feeling emotional and a little insecure, maybe. You’re a beautiful man, and while I wasn’t looking for anything more than a friendship with you, I’m not blind. I had admired you physically and should’ve just owned up to it instead of acting so defensive.”
Shit. She shouldn’t have been apologizing. It should’ve been the other way around.
“Maddie, please don’t waste another second thinking about that. I’m just really comfortable with you, and that makes it easy to tease you. When you shut down last night, I felt like shit. That was the last thing I wanted—not only because you seemed upset, but because I didn’t want to waste one minute of our final hours together.” My walls started to crumble a little. “You told me when we first met that you were feeling lost. That hit me in my soul because I was feeling the exact same way…until we met. The last couple of days—being Milo to your Maddie—have been amazing and much-needed for me, too. Believe me.”
The smile that spread across her face made my admission worth it. “I’m glad it wasn’t only me.”
“It wasn’t. And I want to go on record saying…that guy who hurt you? He’s a damn fool. You are as smart as you are beautiful. Creative and adventurous. Everything a man could want. And I’m not saying this as some guy who’s trying to make you feel good or get into your pants. I’m saying this as your friend.”
“Or brother.” She winked.
Then she pulled me in for a hug, one I definitely wasn’t expecting. I could feel her heart beating against my chest.
“Thank you for reminding me what it feels like to be alive,” she said.
We let go of each other, stood up, and began the long walk to our respective gates. With each second that passed, my feeling of dread got more intense. I didn’t want to go back to my pre-Maddie life, mainly because I’d been dealing with things in a very solitary manner. I enjoyed her companionship. She wasn’t even gone yet, and I found myself longing for what we were walking away from.
We got to a point where she would turn left for Terminal A, and I would turn right for Terminal B.
We stopped and faced each other.
“Well, I guess this is it,” she said.
Don’t ask me what came over me in that moment, but a voice inside me just said: The fuck it is.
“This doesn’t have to be it, Maddie.”
The words flew out of me so fast I wasn’t sure if I’d said them or thought them.
“This doesn’t have to be it?” she said. “What do you mean?”
“Do you really want to go back to Connecticut right now?”
Her eyes flitted back and forth. “Honestly? No, not in the least.”
“Can I ask you a question?”
“Yeah.”
“What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever done?”
“I don’t know offhand...”
“It doesn’t matter. Because I want the answer to be: said yes to a pseudo-stranger who asked me to go on a blind adventure with him.”
“What are you saying?”
“I’m saying I’m not ready to say goodbye to Milo, if you’re up for playing Maddie a little longer.”
Her breathing quickened as she seemed to be considering my proposal. “Where will we go?”
“Wherever the wind takes us? Wherever the hell we want? As long as it’s not Connecticut or New York or Seattle.”
She wiped sweat off her forehead. “Would I be totally crazy if I said yes to this?”
“Not if it’s what your heart is telling you to say.”
“Then...yes.” She nodded. “I say yes. I want to go.”
Relief washed over me.
“Let me ask you a question,” I said.
“Yeah?”
“What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever done?”
“Said yes to a pseudo-stranger who asked me to go on a blind adventure with him.”
“Maddie, welcome to the craziest day of your life.”
She grinned. “Hookers Part Two?”
I lifted my hand and high-fived her. “Hell, yeah.”
Chapter 6
* * *
Matteo
“They’re on a first date. He’s worried his credit card is going to get declined because he overspent this month on his webcam-girl porn addiction.”
Maddie looked at me like I had two heads. I lifted my chin and pointed to the couple standing at the counter. The guy was rubbing his hands down the sides of his legs like his palms were sweaty, and he really did look pretty pale. Of course, that could’ve been because he was about to rent a machine that goes a hundred-and-fifty miles an hour with only a helmet for protection. But I liked