Chapter Four Madison

A s soon as the video cuts off, Sam speaks up.

“The grounds are a great space for events,” she suggests, her voice filled with optimism. “If we fix up the house, make it a bit more modern, this could be a quaint place for parties, weddings, and even birthdays.”

“No,” Asher interjects. “In this small town? Not a chance. The best bet would be to sell it. Dante, you can put it on the market, right?”

There’s a dark glint in Dante’s eyes the moment that Asher suggests selling the property, and my heart sinks. Mrs. Kendall hasn’t even been dead that long… let alone buried, and she left everything she had to us. And the first thing they want to do is sell it?

Over my dead body .

“Woah there, big dog,” I call out, deciding to put my foot down. “What about other options, Mr. Celebrity? Just because you want to run back to whatever tail you’re chasing now, doesn’t mean the rest of us don’t have any other ideas. We can turn it into a bed and breakfast, and my mom could supply the pastries and stuff from her bakery.”

Asher flips me off, and I ignore him.

“That’s not such a bad idea,” Knox agrees. “Dad and I can do the new furniture at the carpentry shop and—”

“You can’t be serious,” Asher says, at the same time as Dante says, “You don’t have the time or resources for that kind of project, Knox.”

“But I do,” Jaxson cuts in. My heart does that tiny flutter again it did when my eyes first landed on him. I didn’t expect him to agree with Knox and I, but hearing him do so makes me wonder why he would want something to do with all this.

I would have put money on him siding with Knox and Dante.

“Yeah, yeah, we all know you’re a big-time chef in Italy or whatnot, and that you own how many restaurants. But don’t let sentiment blind you. This is not a viable business spot,” Dante tells him, making my blood boil.

“He’s a chef in New York now, you penguin,” I snap, referring to the white and black attire Dante’s wearing. Though with the dark stern gaze he lays on me, I can’t help but bite my lip and sit back down quietly.

“We can’t just have it sitting unused only to rot,” Jaxson finally replies, ignoring Dante’s comment. “I mean, there are no good restaurants here in Willowcreek. Folks always have to take the long drive into the city. How about we turn it into a restaurant? I’ll stick around a couple of days so we can clean it up and do the repairs, and I can provide input for the layout and the kitchen.”

The conversation carries on for a little while longer as everyone goes back and forth over their ideas. Even while we’re debating, my mind and eyes are focused on Jaxson—who seems hell-bent on turning the place into something that could change the area for the better.

I just can’t wrap my head around him wanting to do that.

Knox lets out a piercing whistle, making us all quiet down immediately. “This is all very sudden, guys. Why don’t we all think this over for a few days, then put it to a vote? ”

I nod my head in agreement, and Mrs. Dorman takes the opportunity to stand up and make herself known. “Ladies and gentlemen, this decision needs to be unanimous. I agree that you all should take some time to think it over. Then, when an agreement is reached, we can schedule a meeting at my office to sign the papers.”

On this, I agree with the attorney. It has to be unanimous. Mrs. Kendall was always getting onto us about the importance of working together to accomplish things. Even if I spent one too many times venting to her about how someone wasn’t being fair or this and that.

She really was the best listener, and she would want all of us to listen to each other and come to an agreement as well. On top of that, I have to ensure her home and belongings are properly taken care of.

“We’re going to have to go through so much stuff. I can probably stop by one day and start with that,” I mutter.

Asher scoffs, pissing me off. “I don’t have the time to sit around. I have my life to get back to. Besides, my launch party is coming up for my new sneaker line, and we were even able to book the best event planning company in Chicago to ensure its success.”

“Yeah, ’cause all of us little people have nothing better to do with our time, huh, Mr. Celebrity?” I reply snarkily as I cross my arms over my chest.

“You got a problem with me, Madison?” Asher stands up, as if challenging me on my comment. The thought of him believing that he could intimidate me is more than amusing. Rising to my feet, I march towards him fully intent on showing him that I don’t care.

Even if I’m only joking around.

“You never even finished giving me that hug earlier. You think you’re too good for us small-town folks all of a sudden, Mr. Big Shot Football Star?” I reply with a wink.

He stands there for a moment, body tense and dark eyes boring into mine before laughter finally escapes him. His arms open wide as he smiles, rolling his eyes, expecting me to walk into his arms willingly. But I have other plans.

With a split-second decision, I grab a very distracted Sam and push her into his arms instead, watching the uncomfortable exchange happen between them. “Look who’s here, too, Big Shot—your girl, Sam. ”

His eyes meet mine with daggers as he mouths “fuck you” over her shoulder causing my smile to widen even more. “You two should catch up.”

“I don’t have time to deal with all this right now,” Dante snaps, brushing past Asher as he beelines for the door. “Call me when you all decide to sell.”

The hell?

“Real ray of sunshine, that one,” I say, turning to Knox who shrugs his shoulders before shaking his head.

“Come on, Madison,” Kylie sighs. “Leave him alone. He was never really in our group anyway.”

True. But it still made me wonder what the hell his problem is. And honestly, for her to say that wasn’t shocking. Growing up, she had the biggest crush on him. Not that she would ever tell anyone, but it was more than obvious with the way she always seemed to be watching him.

Though who am I to notice the obvious, when I can’t keep my eyes off Jaxson.

Letting a heavy breath escape me, I glance over my shoulder towards Sam and notice that she’s put as much distance between her and Asher as possible. Which is clearly the cause of the irritating gaze Asher now sports before he turns to Jaxson exchanging a few words before making his way towards the door.

“Let’s meet and get this dealt with,” Jaxson says, giving Asher a pointed look. “We all have things to get back to.”

The realization that Jaxson is leaving causes a slight bit of panic to well within the pit of my stomach. He was completely on board with us doing something amazing with this place not long ago, and now he wants to meet up with Asher to “deal” with it?

Hell no. All Asher wants to do is sell the place.

With a split-second decision, I turn towards the door, fully intent on talking sense in Jaxson. “Wait up, Jaxson, I’m heading out anyway.”

He doesn’t seem to heed my words, but I refuse to give up. Turning back to Sam, I give her a small smile. “We’ll catch up later, okay?”

She nods, but I don’t stick around to hear what she has to say as I’m beelining out the front door of Mrs. Kendall’s home, and straight after Jaxson .

“Jaxson, wait up!” I call out to him again, watching as he stops in his tracks and turns to face me.

“What is it, Madison?”

The irritated tone in which he says my name, instead of calling me Madi, makes me stop in my tracks. Jaxson was never someone known to deal well with drama, so it only makes sense that he wants to get all of this done and over with.

Calming the nerves deep inside me, I steady myself. “You’re not really going to agree with Asher and Dante are you?”

“It is a sensible thing to do.”

Sensible? “No, it’s not. Mrs. Kendall left this place to us for a reason, and it wasn’t to sell it. She could have done that herself or had the lawyer do that if it was the case.”

He gazes off into the distance as he seems to take in what I’m saying. He runs his fingers through his brown shaggy hair, the sunlight shifting through the strands, and I drink in his profile while he’s not looking.

God, get a hold of yourself, woman.

He turns back to me. Shit! Did he catch me starting?

As if guessing my thoughts, his eyes run up and down my body before a small smirk pulls at the corner of his lips. “It might be sensible, but right now I need time to think about things.” The way he says he needs to think about things makes the hair on my neck stand up as chills of pleasure run over my skin.

“Okay…” I reply softly, nodding my head. “ I have to get going. Mom and I already closed the bakery for the day, but I need to get back there. Just promise me you won’t make any rash choices until we all talk about this?”

It’s a long shot asking him to promise me anything, and it’s clear that my request is turning something over in his mind as he nods.

“ We as in you and I?” he asks, “Or, we as in the six of us?”

He takes a step closer and I gasp, my body frozen to the spot. What the hell is happening right now?

“I—” I lick my suddenly dry lips and try again. “I meant all of us…?”

My response comes off more of a question than a statement, that makes him chuckle with a smile as he nods his head. He turns towards his car. “Sounds good. I’ll catch you around… Madison. ”

Everything about this brings me right back to high school. From the way he looks to the tone of his voice and the delicious woodsy scent of his cologne. I’m hot all over and flustered as he heads to his car.

Wait—am I seriously standing in the street, watching him walk away like a perfect idiot?

Yup, sure am. I laugh at myself. My days of pining over Jaxson and hoping he’d ever notice me are long gone. Just like my damn pride will be if I keep standing here watching him get in his car.

I laugh again and walk to my car. Jaxson may look like the same Jaxson from years ago, but he isn’t the same boy I once knew.

And my high school crush… was just a crush, nothing more than that.

But damn, did he really have to keep getting sexier with age?

It’s clear that whatever the hell he’s been going through since high school has completely changed him. Old Jaxson was full of life and laughter. The Jaxson that stood before me just a minute ago, was different. I just can’t point out how.

Maybe he’s a little guarded… or maybe he’s a little… darker?

One thing is for sure though, just the sound of his voice makes me want to do sinful things to him.

And if Jaxson Rivers plans on staying around, I might let him.