Welcome to Bluestone 1 - Bluestone homecoming (25 page)

“I’ll look into what I can do,” Beth said as
Jonas reared back in his fury. “I’m sorry, Loretta, but I need to
take care of him right now. I appreciate you telling me.”

Feeling like the rudest person in the world,
she closed the door and heaved a deep breath as she carried Jonas
into the kitchen. She put him in his bouncy chair and strapped him
in, giving the chair a gentle tap to rock it while she got his
bottle. She knew he’d spit it all up if she didn’t calm him down,
so found a pacifier, rinsed it under the hot water and plugged it
in his mouth. That gave her about a moment of blessed silence
before he realized it wasn’t his bottle and spit it out. The room
filled with his wails again. She turned the stove on and turned to
comfort him when another knock sounded at the door.

With a huff, she unbuckled Jonas, carried him
to the door and swung it open, ready to tell Loretta just where to
go.

But Loretta didn’t stand there. No, Maddox
Bradley did, hat in hand, head dipped, eyes crinkled—until he saw
the baby perched on her shoulder. If she hadn’t been so frazzled,
she would have thought his blank expression hilarious. He recovered
quickly, though.

“I thought it was the TV. Yours?”

Trying to soothe her own nerves at seeing him
standing on her front porch like he’d never gone away, she rubbed a
hand up and down Jonas’s tiny tense back. The baby certainly
wouldn’t calm down if he sensed she was upset. “My nephew. What are
you doing here, Maddox?”

“I came to talk to you.”

She placed her hand on the door, a signal for
him to leave. “As you can see, this isn’t a good time.”

Maddox angled his head and narrowed his eyes.
“What’s wrong with him?”

“He’s hungry and mad.” She stepped back into
the house and closed the door slightly, since he didn’t take the
hint.

Instead, he moved into the house. “Here.” He
held out his hands, fingers curved toward the infant.

She tightened her grip on Jonas, turning her
body away as she focused on his hands. “When was the last time you
held a baby?”

“My sisters have six between them.”

His voice was slightly rougher with age, and
skidded right along her libido. Damn him. As if his lean good looks
and her too-good memory didn’t do that enough.

He continued to hold his hands out,
expectantly. She considered a moment, then, shoulders slumping, too
tired to argue, she let him lift Jonas from her, surprised at how
easy the transfer was, how confident he was. He made a gentle
crooning sound as he turned Jonas in those big hands and nestled
him against his shoulder. For a moment, Beth allowed herself to
watch Maddox’s long fingers trace soothing patterns on Jonas’s back
for a moment before she jerked her gaze away and turned to prepare
the bottle.

Jonas’s cries softened. She didn’t think he
was wearing out, since he never had. She looked over her shoulder
to see Maddox had shifted the infant so his face was turned into
Maddox’s neck, where he snuffled and grasped Maddox’s shirt in his
tiny fist. Maddox’s head tilted down, sheltering the baby, and
Beth’s heart gave a betraying kick. How dare he come into her house
and make her remember all the dreams she’d once had about the two
of them?

Removing the bottle she knew wasn’t quite
ready, she held out her hands for the baby. The sooner she took
Jonas back, the sooner Maddox would leave, taking the warm memories
with him.

“I can do it,” he said in that raspy tone
that had millions of females around the world melting at his
feet.

Before she knew what he was doing, he plucked
the bottle from her hand and shifted Jonas into the crook of his
arm with some practice. Her gaze shot to his face. Sensing her
attention, he offered a slanted smile, then looked back at
Jonas.

“You don’t have a kid out there somewhere, do
you?”

“If I did, I’d know about it.” He nudged
Jonas’s lips with the nipple. Jonas opened his mouth like a greedy
baby bird, took a couple of swallows and started coughing. Maddox
removed the bottle and shifted the baby again, rocking him gently,
keeping that voice low and calm so that Jonas forgot to cry, and
Maddox inserted the bottle again.

“Why’s that?”

Maddox’s eyes crinkled a bit when he glanced
up at her. “Women who think they’ve had a musician’s baby usually
come forward.”

Because he had money. Of course. Of all the
scandals she’d heard about him, she hadn’t heard about a baby. And
yes, she’d been following him enough to know. She knew of all the
parties and drunken incidents and stints in rehab. It was best he’d
left Bluestone, left her behind.

The house became eerily quiet except for
Jonas’s mad suckling. Some of the tension eased from Beth’s
shoulders.

“The house looks good,” he said, looking
around.

“Amazing what a coat of paint and new
curtains will do.” Anxiety returned. Her life was almost identical
to what it had been when he’d left. She hated that it made her feel
inadequate.

“Where’s your sister?” he asked, shifting on
the barstool to rest the arm holding Jonas on the counter. The
bottle popped loose and Jonas protested.

“Asleep.”

Maddox teased Jonas’s lips with the nipple
and the infant responded. Maddox returned his attention to her,
seeing too much, as he always had. She’d once loved him for that,
because she hadn’t had to tell him what was going on at home. He’d
reason it out. He wouldn’t say anything, but he’d give her what she
needed anyway.

He hadn’t lost the touch. “She must’ve been
tired to sleep through that.”

Beth hated defending her sister, but Linda’s
problems were no one’s business but their own. “You know, going to
school, being a single mom, that takes a lot out of you.”

He flashed a grin. “I don’t actually
know.”

Right. He hadn’t been a great student, had
barely finished high school before he took off into the great wide
world.

“Yeah, well, Linda is learning the hard
way.”

“Looks like you are, too.”

She smoothed her rumpled damp shirt and
wished she’d had time to at least take off her shoes. “What are you
doing here, Maddox?”

He lifted Jonas to her shoulder and rubbed
his back. “I thought we might get a moment to talk.”

She twisted the towel around her wrists until
her fingers were numb. She didn’t want to talk with anyone,
especially him. She was still off-balance from his arrival and
Linda’s drama. She needed to curl up in a dark corner and process
it all, not talk it out. “About what? We don’t have anything to
talk about.”

He tucked his chin back as if she’d wounded
him. “I just thought I’d see how your life was. It’s been
awhile.”

Without the baby in her arms, she wasn’t sure
what to do with her hands. Watching him hold Jonas with all that
self-assurance set her nerves on edge. She turned to clean up the
kitchen—something else Linda was supposed to do.

“Beth, you’ve been working all day. Why don’t
you sit down and take it easy?”

Her pride kept her from snapping that she
didn’t have that luxury. “I will when I get done here.”

She turned on the hot water, aware she wasn’t
being a great hostess but she hadn’t invited him, had she? She
loaded the cheese-crusted plates into the soapy water, her
shoulders growing tighter.

He made a sound of distress and she turned to
see that Jonas had spit up on his no-doubt expensive shirt. She
reached for the baby, snatching up a burp cloth from the nearby
table, swiping the baby’s mouth and stopping herself before she
applied the same technique to the shirt.

She straightened and placed the burp cloth on
the counter behind her. “Take off your shirt and I’ll wash it for
you.” She placed Jonas into the bouncy chair, buckling him in. She
turned back to see Maddox had unbuttoned his shirt and stripped it
off to reveal a white undershirt, revealing sculpted arms and a
chest broader than it had been that night in the back seat of his
car. She went absolutely still, her mouth dry, her libido leaping
to life after a long dormancy. His gaze flicked to hers and she
looked away quickly, but not before she saw that damned smug grin
flash across his face.

His fingers brushed the inside of her wrist
as she reached for his shirt. The jolt rocketed to her toes and she
used all her self-control not to let him see her reaction. She
wadded her fingers in the fabric and twisted toward the sink. The
chair was in her way and she stumbled. He caught her arm and she
twisted again, bracing her hands against his chest, off
balance.

The heat of his skin beneath the thin
undershirt seared her palm, and her gaze riveted on the wisps of
hair peeking out over the top of the white knit. God, he smelled
good, and his breath washed warm over her hand, her arm. She
couldn’t move to get her feet under her, damn him, without leaning
against him. So she was locked against him, afraid to look up at
him, knowing he was watching her, measuring her reaction.

“What’s going on?” Linda asked from the
hallway, her voice slurred.

That was the impetus she needed to spring
back, closing her hand against the heat that warmed her palm.
Maddox moved more slowly, turning just his head to look at her
little sister.

“Oh, my God. Maddox Bradley?” She’d been too
young when he’d left to remember him from Bluestone.

He rocked back on his heels. “I am.”

Linda hurried forward, bouncing on the balls
of her feet, showing energy Beth hadn’t seen in months. “I totally
loved the song you did with Carrie Underwood. Oh, my God. What are
you doing here?”

“Your sister and I knew each other back in
the day.” He reached out as if he knew just where Beth would be,
and caressed her arm. “I just came to say hi.”

Her sister’s eagle eyes snapped to the
gesture and Beth stepped back, finding her feet finally as she
broke contact.

“Are you playing a concert in Bluestone?”
Linda leaned on the breakfast bar beside Jonas’s bouncy chair, arms
crossed beneath her breasts, plumping them up.

Beth’s face heated and she couldn’t resist
glancing at Maddox to see his reaction.

He kept his attention steady on Linda’s face,
and his expression didn’t change. “I’ll be playing a few nights at
Quinn’s in the coming weeks.”

Weeks? She hadn’t known that. She needed him
gone, and the sooner the better. Bluestone be damned.

Linda gave an exaggerated pout. “Quinn won’t
let me and my friends in.”

“Well, it’s his prerogative. You have other
things to worry about anyway.” He turned, unfastened the squalling
Jonas from his seat, scooped him up and handed him to a startled
Linda.

She straightened and bobbled the infant for a
minute, like she’d never held him before in her life. Beth stared,
not believing he was taking charge like this.

“He’s been fed but his stomach is upset.” He
reached over and took the soiled shirt from Beth’s hand. “Your
sister and I are going outside to talk.”

Awareness zinged through her when he closed
his fingers around her arm and guided her to the front door. She
glanced over her shoulder to see her sister and Jonas staring at
each other suspiciously, and balked. If they went outside, all the
neighbors would see her talking to Maddox Bradley, and then
what?

“We’ll go out back,” she said, turning back
to meet his questioning gaze.

He nodded abruptly and motioned for her to
lead the way. She eased ahead of him in the narrow space between
the couch and the front door, and led the way to the back
patio.

This was her favorite place to unwind, no
matter what time of day she got home. She’d fit two resin
Adirondack chairs from Home Depot in the small space. Her pots were
still empty since she hadn’t had time to plant, but in a few weeks,
it would be bright and cheerful. She realized as she dusted off one
of the chairs that she hadn’t been out here in days, maybe over a
week. Even this open space felt small when Maddox stepped out
behind her and closed the door.

“She’s high,” he said.

Beth pivoted to stare at him. “What?”

“She’s on something. Did you see her eyes?
All blood-shot and bleary, and that’s not from sleep. Trust me when
I say I know the signs.” He watched her face, then eased back. “You
knew.”

Beth sighed and looked out over the yard. It
needed mowing already. “She’s been drinking.”

“And you’ve been making excuses for her.”

She squared her shoulders and faced him.
“Excuse me if I don’t want you in my business, judging what I’ve
done wrong.”

He angled his head. “Is that what you think
I’m doing?”

She didn’t know. She reached behind her and
gripped the rail. She’d made mistakes with Linda, no doubt, had
indulged her too much. The child had essentially grown up with no
parent but Beth. But she wasn’t going to admit that to Maddox.

“Were you drinking?” She motioned to the scar
by his eyebrow. “The night you wrecked?” The moment she asked, she
wished she could take the words back. His mouth tightened, and
something flashed in his eyes before he erased it.

“I’ve been sober sixteen months, Beth.”

He looked so betrayed, but she buried the
tenderness, the urge to apologize, to soothe, to show him she
believed in him. “So, no, then.”

His eyelids flickered. “No.”

“Is that why you came here? To get away from
all that? Because you have to know they’re going to follow you
here.”

He ignored that, looking out over the yard.
“I came by
here
to see if me playing at Quinn’s is going to
be a problem for you.”

And he expected her to tell him the truth?
That she wanted him gone, in the past where he belonged? Like she’d
let him know that weakness. “What, because we slept together a
million years ago?”

Something in his face hardened. “It wasn’t
like that.”