For You (The Shore Book 2) (30 page)

“She was high already. I’m pretty sure that had a lot to do with it.”

“I can’t imagine what he’s been through. Good thing he’s got you,” she grinned.

“I guess so.”
 

“So did you lay down the law?”

“Mostly. We talked about curfews and expectations for school. I want to talk to Erin about his schedule at the gym to see if we can coordinate a few things.”

Madison looked up at Declan with nothing but pride in her eyes. Her excitement had calmed and he had never seen her more serious. “I’m really proud of you, you know?”

“Proud of me?”

“Yeh,
proud
of you. You offered to take care of someone who had no one. You offered your hand to a young man who needed your help and you brought him a hell of a lot farther than most people would have. You opened your home to him, Declan. I’m extremely proud of you for that.”

“Aww, shucks,” he grinned.

“Don’t go making light of this. You very well could have changed the trajectory of his life today. In fact, I know you did. He’ll never know what could have been, which, I’m sure, would have been way worse than this new situation he’s in, and that’s because of you.

“When Ellie took me in, I was at the bottom. I was pregnant. The father of my baby was gone. I had no home. There was nowhere for me to go. I was heartbeats away from living on the street when Mrs. Erickson asked me to stay after class that day. She and Ellie, they saved me. They gave me an opportunity to become something better than my situation. They gave me a chance.”

Her own words took Madison aback. She hadn’t thought about the totality of all that had happened. She had never looked at it that way. All she had seen were the stepping stones and how Mrs. Erickson and Ellie had been such a huge part of her life. If Mrs. Erickson hadn’t intervened. If Ellie hadn’t agreed to let her live with her. If Ellie would have made her leave after the baby was born. Where would she be right now? That one conversation, her listening to her gut when it spoke to her so loudly, so clearly …
everything
in her entire world changed in that moment.

“Today, you did the same thing for Ty.” Her eyes moistened as she ran her hand lightly against the soft fuzz on his face. “So yes, I’m proud of you.”

Declan wasn’t sure what to say. He just knew Ty needed help and he was able to provide it. He hadn’t really thought of what the overall effect would be.
 

“I guess I hadn’t really thought of it that way.”

“I’m not surprised.” She smiled softly with sincerity in her eyes. “That’s just what a good guy would do.”

Declan chuckled and shook his head.

“And I gotta say,” she said with a twinkle in her eye as she looped a finger through two of the belt loops on the front of his pants, “you look really good in these jeans.”

Chapter 27

Madison opened her eyes and tried to focus on what was in front of her. Large trees hung overhead. Branches sprouted in every direction. Leaves shimmered in the breeze.
 

It didn’t make sense.
 

Why are there trees on the runway?

The last thing she remembered was sitting in the cockpit of Declan’s plane, charging down the runway. They had just gone airborne when …

She slowly moved her head. There was a large crack in the windshield and the small window next to her had been completely blown out. The branch that had done the damage was laying in its place.

Turning her head to the other side, her eyes scanned the interior of the plane until she came to a leg. Terror climbed in her throat as her eyes followed the torn and dirty denim up the body, finally resting on Declan’s face.

“Declan?” He didn’t move. “Declan?”

His face was turned away from her but she could see the blood that had poured down his cheek. She tried to be still to see if his chest moved or if she could hear him breathe, but neither happened.

“NononoNoNoNo.” It started as a whisper that quickly turned into a plea.

She went to move and a bolt of pain tore through her leg. Looking down, she saw bone from her leg sticking out. When her brain finally registered that it was her own bone and her own blood she was looking at, the pain became even more intense and nearly unbearable.
 

Pressing her knuckles into her thigh trying to will the sharp stabbing pains and immense throbbing to go away, she concentrated on her breathing. She knew she had to help Declan. He wasn’t answering her, and she’d have to move closer to help.

The shirt she was wearing was already ripped, so she took it in her hands and completed the tear. As tightly as she could, she wrapped the fabric around her thigh to help control the bleeding. She screamed at the pain.

As gingerly as possible, she held her leg in her hand while she moved to the other side. Having to stop several times as the pain became too much, she finally closed the gap and ran her fingers over Declan’s chest.

“Declan?” she whispered.

She laid her hand over his heart but couldn’t feel anything. Moving her hand to his neck, she tried to find his pulse. Nothing. Making one last attempt, she lifted her hand to just below his nose to see if she could feel him exhale, but again, she felt nothing.

“Declan? You can’t leave me. You can’t die.”

She laid her head on his chest and sobbed. All she wanted was to hear his heart beat. She’d give anything to hear it.
 

“Please Declan,” she pleaded. “You can’t die. This isn’t how it’s supposed to be. We’re supposed to be together. And raise a family together. And grow old together. Enjoy our grandchildren together.”
 

She lifted her head to look at him once more. Raising her hand, she gently turned his head so he faced her. His eyes were open, but the soft blue had gone cold. She raised her hand and carefully closed his eyes.
 

She was alone now.

Another person she loved had left her.
 

A voice kept ringing in her ears.
 

You’re alone.
 

You’re alone.
 

You’re all alone.

Anger began to build inside her as she balled her hands into fists and began hitting his chest.

“How could you do this to me?”

“How could you leave me?”

“I have no one. NO ONE!”

“I trusted you, damn it!”

“I loved you, and you left me!”

“Why did you leave me?
 

“Why did you have to go?”

Her breathing was labored as she continued to curse and yell and hit the body of the man she loved. The pain in her leg forgotten, the only thing she could concentrate on now was the pain in her heart.
 

Another person she loved left her.
 

She was all alone. Again.

*beep* *beep* *beep*

Madison’s eyes flew open as she sat up. She was breathing hard and the t-shirt she was wearing was dripping with sweat.
 

Her eyes scanned the room. It took a few seconds for her to realize she was in her bed. In Ryan and Cody’s house. There wasn’t a tree or damaged airplane to be found. She threw the covers back and saw her leg was completely fine.
 

She was safe.
 

She dropped her head back to her pillow as her hand went to her heart and tried to calm her breathing.

You’re okay. Everything is okay.
 

And if she was okay, that meant Declan was okay, too.

She took a moment to calm herself, but suddenly, the bloody images of Declan flooded her mind and they felt real. Too real.

She needed to see him. She needed to see he was okay.

Reaching over to turn off the alarm, she hit the button on her phone and sprung out of bed.
 

Madison tore out of the driveway and sped down the side streets. As soon as she reached the Causeway, she pressed down on the accelerator.

She would have made it in record time if only the police officer hadn’t stopped her.
 

“License and registration, please.”

She looked up at the man in blue and didn’t even flinch at how good looking he was. She had only one man on her mind, and the guy standing in front of her didn’t even come close.

“Sure.” She sighed as she dug into her purse and produced the requested information.

“Do you know why I stopped you?”

“Because I was going faster than I was supposed to?”

“Correct. And do you know how fast you were going?”

“Honestly, I don’t.”

He looked at her and took in the state of her hair and clothes.

“Just where were you headed in such a hurry?”

“North of here. I need to see my boyfriend.”

“And why’s that?”

Madison looked at him. He wasn’t the person she wanted to be talking to. “Have you ever had a dream that was so real you just couldn’t shake it?”

The officer looked at her with a confused expression.

“I dreamt this morning that I lost my boyfriend in a really bad plane crash. He’s a pilot, among other things. I need to tell him ...”
 

Her face started to contort and her breathing got faster.

Why didn’t I see this before?

“I … I need to tell him … Ohmygod.”

The lightbulb finally went off in her head.

“I love him.” The words came out as decisively as if she were telling him the sky was blue. “I need to tell him I love him. Please, can’t you just -“
 

“Actually, I know exactly what you’re talking about.”

“You do?”

“Unfortunately, yeh. Just sit tight. I’ll be right back.”

The officer turned and went back to his cruiser while Madison impatiently tapped her fingers on the steering wheel. She just wanted to see Declan. She knew she was speeding, and she definitely deserved the ticket, but couldn’t the world give her a break? Just this once?

After what seemed like an eternity, the officer finally reappeared at her window.

“Ms. Quinn, I do understand what you were talking about. And I get it. And I’m happy for you and your boyfriend. However, you were going twenty over the limit.”

Madison sighed. She wished he’d just hurry the fuck up and give her the ticket so she could be on her way.

“I checked your record and you’ve never had any speeding tickets.”

Madison shook her head. She hadn’t. She wasn’t sure how, but she hadn’t.

“Maybe it’s because I just got married, or maybe it’s because I did some pretty stupid things while I was dating my wife, but … I’m going to give you a warning,
this time
.”

“What?” Madison asked, completely surprised.

“It’s not going to do either of you any good if you show up at his place dead. Pay attention to the speed limits, okay?”

“Yes, officer.”

“And good luck.” He smiled as he handed her the written warning.

“Thank you.”

The officer nodded and turned back to his car.
 

Madison couldn’t believe it. That should have been a
huge
ticket and he let her go with a warning.
 

Baffled, she wrapped the warning around her license and registration and quickly stuffed them in her purse. She was nervous as she started the engine. Turning on her blinker like she was a sixteen-year-old just learning how to drive, she carefully pulled onto the highway.

The rest of the trip seemed to crawl, and the closer she got to the house, the more she pushed the speed limit. It would suck if she got pulled over a second time, but she was willing to chance it.

It wasn’t until she pulled into his driveway that she started to get nervous. There, alongside Declan’s Wrangler, were the cars for the rest of his family. She had completely forgotten they were all in town for the weekend. She hadn’t considered having to walk into his house with all of them there.
 

She hadn’t even taken a shower yet. She was supposed to have come over later in the day - when she would be dressed and ready.
Then
, she would have met Declan’s family.
 

She briefly considered driving back to Ryan’s house to clean up, but an image from her dream passed through her mind’s eye and she decided she needed to see him, even if she looked a mess.
 

Madison didn’t love a lot in her life, and if there was one thing she learned from Ellie, it was that she needed to tell people what they meant to her – even if that meant meeting Declan’s family looking like she did.

She pulled down the visor and flipped it open to reveal the mirror behind it. Her hair was a mess of curls and her eyes were puffy. She tried to calm the wildness of her hair, but the more she played with it, the crazier it got. Finally deciding to give up, she pinched her cheeks to give them some color and flipped the visor back up.
 

She walked to the door next to the garage and knocked. Waiting impatiently, she hoped it was Declan that would answer, not another member of his family. But after standing there for a time, she realized no one was going to answer it.
 

And then she heard laughter.

Taking a deep breath, she turned and walked to the front of the house. She looked up and could see people standing on the deck. Having met only Aidan, she wasn’t sure if she was looking at Rebecca or Erin, but she was sure the woman standing next to that person was Declan’s mom.
 

“Shit,” she muttered under her breath.

Nervously, she started to climb the wooden stairs. The higher she climbed, the louder it got.
 

She was quietly bashing herself to just get up the stairs when she heard, “Madison!!” followed quickly by the sound of someone racing down the steps.

Madison looked up to see Juliana charging down the steps toward her. “Hi, Juliana.”

The girl’s tiny arms wrapped around her waist as she came to a stop. Madison had to hang onto the railing to prevent them both from tumbling backwards down the stairs.

“Are you here to see Uncle Declan?”

She looked down at Juliana only to realize all the voices she heard before had gone quiet. She turned her face up to the deck and was greeted by several people peering over the edge.