Playing for Keeps (39 page)

"Oh yeah, I do." He kissed her neck.

Maddie sighed.

Maddie was a little surprised by the change in Nick. He'd apparently given in to the idea of their relationship, and was moving ahead with it. He expected her to be there when he got home, he talked about what they'd do on the weekends, and he relied on her to help him out at the shop. Maddie was thrilled with the new attitude, and the idea niggled at her in the back of her mind that this could be a long term deal.

She started renting movies for them to watch in the evenings when nothing else was going on. They could agree on movies much easier than TV programs. The weather was still warm in September, and they continued to take bike rides and walks on the beach.

Maddie fit in some studying here and there. She'd check in at the dorm in the afternoons, play her answering machine messages and call her parents if she needed to. If Zoey was there, she might stay there and study, otherwise she took her books to the shop. Zoey was dating someone new, and Maddie didn't see much of her if they didn't touch base after classes.

October remained warm, and Maddie sleepwalked through her classes to get to what she considered her 'real' life, being at home with Nick. She thought more and more that college was not for her, and wondered what would happen if she decided to quit school and get a job. Her parents would have heart attacks, she presumed, especially if she introduced them to Nick. She'd let the idea roll around in her mind for awhile, and figure it out later. Like Scarlett O'Hara, Maddie would think about it tomorrow…or another day.

Chapter Eleven

"Trick or treat!" the little Wicked Witch of the West said, and Rosa burst into laughter.

"Oh my God!
Leonard, come look here!" she called to her husband. To the trick-or-treaters, she said, "Come in. Holy cow, you guys go all out!"

Sophie was dressed as the witch from the Wizard of Oz, black dress, black hat, broomstick and green face. Her father, dressed as the scarecrow, carried
Stacie in a baby lion costume. Sam was dressed as the tin man, complete with silver costume, silver face and pointed hat. Maddie was dressed as Dorothy, wearing tiny braided pigtails, ruby slippers and carrying a basket with a stuffed dog in it.

"Great Caesar's ghost!" Smoky looked them over. "I didn't think you could top last year's clown family, but I think you've done it."

"Give 'em your line, Soph," Rob urged her.

Sophie cackled and said in a shrill voice, "I'll get you my pretty, and your little dog, too!"

Rosa and Smoky cracked up.

Maddie said, "Sam, what's your line?"

Sam grinned and said in his little voice, "Oil can! Oil can!"

Maddie pulled the little oil can from her basket and pretended to oil his joints.

"Too cute!" Rosa put some candy in their plastic pumpkins.

"Got any Snickers in there?"
Rob looked in the bowl.

"You know it."
Rosa put in an extra handful of candy bars.

"Stop begging," Maddie told her husband.

"It's Halloween! The one day of the year it's not considered begging."

"He's right." Smoky grabbed a jacket, and looked at Rob. "God, do I really have to walk down the street with you?"

Rob grinned. "Your costume is way scarier than what I'm wearing."

Smoky, who was wearing regular clothes, gave him a look. "Smart ass. Are we taking
Sophie down the block, or not?"

Rob
looked at Sophie. "Want to hit a few houses before we head to Grandma's?"

"Yes!" She hopped up and down.

Rob gave Maddie a kiss. "We'll take her out for a half an hour or so, then come back."

Rosa
said, "I don't remember the scarecrow hitting on Dorothy."

Rob leaned closer to
Rosa. "Try to imagine what the scarecrow is going to do to Dorothy when they get home!"

She shoved him away and smiled. "Get out of here. And I call dibs on any Milky Way bars you pick up."

"You got it." Smoky led Sophie out.

Rob followed. "See ya!" He winked at them, and left to take Sophie trick-or-treating.

Maddie and Rosa took the little kids into the front room where Callie sat in her bouncy seat. They talked and answered the door to other trick-or-treaters until the men returned with Sophie and a full plastic pumpkin.

"Wow, look at all that candy!"
Rosa's eyes sparkled.

"The neighbors were generous." Smoky shook his head, chuckling. "Especially when Coop started doing tricks for them."

"Oh, Jesus." Maddie looked at him, and then picked through the candy. She tossed the Milky Way bars to Rosa. "Hey, peanut M&M's! Can I have them, Soph?"

"Yep." Sophie played with baby Callie, not that interested in the candy she'd acquired.

"Give me some of those." Rob tried to snatch a couple of M&M's from Maddie.

She held her hand away. "Do a trick for me first."

"Right here? I told you I had a couple of tricks in mind for later, but if you want me to show you now…"

She tossed the candy to him. "God, you're incorrigible."

He grinned, popped the candy in his mouth and picked up Sam. "Mama better watch out. She's going to have her hands full when you grow up to be just like me."

Maddie stood. "I have my hands full
now
." She picked up Stacie. "Come on, Stace. We've got to hit Grandma and Grandpa's house." She looked at Rob. "You know these two are going to fall asleep on the way there."

He shrugged. "We promised to bring them by, and
Dee wants to see Soph."

Smoky took one more piece of candy from the pumpkin. "Here you go, Soph. Thanks for sharing."

"Thanks for walking with me!" She hugged Smoky, and they headed to the door.

"See you all later." Maddie
smiled at Smoky and Rosa.

"Have a nice evening!"
Rosa winked at her, and Maddie rolled her eyes.

They buckled the kids in, and drove the forty minutes to the Cooper's house. They stayed about a half hour, just long enough for the children to fall asleep again, and then they drove to Dionne's condo.

Rob looked at himself in the mirror, then said to Maddie "Would you take her up?"

Maddie chuckled. "What's wrong, scarecrow? I thought you lacked brains, not nerve."

He made a face. "I don't want to run into Mr. Expensive Suit dressed like this."

Maddie looked at her own costume, then chuckled. "I guess
Dionne has seen me in worse. I looked like a hooker the first time we met …or so you said."

He grinned. "I also said you looked hot. But yeah, it was a little slutty."

She kissed him. "You like it when I look slutty, now. It turns you on."

"You turn me on, no matter what you're wearing or not wearing, Wild Thing." He kissed her deeply.

Sophie said, "Can we go in, please?"

They pulled apart and Maddie
smiled at Rob. "Sorry, Soph. Come on, I'll take you up."

Sophie
got out of the SUV and Maddie followed her up the stairs. Sophie muttered, "You guys kiss more than anyone I know, except maybe Mom and Deron."

Maddie
laughed. "So Mom and Deron kiss a lot?"

"All the time." She made a face.

"You don't make that face when Daddy and I kiss."

"That's because it's you and Daddy. That's different."

"Oh, I see." Maddie nodded. It
was
different. She and Sophie had hit it off immediately, and they never had to work at a relationship. Deron seemed to be trying awfully hard.

Sophie rang her mother's doorbell, and when Dionne answered the child yelled, "Trick or treat!"

"What a cute little witch." Dionne pretended not to recognize her daughter. "Here you go." She dropped some candy into the pumpkin.

"Mom!"
Sophie said, and Dionne grinned.

"Well look at that! If it isn't Sophie Belle Cooper, as I live and breathe."

Sophie hugged her mother's waist, and Dionne looked at Maddie. "Ooh, ruby slippers and all. Hello, Dorothy."

"Hi." Maddie
smiled.

"Where's Coop?"

"Daddy's the scarecrow!" Sophie told her.

Maddie nodded. "He's in the car with the babies. I said I'd bring her up."

"I've got to see this! Deron, let's go down and see what Coop's wearing!"

Deron stepped up behind
Dionne. "Hello, Maddie. Cute costume." He looked down at Sophie. "And look at you! You scared the heck out of me!"

Maddie shook her head. "I don't think so,
Dionne." Dionne was dressed to kill, as usual, and Deron wore an expensive sweater and slacks. "We need to get going. Rob's tired."

"Rob's chicken." Dionne slipped into her shoes. "Come on, Deron."

Maddie looked at him with pleading eyes.

He touched Dionne's arm. "I don't think we should, honey. He's tired, they want to go."

Breathing a sigh of relief, Maddie nodded at him.

Dionne
gave him a questioning look, and then looked at Maddie. "I was hoping to spend a little time with Sophie."

Deron said, "Maybe, since she doesn't have school tomorrow, she could spend the night. We can bring her home as early as you want."

Maddie bit her lip. "I know Rob has plans for the afternoon. It might be okay, if you get her back by noon."

Dionne seemed pleased, and abandoned her quest to embarrass Rob. "Great!"

Maddie looked at Sophie. "Okay with you?"

"Yes! Thanks, Maddie!" She hugged her stop-mother, and went into the condo.

"Yeah, thanks Maddie," Dionne said, and followed her daughter.

Maddie looked at Deron. "Thank you," she said softly.

He smiled and shrugged. "Have a good night."

"You too." She turned and left. Outside, she climbed in the SUV.

Rob blinked with surprise. "Where's Soph?"

"She's going to spend the night. They said they'd—"

Rob interrupted angrily, "It's not her weekend to have Sophie!"

"I know that," Maddie said patiently. "But they were being very nice, and they wanted a little more time with her. I certainly didn't want to stay longer tonight." She looked at the sleeping kids in the back seat. "We need to get them home."

He snapped at her. "You know I planned to take her to the last weekend of Oktoberfest tomorrow."

"Don't bite my head off," she replied. "Of course I know that. That's why they're bringing her home by noon."

"She shouldn't be staying at all. It's not Dee's weekend."

"Oh for God's sake," Maddie said, irritated. "It's not a big deal,
Robert. Get over it."

He looked at her. "It is a big deal,
Madison.
You know I think she's trying to get her foot in the door of this custody thing. I don't want to lose Sophie."

"You're not going to lose her by letting her spend one unscheduled night here. You
might
lose her if you hang on to her so tight that everyone feels you're trying to keep her away from them."

"When did
Dee become a 'them'?" he asked angrily.

"When all of a sudden there's a man by her side, and they're making decisions together."

"I don't give a damn what he wants. He is
not
Sophie's parent."

Maddie looked at him. "Thank you. Thanks a lot for that."

"I wasn't talking about you. I was talking about
him
."

"There's no difference between me and him, except a marriage license. If he marries Dionne, is your opinion of him going to instantly change?"

Rob didn't answer, he simply stared out the window, squeezing the steering wheel.

"Afraid to go there, aren't you?"

"I would not have let her spend the night here." He dodged the issue.

"Then march up those stairs and tell her you don't want her to stay. I'm not going to do it for you, because I don't think it's a big deal."

He started the SUV and slammed the shift into 'drive'. He peeled out and headed towards home.

Maddie looked out her window. "So much for the rest of this evening."

"I didn't do anything," he told her. "You shouldn't have let her stay."

Maddie replied angrily, "Then don't ever ask me to do anything for your daughter again. If I can't make one small decision without you getting totally pissed off about it, then forget it. I'll let you take care of her, and I'll take care of my children."

"Oh great," he muttered, and they drove the next half hour in silence.

At the house, Maddie removed Stacie from her car seat in silence. Heading inside, she glanced over her shoulder at Rob, to make sure he took care of Sam. "You'll need to use cold cream on that face make-up."

"Got it," he replied crisply.

She proceeded to change Stacie and get her ready for bed. Kissing the baby, she tucked her in, then stopped in Sam's room to say goodnight.

Rob tucked in Sam and went to Stacie's room for a kiss. When he came out he met Maddie in the hall. "I guess I said some things I shouldn't have," he admitted.

"Damn right you did. Don't expect me to do all the work that's required to take care of your daughter, then give me no decision-making power whatsoever. That's not fucking going to happen, mister."

"I don't feel that way. You know I trust the decisions you make for her completely. I'm just scared, Maddie. I'm really scared that we're going to lose her." He followed her into their room.

Maddie climbed out of her costume and went into the bathroom to scrub her face. "We're never going to lose her,
Rob. The custody balance could change, sure, but we're not going to lose her."

"I don't want it to change."

She looked at him. "Well, gee. In the immortal words of the Rolling Stones,
You can't always get what you want.
Like tonight, for instance. I bet you want to have sex with me. But after the way you treated me on the ride home, it's going to be a long time before you touch this body in any way even remotely intimate."

He stripped his costume off and threw it on the floor piece by piece. "For your information, I don't appreciate the way you're speaking to
me
. And it's going to be a long time before I'd even consider touching you."