Chapter 68
I tried to avoid it. I had tried to push back all he had said out of my mind and instead tried to occupy myself in any way I could.
I had once said my body had adapted to the holiday mood and I couldn’t think of work, but right now, I find myself going back to work because if I was idle, I would have myself thinking of what he had said.
And that would be a disaster.
Yet, when I lay on the bed to sleep, my thoughts kept drifting to what he had said, rummaging it in my mind and trying to weigh it.
The issue was that there was nothing wrong with his suggestion, and in normal circumstances, that was how it was supposed to be.
But I couldn’t live that way.
I had already gotten a taste of how it felt to be with him and have him in close proximity, and now I have to go back to how we were.
‘Just think about it; it may even work better than you think.’ Lia chipped in, raising her head from her slumber, and my nose flared in annoyance.
“I am still not talking to you, Lia. I haven’t forgiven you for what you did.” I reminded her before she could barge her way back.
“I thought we were over this, Maddie, and we couldn’t help ourselves; it had been long since we saw each other. But anyway, suit yourself. I will get to my limit, and I will take the appropriate action that will be suitable for me and Adrian.”
I shut her out before we could start arguing, and I continued wallowing in my thoughts. There was nothing much to think of when everything was pointing out that I agree with him.
So I closed my eyes and did what I would always do in difficult situations.
I slept.
I woke up the next day, and it was the same routine. I spent most of the day working, and when I had the chance, I headed over to see the new baby.
It was the exact routine the next day, but the thing I was most thankful for was that I didn’t see Toby after he had run into me, and I preferred it like that.
It gave me much clarity to think and decide if I was actually going to do this, and at the end of the second day, I already had my answer.
I only had to look for a way to get to him.
The answer came in the form of Ariel and her mate. They had organized a ceremony to announce the name of their son, and I had been invited—of course.
The garden has been transformed into a vision of elegance, with rows of white chairs neatly arranged beneath twinkling fairy lights. The scent of the wildflowers was mixed with the chatters of the audience, even as the excitement rose in the air.
I was enjoying the view from my secluded spot at the back when I felt a certain presence that made the hairs on my arm stand, and I whipped my head fast to look at him.
“Is this seat taken?” Toby asked, gesturing to the empty chair beside me. I was too stunned to speak, so I simply nodded, my head moving before I even realized it.
The man sat down on the chair, and he angled himself in a way that all his focus was on me. “You are so stunning.” He whispered under his breath, and ladies and gentlemen, that is how you make a woman speechless because my vocal cords couldn’t cooperate to bring out any sound.
It took some minutes before I could stabilize myself and finally form words. “Y-you don’t look bad yourself too.”
“I know; I dressed up for you.” He said with a smirk, and this time my mouth hung open because how did you expect me to say something after that?
Instead, I cleared my throat and tried to focus on the event that was taking place in front, but it was impossible with the annoying neighbor I had.
“Excuse me, do you have a map?” Toby asked, and I stared at him, blank-faced. No one carries a physical map around nowadays. However, he replied himself before I could get to it. “Because I keep getting lost in your eyes.”
“Huh?”
“You know what?” He started talking again, but I shook my head.
“I don’t think I want to know.”
“I must be a snowflake because I have fallen for you.”
“Alright.” I groaned, refusing to entertain this man again because it seemed he had come prepared with a bunch of pickup lines. “Focus on the event.” I whispered harshly, looking pointedly at the front.
“Yes, my love.”
I shot him a glare, but inside, my heart was doing flips, and I was barely holding it together because Toby just called me his love.
Somehow, we made it through the ceremony without causing a scene, but just as the moment came to name the child, Toby leaned in dangerously close, his breath warm against my ear.
I froze, his cologne wrapping around me like a spell, muddling my thoughts. “Have you given any thought to what I said?” He murmured, his voice low and deliberate.
“I don’t…”
“They’re about to announce the name.” He didn’t flinch, didn’t pull away. Instead, he simply smiled, as if he had been waiting for it all along.
“Shhh.” He shunned me, placing his fingers on my lips. “They are about to announce the name.” He whispered, a mischievous glint in his eyes. I frowned, but then I did the most unexpected thing—I leaned in and bit him. However, he did nothing more than acknowledge it with a smile.
The crowd erupted with shouts as they announced the name of their heir, but we had been too engrossed with each other to notice.
Toby kept to himself for the rest of the event, though he found subtle excuses to brush against me—a hand grazing my thigh, a light touch on my arm. I let it happen, unable to deny how much I had missed him and loving those tingles his touch ignited.
The ceremony finally came to an end, and I made to go, but he held me down. “I think we have to talk.” I acknowledged his words with a nod, and I sat back, waiting for everyone to go until we were the only ones sitting outside.
“I have my answer now.” I began, before he could put in any words.
“Before you talk,” he murmured, leaning in with deliberate slowness. His lips brushed mine, soft at first, teasing, as if waiting for me to pull away. But I didn’t, and the kiss only deepened, his warmth flooding through me, and I lost myself in the way he moved. When he finally pulled back, my breath hitched, and I stared at him, utterly speechless. “I think this will change your mind,” he said, his voice low and filled with that maddening cockiness. Well, he was wrong because I didn’t have plans of changing my mind, but now I was never changing it. “And?”
I cleared my throat, shaking my head slightly to regain some clarity. “I have weighed all the possibilities, and while this is not what I had envisioned us to be, you are right. I cannot be denying myself when we could be something more. I want to do this—anything with you—as long as I get to be with you.”
“Maddie.” He sighed, and he was taking me in his arms, crushing me, but I welcomed it, feeling the love in those big muscles. “I love you.”
“Hmm.” I hummed, my brain still jumbled from the kiss, to understand his words; instead, I leaned into the hug better.
“Say I take you out on a date?” He asked, and Ariel's words came to mind when I was purchasing the dress, and I smiled. She must have seen the future.
“Of course, I would love to go on a date with you.”