Beyond Broken(42)

"What are you doing?" she asked quietly.

Caleb let out a frustrated grunt. "I don't know."

His voice was rough. And Maddie realized that that was probably the most honest thing she'd ever heard him say. The thought softened her heart, just hearing how torn he sounded.

She turned to face him, his outstretched hand caging her in against the door. She could smell his soap and that woodsy scent that was unmistakably Caleb.

Maybe it was his proximity or the rapid pounding of her treacherous heart, but she opened her mouth and asked, "Are you going to kiss me again?"

Caleb stared down at her, his eyes unreadable and dark. Maddie watched them flick towards her lips and then back to her eyes. He swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down. "No. I only kissed you to teach you a lesson."

Maddie cocked her head to the side and realized something. "You're lying."

"No, I'm not."

"Yes, you are."

"No, I'm-" he cut himself off. "Jesus, you're irritating."

"So you've told me before," she murmured, staring at him. They looked at each other for a few moments, silently. Then, she said, "I need to go now, Caleb."

It took him another minute before he released his hold on the door. "Fine." He backed away and returned to his desk. "But I expect you to make up for it tomorrow. I want to have this project done by next weekend."

"I'll be done by Wednesday," she said, feeling both disappointed and determined. After Wednesday, would she ever see him again?

He nodded, but wouldn't look at her, so she did the only thing she could do and left.





* * *





Wednesday.

Suddenly, Caleb had an end date for whatever was going on between him and Maddie. The question was … what was he going to do about it?



       
         
       
        

His phone rang and Caleb glanced at it, seeing Luke's name pop up on the screen. He was already pissed off that Maddie was probably home by now, getting ready for her fucking prick of a date. But he accepted the call anyway, even though Luke, out of all of his friends, was the one that knew how to push his buttons the most.

"Just wanted to make sure you're not going to bail tonight," his friend said when he picked it up.

"I already said I was going to come."

"Did you convince your girlfriend to come along?"

"Luke," Caleb grated. Even the word 'girlfriend' set Caleb's teeth on edge.

"No worries. I'm sure we can swing by her date and commandeer her anyway," Luke said.

He was joking, completely joking, but Caleb's mind latched onto the idea more quickly than he thought possible. Jesus, he was losing his fucking mind.

"Caleb?" Luke asked when there was a long, lengthy pause over the line.

What would she think if he showed up at Hemlock Tavern? More importantly, did he care what she would think? It was innocent. He just wanted to see who her date was … and to make sure he didn't take advantage of her. Maddie was too trusting anyway. It wasn't like he was going to interrupt the date or anything.

Yes, his intentions were practically angelic when he thought about it.

When he replied to Luke, his tone was slow and even, "I think there's been a little change in plans."





SEVENTEEN





Hemlock Tavern was packed, which wasn't surprising on a Saturday night on Polk Street. Caleb pushed his way through the crowded bar area, earning glares and frowns, but he paid them no mind. He didn't particularly like Hemlock Tavern. It catered to too many hipsters for his liking, but at least the lighting was dim and there was a live band.

His friends trailed after him, no doubt surprised by his sudden initiative when he'd told them they were all heading to Hemlock after a round of drinks at McTeague's. Only Luke smirked, the bastard, and Kate knew better than to say anything.

Caleb spotted Maddie at the other end of the room and he stopped in his tracks, making Adam, another good friend of his, run into his back. But Caleb couldn't take his eyes off Maddie. She'd curled her hair, the soft waves tumbling around her shoulders in abandon, and was wearing a thin-strapped floral dress that managed to be both demure and sexy as hell. The man next to her, a blonde with a scruffy jawline, leaned in close and said something that make her laugh.

And Caleb actually felt his heart fucking stutter.

Jesus Christ.

That put him in an even worse mood than he actually was. But he didn't know if it was his reaction to her or the man next to her that made his mood darken. 

"Move your ass, Caleb," Luke hollered over the loud music, his words slurring a bit. For his size, Luke was somewhat of a lightweight. "We're getting crushed back here."