Page 64 of The Encounter
“Well, Maddie. I approve.”
She blinked at him. “Excuse me?”
“I approve. You can date Jace.”
Maddie stared and after a moment, she said, “Um… thanks?”
Haley laughed. “She doesn’t need, nor does she want, your approval, Seth.”
Seth put a hand to his chest as if her words hurt him. “Regardless, I’m giving it to her. I approve.”
“Maddie, I hope it’s okay for me to say this, but Jace told me we had met your dad at a craft fair several years ago,” Haley said.
“Yeah, it’s a crazy small world, huh?”
Haley nodded. “Yeah. I just want to say that I remember him specifically because he painted the most beautiful landscapes I had ever seen. At every craft fair after that, I kept an eye out for him because I regretted not buying one. I even tried taking Jace’s from him several times, but he wasn’t having any of that.” She laughed softly to herself. “I didn’t know he and your mom had passed away.”
The pain made Maddie’s chest ache, but she suppressed it the best she could. Even after all these years, it still felt as if it had happened yesterday. But Haley’s words had her heart swelling in pride, trumping the pain.
“He was a phenomenal painter,” she said.
Jace walked into the room and looked at them. Seth stood off to the side watching the exchange, seemingly uncomfortable with the conversation. Maddie couldn’t blame him. Before her parents died, it was hard to approach someone who had lost a loved one and know what to say. ‘I’m sorry’ never felt like enough.
“What did I miss?” he asked.
Maddie took a deep breath. “Haley was telling me she tried stealing my dad’s painting from you.”
He laughed. “She did. She got so far as taking it off the wall before I caught her. I keep a close watch on it every time she comes over now.”
Haley shrugged. “I regret nothing! It’s a great painting.”
They continued chatting and drinking until the food arrived. Jace ended up ordering a bottle of top-shelf scotch for Seth, whose mouth dropped open in awe when it was handed to him. The shock on his face told her he hadn’t actually expected Jace to get it, and he embraced Jace tightly.
Jace also ordered an entire chocolate cake and a tub of ice cream to go with it. The four of them enjoyed their dinner, drinks, and desserts. Maddie had to admit that she could see herself getting used to hanging around that group, and hoped it would always be that way.
Maddie and Jace gave hugs to Seth and Haley before they left, and then they retired to his bedroom for the night. Maddie’s stomach was full, but her heart was even fuller as Jace wrapped his body around hers and they fell fast asleep.
21
“Jace Locke’s new girlfriend, Madelyn Carter, IS one of the women from the drugging that took place at The Revolver a few weeks ago. We caught a grainy photo of her from Jace’s car as they drove back to his place shortly after she was released from the hospital. We will have all the dirty details for you soon. I suspect she’ll be on Jace’s arm at the Hospital Charity Gala coming up next weekend.” - Samantha Barnes, Celebrity Status
Maddie readover the article that had her name plastered in it along with a photo from her social media page with words above it stating, “Jace Locke’s Girlfriend”.
Kayla kicked her feet up on the coffee table in front of them. “You’re a celebrity now!”
Maddie rolled her eyes and set the paper beside her on the couch. “I’d rather not be.”
“It’ll all blow over, eventually. Everyone is always excited to see who the local celebrity is dating, but everyone eventually stops caring.”
“I hope so.”
“Are you excited about the gala coming up?”
Maddie nodded. “I am, actually. But I’m nervous. I’m going to be meeting Jace’s parents.”
“Ooh la la. Meeting the parents, huh? That’s a big step.”
“I don’t know if I’d say that.” Maddie shrugged.
