Page 38 of Real Forever
Jake followed Madison into the living room.
“What’s up, sweets? What do you need?”
Maisie paused the show. “I have two problems. My first problem is that I’m still hungry and my second problem is that I’m lonely.”
Jake planted himself beside her on the couch. “Ok, how about this? How about I call and order us a pizza and then we all snuggle up on the couch and watch cartoons together?”
Maisie gave him the same are-you-an-idiot look she gave him when learning he didn’t know how to play Candyland. “Uncle Jakey, you can only order pizza at a hotel.”
They both stared at Madison with confusion.
“Why does she think you can only order pizza at a hotel?”
“Why does he think we can order pizza at the house?”
Madison cracked up laughing. “Jake, there’s nowhere to order pizza from in Snowbrook. Welcome to small town life in the middle of nowhere.”
Jake smacked his forehead and cracked up. Maisie rolled her eyes at them both like they were crazy.
“Tell you guys what? I’m pretty sure we have a couple of pizzas in the freezer downstairs. How about I make supper for us, and you teach Jake about Paw Patrol? Is that a plan, Crazy Maisie?”
“You don’t know about Paw Patrol either?” Maisie shook her head, astounded. “There sure is a lot of stuff you don’t know.”
As Madison started the oven and unpacked the frozen pizzas from the boxes, she could overhear Maisie introducing each character and explaining the finer details of the Adventure Bay world to Jake. She beamed as she heard him taking the conversation as seriously as he must have taken his master’s thesis.
“So, Chase is the leader?”
“No, no, no, Jakey. Well, kind of, I guess. But Ryder is the real boss of all the pups.”
The front door opened as Madison plopped back down on the couch on the other side of Maisie. It was Lauren.Jesus Christ.She looked like shit. She was in sweatpants and a hoodie, normal daywear for Madison maybe, but not Lauren. Agatha was right about her eyes. They were puffy and bloodshot, and her skin was patchy too, a dead give away she’d been crying all day.
“Mommy!” Maisie jumped off the couch and bolted for Lauren who crouched down to envelop her in a hug. “Mommy, I missed you so much. We’re watching Paw Patrol and Auntie let me have snacks on the couch and we played so many games today.”
Lauren squeezed her tighter. “That sounds like so much fun, honey. I’m so sad I missed it.”
She stood up and pulled her jacket and boots off as Madison approached.
“Hey,” Madison whispered, “are you okay?”
“Pffft.” Lauren waved her off. “I’m fine. I just had some things to do.” Her voice cracked, and she turned her face away, hiding her eyes from Madison’s concerned stare.
“Maisie go back in the living room with Jakey for a minute, okay?”
“Okay.”
“Jakey?” Lauren scrunched her forehead. “Who’s Jakey?”
Shit.Madison hadn’t even thought about what would happen when Lauren came home and discovered her trustee sitting on the couch drinking boxes of apple juice with her kid.
“We’ll get into that after. Don’t change the subject. You and I both know goddamn well you are not fine. Look at me. Tell me what’s going on.”
Lauren’s shoulders slumped, and she looked Madison in the eye. “Dave didn’t come home last night, Mads.”
Madison screamed internally.
“I talked to everyone and drove everywhere today. Nobody knows where he is.” Lauren rubbed her face with her palms.
Madison wrapped her arms around Lauren. “Okay. It’s going to be okay. We’ll find him.”
