the Officer and his Beauty

Chapter 13

Nates pov

I watched Madison eat, and boy, could she. I looked over her; how did all that food fit in her tiny body? She almost ordered as much as me…. or she was starving… the last part made me feel bad.

She had said something about the food at home not being for her. I hoped that wasn’t true since Nana was known to be generous, not at all like Maddie described her or gave me hints about… I leaned back, I was done, and just watched her still stuffing her pretty face with whatever she could come over, and I mean anything; she even ate bacon, vegan and all.

Maybe I needed to talk to Nana about this…. s**t, I really would hate if Madison and her didn’t get along; it would make things so much harder for me. I really needed them to stop fighting… It was selfish, but I loved Nana, and Madison was…. breathtaking.

Even now, when she was stuffing her face, dressed in an old shirt and khaki pants, she looked so hot, having her hair up in a ponytail. The long blond hair just made her look younger. s**t. I forgot about that part for a few seconds while enjoying myself; she was still off-limits.

“Good?” I chuckled when she just moaned back, drinking soda and making me feel uncomfortable in my shorts again; dammit! What the hell did this girl do to me? It was like I suddenly had no self-control when she came into my life.

“Yes! Omg, Nate, this was such a good idea; I needed to get away from the house and….” She stopped and swallowed slowly like she was trying to buy herself time when I looked sad; she really didn’t like being there, did she? Well, at least she was telling me the truth now; I didn’t like it when she avoided me.

“Get away from Nana… that was what you would tell me, right?” She looked down, feeling guilty, when I made a hurt sound and sighed. We couldn’t date anyway, so I guess it didn’t matter what she thought about Nana.

“Nate… listen, I know that you think I’m being ungrateful and spoiled, but Nana is not nice to me, and that’s the truth.” Madison sat down her cup and looked at me honestly when I was even more annoyed. How was that even right?? I had never seen Nana being mean to anyone, not even those who deserved it.

She made a scoff and drank some more; she could see that I didn’t believe her; how could I? She was telling me something I had never noticed with my own eyes, impossible to grasp.

“It’s just that what you are telling me, I've never seen that happen.” She was staring into the distance, the straw between her lips making me get stuck when she sucked it hard in anger and didn’t answer. So, she would give me the silent treatment; okay, cool, nothing that I hadn’t been through before with Melissa.

We both sat completely quiet when I saw Madison getting increasingly frustrated. She was more used to me being angry at her, but I wasn’t; I was just sad that she believed Nana was being mean when she wasn’t.

“Okay, I’m done.” Madison was up when I watched her take her tray and walk away, her hips swaying like she was trying to get me turned on. I groaned; why was she so hard to deal with? I had the worst taste in girls, always picking up the ones that would break my heart.

I was just about to get up when I saw a pretty girl smiling at me, and I froze when she talked to some of her friends. They all saw me and gave me looks that weren’t the best ones, f**k! I didn’t need this!

I was just handling whatever Madison told me…. I should have just stayed in bed, feeling my nausea come up when I saw the cute redhead that walked the last part to me. I stood up, wanting to leave the mall the second I saw her over the food court.

“I thought that was you, Nate; long time no see, stranger? How’s everything? How’s Nana?” I just stared at her face, paralyzed; she was talking like we hadn’t parted in a big fight, and I told her that I never wanted to see or call her, but she still did.

“Mel... Just… please leave…” I didn’t sound half as self-assured when she smiled, like she thought I was cute for even trying to stand up to her. The worst part was that she was right; I never used to fight back with her. She had me eating out of her hand, and she knew it, just like everyone else.

“Ah, stop that, Nate. I've been trying to call you, but you never picked up... are you seeing another girl now?” She sounded accusing in the end, and she got a mean glint in her green eyes. This girl loved to fight—she really did—and I hated it. She made me feel like breathing was harder, and I wanted to escape her. She was the devil, just like Hayden called her. Man, I wish he was here.

I couldn’t make a sound when she smirked more, seeing that I was just lost like always when she came around. Melissa really made me feel like s**t, and I didn’t even know how seeing that she was the one that started all the fights between us and was cheating.

“Hey baby, let’s go…. I want to go see that movie you told me about… “I froze up hearing Madison's sweet voice and how it sounded like she really was my girlfriend when Melissa made a sneer seeing the blonde girl coming up and wrapping her arm around my waist, and I didn’t hate it.

I put my arm around Madison's shoulders and pulled her closer. Madison was glued next to me. Melissa just looked with hate at Madison. It looked like she was having fun teasing my ex-girlfriend, and I loved every second of it—I really did.

“Yeah… I was just saying goodbye to Melissa…” I was smirking when Melissa was fuming that I had someone else; I didn’t get her; she was the one that had cheated on me, and now she what? Wanted me back?! Hell no!

“Oh, hi, I’m Nate's girlfriend, and you are?” Madison looked like she wanted to know when she was measuring the hateful redhead that would start screaming soon enough if Madison kept pushing her. I knew that all too well.

“I see that you did a down buy, Nate. Too bad for you.” Melissa made a smack with her tongue and started to walk back to her friends, that was whispering, and I just thanked God for Madison and that she saved me from that devil’s spawn, still holding onto me.

Oh, s**t, she was still holding on, and so was I when she titled her head up, and it felt like she was staring me right inside my soul like she could see what a damn sucker I was for her already, ready to wait one year for her to become eighteen.

“Nate….” She was just standing there, saying my name like I never had heard it before. Like she wanted me just as much as I wanted her…. Oh god, this was getting out of hand! I could feel her heartbeat going fast against my abs and my own one just pounding against my rib cage; she was something else, this girl, she really was.

“Yeah…” that’s all I could say right now, mouth dry and neck still bent. Staring back into the beautiful baby blue eyes trained on mine made me feel like my chest was exploding and deflating at the same time.

“I … I think she is gone…” I made a disappointing nod when I swallowed down whatever I felt, and so was she. I looked back to the spot where Melissa and her friends had been standing, and she was right; they were gone. f**k.

“Let’s just go back… I want to see what Maisie sent me. You were going out, weren’t you? Your Nana said something about that before she left….” She looked sad, and I felt like s**t; I hadn’t even thought that maybe Madison wanted to come along, but she was too young for the places she and Hayden were going to; it just wasn’t going to work.

“Yeah…listen, Madison, it’s not that I don’t want to take you along; I just can’t. You got that?” I still held her hand; she had sneaked into mine when Melissa was here. I didn’t want to let go, and she didn’t make a move to pull it away. The feeling of her hand in mine was the best in the world—better than every kiss I ever shared with Melissa.

She didn’t answer, just looked even more determined when she let my hand go and started to walk out on me from nowhere, she was pissed, and I made a sigh, good job Nate, she was upset again; I really was the worst one picking girls.