Circle of Deception 2 (22 page)

“Mommy and daddy say it’s because he is smaller and they have to do more for him.”

“But do you believe them?”

“I don’t know,” she shrugged. “I think so, but...”

“But what, Allison? You can tell me.”

“I’ll get in trouble. She said if I told anyone my mommy would go away. I don’t want her to go away.”

Dr. Steinfeld sat up in her chair, she knew this was the break she was waiting for, and she would have to handle this delicately to avoid shutting down all the progress she was making. She knew now that whatever was going on had nothing to do with either Alex or Meg, it was an outside source poisoning the child against her parents

“You can tell me, Allison. I’m not your mommy or daddy. We’re just talking just us girls.” Allison shifted in her seat and fiddled with her charm bracelet. She kept her head down while Dr. Steinfeld watched intently. She could tell she was extremely nervous, and her heart was breaking for the little girl. She had been through so much in her short life, and here she was faced with another dilemma. “Allison, if you don’t want to tell me, I understand, but I would like for you to know that your mommy and daddy love you very much, they are so worried about you.”

“Mommy cries because of me. I don’t want her to get mad and go away.”

“She won’t, she just wants to know what’s making you sad.”

“Ms. Pierre said that mommy and daddy don’t really want me. She said that mommy will only like me until Jordan can talk and then she won’t need me anymore.”

“Who is Ms. Pierre?”

“I can’t tell you.”

“This is a safe zone, you can tell me anything in here, and no one will get in trouble.”

“I can’t,” she said with tears in her eyes. “Can I see my mommy and daddy now?”

“Yes, I’ll get them. You did great here today,” Dr. Steinfeld smiled and walked towards the door. She opened the door and walked out to greet Alex and Meg and they stood expeditiously. She turned to look back into the room and closed the door. “Mr. and Mrs. Hanover, is there I way I could speak with you privately before we go back inside?”

“Sure,” Meg answered quickly. “What happened, is she okay?”

“Your daughter will be fine, but I have a concern, who is this Ms. Pierre that she’s speaking about?”

Alex and Meg looked at each other questioningly and then back at Dr. Steinfeld. “We don’t know anyone by that name. I don’t know where she could have gotten that name,” Alex explained.

“It seems that the problems you have been having are all the work of this Ms. Pierre. Could Allison possibly have an imaginary friend that she associates all the distress in her life with?”

“She has never mentioned an imaginary friend, not to us anyway.”

“Is there anyone else she could possibly be talking to besides you two?”

“She talks to Marisol, her nanny, but she would have mentioned an imaginary friend.” Alex was trying to figure this out in his own head.

“Your daughter will be fine, she loves you both dearly, but wherever she got these ideas is the problem. She really believes in her heart that if she talks about it, you’re going to send her away.”

“Oh god,” Meg sighed. “What can we do?”

“Reassurance, and love. I want to see her again next week, maybe I can get more from her, but until then, just do what you’ve been doing. Now, let’s join her to let her know you’re here. She was asking for you.”

“Alex, our little girl,” Meg sniffled. “What are we going to do?”

“We are going to love her, baby. That’s all we can do, but you better believe I’m getting to the bottom of this Ms. Pierre shit.”

Alex and Meg walked into the room and found Allison sitting with her head down, refusing to look up. When she saw them, she looked like she was afraid. Meg walked up to her, and Alex sat on the other side wrapping her in their loving embrace. She laid her head on Meg’s shoulder, and let a few tears fall. “Why are you crying, Alli?” Meg, rubbed her head.

“I thought you weren’t coming back. I thought you forgot about me already.”

“Never, baby, we would never forget you. You’re our little Alli bear, we love you.”

“I love you, too. Can we go home now?”

“Yes, sweetie,” Alex smiled. “Anything you want.”

“Can we go and get Jordan first?”

“Of course, he will be happy to see you. He loves his big sister.”

“I love him too, daddy.”

Alex smiled and pulled her into a strong embrace. He held on to her tightly as he tried to hide the tears he was fighting so hard not the shed. He didn’t want them to see the weakness in him. He wanted to always show strength when it came to them because without him, they would begin to lose hope, and that was unacceptable. When he felt Meg’s hand on his back, he suddenly knew that everything would be fine. He pulled her hand down to his lips and kissed it gently before standing to face her.

When he saw the acceptance in her eyes, he exhaled. Here he was trying to be strong for her, and she was offering him the best support he could ever ask for; her love. There was only one word to describe how he felt in that moment, lucky. He had been thinking he needed to do everything to make this right, but he had to remember, he wasn’t alone. He had her, and they had each other. There was nothing stronger than that, he was sure of it.

He clutched her hand tightly unafraid of what would happen next, because he had his equal next to him. Together they could get through anything, and they were going to have to. Whatever sparked this change in their daughter wasn’t going to just go away, they had to take action, and they would start with Marisol and go from there. Something had to give and fast, especially with the other things he was suspecting.

Chapter Eleven

“How are you feeling, big brother?” Maddie smiled and ran her hand across Gio’s face”

“I feel fine, I’m just ready to get out of here. I miss my house.”

“You would be at home if you would have been taking your medicine and attending your appointments. You have no one to blame but yourself.”

“Did you come down here to yell at me, or did you come to visit?”

“Both,” she laughed. “You scared me so bad, I should beat you senseless.”

“I know, I scared everyone and messed up Alli’s party. I’m an idiot, I know.” Maddie pulled her chair up and sat down. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it tightly. He smiled at her, and she kissed his hand. He had been so occupied with tests and more tests, that he hadn’t had time to enjoy the simple things in life like having a real conversation, or even better, gossip. “So I’m dying to know what everyone has been up to, spill the juice.”

“Where do I start?” She lit up. “Everyone has their own melodrama right now. I wouldn’t know who to start with.

“Start with this engagement! I still can’t believe Emily, our Emily, is getting married. I thought that girl would side step that situation forever. That Aiden must have something really special going, if you know what I mean. I know he’s sexy, but damn. He must be grandstanding like nobody’s business.”

“Too much, Gio, way too much. I don’t want to ever think of him that way. He’s like my brother.”

“From what I hear he could be your brother. Is papa really tapping Melissa?”

“No! That’s crazy. Papa is not interested in her that way, they are just friends, and besides, she has a new boyfriend.”

“The cop,” he huffed. “Right.”

“What’s wrong with that?”

“Has he found mom’s killer?” Maddie sat silent just looking at him blankly. “Exactly. Excuse me when I say screw the police. They can kiss my ass.”

“Tell me how you really feel,” she laughed. “It’s good to see you haven’t lost your spice.”

“Never that, I’ll always be me. I don’t know, maybe he’s nice, but I just feel like there is more they could be doing. I still feel cheated, I miss her more and more every day.”

“We all do,” she wiped her teary eyes. “Stop it, you just stop it now. I didn’t come down here to cry with you. Either you ship the hell up or I’m out of here,” she smiled.

“Okay, princess, I’m done with the dramatics. Thank you for getting me straight.”

“I only do it because I love you. I want you only thinking happy thoughts like how you’re going to be okay once you have this surgery.”

“That won’t be for a while, I just have to cool my heels until then. I’m glad you all know now, I was tired of holding this in.”

“We’re family, you should always be able to come to us. We will always be here.”

“Speaking of family, where is Lexie? I know you weren’t fond of her.”

“She is out at Meg and Alex’s house. You know Meg, always the humanitarian.”

“Yes, that’s her alright. She is always playing the role of savior. Helpful twit,” he laughed. “How is Lexie acting?”

“She is nice enough, I didn’t want to like her, you know I didn’t, but I can’t hate anyone who is going to save my big brother. I’ll just have to swallow my foolish pride and make nice. What’s her story anyways?”

“Well, apparently, she met this man and got married ten years ago, and now he has gone missing, just up and left her. I don’t know what their story is, but Lexie was always impulsive, from what I remember anyways. I don’t think she knew much about him before she jumped into it.”

“Well, that’s ridiculous just to up and leave your wife, any children?”

“No, not that I’m aware of. I didn’t want to pry, it’s been so long since we shared anything, and I wasn’t about to get lost in the madness.”

“I don’t blame you,” she sighed. “It sounds messy.”

“Oh, it is, but on to better topics, tell me about Nathan and the love nest.”

Maddie blushed at the mention of his name. Nathan had awakened something that she never knew was inside her. He had touched her heart and soul with his treatment of her. He wasn’t just saying all the right things, he was showing her in every way possible that he was the man she needed. He was there for every curve ball that had been thrown at her and her family and didn’t hesitate to step in when needed.

“So, it’s that good, huh?” he asked after witnessing her goofy expression.

She patted his hand without breaking her smile. “It’s amazing, he’s amazing. I feel so alive with him, so free.”

“Aawh, my baby girl is in love. You thought you loved that wretch Sean, but I knew it wasn’t the real thing. This, with Nathan, is real. Your eyes shine so brightly when you talk about him. He’s good for you.”

“He is. I needed a man like him. I’ve never been this open, he has me thinking about things I never knew I wanted, like family and marriage.”

“You? Marriage and family? Now I know I’m high,” he reached for his IV. “They must have slipped something extra in my tubes.”

“Quit being dramatic. I’m not some ogre. I just hadn’t found what I needed until now.”

Gio looked up and saw Nathan standing behind them in the doorway and smiled. He didn’t know how long he had been there, but he had a sneaking suspicion that he had heard a great deal of their conversation judging by the way he was smiling. Instead of telling Maddie he was there, he kept her talking.

“So tell me, when did you first discover that you loved him?”

She sighed and grinned. “The first night we spent together, the way he held me after we made love made me feel like the most precious person in the world. The way he looked at me made me feel whole, like I had been missing something all this time.”

“Something like what?” He was enjoying this way too much to let it end. He was loving the look on Nathan’s face as she went into detail about their love story.

“Missing him, he’s the one. He makes me so happy, and I’m not an easy girl to please.”

“More like mission impossible,” Gio huffed.

“Shut up,” she swung at him. “Don’t make fun of me when I’m pouring out my heart. I’m telling you more than I’ve ever told anyone. You should feel privileged.”

“I do,” he smirked. “More than you know, but you’re going to be so pissed at me when you turn around.”

She turned around suddenly and saw Nathan standing there and turned a bright shade of red. “How much did you hear? How long have you been there?”

“Long enough to know that I’m the one,” he grinned. “Come here,” he crooked his finger, drawing her to his side. She laughed, thinking about what he was doing. “Just for the record, I fell in love with you the moment I saw you step out in that blue dress at the wedding. The first night I made love to you only confirmed it for me.”

“Oh god, I never meant for...”

“Shh,” he placed a finger to her lips. “I’m glad I heard you, now shut up and kiss me.”

“Wow,” Gio mumbled. “This is better than cable. Man, I need to get the hell out of this room. I’m missing every damn thing.”

Maddie smiled in remembrance and felt her temperature rising. For a moment in time, she remembered every touch, every kiss, every sincere word whispered in her ear. As she drifted, he watched, holding her close, looking into her sparkling green eyes. He too had the night they first made love on his mind.

***

It was the night of their fifth date, they had just come back to her house from a night of dinner and dancing, and they both had something on their mind. Nathan had been surprisingly quiet on the drive over, and Maddie was nervously fiddling with the keys to her house. When they pulled up, he got out and opened her door like he always did, and leaned in to place a kiss on her lips to bring the night to a close. As soon as his lips touched hers, something was different, she felt the desire and passion she felt dancing within him. When he pulled back, she saw the longing and need in his eyes, and knew it was time.

Without hesitation, she reached her trembling hand out to unlock the door, and he placed his hand over hers to steady it. As soon as they opened the door, the keys fell from her hands and she was up against the door with him kissing her with more intensity than she had ever felt in a lifetime. Her senses were overruled and her body was sensitized everywhere. Every place his hands roamed tingled with excitement. She came to life before his very eyes.

Maddie allowed herself to be taken in by his warm caresses and deep kisses until she remembered the promise she made to herself; after Sean, she had sworn that the next man she gave herself to would have to work to prove that he was worthy. She and Nathan had been spending a large amount of time together, but nothing he had done yet proved him to be that guy. They had been in sync and he was nice enough, but she had to be sure before she crossed over to the point of no return.

When she suddenly stopped kissing him, Nathan straightened in realization. She knew he wanted her so badly, but she also knew he wouldn’t want to rush her into something she wasn’t ready for. He would wait, if he had to, he would wait forever. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to push you. Let’s sit, show me where the kitchen is, and I’ll make you some coffee.” Maddie was stunned by his ability to just shut off his desires to make sure she was comfortable. She pointed him to the kitchen and stood back in amazement.

Within minutes, she heard him banging around in her kitchen and came to her senses. He was everything, sensitive, considerate, and caring; everything Sean wasn’t. She knew she would be a damn fool to let him slip from her grasp. It only took her a split second to race into the kitchen to find him pulling mugs from her cabinet. When she rushed up behind him, she startled him and he dropped the mug he was holding in the sink gently.

Nathan looked in her eyes to see what they held, and she made sure he knew then and there that it was right. He turned and lifted her to the counter, planting kisses all around her face. When she arched to him, he moved to her neck. He stayed on her neck for a few moments, and when he moved lower, she didn’t stop him. When he found himself at her shoulders, he pulled back to get her silent approval on going further.

Maddie inhaled sharply and moved his hand to the back of her dress and let the material drape at her waist. When he saw her ample charms, he lost his breath. She was more than he could have ever dreamed. When his hands found the way to her perky breasts, he moved in to nibble on her ear. “Are you going to let me make love to you? If not, I have to leave now, I won’t be able to stop myself later.” Her eyes flew open and without a second thought or hesitation, she slid off the counter and into his arms. He chuckled and wrapped her legs and arms around him. “Show me to the bedroom, beautiful.”

She directed him up the stairs and into the room without breaking from the kisses she had initiated. She was overcome with emotion and she knew she wouldn’t be able to last long under the circumstances. When he swung the door open, Maddie felt her insides flutter. She was so ready to connect with him, she thought she might burst. He lowered her feet to the floor and dropped to his knees. He slid his hands up her legs and over her thighs to reach her panties. He slid them down slowly leaving every inch of her legs burning with his touch.

Nathan tossed her panties aside and grabbed her legs, tipping her over on the bed. She let out a beautiful laugh that fed his soul, and he stood to strip his clothes off. As he undressed slowly, she sat up and admired him. When he saw how closely she was watching, he slowed down, removing each article in the most enticing manner she had ever witnessed. By the time he was completely naked, she was spread out on the bed, trembling with anticipation. When he began to address her, she held out her hand, stopping him in midsentence. “Nathan, come here,” she whispered and crooked her finger, drawing him to her. When he hovered above her, she placed her hands on his chest and leaned to his ear. “Shut up and kiss me.”

“I’ll do more than that,” he hissed and planted his lips over hers. He kissed her until she was out of breath while reaching down to spread her legs. “I’ll only do this if you’re sure Maddie, I want you, but I want all of you. Not just your body.”

“You can have my body and whatever else you want,” she panted. “I’m not waiting any longer.” She pulled him down and flipped him over. Before he could react, she was on top of him, surrounding him, suffocating him within her, he was swimming inside her gripping her hips tightly. The first contact was electrifying for Maddie, she placed her hands on his chest and gasped at the feeling of wholeness she felt being connected with him. She threw her head back and began to move above him. He moved his hands up to cup her breasts as she lost herself in the rhythm she created all on her own.

“Maddie,” he uttered holding on to her, cradling her breasts as she moved her hands down and placed them down on both sides of his neck. She closed her eyes, savoring the feeling, and he sat up, kissing the top of her breast. She moaned at the feel of his lips against her skin, and he pulled himself into a sitting position and placed his hands on her back, pulling her closer to his chest. She was still rubbing against him when he took her legs and pulled them around his waist, crossing them behind him.

Nathan had become so encased in the feelings surging through him, that when he felt her tongue on his neck, he snapped. He stood with her still attached and rolled them over. Maddie gasped when she felt his hands cupping her from behind and he buried himself deep within her. He buried his face in her breasts and slid his tongue out to taste her delectable skin pushing himself in and out, shaking with each thrust. She grabbed his shoulders, and he pushed harder holding her tighter. She moaned his name, and he whispered in her ear. “You’re wonderful, so amazing, I can’t believe I waited this long to have you. Oh Maddie!”