The quick defense surprised Jade. “Thanks, but she wasn’t entirely wrong. I do get intense about things that matter.”
“That’s not a flaw.” Maddox’s voice was firm. “That’s just caring.”
Something warm unfurled in Jade’s chest. Well, she couldn’t handle it, so here I am trying to have a fresh start in a city where nobody knows me.”
“Same,” Maddox said. “Though I’m out past the city limits. I bought a place on the outskirts with lots of land, and the nearest neighbor is almost a mile away.”
“Sounds pretty isolated.”
“That’s the point.” Maddox caught herself and shifted in her chair. “I mean, it’s practical for Zeus. He needs lots of space to run.”
“Right. For Zeus.” Jade kept her expression neutral, but she understood perfectly that the isolation was intentional and protective. Maddox had built walls out of geography just as much as emotional distance.
They fell into a comfortable silence, and Jade looked through the window. Outside, the spring golden light slanted across the street. The coffee shop had emptied around them, just a barista wiping down the counter and two college students hunched over laptops in the far corner. Jade realized with a start that they’d been here over an hour. Her coffee had gone cold, and the light outside had shifted from afternoon to early evening. Time had slipped by unnoticed, which seemed impossible given how aware she was of every small detail—the way Maddox’s fingers drummed against her mug, the way her face brightened when she smiled, the intensity of her attention when Jade spoke.
“I should probably head out,” Jade said, not moving. “Things to still do.”
“Yeah.” Maddox didn’t move either. “Zeus needs dinner.”
Neither of them stood. The moment stretched, and Jade became acutely aware of the space between them across the small table. Close enough to reach across if she wanted. Close enough to?—
Stop it, she chastised herself.
“The thing about Robert,” Maddox said quietly, “watching you with him today…”
“What about it?”
“You’re good at this. The crisis management and grounding and all of it. You make people feel safe enough to fall apart.” Maddox’s eyes were dark and searching. “That takes real skill.”
“So does what you do. The way you handled the space, brought Zeus into it, and gave Robert what he needed without making him feel weak.” Jade leaned forward against the table. “We worked well together.”
“We did.”
The silence that fell was different than before, heavier and charged. Jade watched Maddox’s throat work as she swallowed and watched her fingers still poised against the mug. Their eyes met and held the contact. Something passed between them—recognition, awareness, a question neither was quite ready to ask. The coffee shop faded to background noise. Jade’s breath caught, and Maddox’s pupils were dilated, her gaze intense and searching all at once.
This isn’t just professional respect. The thought landed with certainty, undeniable and terrifying. Jade saw the same realization dawn on Maddox’s face, saw the moment Maddox recognized what was happening.
And then Maddox stood abruptly, her chair scraping against the wooden floor. “I need to go.”
The spell broke, and Jade blinked, trying to recalibrate. “Okay.”
“Zeus has been in the truck for a while,” she said as a way of explanation. Maddox was already moving toward the door, not quite fleeing but close. “I’ll see you around. Next Tuesday at two.”
“Yeah, see you.”
Maddox was gone before Jade could find anything else to say. Jade sat alone at the small table, staring at her cold coffee, her heart hammering in her chest. What the hell was that?
Jade watched through the window as Maddox climbed into her old truck. Even from here, she could see Zeus’s head pop up, pressing against Maddox’s shoulder. A moment later, the engine started and the truck pulled away.
Jade released a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. She drank the last cold dregs of her coffee and wiped her mouth with a napkin before leaving.
The walk to her car felt mechanical. Her hands shook slightly as she unlocked the door. Inside, she sat gripping the steering wheel, replaying that moment—the eye contact, the silence, the almost…
What?
Almostsomething.
Her phone buzzed, and she flipped it over to see a text from Maddox.
