“And this is?”
“I’m Madeline,” she said, scooting closer to my side.
Ruby looked between us. “Nice to meet you. How do you two know each other?”
“Neal’s dating my mom.”
Ruby cocked her head, looking back at me. “Oh! A girlfriend? That’s amazing, Neal.” I could see the honesty shining out at her comments. She meant it. Out of all the people in the world, Ruby may have known the best why having Penelope in my life was such a big deal.
Madeline’s lips curled a little, and she backed into the booth again. I followed, smothering my smile as I sat. Ruby perched atthe edge of our table. “I haven’t seen you for months, and then you pop up here, looking so healthy and good.”
“That’s all Penelope’s doing. She’s amazing,” I responded easily, watching Ruby put the pieces together.
“You know, I saw that article, and I knew the moment it came out it had to be you. They didn't even have your name yet.'' Ruby tapped the table. “But I knew.”
I could feel the back of my neck get hot. “It was nothing.”
“Clearly it was something, but I knew you were good from the start. You would never let anyone get hurt.”
My throat clenched, and I was forced to clear it. “The bottom line is that Penelope’s safe.”
“And you’re happy.” Ruby watched me, waiting.
The truth came easily. “I’m happy. Happier than I think I’ve ever been.” I pointed at the teen sitting across from me. “This one is a surprising bonus.”
Madeline grinned back at me, and Ruby slapped the back of the booth. “That's the best news I’ve heard in months. I’m getting you two celebration pies. Madeline, you take care of this one, alright? He’s pure gold.”
Madeline watched me thoughtfully, even as Ruby did a quick stop back by, leaving two slices of peach pie as she went. When I picked up my fork to take a bite of the pie, Madeline suddenly spoke up.
“You said what happens at Ruby's stays at Ruby’s, right?”
I nodded, attempting nonchalance. “It does.”
“So, what happened to you?” Madeline’s expression didn’t falter as the words fell from her lips. And while I’d expected something like this eventually, it still caught me off guard. I’d taken five years off from talking to anyone about myself. Apparently, it was time to catch up.
“What do you mean?”
“Church told me who you were. How you used to run a construction company. And then you were just suddenly wandering around downtown Chicago.”
I grunted at her words. “I wasn’t wandering.”
The eye roll was a full second long. I briefly worried her face would be stuck like that. “Then what happened?”
Silence collected around us once more. Finally, I set my mug aside and leaned in. This child… She’d bared her soul to me, begged for me to understand. I could at least return the favor in a small measure.
“I was madly in love with my wife. We’d grown up together, neighbors. I wanted to give her everything, but things slowly started to change. First, she changed her mind about having kids. She put distance between us. I could tell she was driving me away, but I was intent on fixing us. Obsessed with proving to the world that I had made the right choice in a partner. I built house after house, thinking one would finally be the one she would want to start our forever in. But we always sold them, moved again.”
“And then?”
“Then she was in a massive car accident five years ago. She died on the scene.” My coffee mug was hot against my palms as I gripped it.
Madeline gasped, pressing her hand to her chest as she stared at me. “Oh my God. I’m so sorry.”
“Me too. She was the passenger in another man’s car. No ring on, and both had suitcases in the back.”
Madeline’s jaw dropped. “Wait…what?”
“I found the note the day before the funeral. I hadn't thought about going into the office since I was dealing with so many other things. But she was leaving me for the man she’d been sleeping with for years.”
