Still…she doesn’t move.
“Skye needs to go potty,” she says, void of emotion.
Leo’s on it and calls Benny to see if he can walk her while I stare at Maddie, lost for words.
Mase must sense the tension, because he’s unnaturally still beside me.
He hasn’t seen his sister in ages. With football season in full swing, he’s been everywhere but here, and normally he’d already be halfway across the room hauling her into a hug.
The fact that he isn’t? He’s clocking the same thing I am.
Something’s off.
What the hell is going on?
When Leo hangs up, he whistles Skye over and loves on her before putting on her leash and collar. He opens the door and hands her off to the security guard, who will wait for Benny.
“Mads?” I try again.
“I need to tell you something.” Her voice barely carries. Her eyes flick between all of us. “All three of you.”
Mason leans forward, every protective instinct he owns lighting up. “What is it, Madeline? You okay?”
She retreats back up the stairs. “I need to get something. I’ll be right back.”
Mason and I exchange a look, then his eyes drop down at my drink.
He doesn’t have to ask.
I pour one for him and Leo.
We sit in the living room, waiting for Maddie, in a tense silence. A few minutes later she returns with a few envelopes in her hands.
The doorbell rings. “That’s Addie. Hold on.”
She hugs her best friend, not holding back from her.
“I love you, Adelaide, but why are you here so early?” I stand and greet her.
“I called her.” Maddie’s still keeping her distance, and I don’t like it one bit. “When I overheard you all talking, I called her immediately, because I didn’t want her home alone. She’s connected to me, just as much as you two are.” She gestures between Leo and me.
“Good call, babe.”
Adelaide makes the rounds with a quick hello to Leo, then she wraps Mase in a long hug before sitting next to him.
Her attention is on Maddie, encouraging her to talk.
Maddie fiddles with the papers in her hand, looking down nervously. “So.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake, spit it out,” Addie says, and it’s the first time I’ve seen a trace of a smile on Maddie’s face.
“I’ve been keeping a secret.” She scrunches her nose, nervous, then looks at Leo. “Do you remember that artist Cherry who donated the piece to Building Unity?”
“Yeah. The one with like a million followers?”
“Three-point-five million,” Addie corrects.
Maddie’s lips twitch.
