“Didn’t do,” I interject. “In case you hadn’t noticed, Duke’s engaged to someone else.”
Maddie’s smile flattens. “A temporary hiccup,” she assures me. “But whether you’re ready to admit it or not, you’re already acting like a couple. You may not have noticed, but while you were telling us about your ideas for this place, you used the termsusandwean awful lot.”
I hadn’t noticed. I make a mental note to watch that as I hunch my shoulders and step out into the cold night.
Max leans against one of the giant stone columns standing like sentinels on each side of the stepped entrance. The tap of sharp heels on stone marks our approach, but he keeps his gaze fixed on the sweeping driveway.
“We brought you some food,” I say cheerily.
Max turns slowly, the permanent scowl on his face appearing even more severe in the deepening shadows. There’s another shadow on his cheek too. The burn is still healing and I don’t blame him for barely saying two words to me all day.
“I could have looked after myself,” he grumbles.
“Call it a peace offering,” I insist, pushing the plate into his hands. “I am sorry about the burn.”
“You did that?” Maddie asks. She sounds impressed rather than shocked.
Max gives her a cold stare as he takes his silverware and the beer. “Don’t let me keep you, ladies.”
“But I want to hear…”
I pull Maddie away and as we retrace our steps back through the house, I recount the tale.
“I’m sure I would have done the same if he’d chased me,” Maddie says when I’m done. “You really had no idea Duke was a Moncrief?”
“I assumed he was hotel security like Max.”
Maddie’s footsteps falter. “You really have been thrown in the deep end, haven’t you?” she says. “Max is Duke’s bodyguard.”
“The Moncriefs have bodyguards?” I shouldn’t be shocked that billionaires need protection, but panic flutters in my chest.
“It’s a way of life that takes some getting used to,” Maddie says as we pass through the drawing room again. “Ittook me a while, but I see Levi and Simon as part of the family now.”
I’m not surprised Maddie has bodyguards, but I’m still confused. “Why aren’t they here now?”
“Oh, we do have backup nearby, but I don’t need extra protection when I’m with Hunter,” she says simply. “And Duke will protect you the same way. He trains with Hunter and the others occasionally.”
“But he still brought Max today.”
“He’s just taking extra precautions while the Bratva are lurking around. And besides, he and Max have a closer bond.”
I ponder on that for a while. “Max was with Duke back in Philadelphia, and that was before the Bratva were on the scene, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah, but…” Maddie gives me a side glance. “He needed a different kind of protection back then. Did Duke tell you about the accident?”
“He told me his friend died.”
Maddie twists a strand of her blond hair around her finger. “It was hard on him for a while,” she says quietly as if she’s sharing something she shouldn’t.
I think back to how closed off Duke had been when I met him. There was a man who couldn’t offer me a future because he didn’t see one for himself. I feel sick when I ask, “Are you saying he needed protecting from himself?”
“Look, you should talk to Duke about this, not me. I’m relatively new on the scene too,” she says, evading the question. “I only married Hunter eighteen months ago and I don’t know Duke that well. Not as well as Rory. Oh, and Calder.”
“I met him yesterday,” I reply, noting the way she grimaced when she said his name. “He’s… interesting.”
Maddie laughs. “A little toointeresting. I have a brother-in-law at home just like him. Unsurprisingly, they’re friends.”
I try to smile, but I don’t have it in me. “Should I be worried?” I ask. “About Duke, I mean.”
