“Comment sections are always funnier than the actual subject matter,” Maddie sighs, wiping away more tears, and I shake my head at her ability to brush things off so naturally. It’s like water off a duck’s back, and I can’t help but look down at her with pure amazement.
I should probably be more worried about this shit than I am, but watching her laugh like that after yesterday gives me the ability to breathe normally again. It’s like she brings the oxygen back into the room, my chest filling without strain for the first time since she showed up on our doorstep with a bloodied lip,teary eyes, and a shaking body I thought would topple if we moved toward her too fast.
I’m not sure how long Maddie spends looking through comments, taking phone calls from her best friends to share the comment threads onward, or dodging calls from tabloids. It lasts a while, and by dinner, I’m convinced Maddie will be lost to us for the remainder of the night.
That is, until she receives a phone call and answers with a narrowed-eyed gaze and the smallest wince. I understand why when she puts her phone on speaker and answers, “Hey, Papa.”
My eyes widen in horror at the same time Caiden sends me a panicked look. Ryan drops his cell onto the floor, the clatter of it sounding way too loud in the now-quiet apartment. Rayne doesn’t bother moving from where he’s lying, his head on Maddie’s lap while he hugs her free arm to his chest. He does freeze suddenly, though, the only sign that he’s listening.
Bypassing a greeting, Maddie’s father, Nikolai Fowler, sighs and grumbles, “Your mother has been stress-eating pancakes all afternoon. You want to explain?”
“In my defense, I read that there were four of them. Four, Nicky. I knew she was a handful and that it would take a strong man to keep up with her, but FOUR? Where the hell did I put my syrup?” her mother chimes in.
“Mom, what the hell?” Maddie laughs, slapping her hand over her face.
“Did you just palm your face? Is that what they call it?” Sasha Fowler asks, her words a little muffled, and I can only imagine she’s stuffed her mouth with the pancakes she’s apparently been eating all day.
“It’s called a face-palm, and yes. Yes, I did,” Maddie replies calmly, shaking her head against the back of the couch.
I hear Nikolai scoff before he teases his wife, “Yeah, Sash. Get with the times. Would you put the fucking syrup down already? Jesus Christ.”
“Oh my God,” Maddie groans through another chuckle, and I grin over at her with nothing but baffled amusement.
I have to remind myself that they’re famous actors, much like I have to remind myself of Maddie’s notoriety. They’re some of the biggest names in Hollywood, and hearing them have a conversation with Maddie like they’re just any other family is a mindfuck of epic proportions. It doesn’t happen often, finding down-to-earth people in the world of fame, so I feel like I’ve hit a diamond mine when I hear how similar Sasha and Nikolai are to Maddie. Makes sense, since they raised her.
“Get your filthy paws away from my plate, Nikolai Sokolov,” Sasha warns fiercely, and I blink at Maddie just as she turns to face me.
She shakes her head and mouths, “Dad’s real name. He took Mom’s name when they married.”
Huh. That’s cool.
“All I’m saying is that it’s a lot of emotional baggage, dating four guys,” Sasha continues, sighing into the phone. “And in my defense, my darling daughter didn’t bother sharing that news. I found out through social media. Also, have you seen the comments, baby? Someone called you a Polycule Avenger. Isn’t that funny?”
Okay, so I definitely see where Maddie gets her sense of humor. My lips are twitching at the pair while Ryan chokes on his drink from beside Caiden, who is openly enjoying the conversation at hand.
“Good, right? I’m apparently collecting men like Infinity Stones,” Maddie repeats the comment to her mother, and they both laugh like it’s the funniest thing they’ve ever heard.
It only ends when Nikolai comes back to the phone and sighs deeply. “Four of them, malyshka? Really? You couldn’t have found one mentally fortified man who could handle you?”
Maddie grins, her eyes scanning us all, before shaking her head. “Nah. Four is more fun.”
“I don’t want to know,” her dad whimpers, and I hear Sasha laugh in the distance. Then, with a little more seriousness, he asks, “Are they nice to you?”
All four of us perk up instantly, each of us turning to stare at Maddie with a deep-rooted need to hear the answer. Her lips twitch, like she knows we’re watching and listening, and she answers with so much honesty that my heart feels funny. “Yeah, Dad. They’re nice to me.”
“Good. Good,” he answers, before he pauses. “Which one’s the blond guy? He looks like he could help me move the furniture in your mother’s music room.”
Caiden suddenly looks deeply honored.
“That’s Caid. You’ve probably heard of him from your actor buddies, Papa. He’s a trainer. Owns his own gym and health brand,” she answers, singing his praises, and I feel a pinch of envy niggle its way under my armor.
“Oh, yeah. I like him,” Nikolai mutters, and I glare at the smug bastard on the opposite couch like I want his head to implode.
It doesn’t.
Instead, I grumble, “I could move furniture.”
“Who’s that?” Nikolai asks suddenly, and Maddie grins at me.
