“Yes, absolutely.  You stay away as long as you need, and your job will be here when you come back,” she promised me.

I gave her a huge hug.  “Has anyone ever told you that you are the best boss?”

“Oh, they don’t need to.  I already know I am,” she replied, her eyes dancing with naughtiness.  “Now, you go and have your lunch break and then Serena can have hers.”

I grabbed my purse and headed outside to go and buy lunch.  J was on the phone, but saw me come outside and signalled for me to wait.

“I’m going to buy lunch, J.  And I only get an hour so I don’t have time to wait for you,” I said, tersely.  He kept talking and scowled at me.  I turned and started to walk away from him, towards the cafe where I always bought lunch.

I could hear him muttering something into the phone and then he must have ended his call because he went silent.  Then, he barked, “Madison!”

The last thing I wanted to do was stop for him, but there was something in his tone; a ‘don’t fuck with me’ command.  So I stopped, and turned around to look at him.  Oh, my.  He was shitty.

He stalked to where I was and got in my face.  “Why the fuck do you have to be so difficult about this?” He was fuming.

Well, I could see him, and raise him in his anger.  “Maybe it has something to do with the way Scott has gone about this.  And the fact that he sent you!”

He flinched.  It was only for a second, and most people wouldn’t have even noticed it.  But I knew J, and I saw it.  It surprised the fuck out of me.  “Well then, it looks like we’ve got some shit to sort out, babe, because I’m not going anywhere.”

“I don’t want to sort shit out with you.  That ship sailed two fucking years ago, J,” I spat.

He gripped my arm, pulling me closer, “No, it fucking didn’t,” he growled, eyes blazing, “And you can’t deny there’s still something here.  I feel it and I know you feel it too.”

I laughed.  No, actually, I cackled.  “You wanna fuck, J?  I can feel that, and, yeah, if you wanna go there, I’m all for it.  But don’t mistake my desire for your cock for anything else.”

He let me go, and looked at me disgustedly.  “When the fuck did you get so bitchy?”

I settled icy eyes on his.  “The day you ripped my fucking heart out, asshole.”  We glared at each other for a few moments and then I said, “Now, can we go and get lunch?”

“Lead the way, sweetheart,” he grit out, and I didn’t miss the way he said ‘sweetheart’, like I was the furthest thing from his sweetheart.

My heart cracked a little more, even though I didn’t think it was possible.  And fuck him for that.

Chapter 8

Madison

I unzipped my bag and then answered my ringing phone, balancing it between my shoulder and ear so I could continue packing my clothes.  It was Tuesday morning, and after talking it over with Serena and getting her opinion on the situation, I had decided to leave today.  J seemed immeasurably happy about this, as did Scott.  I was yet to talk with my father about this which surprised me; I had figured he would be straight on the phone to me about it.  He usually had something to say about everything I did, or at least that was how it felt to me.  Since moving to Coffs Harbour, I had managed to lessen his involvement in my life and even my mother had stepped back and given me the space to live my own life.  She was the kind of woman who had to have a say in just about everything her family was involved in.  I was feeling quite apprehensive about immersing myself in the club life again; I had fought hard for my independence and wasn’t about to give it up for anybody.

“Hello?” I answered the phone.

“Madison,” it was Blake, “What time are you leaving?”

“Soon, honey.  Have you got time to come over so I can say goodbye?”  I really needed to see him before I left.  Serena was my best friend but Blake was the person who always calmed me, and I could use some calming right about now.

“I’ll be there,” he replied and we hung up.

I opened my closet and started throwing clothes into my bag.  My plans were so up in the air that I really had no idea what I would need so I just filled the bag, figuring I could buy more later if I needed it.

Serena breezed in and sat on my bed watching me pack.  “That man of yours is moody.  I’ve been trying to make conversation but I give up,” she said.

“Let’s get something straight.  He isn’t my man,” I said, as I finished packing my bag.

“Why did you two break up?” she asked.

I sighed and sat down on the bed next to her.  “There were a lot of reasons we broke up, but he was the one who ended it when I accused him of cheating on me.  When I found out later that he didn’t cheat I thought we might have had a chance at getting back together but stuff happened, and he told me to get out of the club, to leave town.  He was done with me.”

“Fucker,” she rocked a dirty look; best friends were the shit.  I loved that Serena never pressured me for more information than I was willing to give.  Even though we had been best friends for two years now, she had never pushed me to talk about this stuff from my past.  She knew I had been through something that I didn’t like to talk about, and knew that I had had a messy breakup, but was happy enough to leave it at that.