Can't be Bought

Chapter 11 - Wanna Come?

I spin and jump, moving around the ice. Maddox is now sitting on the wall, watching me glide on the ice. I notice him but pretend not to. He watches me closely, his eyes look to be filled with lust but I think I'm just imagining that. 

We finish up skating and head off the ice. We hand our skates back to Dave as he waves us goodbye. Dave's face lights up, he seems very excited about Maddox whenever he's around. It makes me wonder, who is Maddox?

We head back into his car, he holds the door open for me like a gentleman. After Maddox starts up the car, he chooses a song to play. When I hear it, I perk up. Motion by Khalid. 

I watch as he puts the car in drive, his thumb tapping to the beat. He's looking straight forward, paying no attention to me. I look out my window, listening to this song I've heard many times. A smile forms on my face, thinking about our date. The music blasts through the speakers.

🎶 "Honey I forgot to mention

I'm so entranced by you, it hurts

I'm in love, with the moment

To me fallin', to me goin' " 🎶

My arm is resting on the center console, tapping to the beat. I turn my head to sneak a peek at Maddox, only to see he's doing the same. Our eyes meet and he smiles then looks back to the road. Suddenly, I feel his arm graze mine. He's placed his hand near mine. My heart rate increases, butterflies in my stomach. I turn my hand outward slightly so my fingers are accessible. The song continues but his hand does not, it's frozen where he placed it. 

🎶 "Nothing feels better than this

Now left, right, left, right

Take you back, lean you side to side" 🎶

Slowly, I feel his fingers move. His hand covers mine and his thumb gently rubs the back of my hand, up and down, up and down. His fingers are soft and gentle. I look to my hand and back to him. I feel shy, unsure of what to do. Maddox moves his eyes my direction, without moving his head. He smirks when he notices the small smile that has formed on my face. 

Neither of us has said anything this car ride, but our feelings speak for themselves. Maddox doesn't grab my hand but continues to graze his thumb on the backside of my hand, making my stomach flip over and over. 

"So," He says suddenly while continuing to rub my hand. 

"The day's not over yet." I furrow my eyebrows and stare at the side of his face. I think he can feel my stare so he continues on. 

"We've got another stop, at the beach." His face is serious, yet sexy. He's focused on the road, not looking over at me. I nod my slightly but realize he didn't see it. He pulls his hand away, placing it on the steering wheel, switching it with his other hand. He holds his left arm up, grabbing the handle above his window. I see his muscles flex as he grips it. 

"Alright." I chirp, a little too excited. I move around in my seat getting a bit more comfortable. I bend my right leg and place my foot on the seat. I wrap my arms around my knee and rest my head there, tilting it sideways. I watch the road pass by and soon I see the beach on the horizon.

We pull up to a beach I have never seen before. We get out and Maddox leads me down to the beach, urging me to follow him. We walk quite a ways away from where we parked, I don't see much other than sand. "Where are we going?" I ask, hoping we are almost there. He looks back at me, trying to get a reaction. Around the curve, I barely see it, a wooden swing-set with two sings. It's on the beach near the water in the middle of nowhere. I laugh and run up to it. I climb onto one of the swings. Maddox watches, walking slowly to the swing next to me. I feel like a kid.

"You bring all your dates here?" I asked jokingly as he begins to swing back and forth. He shakes his head with a closed mouth smile, laughing slightly. 

"Nope." He replies, popping the "P" matter of factly. We laugh, talk and make jokes. I finally get to know a little bit about him. He has one brother and two sisters, he grew up in Malibu, he's not one who's much for chocolate and (I think) he's secretly a big mush. I can tell by the way he speaks about his siblings, so endearing and caring. He put a lot of thought into this date which surprises me. 

We walk back to the car, my sandals in hand. The wind won't stop blowing my hair all around. It's at this moment I realize I still have his jacket on. It covers me from the wind, so I'm glad to have it. I need to remember to give it back to him.

Once we are in the car, Maddox drives towards my apartment. I look at the clock to see that it's 9:30, we have been out for longer than I thought. We continue small talk which has gotten better over time. I talk about missing my dog at home and how FaceTime is never enough. As the conversation starts to die down, Maddox looks as though he has something to say.

"So my friend is having a pool party at his place tomorrow." Maddox blurts out nonchalantly. 

"You wanna come?" He asks.

I'm not sure if he really wants me to, but then why would he ask? I think about it for a second, is that too much all at once?  Maddox must not have been able to wait for a reply. 

"It's not required you know like this one was." 

He looks nervous, rubbing his fingers against his hand. 

"You should bring your friends, it will be fun," he adds, looking to me as though he is urging me to say yes. 

This date he bought, so I didn't expect it to go anywhere after today. But I had a lot of fun. I think again and instantly hear my friends telling me to say yes.

"I guess we could do that," I reply, shrugging my shoulders and smirking. I see Maddox flash a quick smile but he tries to hide it just as quickly as it appeared. 

We arrive at my apartment and Maddox asks to see my phone. He adds his number and texts himself, Hey there. I say goodbye, jumping out of the car. I don't expect him to get out so I head straight inside without looking back. Once I close the door, I lean against it and hold my hand over my heart. It's racing, beating a mile per minute. I forgot, his jacket!  I smell the cinnamon hot chocolate scent I did before. I grab the collar, pulling it outward and laughing to myself. I breathe heavily but slowly calm myself down. I quickly recompose myself and head to my room.

After I change into a giant t-shirt and shorts and throw my hair into a messy bun, I hear my phone ding. I sit on my bed, one leg hanging off the edge while the other is crossed on top. I grab my phone and stare at the text.

Mad

Starts at noon, see you there.

9240 Robin Dr, Los Angeles, CA

I stare at the contact name, Mad. 

I wonder if that's his nickname or if he was just too lazy to type it all. Instead of replying, I fall back in my bed and stare at the ceiling. 

"Meghan!" I shout. Within seconds I hear her footsteps approach my room and my door creak open.