Someone Get Me a Doctor, Someone Call the Nurse

(Jared POV)

After Maddie had raced into the restaurant, I already figured something was up and glanced behind me. No one else was in the parking lot other than some dirty-blonde male who was following behind us at a leisurely pace. Brushing it off, I ducked into the building, catching the waitress’ end statement that it would be about five minutes until we got a table. Sitting down next to Maddie, I was ready to just relax and enjoy the wait, but as the door opened, Maddie’s whole body tensed up. Looking up, I saw the same male from the parking lot and the cogs in my mind started turning. Surprise washed over the man’s face as his hazel gaze landed on Maddie, and he walked over.

“Maddie?” As she stood up, I could almost feel how tense she was. What happened between these two to make her behave like this?

“Corey.” Her voice could’ve frozen hell over, and I found myself glad to never be on the receiving end of that. Her gaze narrowed at the man, looking almost irate.

“How’ve you been? I haven’t seen you in forever. You look well.” Maddie’s hand curled into a tight fist against her thigh, and a hypothesis rose in my mind. Was this the man who hit her? If so, I was about two steps away from socking him in the face.

“Thanks. I have been. What are you doing here?” Sensing that it was time to end with the pleasantries, I stood up and placed my hand possessively on Maddie’s shoulder, feeling some of her tension ease up. The man flicked his gaze at me, and I frowned deeply at him. He was so dead if he’s who I think he is. As Maddie gave introductions, the male held out his hand, and I took the opportunity to give him a warning. I felt satisfied when he winced from my grip and stepped back. Like a dog with its tail between its legs, Corey took off. One of the waitresses called our group and started to lead us to the table. Wanting to confirm my guess, I grabbed a hold of Maddie’s arm and held her still.

“That was him, wasn’t it?” Stiffening under my gaze, I watched a short struggle play through her eyes before she responded, shrinking slightly in defeat.

“Yeah…” I ground my teeth together to keep from bellowing in rage after the man. How dare he lay a hand on her and then waltz up to her as if they were friends. Rage boiling inside me, I went to go confront him only to have Maddie’s small hands grip my arm. “Please don’t?” A new anger rose in me. Did she really just expect me to let him go? I turned to her, fury rising dangerously.

“He fucking hit you, Maddie. Do you really expect me to let him walk away like that?!” Her face stained red as she shrank under my furious whisper. I practically towered over her, and suddenly, I realized that with her abusive ex just gone, the last thing I should be doing was leering over her in anger. I stood up straight and marched off before my anger could boil over any more.

As Maddie joined us at the table, I couldn’t even look at her. She’s too nice for her own good sometimes. If only I could get my hands on the bastard…Shannon noticed the tension and asked Maddie about who the guy was, probably assuming that it was an ex. He was right in that, but asking Maddie was apparently a bad idea. Her answer was sharp and heated, making me glance up at her for a second. Seemingly engrossed in her menu, I knew anger was brewing under the surface. Great…Now I’ve pissed her off by pushing too far again…Fuck me…

The waitress arrived in almost no time, and I scrambled to figure out what I wanted while the other two placed their order. Picking a relatively small breakfast, I folded up the menu and relayed my order to the waitress. She wrote it down quickly, the lead making audible scratching noises on the pad. Maddie ordered such a small breakfast that I wondered if something else was wrong and at last met her eyes. A careful smile spread across her face, making me smile in return. Did this mean she wasn’t angry at me anymore? I’m so confused…