Fighter

Ch. 70

After Maddox drops me off to get my car, I give him Alex's address and head back to the condo. I'm not ready to see Alex and I don't want to make it any harder for him. I told Maddox absolutely no fighting. I trust him, but I don't know about Alex, I remember Tyler saying he was pushing for a fight at my birthday party.

I have homework to do so I start that and after two hours, Maddox's still not home and I haven't gotten a text or phone call. I don't want them to rush if they are really talking things out. But I'm starting to worry. I call Chris again hoping he answers. No such luck. I've never had Chris mad at me before and I don't know what to do about it if he won't answer his phone. He had every right to be angry with me but not to the point of completely ignoring me. I turn on the television to try and pass the time until Maddox gets back.

Maddox POV

I walk up to the house and knock on the front door. I don't really know what to say to the guy but he does need to get over it. I don't want Hadley stressing about him or his brother. This ends tonight. Alex opens the door and he's definitely not happy about my presence.

"We need to talk." I say.

"About?"

"The way you're making Hadley feel. She feels bad and she's stressed about Chris. Why won't he call her back?" I ask.

He leaves the door open and starts walking away. I follow him into an open kitchen with a nice backyard. Hadley would love this.

"I don't want her to feel bad. I know she can't change anything but I don't know how to let her go. I can't. I've loved her for too long. She's a part of me whether I like it or not."

"I don't want to know how much you love her. I hate hearing it. I know you do and it bothers me. She's mine and the baby is mine. You'll never have anyone as perfect as her, but you never had her two years ago and you'll never have her now. So grow a pair and stop hurting the woman you claim to love. She doesn't deserve the way you're making her feel responsible for your happiness. Chris, I assume, is angry with her because she picked me over you. You need to talk to him, you're tearing their friendship apart."

"I can't just pretend to be happy, even for her. Chris won't listen to me. I've tried to get him to call her, I know she misses him. He thinks she's making a mistake with you. He doesn't know she's pregnant."

"Talk to him again. Go out, pick a chick up and move the fuck on. If Chris sees you're over it then he'll talk to Hadley again. I don't care if you have to make yourself do it. I don't care if it doesn't make you happy. I only care that Hadley stops feeling like she has to be there for you. She's not responsible for your happiness, you are. You're choosing to be unhappy. If you never had her then you never lost anything. She loves me and I love her, that's never going to change. We're starting a family, we're engaged and we'll be together forever. So no need to wait for her, she'll never need you."

"I can't stand you. You're an arrogant, cocky prick. What the hell does she see in you that the entire rest of the population doesn't?"

I smile. "I don't know. Sometimes I think she is blind to everything. But she's not, she sees more than I give her credit for. I get to spend the rest of my life trying to figure her out."

I watch him tense up. I don't care though. I need him to see that he's wasting his time, that I will never give Hadley up. He'll never hold her, he'll never have his love returned. He needs to let go because she never gave him any hope to hold on to.

"I'll try talking to Chris again. But you don't get to tell me when to move on. I'll decide that for myself. You know, I built this house for her. This is her dream home. I've done everything for her. You'll never come close to loving her as much as I do. It kills me to know that I am so much better for her than you. I'm what she needs, not you. If you loved her you'd let her go. You have to know she deserves more than you. You're not right for her, you'll never be."