“Gosh, if I didn’t know any better, I’d have thought you’d been making out,” Leighanne joked.
Madeleine laughed. “I was,” she replied casually to see what her friend’s reaction would be. “So anyway, what’s up?”
“Madeleine Littrell, what are you talking about?”
“I have a boyfriend now. His name is Brad. Wanna talk to him?” Before Leighanne could reply, she quickly shoved the phone into her boyfriend’s hands. “Here, it’s my brother’s fiancée.”
“Uh…hi,” he said nervously. She listened to his side of the conversation, not able to hear what Leighanne was saying. “Yeah…we met at a bookstore two months ago…I’m nineteen…I’m in college for literature…”
Madeleine giggled. Brad was being put through the Spanish Inquisition. Suddenly, the phone was back in her hand. “Hey.”
“I’m so happy for you! He sounds awesome!” Leighanne squealed. “Is he cute?”
“Oh, absolutely. So what did you call for?”
“Brian and I were wondering if you wanted to come visit this weekend. He’s back from Sweden, and we’re doing all the wedding plans, and you need to be fitted for your dress.”
“I’d love to! That would be awesome! I miss you guys!”
“Nick’s gonna be here.”
Madeleine rolled her eyes. “I don’t care, Leigh! He doesn’t bother me anymore.” She made a point not to mention Nick’s name in front of Brad. She had filled him in on Nick, and he was slightly insecure about it. There was no need to make him worry all weekend.
“Brian can call and get plane tickets for you. We’ll cover all the expenses.”
“No, that’s not fair. I can do it.”
“Mattie, you’re coming here because of us, and it’s not like he can’t afford it. Just let us pay for it.”
“Fine,” she groaned. “Listen, I gotta go. You kinda caught me in the middle of something.”
Her friend laughed. “Okay, I got it. I’ll call you with the plane arrangements. Do you want me to tell Brian about Brad?”
“If you really want to…” She knew Brian wanted her to get back together with Nick, so she was rather reluctant to let him know she was in a new relationship.
“I’ll wait for you so you can tell him, I think. Bye!”
“Bye!” Madeleine hung up the phone.
“So what did she want?” Brad asked.
“She wanted to find out if I would go visit her this weekend so I could be fitted for my dress and all,” she answered.
“I’m sorry to bring this up, Mattie, but is Nick going to be there?”
“Yeah, he is, but Brad, you don’t have to worry about him. He and I are long over. He probably has a new girlfriend, and you have no idea how happy I am with you.” She touched his cheek.
His hand covered hers and held it there. “I know. I’m just being paranoid. I know how you felt about him at one time, and I don’t wanna lose you.”
“You won’t lose me,” she promised.