"Are you ready?"

"Not exactly. I've tried to ignore it since the moment I stuffed it into my briefcase."

After leaving Dr. Clark's, Harry and Madelyn walked to her office. The physical contact of their immediate embrace had been sorely needed. Harry sought her reassurance that he hadn't overstepped by proactively meeting with their department head. Madelyn simply longed for the feeling of safety she found in Harry's arms. While facing her boss with Harry by her side, an important realization had come to her. She had accepted that Harry was committed to standing by her as an equal. Now she knew she wanted him as her partner in this. Yes, Jack was her personal disaster, but a man like Harry didn't repeatedly show up to protect, defend and most importantly, support if he didn't want to be there.

It was decided. Madelyn was letting him in completely. There was just one hurdle to surmount; she needed to tell him the full truth. If Harry was going to choose to be with her, he deserved to know what was in her baggage, the brutality in her marriage, that she had deceived Jack so he would not father a child, that she had essentially stolen money from him. Tonight, Madelyn planned. They had agreed to ignore the contents of the envelope Dr. Clark had received until they were back at Madelyn's. After they addressed whatever was inside, she would tell him the rest.

"I'd like to pretend it doesn't exist," Madelyn said as she tentatively flicked the corner of the manilla pouch.

Knowing that food would be low on the list of priorities once they were home, Harry had suggested a quick bite in town. Neither had much appetite, but after the accident, he felt she needed to keep her strength up. Now the two of them sat at her kitchen table playing a sort of shuffle, each nudging the envelope as if it were toxic.

Harry sighed heavily. "Do you want me to open it?"

"Please?"

He bent the metal clasp upright so the flap of the envelope could slide over it. The seal had already been broken of course. It occurred to Harry that they may need to turn everything over to the police at some point. Gently, he shook the contents onto the table. He was careful to handle only the edges of the typewritten letter and stack of glossy, color photographs, which he immediately flipped face down.

Madelyn had moved her hands to her lap, where they remained, fingers clasping and twisting.

Harry began to read, his soothing baritone in complete contrast to the missive.

"Dear Sir,

     It has come to the attention of a donor to the University, and specifically your department, that an indecent relationship exists between one of your faculty members and a student. In fact, there were third party witnesses to inappropriate sexual interactions between Professor Madelyn Conroy and a male pupil inside a classroom of the business building.

     At this time, the concerned donor prefers to remain anonymous. In order to corroborate this misconduct, you may wish to interview the students listed on the enclosed page. Additionally, you will find photographic evidence of the dalliance in question. Should any doubts remain in your mind, these pictures ought to clear them up.

      Certainly, sexual misconduct with a student is grounds for discipline and termination. The donor, a highly respected member of the community believes you will handle this situation quickly and discreetly and without notifying the parties of our involvement, in order to avoid further scrutiny into your department.

Regards,
Wilson Private Investigations"

"Madelyn, baby? Are you alright?"

"It's classic Jack," she sneered. "Hiding behind anonymity, having a private investigator do his dirty work. I should have seen this coming from him."

"I'm so sorry. I don't think there is anything illegal here so far, but I do think this could add to a case against him for harassment. Should he choose to maintain this course, I think you may have grounds for a restraining order."

Madelyn puffed out her cheeks and blew into her hands as she scrubbed them over her face.

"I know there isn't enough to get the court's attention now. Let's just get this..." she waved her hands over the backsides of the photos, "out of the way for now."

There were four images. Harry turned them over one at a time. The first three had been taken on two different occasions. In each, Harry and Madelyn were kissing on the sidewalk outside of Etta's. They were clearly not platonic embraces, which was further demonstrated by Harry's hands slipped under her bottom in two of the three pictures.

The final photograph was the most damning. It had to have been taken the morning after their first official date. After the altercation that ended with Harry decking Jack at the restaurant.

There they stood, in her living room, utterly naked. It was a side view, clearly angled from the corner of the window next to the front door. It was one of the areas that had not been properly treated to prevent anyone from seeing inside. Madelyn had one hand woven into the curls at the back of Harry's head, the other on his shoulder for stability. Her left thigh was wrapped up, over his hip. She was nearly on her toes. The hand Harry held at her back supported her as she leaned back, allowing him to cup one breast while he suckled the nipple of the other.

It was as if the air had been sucked from the room, leaving behind a tumult of feelings. A battle between rage, protectiveness, and arousal was knotting Harry's gut. The color ran from Madelyn's face as a rush of heat shot from her stomach to the top of her head. She felt dizzy with embarrassment and fury.

"Dr. Clark has seen these," she rasped. "He stood there and looked me in the eye after he had seen these pictures, Harry. Jack wants me to lose my job; he wants to humiliate me."

"Breathe. You're white as a sheet. We need to be calm." Harry reached for her hand, only to have her snatch it back and jump to her feet.

"I don't want to be calm! I'm mad as hell! Who does he think he is? I am done living in fear. I am done isolating myself. I will not allow him to belittle me or cow me. Harry, he is dangerous, but I am done being afraid of him. Do you understand me?"

Wound tight and looking as though she might spew molten lava, Harry nodded, and took several deep breaths of his own, as he watched her pace the kitchen.

"I'm going to tell you some things right now. Things about Jack and me. Some of them are ugly, so you have to promise not to overreact."

"Baby... I thought you told me everything a few weeks ago when you said yes to dating me."

"Well, I lied. I mean, I didn't really lie, but I did omit some things because I thought they might have been overwhelming and you didn't really need to know everything, right? But now things are different, I'm different. I want you to know all of it."

"Slow down, Madelyn. I don't want you to keep things from me. In this case, no fact is insignificant. You are safe with me and I want you to trust me. Withholding information will just make it more difficult for us to support each other. So spill it, I'm ready for all of it."

As the clock on the wall ticked from 7:50 toward 9:30pm, she unburdened herself.

Madelyn released the binding that held the pain Jack had inflicted upon her. The escalating verbal abuse, jokes about her weight, her appearance, her lack of grace, competence and his disdain for her family's social standing in comparison to his own. She detailed the times that he had 'accidentally' bumped into her, pushed her into a wall or a piece of furniture and that she felt foolish for not seeing the writing on the wall. Because even when they were dating, Jack would tickle her until he pinched, grabbing deeply into her flesh, leaving bruises that took days to fade. She explained how he claimed his life was too stressful on the east coast, so they moved. 

Harry continued to listen without interruption as Madelyn told him that at first, the move seemed to have the desired effect. Jack was more relaxed. He pinned his hopes on starting a family. But she didn't get pregnant immediately. While he had always been a selfish lover, at that point, he became aggressive. Her pleasure meant nothing, sex was his means to an end. Jack continued to decompensate. Slow tears began to fall as Madelyn recounted her decision to set aside her own desire for a baby and the way she had begged him to get help. It would have been a joy to have a child, but her ex-husband was dangerous. Nothing proved this more so than the final events that led to her exit.

It was his full-on physical assault when he uncovered her deception, that had all the pieces clicking in Madelyn's mind. She knew without a doubt, he would never change for her, he did not truly love her, and he would never be the father she wanted for her child. The marriage was over.

Finally, Harry stood and walked to her. She was still, arms at her sides as he gathered her up, holding her to so closely that she could feel his warmth over her entire body.

Keeping his own emotions in check, he spoke in a measured tone. "Thank you for trusting me. I understand why it was hard for you to let everything out. Believe me, please, when I tell you that none of what you have said, not one single word, changes how I feel about you."

Cupping her chin in his hand, he lifted her face and let his lips linger on her forehead. Instantly, Madelyn felt the adrenaline leaving her system. It was replaced by a sensation of peace, something she had not truly felt in a long while.

"You're probably exhausted, but you said there was something 'different?' That you were different. What did you mean?"

"I don't want to do this alone anymore, Harry. I don't want to be alone. I want more than your support or your help. I want a partner. I want you to be my partner."

"Nothing," Harry whispered the words over her lips, "would make me happier, Professor M."

Brushing his mouth over hers with more pressure, he slid his tongue over Madelyn's bottom lip. Opening at his request, he deepened the kiss. There was nothing to compare, in his mind, to the feeling of being wanted by the woman he desired.

"I want to make love to you. I want to wipe away this entire day and show you something good."

"Then take me to bed, Harry."

She still needed to tell him about the money she had taken from the account she and Jack had once shared. When he lifted her though, all other thoughts sifted away like sand through open fingers. They had faced enough for the moment. She could tell him the rest later.

***

Author's Note:

WOW! 'Delivery' has exceeded 82K reads. You are all awesome! Tonight I had a cuppa while I wrote. It seems the 1st of September has brought cooler temps and the urge to tell stories. This week my husband and I will celebrate our anniversary. I'm feeling romancy, so don't be surprised if the next chapter of 'Delivery' gets back to some intimate connections.
❤️

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