• Same Day , 5 p.m. ; At Australian Restaurant •

~ Maddie's POV ~

" Ladies first " Lachlan offered politely , holding the door open for me .

" Thank you kind sir " I teased , waking through the door before he stepped inside .

We had just arrived to the restaurant where Lachlan's friends were to meet us .

I shifted uncomfortably as Lachlan scanned the area for his ' mates '.

" There they are " Lachlan smiled , pointing over to a table in the far back .

I looked over in the direction of which he was pointing to two guys sitting in a booth near the large glass front window .

Lachlan grabbed my hand as he lead me through the busy waiters and waitresses towards the booth .

" Oi ! Look at me mate being such a ladies man for once in his life ! " the blond one greeted us as we approached the table .

" Could you shut the fuck up Taylor ? Can't you not be such a ass for a day ? " the dark haired one snapped .

" Guys " Lachlan interrupted .

The two of them stopped talking and directed their attention towards us .

" This is my girlfriend Madeline " Lachlan introduced .

" Hello " I smiled .

Both of their accents were as thick as Lachlan's was ... before he visited and lived in America for months .

" I'm Taylor , you're just as pretty as I imagined you " the blond flirted , looking me up from head to toe .

" Taylor " Lachlan warned , catching his friends glance .

" Sorry about my friends behavior . I'm Jay and its very nice to meet you " the dark haired stepped in , giving me a warm smile .

I can now see what Lachlan meant when he told me on the way here that his friends were complete opposites .

Taylor seemed like a party animal judging from the half naked lady t-shirt he was wearing to the bottle of beer sitting in front of him .

Taylor was pretty tall yet lanky . His white blond hair was stringy and covered his blue eyes .

Unlike Taylor , Jay seemed calm and collected .

Jay was about my height and buff . He obviously worked out and it shows from his muscular arms .

Jay looked like a average young adult with his dark straight brown hair and brown eyes .

" So , shall we order ? " Lachlan suggested , slipping into the seat beside Taylor and picking up a menu .

• After Ordering Food ; Once Food Arrived •

" So how long have you two been dating ? " Taylor asked , shoving fries into his mouth .

" 7 months " I announced .

" And out of those 7 months , I stayed in Florida . Where you live after you moved out of your mothers house in Montreal " Lachlan added , directing the statement towards me then the boys .

I raised an eyebrow at him as I chewed on the meat in my mouth .

Where was he going with this ?

" So does that make you american canadian ? " Taylor asked , ignoring Lachlan's small remark .

" I was born in Montreal but I live with my brother in Florida . I'm canadian but I guess I picked up some american traits " I explained .

" Is you're mom canadian Maddie ? " Lachlan asked .

Why can't Lachlan just drop the subject ? I told him I'll figure out later .

" Yes she is Lachy . Born and raised " I snapped , giving him a warning glance .

He simply sent me a cheeky smile .

I know what's he's doing and it's not going to work . I won't let it .

" So how did you guys meet ? " Jay cut in , obvious to the tensions between Lachlan and I .

" Well , we met at Pax Dev because Madeline's mom let her go along with her brother " Lachlan explained , his eyes never leaving mine .

" From the moment I saw her , I was madly in love  " he continued , grabbing my hand and giving it a light squeeze .

" Aw , you two are so cute " Taylor gushed .

I sent a smile in Taylor's direction before nibbling on a fry .

" Do you guys have girlfriends ? " I asked Jay and Taylor .

Jay almost chocked on his water causing Lachlan to burst into laughter .

Once Jay had calmed down , he spoke up . " I'm looking for the right person ".

" Oh , I see " I nodded .

" Unlike Jay , I have a girlfriend . Of 2 years to be exact " Taylor bragged , a wide smile spread across his face .

" Wow , that's a very long time . Any promise rings ? " I asked , my eyes wide at his answer .

Out of the two , I would never in a million years think Taylor would have a girlfriend over Jay .

I mean , Taylor is so ... wild and Jay is such a gentlemen . Australian girls have a interesting sense of taste when it comes to boys .

" Sadly no , I'm not sure if I'm ready for that kind of commitment " Taylor sighed , leaning on his elbow .

" A promise ring is a huge thing . It's not marriage , it's saying that you love her so much that you want to get married in the future . But it's all up to you " I advised .

" Lachlan , you sure your girlfriend isn't Dr . Oz or something cause she sure knows how to give advise " Jay grinned .

" She sure does . If only she would take others advise often " Lachlan pressed , looking back at me .

I got up abruptly from the table , causing everyone to look at me .

" Excuse me . I have to go use the bathroom " I announced , flashing a fake smile .

Lachlan gave me a victorious smile , knowing he had gotten his point across .

I slide out of the booth and raced to the single ladies room , locking the door behind me .

I pulled out my phone , unlocked it and dialed mom's phone .

I started to bite on my lip as I waited impatiently for her to answer .

What if you doesn't answer cause she's mad that I hung up ? What did Mitch mean that there's more to the story ?

My thoughts were interrupted when the ringing stopped and static could be heard from the other side of the phone .

" Mom ? " I called out .

" Madeline ? " her soft voice answered .

" Hey " I greeted awkwardly .

What is one to say after hanging up the phone on their own mother ?

" I'm surprised you bothered to call after hanging up on me a few minutes ago " mom addressed .

A wave of guilt washed over me .

" Mom , " I started before letting out a heavy sigh . " I am just upset that you didn't think about me when making this huge decision ".

God , I sound so fucking selfish .

" Maddie , of course I thought of you "

" Mom , it's not that . You're marrying some guy I don't even know ! He's going to be my stepdad and , " I paused , my eyes getting teary . " I don't even know his last name ! ".

" And I'm sorry about that Madeline . I really am . That's why I want you to come and visit us in Pennsylvania " she burst out .

I froze . Pennsylvania ?

" You guys are living in Pennsylvania ? " I asked .

" Not yet . Connor and I are leaving in a month or so to live with Kevin . His job
relocated him there " mom explained .

I was speechless . My mother is leaving the house where everyone grew up for a stupid man ?

" See , this is what I'm talking about . You never think about anyone but yourself and what's best for you ! Did you ever think for a second about how big of a deal that is ! You are abandoning the house where you had 5 kids ! And what about Connor ! He has to leave all his friends to go and live with you and Kevin . How could you mom ? " I spat in disgust .

" Maddie , I'm sorry but I need to be happy again and moving away from Montreal is making me happy . Sure Connor will be losing his friends but I need this to happen . I'd been miserable for 4 years of my life as a single mother " she admitted .

I let out a deep sigh . " I'm sorry . I just need some time to adjust . I'll call you about visiting later but right now I have to get back to Lachlan ".

" Okay sweetie . I love you " mom said .

" I love you too mom " I replied before ending the call .

Letting out a frustrated sigh , I rubbed my temples ; trying to wrap my head around everything .

This will just be something I have to get used to . Maybe having a stepdad isn't a bad thing .

I slipped my phone back into my pocket , took a collective breath before opening the door to the bathroom and heading back towards the table .

" Is everything okay ? " Lachlan asked , referring to the phone call .

" Bittersweet " I responded as I slipped into the booth .

I could tell Jay and Taylor were confused but they didn't bother to ask .

"What are we doing after this ? " Taylor asked , stretching his long arms over his head .

" Clubbing ? " Jay suggested  .

" Um , Maddie doesn't like - ".

I placed my hand on top of Lachlan's to stop him .

I gave him a soft look telling him it was fine .

He raised an eyebrow as if saying " why ? ".

I shrugged .

I love how we can simply read each others expression and know what we are saying .

" So everyone up for clubbing ? " Jay repeated .

" Yeah " I spoke up .

" Let's get the bill " Taylor stated , looking around for a waiter .