Kiss Me Captain (Emily and Maddie) novel Chapter 75

[Maddie’s POV]

I’d found my mother in a quiet hallway away from the main venue, tucked behind the concessions area. I’d told her I didn’t want to meet up with her before the performance, but the longing had won.

The corridor was empty except for us and a janitor’s cart near the water fountain—this strange pocket of privacy in controlled chaos.

She was crying. Not the delicate, composed crying she usually does, but the messy kind that makes your whole face red. The sight hit me like a physical blow. “Mom?” I approached slowly. “What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

She looked up, wiping at her eyes with the back of her hand in a gesture too raw for the woman who’d spent years teaching me perfect posture.

“Nothing’s wrong, sweetheart.” She sniffles. “I’m just—I’m so proud of you. Coming back from that injury, fighting your way here, refusing to give up even when everything seemed impossible. You’re so much stronger than I ever was.”

The words lodged in my throat, because I didn’t feel strong. I felt held together with duct tape and delusions.

“You came all this way just to tell me that? You could have texted. Saved yourself the drive and the hotel expense and the general nightmare of sports venue parking that charges highway robbery rates.”

“I promised I’d be here.” Her voice cracked on ‘promised,’ and she reached for my hand with fingers that trembled slightly.

“I promised you I’d watch you skate, and I meant it. Wild horses couldn’t keep me away, or traffic, or your father’s opinions about what I should or shouldn’t be doing with my Saturday.”

My heart did something complicated in my chest, because this was the first time she’d acknowledged the distance that had grown between us like weeds through concrete. “Are you really staying to watch? The whole thing? Because if Dad called and you need to leave early, I understand.”

“Madison.” She squeezed my hand hard enough that I felt her wedding ring press into my palm. “I’m staying. I’ll be in the stands the entire time, watching you skate. Your father can manage one evening without me serving him dinner on schedule.”

The crack about dinner felt significant. I wanted to push it, wanted to ask the question burning in my chest. “Are you going to leave him?”

Her breath caught, and for a second I thought she might deflect. But instead she met my eyes with something that looked almost like honesty. “I don’t know yet. It’s complicated when you’ve built a whole life with someone, even if that life isn’t making you happy anymore.”

“That sounds like a very diplomatic way of saying yes eventually but not quite yet because change is terrifying,” I offered. “Very parental of you to hedge your bets while technically telling the truth.”

“Maybe.” She managed a watery smile. “But I can promise you this—I won’t let him keep me from you anymore. I love you, Madison. Not because you’re captain or because you skate well. I love you because you’re my daughter, and we’re going to figure this out. However messy it gets, we’ll figure it out together.”

The hug came naturally, which was strange because we hadn’t hugged like this in years. She smelled like her perfume and laundry detergent and something that was just mom.

“I need to get back,” I said, voice rough. “Warm-up session starts soon, and Coach will have a minor coronary if I’m late.”

“I’ll find you after.” She tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. “I’ll be watching from the stands. You’re going to be amazing.”

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