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This article is about the book character. You may be looking for the film character.


Travis Maddox is the male lead of Beautiful Disaster, and sophomore at Eastern State University. He drives a Harley 2004 motorcycle and is notorious at Eastern State for being quick to anger, tough, and avoiding commitment and also being a serial heart breaker. He is a member of the Sigma Tau fraternity and is also an undefeated fighter in The Circle--an illegal underground fight ring where he is known as "Mad-Dog", and is the youngest of five brothers. His mother Diane died of cancer when he was three years old, Trent was five years old and Thomas was eleven. He married Abby in Las Vegas when they were nineteen and twenty and he is also the father of James and Jessica Maddox, and Carter Maddox.

Appearance[]

Travis is described as lean and muscular, and covered in tattoos. He's tall, has cropped dark brown/blackish hair, deep brown eyes, a charming white smile and a deep dimple in his left cheek. He also has a cut on one of his eyebrows.

Personality[]

Travis is charming, handsome, humorist, witty, smart ass, a little bit arrogant, aggressive, sarcastic, cocky and impulsive. He is also magnetic, volatile and controlling. He gets what he wants and never loses a fight. Travis is described often as charming and alluring. Cami refers to him as "sex on a stick" in Beautiful Oblivion. Abby refers to him as "every woman's dream" in Beautiful Disaster. However, Travis is described as intelligent, and seems to sail through his classes easily. This is proven true when he helps Abby study and pass her biology test. There are also references to him writing term papers with ease. Travis admits that Abby is the second woman he has ever loved, the first being his mother. Travis shows his jealousy by resorting to violence against other men who try to get close to Abby. He seems very protective and passionate about the things he loves especially when it comes to Abby. Travis seems to be horrible at poker, but makes up for it with his fighting abilities - he is light on his feet and he moves and punches quickly, and he never gets knocked out. He's also an ace in pool. Abby is the only one that can calm him down but she can also get on his last nerve and under his skin like no one else can, which he uses as an excuse to justify some of his abuse of her. Before Travis met Abby he was a heart breaker and had tons of one night stands and commitment issues - he was sleeping around and he also had a bad reputation on Eastern. He was also afraid to love someone and get attached to them because of the fear they might leave (this fear was formed by his mother's death). Every girl in Eastern wants him but he has his eyes out for Abby - and only Abby. He never took the risk of loving someone ever again (besides family) after his mother's death because he hasn't found the right girl, and that was until Abby Abernathy came and shook his whole world. 

Relationships[]

Abby Abernathy[]

Travis Maddox and Abby Abernathy first meet in an underground fight event where he protects her from some guys in the crowd who keep on pushing her. Travis and Abby later on find themselves bumping into each other more frequently as for the fact that Abby now attends to Eastern State University and also simply because of the fact that Shepley (Travis's cousin and best friend and also his roommate) is dating America (Abby's best friend). Travis is instantly drawn to Abby because she, unlike most of the girls in Eastern, is not throwing herself at him, trying to have sex with him or showing any interest in him. Abby, being Abby, does not want all the attention he brings onto her, but Travis tricks her into having a bet with him. If Travis loses, he, the 'sex on a stick' of Eastern State University, will stay abstinent for a month, but if Abby loses, she will stay with Travis in his apartment for a month. He wins and of course, during this month - the bad boy meets his match - his soulmate. Travis finds himself attracted to her but doesn't fully understand what he is feeling, because he has never been in love before. Travis eventually falls for Abby...hard, and vice versa (she falls for him too), although Abby doesn't want admit it and give in, she can't help but falling for him the way he fell for her. Once Travis realizes he has feelings for Abby, he wants to prove to her and to himself that he can be good enough for her and he is trying to change himself for her, he wants to convince her that he can love her and treat her right. He is determined to win her heart.

Travis refers to Abby as the "Pigeon" or lovingly called "Pidge". He later explains that the nickname symbolizes a winning card in poker, a beautiful woman, a dove.

Shepley[]

Shepley and Travis are cousins, best friends and they share an apartment (they are roommates). They have grown up together like brothers. They have always been close especially while living at the same dorm room together in college. They always support each other and Shepley was always there for Travis when Travis was going through difficult things. Shepley has a girlfriend and her name is America. America and Travis are in good terms and they are friends too. America and Travis got to know each other because America spent a lot of time with Shepley at Shepley's and Travis's dorm room. Shepley is very protective, and sometimes overprotective and caring about people he loves - especially when it comes to America. It was also said in the book that Travis was usually the cause of Shepley and his past girlfriends' breakups (not because of infidelity, but because a friend/cousin of the girlfriend will hookup with Travis, thinking they'd be together, but.....no, just-- no.) At first Shepley isn't a fan or a supporter of the idea of Travis and Abby (because Abby is his girlfriend's best friend and he is afraid that it won't work out and America {his girlfriend} will break up with him) but he sees that Travis is changing for the better and that this time it's for real and he starts to be a little bit open minded about the subject. As the story goes on Shepley is eventually fully supportive of the idea and is even helping Travis to accomplish his goal - to win Abby.

Children[]

Jessica and James are Travis's twin children. They are introduced at the 'Walking Disaster' epilogue. Travis described Jessica as his 'mini me' but with an angelic face. Jessica always sticks up for her brother even though he wants to fight his own battles in school. The epilogue ends with Abby being pregnant with their third child, another boy. His name is Carter Maddox, as revealed in A Beautiful Funeral.

In the Books[]

In Beautiful Disaster, Travis Maddox makes a bet with Abby Abernathy that will either result in him being celibate for a month or Abby staying at his apartment for a month. Even though Travis's gambling abilities aren't anything compared to Abby's, he wins the bet. Needless to say a lot happens within a month while Abby stays with Travis. Love blooms and Travis turns over a new leaf.


Actual summary----

Abby Abernathy tries to be a good girl so she wears cardigans but she can drink anyone under the table. Abby believes she has enough distance from the darkness of her past, but when she arrives at college with her best friend, her path to a new beginning is quickly challenged by Eastern University’s Walking One-Night Stand.

Travis Maddox, lean, cut, and covered in tattoos, is exactly what Abby wants—and needs—to avoid. He spends his nights winning money in a floating fight ring, and his days as the ultimate college campus charmer. Intrigued by Abby’s resistance to his appeal, Travis tricks her into his daily life with a simple bet. If he loses, he must remain abstinent for a month. If Abby loses, she must live in Travis’s apartment for the same amount of time. Either way, Travis has no idea that he has met his match.

Appearances[]

Quotes[]

  • “A Toast.. To douchebags! he said, gesturing to Brad. "And to girls that break your heart," he bowed his head to me. His eyes lost focus. "And to the absolute fucking horror of losing your best friend because you were stupid enough to fall in love with her."
  • “I know we're fucked up, alright? I'm impulsive, and hot tempered, and you get under my skin like no one else. You act like you hate me one minute, and then need me the next. I never get anything right, and I don't deserve you...but I fucking love you, Abby. I love you more than I loved anyone or anything ever. When you're around, I don't need booze, or money, or the fighting, or the one-night stands...”
  • “I don't want to sleep with you, Pidge. I like you too much.”
  • “I feel like any second you're going to figure out what a piece of shit I am and leave me.”
  • “I like the au naturel thing you have going on. Girls don't come over here like that."
  • His eyebrows pulled in. "I can't win with you. I can't win with you! You say you're done...I'm fucking miserable over here! I had to break my phone into a million pieces to keep from calling you every minute of the damn day-I've had to play it off like everything is just fine at school so you can be happy...and you're fucking mad at me? You broke my fuckin' heart!" His last words echoed into the night.”

Trivia[]

  • According to Jamie McGuire, "Pigeon" is a reference to the movie "Lady and the Tramp". Tramp calls Lady "Pigeon" the first time they meet. In the book, a "pigeon" is also a winner card in poker, a beautiful woman, and a dove. 
  • In the companion novel, it is revealed that Travis discontinues fighting in The Circle, and goes on to make good money as a personal trainer until he is recruited by the FBI shortly after graduating with a degree in criminal justice.
  • McGuire admits that the character of Travis is based off of a man who she had a crush on in college.
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