End zone texas titans 2, p.19
End Zone: Texas Titans 2,
p.19
“That would be nice.” She smiled at him over her shoulder. “I brought a bottle. It’s over on the desk.”
Matt exhaled slowly, praying she couldn’t sense how nervous he was. “So you never said, where’d you go?”
“To visit my mother and stepfather.”
“That’s nice.” He would have given anything to make the trip with her. He would just have to trust that the next time she made the trip, he would be by her side. “You had a good visit?”
“Better than I expected,” she said as she carefully sliced the tender meat.
“I meant to give you your own key.” He didn’t know why he’d blurted that out.
“I hope you don’t mind that your mother suggested I borrow hers.”
“Why?” His hand paused on the corkscrew. “What did you say to her?”
“Just that we needed to talk.”
Talk. That could mean anything, but surely she wouldn’t have gone to all that trouble just to tell him it was over. “Speaking of talking, I spoke to my brother while you were away.” He couldn’t say why he needed to tell her that. Maybe he wanted her to see that he was willing to give forgiveness a try.
“How did that go?” She set aside the knife and turned her attention to him.
“It seems he’s been in love with Robin for a while now.”
“How do you feel about that?” she asked, narrowing her eyes as though she was trying to read his thoughts. “Does it bother you?”
“Why should it? She’s a part of my past. What she does and with whom is her own business.”
“Still, he’s your brother.”
Matt finished uncorking the wine and poured a small amount into each of the two glasses she’d set on the counter. “Yeah, he is. That’s why I need to try to let go of the past, so we can move on.” He shrugged. “We were close once. I don’t know if it’s possible for us to rebuild a relationship, but I think I’d like to try.” He wondered how she would feel about that. If Paul and Robin were a couple, it would make family dinners awkward, to say the least. “Are you okay with that?”
“He’s your brother. It’s your decision.”
Her nonchalance made his heart plummet. If she was planning to be a part of his life, she would definitely have an opinion about something so significant.
Kristen carried the platter into the dining room, giving him no choice but to follow her. “You’re not the only one who reached out to an estranged family member.” She seemed mesmerized by the flicker of the candle as she took the seat he held for her. “I did too.”
“I didn’t realize you and your mother were estranged.” He sat next to her. “I thought you said you talk all the time.”
“We do. I called my father earlier today.”
Given everything she’d told him about her parents’ divorce, he understood how significant that was. “Wow.” He covered her hand, squeezing it gently. “How’d that go?”
“He was so happy to hear my voice he actually cried,” she whispered, her eyes filling with tears. “I’d never heard him cry before, not even when my brother died.”
“Did you have a chance to talk?” More than anything, he wanted to know if she thought she might be able to forgive her father. “You know, about the past?”
“A little bit.” She sniffled and set a napkin in her lap. “But more than anything, we talked about the present. He asked about my life; I asked about his. It was nice. We agreed to get together soon. He doesn’t live too far from here.”
“That’s great, sweetheart.” He knew how important it was for her to reestablish a relationship with the father she clearly loved and missed.
“I think so.” Looking at him, her eyes traveling over his face, she said quietly, “I’m sorry I left without giving you a chance to explain.”
“I’d like to explain now, if you’ll let me?”
“It doesn’t matter now.”
He closed his eyes and tried to rein in his frustration. She couldn’t tell him it was too late for them, not when they’d barely explored where they could go. “I love you.” He forced himself to look her in the eye. “Can’t you see that?”
“Yes.”
Her simple response stunned him. “But that doesn’t matter?”
“It’s the only thing that matters.” She smiled. “That, and how I feel about you.”
The tightness in his chest eased, and for the first time in more than a week, he felt as though he could breathe again. “How do you feel about me?”
Without breaking eye contact, she reached for his hand. She got up and and settled in his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I’m crazy about you.”
He buried his face in her hair, inhaling her scent. “Not good enough. I need more.”
She giggled as he nibbled her neck while his hand roamed over her hips. “I’m in love with you.”
“Better.” He unfastened the first and second button of her blouse so he could drop moist kisses on the exposed skin. “Go on.”
“I’ve never felt this way about anyone.”
He groaned when she shifted so she could straddle him. “More.”
“I can’t imagine my life without you.”
Holding her face, he looked into her eyes, hoping she saw that he shared her feelings. “You won’t have to. Not if I have anything to say about it. I want this. I want you.” Only time would allow her to trust that their relationship was forever. He would give her as much time as she needed as long as she remained right there, in his home, his arms, his life. “More than I ever thought I could want anything.”
Skimming the stubble on his jaw with her palm, she said, “I don’t care what happened with Robin. I know how you feel about me. I trust you. That’s the only thing that matters.”
The question he most wanted to ask was right there on the tip of his tongue, reverberating through his head. Without the perfect ring, he feared she may think he was acting on impulse. When the time came, he wanted the proposal to be everything she’d dreamed of because the girl who spent her life making other people’s dreams come true deserved her own happily ever after. Matt intended to see that she got it.
“Let’s go upstairs so I can show you how much I’ve missed you, beautiful.”
Casting a glance over her shoulder at the food on the table, Kristen asked, “What about dinner?”
“We’ve got all night, baby.” He grinned. “And every night from now on.”
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Other Books by Cheryl Douglas
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Careless
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Holiday Homecoming
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Burn Out
Fast Track
Time Out
Face Value
Blown Away
Breathless
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Starting Over
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Book Three in the Music City Moguls Series
Forbidden
Lee Elliott is working hard to re-build his relationship with his brother, Drake, and prove to him that he’s a changed man after a series of bad choices created a serious rift in their relationship. When Drake agrees to give him a chance, Lee vows he won’t do anything to screw it up. There are four simple rules: no drinking, no drugs, no stealing, and no messing around with Drake’s employees. Lee can handle the first three, but Drake’s personal assistant, Indie, is making it nearly impossible to obey his brother’s fourth commandment.
Indie Eaton has been working for Drake long enough to know his brother is a train-wreck, and when Drake tells her Lee is coming to work for him, she has no problem obeying his command to steer clear. Given her history with men, the last thing she needs is to date another loser.
But when Lee reports for duty looking and acting nothing like the man she remembers she begins to wonder if he’s really changed… or is she just seeing what she wants to see?
Cheryl Douglas, End Zone: Texas Titans 2
