Matt’s hand still hung in the air, his fork suspended like he’d seen Medusa and turned to stone.
Only his pulse revealed he was still human. It raced, making his jugular stand out and dance.
He cleared his throat as he snapped out of it. “Glad you liked it.”
Knowing he’d return the favor, I offered him a bite of my garlic mashed potatoes.
Matt didn’t disappoint. The spark between us could have lit half of Texas on fire.
In my peripheral vision, I saw Jay stand.
Mood killed. I slumped against my chair as the sights and sounds of the restaurant returned.
Matt saw my gaze shift and nodded. He didn’t need to follow my line of sight to know my brother was the reason.
We’d gone too far. On the plus side, I’d forgotten all about the threat and my brother until Jay interrupted us.
“So…” Matt downshifted, his voice no longer had that husky quality that made me beg to obey his commands. “Do you like football and baseball, like your brothers?”
Another safe topic. One that reminded me why flirting with Matt was dangerous.
“Baseball more than football, but I’ll watch with friends.”
I told him about playing softball in high school. He shared stories of playing hockey.
“Did you play in high school?”
“No.” A hint of sadness crossed his eyes.
Of course not, he was trying to save his sister. I squeezed his hand.
“Horseback riding and archery ended up being my sports of choice. I had to earn my training time, so I made sure every minute counted.”
Matt didn’t dwell on the bad parts of his past, but I could see the hurt in his eyes any time he talked about his family.
It wasn’t long before Matt apologized and took out his phone. “Sorry, I can’t ignore them forever.” His barely-there head tilt indicated Jay, and by extension AJ and Nathan.
“How do you know it’s them?” I asked.
“The pace my phone is buzzing.”
Matt read his messages, then handed me his phone.
Most were from Nathan. The last one read: Jay is about to have a fucking heart attack, you may want to tone it down.
I looked at my brother and waited for him to sense me glaring holes into the side of his head.
When he finally turned towards me, I gracefully lifted Matt’s phone while giving him the middle finger.
I typed a response to Nathan: Tell Jay, verbatim, Madi says, Jaden Henry Sheppard, leave me the fuck alone.
My parents raised me to have good manners, so I added, please and thank you.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Cate laugh as I handed Matt’s phone back.
He read my reply. “You may have just signed my death warrant.”
Only he didn’t sound worried. Proud, maybe?
