“Why are you doing this?” he asked, the pain in his heart reflected in his voice. “This makes no sense. I thought you loved me.”
He sounded like a pussy-whipped adolescent, but Christ. She was tearing his heart into pieces, and he had no fucking clue as to why.
“I do love you,” Kat whispered before looking away again. She licked her lips—something she did when she was nervous—and looked around.
A nagging feeling tickled the back of his mind, but Kat’s crushing blow overshadowed whatever it was.
“Really?” Matt’s anger began to shine through. “Sure seems like you have a funny way of showing it.”
Shoulders dropping, Kat sighed. “Matt, please. Don’t make this harder than it already is.”
“I’mthe one making things hard?” He took a step forward and pointed at himself. “I’m not doing shit, here, Katherine.Youare.”
More tears filled her eyes before falling over her lower lids. With a quivering chin, she said, “I’m only doing what’s best.”
“For you, maybe,” Matt shot back.
Blinking back his own tears, he did his best not to let his emotions take over. If he did, Matt knew he’d break down and bawl like a fucking baby.
“What happened?” he asked in disbelief.
Her answer was a mumbled, “Nothing.”
“Bullshit. Two days ago, you couldn’t wait for me to get home. Now this?” Matt took a chance and stepped in closer. With a hand cupping her face, he said, “Please, baby. Talk to me.”
Eyes the color of dark chocolate stared up at him. A sliver of the love he’d seen reflecting back at him over this past year burrowed its way through, sending Matt’s hopeful heart pounding against his ribs.
For a second, he thought she was going to say she’d changed her mind. That she didn’t want to end things between them, after all. But it was gone as quickly as it had appeared.
“I told you.” Kat stepped out of his reach. “Nothing happened, Matt. I think it would be better for both of us if we were friends. That’s all.”
He looked down at her as if she’d grown two heads. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“Come on, Matt. We barely see each other as it is.” Kat turned and walked toward the edge of the pier. “This past year has been fun, but…”
“Fun?”He chuckled humorlessly.
His breath froze inside his lungs, shock leaving him unable to say anymore. Dizzy, he turned away from her, too. Running a hand over his face, Matt shook his head as he tried to make sense of what was happening.
One minute, he’s planning to propose, and the next, she’s tossing him into the friend zone? What an idiot he’d been.
Using his silence to try to explain the unexplainable, Kat drew in a deep breath before turning back around. With her chin held high, she stared back at him with the same, icy gaze her father used and said, “To be honest, I’d rather be with someone with more—”
“Money?” he accused, unwilling to let her finish the damning thought.
Her cold eyes flickered. “I was going to say time.”
“Time.” Matt rubbed the clean-shaven skin covering his tightened jaw. “Right. Except, time was never an issue before.”
The same, odd look flashed again, but like before it vanished in an instant. “Well, it is now. I’m sorry, Matt. I never meant to hurt you.”
“You never meant…” He laughed, unable to finish the ridiculous words. “I think what you were trying to say was you never meant to fall in love with a guy like me. Isn’t that right?”
“No.” She shook her head vehemently.
He’d never doubted her. Not once in all their time together. But now, Matt realized he couldn’t believe a fucking word coming out of her pretty, bow-shaped mouth.
“I should’ve seen this coming,” he told her coldly. “After all, you’reTheThomas Marsh’s daughter, and I’m just the guy from the other side of the tracks. Your dad owns nearly everything and everyone around here, and mine…well, we both know what my father’s like.”
