Kat stood at the edge of the living room, her dizzying mind trying to make sense of what was happening.
“Please,” she heard herself say. “Don’t go. Let’s talk about this.”
“Hey, King,” he ignored her. “It’s Turner. I need a favor.”
She listened as Matt explained to Zade what he needed. After, Kat stood frozen while Matt walked over to his bag, securing the items inside.
Without looking at her, he said, “Zade will be here within the hour. I’m going to go outside and check the perimeter and security equipment while I wait.”
“Matt, please,” she tried again.
He zipped the bag shut, stood straight, and flung it over his shoulder. Not making eye contact, he spoke low as he passed by in a rush.
“I won’t leave until he’s here. Lock the door behind me, and don’t open it for anyone but him.”
“Matt!” she hollered after him, but it was too late. He was already gone.
Chapter 9
Matt sat in the quiet of Gabe’s modest home, his head still spinning from the nuclear fucking bomb Kat had dropped on him less than two hours before.
The trip from the cabin back to Dallas had been challenging to say the least, given his state of mind. No way in hell was he in any shape to safely make the twenty-two-hour drive to Long Beach, California…where Kat’s father lived. Even though that’s exactly where he wanted to go.
Motherfucking bastard.
He still couldn’t believe what that son of a bitch had done. Although, he shouldn’t be surprised.
Thomas Marsh was all about appearances. To him, money equaled power. At the time of his and Kat’s breakup, Matt had neither.
A lot has changed, asshole.
His heart became heavy as he thought of Kat. Once again, the woman had turned his world on its axis, changing more than he was ready to admit.
On his way to the city, Matt had called Gabe and asked if he could stop by his place. His team leader was a few years older and seemed to always have a good, solid head on his shoulders.
Hopefully, the former SEAL would have some sort of wisdom to bestow upon him. A piece of advice on how to handle a situation like this.
After laying the whole shit show of a mess out for his friend, Gabe hadn’t said a word. He’d simply stood and vanished into his kitchen, leaving Matt alone to wonder what the other man was thinking.
“Here.” Gabe walked back into the room carrying two long necks of the man’s favorite beer. “Thought maybe you could use one of these.”
Or twenty.“Thanks,” Matt mumbled as he took the offered bottle.
“So.” Gabe took a swig. “What are you gonna do?”
His shoulders bounced with a loud scoff. “Fuck if I know.” The cold beer soothed his dry throat as he swallowed a large gulp of his own. “All this time, I thought Katherine broke things off because I wasn’t good enough for her. Wasn’t rich enough.” He took another drink before admitting, “I’ve slept my way through half the women in Texas because the idea of actually caring about someone again…”
“Scared the shit out of you?” the inciteful bastard guessed.
He sighed, “Yeah.”
Matt had also thought if he had enough meaningless sex, he’d eventually forget about her.
How’d that work out for you, dickhead?
“I get it,” Gabe nodded. “You were burned once. Only natural to steer clear of any flames after that.”
Something about the way he said it made Matt wonder about the big guy’s past. “You ever been in love?”
