She thought for a moment. “So how did you two end things?”
“I made sure he knew it was in his best interest to never even think of hurting you like that again. And if he did, it wouldn’t end well for him.” Matt shrugged again. “He swore he wouldn’t.”
Kat was stunned. “Do you think he was telling the truth?”
“Honestly?” Matt looked back at her. “Believe it or not, I do. I think in his own, twisted way your father thought he was doing what was best for you.”
“He was wrong.”
Matt’s jaw muscle bulged. “Fuck yeah, he was.”
Kat looked back up at Matt. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“Everything. For believing me when I finally told you what happened. For standing up for me…for us…with my father.” Kat slid up his body and took his mouth in hers. “And for still loving me, after all this time.”
He caressed her cheek with his thumb. “Lord knows, I tried not to.” His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down with an audible swallow.
The look in his eyes was beginning to scare her. “What is it?”
“If we’re really going to do this, we need to start fresh. Lay it all out on the table, so to speak.”
“O-okay.” Nervous butterflies began to swirl around in the pit of her stomach.
“After we split, I swore I’d never allow myself to get that close to anyone ever again. And I didn’t, but…”
His voice trailed off, his rugged face frowning with indecision.
“Matt, you’re starting to scare me. Just spit out whatever it is you’re trying to say.”
He filled his lungs to the brim before releasing the air with a single, loud exhale. “Okay, so here’s the thing. I’ve been with a lot of women these past ten years. It’s not something I’m proud of, but I thought you needed to know. I don’t want any secrets between us from here on out. None.”
“Okay.” Kat breathed the word.
That pit in her stomach was suddenly chalked full of those damn butterflies. Though it shouldn’t have been.
It was only natural for a healthy, grown man—especially one as sexy and desirable as Matt—to have an active sex life. He’d been single for a long time, and until now, had no way of knowing why she’d ended their prior relationship. As much as the thought made her physically ill, he’d been free to sleep with whomever he wanted, as many times as he wanted.
But there was still one thing she needed to know.
“Did you love any of them?”
“No.” His answer was so immediate, it was like a hand swatting the fluttering creatures away. “It was just sex. No strings, no commitment. They knew where my head was going in and they all felt the exact same way. I think.” He licked his lips. “I think somewhere inside my subconscious I thought I could, I don’t know…”
“Fuck me out of your system?”
His eyes widened a bit with surprise. “I wasn’t going to put it like that, but yeah. I think that’s exactly what I was trying to do.”
“I’m glad it didn’t work.”
Matt smiled. “Me, too.”
He started to lean in, but she put a hand on his chest to stop him. “In the spirit of honesty, you should know I haven’t been with anyone else but you.”
“I know.” His eyes darkened with a mixture of pride and desire.
“How could you possibly know that?”
