The energy shifts suddenly. Matt’s brows furrow, his gaze dropping to the table, lost in thought. The few minutes of normal we just had evaporate, replaced by the same stiffness I felt earlier. Theweirdness.
I lean forward. “Hey… is something wrong?”
“Other than the fact that my cousin just died and my godson’s stuck with the Wicked Witch of the West when he should be with me?” He frowns, then takes another sip of his drink, bigger this time, setting the glass down with a soft gasp. He licks his lips, eyes fixed on the wine. “You talk to that guy this week?”
“Who? Alexander?”
His eyes lift to mine. “Yeah.”
“A few texts.”
“Oh.”
Oh my God. This is brutal.
The week has clearly taken a toll, and if sitting through an awkward dinner with Matt is what he needs right now, I’ll roll with it.
But holy shit.
The chitchat continues. He asks about my family. I ask about his friends here, and by the time our food arrives, I’m ready to pull my hair out. Not because I can’t talk about normal stuff with Matt, but because he so clearly needs to talk about something andwon’t.
I stab into my salad, but Matt just sits there, hand wrapped around his wine glass, staring at…
I follow his line of vision.The candle?
He doesn’t look up. Doesn’t acknowledge his steak. Just… stares.
I take a bite and chew slowly, watching him.
Finally, he lifts his glass, drains the rest of his wine, and sets it down a little too hard before shifting his gaze to me.
“I have to tell you something. Or… I have something to ask you.”
Relief pours through me.Thank God. Finally.
“I’m all ears,” I say.
There’s a beat of silence. Then, “Uh…” He huffs out a laugh. “Fuck. I don’t know how to say this.”
Jesus Christ.
“Matt,” I shake my head. “Whatever it is, you can tell me. You know you can tell me anything.”
He lets out a crazed chuckle. “You wouldn’t say that if you knew what I was about to say.”
“Oh my God,” I groan. “Just say it.”
He tips his head back, drags both hands over his face, and mutters, “Christ.”
I press my lips together, holding his gaze. Waiting.
“I, uh…” He swallows. “I sort of told my lawyer I was getting married.”
My jaw drops.
“Like in the next month,” he adds quickly. “It’ll apparently help my case. Gives me a better chance of getting custody of Cole.”
The words bounce around in my brain as I try to make sense of them.
