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That was exactly what Matthew was afraid of. Winnie would be on her best behavior, and he’d look like a child again. “No, don’t.”

“Why not?” she asked with an accusatory brow. “You’ve met her.”

“Yeah, and I regret it very much.”

“Well, I highly doubt I will. She’s not challenging my existence at Foxwood.” She gave a haughty little smile, clearly proud of her teasing, then stood.

Matthew groaned, standing too. Winnie was still sitting on the bench, typing out something on her phone.

Was she pretending to be busy? She hadn’t looked back at him since their eyes had met a few minutes before.

Not that she ought to have. But still, after their touch yesterday, he could’ve sworn he’d seen something in her gray eyes—a level of attraction, perhaps? Whatever it was, it hardly mattered to him. He doubted it had even been real. Women like her never went for guys like him, and he was glad of it.

Wait, where had Char gone? He glanced around him, finally spotting his sister walking across the grass to her girls.

“I’ll be just over there,” she told them, pointing to Winnie on the bench.

The girls nodded, still kicking the football as Char made directly for Winnie.

“Char, wait,” Matthew said softly, trying to catch up to her.

She looked at him over her shoulder. “What?”

He tried to think of what to say. “Just…You don’t want to speak with her.”

She stopped, propping her hands on her hips. “Why not?”

“Because…she’ll be mean to you.” That had to be his weakest argument ever.

“Why, because she was mean to you?”

“Well, yeah.”

She narrowed her eyes. “And were you mean to her?”

He opened his mouth, but no words left it. Worthless brain.

“Just as I suspected,” she said, then she turned around again and headed toward Winnie. “You can join me if you want,” she called over her shoulder. “Or you can cower over here with the other little girls.”

Matthew stopped, glancing between his nieces and Char, who was fast approaching Winnie.

He gritted his teeth. He’d much rather be spending time with Char’s girls, but then, what would be said about him between his sister and the consultant who clearly didn’t like him?

Well, that decided it.

With a heavy sigh, he picked up his pace, reaching Char’s side the moment they stood before Winnie.

The consultant looked up with a pleasant expression, clearly distracted by whatever she’d been doing on her phone, then surprise lit across her features as her eyes shifted from Char to Matthew.

“Hi,” Char said with a cheery smile. She was far too bright to be meeting this woman today.

“Hey,” Winnie responded with uncertainty, turning off her phone and standing to face them.

She glanced to Matthew—for an explanation or for reassurance, he wasn’t sure. Well, she wouldn’t be getting either from him. He remained silent behind Char, a watchful eye on Winnie.

“Sorry if this is weird,” his sister said. “I’m Char Wintour. Matthew’s my brother.”

For a split second, Winnie stared, her lips parting and eyes lingering on Char. Then a genuine smile stretched across her lips, no doubt to make a good impression. She’d done that with Matthew, too, before she’d opened her mouth and revealed what kind of viper she was, criticizing his home and festival.