When I popped up behind the counter, I froze.
Matthew Wright stood there in a pair of board shorts and a white tank top.
I blinked a couple of times.
Slowly, his lips curved into a mischievous half-smile. “I didn’t think I would stun you speechless,” he said.
“You’re here.” My brow furrowed. “Why are you here? When did you get here? What’s going on?” I felt like I’d been punched in the gut. I hadn’t expected to see him for another couple of years at least. Even after our night together. I thought things would return to normal. But even as I thought it, I knew it was a lie.
He chuckled and I found myself smiling. “Wow. I really caught you off guard on this one.”
I clipped the counter with my hip, I was moving so fast. “Ow!” I didn’t slow down though. I jumped into his arms and hugged him tight. He twirled me around and set me back down.
“I’m sorry I left like such a jerk,” I said.
“It’s okay. It was a lot to deal with. But I needed to get away. My family was going to keep bugging me until they were sure I was okay. I wasn’t sure if or when I was going to be okay. I know you always offered but I hope you don’t mind me coming unannounced.”
I waved him off. “Don’t be silly. I’m thrilled you’re here. I have to work today but you’re welcome to hang out on the beach, or you could come on our run at one. See the sharks.” Was Matt really here? And why did it feel right and not awkward?
“That sounds great. Can I park my bag somewhere?”
“Give it here.” I tucked it under the counter, out of the way and out of sight.
Bryssa came in, hauling a cooler she was going to pack up for our run.
“Bryssa, come here and meet my good friend. My best friend.”
She set the cooler down and headed over. She eyed Matt curiously. I could tell she was surveying him. “Bryssa, this is Matt Wright. Matt, this is my dear friend and partner, Bryssa.”
Matt held out his hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Bryssa.”
She didn’t reach out to shake his hand right away. I bumped her with my elbow. “Give me a moment, chiquita. I am giving him a look over.” She shook his hand. “You are expected?”
“I’m not,” he replied.
“I didn’t think so. You’re here to help our Hayley with her man problems?”
Matt’s brow rose and his half-smile returned… mischievous as always. “Man problems?”
I glared. “I don’t have man problems.” I didn’t want to have another go-round with her about me and my man troubles.
Bryssa muttered something in Spanish. I’d picked up on a few phrases and could get by if they weren’t speaking too fast but Bryssa always went a million miles an hour. She kept promising to teach me more, but I think she liked being able to talk about me right in front of me. “She got proposed to…again.”
“Bryssa!”
Matt’s smile faded. “Proposed to? Again? Hayles, is she talking about the latest one or have you been proposed to since you left me?”
“It feels like it’s every other week,” Bryssa said exasperatedly.
I shot her another glare. “Brys, I’m going to leave you to run this shop all by yourself if you don’t shut up.”
“You keep threatening and I’m waiting to bring Hector in. He is a better diver than you and much better with the customers,” Bryssa replied.
“Bryssa, you and I are going to have to talk more often,” Matt said.
My heart rammed against my chest like it was looking for an escape route. “The two of you are forbidden to talk. Brys, I’m going to take him to get tacos. I’m starving. You want anything?”
“A new partner,” she muttered.
I grabbed Matt’s wrist and pulled him with me. “Come on, Matthew.” Once we were clear of the shop, I quickly released him and put a couple of feet between us. I was acting way too casual. Or maybe not casual enough. It didn’t feel weird being with him, but I was definitely uncomfortable. I didn’t know what I should be doing. Punching him in the arm or kissing him?
“How long do I have you?” I asked.
There was a long pause before he answered. “Until I’m ready to go back to my life and work.”
I didn’t dare look at him. “Vague. I dig it. All right. I’ll take what I can get.” We headed across the hot sand to the small shack. “This place looks like a dive but it has the best tacos ever.”
“You do have pretty good taste, so I’ll trust you.”
I glanced over at him, my nerves making me a little jittery. “Did you want to get a hotel room or are you good with slumming with me?” Though I wasn’t sure him staying with me was the best idea, I had to offer, right? What I hated was the deep desire for him to want to stay with me.
“I think I can slum it for a few days.” He winked at me. “If you’ll have me.”
“I’ve got an awesome pullout couch for just such an occasion.” I took a step back and gave him an appraisal. I hadn’t gotten to really focus on him when I’d been in L.A., but now that he was here, and wearing a skin-tight tank top, I was going to look my fill. It always struck me how handsome he was. I didn’t remember that when he wasn’t around. But seeing him now, the last five years had been good to him. He’d filled out. He was broad and muscular. He had a square jaw and beautiful blue eyes. It wasn’t hard to understand why he always had a gaggle of women around him. “You look good.”
Matt’s eyes dipped down to my bare feet and slowly wandered their way up my legs, torso, and I didn’t miss the lingering gaze on my breasts holstered in a bikini top. Finally, he made his way back up to my face. “You too, Hayles. Mexico does your body good.”
I rolled my eyes. “That’s a terrible line. And as my friend, you should come up with a better one.”
He chuckled but I caught the flare in his eyes when I said the “f” word. “You’re always so high maintenance.”
I stuck my tongue out at him.
Once tacos were ordered and in hand, we headed to one of the small tables under an umbrella on the veranda.
“Tell me about this proposal…all the proposals. We never did talk about it in L.A.”
I rolled my eyes. “We really don’t need to talk about it. I said no and we stopped seeing each other.”
“I would tell you if I was ready to propose to someone. Or the even less likely, if someone proposed to me.”
“First of all, he proposed to me. Meaning, the relationship was a lot more serious for him than it was for me. I’m not marrying Spencer. Spencer, who has been a trust fund baby since birth. He’s twenty-five. He sails around the world on a boat with a small crew that does all his bidding. This guy has never had to work a day in his life. I would want for nothing, except, I’m not a trophy wife. I’m eight years older than he is. And I know what hard work is. I’d want to kill him after a week. I’d been seeing him for two months because it was once a week, where we don’t do a whole lot of talking. He’s not in love with me. He’s in love with the idea of being in a relationship as easy as it is with me, and it’s not, because he and I were not in a relationship. We were barely dating. It was sex with some hang time.”
He kept his eyes on me like he was gauging my responses or something. “I should’ve known. You’ve never been into relationships. Okay, so that’s the latest. What about these other proposals?”
“It’s the same story every time. The guy thinks we’re something more than we are. It’s really nothing to talk about.”
Matt’s eyes narrowed. “Hayles, come on. You haven’t been into any of these guys?”
While I usually loved that no matter how much time Matt and I had been apart, we always picked up like no time had passed at all, this was frustrating. Our conversations usually weren’t so narrowly focused on me. They were us just shooting the shit. Not psychoanalyzing me.
It bothered me that he was asking about these guys who couldn’t possibly compare to someone like him. Did he want me to settle down with
Spencer? Was he here to help me fall in love with another guy so he could get out of our one-night stand he probably felt guilty about?
“You just got here. Can we please talk about something more interesting than my non-existent love life?”
“Come on, Hayles, what else do we have to talk about? I haven’t been out on a date in six months. And sports are off the table for discussion.”
I flinched and quickly tried to think of some other subject. “We could talk about movies.”
“Boring. Come on. Dish.”
“What, are we girlfriends now?” I nudged his elbow.
A storm clouded over his blue eyes. “Definitely not.” And now I felt like he was mad at me. What was going on? Why was Matt really here?
“There’s nothing to dish. I meet a guy. We hang out. We do other stuff. And then suddenly he’s ready for commitment about the time I’m ready to move on. I don’t get what I’m doing wrong. Guys usually love to have a girl who doesn’t want any strings. Bryssa thinks I’m the problem, that I’m picking imbeciles.”
“Sounds like you are.”
I sighed. I was quickly losing my appetite for the awesome tacos in front of me. I watched Matt put two away in about five bites. “I’m not interested in getting married. I’m not interested in relying on anyone but myself.”
Matt set his half-eaten taco down. “You had a crappy childhood with parents who set a crappy example. But look at my parents. Marriage can be really awesome and rewarding.”
“Oh? Is that why you’re married?”
“Touché. I will say, though, I’m thinking about things differently. After…my priorities are getting an adjustment.”
“You thinking about tying the knot?” My appetite was completely gone now. I leaned back in my chair and picked at the cabbage.
“I don’t know. If I found the right woman.”
I glanced up to find his eyes boring into me. I swallowed the desert of sand in my throat. “How is that an adjustment? You’ve always said that.”
“Because I feel like it’s time to stop thinking about it and maybe find her.”
“And what does this dream girl look like, Matthew?” I didn’t want to hear the answer. At sixteen, I was sure Matt was the guy of my dreams. And maybe in another life, he would’ve been. He was a good guy. Probably the best guy. He’d always been there for me. He knew my deepest, darkest secrets. Except that I’d had a thing for him once upon a time. A teen crush. But now, things were different. I was different. I didn’t believe in love and happily ever after. But that didn’t mean I wanted to watch him find the perfect woman. She would never approve of me or our friendship. With a wife and eventually kids, Matt would have better things to do than come hang out with me.
Falling into bed with him was the singular biggest mistake I’d ever made. He was talking about men for me and women for him. Clearly, he was ready to move on with this life. God, I was such an idiot.
“I don’t know. Sports and athletes have always been my focus. And there have been a few women here and there. But no one I’ve ever wanted to bring home to meet the family. I think the only family members who have met a girl I was dating are Zane, Chuck, and Rick.”
“Isabis has. She didn’t approve.” Whoa, that was a memory from long since passed.
Matt’s eyes narrowed. “Wait, what?”
“It was my college graduation. You flew me out for a couple of weeks that summer. You’d been seeing some chick you told me nothing about. And Isabis told me that she didn’t like the girl and she hoped after spending time with me, you wouldn’t see the girl again. Not sure what I had to do with anything…but Isabis was not impressed.”
“College graduation? Oh yeah, Corrine Summers.”
My smile dropped. “Summers? You should totally marry her. Your mom’s maiden name is Winters. It’s poetic.”
Matt shook his head. “No. Corrine was an idiot. And come to think of it, we did break up right after you left.”
Damn. I was about to take a bite of my taco. “Really? Why?”
“Idiot. And I had bigger fish to fry. Shortly after that, I met Derrick.”
And now all the air was being sucked out of the room. I could see it on his face. He cast his eyes down and stared at the remainder of his tacos.
“Matt...” I reached across the table for his hand.
He pulled his hand away before I could touch him. I tried not to feel rejected, but it hurt. “I can’t.” His deep, baritone voice was husky.
“Looks like Isabis has an idea of who you should be with. You should talk to her about your love life,” I said, readjusting the conversation to help him out of the darkness that fell around him like a vise.
“Isabis? She’s more anti-love than you are.”
“For herself, maybe. But I can tell she likes to see her family happy.”
“Did I tell you Chuck is getting married?” he said.
My eyes widened. “Dude, I spent a week with you. You’re just now telling me this? To who? And how is he the first Wright to get married?”
“Her name is Aubrey. She’s an architect. I like her a lot. The whole family does. They met on her honeymoon.”
“What?”
“She was on her honeymoon alone. Her fiancée cheated on her the night before her wedding. Pretty horrible but to my brother’s benefit. She’s a good addition to the family.”
“Wow. That’s pretty great. When is the wedding?”
“Next year. I imagine they’ll probably spit out a kid or two not too long after,” he said. “Bex is dying to be an aunt.”
“Bex likes to think she’s a badass but she’s like your mother. She takes in strays too. And she wants to love on everyone.”
Matt chuckled. “Bex keeps getting in trouble for breaking curfew at school because she’s going to lounges and bars to sing. And Rachel is going to be a doctor, I’m sure of it. Raph is completely lost in high school drama with his on-again, off-again girlfriend but he’s one hell of an athlete. I can’t believe they’re going to be in college soon. It makes me feel very old.”
“Yeah, your mom was barely pregnant with them when you guys left LA.” Memories of another time flickered through my mind like an old reel of home videos.
7
Matt
Our first goodbye was the summer my family moved to Aspen.
“This sucks,” I muttered under my breath as I pretended to help box up the den.
“Matthew, I am perfectly aware of just what you think of this move. But Los Angeles is not home anymore. I promise you will get to see your friends. This is not goodbye forever.” Mom handed me another framed movie poster off the wall, and I wrapped it quickly, just wanting to get this over with so I could go sulk.
I rolled my eyes. As the oldest, I told everyone else to be on their best behavior, but I was not subject to my own instructions. I hated the move. I thought it was a personal affront to my life, never mind anyone else’s.
“Mom, you don’t get it. I’m leaving everything I’ve ever known.”
“You’re right. I don’t get it. But why don’t you talk to your father? He left his country. We’re going a few states away.”
“Colorado is practically a whole new country. There’s no ocean, no surfing. What are we going to do in some small town?”
Mom put her hands on her hips. “Young man, there is no need to take that tone with me. This is what is best for the family. When you’re eighteen, you can do whatever you want. Until then, you’re just going to have to suffer. It’ll build character.”
“Fine. Whatever.” I stormed out of the room.
I didn’t stop. I headed out of the house, across the yard, and then I was climbing the tree that led to Hayley’s window. Once I was perched on the roof outside her loft room, I tapped on the glass.
Hayley appeared, lifting the windowpane. “You’re here.” She flashed me a toothy grin, her braces giving her an adorably geeky look. She stepped back so I could crawl through.
I land
ed on her floor in a heap. I’d grown a lot since the first time I crawled through her bedroom window. It wasn’t as smooth now that I was over six feet tall.
Hayley was dressed for bed, wearing shorts and a tank top. There was definitely no bra. Her nipples were perky and her breasts jiggled as she moved about. They were hypnotic. I made myself look away from her and get up off the floor. I sat next to her on the bed.
“We’re leaving tomorrow,” I grumbled.
Hayley put her hand on mine and I turned my hand under hers so we could thread our fingers together. Sitting there with her, I knew I would never feel so complete. I looked over at Hayley, her big brown eyes already highlighted with a glossy sheen as if she might cry. Her full lips parted like she wanted to say something. For a moment, I was transfixed by her perfect mouth.
“Matthew,” she murmured. She leaned forward and kissed me. It was gentle and fleeting. I remember leaning in because I’d wanted a real taste. But a knock at her door startled both of us and I jumped into her closet.
After her mother’s invasion, we sat and talked the rest of the night. Before dawn, I hugged her and snuck back out her window. I wanted to kiss her again, but the magic of that moment was gone.
“Matt,” she whispered loudly down at me once I reached the ground.
I looked up and found her cleavage overflowing her tank top as she leaned down.
“What?”
“Don’t forget about me.”
“Hayles, even with a brain transplant, I could never forget you.”
I heard her giggle and she disappeared from the window.
I headed home and I went to Aspen without another word.
But another goodbye always seemed to be lurking around the corner for me and Hayles.
I was staring. Like an idiot. I’d forgotten about the kiss until this moment. Looking intently at her, regurgitating old memories, the kiss never felt real until now. I remembered everything about that night in vivid detail. She smelled like lilacs. Her hair was pulled into a messy ponytail. Her skin was silky smooth, and I couldn’t stop staring at her braless boobs. And now, sitting across the table from her, she was gorgeous. Like a veil pulled off my vision, I saw Hayley for the woman she’d grown into. She was strong, independent, and beautiful. And her breasts were now slung into a bikini top and far more distracting than they’d ever been.
Seducing My Best Friend (The Wrights Book 2) Page 5
