“I’d say it’s probably the number-one choice. But what if we played around with some different toppings?”
With a shrug, he replied, “I know I’m not up on the latest food trends, but even I know gourmet pizza isn’t that big of a deal. People put all kinds of crap on as toppings. I don’t think you’ll get a big response from something like that.”
Hmmm… He had a point. “Okay, then maybe we don’t go for the obvious. Maybe we play around with snacks and appetizers, things we can make look fun to prepare and eat. What do you think?”
“So now we’re just snacking?”
“Matt…”
“So I still have to eat sad sandwiches to tide me over until we can create snacks. Is that what you’re saying?”
She rolled her eyes and laughed. “You are seriously all about your stomach!”
“A man can’t live on snacks alone,” he countered playfully.
“I’ll tell you what, we’ll work on this concept and I promise you one solid meal a day. How does that sound?”
His grin was broad and made her tingle all over. “Sweetheart, I think this sounds like the beginning of a beautiful arrangement.”
Yeah. That’s what she was afraid of.
Chapter 5
Matt had to admit this arrangement with Vivienne was damn near perfect. She might have originally agreed to one meal, but he’d managed to get two every day. Sometimes the meal she was preparing was for lunch and he’d just hang around talking about it and how she would present it on the blog until it was time for dinner. And she always took pity on him and invited him to stay for whatever she was making.
When her featured meal was for dinner, he pretended he’d forgotten and would show up at lunchtime and play on her sympathies. So far she hadn’t called him out on it and he took it as a good sign. Plus, he was beginning to see she was becoming a lot more relaxed around him.
They still hadn’t addressed the one topic he really wanted to—the kiss—but he was trying to earn her trust first.
Knocking lightly on her door, he let himself in. “Viv?”
“In my office,” she called out.
Last night she had mentioned needing to get some editorial work done this morning, but he knew she was an early riser, and since it was nearing lunchtime, he was hoping she’d be ready for a break.
He stepped into her office and stopped. Her long hair was piled in a messy knot on top of her head, and she had on glasses and looked like she was still in her pajamas—an oversized T-shirt and flannel pants.
And she was breathtaking.
Vivienne looked up at him and smiled. “You’re up early.”
“It’s almost noon,” he replied with a grin.
She looked at him in confusion and then looked at her computer screen. “Oh! Wow, I completely lost track of time!” Standing up, she stretched.
“Did you get all of your work done?”
“Just about,” she said, coming out from behind the desk. “I just need to send out the schedule to my bloggers, and then we should be good through the end of next week.”
Matt stepped aside as she walked by, heading toward the kitchen. He quickly followed and found her pouring herself a glass of juice. “You want some?” she asked.
“No. I’m good.” He watched her for a minute, finding her more and more intriguing by the minute.
When she noticed him watching her, she froze. “What?”
How could he possibly explain to her what he was seeing? He’d rarely been around a woman who was just so completely at ease in everything she did. She wasn’t fussy or obsessed about how she looked or what she was wearing, and it was like a foreign concept to him. In the past five years or so, ever since they’d hit it big, most of the women he’d come in contact with were self-conscious and more than a little self-absorbed. But not Vivienne.
“I’m just standing here thinking that you are an incredible woman,” he said honestly and noticed that she blushed.
She looked like she was going to say something but then didn’t. She simply finished her drink and moved around the kitchen, putting the juice back in the refrigerator and the glass in the dishwasher. When she had nothing else to do, she turned and looked at him.
“It’s true,” he said, his voice a little gruff. “You’re amazing. I look around and it’s like there’s nothing you can’t do.”
“That’s not true,” she protested softly.
“Not from where I’m standing. I saw the way you put this place together not so long ago and now look at it—it could be featured in one of those home decor magazines. You cook these amazing meals, you’re an assistant editor of a popular online magazine, and on top of that, you’re beautiful.”
Vivienne’s eyes went wide at his admission. “Matt…”
He stepped in close and noticed his hand shake as he reached up to caress her cheek. “You are.” Her eyes slowly drifted closed as he touched her. “When I walked in, I was just… It’s staggering to me how beautiful you are.”
She reached up and held his hand against her cheek, her dark eyes opening and meeting his gaze.
Words simply escaped him. Looking at her face, staring into her eyes, felt more powerful to Matt than anything else he could possibly say. He already knew he was attracted to Vivienne—he had been from the first time he saw her the night she’d shown up at Aaron’s for dinner. Hell, thinking back to the night she’d shown up backstage after the concert, he remembered how he’d thought she was his every fantasy come to life. But standing here and touching her now? It confirmed it all and Matt had no idea what to do about it.
Kiss her.
Yeah, that was the main thing screaming in his mind right now. To lower his head and claim her lips like he’d been dying to do all along would be his first choice, but unfortunately, he needed to think with his brain and not his—
“Matt.” Slowly, Vivienne lowered her hand from his and took a step back. Clearing her throat, she turned her head and looked back toward the kitchen. “Um…I was just planning on making some tuna for lunch. I need to grab a shower and go food shopping, so I can stock the pantry for the week and get some last-minute ingredients for tonight’s meal. So…why don’t you come back in about a half an hour? I’ll be showered by then and we can have lunch. Is that all right?”
She was nervous and rambling, and it made Matt smile. He could tease her or push her to acknowledge there was something simmering between them, but he was willing to wait it out. When the time came, he wanted Vivienne to be comfortable enough with him to admit it without him prompting her.
With a deep breath, he forced himself to smile and take his own step back. “That sounds good. I’m going to give Mick a call and see how things are going with Dylan.”
“I thought you talked to Riley about that the other night. Do you think anything’s changed?”
He shrugged. “He was arraigned and released on bail. Now they’re looking into rehab facilities. I’m just curious where it’s all at and to see if Dylan’s all right. He hasn’t been willing to talk to any of us, but I’m sure that didn’t include Mick.”
“How come?”
Matt let out a low chuckle. “Mick is a force of nature. You don’t say no to him, and if you do, he finds a way to make you do what he wants anyway.” He shook his head. “It’s not always a bad thing. We may not like it at the time, but the man has a serious gift about knowing what we need even before we do.”
“Yeah, right,” she mumbled.
That’s when it hit him—Vivienne had had her own run-in with Mick that night two years ago and it didn’t go well. It would have been easy to simply pretend he hadn’t heard her comment, but maybe it was the perfect segue. “He had no idea who you were that night, Viv. And while I’m definitely not condoning the way he handled things, I’m just as much to blame.”
She almost looked shock
ed at his statement.
Matt took a cautious step toward her. “I should have stopped him. I should have reacted faster. In my defense, I was kind of messed up.” Then he realized how pathetic he sounded. “I knew what I was doing with you, Vivienne. Don’t ever doubt that. But when Mick barged in, I feel like everything happened so fast, and at the same time, I felt like I was walking in quicksand. Does that make sense?”
“It does,” she said, nodding. “I hated the way it all happened. I was scared and embarrassed, and…I never told anyone about it.”
His eyes went wide. “No one?”
“No one.”
“I wanted to go after you—at the very least I was going to call Aaron and see if you were all right—but Mick kept me distracted, and by the next day, I started questioning if it had even happened at all, if you had really been there or if I’d imagined it.”
Looking down at the floor, she nodded. “I don’t even know what I was thinking, going there like that.”
Closing the distance between them, he tucked a finger under her chin and gently guided her to look up at him. “I was glad you did. Seeing you…kissing you—it was amazing.”
She let out a mirthless laugh. “Right. That’s why you remembered it so well.”
He immediately dropped his hand. “You have to know I was pretty much at my lowest when you saw me—with my partying and drinking. I started counseling a week later and other than an occasional beer or glass of wine, I don’t drink anymore. I know it’s not an excuse, and it doesn’t make me look good, but there it is.”
“I’m glad you got help, Matt. I really am. It’s just…” She paused and sighed loudly. “It’s really kind of humiliating to know I did that—which is so completely out of character for me—and then you didn’t even remember it. I thought I was okay with it, that I was over it, and then you showed up here, and it brought it all back. Only…I couldn’t say anything. First, because of Aaron, and second because…well…what was the point?” She shrugged.
“I am so sorry, Vivienne. Believe me, if I could, I would change everything about that night. I would have…locked the door. Or stood up to Mick and taken you with me. Hell, there are probably a dozen things I’d do differently, but I can’t. The only thing I can do is apologize and hope we can move on from it.” Frustration had his voice rising and with a sound of disgust, he stepped away and raked a hand through his hair. “I honestly don’t know what else to say.”
Vivienne studied him for a long time before letting out a loud, shaky breath of her own. “When you go back to Aaron’s, can you see if he has any mayo? I’m running a little low.” And then she turned and walked out of the room and Matt heard her footsteps going up the stairs. He stood rooted to the spot until he heard her bedroom door close.
With a muttered curse, he did the only thing he could do—went back across the yard into Aaron’s house, and waited.
* * *
Standing under the hot spray, Vivienne had to keep reminding herself to breathe. Not only had Matt finally acknowledged their kiss, but he’d even gone so far as to apologize. For everything. She had sworn all along that it was what she was waiting for, what she needed so she could have some form of closure, but now that she did, it didn’t feel nearly as satisfying.
What would have happened if Matt had locked the door and his manager hadn’t gotten in? What if they hadn’t been interrupted? What if she hadn’t been physically escorted out of the building?
She shook her head—it was too late for all of those what-ifs. What was the point anyway? There was no way to go back and change anything, no matter how badly she wanted to. But oh…if she could. A long sigh came out before she could stop it, and she let her head fall back as the hot water cascaded over her. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind she would have let Matt do whatever he wanted to with her that night.
Hell, she was just about ready to let him do whatever it was he wanted with her now.
“This is crazy,” she murmured, forcing herself to focus on the shower. Grabbing her shampoo, she quickly washed her hair and applied conditioner. Taking another look around her large shower, she grabbed the bottle of body wash and lathered up from head to toe before rinsing and shutting off the water.
This bathroom was like her own mini-retreat, and she had done a ton of upgrades to make it that way—heated floors, heated towel racks—and at times like this, she appreciated those upgrades all the more. Wrapping herself in a towel, she made fast work of drying off and applying moisturizer everywhere before stepping into her bedroom to get dressed.
Jeans and a soft, jade-colored sweater were what she had already been planning on wearing. With or without having lunch with Matt, she was going out to go shopping and she felt it was important to put in at least a small effort to look put together. Not that she was one of those women who obsessed about her hair and makeup or wardrobe, but it was still important to Vivienne that she look nice.
Once dressed, she applied minimal makeup and pulled out the blow-dryer to get the bulk of the dampness out of her hair. With it being so long, it was a lengthy task. But today she was just going to let it go with as little fuss as possible and was thankful for its natural curl.
Looking at the clock, Vivienne knew Matt would be back any minute and she wanted to be downstairs when he arrived. She needed to be busy, to at least give the appearance of being busy, so she didn’t do anything stupid like reaching out and touching him again. God, it had felt so good to have his hand caressing her cheek earlier. He had great hands.
“Oh sure, there’s a way to stay focused on not touching him,” she mumbled as she walked down the stairs. “Keep imagining his hands on you. Perfect.”
Walking with purpose, she immediately went into the kitchen and sprang into action. Grabbing the tuna from the pantry, she quickly opened the cans and emptied them out into a strainer to drain. Next she grabbed some celery from the crisper and began chopping it. Normally she enjoyed a little onion in her tuna salad but opted against it this once. There was a fresh loaf of multigrain bread in her bread box she knew would be perfect for their sandwiches once it was toasted, and she grabbed it and cut several thick slices from it.
Right on time, Matt knocked on the door and walked in. Honestly, she wasn’t even sure why he bothered knocking—he never waited for her to ask him in or even open the door herself.
“Aaron did have mayo, and I also brought over some chips. I know it’s probably not something you’d pair with one of your sandwiches, but it’s a personal favorite of mine.”
She laughed and felt some of the tension leave her body. “I think it’s perfect. It’s been a long time since I had chips on the side.” Glancing toward her refrigerator, she added, “Do me a favor and look in there and see if I have any pickles. We’ll make these plates up like you would find in a traditional deli or diner.”
“Yes!” Matt walked over and claimed victory as he lifted the glass jar over his head. “Although, if you didn’t have any, I know Aaron does. I just saw them over there.”
“Yes, but mine are going to be better,” she teased.
Matt laughed with her and put the jar down on the counter. “Why? Because you buy better quality foods than your non-cooking bachelor brother?”
She smiled and winked. “Exactly.”
“Maybe you should take pity on him and teach him how to do all of this.”
“Are you kidding? And give away all my secrets?” she cried, feigning offense. “It’s bad enough that you’re getting to peek behind the curtain. I can’t let everyone know how it’s done.”
Reaching over, Matt grabbed one of the unchopped celery stalks and took a bite out of it. “Don’t worry. Your secrets are safe with me.”
“Thank you.”
They worked together to finish putting the sandwiches together, Matt toasting the bread while Vivienne seasoned and mixed the tuna. Within minutes, they were s
eated at the table and eating. Vivienne carefully considered her next words.
“So…would you like to come food shopping with me?”
Matt immediately choked on his food and began to cough. Vivienne reached over, patting his back until he was okay.
“You said you were free to go back to your regular life,” she said nervously, even though she was going for light and breezy. “I know food shopping isn’t something you would do in your normal life—you know, pre-Broadway—but it might be a nice way to ease yourself back out into the public eye.”
He shook his head. “No.”
“Why not?” She was seriously perplexed. To her, it was the perfect plan. He’d be able to get out for a little bit without it being a major media event.
“I…I’m just not ready.”
Vivienne put her sandwich down and stared at him. “Matt, I’m asking you to go to the grocery store, not a red-carpet event.”
Meanwhile, he continued to eat as if she hadn’t spoken a word.
“You can put on a baseball hat and glasses. If you try, I’m sure no one will even recognize you.”
“Not gonna happen, Viv,” he said around a mouthful of chips.
It was beyond frustrating, but she just wasn’t sure what she could say to convince him to go. Rather than argue, she decided to let it go and change the subject. “Did you talk to Mick?”
Matt looked over at her with surprise, no doubt wondering why she let the argument go so quickly. Slowly, he nodded. “I did.”
“And?”
He took a long drink from the can of soda he had brought over with him before responding. “Well, for starters, Dylan’s in rehab.”
“I thought that was a given.”
Matt shook his head. “It was what was going to happen eventually, but there was a possibility of it taking some time to get him there.”
“What changed?”
“I figured it was just Mick putting his foot down like he normally does, but he said Dylan didn’t put up a fight at all. They found him a facility that is known to cater to celebrities—”
One More Kiss Page 12
