And won.
Chapter 15
Katella had no idea why it was so important that she win Negan away from his ex. All she knew was that Negan wanted absolutely nothing to do with her. He seemed to be pissed at the fact that she was here in the first place and when he saw she was bidding on him, Katella could clearly see on his face that he would rather have anyone else bid on him than her.
Even Katella.
She wound up spending five thousand, which, to be honest, she thought was a little steep, considering he had a lousy personality. But there was something liberating about hearing Seraphina pound the gavel on the podium, indicating that Katella was the victor.
She could feel the glare from Negan’s ex all the way across the room, but Katella ignored her. Instead, her eyes were focused on Negan, on the relieved sag of his shoulders when he realized Katella had won. She owed him, after what he had done for her when Matt said he had a girlfriend. She refused to let this strange woman intimidate her. She stood up with all the grace she could possess and walked to the backroom, where all the winners could collect their prizes, so to speak. She had to walk past the ex’s table but she held her head high and plastered a fake smile on her face. She refused to let this stranger bully her.
When she walked through the crimson-colored curtains, she released the tension in her body with a sigh of relief. Her eyes searched through the bustling crowd for Negan. He seemed to be doing the same thing to her because his brown eyes were frantic and he was whipping his head every which way. When he saw her, he started to make his way through the crowd to her.
Before he reached her, Matt sidestepped in front of her, preventing her from reaching Negan.
“What the hell was that, Kat?” he asked in a low voice, ensuring no one could overhear their conversation.
Not that it mattered. The fact that the exes were even speaking at all was enough to cause attention.
To be honest, Katella hadn’t even thought of Matt in the entire time she had been here tonight. She had barely glanced his way. She had met his girlfriend, a mousy girl who was as hipster as he was, which actually made perfect sense. It didn’t matter that Katella found that she was more classically beautiful than his new girlfriend; he wanted someone Katella clearly wasn’t.
And that was okay, Katella realized.
But it was not okay for Matt to suddenly start questioning her choices as a single woman.
“What?” she asked, furrowing her brow and tilting her head back so she could look at him clearly. “What are you talking about?”
“This isn’t a private event, Katella,” he told her, shifting his eyes from side to side. “The media is here. They all watched you get into a bidding war with Negan’s ex. You know that, right?”
“I do know that,” Katella said. In actuality, she had completely forgotten about that but as his words settled, she realized she wasn’t ashamed of her actions. Not in the slightest. “Why do you care?”
“Why do I-?” He cut himself off and placed his hand on his forehead, as though he couldn’t quite believe she didn’t understand what he was trying to say. Katella could feel herself bristle at the insinuation that she was too stupid to figure it out. “Come on, Kat. You’re smarter than that. You have a college degree-“
“Here we go,” Katella said, placing her hands on her hips. “Cry me a river, Matt. I’m sorry your parents couldn’t afford to put you through college. I’m sorry you deferred college so you could play in the AHL, even though you probably would have received a full scholarship at U of M had you decided to go. Don’t make me feel bad because I had the opportunity to go, and I did.”
It was a typical argument they had that never turned into a full argument because Matt didn’t like confrontation and Katella never stood up for herself. However, Matt made it no secret that there was a slight resentment towards Katella for being able to attend college without worrying about paying for it. Just because Matt had been drafted did not mean his team would have sponsored him to go to college. Then again, Matt had never even applied due to the fact that he wouldn’t be able to afford it even if he had.
There was part of her that wanted to tell him he was fully capable of getting a job, but she felt that that would almost be hypocritical of her to say since she didn’t have to get a job and she got through grad school.
“So,” she continued, deciding to wrap up her tirade. “You never answered my question. Why do you care? You’re here with your girlfriend. You’re happy together, right? Why even concern yourself with my dating life?”
“Wait,” Matt said, furrowing his brow. His word was slow, his mind needing to swipe up what she said and process it quickly. “You think this is about you and me? That maybe I still have feelings for you or that I’m jealous about you and Negan?”
Katella felt her cheeks burn. Why was that so weird to assume? He defended her when Negan was being a jerk and he hit Negan after Negan insinuated he and Katella were hooking up. What else could that scream besides jealousy? Unless Matt wanted to have his cake and eat it, too.
Her eyes narrowed and she crossed her arms over her chest. “What else could it possibly be about, Matt?” she asked, cocking her head to the side. “Why else would you involve yourself in my life like this?”
“As long as I’m on this team, you and I are affiliated,” he told her.
“Affiliated?” Had he seriously used that word to describe their history?
“Ergo, who you date gets back to me,” he said.
“I’m sorry, so now I have to run by every guy I date?” she asked. “You forgot to mention that you have a girlfriend, Matt. I was never your girlfriend, but you picked one up pretty quickly since getting back to Newport, didn’t you?” She took a breath and realized that she sounded like she was jealous, and that was the last thing she wanted. She needed to end this conversation.
“Not every guy,” Matt said. “But you can’t just…” He hesitated, almost as though he knew what he was about to say was going to sound dumb. “Just don’t date any more Gulls. Especially not Negan.”
“And what’s wrong with Negan?” Katella asked. “I can’t help that you’re embarrassed by me, Matt. That’s on you, not on me. But you don’t get to dictate my behavior just like I would never even dream of dictating yours. So this whole thing with Negan needs to stop. You’re happy with your girlfriend, and you know what? I’m happy for you. But stop trying to interfere in my life. You gave up that right when you gave me up.”
She pressed her lips together but did not break eye contact with him.
Before she could tell if Matt understood and would actually do as she requested, Negan was at her side. Well, he was for a second before he stepped in front of her, like he was some kind of shield.
“Why the hell are you in her face?” Negan asked. He was already on the attack, bypassing all smartass comments and letting Matt get worked up. Katella couldn’t be sure, but it almost felt as though he did not appreciate Matt’s attitude and that caused Negan to switch up his strategy with how to handle Matt.
“What the hell is going on between you two?” Matt countered. He had no problem getting back in Negan’s face, despite the fact that he was a couple of inches shy of the second-line center.
Negan smirked but said nothing, shooting up his brow as if to tell him that it was none of his business but there was certainly something going on, something Negan was enjoying.
Katella rolled her eyes and side stepped around Negan to get between the two. She was lucky they were off in the corner and no one could really see what was going on. It would be bad news if anyone suddenly pulled out their cellphones and started taking pictures – or worse, recording.
“First of all, Matt,” she said, turning to look at Matt with daggers in her eyes. “You are making a scene. Not only are you embarrassing yourself and this team, but you’re embarrassing me, and, if she finds out, you’re embarrassing Melanie. You remember her? Your girlfriend?”
She could feel Negan�
�s questioning gaze burn the back of her head but she ignored him. For now.
“Secondly, I don’t know how many times I have to tell you this but you do not get to dictate what goes on between me and anyone anymore,” she continued.
“You think because he asks you out on one date that he’s being serious?” Matt asked, interrupting her. “He’s using you, Kat. He’s just doing this to get to me.”
“And why would he want to get to you in the first place?” Katella asked. “Why would he care about you?”
“Because he knows I’m a better player than he is,” Matt said, completely somber. He wasn’t even looking at Katella; his eyes were focused only on Negan.
Negan snorted. “That’s right,” he said, shifting his eyes to look at Katella. “Yup, he’s right, Kat. I think he’s better than I am. Matt Peters is a threat. No, the problem is you see me as a threat. Because you know you had a good thing with Katella and you let her go because you’re a fucking idiot. But now that a man has stepped up and treated her the way she deserves to be treated, you’re afraid that you won’t matter to her anymore. That she won’t care about you anymore. Newsflash, Peters: she doesn’t, and it’s not because of me.” He took a step forward but didn’t move around Katella. At least he had that much respect for the boundaries she had put up between the two players. “She doesn’t need you or me or anyone to make her complete. She doesn’t want to be with you because you’re a shit player and a shit person. You were lucky to have her in the first place.”
“And you only want her because you think she’s an easy piece of ass,” Matt said.
Negan stepped toward Matt, ready to punch him again. If Katella hadn’t stepped between the two, he probably would have. She saw the look in his eyes, the look that said he had been pushed past the point of no return and there was only one thing that could stop him from doing something about it, and that thing was Katella.
“Say that to me again,” Negan said through a growl. He looked especially wolfish, with his teeth clenched together and his dark eyes narrowed and dangerous. “Talk about her that way and see what happens. Come on. I dare you.”
Katella’s face was already burning red thanks to Matt’s off-handed comment. She didn’t think Matt was intentionally mean about it. But it didn’t hurt any less. If anything, it was worse because it meant that Matt believed it was a fact. That she was easy. If that wasn’t a slap in the face, she didn’t know what was.
“Kat, I-“ Matt began but Negan cut him off.
“Don’t you talk to her,” he growled. “After what you just said, you think you can talk to her?”
Matt looked helplessly at Katella but Katella shook her head. “You both represent the Gulls’ organization,” she said, though her eyes were only on Matt. “Just because you aren’t in a sweater does not mean you don’t. We’re done, Matt. Stop giving me your opinion about anything relating to me because, quite frankly, I don’t care.” She clenched her jaw once more. “You need to leave. Talk to your sponsor, figure out your date, and then take your girlfriend and leave.”
Matt clenched his jaw but didn't say anything. He nodded once and left.
Katella turned her attention back to Negan. "You aren't helping things when you threaten him like that," she told him.
He furrowed his brow. "Matt deserves a good punch in the nose," he said. "He got off easy."
"So now you're just using me to make your point?" Katella asked, furrowing your brow. "Negan, just because you're defending me doesn't mean you're right, either. This isn't the time or the place for a pissing contest." She clenched her jaw. "Look, I appreciate what you did for me but I can defend myself. I'd rather just go back to the way things were between us if that's how it's going to be. I'm nobody's excuse."
She shook her head and turned to leave. She thought she heard him call out for her but she couldn't be sure and she refused to go back.
Chapter 16
Katella had just finished putting on her pajamas when there was a hard pounding on the front door. She jumped, glancing out her door, wondering who was there. It couldn’t be Seraphina. She was still at The Newport, talking to the media and waiting for everyone to leave. She liked to stay and ensure there was nothing she could do to help before she was okay with leaving. It was kind of this unspoken rule between them: Katella organized and set up everything, Seraphina helped with clean up.
Of course, technically, neither of them had to do anything. They paid people to do this. But both liked to be involved and both liked to work alongside their employees.
She clenched her jaw. She had yet to wipe away her makeup, though she did manage to dry her hair, considering it started raining hard during the auction.
Maybe Seraphina needed help carrying something.
No. She would have called on the way over.
Maybe she forgot.
Seraphina didn’t forget things like that.
Katella rolled her eyes. She didn’t care. Burglars or murderers typically did not warn the occupants of the house of their presence. She bounded down the stairs, her hair in its ponytail bouncing with each step she took. Katella took in a breath and looked through the peephole.
Her heart stopped.
What was Negan doing here?
She threw open the door, the rain tinkering in the background. She was hit with a bitter gust of cold wind, the scent fresh and filling. The sky was gloomy and dark. Shadows danced everywhere and shrunk at any hint of light. The trees rustled with the wind, their leaves caressing each other as they were drenched with water.
Negan was soaked to the bone. He still wore his tuxedo except for his black jacket. The white collared shirt was practically transparent, clinging to his stocky torso and revealing just how ripped he was. Not that she doubted that in the slightest but it was now confirmed. He picked his head up, his brown hair cut short before the event clinging to his face and making him look even more beautiful than he already did.
Shit, he really was beautiful.
“I’m not using you,” he told her in a rough voice. When he spoke, his breath was visible in the cold, and Katella could not help but watch the wisps of steam circle into the air.
She had no idea how to respond. She had no idea what to even say.
Luckily, Negan prevented her from having to respond at all. He stepped through the threshold of her home and eagerly placed his lips onto hers. A clap of thunder boomed behind the couple but neither even flinched, too wrapped up in the other to worry about thunder or Seraphina walking in on them.
Without breaking from the kiss, Negan closed the door behind him and even managed to flip the lock backwards.
“We should,” Katella said, breathless. “We should probably talk upstairs.”
Negan nodded his head but did not verbally respond. His eyes were doing that just fine on their own. The look he was giving her shot electricity through her body straight to her pelvis. Little pulsating beats began to prick her inner walls and she could feel the moisture gather between her thighs.
“Right,” she said, nodding once. “This way.”
She led him up the stairs and down the hall. Seraphina’s room was on the opposite end of the second floor so both sisters were awarded privacy. Her door was already cracked open so she pushed it open wider and Negan followed her in without invitation. Her lamp was on but other than that small amount of light, it was dark.
Negan took a moment to take in her room, and she was glad she had been so nervous about tonight that she channeled her energy into picking up her dirty clothes and putting her stuff away. There was a queen-sized bed with a white headboard placed in the middle of the wall, two matching nightstands on either side of the bed, and a desk on the opposite wall with a planner she hadn’t even cracked open and a cup filled with pens. There was a large, square window across from the doorway with a small balcony she could walk out on if the weather was nice and she was in the mood to do so. It opened out towards their backyard so it also offered some kind of privacy. If it wasn
’t so dark, it would have been easy to see the large yard, the potted plants, the flowers growing out of the tree wells, even two tall trees, and a tangerine tree against the stone fence that separated the yard from the neighbors.
“So,” Katella said, glancing at Negan from the corner of her eyes. “You’re soaked. Do you want-“
“You,” he interrupted, stepping to her now that he had thoroughly studied her room. “I don’t care about anything else except for you.”
He walked toward her and grabbed the back of her head. She had no idea how it was possible, but it was so big, it nearly covered the full shape of her head. He tilted her head back and consumed her mouth, like she was some kind of oasis and he had walked forever to worship her. Her eyes immediately slipped closed and that feeling of coming home took over her. This felt so right that she never thought to question it.
Her hands reached for the buttons on his shirt and started undoing them. She had no idea why her fingers were shaking but they were. She wasn’t scared. Nervous, perhaps. Not because she wasn’t sure about this or that she was insecure about herself, but because this wasn’t just sex. This was a big deal.
By the time she reached the last button, she placed her hands on his shoulders and slid the shirt off. Negan only released his hold on her to free his hands up in order to allow the damp article of clothing to fall to the floor. Now, her hands were free to explore the skin on his shoulders, the muscles on his arms, the dips on his abdomen. He still had an undershirt on, clinging to his frame desperately, but she quickly removed it.
“Nice haircut,” she said through kisses as he led her to the bed.
He smirked through another kiss as his hands ran up and down her sides. “I thought you might enjoy it,” he said. “It’s the least I could do, considering I look like a ghost.”
Katella shrugged as she dropped her lips to suck the skin just under Negan’s ear. “Truth be told,” she mumbled against his skin. His breathing hitched at the feelings she caused, “I think it’s sexy.”
Black Eyes & Blue Lines: A Slapshot Novel (Slapshot Series Book 2) Page 10
