Matt & Brooklyn: A Standalone in the "Again for the First Time" Family Saga (AFTFT Book 2) (20 page)

“I’m glad you’re getting a good laugh,” Delia said, her voice sounding extremely serious.

Her judgment didn’t make me feel the least bit uncomfortable, though. Served them
all
right for getting in my business.

“Oh, get your panties out of a bunch. We’re getting it annulled as soon as I make it back out there. Probably in a couple weeks,” I said, deciding I’d had enough fun with them. “I’ll be single again before you know it.”

Aura shook her head at me and I stuck my tongue out at her. “So, you’ve never gotten drunk and done something stupid?”

“No, Brook, I can’t say that I have.”

“Sucks to be you,” I replied, holding in another laugh. When they seemed to run out of things to say, I sipped my wine again. When I had my fill, I sat back and turned the questions on them. “So you all were cool with me screwing him, but not marrying him?” I inquired, amusement heavy in my tone.

Delia shot me a look. “You know it’s not like that. We all love Matt, but call us crazy for wanting to be there when/if you all decide to tie the knot.”

I waved her off. “Quit being dramatic. I just told you
I
may as well have not been there. I don’t remember a thing. And it doesn’t even count because we’re taking care of it soon. Eventually, it’ll just be a funny story; something ridiculously stupid we did in our twenties.” That was what Matt said anyway.

The tension in the room eased up a bit, but I addressed something Delia said when it came back to mind. “And what do you mean
‘when and if Matt and I decide to tie the knot’
?”

She shot me a knowing glance, but didn’t say anything in return.

“Whatever.”

Once they relaxed again, we talked well past midnight. Lia had long since said goodbye to her company and come up to her room. I was pretty sure she was still awake, probably talking on the phone, but she gave us our privacy. One by one, my sisters left, and I was again alone with my thoughts. I lie in bed holding my hand in the air, staring at the ring I still hadn’t removed from my finger. It was nice, very much something I’d expect Matt to pick out, a thought that made me smile pretty big. At the thought of him, my phone went off—just a text.

‘Goodnight, Mrs. Valente,’
was all the message from Matt said.

I smiled even bigger, deciding to respond with a picture message of his purchase on my finger.

It took him a few minutes to respond, but when he did, it was all question marks.

‘What? You said it’s mine, right?’
I asked in response.

His answer?
‘It is. And apparently so am I for the next couple weeks.’
I laughed out loud and turned over onto my side. That same twisting and churning he’d been making my stomach do while I was in L.A. happened now, too.

I liked Matt. There was no denying that. I was just scared to death of moving too fast. When my phone sounded off again, I was grinning before I even saw the message. To my surprise, it wasn’t Matt, though. It was Raj, an email he’d just sent out to me and the other two candidates, not knowing my email account was linked directly to my phone, I guessed, seeing as how it was pretty late. My finger hovered over the icon to open the message for a long time, but for some reason I didn’t press it. I didn’t want to think about Johannesburg tonight. All I wanted to focus on for now was Matt. So that’s what I did.

We sent texts back and forth until almost two in the morning my time. The only reason we stopped was because I dozed off mid-conversation, thinking of him. More and more I was beginning to think my priorities were amiss.

Maybe there was more to life than chasing my career.

Maybe it was okay to finally let my guard down again with someone.

…and maybe that someone had been there all along.

Chapter Eight

Matt

“So, we technically have the same anniversary! That’s kind of cool, right?” The grin on Mara’s face was nothing short of devious. She had nothing but jokes since we recapped what happened the night of her and Dean’s wedding. Unfortunately, she didn’t have a clear recollection of it either. Bottom line, we all had
way
too much to drink for our own good.

She sat back with a laugh, watching cars pass as we dined on the patio of one of our favorite spots to grab lunch on the go. Usually Dean met up with us, but he was at another casting call.

“It’ll be over any day now,” I informed her. “As soon as Brook makes it back, we’re having it annulled.”

She stared when I finished speaking. “Does this girl have any idea that you’re in love with her.”

I nodded and sipped from my glass. “She definitely knows.”

“Does she feel the same way,” was Mara’s next question.

I paused, thinking of a response instead of just blurting the first thing that came to my mind. “She feels
something
, but I don’t know for sure that it’s love. There’s an attachment on her part, but I don’t want to speak for her.”

Mara checked her phone casually. “Whatever, Matt; she loves you, too. She’s just not ready to admit it yet.”

I had to laugh. “You’re psychic now?”

She typed something and then set her phone aside again. “I just know. Girls can sense things like that and I watched you two together,” was the only explanation she gave.

I smiled, but didn’t add anything.

“Did she freak out when you guys woke up on the beach Saturday morning? ‘Cause she’s a control freak, right? I mean, you’ve never come out and called her that, but...”

My only response was to laugh, which let Mara know her observation was pretty much correct.

“Exactly my point and even
I
would’ve flipped out if I woke up married to a guy—best friend or not—without remembering how it all happened! But trust me, Matt; I’m right about how she feels,” Mara insisted.

I was careful not to let her logic go to my head, though. If that was how Brook felt, I’d rather wait until she was ready to say so.

I set my glass of water down and glanced up at Mara. “Well… thank you for prying in my personal life.”

She winked. “You’re very welcome. Happy to help.” She checked her watch. “What time does your flight leave?”

“In a couple hours, so I’m heading to the airport from here.”

She nodded and I remembered something.

“Hey, Brook’s niece, Lia, is a big fan of yours. Got something you can autograph so I can take it to her? She’ll flip.”

Mara waved me off. “Do you know nothing about teenage girls, Matt? It’s all about social media.”

I watched as she scribbled something on a pink piece of paper she found in her purse. “Spell her name for me?”

“I think she just spells it L-I-A.”

Mara went back to scribbling. “There. Now take a picture of me.”

She held up the paper that read:
‘I love you, Lia! Can’t wait ‘til we get to hang out!’

I smiled, knowing this was actually a better idea than taking the kid an autographed piece of paper.

“Now send it to her and she can share it on her pages. Tell her to friend me, too, so we can chat,” she added.

I immediately texted the pic to Brook so she could pass it along to Lia. In fact, I was pretty sure Mara would have a friend request from Lia before we even got up from the table.

“Well, have a safe flight and tell Brook I asked about her, would you?”

I nodded. “Will do. Tell Dean to shoot me a text to let me know how it goes today.”

“You got it.”

We stood, shared a loose hug, and then I was on my way to my car—one I was still getting used to. The smell of the dark leather got me every time I climbed in it. It wasn’t the Maybach Cliff tried to talk me into getting—which seemed like a total waste of money to me—but I loved the one I settled on. Brook helped pick it out, too, which made it just a little more special.

I weaved in and out of traffic, thinking of
both
reasons I was headed to Lindmore. Number one on my list of priorities was finding out what the hell Nick was into that Mel wouldn’t say. A few days had passed since Brook told me about her and Mel’s conversation and now Nick wasn’t answering for me
or
Luke. Something was definitely up.

The second reason I was making this trip was to see Brook again. I promised her I’d be by as soon as my family business was out of the way. Of course I couldn’t stay with her; Lia was still there, but honestly, seeing Brook, holding her, was enough. I didn’t have to have anything more than that from her.

We were still very much in limbo, but there was definitely a different feel to our relationship than before. Almost every conversation bordered on flirtatious at some point and she seemed…
softer? Warmer?
I wasn’t sure how to word it, but I knew what I felt. If I didn’t know any better, the protective walls she had in place, the ones keeping me out and keeping her feelings in, were disintegrating right before my eyes. It felt like I waited forever for her to trust me, but the wait had been worth it.

A flash of heat warmed my neck when a phantom sensation traveled up from my chest. It was her hands, her lips, touching my skin while we made love. The way that woman got inside my head, the way she made my soul beg to be closer to hers…

This was a bad time to be thinking like this. There would be plenty of time for Brook and I to relive that night, but for now, I had a plane to catch.

*****

My heart was pulling me in so many directions as I climbed behind the wheel of the rental I grabbed at the airport near Lindmore; however, Brook already knew I wouldn’t be by to see her until late. This issue with Nick needed my attention first.

After first checking in to my hotel, I pulled into Luke’s driveway because he was supposed to be heading to Nick’s with me. We planned to drive separately because of the plans I had afterward. I walked up to the porch and didn’t even get to knock. As soon as my fist lifted into the air, the door flung open. Lissy answered, balancing my niece, Destiny, on her hip. Getting a better look at the little one than I did at Brook’s graduation, it became even more apparent how much she changed since I left.

A big smile brightened her face, but I was pretty sure she didn’t remember me. Still, that greeting warmed my heart.

“Welcome home,” Lissy greeted me as we hugged. When she pulled away, I was invited inside.

She and Luke had a nice place—one of the first purchases they made after receiving their payout from the documentary. Being here, seeing all they’d built together, seeing how responsible they’d been, I couldn’t ignore the stark contrast between how they invested versus Nick’s current situation.

“Luke’s upstairs changing his shirt. Destiny got a little wild with her dinner. Isn’t that right?” she said, now speaking to the Destiny instead of me. “Got it all over you
and
daddy,” she added, which explained why she held a napkin with what looked like green beans smashed on it, and my niece was shirtless and grinning.

“Can I hold her?” I asked.

Lissy was already handing her over before the question was completely out. “Of course. That’ll give me a second to clean up her mess in the kitchen. That highchair has seen better days,” she mumbled to herself as she left me alone in the living room with Destiny.

She was a beautiful little girl, still holding on to some of her baby-like features, but definitely coming into her own. Two pigtails were pulled to each side of her head, and curls dangled to her pierced earlobes. She studied my face as I studied hers, walking over to have a seat on the couch with her in my arms. There was a twinge of sadness in her eyes when she pointed toward the kitchen where her mom had just disappeared. She was beautiful, even when she was on the verge of tears.

“Mommy will be back in a sec, kiddo. Sorry, you’re stuck with Uncle Matt for now.”

“You look like a natural to me,” came my brother’s voice. I hadn’t even heard him come into the room, but then again Destiny had all my attention.

“Nah… kids love me, but mostly because I act like one of em’,” I reasoned, and Luke didn’t disagree.

“She’s actually pretty selective about who she lets hold her, so consider yourself one of the lucky ones.”

And I definitely did.

“Ready to head out,” he asked.

With a heavy sigh, I nodded, although I definitely wasn’t looking forward to doing this. Nick was notoriously volatile when confronted. He’d feel like Luke and I were ganging up on him, but he’d be even
more
pissed with the plan I thought up on the plane ride here.

“So, I don’t think we should go into this expecting him to just come clean. You know him; he doesn’t like people prodding in his life, he hates to feel cornered, and he
damn
sure doesn’t like anyone telling him what to do.”

Luke was thoughtful as he leaned his back against the wall. “How do you think we should handle it then?”

My plan involved physical restraint and probably a whole lot of yelling from Nick. “I say we go over there, you get him out of the apartment, and I’ll lock myself in and go through his things. That’s the only way we’ll get the truth. If we treat him like an adult, he’s gonna lie. That’s just how he’s hardwired. If we’re serious about getting him some help, we need to know what we’re dealing with.”

Looking at Luke, I could see it all over his face that he didn’t want to do this, hated that it was even necessary. So did I, but I didn’t see the point in thinking like that. Whatever was going on was already happening. Pretending like Nick would be responsible for himself would turn this mission into a fool’s errand.

Luke exhaled sharply. “Let’s go get this over with.”

*****

I flexed my hands and made them into fists again when the tension got to be too much. Luke and I had been standing out in the hallway of Nick’s building for just about two minutes. Through the door, Nick asked us to wait there for a bit while he straightened up, but I had a feeling he was doing more hiding than cleaning, so I knocked again. Footsteps could be heard on the other side of the threshold and the next second, he pulled the door open.

I wasn’t prepared for what I saw. He’d lost quite a bit of weight since I last saw him six months ago and it looked like he hadn’t shaved or showered in days. Still, he put on like everything was okay for Luke and I, being overly friendly in his greeting, inviting us in like the gracious host. I wasn’t fooled, though. The plan was still in place and I was ready to get to the bottom of this.

I stepped inside, but Luke stayed in the hallway like we discussed. As soon as I made it past Nick, I came up behind him and grabbed him in a bear hug, lifting both his feet off the ground. The maneuver was so quick he didn’t even have time to argue with me about what was going on. His feet didn’t touch carpet again until I had him in the hallway and from there, it was on Luke to take over wrestling with our oldest brother while I engaged the lock. The second I did, Nick’s angry fists slammed against the door. He wanted in… bad… which meant he did have something to hide.

The sound of him and Luke arguing loudly had my adrenaline pumping. If Nick kept up like he was, a neighbor would undoubtedly call the police, but I couldn’t worry about that right now. My thoughts centered and I made myself focus.

The kitchen.

If alcohol was the problem, that’s where it’d most likely be. The first place I checked was the fridge. Nothing there but a half empty six-pack—hardly anything to be alarmed about. I revisited the living room and Nick’s voice came at me at full volume again because I was so close to the door. I checked under the couch, under the cushions… nothing.

His bedroom.

Expecting to at least see an empty bottle or two, I was surprised to not find a single one. This place was trashed, though. Dirty plates and glasses lined the dresser; dirty clothes covered most of the carpet and on the nightstand, he had a pile of wadded up tissues and a used condom. I couldn’t understand how he lived like this.