Authors: K Carr
“What?” Bella cried out unhappily. “Matt, no. Louisa isn’t right for you. Tell him, Nathan.”
Nathan shushed Bella, eyes fixed on his best friend. “You’ve made your mind up?”
Matt nodded slowly. He had made his mind up. It scared the life out of him, but he felt as if the decision was out of his hands, as if he had no choice in the matter. And Matt felt fucking fantastic.
Nathan scanned Matt’s face intently, trying his hardest to maintain a relaxed demeanour. “Your parents will be pleased.”
“I doubt that,” Matt drawled, a slow smile stretching his mouth wide. Bloody hell. This was the most reckless decision he’d ever made, and the easiest.
Nathan looked at him, perplexed at Matt’s statement. His eyes widened and the colour drained from his face as he asked, “Wait, who exactly are we talking about here?”
Bella was fretting. “This is a mistake. I know I shouldn’t say anything but, Matt, Louisa isn’t—”
“I’m not going to marry that cold-hearted witch,” Matt interrupted, joyous determination etched on his face.
Bella’s mouth fell open. She grabbed Nathan’s arm, as if suddenly unbalanced although she was sitting down.
Nathan leaned forward. “Matthew, you can’t mean—are you telling me—who the fuck else is there? You can’t seriously be thinking about Madison? Tell me you’re not.”
Matt couldn’t wipe the smile off his lips. He kept smiling as Nathan completely lost his rag.
“You are out of your fucking mind, mate. You barely know the girl. I barely know her.”
Bella broke out of her shock, leaning forward also. “Matt, I don’t think you should marry Louisa, but you can’t be serious about Madi. You’re joking, right?”
“He’s fucking mental,” Nathan yelled. “And delusional if he thinks I’m going to stand by and let him marry someone he doesn’t truly know.”
Matt understood their astonished reactions. Hell, he was shocked, too. But underneath it all, an ever-increasing calm filled his body. She completed him and he didn’t want to feel empty ever again.
Nathan continued to shout at him, angrily listing all the whys and wherefores Matt shouldn’t consider marrying Madi, while Bella tried to calm Nathan down and reason with Matt at the same time.
He let them go on for about thirty minutes before saying solemnly, “I understand and appreciate your concerns, I really do, but she makes my soul sing. I have never felt this way about another woman. She’s mine and if, she’ll have me, I’ll be hers for the rest of our lives.”
They both fell silent for a few moments. Then Nathan, whose face was almost purple with rage, started in on him again. “Makes your soul sing? Fucking hell, Matt. Are you on drugs? Are you hearing yourself? Slow down for one goddamned minute here—”
“What did you tell me, Nathan?” Matt cut him off. “The first day you met Bella all those years ago? Do you remember?”
Nathan jerked back, glancing slowly at Bella. She stared at them, head swivelling between them.
“I—” Nathan rubbed a hand over his frustrated face.
“Sweetheart.” Bella touched his cheek. “What is it?”
Matt continued on, seeing as Nathan was at a loss for words. “You said to me that you’ve met the one, your future wife, the only woman you could ever be with. She only spoke to you for five minutes and you’d already decided she was it for you.”
“And you said I was crazy. That I needed my head testing as there was no such thing.” Nathan had found his voice.
Matt nodded, flashing Bella an adoring smile. “I did, and I was wrong. You two are meant for each other. The same way I know Madi’s meant to be mine.”
Nathan flopped back against the upholstered seat, eyes squeezed shut. “You’ve lost your mind. The pressure has finally gotten to you.” Nathan’s eyes flew open and he glared at Matt, coldly stating, “You’re thirty-seven years old, at the age where you know you should settle down. This—this ridiculous notion you have to marry Madison is nothing more than a response to that. Look, I’ll be brutally frank with you. You know how I feel about Louisa. I don’t like her, I never did. And I want you to find someone special like I have. I want you to find your own Bella, but it’s not Madison, mate. She’s lovely, don’t get me wrong, but she’s not right for you, Matt. She’s not the one for you.”
“Why?” Matt asked in a tone as frigid as Nathan’s. “Because she’s black?”
“No, you fucking arsehole,” Nathan yelled. “I’m bloody tired of you implying I have a problem with her because of her race. I don’t.”
“Nathan,” Bella rested a hand on his arm, squeezing gently. He shrugged her off and leaned forward, blue eyes filling with pure disdain.
“Because she’s young, Matt. When you eventually get bored of her, which I know you will, it’ll destroy the poor girl. Do you want that on your conscience? Do you want to taint her? Your
poppet
? Are you going to protect her from the media? Your family? From all those envious people out there who would do about anything to see you fail?”
“Yes,” Matt said with certainty. “I will protect her.”
“Oh, I see,” Nathan mocked nastily. “And yourself? Will you protect her from yourself? You don’t get it, do you? You’re what…her first boyfriend?”
“Yes. What’s your point?” Matt asked quietly.
“She’s inexperienced, and you’re so bloody domineering the poor girl has no idea what’s hit her. What’s going to happen five, maybe ten, years down the line when she starts to resent you for stealing her youth?”
“Damn it, Nathan. She’s not sixteen.” Matt let out an incredulous short bark of laughter. “You’re acting like she doesn’t know what she wants. Let me remind you that she’s a determined woman who—”
Nathan cut him off with a terse, “If you’re that strung out about getting married, you can live vicariously through my wedding. Hell, I’ll let you plan the whole damned thing. I’ve already got a date and place in mind—” Nathan stopped suddenly, head snapping around to see Bella’s transfixed expression.
“Nathan Walthamstow,” she said after a few charged seconds. “If that was a marriage proposal, I must say it is the most unromantic thing you’ve ever said to me.”
Nathan gulped nervously, running a hand through his hair wildly before sending a mean look in Matt’s direction. “Look at what you’ve made me do.”
Matt held his hands up, regarding Nathan and his girlfriend with growing surprise.
Bella continued to frown at Nathan…but was she frowning? On closer inspection, Matt detected the glimmer of a smile fighting to escape.
“Um, Bella, darling.” Nathan cleared his throat harshly, sending another vicious look at Matt’s grinning face. Nathan cleared his throat again. “Ah, can we discuss this at a later time?”
She folded her arms; her expression said it all.
Nathan’s mouth made an attempt at a limp smile.
“You should ask her already, Nathan,” Matt drawled. “We know you want to.”
“You, shut up.” Nathan jabbed a finger at Matt before increasing the strength of his smile as he faced his girlfriend. “Darling, now is neither the time nor the place to discuss our personal situation. I’m trying to talk sense into Matt right now.”
“We’re almost there,” Matt supplied helpfully. “I’ll be out of your hair in about five minutes. Carry on, Nathan. Bella and I are anxiously awaiting your next sentence. It should start with a ‘will you’.”
“Will you shut up, you wanker?” Nathan exploded. His face was more of a deep, embarrassed red than the angry purple of a few minutes ago.
“Nathan,” Bella rebuked him at his tone. “Don’t speak to Matt like that.”
“Whose side are you on?” Nathan shouted, before dropping his head into his hands. “God. Everyone be quiet for a moment.”
The back of the limo descended into silence. For ten seconds. Then Bella stroked a hand through Nathan’s ruffled blonde locks, eyes glistening with tears.
“The answer is yes, darling. Whatever you want to ask me, whenever you want to ask me, the answer will always be yes.”
Nathan raised his head slowly, a tremulous smile on his face. The relief pouring out his eyes made Matt feel downright ecstatic for his closest friend.
“Even though it’s long overdue?” Nathan asked softly, reaching for Bella’s hand.
Bella laughed, nodding. “Years overdue but, yes, Nate. The answer will always be yes.”
Nathan made a sound at the back of his throat, then grabbed Bella to him. Matt averted his eyes as his friend passionately kissed the woman he cherished. He was excited for them, but seeing their happiness only cemented the fact Madi was the only one for him. Did it matter they hadn’t been in a relationship for long? Did it matter their difference in age? Did it matter they were from two completely different worlds?
No.
Matt thought to himself.
No to all those questions.
This was his life and he wanted Madison DuMont in it. He needed her in it. And that was the most terrifying thing of all. The way he needed her. Of course, he wasn’t going to ask her to marry him immediately. That would be foolish and most likely to scare her away. No, he would need to take his time with her. She was inexperienced, true, and he knew how completely dominating he could be. There was also the issue of their respective families to deal with. Matt chewed his lower lip, eyebrows pulling together with worry as the sound of Nathan intensely snogging Bella continued to fill the limo.
A year. A year should be enough time to smooth everything into place. A year was sufficient time to make Madi so completely addicted to him that the thought of being without him would be inconceivable. That evening those few months ago, when Nathan had barged into his home with the file that changed Matt’s life, he’d decided he would have her. She was his now, and he planned on keeping her.
The limo turned down her street, cruising slowly until it stopped in the middle of the road. Matt frowned when he couldn’t see his grandfather’s car. His frown deepened as he peered out at her terrace. He was sure he’d turned the living room lights off when he locked up after them.
“This is my stop,” he said dryly to his friends.
Nathan lifted his head, eyes glazed and breathing heavily. Bella was as bad—lipstick smeared and an unfocused look on her face.
“Wait, Matt,” Nathan said as Matt unbuckled his seatbelt. “We’ve not finished our discussion.”
Matt’s gaze went to Bella before returning to Nathan’s flushed features. “I think you have more important things to deal with tonight, mate. And remember, she may have said yes but you still need to ask. You can thank me tomorrow.”
Matt opened his door and got out before Nathan could respond. He shut the door and strode across the street, pulling his keys from his tuxedo jacket. He was certain he’d flicked off the lights when they left earlier…
<><><>
“She’s crazy, D.” I said, grinning at my best friend as he chewed the ham sandwich I’d made him.
Dante swallowed and nodded. “Yeah, but I knew that from the start.”
I had to laugh at that. We’d been hanging in my kitchen for the past hour and it was nice. A little while after leaving the ball, I realized I hadn’t brought my keys. I was worrying about getting into my house without having to break a window when I remembered Dante kept a spare set.
Then Grumps had a little talk with me. It wasn’t really ‘with’ me; more like he talked ‘at’ me. If I never saw Matt’s granddad again, it would be too soon. He won the showdown, his pistol faster than mine as he riddled my body with fatal bullets, then kicked my carcass for good measure. The tumble weeds were still rolling around the blood-stained dust. The talk hadn’t been nice. And I didn’t want to think about it anymore. I didn’t want to see another person with the surname Bradley, including my sweet knight. After Grumps had dropped me off, I’d knocked on my neighbour’s door. He hadn’t been pleased at my disturbing his late night Sunday telly, less so when I asked to use his phone to call Dante. Tomorrow I would make him a cake as a thank you.
“So, what now? Are you going to let her move in?” Even though we were laughing over Dante’s girlfriend wanting to move in with him, it made me feel uncomfortable. I needed to know his answer.
“Are you crazy?” Dante scoffed and the tenseness in my shoulders eased.
I fiddled with the edge of my t-shirt. My ruined dress was hanging upstairs in my bedroom. It hurt to look at it. When Dante had arrived at my place, I’d been leaning against my front door battling the simultaneous urge to burst into tears and sorely regretting not throwing stones at Grumps’s car when I had the chance. It had been a horrible talk in the backseat of his car.
Dante had taken one long look at me, commented on how sexy I looked, then asked if he needed to buy me a sippy cup. I knew it would look as if I couldn’t drink from a glass properly.
Once he’d opened my front door, I had gone straight upstairs and had a hot shower to wash away the night’s events. I changed into a t-shirt that was big enough to cover my panties and went back downstairs. Dante and I were used to seeing each other in sometimes next to nothing, and all the important bits were covered. It was no big deal.
“It’s been what?” I plucked the ham out from between the two slices of bread on my plate and folded it in half. “Eight months since you two have been going out?”