Love at First Hate

by Muriel Garcia

  The simple fact that he never had any real relationships or parents giving a good example didn’t help with his confidence about being with someone.

  Other than that, things have been more than good. The sex is amazing, the complicity is just perfect, we love going on weekend adventures together, and we always have fun.

  Robert hasn’t bothered any of us as of late, and it’s been nice. Everybody is a lot more relaxed, and it’s for the best. I guess yelling at him was the way to go, or maybe it was the punching. Who knows?

  I’ve finally met Caroline, and she’s lovely now that she can live her own life. She’s seeing someone new and is keeping it a secret, but she’s happy, and that’s all that matters.

  Valentine and Maddie have been really close, much to Nate’s despair. I get why he doesn’t want them to be together. I wouldn’t want Gabby to be with him either. Not that I don’t like him, he’s a great man, but they are our sisters, and he’s a bit of a player. We’re just doing what we can to protect them.

  Things are good, and I love my life. Had you asked me in January if I thought I’d be happy and meet the love of my life this year, I’d have said no, but I’m beyond thrilled about how things are. I never thought being this happy was possible, but it is.

  I never imagined when Nate first moved in that he was gay and that he’d be into me. I had a thing for him since day one, but we used to hate each other so much that we both were blinded and didn’t see what was right in front of us. I wonder if things would have been any different if we hadn’t hated each other. It really was love at first hate.

  Taking a bite of my Grandma’s freshly baked cookies, I smile to myself. This is pure heaven. She still makes them how she used to when Brody, Gabby, and I were little. They still taste the same. It makes me wonder if she’s been buying them all those years.

  “Where were you? What are you thinking about, darling?” she asks as she takes a sip of her tea.

  “Thinking about all the things that happened this past year and remembering the good old times when Brody, Gabby, and I were little. You were making those same cookies.” I smile.

  “I know. Things have changed for the better. I didn’t like that John, and you three surely have grown up so much. It’s crazy.”

  “Why didn’t you ever tell me that you hated him?” I frown.

  “It wasn’t my place. Besides, I thought that me being a bit nasty to him would be enough.” She chuckles.

  “He noticed for sure. I used to say that you were like that with all of my partners.”

  “You little rebel.”

  “I know. I hope you’ll like my new boyfriend.

  “I’m sure I will, darling.” She smiles at me before taking a sip of her tea.

  “Everybody does so you should.” I grin.

  “I’m sure they do. He sounds lovely from what you’ve been telling me.”

  “He really is.” I sigh happily before taking another bite of cookie.

  “You look happy.”

  “I am. Will you ever give me your secret recipe for these cookies? I want to make them for dinner tomorrow.” I grin innocently.

  “Good. Darling, you’re anything but innocent, Matthew, but no, I’m not giving you the recipe. But I can bring some over. I made enough for everybody.”

  “Damnit!” I frown.

  “You still think I don’t make them, do you?”

  “How did you know?”

  “I know everything,” she whispers and winks.

  “Are they store bought?”

  “No, how dare you doubt me.” She shakes her head and takes a bite.

  “What? You never know. They always taste the same. They taste like heaven!”

  “I know they do, and that’s because I’ve always used the same recipe and always make sure to measure everything. I’m just that good.” She grins at me.

  “That you are.” I take the last bite of my cookie when the doorbell rings. “I’ll get it.”

  “Yes, darling. It must be my young friend.” She smiles happily. “I’m sure you two will get along.” She chuckles to herself.

  “Okay?” I’m slightly confused and even more so when I open the door. “Nate?”

  “Matt? What are you doing here?” He looks as confused as I am.

  “This is my grandma’s house.” I let him in.

  “Rose is your grandma?” He chuckles.

  “Yes, how do you know her?”

  “Remember the little old lady I told you I met when I came to see my mom after that disastrous dinner?” I nod. “Rose is her.”

  “No way! That’s awesome, and it makes sense now. I should have known. Have you been coming often since?”

  “Every week. I bring her groceries once a week and take her to see your family. I should have known you two were related. You’re as awesome and witty as her.”

  “You’re amazing, you know that? And yeah, I take after her.”

  “You keep telling me.” He kisses me.

  “And I’ll keep telling you every day.” We walk into the living room, and Grandma grins at me.

  “I see that you two know each other.” She giggles.

  “Yeah, we’ve been dating since May.” I chuckle.

  “I know.”

  “You know?” Nate asks.

  “Yes, I knew you two were dating. I’m surprised you never ended up here at the same time before.”

  “Why didn’t you say anything? I’ve been talking about him with you every time I come here.” I chuckle.

  “I know, darling. I just wanted to see how long it’d take for you to realize you both know me. I don’t get much entertainment so let me have some fun with you two.” She giggles.

  “You’re evil, Grandma!” I tease her.

  “Nah, I’m just a playful old lady who loves her grandson and his partner very much so.”

  “I love you too, Grandma.” I kiss her cheek.

  “And me too, Rose. You’re the grandmother I never had,” Nate says sadly.

  “I’m so happy for you two. You deserve to be happy. You’re a part of the family anyway, Nate. You’re one of us now.” She winks at him, and I can tell it’s hard for Nate to hold back. His family pretty much rejected him so knowing that he has a family again must be overwhelming for him.

  “Thank you, it means a lot to me.” His voice is shaky as he’s trying not to get emotional.

  “None of that nonsense of crying. We’re happy. We’re a family, and it’s Thanksgiving tomorrow. We’re all going to have some fun and good food, and I’m crashing in your spare room, Matthew,” she says, not giving me a choice. Not that I would let her be on her own tonight. We don’t spend enough time all of us together as a family outside of the holidays because we always have something planned, but we have to make the most of it. I want to create memories with Nate and our family and maybe start our own.

  The rest of today has been spent with a lot of cooking and prepping for tomorrow’s big dinner. Not only are we having the family over, but also our friends. It makes for a lot of people, so we need a lot of food. Nate and I had to move his kitchen table to my place and buy an extra one so that we’d have enough seats for everybody. I’m excited for this first Thanksgiving with Nate, and I can’t wait to celebrate many more with him.

  Nate

  November 24, 2016

  Today is Thanksgiving, and it’s also the most important day of my life. I’m a nervous mess, and I need to get Matt out of the house and somewhere special, but he’s so busy with the last bit of preparation that I don’t know how to get him away for an hour.

  “Why are you fidgeting in your corner? Come help me.” He chuckles, looking at me.

  “There’s something I need to do, and I need you for that.”

  “Can’t it wait until later? Surely you can live a few minutes without us being naked around each other.” He smirks at me.

  “Not true, and it’s not about that. There’s somewhere I need to show you.” I sigh. This is proving to be more dif
ficult than I thought. And I picked the wrong day altogether.

  “What is so important in that mysterious place of yours?” He walks toward me and wraps his arms around me.

  “If I tell you then the surprise will be ruined.”

  “If I can get Maddie and Gabby to cover for me then we can go. It seems really important to you.” He pecks my lips.

  “It really is.” I smile and squeeze his ass.

  “Alright, I’ll go see if they can.” He kisses me quickly and walks next door. I hope they will cover for him. I really want to do this now.

  Ten minutes later, Matt is walking back in followed by Gabby and Maddie.

  “What did you have to promise them?” I chuckle, seeing the sulking expression on his face.

  “A cake per week until the end of the year.” He rolls his eyes.

  “What? It’s not so bad!” Gabby exclaims.

  “I’ll help you out.” I kiss him. “We will be gone for an hour or so. Don’t mess anything up or no cake,” I warn them.

  “That wasn’t the deal!” Maddie pouts.

  “Maybe not, but that’s my rule.”

  “Fine, spoilsport,” she mumbles.

  “Good, let’s go before they change their minds.” I take Matt’s hand and lead him to my car.

  “What do you have in mind?” He chuckles, getting in.

  “You’ll see, it’s a surprise.” I smirk and get behind the wheel.

  “You know I have zero patience.”

  “Don’t I know it.” I laugh.

  I take the twenty-minute drive to our destination and park down the street from Haven and by the lake.

  “What are we doing here?” He looks confused.

  “You’ll see in a minute.” I smile excitedly and walk to his side. I open the door and usher him out of the car.

  “Are you going to throw me in the lake?” he asks, offended.

  “Yes, if you keep it up.” I narrow my eyes at him and lock the car.

  “Alright, I’ll play nice.” He rolls his eyes and lets me guide him.

  I take him to a newly built house and walk up the five steps that lead to the front porch.

  “This looks nice. Who are we coming to visit?” Matt asks, looking around the property.

  “You’ll see.” I smirk and get the keys out of my pocket and open the front door.

  He walks in, and his face is worthy of a picture. The house is totally empty and was just built, so it smells all fresh and brand new.

  “I don’t get it,” he says, confused.

  “You will in a minute; want to have a look around?”

  “Alright? Are you trying your hand at being a realtor? If so you’re doing a bad job.” He chuckles, and we take a walk around the house, looking into every room.

  Ten minutes later, Matt is losing his patience, and I find it highly amusing that he still hasn’t figured out what this house represents.

  “Are you going to tell me or do I have to fuck it out of you?” He smirks caressing my chest.

  “As pleasing as that sounds, we have to be back in thirty minutes at yours, or I’m sure double trouble is going to kick off.” I chuckle.

  “You’re right about that. So? This house is…”

  “Our new house. I know you love this neighborhood and always wanted to live here. While our house is perfect the way it is, it isn’t ours. This house was finished a couple of months ago, and I kinda bought it for us. I know I should have asked you first, but I wanted to sur-”

  I don’t get to finish my sentence as Matt’s lips are on mine in a split second, and he walks me backward until my back hits the wall.

  “I love you so much,” he says huskily against my lips.

  “I know.” I smirk and kiss him again. He wraps his arms around me, and I do the same.

  “When did you buy it?”

  “Just after I came back. It was hard to convince the woman that I wasn’t getting into fights all the time and that the neighbors wouldn’t have to complain about us fighting.”

  “You already knew then that you wanted to live with me, huh?”

  “Yes, I knew in Hawaii that I wanted us to be serious and to live together.”

  “Why are you just showing me this house now then?” he asks as we walk around the house, really looking at the rooms now.

  “Because it wasn’t fully finished yet when I bought it. It was almost ready, but they still had to do the painting and the floors. Then the time for it all to settle and all that, and here we are.” I smile.

  “You are full of surprises.”

  “I try.” I kiss him as we’re standing in our future bedroom. “You also have a personal walk in closet.

  “No. Fucking. Way!” he shouts and walks into it and dances around.

  “Enough space for all your shoes too.” I chuckle.

  “Did you request this or was it already here?”

  “I asked them to put the shelving in. I don’t have the first clue of what to do or how to go about it so might as well let them do the job.” I shrug.

  “You’re pretty fucking awesome. You know that?”

  “I know, you keep telling me.” I chuckle.

  “When can we move in?”

  “Whenever we want. It’s ours, and all the papers are signed.”

  “Brilliant!” he fist bumps the air.

  “When do you want to move in?”

  “We should totally go do some shopping tomorrow and get some good deals in. I can’t wait to decorate and make it ours.”

  “I can’t wait either.” I take his hand and lead him back to our future bedroom. “There’s something else I need to tell you.”

  “What’s that? You’re pregnant?” He looks at me with his jaw hanging open.

  “Not yet.” I laugh and manage to get down on one knee. “You walked in my life two years ago. I couldn’t stand you at first, and as you know, we hated each other in the beginning. I never ever imagined we’d be together and share so much together: laughter, sadness, drama. The memories I’ve created with you are the best of my life, and I couldn’t ask for a better partner and partner in crime than you. You make me happy. I never thought I’d ever be happy, but you did it. I smile when I wake up because you are next to me and the first thing I see when I wake up. I smile when I go to bed because you’re in my arms and you’re the last thing I see when I go to sleep. I never wanted to be in a relationship before. I didn’t want to build a family or get married. Now I want all those things with you. I want us to build a family. I want us to make so many more memories together. I love you, Matthew. Will you do me the honor and marry me?” The tears are falling freely on mine and Matt’s face.

  “Yes,” he says through his tears. I slip the simple white gold band on his ring finger.

  He instantly wraps his arms around me and kisses me passionately.

  I’ve never been this happy in my life. I’ve never felt so much love and adoration from another person. I thought I was just going to be going from fling to fling and having to repress my true feelings all my life, but thanks to Matt, he taught me to always be myself and to be with who I want. He’s all I want. We are a true testament that falling in love with the right person makes you see the world with a different eye, and appreciate or do things you never would have done before.

  We might still have our ups and downs in the future, but which couple doesn’t.

  I can’t wait to start this new chapter of our life together.

  This book wouldn’t have been possible without the precious help of a couple of people that I’m so happy to call my friends and family.

  Mom – Thank you for keeping me sane, I can’t imagine how hard that was! You’ve had good training over the past thirty-two years so you must be used to it by now! Thank you for always supporting me. You’re amazing. I love you.

  Silla Webb – Thank you so much for being a kick-ass editor. You’ve made this process stress free, and I can’t wait to work with you again. Thank you for helping me make this book
what it is.

  LP Lovell – Thank you for everything babe. You are a marketing genius and I’m so happy that we worked on this book together. I can’t wait to work on many more with you.

  Kylie (Give Me Books) – Thank you for making my cover reveal and release day as awesome as it was. You’re a star!

  Judi Perkins (Concierge Literary Promotion) – Thank you Judi for the beautiful cover. You were patient and listened to all my concerns and made this cover amazing. This has to be my favorite to date.

  Charlotte Spence – Thank you for helping me through all the doubts and worries I’ve had writing this book that is SO different from what I usually write. Thank you for always supporting me, pimping me, and letting me know when it’s shit (not that you’ve ever done it so far and we’re on book nine).

  Ellie Aspill – Thank you for being such a great friend. You’ve helped me so much since pretty much the beginning. It’s always a pleasure working with you. Even though you’re not editing for me anymore, getting your feedback is still important to me. You’re the yin to my yang; the Alabama to my Slammer. #TeamAlabamaSlammerForever

  My readers – You guys are amazeballs. Thank you for following me through all my crazy book ideas. This book is my first M/M romance, and I hope you’ve enjoyed reading it as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it. It was different for sure, but I absolutely loved it and love the story. I’m a bit in love with Matt and Nate, and I hope you’ll fall in love with them too.

  Thank you to all the blogs and authors who helped me with the cover reveal and on this very special release day. Thank you for your continuous help. None of this would have ever been possible if it weren’t for the bloggers who so kindly take the time out of their day to help authors spread the word, help out sharing our work, and read and review our books just for their pleasure. I’ll never be able to express how much I appreciate all you guys’ help.

  I love you all <3

  Muriel

  ALSO BY MURIEL GARCIA

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  Haven HATES Mondays.

  She loathes them.