The bathroom door swung open so hard that it bounced off the wall with a loud thunk. Matt Hudson stood in the doorway, his green turtleneck setting off the fury in his emerald eyes. His fists were at his sides, and his dark locks looked like he had been running his hands through them roughly. Still, the man was devastatingly handsome, another reminder that he hadn’t even realized he had called me his girlfriend earlier. Or worse yet, he did realize it, and he had said it because he didn’t want me to be embarrassed. Gee, just what I needed, pity.
“Well, thanks for helping me to my room, Mr. Hudson,” I said politely, enjoying his wince when I addressed him by his last name. Distance was good, I was not going to get caught up in what could never be.
I watched him walk to the door, he opened it and stepped one foot over the threshold then suddenly turned and shut it again, this time flicking the deadbolt to lock.
Not liking the predatory smile on his face, I took a step back.
“Don’t you mean our room, sweetheart?” he said with a devilish grin.
“Our…room? Like yours and mine..t-together,” I stuttered dumbly. One look at his cocky grin and the triumphant way his thumbs were hooked into the belt loops of his jeans, told me the man had just pulled one over on me, again.
“Nope, no way, not happening,” I said to him shaking my head as he laughed.
“It is happening. Actually, my luggage should be arriving here in about twenty minutes, we found a service at the airport when we arrived that delivers,” he explained like we were talking about some mundane, trivial topic.
“Fine! You keep the suite, I’ll get a room of my own!” I told him as I stomped past him. I flew out of the room, surprised he hadn’t even tried to protest. Just as well, Matt had to know he was a hot commodity, and I was..well…I wasn’t. Still, it hurt just a bit that he didn’t even try to argue with me about the room situation.
Ignoring the pain in my bad leg and praying it would hold steady as I walked down, what had to be, fifty stairs, I finally reached the front desk. The old gentleman from before was just hanging up the phone when I limped up to the tall, wood counter.
“Ms. Alison, what can I do for ya dear?” he asked in a kind voice that made me want hot chocolate and sugar cookies.
I cleared my throat and pushed my wayward bangs out of face and plastered on my most pleasant smile.
“Hi, I was wondering if you had any more rooms available? I asked sweetly. The throbbing in my leg was slowly ratcheting up, and if I didn’t get a hot bath and a pain pill soon, I was going to be sleeping down here in the lobby.
“Ach now, is there something wrong with yer room dearest?” he asked smiling at me. The twinkle in his eyes made me suddenly wary.
“Only the person trying to share it with me,” I answered honestly, I was far beyond keeping up appearances.
The man laughed and again his belly jiggled. “Sweet girl, I’m sorry, but we happen to be full up, it’s season ya know,” he told me with false sympathy.
I was on to his game, oh yeah! Santa Claus my behind! This old goat was on the naughty list for sure.
“Season? It’s the end of October, what season would you be booked for?” I inquired giving him a look that told him the jig was up.
Instead of folding, he pressed on with his game. “Ach, it’s hunting season of course. Hunters are out hunting pheasant and the like,” he answered as his gaze traveled down to his feet.
I smirked at the man but had to admire his fortitude, when he lied, he took it all the way. “Really? You have many hunters staying here, at what the brochure states is, ‘the most romantic inn in Dublin’?” I replied. Checkmate Santa!
I’m sure the old man knew the game was up, he sighed and walked around the counter and grabbed my calloused hand in his wrinkled one.
“Dearie, the lad told me about the squabble you had. If I thought another room would help you two sort things out, I would kick someone out for ya,” he said patting my hand gently.
“So Matt called you before I even got down the stairs,” I told him more than asked and sighed when he nodded his head. Matt didn’t even have to chase me, he just had to sit up in the room and wait for me to return.
The door to Inn opened, and two men carrying suitcases and shoulder bags walked in, putting all the luggage on the floor they explained to the innkeeper that they were delivering the Hudson’s luggage.
“Oh, I’ll show ya where their rooms are so that we can place them inside,” the sweet old man said as he moved away from me.
His wife rounded the corner and grabbed me in a huge hug. “Oh sweetums, it can’t be as bad as all that, I saw the lad…he’s a looker that one,” the woman gushed as she pulled back but gripped my hands in hers. I tried to smile, but I was so ticked off at Matt that I could feel actual steam coming out of my ears.
“Thanks, gentleman! I was hoping my bag would get here so I could relax with my girl in front of the massive fireplace in our room,” came a loud, cheerful and extremely irritating voice.
I turned to watch Matt practically bounce down the stairs two at a time. He directed the men to our room number and handed them a tip. The larger man that wore a gray stocking cap must have liked his tip because he grabbed Matt’s bags and skipped up the staircase like his hair was on fire.
When Matt finally turned toward Mrs. Claus and me, his green eyes sparkled with mischief and a sprinkle of gloating. Oh yeah, the guy got me good, and he knew it!
“Now you listen to Mrs. McKreage,” the woman whispered blowing my whole Santa and Mrs. Claus fantasy to pieces. “It’s okay to be nervous the first time you're with a man. If he does his job right, it should only be a slight pinch,” she smiled warmly, and her cheeks flushed as it dawned on me what she was saying!
God Darn it! Why did everyone think that my wanting to be away from Matt Hudson was out of some virginal fear of breaking my hymen? I was about to tell Mrs. Mckreage, the spoiler of all my Christmas fantasies, exactly when I had breached that particular obstacle and that it was far more than just a pinch when Matt’s hands fell onto my shoulders and squeezed.
“Thanks, Mrs. McKreage, I know we’ll be fine. Please tell your husband I appreciate the hot chocolate and sugar cookies he sent up to the room,” he smiled and the woman practically melted.
Wait! Hot chocolate and sugar cookies? How had the old man read my thoughts? I was involved in my own thoughts that I didn’t even fight Matt when he, once again, scooped me up in his arms and whisked me back to our room. Although, I was aware that the woman was laughing as we ascended the staircase.
Matt plopped me on the bed, and I immediately went to jump off. I heard him sigh as he grabbed me by the back of my jeans and pulled me back against the pillows, following me with his thick body.
“This seems to be a pattern with us,” he teased, reminding me of the night in Vegas where we had been in this exact position.
“Then maybe you should try something new like respecting a person’s personal space.” I roared more out of frustration than anything. The man just didn’t respect boundaries.
“No, I think that’s the problem with you Alison, you have surrounded yourself with people that respect your space too much,” he told me as he kissed me lightly on the nose.
Feeling like he was way too close to the truth for my comfort, I glared at him and tried to blow the hair that had escaped my ponytail away from my face. Without asking, Matt took the rogue strands and tucked them behind my ear.
“As opposed to the people that you surround yourself with? An extensive list of women who only know the fantasy you present and not the man you keep behind that mask you wear so well?” I shot back knowing I’d hit a nerve when his eyes narrowed, and his mouth turned down at the corners.
Just when I thought the silence was going to kill me, he suddenly got off the bed, lifted me up and put me on one side, pulled down the comforter, then lifted me up and placed me back on the bed and pulled the comforter up to my chest. I was so shocked by his acti
ons that I just stared at him.
“How long was your last relationship Ali?” he whispered with a look that made me want to clench my thighs together. Not sure what his game was, I watched him place two pillows in the middle of the bed like a barrier and then the man stripped down to his red boxers. As soon as he turned, I looked away, knowing that if I looked at that magnificent body in the firelight that I may just throw all good sense to the wind and ask him if I could lick just one chiseled ab.
Kicking off the comforter, I limped over to the dresser and got out my toiletry bag and pajamas. Walking into the large bathroom with the old pedestal sinks, I shut the door on his strange gaze. I made quick work of getting ready for bed, giving myself a pat on the back when I had opted for my trusted monkey pajama bottoms and an oversized t-shirt instead of the lingerie that was sitting in my top drawer at home. I had purchased it because I thought it would make me feel beautiful. Instead, it just reminded me of what I looked like naked…scarred…hideous.
Knowing I couldn’t put off the inevitable forever, I sighed and opened the door. Matt had turned off all the lights, and the large bed was bathed in firelight. Geez, it was romantic!
Matt was turned away from my side of the bed, and his slow breathing made me wonder if he was asleep. I slipped under the sheets as quietly as I could and turned to face the wall. He had called me his girlfriend and then his girl. I was sure he didn’t mean anything by it, Matt Hudson didn’t do relationships or girlfriends and he never would if he continued to judge everything by some insane standard of what love looked like.
I was just drifting off to sleep when a husky voice whispered in my ear, “still waiting, Ali? How long has it been since your last relationship?”
I turned, and we were suddenly nose to nose. Apparently, the pillow barrier had just been for my benefit seeing as he was going to jump the wall anytime he felt like it!
I could feel his breath as it lightly fanned me, a mixture of mint and cologne assaulted my senses. For a moment I just stared at him. His cocky grin present when he caught me gawking at him, yanked me out of my stupor.
“What difference does it make Matt? You don’t even do relationships!” I hissed trying to push him back with my hands on his chest, the man was immovable.
“That’s not an answer, Alison Collins,” he said in a teasing voice just above a whisper. Even in the mostly dark room, his eyes seemed oddly bright.
“So long ago, I don’t even remember.” I huffed out.
He leaned in and followed me as I pushed back into the pillows, his soft lips brushed mine briefly. “Ask me,” he demanded softly, his lips just hovering over mine.
“Ask you what?” I had no idea what he wanted from me. Did he expect me to ask him the same question he had me? Had he forgotten the conversation we’d had in Vegas that night? Feeling a little miffed that the man had been with so many women that he couldn’t even recall that he had shared his lack of wanting a relationship with one of them, I pushed him off me and glared at him.
“Fine, same question Matthew! How long ago was your last relationship? How long did it last?” I practically growled as I used my feet to shove him over to his side of the bed.
He looked at me for what seemed like hours, the look on his face was unreadable. Tired, hurting and annoyed that I was letting this man toy with me, I turned over with a dramatic flop and pulled the comforter up to my ears, promising to whack the man with a lamp if he invaded my space again tonight.
“I want to answer your question Alison, but I didn’t know the answer myself until just this second,” his voice floated over the pillow barrier I had pushed back in place.
“Don’t keep me suspense, Mr. Hudson, do tell the class!” I drawled sarcastically as I closed my eyes and willed my body to rest.
“My last relationship started exactly two- minutes and thirty seconds ago, and I intend for it to last forever, Alison.” His determined voice filled my ears as I froze.
Had he just said what I thought he’d said? No! Surely, I must be imagining things! Wanting to ask but too afraid of the answer, I burrowed deeper in the warm cocoon of the thick quilt.
He had to be talking about something else, I had to have misheard him! Matt Hudson can’t mean he was in a relationship with me? I was nothing like the iconic woman it would take to make his impossible dream of a perfect, neat and tidy love, come true! You’re wrong, you’re tired! He’s tired! He just misspoke…again. He doesn’t do girlfriends, he doesn’t!
“Oh and Alison?” Matt asked from far too close.
“Yes?” I squeaked. I didn’t even recognize my own voice and was silently wishing I’d brought my Tylenol PM because I was sure I’d never get to sleep now.
“I knew exactly what I was saying when I called you my girlfriend and when I referred to you as my girl. I wasn’t playing, you’re mine Alison…you just don’t know it yet.” He whispered, and I heard him turn over to face away from me, his bomb delivered and detonated!
Holy Fuck! What the hell was I supposed to do with that?
Matt
I wasn’t sure what had been more exhausting, Reece and Synclair’s crazy wedding where the bride went into labor just as the reception had started. Or, possibly the fact that I had a beautiful new nephew, the mutt that Alison had saved yesterday that decided to follow me around with his nose pushed up my crotch or the fact that Alison had made it a point to not be alone with me all day. The skittish woman had gotten up before dawn, dressed and had called a taxi service to take her to Cami’s house, where Reece, Synclair, Lucas, and Sara were going to take their vows. She had left me a note, telling me that she wanted to lend a hand with the setup, but I knew better.
I’m not sure when I had come to the conclusion that I was going to be with Alison. Maybe I was caught up in the hysteria of both my brothers getting married. Or it was possible that I had finally found a woman that made me want to give up all other women. Whatever it was, I was both terrified and excited.
It may have been watching my brother Dalton completely screw up the situation with Synclair’s cousin, Cami. I knew Dalton was a player, not because he was a jerk but because he was afraid to settle on one woman and then have her ripped from his life like our parents had been.
The long plane ride to Ireland with my new sister, Sara, who had married my brother Lucas less than twelve hours ago, had set me straight. She had told me that if she had judged love by the standards I set, that she and Lucas and little Logan wouldn’t be the family, they are now. She had actually accused me of holding on the to same fear Dalton had. That because our parents had been taken from us when we were younger that we were afraid to risk that same pain. Yeah, it wasn’t something I wanted to face. The idea that I was simply a coward hit me hard.
I had always prided myself on my sense of adventure, of going after what I wanted without fear or reservation but one conversation with Sara had changed all that. Of course, Synclair refused to be left out my misery had happily told me that, if I was willing to bring a woman to her wedding, then I must be serious. Synclair had been right, of course, I wanted Alison at this wedding because I wanted her to see me with my family, I wanted her to know the craziness that surrounds this bunch of lunatics. If she couldn’t accept my wonderful, crazy, nosey family, then we’d have no shot.
Happily, Alison had not disappointed. In fact, all of my Hudson brothers had been worried that it would be Synclair getting the girls into trouble. Instead, it was my big-hearted, animal loving, skittish woman who thought that a few scars were going to stop me from caring about her.
The good news was, everyone thought Alison was awesome. After Synclair had given birth to little Wyatt, Alison had shown up with a gorgeous baby blanket that she had made herself before she’d even gotten on the plane.
It was then that I knew Alison was most definitely a Hudson. As I watched my big brother, Reece, a man of steel in my eyes, tear up when he wrapped his new son in the blanket that Alison had so thoughtfully brought with her, I was to
ast. I wanted to wrap that woman up and kiss her senseless, but while we were busy fussing over little Wyatt, the woman had bolted…again!
So, here I was, sitting in our room at the inn, in Ireland of all places and Alison was nowhere to be found. Other than a quick text telling me that she had taken a cab to the hotel and would “catch” me later, I hadn’t heard a darn thing.
Wait! Why was I sitting here, waiting for Alison to come to me? Hadn’t I learned already that the woman made it an art form to avoid any kind of intimacy. It suddenly occurred to me that the little minx was probably hiding out somewhere just waiting for me to fall asleep so that she could sneak in not deal with the small bit of information I had dropped on her last night.
Deciding that I was done sitting on my ass like a nervous nelly, I grabbed my room key, my jacket and went for the door. I had my hand on the knob when the hotel phone rang.
“Damn this better be good,” I grumbled as I jogged back to the archaic looking landline and grabbed the receiver up to my ear.
“Hudson,” I said impatiently.I knew it wouldn’t be Alison, she had my cell number, so whoever was on the other end of the line was on my shit list.
“Mr. Hudson, I’m glad I caught you. Yes, very pleased. Would you be missing something?” A familiar and annoyingly cheery voice asked.
Looking up at the ceiling then back down at my shoes, I let out a frustrated sigh.
“Actually, I did, I misplaced my date. I don’t suppose you’ve seen her have you?” I asked as I grinned. I wasn’t sure if I was amused that the meddling innkeeper was giving me shit or just embarrassed that the sweet old man had found Alison when I couldn’t.
“Well, I might just be able to help ya out with that one. Ya see, that sweet girl you checked in with has been getting plastered in the bar downstairs and quite frankly I’m too old to be carrying a young miss up to her room. If you get my meaning?” I could almost hear the man grinning on the other end of the phone.
No Refunds No Exchanges: A Hudson Family Series- Book 4- Matt and Ali Page 18