by Dawn Brower
“Your house,” she reminded him calmly. “Time to go inside. I’m sure you’re tired and want to go to bed. I have some work to do, so I’m going to head home.”
“No.” His nostrils flared. “I’m not tired, and I want you to stay.”
Every night for the past month he’d insisted she go home. Now he decided she should stay on the one night she wanted to leave? This was weird. “Why do you want me to stay? Especially since you keep pushing me out the door?”
“Because...” His mouth snapped shut. His eyes became even more glazy than usual. Matt reached across and hit the release button on her seat belt. He pushed it to the side, and then grabbed for her, pulling her over to his side of the car and onto his lap. “I need you to stay.”
“You could have said so. I don’t need to be on your lap for that.” Although she did like it. Whatever was on his mind, she appreciated the sentiment. Maybe things were starting to get better. She’d take it. Maybe she should ask questions, a lot of them, but for the moment she rather enjoyed having his arms around her. He was being rather arbitrary, and a part of her wanted to put him in his place for it. The man had smooth moves even with his lack of sight. She imagined he’d be good either way. Some things were ingrained, and hard to forget. It was—nice, and vindicating, to realize he at least wanted her as much as she wanted him. What that actually meant she wasn’t sure she wanted to find out. It could be any amount of varying degrees from caring to love all the way to down and dirty lust. They had time to explore every one of them, but not while sitting in the passenger seat of the car. “Why don’t you let me go so we can go inside?”
Instead of replying, he leaned his head and nuzzled her. His lips trailed across her neck, leaving a trail of warmth. “You smell so good.”
This was everything she’d ever wanted, and she didn’t understand one iota of it. He wasn’t acting like himself. Did he even realize it was her in the car with him? Was this some kind of dream state? She had awoken him rather suddenly. She should stop him—yes, she should—but oh, did it feel so good. Why couldn’t she bask in it for a little while longer? Matt lifted his hand and trailed his fingers through her hair. He pulled her head down and captured her lips with his. It was a soft yet demanding kiss. The sweetness of it stole what was left of her heart. She’d been in love with him for months now, but this kiss it sent her fully over the edge. He coaxed her into a deeper kiss, and when his tongue entwined with hers an uncontrollable moan escaped from deep inside of her.
She pulled back and stared down at him. What was happening? This was definitely not how she’d envisioned her night going—it was so much better. But she had to be sure he knew it was her he was kissing. “Matt,” she whispered.
“Yes.”
“This isn’t the place to have a make out session.”
“Seems like the tried, true place every person has made out at least once in their life time.” He chuckled lightly and held on to her. His head rested on her chest and the rumble of his laughter tickled. Claire squirmed in his arms with each vibration. “Easy now, Cheer Bear. You’re not making thing easy on me, are you?”
That answered her question. He did realize he’d been kissing her. Why had she doubted it? Matt didn’t seem like the type to kiss random strangers. “We should go inside.” Awareness spread throughout her—equally matched by warmth. With each touch, her body came more alive with need. If he kept touching and kissing her she’d be a puddle of desire.
“Are you staying?” he asked huskily.
Was she? Claire met his gaze for a moment. It almost seemed—no she was imagining things. He couldn’t see her. She wanted to stay, but she wasn’t exactly sure what he was asking. “I can for a little while, but I really do have a lot of work to do. I have a bunch of interviews to undertake in the morning.”
“Interviews?” His brow rose. “For what? You’re not leaving us, are you?”
Shoot. Dani must not have told him about hiring a new associate yet. She’d not wanted to be put in the middle. “No, I’m not going anywhere.”
She neglected to tell him what the interviews were for. Maybe he’d drop the subject. She almost laughed. Who was she kidding? Matt’s curiosity was peaked; he’d not let any of it go for any reason.
“Then what are the interviews for?”
She sighed. There was nothing she could do but tell him the truth. “Dani has tasked me with hiring another associate to take on some work while both of you are out of the office.”
“That’s not necessary.” He frowned. “Besides, we can’t afford it.”
“Dani said not to worry about the financial aspect. She has it all worked out.” Claire had shared a similar concern. She didn’t blame Matt for it. “I have a few potential attorneys coming in tomorrow. I think it should be settled by the end of the day. After the interviews, I’ll give Dani my impressions and she’ll decide who to hire.”
“Without consulting me?” Matt spat out. “I’m glad I get a say in my own firm.”
Hell, what had she started? He’d been so loving and he’d seemed to want her. Now anger spilled off him in waves. What could she do to ease him back to the fun Matt she loved. “I don’t think she meant to take anything away from you. She said she was coming to see you. She probably wouldn’t make any decisions without talking to you first.”
“Like making the decision to hire someone without telling me?”
He did have a point. Dani had done that. She’d also not told him about stepping back at the office. There was a lot Dani was doing without talking to her friend. Claire had believed she would tell him about it. Her place wasn’t to interfere, so she’d sat back and waited for Dani to do her job. This was the price she paid for being dependable. “To be fair, she has been healing from a gunshot wound. She has a lot to deal with too.”
He sighed. “You’re right. She almost died, so I should cut her some slack.”
There was still an edge to his voice. He’d been upset and let it go to easily. Maybe she was creating problems that weren’t there. If he said he was all right with it, she’d be best not to question it too much. Claire breathed a sigh of relief. His anger seemed to be diffusing. “Good, so we can go inside now?”
“Yes. I suppose we should. The air does have a chill to it.”
They went inside, not speaking a word. Matt didn’t ask again if she’d stay. She wasn’t even sure if he still wanted her to. It was best she prepare to go home as soon as he was settled. He had a lot to process after the bomb she dropped on him. Plus, she had to prepare for the interviews and still wanted to research Carter’s case. He’d scared her a little with the warning.
“Would you like something to drink?” Matt asked.
“I can get it,” she said. He’d managed to help himself a little around the kitchen, but he tended to stick to water when getting a drink. It was easier for him to tell what it was. “Do you want anything?”
“No,” he said and headed toward the living room. “Join me in a few, will you? There’s something I want to discuss.”
Claire gulped down the lump in her throat. Her mouth went dry at his words. Was she wrong about his anger? Was he going to push for her to stay again? What in the world did he want to discuss? There was one way to find out. She grabbed a glass and filled it with water. Her thirst quenched, she went to find Matt. Putting it off would make her uneasy.
Matt was staring out a window. There was nothing but darkness greeting him. He hadn’t bothered to turn on any lights. It didn’t occur to her to turn them on for him. He’d not asked, and it made little difference to him with his blurry vision. So finding him staring out into the night shouldn’t have bothered her, yet it did. There was nothing out there, and even if there was he couldn’t see it. So why was he staring out there as if it held all of his unanswered questions?
“Matt?” she asked softly. “What are you doing?”
He turned toward her. She couldn’t make out his features in the dark. Maybe she should turn a light on. Clai
re jumped as thunder boomed outside. When had a storm started? She was completely unaware of her surroundings. Then suddenly a flash of lightning filled the room. Matt’s eyes weren’t glazed over. His gaze was glued on her as if he studied her. But that couldn’t be. He’d have told her if he could see again. Wouldn’t he?
His gaze fell back to the window. “Have you ever stared out a window at night and appreciated the darkness?”
She couldn’t say she had. “What is going on?” He’d wanted to discuss something. Surely it had nothing to do with the night sky. “Is something bothering you?”
“A lot is, actually.” He remained still, with his back to her. “Life is a lot like a storm.”
“How do you mean.” Claire was concerned. Why was he acting so odd?
“There are ups, down, excitement, calm spots.” He gestured toward the window. “Take this one. It came out of nowhere and surprised us. That’s the shockers life throws at us. We never know when something is going to happen that will change everything.”
“That’s true.” She’d not thought of it like that.
“There are the short drizzles, the high winds, and then there are the ones that have a calm in the center, making you think you have a moment to get your bearings. At least until it starts raging again.” He turned toward her. “Either way, it is all unpredictable. We don’t know what each day is going to bring or what havoc might throw us for a loop.” He stalked toward her. “You’re my biggest storm.”
She gulped. He must be able to see her. That was the only explanation. He didn’t stumble, stop, or even consider where he was heading. She moved to the side to see what he would do and he adjusted his trajectory to meet her at the end of his destination. “You can see me, can’t you?”
“Yes,” he admitted.
She took a step back. “How long?”
He moved forward and cupped her cheek with his hand. “How long for what?”
Was he being deliberately obtuse? “How long have you been able to see?”
Another boom of thunder filled the room. Claire jumped again, giving Matt the opportunity to wrap his arms around her. He leaned down, kissed her cheek, and whispered in her ear, “I want you.”
Well, that was too damn bad. She had too many questions and not enough answers. “How long, Matt.”
He sighed. “A couple hours at most.”
Her mouth fell open. “But...when...why?” she sputtered. How could he have kept that to himself? She took a deep breath and said, “So, the entire time at dinner?”
“Yes, I could see then.” His smile faded. “Are you going to make a big deal about this?”
“It is. So yes.” She stepped back away from him. “You don’t need me here. Why did you keep asking me to stay?”
He’d been acting odd ever since the hospital. Had he seen Nolan kiss her? Was that why he insisted on going to dinner at her mother’s. If he’d asked her, she would have told him Nolan meant nothing to her. Was Matt jealous? It would explain a lot. His mood swings and the way he’d insisted she stay. He’d never done that before. Her stomach rolled and twisted into a knot of disgust. He only wanted her because someone else did. What a bunch of bullshit. Claire was like a toy he’d forgotten he might want to play with. She wouldn’t be an object he had to claim before someone else beat him to the punch.
“I want you here.”
“Since when?” She placed her hands on her hips as a flash of lightning filled the room. “You told me to leave not too long ago. You said you don’t need me.”
He shook his head. “I was an idiot. Please stay.”
She couldn’t. If she did, he’d think he could pull a stunt like this again. She had to make sure he understood he couldn’t play games with her. She stared at him coldly. “I agree.” She stormed out of the room and headed to the front door.
“You agree, what?” Matt called out. “To stay?”
He sounded so hopeful. Too bad she had to disabuse him of that. “No. I agree you’re a fucking idiot.” She stopped at the front door and turned to him. “I am not staying with you. You don’t need me, remember? You’ll get by fine on your own. Especially now—” She twirled her hand in front of his face. “That you can see.”
“Don’t be mad.” Matt’s jaw tightened. “I want things to be good between us.”
She pressed her lips together and shook her head. How was she going to make him understand? “The reasons I can’t stay have nothing to do with how much I care about you and everything to do with how you feel it’s your right to dictate to me. I can’t be around someone who doesn’t respect me or consider what their actions do to me.” She took a deep breath and said, “I’m glad you’re better. I truly am. But I’m done with you.”
With that, she spun on her heels and left him alone. Tears streamed down her cheeks. She hadn’t even realized she was crying until the wetness drenched her face. Why did she always give her heart to a man who didn’t value her? It was time to wake up and move on. The veil had been lifted and she saw clearly for the first time. She couldn’t expect anyone to respect her if she didn’t give herself the same consideration. From that moment on, she was going to do what was best for her. The rest of the world be damned.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Claire strolled into the office and stopped short. There were several people waiting to be interviewed, but she paused at the sight of Matt greeting one of them. What the hell was he doing there? Her heart skipped a beat as she studied him. Damn him for being so handsome. His dark brown hair had grown longer than usual in the time he’d been convalescing, adding a rakish look to his already devastating handsomeness. He turned toward her, the corners of his mouth lifting when he noticed her. His pale blue eyes burned with a fire she’d never seen before. She gulped back a lump in her throat.
“What’s going on?” she asked, her tone sharper than intended.
“You’re interviewing today. I decided to take a part in the process since I’ll be working closely with the person hired.”
She had a feeling he’d say exactly that. It didn’t make her happy knowing he decided to insinuate himself into the middle of the interviews. He had every right to be there. It was his firm, and she was the lowly legal assistant that helped them run things. She should have realized he’d do something at some point. He’d not been happy when she told him about the interviews, and this was his way of extracting control over it. Of course the jerk could see now too, so why wouldn’t he?
She still couldn’t believe he’d kept that bit of information from her. What if he lied about when it returned? Could she trust him when he kept something so important from her? She wanted to, but she couldn’t bring herself to let go of his betrayal. Claire had trusted him, and he’d abused that gift. It would take a lot for her to forgive him. He was supposed to be better than all the others who’d come before him. It was disconcerting to realize he wasn’t as perfect as she’d thought.
“I don’t need you here.” She stared over his shoulder and counted. There were four individuals waiting for an interview. Three males and one female sat in the reception area. “I told you this is preliminary. The secondary interviews can be conducted by you and Dani.”
“Why bother?” He raised an eyebrow. “I’m here, and we can finish it today. Hire someone we like and call it good.”
She took a deep breath and prayed for patience. “Fine.” He did have a point. It would save time, and Dani would trust their judgment. Claire wondered if Dani knew Matt had regained his sight. Did he keep it from everyone or just her? “I’m supposed to meet Dani for lunch later. I can tell her about our decision when I go.” Then she could ask her how much she’d been aware of Matt’s sight.
“Then let’s get started.”
She shook her head. “Give me five minutes. I have to do a couple of things. Meet me in the conference room.”
What she didn’t say was she needed time to get her bearings. Seeing him in the office had stirred something deep inside of her. She had to figure
out how to handle the next several hours and not lose her composure. Having Matt close by was going to be difficult to her emotional stability. She slid past him and headed to her office. Once she was safely inside she closed the door and leaned against it. A breath of air whooshed out of her mouth. Her hands shook at her sides. How was she going to make it through each day? Seeing him, talking to him, and knowing she loved him despite his treachery. Could she do it?
It wasn’t the same as Nolan. Matt and Claire had never been together, so he’d never made her any promises. Not once had he said he loved her or pretended they had a future. No, he’d done nothing but keep his medical condition to himself. He’d wanted to handle his problems on his own. Did she really have a right to be mad at him? Yes, she did, but she had to accept that it wasn’t because he’d lied. He never lied, at least not in the true sense of the word. He’d omitted the truth and failed to inform her of his situation. Not the same thing, but it was skating a fine line.
Her gaze settled on her desk. A huge bouquet of white roses sat in an ornate white vase on her desk. Had Matt sent her flowers to apologize? If so, she’d give him a break, but not a big one. She’d help at the office. Go through the interviews. At the end of the day though she’d keep her heart safe and not let herself get drawn into his life ever again. It was for the best. She headed toward her desk and searched for a card, but didn’t find one. She’d ask Matt if he sent the flowers.
The phone in her office rang loudly, and she jumped violently. She’d not expected it to ring. Amy should know to hold her calls... She walked to her desk and picked it up. “Hello?”
“Ah, good. I caught you.”
Claire groaned. She should have ignored it. Why the hell wasn’t Amy answering the phone? “I don’t have time for you, Nolan.”
“We need to talk.”
Like hell they did. She had nothing to say to him. “Bother someone else.”
“You didn’t use to be so rude,” he said offended. “You used to love to talk to me.”