Page 12

Three hours later, Maddie slammed the cleaver down through the onion and then struggled to pull it out of the wooden cutting board.

Matt’s kitchen was ridiculously well equipped for not being used at all.

He had three different huge knives and she hadn’t been able to choose between them.

The cleaver, however, had seemed the most effective.

God, that idiot had sent her a wedding invitation after years of silence.

Sure, they still wished each other happy birthdays and every year they had gone for coffee together when Clemens had asked her to, but otherwise…

otherwise, they had no contact whatsoever!

She definitely wouldn’t have invited him to her wedding!

What wedding would that be , Maddie? her subconscious wanted to know.

“Oh, just shut up!”

“I didn’t say anything.”

She startled and looked up. Matt had come through the door and was standing in the foyer with damp hair, wearing jeans and a t-shirt with a large gym bag slung over his shoulder.

“Damn it, don’t scare a woman with a knife in her hand,” she said, shaking her head and waving the cleaver before enthusiastically returning to the onions.

It was actually too late to cook, but it had taken ages to figure out where they could cut costs and she had wanted to do something nice for Matt, for giving her shelter.

Besides, he was always hungry after a game, so…

“I thought you were talking to me,” Matt said apologetically, dropping the bag and taking off his shoes.

“No. I was talking to myself.”

“Ah. Like normal, non-crazy people do?”

She glared at him. “You shouldn’t provoke a normal, non-crazy person with a knife in their hand either, Matt.”

He chuckled softly and sauntered over to her. “How was your day?”

“Challenging. Monotonous. Grueling.” She glanced up. “How many horrible adjectives do you want to hear?”

“Three will suffice.”

“Good. How was your day?”

He lifted a shoulder and leaned against the kitchen island. “Didn’t you watch the game?”

Her cheeks turned pink. Was she obligated to, as his new roommate? “Oh, no, I didn’t. I was too busy. Did you win?”

He smiled weakly. “Nah.”

Her shoulders sagged and she squeezed his hand across the counter. “Oh, sorry. At least I didn’t miss anything.”

He snorted. “It’s nice to have someone in my life who doesn’t care about hockey.”

She laughed nervously and diced the onions finely. “Sorry. Should I be sadder?”

“No, no. Please don’t be. You already look sad enough.” He leaned over the kitchen island toward her, narrowing his eyes. “Have you been crying?”

She glanced down guiltily. “A little.”

“Because of the onions?”

She swallowed. “A little.”

“Oh, Maddie.” He came around the island with a sigh.

“It’s no big deal!” She waved him off in case he was thinking about hugging her.

For some reason, Matt’s hugs opened her floodgates and she had worked hard today to keep them shut.

“Just a few aftereffects from yesterday. I’m feeling much better!

” At least, she was no longer close to breaking down. “Really. Don’t worry.”

Matt looked at her skeptically but finally gave up and peeked into the oven instead.

“What are you cooking?”

“Chicken drumsticks.”

“Bone in?”

“Yep.”

He raised his eyebrows in surprise. “But you hate things with bones in them. Actually, you’re mostly vegetarian, aren’t you?”

“Yes, I bought the chicken for you because your diet is always so healthy during the season. I actually wanted the brisket, but the lady next to me at the store took the last one and I didn’t want to make a fuss… I thought I’d bake the drumsticks rather than fry them. Less fat.”

A line appeared between Matt’s eyes. “Why didn’t you just ask the store…”

“Never mind, they’re just legs. You know I don’t like arguing.”

“Telling the store what you want isn’t arguing .”

Yes, it was. In a way. At least, it was a type of confrontation she had wanted to avoid. “I don’t care. I’m sure it’ll be delicious anyway.”

“That’s not the point.”

“Is the point to annoy me? Because you’ve hit the nail on the head.”

He sighed. “Fine.”

“Yes,” she said emphatically. “The onions are for salsa. There are potatoes and green beans too.” She nodded at the pots next to her. “You have a very cool induction cooktop.”

“I do?”

She snorted. “You’re impossible. Are you hungry? Please lie if you aren’t. I’ve been working in the kitchen for an hour.”

He grinned. “I’m hungry. I’m always hungry. And it smells delicious.”

“I know. So, relax on the couch while I finish cooking.”

“Shouldn’t I help you?”

“Nope.” She grabbed him by the shoulders and pushed him out of the kitchen. “Sit down and talk to me. This is a thank you meal for giving me a roof over my head. Besides, you must be exhausted from cavorting unchecked on the ice for the last few hours.”

He grimaced. “I hope you’re not secretly writing for the sports news. Charming was cavorting unchecked on the ice tonight would finish me off.”

She bit her lower lip to keep from laughing. “I’m sure they’re more articulate than I am,” she stated, adding the onions to sliced tomatoes. “Was the game that bad?”

“No, not really. It was pretty close. Which makes it even more annoying,” he said, strolling toward the couch before pausing at the counter. “Who are Clemens and Becky?”

She looked up abruptly.

Oh, shit. She had left the wedding announcement out because she’d briefly considered burning it. Unfortunately, Matt had an induction stove, not propane.

“Nobody,” she replied hastily. “So, it was close?”

Matt ignored her attempt to continue talking about ice hockey. “The card is scented,” he said, wrinkling his nose and holding it up. “Who the hell does that to their potential guests, making their living room smell like lavender?”

She grinned. He was right. It was silly. “I’ll throw it away later.”

Surprised, Matt glanced up. “Don’t you need the information on it?”

“No. I’m not going.”

“Why not?”

She sighed and her shoulders sagged. They were friends and honest with each other, so she replied, “Because Clemens is my ex-boyfriend.”

Matt dropped the card abruptly. “You have an ex-boyfriend?”

She snorted at his shocked expression. “Yes, Matt. What did you think? That I’m a virgin? That I’m such a hopeless romantic, I never gave anyone a chance just because they never showed up on a white horse?”

“Well, no,” he said, perplexed, though she could see that he had been thinking along those lines. “You’ve never mentioned him. That’s all.”

Yes, Clemens was not a pleasant topic for her.

“Because it’s irrelevant. The whole thing happened in college and it ended badly.

Well, for me anyway.” Clemens had enjoyed a nice time, easy come, easy go.

“We argued a lot and I…” She paused. It would be too embarrassing to reveal that she had believed they were in a serious, committed relationship while Clemens was just having fun .

“Oh, it doesn’t matter. Anyway, he invited me to his wedding, but I’m not going.

” She snorted, amused. “It doesn’t matter.

What I wanted to say was thanks for yesterday.

You’re right. I want to get married and have kids, but I’m not searching for my dream man.

I think I should start.” She had come to that conclusion in the last few hours.

“It can’t hurt to at least tackle one issue in my life, right? Should we eat on the couch?”

Matt didn’t answer. He was still staring at her with his eyes narrowed. “You have an ex-boyfriend I didn’t know about and you want to start dating?”

She blinked, confused. “I didn’t realize you were interested in my ex-boyfriends.”

“I’m not,” Matt said, looking away. “I’m just surprised because you always know about my affairs with women.”

“I don’t know everything!” she said, rolling her eyes. Seriously, it was hard to keep track of them all!

“Hm,” Matt uttered, deep in thought. “Okay, let’s get back to the fact that you want to date.”

Maddie raised her eyebrows. “Yeah, what about it? It was practically your suggestion. You said I always talk about marriage and the rest…but never do anything about it. So, I’ll start with dating. Now, are we eating on the couch? Everything is ready.”

He sighed and nodded before walking back and reaching over her for the plates on one of the upper shelves. Maddie breathed in his scent. Pine forest – his deodorant – and freshly showered Matt. Much better than lavender.

After helping themselves to meat, potatoes, and green beans, they carried their plates to the coffee table and plopped down on the couch.

“Your couch is ridiculously large but also incredibly comfortable,” she admitted, tucking a few pillows behind her back.

“We’ve always had big couches. We’re a big family,” he said, putting a tiny potato in his mouth. “I think, subconsciously, I expect all my sisters and my parents to come in every day and complain that not everyone has a seat.”

She smiled broadly. Matt’s family was close. His parents acted like parents. His sisters asked him every week how he was doing.

It wasn’t that she wasn’t close to her sisters and her father.

It was just…more stressful. Sometimes it was even a little tense.

She had to constantly check in with Lucy about who was going to look after their dad the next week, so he didn’t forget to eat or leave the house.

Her dad hadn’t been the same man since their mother died.

And Rachel…Rachel had moved to Chicago years ago and simply left her life here behind.

Sure, she called, and she’d helped Maddie with the dating questionnaire, but she didn’t truly know what was going on in her life.

It was ridiculous, but Maddie knew more about the daily lives of Matt’s sisters than her own.

Well, that wasn’t exactly right. Lucy was an open book.

They saw each other every week. Rachel, however…

“What are you thinking about?” Matt asked, nudging her with his knee.

“My sister.”

“Lucy?”