Page 25 of The Playboy’s Playbook

Chapter Twenty-One

MATT

“ A re you sure about this, Matty?” Laila asks as I finish packing a few water bottles and other snacks into a cooler while she cuddles Nola, peppering her with kisses.

It’s the Fourth of July and Laila and I plan on going to watch the fireworks show together, this time at the sports complex.

We don’t plan on staying long because we don’t want Nola to get too upset and anxious because of the sounds, but we wanted to go out and experience the show like any other couple, especially since we stayed in for the Memorial Day show.

“She’ll be okay, baby. We’re coming right back for her,” I reassure Laila.

Laila doesn’t take her eyes off of Nola. “I know, but…what if she gets scared without me being here? Maybe we shouldn’t go, Matty. We can just stay here and watch it on the balcony. She was fine when we did that.”

“If you don’t want to go, then we don’t have to. I’ll do whatever you want.” I kiss her shoulder and wait for her to answer.

Laila thinks for a moment before she releases a deep sigh before she turns to look up at me, Nola still clutched tightly in her arms.

“No, no. Let’s go. But can we –”

I cut her off, finishing her sentence for her. “Leave early? Of course.”

Laila’s shoulders relax and she leans in, placing a soft kiss on my lips. “Thank you,” she whispers.

“Anything for you.” I release my hold on Laila and walk over to grab the cooler and blanket that’s on the kitchen island. Laila carries Nola to her kennel and sets her down, petting her behind her ears.

“You’ll be okay, Nola. I’ll be back for you. I promise,” Laila says, her voice soothing. She sets Nola’s panda bear and the toy bouquet in the kennel with her before latching the door closed. Laila locks up the house and I grab her hand as we make the short walk to my truck.

She made me take this quiz in one of her magazines about love languages – whatever the hell those are. Apparently, mine is physical touch and hers is words of affirmation.

I open the passenger door for her and help her into the truck, passing her the small cooler and blanket.

I round the hood and climb into the driver’s side, turning the engine over, and start the drive to the open field where the fireworks show is taking place.

Laila and I chat aimlessly until my phone rings and Luke’s name appears on the screen.

“What?” I growl.

“You’re lucky I have the boys with me, otherwise, I’d say something much worse. Hey, Laila,” Luke says.

Laila laughs and shakes her head. “Hey Luke.”

“We just got off the exit, so we’ll be a little late,” Luke says before shouting at the boys to stop kicking each other.

“Alright. We’ll get a good spot,” I say, turning down the road that leads to the sports complex. It’s already a shit-ton of people here, so I know parking’s about to be a pain in the ass.

“Alright. Cool. Oh and Matty, I need to – boys! Kick each other again and we’re going back home!”

Laila and I look at each other and snicker quietly, not wanting to get yelled at by Luke. My best friend sighs wearily. “We’ll see you guys there.”

The line goes dead and Laila and I immediately burst into a fit of laughter.

“Those boys, I swear,” I say. Laila continues to smile and turns the radio down a little as we begin looking for a parking spot.

“The city needs to lay down an actual parking lot,” I groan in frustration as I circle the grassy area for the fifth time.

Laila’s chuckles fill the truck. “Just park right there. And back in so we can just get in the truck and leave when we’re ready.” She points to an empty spot that’s near the corner of the field.

I slowly drive the truck to the spot and back in like she suggested.

Once I park, we both gather our things and exit the truck.

We walk hand-in-hand, smiling and waving to people who stare curiously at us.

It’s not like Laila and I are trying to keep each other a secret, but we like our bubble.

Our bubble is our safe space and tonight, we’re bursting through it with a very public outing.

I squeeze her hand, bringing her attention to me. “You okay?”

She smiles softly and nods. “Yeah, I’m fine. I’m here with you and I’m happy. That’s all that matters.”

I tug on her hand, bringing us to a stop. I lean down and kiss her, not giving a damn what others are saying about us. I love this woman and I’m going to let everyone know that she’s mine just like I’m hers.

I take the picnic blanket and fan it open so we can sit down and get settled before the fireworks start. I look around at all of the kids playing and running, friends laughing. The band playing bluegrass music is a nice touch.

I forget how good of a community Oakridge is. I regret a lot of my life’s choices that kept me from experiencing simple moments of happiness like this. I was chasing a bottle rather than chasing the little things in life.

“Shit,” Laila curses. She’s digging through the cooler, a look of determination and frustration on her face. “We forgot ice. I’ll go see if the concession stand has some.”

She moves to stand, but I stop her. “I’ll go. Luke and the boys should be here soon, so I’ll see if I can spot them. Do you want or need anything else?”

She shakes her head and leans forward, silently asking for a kiss. I happily oblige and press our lips together before I stand and head over to get in line at the singular concession stand.

Finally, I get to the front of the line and I’m glancing over the concession menu that’s taped to the counter to see if there’s anything Laila could want. She doesn’t indulge in sweets often, but she does like to eat Starbursts every so often.

“My, my. If it ain’t Matty Foster.”

I close my eyes at the shrill sound of a voice I never wanted to hear again.

Reluctantly, I glance up from the menu and come face-to-face with Rachel Finley.

I haven’t seen her — or her dick of a boyfriend, Randy — since the night of my arrest. She reached out to me a few times while I was in jail, but I ignored her.

I needed to re-enter society on a clean slate and she wasn’t part of that slate.

“You look good, Matty. Real good,” she purrs, trying her best to sound seductive. Rachel’s bleach blonde hair is pulled back into a ponytail, but the color is washed out by her heavily spray-tanned skin. Her face is caked with makeup, and her false eyelashes are the longest I’ve ever seen.

“Were you the reason the line was taking so long?” I groan, rolling my eyes.

“Oh, you know me. I just love to chit-chat. I ain’t seen you in a minute. What’ve you been up to?” She leans forward, puckering her lips.

“Two cups of ice, please,” I say as I pull out two dollars from my wallet and slide them over the counter to her. I’m not in the mood to talk to her and I’m hoping she’ll take the hint.

“Oh, two?” She takes the cash and puts it in the register before shouting over her shoulder for two cups of ice. “You seeing someone? Y’all serious or are you just fucking her like you did me?”

I try my best not to grind my teeth and just when I’m about to snap, a worker brings the cups to the counter. I quickly snatch them and turn to walk away, but Rachel follows.

“It’s been such a long time, Matty. How about after the show, you and I go to our favorite spot like we did back in the day? Have a little fun? I’m sure your new bitch can wait.” She trails her fingers up my chest and I try not to visibly squirm in disgust.

“Don’t you dare –”

“Oh, it ain’t so fun having someone in your life called a bitch, ain’t it?

You may have bulked up a bit, grown out your hair, and got that little job playing with building blocks, but you are still the same Matty Foster deep down.

You don’t stick to one girl. No, no. You have to have options and I am one of your options. ”

I look away from her, feeling the anger rise in my body. I haven’t felt like this in a long time and I’m really trying to remain calm. I worked hard to shed the version of me that she’s talking about.

“Anyway, my number ain’t changed, Matty. You know how to reach me and I’ll be waiting,” she says, her shrill voice ringing in my ears as she saunters back to the concession stand.

I quickly glance in Laila’s direction to make sure she isn’t looking at me.

I’m thankful that she’s looking at her phone, more than likely checking in on Nola on the pet-cam.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath before walking back to our spot.

Luke and the boys must have arrived while I was held up by Rachel.

I pat Luke on the back and he nods in acknowledgement before I pass the cups of ice to Laila.

Clay and Jen scoot over to sit in front of Luke on their blanket.

I move over behind Laila and she leans back into me, resting her head on my shoulder.

I try my best to remain calm, but that run-in with Rachel has me on edge.

“Matty, you okay?” Laila asks, looking back at me.

I smile down at her, trying my best to reassure her, but one thing about Laila is she can read anybody like a book. If she knows something’s wrong, she doesn’t push it.

“Yeah, all good.”

Laila smiles at me and grants me the gift of a kiss just as the fireworks show begins.

“Are you sure you’re okay, Matty? You seem…off,” Laila mumbles as she lets Nola out of her kennel to use the restroom in the backyard. Laila steps on the patio and I follow, closing the door behind us.

The secrets just keep piling on when it comes to my relationship with her and I fucking hate it. I shrug my shoulders, trying to keep my voice even. “I’m good, baby. I promise.”

Laila turns to face me and I can tell that she’s not buying what I’m telling her, but I keep my emotions calm so I don’t show how I’m really feeling – which is freaking the fuck out.

She lets out a heavy sigh that’s not just heavy in the way she releases it, but in the weight of the emotions it carries. “Matt, all I will ever ask of you is to be honest with me. That’s all I want. And if you can’t do that, then maybe we –”

“No!” I bellow with a quiver. “Laila, I promise you that there’s nothing wrong with me or us for that matter.” I close my eyes and take a deep breath. “I just…I saw someone from my past. I never meant for it to ruin your night, baby. I’m sorry.”

Laila folds her arms over her chest and examines me with a penetrating stare. “If an ex riles you up like that…”

“No, no, it wasn’t like that. She isn’t exactly someone I want any dealings with.

I am sorry, baby.” I take the opportunity to step forward and pull Laila into my chest. I relax my shoulders a little when she moves to wrap her arms around my waist. I place a gentle kiss on the top of her head, feeling more at peace with her in my arms.

Laila rises on her tip-toes and kisses my lips softly, but being the greedy man I am, I pull her in for a deeper, longer kiss.

Nola finally makes her way over to us and immediately paws at the door to be let back inside.

When she lets out a little whine, Laila pulls away from me and walks over to open the sliding glass door.

She turns to look at me and holds her hand out, which I happily take.

Once Nola’s secured in her kennel, we make our way to Laila’s room where I spend the rest of the night giving her a far better show than the fireworks.