Chapter 9
"So…that's what happened that night?" Ezra asked gently, his expression soft as he stared back at me across his leather couch.
"Yeah," I answered quietly.
He exhaled a slow breath, his hands raking down his face as he took a few minutes to process everything I'd just told him. My hands toyed with the hem of my dress, gnawing my bottom lip.
"Shit, Em," he breathed out. "Why didn't you say anything? Why didn't you tell me?"
I shrugged lightly, my gaze falling to my nervously fidgeting hands. "I didn't want to think about it," I whispered, tears stinging at my eyes. "I was struggling with everything myself, Ez. Trying to…to process it all. For months I hadn't felt like myself. And I felt so stupid getting pregnant in the first place."
Ezra shook his head abruptly. "Stop it. Don't beat yourself up over that, Em. You've been through enough." His hand curled into a fist in his lap. "And I want to punch that asshole in his stupid smug face even more now. He was never good enough for you. He never respected you."
"You're right," I agreed quietly. "I wish I'd realized that after he cheated the first time. I just thought…maybe he really would change. But he just kept doing it and I kept forgiving him…"
A few tears fell from my eyes and I roughly swiped the back of my hand at them. Ezra shifted towards me on the couch, pulling me into a hug. My head fell to his shoulder as his hand rubbed along my back.
"You're my little pain in the ass sister," he muttered as he held me. "You can tell me anything, you know that? I will never judge you, Em. And I will always have your back."
I sighed, nodding as I pulled away. "Thanks, Ez."
His eyes caught mine, a questioning look in them. "You going to be alright tonight? Because we can stay in, just the two of us here. We don't have to go to Josie’s."
I bit my lip, my stomach twisting nervously as I nodded yet again. "I want to go, Ez. I uh…I should probably tell you that…Matt and I–"
His eyes grew wide and he cut me off before I could finish. "There's a Mattand you?"
I smiled shyly back at him, bottom lip still caught in my teeth as I nodded slowly. "Yes…sorta."
He held up a hand, stopping me as he shook his head. "Okay. Wait." He blew out a sharp breath before he looked back at me. "What? Since when? And what do you mean 'sorta'?"
I laughed lightly at his questions, my heart fluttering as I thought about these past two weeks with Matt. Tonight was the night we figured our friends would find out when we all met up at Josie’s. I'd been booked with the double weddings last weekend and hadn't had a chance to see everyone until tonight. But I didn't want to blindside Ezra at the bar like everyone else.
"Before you and Karen showed up to my housewarming, when I was giving him a tour of my place, he admitted he’d had feelings for me this whole time," I told him. “So when everyone had gone home that night he stayed over and we…we talked.”
"So why didn't he sweep you off your feet and get you away from that asshole?" Ezra ground out. “He knew how you were being treated, right? You two were always close.”
I smiled faintly, my eyes shifting back to my fidgeting hands. "He was being respectful of my relationship and the fact that I wasn't available. But he…very much dislikes Justin," I answered.
"Well I'm going to be having a talk with Murdock tonight," Ezra warned me.
"Ez–"
"No, he's getting the proper protective big brother spiel tonight," Ezra carried on.
I rolled my eyes at him. "Anyway,” I continued, “we have been spending time together since then. Had a coffee date that turned into a brunch date. Spent a few evenings working next to each other and making dinner together.” My attention returned to my nervous hands. “He uh…he knows about…about everything. He's been really supportive," I confessed.
"Well I’m glad to hear that, Em, really,” Ezra said, a warm smile on his face. “Though admittedly Murdock has always been overly supportive when it came to you.”
I laughed lightly, remembering just how helpful Matt had always been with my business or my problems with Justin over the years. He really had always been there for me. The realization had me grinning at my lap.
“So you're together finally?" Ezra asked curiously, breaking me from my thoughts.
"We are calling it exclusively casually dating," I explained, my attention returning back to him.
Ezra shot me a pointed look across the couch, his mouth straightening into a thin line. "That sounds ridiculous. What's that even mean?"
"We aren't officially together but we aren't seeing anyone else," I told him with a shrug. "I'm not ready to jump into a relationship right now. Matt deserves someone who isn't…isn't breaking down in the middle of the night."
"So you're just what–withholding sex from the guy?" he shot back.
My eyes narrowed at my brother. "Yes, because sex complicates things."
"Not having sex complicates things," Ezra countered.
"Not in the same way," I disagreed. "If everything felt like a normal relationship–sleeping together, sleeping at each other's places all the time, expecting things to progress further–then I'd end up in a relationship with Matt before I was ready. And I'm trying to get back to myself first, okay? Figure out what I want. So don't judge me."
He held up his hands defensively, shaking his head. "I'm not judging, Em. Just not looking forward to watching the blatant sexual tension between Murdock and my little sister all night."
I blushed, my hands fidgeting nervously in my lap still. Ezra groaned as he rose to his feet.
"This is going to be painful to watch, isn't it?" he asked me.
"Focus on Karen then!" I shot back.
He grinned back, a sly look spreading over his face. "You're right. She's too funny and stunning to focus on anything else."
I chuckled lightly, rising to my feet beside him. I clapped him on the shoulder as I made my way to his front door. "You've got it bad, Ez."
"In the best and worst way," he agreed as we headed into the hall, making our way to the elevator. "She is a minx."
"Okay, too much information," I told him sharply.
He laughed as we stepped into the elevator, Ez pushing the button for the main floor before casually slinging his arm over my shoulder. "You want me to stay here instead of at Karen's tonight?" he asked me as the elevator descended.
"No, that's alright," I assured him. "I don't want to ruin your plans. I might end up at my place if…if the blatant sexual tension is a little too risky for me to crash at Matt's later."
"Oh, well that's a given that it will be," he teased.
I rolled my eyes as the elevator doors opened and we walked out, crossing our way through the small lobby and out into the humid evening. My sundress lightly blew in the faint, warm breeze as we turned the corner and made our way to Josie’s.
"So no one else knows?" Ezra asked a minute later.
"Nope, just figured I'd give you a heads up so you didn't drop dead," I told him.
The red neon sign of Josie’s came into view and my stomach began squirming in nervous anticipation. I hadn't had a chance to see Matt since the beginning of the week and I desperately missed more than just hearing his voice.
As usual, Ezra released his arm from around my shoulder and grabbed the door, opening it wide and allowing me to step inside the bar first. The usual classic rock, dim lighting, and faint twinge of mold hit my senses as I stepped inside. Josie spotted us immediately, a large smile on her face as Ezra and I made our way to the bar.
"Been a few weeks since I've seen you around here, kid," she said. "Back to try a fruity drink yourself?"
I cringed slightly at the memory of the withered fruit in Ez’s beer which only made her laugh as I shook my head. "No, Josie, just the usual beer tonight," I told her.
Ezra was slipping cash on the bar before me this time, his hands halting mine from digging through my purse as Josie wandered off to grab us beers.
"Naw, kid, this one's on me," he told me.
"Fine, thanks pretty boy," I teased back.
Josie appeared quickly, placing our beers on the bar with a brief nod before she headed off to help another patron. I grabbed my beer, taking a pull as I spun on my heel. Our group of friends were sitting at their usual table, two extra unoccupied chairs waiting for us. My gaze landed on the back of Matt’s head and I felt my body warm instantly. He shifted in his chair as we approached, but my eyes were quickly drawn to Marci who was waving enthusiastically at me.
"We missed you last week!" Marci told me when we neared the table.
Ezra made his way over to Karen, planting a kiss on her cheek and wrapping an arm around her waist. They looked sweet and I couldn't help but smile.
"Yeah," I said, my attention returning to Marci. "Definitely would have preferred coming out here over working a double wedding weekend." My attention nervously shifted to Matt as I stopped beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, Matty.”
Matt grinned up towards me and the mood around the table palpably shifted as everyone turned their attention curiously towards us. Matt had turned in his seat, his hands extended out to me as I easily slipped mine into his. And then his hands tugged me between his legs as he leaned forward towards me. I grinned shyly, leaning in and kissing him. There was an immediate, uproarious noise that erupted around our table and I could feel Matt’s mouth curl into a smile against my lips.
"Whoa, hold up guys!" Foggy called out.
"Since when has this been a thing?!" Marci exclaimed.
"I knew it! I knew something was going on!" Karen roared triumphantly.
I withdrew from Matt, my cheeks thoroughly burning as I smiled back at him. He was absolutely beaming at me, crinkles in the corner of his eyes and the lone dimple in his right cheek present. I couldn't resist grabbing his stubbled cheek and going back in for another quick kiss, which elicited yet another round of exclamations around the table.
"Relax, guys," Ezra shouted over everyone as I pulled back from Matt. "They're only 'exclusively casually dating'."
"What the hell does that mean?" Marci asked, her nose scrunched as she slid out of her chair. And then she abruptly held up a hand before I could answer, her attention turning to Josie behind the bar. "Josie!" She rang out. "We're going to need three shots of whatever the strongest liquor you've got!"
My brows furrowed at her as she grabbed Karen's wrist, who's eyes widened nervously at the prospect of drinking what Marci just asked for, as Marci rounded on me next.
"Marci, what're you–"
"We are doing a round of shots," she told me firmly, removing my hand from Matt’s cheek, "and you're going to spill everything," she finished, her eyes narrowing at me.
"But I just got here," I complained. "I've seen Matt for like one minute while you jackals all howled at us. I haven't even asked him how his day was!"
"Sweetheart, it's fine," Matt said with a chuckle.
"Sweetheart?" Marci suddenly crooned as she glanced at Matt. "That is so cute!" And then her expression immediately hardened as she focused back on me. “But you’re still coming with us. Karen and I have spent two years watching you date that asshole and pine over Matt.”
“Yeah, you owe us details,” Karen agreed.
"Fast on the pet names, huh, Murdock?" Ezra spoke up, leaning his elbows on the table towards Matt. "Think you and I need to have a talk about my baby sis while those three go have their girl chat."
"Ez," I groaned.
He held up a dismissive hand at me but his attention remained on Matt. "Em, I told you he's getting the protective big brother spiel tonight."
I sighed loudly, whispering an 'I'm sorry' to Matt as Marci dragged me towards the bar. Josie already had three very questionable shots lined up along the counter. Karen sniffed one and grimaced, coughing a little.
"I am not drinking that," she told Marci.
"We're all drinking one," Marci said, flinching at the shot before raising the glass in the air. "Solidarity. And to finding out if Em finally found a good lay."
"Well you're going to be disappointed then," I told her, grabbing a shot from the bar and eyeing it warily. It smelled awful.
Marci gasped audibly, her eyes wide. The sound drew my attention from the shot glass as she leaned in towards me.
"He's bad?" she asked, shocked.
"What? No!" I said, quickly waving a hand. "No, I mean we haven't slept together yet."
The look of shock turned to one of relief and she nodded toward the shot in my hand. "Well then drink up and let's get you good and fucked tonight, sweetheart," she teased.
"No, I mean–"
"Drink," Marci ordered.
I huffed loudly, and clinked my glass with Karen's and Marci’s. And then I downed the shot and tried my best to keep it from touching my tongue for too long. Karen was sputtering beside me, clutching her throat.
"That was terrible," Karen complained.
I wiped the back of my wrist across my mouth, shaking my head and trying to refrain from gagging. "What the hell was that?"
"Okay," Marci agreed, "admittedly not my best idea asking Josie for that. Making a mental note to never do that again."
Karen was still pulling a face as she leant against the bar top, careful to avoid any sticky spots. "So, spill," she ordered without preamble.
"Yeah, what's this about no sex?" Marci asked.
I sighed, rolling my eyes. "So when I was giving Matt a tour of my apartment the other week during my housewarming, he told me he'd always had feelings for me," I told them. And then I abruptly held up a hand and clarified, “Actually, he told me he’d wanted me since I first showed up at Nelson and Murdock with my forty-seven dollars and thirty-two cents wanting help with my contract–if I’m giving the full details.”
"Aww," Marci said, her expression softening. "Really? That's so sweet."
"I goddamn knew it," Karen muttered with a grin.
"But…I'm sort of going through some…some things and I am not ready to jump into a relationship with Matt just yet. So we're taking things slow right now," I continued.
Both Karen and Marci frowned at my words, the pair both leaning in towards me. I shifted awkwardly against the bar counter under their attention.
"What's going on?" Marci asked curiously.
"Is it Justin?" Karen asked.
I grit my teeth, fighting back the surge of emotions that were roiling inside of me at his name. "Maybe we can have a girls night and I'll tell you about it soon. But I don't–I can't talk about it here at Josie’s. Not tonight. I just want to see you all and enjoy my time with Matt…"
Karen and Marci exchanged a look before they both nodded slowly.
"So what's the exclusively casual dating thing Ez mentioned?" Karen asked.
"And why did he know before us?" Marci demanded.
"Relax, I told him right before we left to come here," I told the pair. "And it just means we aren't seeing anyone else but we are taking things slow."
"So no sex?" Karen asked.
"Why is everyone so focused on that?" I asked, eyes narrowed as I glanced between them.
"Because we're your best friends," Marci told me, placing a hand on my shoulder and squeezing it lightly. "And we just want to make sure your next man knows how to give you an orgasm."
The three of us broke into loud peels of laughter. I shook my head at Marci as my eyes roamed across the bar back towards our table. All three guys were already joking and laughing themselves. My heart stuttered a little irregularly at the sight of Matt and my brother laughing together. Justin and Ezra had never gotten along.
"You've already got it bad," Marci pointed out.
I frowned, turning back towards her. "What?"
"You have sad, lovesick puppy eyes when you look at him," Marci said, her attention shifting to Karen beside me. "Right? You see it?"
Karen nodded her head. "Yes. You definitely do."
Marci's eyes narrowed as she leant towards me, whispering out, "So I need to know–who kisses better: Daredevil or Matt?"
I gasped, eyes widening. "I–what?"
Karen was laughing behind a hand, shaking her head, but Marci only leaned in further.
"Come on, you're the only one I know who's kissed the famous vigilante and I'm curious," Marci pressed.
"Well I mean…" I began, both women now staring curiously back at me, awaiting my response. "Daredevil is a good kisser," I admitted slowly. "But he's not Matt. Although there was definitely something in the way he kissed me, especially the second time–"
"What?" Karen asked, eyes narrowing.
"He kissed you again?" Marci asked, jaw dropping.
I cleared my throat nervously, tapping my nails on the bar counter. "The uh, night he walked me home the other week. I sort of…asked him to…"
Karen was eyeing me carefully, scanning my face. Marci gasped loudly before playfully swatting my arm.
"It was before Matt and I talked okay!" I defended myself. "The first kiss was hot and I didn't think anything would ever happen between Matt and I! So I was drunk and stupid and I asked him to kiss me. But–" I said forcefully, "–I've told him that I'm sort of seeing someone now and that nothing can happen between us and he was okay with that."
Karen glanced over at the table with our friends, shaking her head as she presumably looked at Matt, who was entirely oblivious to my spit swapping with Daredevil a few times.
"But to answer your question," I said, turning to Marci, "Matt is the better kisser. The first kiss we had…" I trailed off, my eyes landing on Matt across the bar.
It almost seemed as if he'd turned his head towards us, shooting a smile our way. But that was a ridiculous thought. He was probably just smiling about whatever they were talking about at the table and wondering what was taking us so long to come back.
"The first kiss was what?" Marci pressed.
"Intense," I whispered, my eyes still on Matt's smiling face. I swore I saw him smirk before he turned back to the table. "It was intense, I don't know how else to describe it. And from that kiss alone I would be shocked if Matt couldn't succeed where others have failed."
"Shit, you could tell that from just a kiss?" Marci whispered.
"Yeah," I admitted, my eyes still on Matt.
"I'm sure his ego didn't need that stroke," Karen teased.
"Well I haven't exactly told him that," I pointed out, shifting my attention to her.
She grinned mischievously at me, her eyes lingering on the table with our friends as she spoke. "I'm sure you didn't have to for him to know."
I shot her a quizzical look but she only shrugged lightly. "Alright," I said slowly, "maybe we should head back to the table now? Before my beer gets too warm?"
"Sure, but hey, Em?" Marci placed her hand on my shoulder, a gentle smile on her face. "Karen and I are here for you if you want to talk."
"How about girls night at my place?" Karen suggested. "Next Friday night?"
“I don’t have anything scheduled for Friday and the wedding on Saturday doesn’t start too early. That works for me,” I told her.
“I’m down,” Marci said easily. “I miss our girl chats.”
“Perfect,” Karen said, pushing off of the bar. “My place Friday night then.”
The three of us strode back to the table; Karen ducking under Ezra’s awaiting arm and Marci hopping back into her chair, bumping her shoulder into Foggy’s. I bit my lip, nervously sidling myself into the chair beside Matt. His head quickly turned in my direction, a large grin on his face.
“You have a good girl chat?” he asked curiously. “Did they drag all the dirty details from you that they wanted?”
My cheeks slightly flushed as I grabbed my beer from the table, bringing it to my mouth to take a drink. I swallowed, trying hard not to remember how I’d admitted just how great I thought he would be in bed from our first kiss alone.
“Mhmm,” I answered him, willing the burning in my face to dissipate. “How’d your chat with Ez go?”
Matt shrugged a shoulder, pulling a face. “Eh, he threatened to give me two black eyes if I hurt you.”
My eyes widened, a gasp leaving my mouth. My attention shifted to Ezra across the table where he was currently whispering something to Karen. Matt’s hand on my bare leg and his soft chuckle drew me back.
“It’s fine, Emily,” he assured me. “I’d want to do more than give myself two black eyes if I ever hurt you.” He gently squeezed my knee, his rough calluses digging into my bare skin. “Which I have no intention of ever doing.”
His thumb began stroking back and forth lightly against my skin. I became hyper-aware of how his thumb briefly lingered just under the hem of my dress with every upward stroke. My mouth felt like it was going dry.
“So two years of pining, hmm?” Matt murmured beside me.
I swallowed hard, my attention shifting back up to his face. He had slipped his dark glasses back on when Karen, Marci, and I had gone to chat and now I found myself staring back at my own reflection.
“Apparently I wasn’t the only one,” I whispered, bumping my knee into his thigh.
One corner of his mouth tugged upwards as he shook his head. “No, you definitely weren’t.”
I was almost four beers in along with whatever weird shot Josie had given us by the time I’d found myself considering joining a pool game. Karen and Ezra were cozied up at the bar, looking very focused on each other, when Marci suggested it.
“I’m terrible though,” I complained.
Matt slid off his chair, stepping behind mine and resting his hands on my shoulders before pulling me slightly back into him. I leaned into the movement, my head rolling back to land against one of his incredibly firm pectorals.
His mouth lowered beside my ear as he whispered, “I’ll teach you."
Unlike Matt, I was drunk. Which meant that when his mouth was beside my ear, whispering with his warm breath fanning down the back of my neck, I couldn't control the shudder that ran through me or the heat that sparked down low. My mind chose that exact moment to recall the feel of his erection pressed into me from the other morning and I shifted uncomfortably in the seat. His hands tightened their hold on my shoulders, fingers digging into the bare skin around my sleeveless dress.
“It’ll be fun,” Marci said from across the table. “We’re both terrible and drunk.”
I laughed lightly, nodding against Matt’s chest. “Fine, I’ll join.”
Foggy and Marci were grinning, getting to their feet and grabbing their drinks from the table. As they headed towards the pool table, Matt’s warm hands were helping me out of my chair.
“Surprised you actually agreed so quickly,” Matt told me, placing his hand on the small of my back and grabbing his cane from the table. “Normally it takes more coaxing and begging.”
“Well,” I began, licking my lips slowly and leaning in a bit towards him as we walked, “in the past I usually just sat on the sidelines because I was terrible. But I also used it as a chance to sneak glances at your ass bent over the pool table.” I noticed how Matt tensed along the side of my body, his dark eyebrows shooting up high onto his forehead above his glasses and I smiled. “Now I suppose I'll just get a closer view.”
He grinned down at me, dark glasses hiding his eyes. "Someone’s had a bit too much to drink,” he playfully pointed out.
“Or it’ll just make this game that much more fun,” I teased back.
The corner of his lip tugged up into a smirk and I bit my lip at the sight. God he was beautiful. Why had I said no sex?
“Alright, who wants to break first?” Foggy called out, interrupting the moment.
Matt’s attention immediately snapped to Foggy but it took me a few seconds to tear my lingering, appreciative gaze from the man beside me.
“Why don’t we let someone break who knows how?” Marci suggested. “Or we’ll spend forever re-racking until someone gets it right. Like that one time.” She grinned, shooting me a pointed look.
“I have said many a time that I do not play pool,” I stated firmly.
Foggy leant against a nearby table, beer in hand as he spoke. “Then I will be the chivalrous gentleman and let Matt break. Because buddy, you’re going to need all the help you can get.”
Matt chuckled beside me and I lightly elbowed him in the side. He let out a slight groan at the contact and my eyes widened.
“Shit, I’m sorry,” I apologized quickly.
He waved me off. “No, I just…had a bruise from running into a corner the other day. You somehow managed to find it with your elbow.”
“Sorry, I didn’t–”
He grinned down at me, one hand reaching out and finding my shoulder. “Really, Em, it’s okay. You want to grab us some cues?”
“Sure,” I said, still cringing a little.
I turned, making my way towards the pool rack nearby.
“They’re the long sticks on the wall!” Foggy teasingly called after me.
I glanced over my shoulder and flipped him the bird. The three of them laughed as I grabbed two cues and brought them back over. I reached out, grabbing Matt’s wrist and sliding the cue into his hand before bringing him over to the pool table. I leant my cue briefly against the table so I had my hands free to help guide his left hand to the cue ball.
“Cue ball is right here,” I told him. “I don’t think you need any more guidance than that at the moment.”
His head turned towards me, a salacious smile spreading on his mouth. “I know what I’m doing, sweetheart.” His words and their clear double meaning had my cheeks burning and another heat rushing south instantly. “But you’re welcome to keep touching me.”
My eyes darted down to the hand that was still holding his wrist. I released my grip, but I intentionally spent a few seconds dragging my fingertips up his wrist, over his watch, and along his forearm before I removed it entirely and stepped back. He continued to smile suggestively at me for another moment before his attention shifted to the pool table and he lowered himself over it, bending at the waist but twisting a little awkwardly. It took two seconds for me to understand why–giving me a clearer, unobstructed view of his ass in his tight dress pants. I snorted in amusement, my eyes lingering openly on his ass as he lined up his shot. I heard the balls scatter and clack into each other along the table but I wasn’t remotely paying attention.
Matt straightened slowly, turning with a smirk on his lips as he looked towards me. “Anything go in?”
I licked my lips, one brow raising up at him. “Honestly, that's not what I was watching.”
His smirk grew wider, attention still on me as he turned over his shoulder towards Foggy and Marci. “So did I make anything? Em was too focused on…other things.”
Marci and Foggy snickered loudly into their bottles of beer. I leaned past Matt to see them better and shrugged innocently.
"I mean can you blame me?" I shot back.
Marci sent me a mischievous grin which I returned. Foggy only groaned, rolling his eyes even though he was still smiling.
"You guys are solids," he told us. "He sunk the three." His attention shifted to Matt, an almost pitying expression on his face. "Not off to a great start, buddy. Pretty sure Marci and I are going to wipe the floor with you two."
"Eh," Matt said with a half shrug, "Something tells me I really don't think I'll mind." His gaze behind his dark glasses focused back on me, his eyebrows rising expectantly. "You want to assist me with the next shot?" His voice lowered to a volume meant for only me as he asked, "Or are you too busy mentally undressing me?"
My bottom lip rolled into my teeth as a flood of arousal washed over me. I had spent many nights with everyone at Josie’s over the years wondering what it would be like to flirt with him openly. Wondering just how much of a flirt he actually was. Being the sole person on the receiving end of his suggestive comments paired with his deep, seductive voice and that damn smug smirk that always managed to trip me up was exhilarating. And with the way he was still staring back at me, one brow cocked behind his glasses, head tilted to the side, and lips pulled into a devilish smirk, I knew that he knew the effect he was having on me. But I was determined to rile him up, too.
I sauntered the few steps back towards him as he seemingly tracked the movement. Reaching out one hand, I lightly placed it on his shoulder as my eyes remained on his smug expression. I leaned up towards him just a hair and whispered, "Bet you'd have liked my assistance the other morning, hmm?"
The smirk fell from his face instantly, his teeth clamping down on his bottom lip. My eyes were fixed on his mouth, noticing the way his muscles were ticking in his cheeks. A slow, triumphant smile slid across my lips at his reaction.
His expression abruptly shifted back to smug as he leaned down beside my ear and whispered, "I can guarantee you wanted my assistance that morning too, sweetheart."
I swallowed hard, a shiver running down my spine at his words. He wasn't wrong. My hand on his shoulder made a slow drag down his muscled bicep, past his forearm, to finally grab his wrist. I placed his hand in the crook of my arm. His fingers curled around the bare skin as I led him around the pool table. I stopped us beside the cue ball, removing his hand from my arm and reaching over the table with him to put his hand on it.
My face was hovering just beside his in this position and I leaned closer to him. "Don't worry, Matty," I murmured, enjoying the way he tensed at my voice, "I took care of myself in the shower when I got home."
His nostrils flared as a low groan fell from his mouth. His hand tightened on the cue ball under mine and I grinned.
"You've got a clear shot to the six in the corner left. It's about six inches directly in front of it," I told him before removing my hand from his and stepping back.
He stood there for a long while, exhaling a few sharp breaths before he lined up his shot. I watched curiously as his head shifted a few times as if he could see everything on the table. I'd always found it interesting how he did that whenever he played. And then he drew the cue back and sharply threw it forward. The cue ball barreled across the table and hit the six, but the angle was just slightly off.
"You're off your game tonight!" Foggy heckled Matt.
I giggled as I headed back towards Matt, reaching out and entwining our fingers together. As I led him by the hand to the table Marci and Foggy had taken beside the pool table, I blushed at the wink Marci sent me as she passed us.
Foggy clapped his hands together, shooting Marci a smile. "You're my good luck charm, babe," he told her.
"Aww, Foggy Bear," she cooed as she handed him the cue. And then her expression shifted to serious instantly as she said, "Let's kick Matt's ass while he's distracted tonight."
"Read my mind, love," Foggy chirped, smiling back at us.
"What's with the hostility towards me?" Matt asked, feigning hurt.
"We barely ever beat you," Marci whined.
As Foggy lined up his shot, I slid my arm around Matt's lower back. The gesture had him leaning into me and I tilted my head towards him. In my inebriated state I was determined to see how far I could push him.
"Too distracted thinking about me in the shower?" I asked him innocently. And then intentionally pitching my voice lower, I divulged a bit more. "If you're wondering, it was you I was thinking about, Matty."
His nostrils flared again before his head turned sharply away, his hand gripping the table beside us so hard his knuckles were turning white. His shoulders and chest were heaving as he fought to keep his breathing steady.
"I'd be careful, sweetheart," Matt warned gently.
I glanced curiously up at him, intrigued by his warning. "Careful of what, Matty?"
He turned back, leaning in so close that his lips grazed the shell of my ear as he spoke. "Careful you don't end the night needing to touch yourself because of me again."
Goosebumps spread along my arms, the hair on the back of my neck prickling. I felt the slight puff of air as he huffed out an amused laugh beside my ear and my own teeth clamped down hard in my mouth.
"Though I'm always open to…lendingahand, if you want," he murmured, his soft lips brushing my ear punctuated each syllable.
My eyes slid down to his large hands; they were fiddling with the pool cue innocently in front of him. The thought of them doing other things flashed through my mind and I exhaled a shaky breath, my legs trembling under me to the point that I shifted and leaned my back into the table behind me. I heard him chuckle beside me as if he was aware of exactly what I was thinking about.
Fuck he was good at this.
My attention returned to the pool table, watching Foggy line up another shot as I tried to calm down. I’d been so focused on Matt I didn’t even know what was going on with the game. I counted fast, noting that Foggy had sunk two of the stripes while Matt and I had been preoccupied trying to outdo each other with the flirtatious comments. He tapped the cue ball lightly and pocketed another stripe, him and Marci high fiving as Foggy maneuvered around the table for another shot.
“Speechless already?” Matt teased beside me.
My eyes remained on Foggy, watching as he lined up another shot. “You’ll have to work harder than that if you want to keep me quiet,” I whispered back.
He turned into me, resting both of his hands on my hips and leaning in beside my ear again. To anyone else it probably looked innocent, like he was just trying to talk to me above the noise of the bar. But I felt the tight grip of his hands on my hips and I could feel the way his solid chest was pressing into my arm.
“I bet the sounds you make are just as beautiful as you are,” he breathed into my ear.
Every inch of my skin felt like a tingling fire had just ignited underneath it. I felt breathless and lightheaded, one hand falling to his chest to keep myself upright. The self-satisfied smirk on his face and the feel of his body against mine didn’t help what was happening to my body.
“You–you think about that often, do you?” I stammered out weakly.
The smirk spread higher on his face and then he leaned back into me, his nose bumping into my cheek, his lips grazing my jaw as he spoke. “It’s been on my mind,” he admitted softly. “Especially that morning after you left.” He paused briefly before adding, “And then later that night, thinking about the sounds you were making as you fell apart on my couch over a kiss.”
The hand on his chest curled into a fist, balling his shirt into my hand as my mouth went dry. My body emitted a traitorous whine deep in my throat as I pictured him stroking himself after I left, thinking about me and not anyone else. I felt his lips curve into a smile against my jaw.
“Alright love birds,” Marci called out. “Emily’s up!”
Matt released my hips and I untangled my fingers from his dress shirt, though it remained crumpled from where I’d bunched it. His hand instead sought out my elbow, gingerly wrapping his fingers around it. I led us to the pool table again, but Marci leant in as she passed near us.
“Looks like you two are playing your own game,” she whispered with a sly grin.
“You have no idea,” I mumbled back.
I stopped us in front of the cue ball, Matt insisting I explain where everything was located on the table so he could help me. A minute later I’d given him a brief rundown before he told me to grab my cue and line it up towards a stripe that he was planning to help me hit into a solid to hopefully pocket the purple four across the table.
I rolled my eyes and bent over the pool table, very aware of Matt’s hand resting along my lower back as I lined up my cue. “I don’t see how I'm going to be able to do that,” I muttered over my shoulder at him.
“You mind if I help you?” he asked.
“I thought that’s what you were supposed to be doing?” I shot back playfully.
I immediately quieted when I felt his hips nudge my ass, and then he was leaning forward, his warm, muscular chest draping entirely over the back of me. His hands snaked their way slowly down both of my arms, leaving a trail of goosebumps as he did, until his hands covered both of mine on the cue. His chin rested lightly on my shoulder, the pleasant rasp of his stubble brushing along the side of my face. I had to squeeze my eyes shut and focus on a few breaths with him pressed to me like this.
“Why’re you so tense, Em?” Matt teased, his deep voice sounding amused beside my ear. “Relax, sweetheart.”
My jaw snapped shut on the way ‘sweetheart’ rolled off of his tongue, deep and gravelly just beside my ear. And it was suddenly too easy to imagine us in this position doing something entirely different. My hips shifted as my knees began to quiver; Matt groaned lightly beside my ear at the movement. I grinned devilishly and pressed my ass back into him, delighting in the hiss of air he expelled between his teeth. I shifted again, feeling something a little firmer through his dress pants. His right hand instantly left my arm and darted down to my thigh, my dress riding up under his grip as his rough hold held me in place. I gasped at the abrupt contact, pleasure racing up my spine and a warm heat officially beginning to pool between my thighs now. I could hear the handful of sharp exhales from his nose beside me, a faint rumble in his throat. That only further turned me on.
“Maybe you should focus on the game,” I whispered lightly, “and not on bending me over the pool table.”
His fingers dug into the flesh of my upper thigh and I bit my lip, watching as his tongue briefly dragged along his lower lip with his face just beside mine.
“Alright, Em,” he conceded. “You win for now. If I keep this up much longer everyone at Josie’s is going to know what you do to me.”
He laughed breathlessly beside me as his hand released my thigh, sliding its way back to my arm to help me line up the shot. He helped me pull the cue back and hit the ball. The cue ball smacked into the stripe but it just missed hitting the solid we were aiming for.
“Guess you really are off your game tonight,” I said as we both straightened.
My eyes caught Marci’s across the pool table. She mouthed the word ‘hot’ dramatically to me and I laughed lightly as her and Foggy made their way around for their turn. Matt and I returned to our spot leaning against the table in silence. I watched as Foggy helped Marci line up her shot.
“For the record though,” Matt murmured, his gaze behind his dark glasses focused straight ahead at the pool table. “I'd rather have you on your back on the pool table with my face buried between your thighs instead of you bent over it.”
My breath caught in my throat at the mental image that evoked and my thighs involuntarily squirmed together, glad that Matt wasn’t able to notice. Though he cleared his throat roughly, readjusting his elbows on the table behind us.
We managed to finish the pool game with Foggy and Marci with minimal flirting and touching after that, both of us too wound up to push things any further. Of course Matt and I ended up losing spectacularly, Foggy and Marci excitedly throwing it in our faces for a minute afterwards. And then I’d declared it was late and I should head out so I could get a taxi to take me back home. Matt offered to walk me out so the pair of us said our goodbyes to our friends before heading out into the moderately fresher air outside of Josie’s.
Before I had a chance to flag a taxi, Matt’s hands slid around my waist, spinning me towards him and capturing my lips with his. A faint noise of surprise came from my mouth before I melted into the kiss, my hands landing along his warm neck. He kissed me slow, savoring the moment. When he finally pulled away I felt dizzy from the alcohol and the effect he had on me.
“Sure you don’t want to crash at my place?” Matt offered. “I mean, just to sleep.”
I smiled faintly as I gazed back up at him. “We both know if I came back with you, Matty, we’d end up doing more than sleeping. And as much as I want to–and enjoyed this evening with you–I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“I’d rather you were sober for that,” he agreed, his thumbs rubbing along both sides of my hips through my dress.
"I should…probably get a taxi," I whispered.
Matt nodded, releasing me from his hold. I stepped away long enough to flag one down. As it pulled up alongside the curb, I turned back to Matt.
"This is where I say goodnight," I told him.
I stepped into him, arms gently encircling his neck as his arms wrapped around my lower back. I pulled myself flush against the front of him, aware he could probably feel my heart thundering against his chest. He leaned down, lightly brushing his lips to mine before I impatiently crushed mine to his. He tasted faintly of beer and I couldn’t seem to get enough of just how soft his lips felt on mine. But when his words echoed through my mind again, of how he wanted me on the pool table with his face buried between my thighs, that burning need that had been lingering just below the surface for the past hour came rushing back. I quickly broke away, afraid I wouldn't have the willpower to stop if we continued.
"Goodnight, Em," he murmured, one hand releasing my waist to tuck some hair behind my ear.
"Goodnight, Matty," I whispered.
His other hand released its hold on me and I reluctantly let him go. I stepped backwards a step, taking one last long look at him in his crumpled dress shirt and dark slacks, tie undone and shirt sleeves rolled up past his elbows. The look on his face wasn't the smug, salacious one he'd given me for most of the last half of the night. Instead he was smiling warmly, his hands holding tight to the cane between them.
"Text me when you get home?" he asked hopefully. "So I know you're safe?"
I smiled shyly, still astounded at how I'd met someone like Matt.
"I will," I promised. "Get home safe, too."
He chuckled lightly, as if what I said was somehow amusing. "I always do," he assured me.
I opened the back door of the taxi and slid in carefully. I gave the driver my address as I closed the door behind me. Glancing out the window as the car took off, my eyes lingered on Matt as he stared after the taxi, smiling wide.