AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Dad sighed. “Her sister was trying to convince her to move back home to Denver. Apparently, they’d been talking about it for a while, she said.”
Matt understood now. “And when she talked about leaving, you couldn’t stand the thought she might do you like Mom, so you crawled inside her head and tore her down—”
“I reminded her of all the reasons she left Denver and her manipulative sister in the first place. Then we argued. I walked away before either of us said things we couldn’t take back to give her time to think—”
“Meaning you used her feelings against her to get what you wanted. When she resisted, you withheld attention and affection because you knew it would make her weak. Am I wrong?”
He shifted in his seat. “It’s not like that.”
Matt leaned in. “It’s exactly like that. I’ve seen you work women over my whole life. I know how you operate.”
“That’s not true,” his dad blustered.
“Yeah? Was Nicole crying the last time you saw her?”
“Women do that.”
“Because you drive them to it. This is your MO, Dad. You find a pretty face, one who’s younger and vulnerable. You charm her and take her to bed. You undo her with sex. You crawl in her head, and you start digging for her weaknesses. Once you find them, you exploit every single one unmercifully until she’s willing to do anything to prove herself to you—bow, scrape, kiss your feet, suck your cock in public—”
“You heard about that?” He paled.
“With both Andrea and Laurel, yeah. You make these women crazy and desperate for your love and approval. Of course, you give them enough to keep them hooked while you turn them inside out until they beg and plead and cry and—”
“They like it.”
“Yeah, Nicole obviously did,” he snapped back. “You’ll be fifty in two months. Grow up and stop playing head games. Settle down. Find some peace.”
“I know what you think of me, son. You’ve made it clear. But can you look me in the eye and tell me you’re any better?”
Before his weekend with Madison, absolutely. Now… He wasn’t proud of the way he’d treated her, but he’d give almost anything to have her in his grip again—except risk her. “As usual, you’ve made a ton of excuses and taken zero accountability. I’ll be leaving shortly after dawn to catch my flight back to Louisiana. If you need anything before then, I’ll be in my room. But I think we’ve already said it all. You’re just not listening.”
Matt emptied the last of his coffee, plunked his cup in the sink, then headed down the hall, shutting the door behind him. The urge to call Madison and tell her he was returning to Lafayette was overwhelming. He harnessed the impulse by unloading on the punching bag that had been dangling in the corner of his room since high school. But a sweaty hour later, he still wasn’t sure how to curb his compulsions to pleasure her in the most deviantly delicious ways he could think of—and how not to turn into his dad.
Until he did, he had no business even talking to her. It nearly killed him, but when she texted him again that night, asking if everything was all right and if he was still speaking to her, he darkened his phone without reply, showered while drowning in regret, then fell into a fitful sleep, praying he’d think of a miracle cure tomorrow.
CHAPTER FIVE
June 19
Madison closed the lid on her suitcase with a dejected sigh and glanced at her phone charging on the cradle in the middle of her nightstand. Eleven days, and still no calls or replies from Matt. Just silence.
She needed to face the fact that he’d played her, just like every other man she’d ever given a few hours and her body to. As usual, she’d put herself out there, only to get burned. But her flippant summation didn’t feel like the whole story. Matt had seemed so different. For thirty-six hours, he’d been her sustenance, her air, her everything. He had affected her in ways she had never fathomed, in places that no man had truly touched. He couldn’t be gone, just…poof, could he? After she had clearly stirred more than his body, too, she didn’t understand.
What had gone wrong?
Her mobile rang, jerking her from her maudlin thoughts. The initial skipping of her heart with hope that Matt was finally calling died when she saw Haisley’s name on her display.
“Hey, girl.” She tried to sound chipper and just couldn’t manage it.
“Aww, still moping?”
Mourning was a better word, but Haisley didn’t understand. She probably never would. For her, men came and went. She didn’t get attached. Her heart didn’t trip up or hit an emotional snag. Guys were universally attracted to the audacious redhead with the loud personality. In her shadow, Madison always felt quiet and far less interesting.
She sidestepped the question. “What are you up to?”
“Gracelyn and I are heading to Highrise’s for a few drinks. Come with us. You passed last Saturday night and you’ll be gone on this trip with your dad for the next couple of weeks. I’ve hardly seen you, and I’m having Madison withdrawals. What’s a girl without her bestie?”
Tears filled her eyes. “As sweet as that speech was, guilt-trip and all—”
