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She smiled wryly. “I think you just did.”
Matt sent her a dimpled grin, then grappled around for his cowboy hat and slid it on. “Thank you, ma’am. It ’twernt nothing.”
Madison giggled while he worked his arms under her and lifted her against his chest. Automatically, she curled her arm around his neck, her gaze clinging every bit as much as her hold. “Matt?”
“Shh. I got you, honey.” He padded across the hall and into the bathroom, then settled her bare feet on the varnished wooden floors in front of the clawfoot tub and turned on the water. “Stay here.”
“Okay,” she sighed happily.
As the water warmed, he dashed to the kitchen and prowled through the cabinets, finding what he needed. When he rushed back, she was setting the stopper in the old-fashioned tub. He threw in some olive oil, sliced open a couple of vanilla beans, then tossed in some lavender epsom salts he found in a container on a shelf.
After testing the water, he held out his hand. “Step in.”
She placed her fingers on his and obeyed, sinking in with a moan. “Oh, that feels great.”
“Good.” He watched her close her eyes as peace settled across her beautiful face. “Soak for about twenty minutes.”
When he turned to leave, Madison grabbed his hand. “Don’t go.”
“I won’t be far. I was just going to start some breakfast. There’s a can of biscuits in the fridge to go with those eggs.”
“Talk to me. Please.”
Matt couldn’t refuse her anything. “About what?”
“Anything.”
“Okay.” Naked, he sank to the floor beside the tub and took her hand. “Got a subject in mind?”
“Um…what did you want to be when you grew up? Rock star? Astronaut?” She pushed her finger under the brim of his hat, tilting it back on his head. “Cowboy?”
“I wanted to play hockey. I lived for winters, and I loved skating. I was big for my age, fast, and competitive.”
She gaped, looking pleasantly surprised. “I didn’t know you could ice skate. That’s something I’ve never even tried. Not a lot of call for that growing up here. Gator wrestling, maybe…”
Matt shuddered. “Pass.”
“Same.” She laughed.
“So, what did you want to be?” he asked, enjoying the frivolous conversation, like they didn’t have a care in the world, soothing. “A model? An actress? An influencer?”
“God, no. I don’t like people gawking at me. It’s one reason I dreaded all the stuffy events the Pershings dragged me to, especially while Todd and I were engaged. I felt like a doll on constant display. I was scrutinized and judged. I knew some people thought I wasn’t good enough for Winston Pershing’s golden-boy grandson because I hadn’t come from a blue-blood family or gone to the right schools. Heck, a few even suggested my accent made me unacceptable.”
“They’re assholes. You barely have one. Besides, I think yours is sexy.”
She flushed while she splashed warm water all over her body until she glistened in the morning sun. “You think most of me is sexy.”
“No. I thinkallof you is sexy, honey. Everything about you.” He curled his hand around her nape and brought her in for a kiss. “Every single thing.”
“Hmm. You might be biased.”
“Oh, well.” He shrugged. “What did you want to be?”
“A teacher. I love kids.” She sighed. “I miss the classroom. Winston insisted I stop teaching shortly after Todd and I got engaged. He said I would be a better ambassador for education. What he meant was that I should suck the asses of rich people who cared about shaping education to fit their agendas so they would donate to his campaign.”
Matt scowled. “He wasn’t up for re-election that year.”
“He hasn’t had to actively campaign since I’ve known him. But politicians are always running for re-election. I’d love it if he lost this November, but polls say he’s leading by ten points. Not as far ahead as past cycles, but I doubt he’s in any danger of going down. That’s another reason he’s so powerful. He’ll probably die in that seat, and he knows it.”
