Matt. “Call the driver, Trina.” He turns to me. “Elizabeth, we’ll talk later.”
“Dad,” I say, louder than I intended. “This isn’t up to you.”
He turns and looks over his shoulder as they’re walking out of the room. “There is a Vice child involved in all of this. We all know that giving the responsibility of that child’s care solely to us would be in the best interest of…” He glances at Matt. “Everyone.”
Matt opens his mouth to say something, but decides against it.
I fight the sting of tears as they leave the room.
“That, uh…” Matt leans against the side of the hospital bed and strokes my hair, pushing it delicately behind my ear. “That went actually worse than I imagined.”
I can’t tell if I want to laugh or cry, but my body decides to go with laugh.
“I want you.” I bury my face in his chest and take a long, deep breath. “I just don’t care about anything else right now. I want you.”
“Let’s get you home.”
I move my head away a little and meet his gaze, nodding as I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to block out the stress of it all.
“By home…” He kisses the top of my head. “I mean you’re staying with me.”
Nothing’s ever sounded more like home than you, Matt McKenzie.
Twenty-three
Matt
“You want a cold cloth?” I give Ellie a teasing wink in an attempt to air out some of the heaviness of the day still pressing down on us.
She snuggles up in my bed and laughs softly. “I’m not nauseous.”
“I know. But you had a traumatic day. And it somehow got more and more traumatic as it went on.” I shake my head, still reeling from the crushing and frustrating and downright shitty encounter I had with the lovely owner of the Riders.
Ellie shrugs and smiles at me. “What’s a cold washcloth got to do with that?”
“I told you.” I sit on the edge of the bed next to her. “It’s the cure for everything.”
Her soft, sweet giggle and slight eye roll ease the sting of Christopher Vice’s condescension echoing in my head.
I can’t even fathom how badly I wanted to curse him out or throw a fist or just walk out of the room, but I couldn’t do that to Ellie. I felt like such a pussy just standing there, taking all that bullshit from him, but what the hell was I going to do about it?
I get how bad the whole situation looks from his perspective, and it’s no secret that I’m not exactly worthy of their daughter, the corporate, modern-day equivalent of a princess. I couldn’t even argue with him…because this nagging voice in the back of my mind sort of knows he’s right. At least about some things.
All I want is what’s best for Ellie and the baby. And I’m not sure if anything on earth could change Christopher Vice’s mind about whether that’s me.
“Come here.” She stretches her arms out wide, her soft voice breaking up the racing, swirling thoughts in my head.
I lie down next to her, holding her back against me. As I wrap my arms around her body, squeezing her tightly, I know that all she needs right now is support and comfort and…love. And all I want to do is give it to her.
I feel her chest rise and fall, our bodies fitting together like puzzle pieces.
“Hi,” she whispers, reaching her hand back to touch me, sliding it over my side and then my ass.
I laugh a little, amused by how she is so simultaneously sexy and adorable. “Hi there,” I say in a low voice, kissing the back of her neck.
Ellie turns around, tickling my nose with hers and wrapping her leg on top of me, instantly flooding my body with heat. “I just want to forget about all of it. Just for a while.”
I nod and kiss her. “Deal.”
Our hands start exploring each other, lust and desire building with every second and every new touch.
She slips her hands under my shirt and traces the lines of my muscles. “Besides,” she whispers, her voice soft and low and sexy, “you have a Super Bowl to focus on, Quarterback.”
I wink at her as blood rushes between my legs, and chills ripple across my skin, chasing her touch.
Our lips find each other again, and I kiss her hard as she rocks against me, her hands desperately exploring every inch of my skin and my tongue slipping between her teeth.