He smiled at me crookedly, and it warmed my heart. Why did it take me so long to realize that he was rather attractive? Nicola may be stunning, but Mathew has a beauty of his own.
You have my permission to be a diva about this. Although endearing, I’m not going to respond positively to this. To make me pleased, you’ll comply with my requests. And you want to bring joy to Daddy, don’t you?
In my mind, it was an interesting question. This was really unprecedented in my experience.
But naturally I wished for Mathew’s joy. I needed him to be happy and grin at me.
‘Yes,’ I said, giving my assent. “Matthew, I hope you find success and happiness in life.”
That should be “Daddy,” he pointed out to me.
Although my cheeks were on fire, I spoke it without thinking. I hope you find joy in life, Dad.
The sheer brilliance of his grin left me gasping for breath. “There’s my little sugar pie.”
I smiled back at him, my heart racing from the overwhelming joy I was feeling. When he talked well of me, I felt quite loved.
Mathew went to the refrigerator and began getting the necessary ingredients for lunch.
“No, you don’t have to cook every single meal for me. Since my arrival, I’ve had him prepare every meal for me. The truth was that I hadn’t done anything to provide a hand. And even though I was no chef, I felt awful for taking Mathew for granted. ”
He gave me a stern look of caution. Don’t even talk to me about it unless you want to hear me scream. I’m going to take care of you today, like I promised. Let me.”
“Okay.” Just sitting here while he worked made me feel useless. To kill the little interval, I observed his hulking frame as he moved, muscles flexing and shifting. Dark pants gripped his behind wonderfully, and his tight black shirt did nothing to disguise his muscles.
By the time he sat down next to me and put a single dish in between us, I was nearly drooling. There was enough pastrami in the sandwich to feed two people, and there were more carrot sticks and hummus than I could possibly consume in one sitting.
“Where is yours?” Confused, I asked.
“We can use this, both of us.”
“Oh.” I was still confused as to why we were sharing a plate, but at least he had split the sandwich in half so that we could each have half.
While reaching for my share, he grabbed my wrist and jerked my hand back to my lap. He reached down, grabbed a carrot stick, and dipped it in the hummus, then brought it up to my lips.
“That’s a really strange thing to be doing. Yes, I did inquire. ”
Indulging your needs and seeing to your care. “Come on, honey, let your guard down.”
“I’m not dependent on anybody for food.”
“Yes, of course you can. ”
” I’m planning on feeding you today. Now, eat your veggies so Daddy won’t be disappointed. ”
“Odd, “to say the least. My skin started to heat up and tingle, and it was really unpleasant.
As my mouth opened, the savory hummus brushed across my tongue. The carrot crunched beneath my teeth, sweet mingling with salt.
The warmth of Mathew’s grin pierced me right through. I’d never seen him so proud and happy before, and it was something I couldn’t quite put my finger on.
While I didn’t fully understand it, I relished in his delight. What was I fighting for if I let him feed me and it felt so good?
Mathew’s eyes became squinty and his lids drooped while I ate everything he gave me, but he kept a careful check on me the whole time. He even had me drink water by holding the glass to my mouth. He required me to carry out his instructions. When I did what he asked, I could see the smile form on his lips.
The joy on his face was contagious. After polishing off my meal, I felt buoyant and happy in body and spirit. Having Mathew to look out for me meant that I didn’t have to worry about anything.
While he was eating his portion, he inexplicably kept his hand on mine.
I certainly didn’t want for him to.
Right after he finished eating, he cleared his plate and rejoined me. He extended his palm and motioned for me to clasp his fingers with mine. Without hesitating, I followed him to the press conference room.
That’s right, he dubbed it the press room. The atmosphere reminded me of a private cinema. The soft sectional sofa and the enormous screen took up enough wall space to comfortably accommodate 10 people.
He propped his back against the sofa and spread his legs out in front of him as he sat in one of the corner seats. I attempted to get in behind him, but his muscular hands shifted my weight. He positioned me so that I was lying on my side, my head resting on his thighs.
In between stroking my hair, he picked up the TV remote.
When the movie started, my eyes started to well up. We felt a surge of warmth and nostalgia for Mathew.
‘You remembered,’ I mumbled.