Second Chance Girl
Page 24

He’d waited anxiously for his father to see what he’d done. Waited for judgment to be pronounced. Ceallach had slowly walked around the pedestal, had frowned and said nothing. Mathias had waited confidently, ready to be told he was good enough.
His father’s expression had hardened into distaste. “Garbage,” he’d growled, before pushing the pedestal and causing the huge, glorious swirling, living thing to tumble to the ground and shatter into a thousand pieces.
All three brothers had stared in disbelief. Ronan had spoken first.
“You’re jealous,” Mathias’s twin had shouted. “That’s why you did it. You know he’s better than you and you can’t stand it.”
Ceallach’s next swipe of his fist had been to his son’s face. Mathias had pulled Ronan back while Nick had shoved their father out of the studio. They’d stood there together, their breathing loud in the silence.
“You have to make it again,” Nick said at last. “You have to show him.”
“Nick’s right. We’ll get it out of the studio before he can destroy it. He’ll be forced to admit you’re the one who’s going to beat him.”
Mathias hadn’t said anything. He’d walked out into the woods around their house and had stayed gone for two days. When he’d returned, he’d started making dishes and bowls, mugs and basins.
He shook his head and returned to the present. The small statue of Millie still stood in the center of his desk. He touched the cool, smooth glass. No matter what, Ceallach wasn’t going to take this away from him. That he knew for sure.
* * *
“WHAT?” VIOLET DEMANDED the second she sat down at the small table.
Carol sighed. Sisters—who knew they could be a problem? “Thanks for suggesting we have coffee,” she said as cheerfully as she could. She motioned to the giant cinnamon roll she’d already purchased. “I was hoping we could share. Otherwise I’ll eat the whole thing and wake up weighing 400 pounds.”
“I don’t think that’s how metabolism works.” Violet eyed her. “There’s something. Don’t think you can hide it from me.” She pointed to the short line at the counter. “I’m going to get coffee and another fork. You can use that time to figure out how to either cough up the truth or lie your way out of whatever you have going on.” She took a step, then stopped. “And remember, I can always tell when you’re lying.”
Carol wanted to say that wasn’t true, only it was. She and her sister were close, which was why she’d agreed to coffee. After her unsettling evening, she’d wanted a friendly face and a bit of female support. Only she’d forgotten that although her sister loved her, she wasn’t a pushover. Which meant either coming clean or making up a very believable story. While Carol knew she had many lovely qualities, she also knew that all the creativity genes had gone to Violet. So annoying.
Rather than fight the inevitable, Carol waited until her sister had taken the seat opposite.
“Fine,” she said, her voice low. “I had sex with Mathias last night. Sort of.”
Violet’s mouth fell open, her eyes widened and she nearly dropped her fork. “I... You... What? Mathias? But I didn’t know you two were... Wait. What do you mean sort of?”
Carol took another bite of cinnamon roll. When life got confusing, sugar and fat were always a comfort.
“We’re not dating, if that’s what you’re asking. We’re friends. He’s into those sexy bridesmaids and I’m...”
“Not?”
Carol smiled. “Exactly.” Her smile faded. “I don’t know what exactly happened.”
“Oh, honey, then one of you was doing it wrong.”
“You’re not helping.”
“Sorry. I’m confused, but I’ll focus. So what happened?”
Carol explained about driving home and seeing Mathias walking Sophie. There had been the invitation to come over and margaritas and one thing had led to another...almost.
“He passed out before we could...you know.”
Violet leaned close. “Seriously? You just told me you had oral sex with Mathias but you can’t say intercourse?”
“That is hardly the point.” She glanced over her shoulder to make sure no one had settled close to them. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to say the next time I see him.”
“I think mockery is in order.”
“How is that helpful?”
“It’s the truth. Come on, the man passed out. That’s all on him, not you.” Her eyes narrowed. “You’re not blaming yourself, are you?”
Carol shifted in her seat. “Not exactly. It’s just, I’m not like the women he sees. They’re all so glamorous and beautiful.”
“They’re in wedding clothes. Of course they look all fancy.”
Logic, Carol thought. How annoying. “Maybe if I was different he would have stayed awake.”
“Only if you were coffee. Carol, you know he had way too much to drink. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“I feel awful.”
“Imagine how he feels. Talking about humiliating.”
Carol stared at her sister. “I never thought of that. You’re right. He has to be devastated. I mean, he’s a guy and he just passed out. That’s not good.”
“See. You’re the innocent party.”
She liked the sound of that. Last night she’d been so shocked, she hadn’t known what to do. She’d let Sophie out and had tidied up, then left. But she hadn’t been able to sleep or known what to think. Even worse, she couldn’t stop thinking about how great the sex had been. Imagine if they’d been able to continue!
“So what do I say when I see him?”
“Probably avoid words like loser.”
“Violet!”
“Sorry. I don’t know. What do you want to say?”
“I’m not sure. I haven’t heard from him yet.” She’d kind of thought he might text her, but so far there hadn’t been a word.
“You will. I’m sure he’s trying to figure out how to crawl out from under his rock. Plus he probably doesn’t feel very good.”
“I’m sure he’ll apologize,” Carol murmured. “I’ll wait until that happens, then tell him it’s fine.”
“You sure you don’t want to demand a rematch?”
Carol’s stomach tightened. She would like nothing more, but sex on demand seemed way too risky. What if Mathias was regretting what had happened? What if he never wanted to see her again?
She knew she was looking for trouble, but it was difficult to be rational about the whole thing. She wasn’t like Violet—she had no sense of style, no attitude. Mathias was all attitude.
“I want things to go back the way they were,” she lied, hoping her sister didn’t notice. “I’m sure they will.”
“After he grovels.”
“Yes, after that. So how was dinner with your Englishman?”
She’d thought Violet might resist changing the subject, but instead her sister slumped in her seat and sighed.
“Amazing.”
“The word and the body language don’t match.”
“I know. We had a great time. He was funny and charming. My dance memory from all those years ago is restored.”