End Zone: Texas Titans 2 by Cheryl Douglas Read Free Book Online

putting her heart on the line again, she
would make herself crazy thinking about him if she refused to see him again. “I
hope so.” He looked at her a long time, and she almost saw his internal
struggle. He wanted to say something, but he didn’t know if he should. “What?
What are you thinking?”
    He smiled. “I’m thinking I could use a
glass of wine. How about you?”
    Matt let his hands fall, and she missed his
skin on hers. “Sure.” She didn’t want to push too hard. Kristen had dated
enough men who wanted more than she could give, and she’d vowed she would never
be the one asking her partner to be all that she needed him to be. She wasn’t
that woman, the needy one. That had been her mother’s M.O., and it would never
be hers.
    Matt led her deeper into the house and
pointed to a deep cocoa-colored sofa in front of the fireplace. “Why don’t you
have a seat while I get us that drink?”
    The gourmet kitchen was combined with the
spacious great room, giving her the opportunity to watch him prepare their
drinks. “I normally call it a night after one drink.”
    “I can have Lawrence drive you home.”
    She’d left her car in the hotel parking
lot, knowing she could always take a taxi to pick it up. “It’s nice of you to
offer, but I can take a cab home.”
    “Or you could spend the night with me.” His
hand froze on the corkscrew over the bottle of red wine as he waited for her
response.
    “I…” She’d never had a one-night stand,
never even been tempted. Matt’s offer made her wonder what it would feel like
to wake up in his arms though.
    “I have a couple of guest rooms. If you’d
rather stay here, you’re more than welcome to.”
    Of course that’s what he meant. Matt was a gentleman, and she chastised herself for thinking he may
have had an ulterior motive. “I really should get home. I have an early
morning.”
    “But it’s Sunday.” He carried two glasses
of wine and the bottle into the family room. Setting the bottle on the mahogany
coffee table, he said, “Everyone needs a day of rest.”
    Kristen thanked him as she took both of the
glasses. She watched him remove his jacket and toss it over a nearby chair
before taking off his tie and undoing the buttons at his wrists and neck. She
sucked in a sharp breath when she saw the tattoo she’d been curious about. It
was a woman’s portrait. A stunning woman.
    His eyes followed hers, and he grimaced.
“Not the smartest decision I ever made.” He took his glass of wine before
sitting down.
    She held his arm to look closer at the
colorful tattoo. It was a work of art. He must have believed they would be
together forever, otherwise he wouldn’t have marked his skin with her image. “She’s
beautiful. Your ex-wife?” As if she didn’t know.
    “Yeah.” He tried to pull his arm away, but
she gripped his forearm.
    “It must have been hard, letting her go.”
    “You have no idea.”
    Kristen felt the impact of his words, his
bitterness, anguish, and resentment. She could see he was a long way from being
over his divorce. “You still love her?”
    “No.”
    He said it too quickly for Kristen to
believe him. “How long have you been divorced?”
    “A little over a year.”
    “That’s not very long.”
    “It’s long enough.”
    “Do you want to talk about it?”
    He took a drink then another. “No, she’s
the last thing I want to think about tonight.”
    “But you are thinking about her.”
    “I’m thinking about her because you asked
about her.” He sighed. “Look, Kristen, she means nothing to me, okay? Can we
just forget about it, please?”
    She had no right to pry, but it hurt that
he seemed so determined to shut her out. “I’m sorry, I just—”
    “No, I’m sorry.” He reached for her free
hand. “It was a bad time in my life, not one that I enjoy thinking about.”
    “It must be hard to forget with a constant
reminder.” Her eyes landed on the tattoo again.
    “Tattoos are like chapters in a book.