Trust Me: Matty and Kayla, Book 3 of 3 (The McDaniels Brothers 7) (10 page)

Instead, I just said, “Hey.”

"We're here too," a female voice called from behind him.

I peered around his shoulder to see Olivia, Bash and Reid in the hallway.

"Hi, guys," I said cautiously. Was this going to be some sort of family bitch-out session? The McDaniels boys coming to tell me to fuck off for hurting their brother or something?

Another thought came to me and I could feel the color draining from my cheeks. What if Matty had enlisted them to help him convince me to stay? God, my heart wanted to. The lure of it was so compelling. To just fall back in with him and pretend like nothing had happened. It might even work for a while, but long term? I would lose my mind here in Boston.

My stomach ached as I looked into his eyes again. Maybe in a year. Or maybe in a few months…"Matty-"

"Hear us out," he pleaded softly, stepping forward.

I could smell the clean scent of his aftershave and it was all I could do not to wind myself around him. "Yeah, sure. Okay." I waved them in with my hand and moved to the side.

"What's that?" Bash asked, jerking his chin toward my laptop screen.

My face went white-hot as the rest of the crew turned to look. "Uh, just fooling around."

Reid bee-lined for it and poked the pink sticky flag with his finger. "Alaska, huh?"

"No. I was just..." God, nothing I could think of to finish that sentence sounded the least bit sane, so I just let it hang out there as they all stared at me.

Olivia pinned me with a perceptive blue gaze and she nodded slowly. "I get it. You just want out. Doesn't matter much where to, right?"

I could tell by her expression that she did, indeed, get it and I wondered if I'd misjudged her. I'd always looked at her like the poor little rich girl, but from what Matty had told me over the past month or so, she'd weathered some pretty tough storms. My embarrassment faded and I shrugged.

"Pretty much. Although, I'm rethinking the whole Alaska pick," I admitted, purposely avoiding looking at Matty again. I was only human, after all, and if I had any hope of getting out of here without throwing myself into his arms and begging him to be with me, keeping my eyes off him was key.

"How about New York?" Bash asked.

I turned and shot him a puzzled look. "New York is okay, I guess."

“New York is super expensive,” Olivia said, slipping her arm around her man’s waist and smiling up at him adoringly. “What about California?”

Reid winced and shook his head. “No way. I can’t stand avocados and I hear they put them on everything. That’s just gross.”

I pursed my lips, staring at each one of them in turn, more confused with every passing second. What the hell were they going on about? Matty, I could see weighing in, but what did they care where I was going?

“Vegas,” Matty said, moving to stand in front of the computer next to Reid. He tapped at the screen with his knuckle. “Not too expensive, not too many avocados, and lots of opportunities to fight.”

I loved the vibe of Vegas, but the thought of taking on a city like that alone was even more daunting than the thought of Alaska. “I’m going to have to work a lot of hours. There won’t be much time for me to get into fighting.” Another dream that Mick had crushed for me.

“I didn’t mean just for you.” Matty took a step toward me, his jaw flexing as he held my gaze. “I mean for me.”

Blood rushed to my head as I tried to make sense of his words. He couldn’t be serious. His whole life was here. His gym, his brothers-

“And me,” Bash added, moving to flank Matty.

Reid joined him a second later. “Me, too.”

“I can go to school anywhere,” Olivia announced, lining up with the rest of them.

Emotions were coming so hard and fast, one on top of the other. Hope and terror and fear and excitement. Could this honestly be what I thought it was? My palms went cold as I waited for someone to come right out and say it before I exploded.

“We want to come with you, Red. Wherever you go.” Matty reached out and cupped my face in his hand. “I love you. I don’t want to be without you. There’s nothing here for any of us anymore. We’re ready to move on.”

“This is insane,” I murmured, wondering if I’d bumped my head somewhere along the line. He was--
they
were-- seriously thinking of uprooting their entire lives right now? For me?

“Maybe it is,” Reid said, his handsome face splitting into a grin. “But we McDaniels boys aren’t exactly known for playing it safe.”

He leaned in and slung an arm around Matty’s shoulder and it hit me. They weren’t doing this for me. They were doing this for Matty. Because of all he’d done for them. Quitting school to work so he could save up to make sure they could all be together again and stay that way. This was their version of paying it back.

The revelation actually made me feel better because Matty deserved that kind of loyalty. And apparently, he thought I did too, because although his family might not be offering to move just for me, Matty was.

“What about your gym?” I asked, trying to keep my voice steady in spite of the emotions rioting in my chest.

“It’s beat. Barely pays for itself. We’re better off renting out the space or trying to sell it.” He stroked my jaw with his thumb. “Besides, I can start a new gym in Vegas. Or wherever you want to go.”

“Except California,” Reid interjected.

Matty turned his head and glared at him.

“Take it easy, I’m just fucking around.” Reid looked at me, his boyish face growing serious. “Seriously, Kayla. He’s right. Wherever you want to go.”

He patted his brother on the shoulder and headed for the door, gesturing to Bash and Olivia. “Let’s give them a chance to talk. I saw a pizza place across the street.”

A few seconds later, the door closed behind them with a click, but I barely noticed. My whole world was right in front of me. Of all the ways I’d imagined today would go, this had never even been a thought in my head.

“Are you still thinking it over, or are you trying to figure out how to let me down easy?” Matty asked. His lips were curved into a half-smile but his eyes were dead serious.

“No!” I laid a hand on his chest and let my fingers curl into the fabric of his T-shirt just to ground me a little. He was really here. This wasn’t a dream. “No, I’m not going to let you down. I just…can’t believe anyone would do something like this for me.”

“I’m doing it for me, Red. Because every day we’re not together feels like a day wasted. I realized that the night after the Martin fight, when you walked out. I love you so fucking much, it’s like I don’t know what I thought about before I met you.”

The tears started falling then, in a hot rush down my face. “Ugh, I’m about to do that ugly cry thing,” I warned, and then let out a loud sniffle.

He chuckled and swiped the tears from my eyes. “You could never look ugly.” He dropped a kiss to my nose. “But if you don’t put me out of my misery soon, I might have to start crying my damn self. Three times I’ve said it, and I have yet to hear it back. Lay it on me, Red.”

I kissed his chin lightly, and then tipped my head up to brush my lips against his. “I love you, Matty. Your sense of loyalty, and your work ethic. The way you value family and how trustworthy you are. The way you accept people, flaws and all.” I pressed my body against his and closed my eyes to relish the sensation I was certain I would never feel again. “I love everything about you. And I would be honored if you and your family would come away with me.”

He bent low and scooped me into his arms, raining kisses all over my face. “There’s no stopping us now.”

I nestled my head into the crook of his neck and blew out a sigh. “It’s going to be a grind, you know. I don’t exactly have a whole lot of resume-worthy talents, and without Mickey’s connections, it might be harder to land fights for you.”

“I’m on your resume, and we crushed at that Martin fight.” His eyes blazed with hope and excitement. “I believe in us and I know we’re going to make a name for ourselves out in Vegas. Bash and Reid are going to talk to you about managing them too, and in our free time, we are all going to help get you ready for some amateur bouts too. You’re a natural.”

It sounded amazing. But I couldn’t deny the rush of sadness and dread that came over me when my thoughts turned to my father. “This probably isn’t over with Mickey, you know. I might have to come back to testify. Things could get ugly.”

“And we’ll handle it together if it does. But until then, let’s live and be happy.” He touched his forehead to mine, his minty breath washing over my face. “He’s taken enough from us, don’t you think?”

I did.

“Let’s do it.” Suddenly bursting with energy, I shimmied in his arms until he let me slide to the floor. “I’m almost ready to go.”

“You can come stay at the apartment for a couple days until we’re packed up, and we’ll see if your guards can come with us. Is that okay?”

I had to stay in Southie for another couple days to get to spend the rest of my life with Matty McDaniels?

“Absolutely. Your family is waiting at the pizza place. We should hurry up,” I said, making my way to the table to close my laptop and finish packing up.

“We could…” Matty said, rolling up behind me to wrap his arms around my waist. “Or we could stay here and make out for a while.”

I whirled around to face him, shoving aside the last of the sadness, vowing to focus on only the good for a while. And man, was this good.

“Actually, I think I might have forgotten to pack a few things in my bedroom. Want to help me look?” I asked with a wink.

“Oh, hell yes. I’m good at finding stuff.”

I led him down the hall, feet barely touching the ground, and realized he was right. We were both pretty good at finding stuff. I might have lost my mother and my father now too, but I’d found the one thing I’d been missing my whole life.

Someone to love me through the good times and the bad.

I’d found Matty McDaniels. And that was more than enough for me.

Two weeks later…

Reid

Moving day was turning out to be a major hassle. Who knew a bunch of boys who never had shit would have collected so much of it through the years?

I tossed what seemed like the hundredth pair of running shoes into a black plastic bag. We’d used up every suitcase, duffel bag and backpack in the place the day before, and still had another whole room to empty out.

“Someone want to pick up lunch and some drinks?” Olivia asked, stepping into the hallway and glancing my way, a pleading expression etched into her face. A streak of sweat trickled down her cheek and I took pity on her.

“Sure. Call some sandwiches in and I’ll make a run.” I stood and tossed the garbage bag full of shoes to the side. “Soda or Gatorade?”

“Iced tea, if they’ve got it.”

“Me too!” Kayla called from half-inside a kitchen cabinet where she was packing up the last of the pots and pans.

“Same here. Hey, did anyone empty the linen closet yet?” Bash called from the bathroom.

Jesus, it was going to be a long day. Still, I couldn’t seem to wipe the smile from my face.

We’d needed this. Not just Kayla and Matty. All of us. I don’t know why I hadn’t seen it before. I loved Boston. It was home. But my brothers and I had been in a rut for a long time. We needed a fresh start, and Vegas was the perfect place to do it. Lots of action, lots of places to fight, and far away from all the drama that had been our lives here.

I grabbed my car keys from the counter and headed out. “Order me a meatball sandwich,” I called over my shoulder to whoever was listening. I paused until I heard a grunt in response and continued down the stairs.

When I stepped into the gym, I slowed and took a second to look around. It was empty now, save for a few torn up mats we’d decided to throw away. The rest, we’d jammed into the moving van Matty and Kayla were going to drive out to our new digs in Vegas. We’d sold the gym outright for just enough money to pay rent on a four bedroom house for a year in advance. It had a huge finished basement we were going to trick out and make into a home gym until we found a spot to rent locally.

Things were falling into place so smoothly, it was almost creepy. Such a sharp turn from the long, pothole-filled road we’d taken to get here. I could only hope it was good karma swinging back our way.

I took one last look, half-expecting to feel a little sad, but all I felt was excited. Looking forward to the future. Tossing my keys from one hand to the other, humming the tune to Spiderman under my breath, I crossed the floor to the front door and unlocked it. Just as I went to push it open, a knock sounded.

Probably the new owner stopping by to pick up a set of keys.

A welcoming smile at the ready, I shoved the door open. My brain struggled to make sense of what I was seeing and then everything went black, like a gaping void of thought, leaving nothing behind but a low hum.

“Reid?” the woman at the door said softly.