CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
MATTEO
“The art she created was unlike anything I had ever seen before. It was breathtaking—an experience in its own right—yet somehow, it didn’t come close to touching the true masterpiece. Her.” - Julian Hart, Painted Inferno
Istare down at the toes of my skates, biting down on the inside of my cheek as my eyes roam over the scuffs. The room hums around me with music playing at a lower volume and the guys talking about the game last night as we get ready for practice. I can’t hear anything they’re saying. There’s a different replay happening inside my head.
“I’m in love with you.”
The way those five words fell from my lips with zero hesitation is either astonishing or alarming. They weren’t planned. They weren’t calculated. Hell, I didn’t even realize at that moment what my actual feelings were for her.
It hit me out of nowhere… and I needed her to know.
There’s nothing else to it, other than that.
Theo scoots closer on the bench next to me. “Are you good?”
“Yeah, I think so.”
Jade left early this morning and I can’t stop thinking about last night. She didn’t say it back. I couldn’t have expected her to. But in a way, there’s a burn of rejection.
Maybe I read things wrong. Maybe I said it too soon.
He nudges my shoulder. “You’re not good. You’re quiet again and you’re only like that when something’s going on.”
“Yeah…” My voice trails off for a moment. I don’t look at him. My gaze is glued to my laces, but I don’t move to tie them. “Jade came over last night.”
Theo chuckles. “When is she not over anymore?” He’s silent for a beat when I don’t respond or laugh. “Did something happen?”
“I—uh.” I hesitate, deciding how honest I want to be with Theo, and my stomach flips. “I told her I’m in love with her.”
Silence. That’s all I get. It stretches between us and I have no choice but to lift my head and turn to look at him.
“Wait, what?” He looks confused and scratches the side of his head. “You were just saying last week how she isn’t your girlfriend, but now you’re in love with her?”
I blow out a breath, dragging my hand down my face. “I know, man. I fucking know.”
His brow furrows. “When the hell did this happen?”
“Overnight.” I shake my head. “I don’t even know. I’d been ignoring my feelings for her for weeks now. It’s like I just woke up. Something clicked inside my head and it’s just what it is.”
He stares at me in disbelief. “Hell must be freezing over.” He cracks a smile. “I never thought I’d see the day that Matty Ford is in love.” He looks past me. “You owe me a hundred bucks.”
“No way,” Cross says back to him, laughter following his words. “No way.”
I look between the two of them. “You guys had a bet going?”
Cross nods, grinning. “Theo said you’d be head over heels before the end of the season.”
“Cross said by the summer,” Theo chimes in.
I scoff, shaking my head at them. “Was anyone else in on this?”
“No,” Cross says with a sigh. “Thank God. I’m not paying anyone else because of this.”
Cross turns back to his stall and Theo looks at me again. “So,” he says carefully. “How did she take it?”
I drop my gaze back down to my skates, sucking my teeth before looking back at him. “She said she needs some time to process.”