Page 29 of Lovers' Dance

“I did advise you to stay away from her, Matt.”

“Will you please refrain from speaking until she returns? The last thing I need is your gloating over my public embarrassment, and some of the blame lies at your feet. I never asked you to locate her to begin with.”

Nathan heeded Matt’s annoyed words, silently chuckling to himself. Matt’s face had been a picture he would never forget. Madison DuMont had truly humbled the great Matthew Bradley with her harsh words. Nathan himself felt embarrassed at being present during such an outrageous scene, but he would never frequent this pub again so it didn’t matter.Token black fuck.She had a mouth on her that one.

“Feisty, isn’t she?” Nathan couldn’t keep silent. Matt muttered something, most likely insulting, under his breath, then levelled Nathan with an arrogant stare.

“Isn’t she just?” Matt tried to control his temper as his friend chortled at him. He was a private man and her reaction to learning about his wealth had been over the top. He was planning on telling her, after they’d had sex. It wasn’t like he had hidden it from her. She’d seen his home. It was obvious he was wealthy. So why had she reacted as if he’d betrayed her? And the things she’d said…her angry words hurled at him as if he were an insignificant being. Who the hell did she think she was? Implying he was a racist in public. Creating a scene, then storming out of here like the wronged party. But an unwilling smile flittered across his lips. She was incandescent in her fury. His smile vanished as he remembered what she said: token black fuck. He didn’t see her like that, did he? Uncertainty filled him. She was unlike any woman he’d dated. Maybe the wrong impression, albeit unintentionally, had been given. Did she believe he saw her in such a manner? The door, visible from where they sat, was shoved open. She marched in, looked over to their table and glared viciously at him before stomping towards them. Matt’s chest tightened with an unrecognizable emotion. God. She was beautiful.

I had walked about five minutes before the realization my stuff was in that asshole’s car hit me. Argh. My frigging house keys and Oyster card were in the bag. I had my wallet so I could purchase a travel card, but I needed my keys. Wait, Dante had a spare set, I could use those. The thought of Matthew Bradley having the keys to my place made me sick. He was a racist psycho. I toyed with the idea of smashing his car window to gain entry and retrieve my bag, but getting arrested for wilful property damage was not an appealing thought. Strengthening my nerves, I turned around and headed back for the pub. When I barged in, they were seated where I’d left them. Matt’s handsome face showed a flash of relief before settling into an emotionless mask. Only his eyes revealed something of what he was feeling. I wasn’t exactly sure on what it was.

“I need my stuff.” Said with enough venom to kill. Matt nodded and got to his feet, Nathan followed. We trooped out of the pub; well, I stomped, they sauntered, managing to keep up with my fast pace due to their long strides. Mutated English giants.

“Madi,” he said from my right.

I ignored him as we waited for the lights to change at the zebra crossing.

“At least show me some semblance of common courtesy by acknowledging my attempt to speak to you,” he said in that so very posh voice of his.

I raised incredulous eyes up, squinting against the sunshine while trying to glower at him.Was he for real?

“For the record,” he continued pleasantly, “gazillionaire is not a word.”

I gave him the finger and took my chances with oncoming traffic. Standing next to him was intolerable.

“Madi!” he shouted as I sprinted across the busy road. The blare of horns unleashed was expected, it was Friday evening after all. Traffic was murder. When the lights changed, Matt raced across the road with Nathan on his heels. He caught up to me and grabbed me by the arms, shaking me vigorously.

“Are you insane? You could’ve been knocked over,” he yelled. He was shaking me so hard my teeth chattered.

“Better than standing next to you,” I managed to say while trying to escape his hold. “And why are you touching me? I said I would kick your mmph—”

My mouth was being ravished by an irate man. I kicked him in the shins, but he kept on kissing me and wrapped his arms around my body, effectively putting an end to my struggles. It was a good kiss. It was an amazing kiss. One which I fought to resist, but damn, the next thing I knew, I was kissing him back with equal ferocity while cursing in my head.

“Don’t ever scare me like that again,” he said sternly once he let me up for air. I blinked slowly, lips throbbing, dazed as I observed his flushed face. He did look a bit scared and angry.

“Come on,” he ordered, slipping his large hand over mine and stalking off. My gait was practically a run to keep up with him. By the time we reached where the car was parked, I was breathless, or maybe it was simply because of his kiss. Damn, it was an exquisite kiss.

Holding my hand, he reached into his pants’ pocket and pulled out his keys.

“You drive a Rolls-Royce,” I said in disgust. It had escaped my notice previously. How? I wasn’t a car person. My beat-up old Beetle got me from A to B. One car was as good as the other, as long as it worked.

“Yes,” he replied, opening the passenger door. “Get in.”

“No. I want my stuff.”

Nathan, being relegated to the back seat, opened up his door and slid in without saying a word.

“I swear if you don’t get into this car I will—”

“You’ll what?” I interrupted his threat with a palm pushing against his chest. He didn’t move an inch.

Matt’s expression softened. It unnerved me. He leaned into me and said huskily, “I’ll kiss you again, but this time I won’t stop.”

The air caught in my throat. His lips hovered above my face and I could feel my nipples tightening from the close contact of his body. Why was I attracted to this asshole?

“This is kidnap,” I groused, getting into his show-offy car. Matt slammed the door shut and hurried over to the driver’s side. Nathan was smiling politely from the back. I eyed my bag next to him. Could I snatch it and jump out the car before Matt—too late. He was behind the wheel and buckling up.

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