Page 74 of Lovers' Dance: Vol. 2

“Are you going to introduce me to this husband of yours?” Raheem joked. “I still can’t believe you got married, to a bloody billionaire no less. You know, I always thought you and Dante would,” his words trailed off at my arched eyebrow.

“Maybe some other time, Raheem. Matt’s busy.” I replied and moved towards the door with Raheem on my heels. I flicked the lights out and closed the door behind us. “Matt,” I poked my head into his office, studiously avoiding the three pairs of eyes. “I’m going to drop Raheem home. I won’t be too long.”

The bent truth fell from my lips easily and I didn’t wait for a response, instead I grabbed Raheem by the arm and hustled him down the hallway before Matt could react.

“Where’s the fire?” Raheem asked, slightly alarmed at my haste.

I peeked over my shoulder. No belligerent hubby as yet. “Come on, it’s late and we need to go.”

Once we made it to the foyer, I snatched my keys off the little table and made my escape with Raheem in tow. My breathing only relaxed fully when we were both in the Cayenne.

“Wowzer, this is a nice ride, Madi.” Raheem complimented me and I felt sick inside. Kind of ashamed actually. Had I let myself become a kept woman?

“Thanks.” I muttered and started the engine while shooting furtive glances at the front door, expecting Matt to appear any moment now. I didn’t want to take any chances and screeched away from the curb.

Raheem gripped his seatbelt. “This isn’t Silverstone, Madi, and there’re speed limits here.”

I kept my foot down, burning rubber. The need to get away, far away, from the man I loved scared the hell out of me. Damn it. Had I made the biggest mistake of my life? Our differences, something that hadn’t reared its ugly head in a while, were becoming apparent again. And the manner in which he spoke to me hurt immensely. I was his wife, not some bloody tenant.

“Asshole.” I muttered under my breath as I cranked the heating up inside the car. He had a problem with Raheem being in his house when he didn’t with Eddie. The only difference was the fact Raheem was black while Eddie was white, and I wasn’t playing the friggingrace card. I knew, I knew why he instinctively reacted like that. Did Matt even see it?

Matt checked the clock on the wall and his scowl deepened. They’d been working through the contracts for the past four hours. She still hadn’t returned and that text she sent two hours ago advising him of her detour to her place of work had only served to increase his anger.

“Right, lads,” Nathan stood up, stretching his arms. “My driver should be out front and my wife is waiting up for me.

Adam looked up from the papers in front of him. “How is Bella? I haven’t seen her for a while.”

Nathan grinned in delight. “Growing rounder every second and suffering from the strangest cravings.”

Matt managed a small smile in response to his friend’s obvious happiness.

“I tell you, Adam,” Nathan continued with a smirk. “You don’t know what you’re missing out on. Ask Matt, he’ll confirm this marriage thing is bliss.”

Matt couldn’t stop his grimace and they both saw it. He ignored their curious appraisal and shuffled the papers in his hand before saying, “Yes, it is.” Even he could hear the hollow ring to his words.

“Are you alright?” Nathan asked, reaching for his jacket which he’d discarded hours ago.

“I’m perfectly fine.” Matt assured him as he leaned back into his chair and smiled.

“The left side of your face a few hours ago begs to differ,” Adam drawled with furrowed brows. “Did you have words with Madi?”

Matt put the papers down and affected a relaxed pose. He was not going to discuss his marriage. That was between him and Madi. Yet they had both seen the evidence of her anger earlier. Much to Matt’s relief they had ignored her palm print across his cheek then. It seemed now they wanted to meddle in his business.

“A difference of opinion, Adam.” he said dismissively.

“About?” Adam pressed and earned himself a slight glare, a clear indication that he should drop the subject. But Adam was Adam and he took his role of elder brother seriously when the occasion suitedhim. “She left rather quickly with that man. I’ll tell you, it was quite a shock walking in and seeing a stranger in your house. You need to speak to Madi about the company she keeps.”

“Hmph,” Nathan grunted, fiddling with his watch. “He looked like a yob if you ask me. Why do they dress like that? If I had come home to find someone like him in my house I’d be calling my friend at the Metropolitan police at once, then I’d be checking my valuables.”

Nathan shared a chuckle with Adam while Matt observed his brother and close friend, hiding his shock. And shame. Madi’s words replayed themselves in his head. Bloody hell. In all honesty, after his initial anger at finding her in such a suggestive position with the man, he had felt extreme nervousness over his presence in his house. The thought had crossed his mind…Matt shook his head. He was not a racist. He’d fallen in love and married a black woman for Christ’s sakes. An uneasy look flickered across his face. No, he had every right to voice his concerns, perhaps not quite as vehemently as he did. Privacy was very important to him and having strangers invading the sanctuary that was their home, well, that was simply unacceptable. Although he belatedly realized his reaction to Eddie and Raheem were polar opposites. Bollocks.

“He’s one of her dance associates.” Matt said firmly, wanting to end the discussion. “Are we still on for golf tomorrow, Nathan?”

Nathan raised a brow at Matt’s deliberate topic change. “Yes, but let’s tee off at a later time. It’s already gone midnight and I’m in dire need of a lie in. I’ll call you.”

“What are we wagering?” Adam asked, thankfully going along with their conversation’s new direction.

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