Chapter 25
EMMIE
Sunlight seeped through the blinds, casting Mateo’s bedroom in a soft golden glow. A few rays hit his face, highlighting his high cheek bones and blue eyes. He was ethereal spread out on his bed, chest bare with only his sheet covering his lower body.
My hands were draped on his chest, and I rested my chin on them as I stared at him. Our legs were tangled together, and his hand was resting on my ass.
"You’re staring,” he murmured, eyelids cracked open slightly.
“I am.” I was trying to figure out how someone like me managed to snag someone like him. It was still hard fathoming that a guy like Mateo was single before now. “I can’t stare at my boyfriend?”
“Hm. By all means, stare away.” Mateo shifted his arm behind his head, the muscle of his bicep flexing.
“You’re such a dork.”
“Yeah, but I’m your dork.”
I hummed and lowered my eyes to his chest. As we laid there cuddling, I tried to come up with a way to ask Mateo a question that’d been on my mind since his mom made a comment to me about it yesterday. I wasn’t sure how to approach it or how Mateo would act when I did ask.
“I can practically hear your mind going.” His hand squeezed my ass cheek.
“Sorry, I just…”
“Talk to me.” If I wanted an answer to my question, right now would be the perfect time.
“Your mom mentioned that you’ve only ever brought one girl home to meet everyone. I was just wondering who she was.” She had to have been someone of importance.
“Ah.” Mateo shifted higher so his back was against the headboard. I sat up a little on my elbows to see his face. “She was talking about Emily.”
“Emily?”
He let out a little sigh before he continued.
“I met Emily at Landon’s ice rink my sophomore year of university.
Thanks to a little meddling from Lydia, the two of us were paired together to work a charity event my brother was doing.
We spent the entire day talking and getting to know each other.
She was the same age and, surprisingly, went to Toronto University as well. ”
I stayed silent, letting him tell the story at his own pace.
“Emily was fun to be around. Because she worked for Landon, she already knew about my family and everything that went with it, so I didn’t have to worry about her only liking me for my last name. With her, things were…easy.”
“Did women try to be with you because Wyatt is famous?” I asked.
“Oh yeah. High school was like that and my freshman year at college.”
“Does Wyatt know?”
Mateo shook his head. “I didn’t tell him. It would only make him feel bad that his image affected who I was friends with and if girls liked me. Wyatt worked his ass off to get into the league, and I wasn’t going to jeopardize that because people treated me differently.”
Mateo once again handled things on his own so others wouldn’t have to. “Bet it was nice being with Emily since she didn’t care.”
“Yeah, it was.” The corner of his mouth lifted into a brief smile. “We started off as friends—hung out between classes, went to eat together, she came by the house I lived in with my friends. One night after we went to some frat party, we ended up kissing, which turned into dating.”
I appreciated Mateo not going into much detail about the things him and Emily did. I wanted to know about her, but I didn’t need descriptive details.
“I liked her, I really did. Brought her home a few times, but despite only having a few things in common, we were completely different people. Emily was a brainiac and was studying chemical engineering. I was studying business, but I knew I would go pro. Football is my life and everything I’ve wanted since I was a kid.
It was something she couldn’t really understand. ”
He shook his head, his hand absentmindedly coming up to play with my hair draped over my shoulder.
“Don’t get me wrong, she was sweet. She was kind and thoughtful, but when the football season started my junior year, she became…
different. She didn’t like the attention I received on campus from people, especially girls. ”
“When I’d have to cancel on plans after a grueling football practice, she’d accuse me of being with someone. Even if I told her I wasn't, she wanted proof. Things turned tense, and I found myself walking on eggshells around her. Like if I made one wrong move, she’d leave me.”
Mateo kept talking, and I let him. It sounded like it was something he needed to get off his chest.
“As a twenty-year-old who experienced people leaving, the last thing I wanted was for her to be another one who did that, but I was miserable. She was miserable.” He took a deep breath.
“It got to the point where Emily finally broke it off but not without a few choice words and accusations. A few months later, I found out she got accepted into some sort of engineering program at another school and never saw her again.”
He didn’t elaborate more on what Emily had said, but the way his mouth pinched and his hand stilled in my hair, it must not have been pleasant.
My heart broke at the thought of younger Mateo trying to make his relationship work even though he was unhappy.
It hadn’t gone unnoticed that, despite everything, he still didn’t say one bad word about her.
“She was my last real relationship. I had a few flings here and there but nothing serious.” He met my eyes. “Until now.”
I pressed a kiss to his chest and smiled before looking back at his face. “Thank you for telling me. I know it wasn’t fun, but I appreciate it.”
He tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. “Ask anything you want, I’ll always answer.”
“You really are a good man, Mateo,” I said. “One of the things I like most about you.”
“Oh, do you now?” He raised a brow at that.
“Mhmm.”
That was such a serious conversation, and one that clearly still hurt him, so I was going to do my best to erase that hurt and make him only think about being here with me.
I sat up onto my knees, the sheet falling off and leaving me completely naked in front of him. Mateo made a sound of appreciation as I tugged whatever was left of the sheet off of him, his cock already hard and waiting.
I crawled between his spread legs and settled onto my elbows, grabbing his length in my right hand. It pulsed and twitched in my grasp.
“What are you going to do with my cock?” Mateo questioned, eyes already hooded, hands braced behind his head as he stared down at me.
“I’m going to show you just how much I like you.”
“Are you sure you don’t want me to come with you?” Mateo asked, leaning against his kitchen counter, coffee in hand. I forced my eyes away from the scene in front of me. He was too tempting, clad in gray sweatpants.
“I need to do this on my own.” I bent over to slide my shoes on. “It’s sweet of you to offer, though.”
“Are you planning on telling him about us?” Mateo sipped his coffee, looking at me over the rim of his mug.
I winced as I looked over at him. “I was going to see how today’s conversation went first.”
He didn’t say a word as he stood there. Instantly, I was washed with guilt. After meeting his family last night, I knew I needed to tell my dad about us. We’d been hiding it too long, and my dad deserved to know I was seeing his star player.
Knowing all of that still didn’t help the anxiety of having to tell him and see his reaction. I needed to do it, and I would, but for right now, I had to have this other conversation with him or else that news could blow up in my face.
“I promise I’ll tell him soon,” I quickly added.
“He’s going to find out sooner than later, and it would be best if it came from you rather than someone else,” Mateo pointed out. “Plus, I want to be able to show my girlfriend off to the team and in public.”
“I know.” I came around the kitchen island, wrapping my arms around his waist, my face pressed against his bare chest.
“I don’t mean to push—”
“No, no, you aren’t pushing me.” I pulled back to look up at his face. “I know where you’re coming from, and you’re right. He needs to know.”
“I know he’s your dad and my coach, but don’t let him steamroll you or make you second-guess this. At the end of the day, you’re still his daughter.” Mateo gently brushed his knuckles against my cheek. “And if he has a problem with it, he can take that up with me.”
Internally, I swooned. Protective Mateo was becoming my favorite.
“But, also promise me you’ll hear him out if he wants to explain things. About the past. About him not being around when you needed him. You don’t need to forgive him right away but hear what he has to say. Okay?”
“I promise.”
For years, anger was easier than the truth.
It was easier to keep my distance than to sit down and admit how much his absence actually hurt.
So we never had the conversation we should’ve had a long time ago.
I was tired of holding onto all of it, so today was going to be the new start our relationship needed.
I stood in front of the diner’s doors, bracing myself before I went in. It was the same one I came to with Mateo, Perry, Jake, and Erin a few weeks ago. It seemed like the most natural place to meet my dad. Plus, it had a bit more privacy for us to talk.
With a deep breath, I opened the doors and stepped in.
I scanned the tables until I spotted familiar brown hair seated in a booth in the back corner.
My dad lifted his hand, lips pulled into a smile.
Part of me wanted to forgo this conversation and just have a simple meal and talk about meaningless things, but I made a promise to myself I’d do this, even if it was hard.
I returned the gesture before weaving my way through the tables. Thankfully, the diner wasn’t too busy, probably thanks to a lot of people being hungover from watching yesterday's game.
My dad stood as I came up to the table. “Hey, sweetie.”
“Hey, Dad.” He pulled me into a tight hug, his massive frame making me feel like a kid again. I clearly got my height from my mom.