Chapter 67

Matt stretched "I don't suppose this place has a hot tub."
"Nope." Summer yawned against his chest. "That's one thing I love about my condo. Has a gorgeous pool and spa area."
"I'm thinking of adding a hot tub in my yard," he said. "My hip loves the idea. There's already a nice pool."
"I'm still shocked that you bought a house right away," she mused, running her fingers through the sparse hair on his chest. "I might have asked you to stay with me in my place."
"I wanted a home." He smiled at her words though. "I hope you like it too. Maybe you'll... Well, it's big enough for two. Maybe even a family someday."
"Wait." Summer sat up in bed and glared at him. "You're saying you bought a house, hoping I'd come live in it with you, and you didn't even check with me first? You didn't ask if I was interested in moving. You didn't ask if I'd like the place. You just bulldozed ahead and picked the house all on your own? Before we'd even met face-to-face?"
"Well, I couldn't exactly ask you to help pick a house if you didn't even know I was a real person." It seemed perfectly logical to him.
"You could have gotten an apartment for the short run," she pointed out. "Then if we decided to move in together, you could have moved into my condo. I like my home. What makes you think I'd be eager to move?"
"Because it's a condo, not a house." He didn't want to raise a family in a complex. He'd grown up in apartments and always envied the kids who had real houses and yards. "I wanted a real home."
"But my place is a home. And moreover, it's mine." She growled and crossed her arms over her chest. "And for the record, you haven't asked me to move in either. I wouldn't recommend this as a good time to try." Standing, she flounced toward the door. "I'm taking a shower - all my stuff is in the bathroom on the other side of the hall. You can use the one over here." She stormed out of the room.
Ouch. Matt wasn't sure why she was so pissed, but something he'd done had set her off good. This would probably not be a good time to break out the engagement ring and propose.
He went to the other room, grabbed his suitcase and pulled it into the empty bathroom next to the master bedroom. The sound of the shower running came from the closed door across the hall. Apparently all five bedrooms shared just two baths. That ought to get interesting when the whole clan got together.
Odds were she'd have kicked him out before then anyway. He knew he had some fast-talking to do tonight if he wanted her to let him stay.
As he stood in the shower, reluctantly washing Summer's scent from his skin, Matt pondered her anger. Had he really been too presumptuous? How the hell was he supposed to know? He was a guy. He was supposed to provide the house, the stability, right?
Damn, you idiot. You know better.
His mother would kick his ass if she was here right now. He knew perfectly well just how competent a woman alone could be, that it didn't take two to create stability.
Problem was he really loved the house and already didn't want to give it up.
But better the house than Summer.
He figured he had the rest of the weekend to bring her around and convince her he was truly sorry.
Matt wasn't sure he'd ever been more scared - even buried under rocks behind enemy lines.
Summer forced herself to breathe while she washed the sweat and sex from her skin.
How had she ever thought she and Matt understood each other? It was screamingly obvious now that whatever link had bound them had only channeled limited information. Did he really think she was the kind of woman who just smiled and said "Yes dear" to whatever a man decreed?
Sure, they were compatible - way beyond compatible - in bed, but she had no intention of moving in with someone just because of really great sex.
She'd known his appearance in her life was too good to be true. So why did it hurt so much to have that pointed out?
And now he didn't even have a hotel room to go back to. Crap. She supposed she was stuck with him here until Monday. She'd sleep in her room and he could use her parents'. Unless he became even more of a jerk. Then he could sleep in his goddamn truck.
She scrubbed her skin until it was red then dried off and dressed in her oldest jeans and a faded rock band T-shirt. Feet still bare, she went out and sat on the deck to comb out her hair in the early evening sunshine.
"Hey there." Matt approached cautiously, carrying two glasses of tea. "Thought you might want this."
"More assumptions?" She could have kicked herself for the snotty response the minute it came out of her mouth. His wince made her feel even worse. "Wait," she called as he started to turn back into the house. "I'm sorry. That was just me being a bitch. Truth is I'd love a glass. Thanks."
"You're allowed to be angry. I'm sorry too." He handed her a glass then took a seat at the opposite side of the table. Now wearing jeans and a white T-shirt, he was still stunningly handsome. Just the sight of him made her breath catch. "I should have come to find you as soon as I moved to Charleston. I guess I just didn't want to show up on your doorstep homeless and hat in hand. I wanted to have a job, a home, be settled before I courted you."
"Courted?" She almost smiled at the old-fashioned word. "Is that what this is?"
Matt shrugged. "What it was meant to be anyway." He looked so contrite, so adorably masculine and even hurt that her heart went out to him.
"I suppose," she said quietly, "that given our history together, we can't exactly expect anything like normal in any part of our relationship."
"You're a smart woman, Summer Holiday." He lifted his glass and gave her a hopeful grin. "But you know that. And I can truly be an ass from time to time."
She grinned back. "True enough. Proves you're human. With three brothers, I'm pretty familiar with men making asses of themselves."