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Looking between Zoey and Matty, I had to admit that they made an attractive pair. I wasn’t entirely sure what Matty meant when he said they were not in a real relationship, so my guess was her confusion was less about his being caught with someone, but more about Matty being caught with another guy. It wasn’t like Matty gave much indication of his sexual preferences, but when we first met I didn’t exactly get gay vibes, so I wasn’t surprised at Zoey’s shocked expression.
There was a second or two of stunned silence before Joan said, “You owe me fifty bucks, Filipe.”
Filipe merely sighed.
Of the three, Filipe didn’t seem to be heavily invested. He went to lie face-up on the bed and essentially checked out of the conversation. Joan, still at the door, appeared to be giddy, whereas Zoey, from the middle of the room, didn’t seem to know whether to stay or go.
Matty was surprisingly quiet, but then he said, “I guess you all know.”
Which, on reflection, could have meant anything from, Zoey, I guess you know know I’m into guys, to Joan and Filipe, I guess you know I like Ciaran.
He gave me a reassuring smile before putting his arm around my shoulder.
My heart squeezed at that and together we walked out of the closet into the bedroom.
“I’m confused,” Zoey announced. Her voice was beautiful. I could see her on a stage, rehearsing lines. “Are you gay, Matty?”
“No,” he answered simply.
“Are you straight?” she continued.
“No,” Matty replied without expanding.
“That was helpful,” Zoey scoffed. “Thanks.”
Was he bisexual?
Curiosity aside, it really didn’t matter. Matty’s sexuality was his own business. He’d once said that Filipe and Joan’s relationship could not be defined. Did he think the same about himself? Would he think that about us? Heat crept into my cheeks. Leave it up to me to jump right into “relationship” thoughts after kissing him once.
Zoey’s eyebrows furrowed once she finally focused on me. I didn’t realize she hadn’t actually looked at me until I felt the fury of her gaze.
A flash of disgust darkened her expression. “Aren’t you two, like, stepbrothers?” she asked. You’d think she’d just stepped in a pile of dog shit.
“No,” we both said at the same time.
I added, “Our parents only just got married. We weren’t raised together.”
“We weren’t raised together,” Zoey mimicked. “You’re delusional if you think everyone’s going to be cool about it.”
Zoey probably had a point, but I suspected my mom would be mostly okay with it. She just wanted me to be happy. I didn’t know about Stefon. I stole a glance at Matty. His stoic expression gave nothing away.
“I don’t know why you think it’s any of your concern, Zoey,” Matty said, his voice clipped.
“It’s my concern when the media thinks we’re dating. Between the two of us, who falls on their face when the truth comes out? It certainly won’t be the son of a billionaire.”
Matty gave that some thought. “You’re right.” He let his arm drop from my shoulder. A slight pang twisted my stomach, but Matty was only moving so he could slip his hand into mine. Our fingers interlaced and I’m sure the smile on my face could banish shadows. “The charade ends tonight.”
“Wait.” Zoey’s eyes went wide. Panic obviously started setting in. “That’s not what I?—”
“The good news is,” Matty continued, not moved by her immediate alarm, “you’ve made headway in the last few months. I’ll let you send out the breakup message to the press. You have full creative control over the narrative. Paint me as a bastard if you want, I really don’t care.”
“Matty,” she cautioned, “Coach is not going to like this.”
He nodded. “I’ll deal with your dad in my own way.” Matty looked to me and read the question in my eyes. I was, for the most part, still in the dark on his deal with Zoey. “I’ll explain later.”
“Okay,” I said, squeezing his hand in return.
Filipe sat up after hearing Matty’s statement. “Dude, rethink this. Coach Anderson can get you to the Olympic level. It’s been your dream since you were ten years old.”
