Page 81 of Broken As Puck

“It won’t,” I assured him.

He nodded, dropped his arms to his sides, and walked away.

Heart in my throat, I turned to Matt. His eyes were wide, his cheeks pale, and I couldn’t tell what was going on in his head beyond the panic of getting caught. I opened my mouth, ready to demand to know if he was ashamed of being with me, but forced myself to pause and draw in a deep breath.

I needed to take a moment to think. Acting rashly hadn’t always served me well in the past, and I shouldn’t assume the worst. He’d made no secret of what he wanted out of this relationship, and I shouldn’t throw it all away because I was lashing out like an injured cat.

Once I’d gained enough control of myself not to snap, I asked as calmly as possible, “What was that about?”

Chapter Twenty-Nine

CHELSEY

“Baby,” Matt choked out, his expression crumpling. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know what to do. When he caught us together, I panicked. I know you’re worried about your job, and I thought if I said it was just a random hookup, then you might not be in such a bad situation. I was trying to protect you. Did I get it wrong?”

“Oh.” I squirmed, my face heating unpleasantly. It was a good thing I’d taken a moment to ask rather than continuing to spiral.

I damn well knew that Matt didn’t want us to be secret. He’d gone along with my request to wait until the end of the season before going public, and I’d seen the toll it had taken on him to continue pretending we were nothing more than colleagues.

“Thank you,” I added, my thoughts whirling. “I think he could probably tell there was more to it, but it was sweet of you to try.”

“No problem.” The panic leached out of him, but when he smiled, it didn’t reach his eyes. “You’re not angry?”

“How can I be when I was the one to drag you around here? That wouldn’t be fair.”

He relaxed a little more and tugged his hand through his hair. “I can’t lose you.”

“You won’t.”

“I didn’t want to lie, but it seemed like the best option. I know you don’t want anyone to find out yet.”

My stomach dropped to my shoes as an awful realization settled upon me. Years ago, he’d made me feel like he was ashamed to be with me, but now I was treating him like he was the dirty little secret. Something I wanted to keep quiet because it might look bad to others if I were with him.

There was a thickness in the back of my throat, and I pressed my fingertips to my lips as the truth of the situation sank in.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered.

He frowned. “For what?”

“For asking you to hide our relationship. For making you pretend there’s nothing going on between us.”

His features softened, and this time, his smile was real. “I understand. Your job means a lot to you, just like mine does to me. I get why you want to keep boundaries in place until after your contract is over.”

Affection for him welled inside me. Even after all I’d made him do to prove himself, he still defended me and showed he understood me even though conceding to my wants had hurt him.

My muscles tightened and I raised my chin. “But you mean a lot to me too.” I inhaled long and slow. “I’m going to tell Stella that we’re dating.”

He swayed slightly. “You don’t have to do that. Just tell her it was a fluke kiss. The season will be over soon. We can wait until then.”

I moved closer to him, more determined than ever. “Thank you for being willing to do that for me, but it isn’t necessary.” I was tempted to take his hand, but if I did that, then I’d melt against his chest, and we definitely wouldn’t have the serious conversation that needed to happen.

“Your career…” He trailed off, gesturing helplessly as if I ought to understand exactly what he was protesting.

I smiled. “I’m not ashamed of our relationship, and if we plan to be together long-term, then it’s bound to come out that I worked with your team. Regardless of how we handle the timing, people will draw conclusions and assume we were together while I was employed by the Chaos.”

He let out a ragged breath. “But it’s different if they assume it versus having confirmation.”

“But we know the truth, and once I’ve worked in other places and proved that I’m not interested in anyone but you, everyone else will see it too.” Now that I’d had the idea, I was on a roll. Sure, things might be a bit rocky at first, but if we intended to have long and happy lives together, then no one could criticize us for pursuing love.