Before She Loved Me

I'm Sorry For Refusing Your Sausage. I'm Sure It Tasted Perfectly Lovely.

Addison

After being thoroughly traumatized, I managed to fall until a fitful slumber somewhere around dawn. As I entered a hazy dream state, my subconscious thrusted me back into Matt's driveway. The golden rays of sunlight that had illuminated his silky skin were abruptly cast behind a dark storm cloud.

I tilted my face towards the sky just as droplets began streaking down my face. The world shook with a sudden rumble of thunder. Wait, that's not thunder. That's the heavens bellowing with laughter at my misfortune. Wait...that's not it either...

My consciousness instantly channeled from my brain to my eyelids, and I cracked one eye open. A shadowy figure hovered over me, and it occurred to me that the chuckles I heard in my dream weren't just a figment of my imagination.

I bolted up as Matt continued to trickle water upon my face from the cup he was holding, snickering, and giving me a devilish grin. Throwing back the now damp covers, I sprung from the air mattress and shoved him out of the way. "You're a dick," I mumbled, storming past him towards the kitchen.

"Nah," he said following me. "But I do have one which you already know because you saw it."

With a low growl, I whirled to face him, stopping short in my tracks. He stood before me, his dimple piercing his cheek and his arms folded over his bare muscular chest. But what really caught my attention was the bulge that was highlighted by the grey sweatpants that hung low on his hips. "It's too early for this," I murmured, rummaging through cabinets for a cup. "I need water."

Shrugging, he fiddled with the knobs on the stovetop before placing a fry pan on one of the coils. "Would you like some breakfast?" he asked nonchalantly, glancing over his shoulder at me. "My cooking skills leave quite a bit to be desired, but I think I can manage some scrambled eggs and toast."

He gave me a wink and I sputtered my drink down the front of my nightshirt. "I'm not hungry for whatever it is that you're trying to feed me, Matthew. I have no desire to put...your eggs...in my mouth. Is that understood?"

He arched a brow at me. "I'm not that lousy of a chief, Addie. You act as though you'll be poisoned if you taste my food." I shot him a glare and he rolled his eyes. "Fine, then how about sausage then? Is my sausage good enough for you?"

My eyes bulged as the glass slipped from my fingertips and shattered onto the floor. "What?!" I squeaked.

"Sausage," he repeated, giving me a funny look. "Do you want the sausage or not?"

"No!" I yelled. "Stay away from me with your sausage! Don't you think your girlfriend might mind?"

Matt placed a hand on my shoulder as he moved behind me to open the refrigerator. "Addison, I can assure you that it's fine. She can have it later when she wakes up. There's plenty to go around."

"What's the matter with you?" I cried, backing up and slamming against the wall with a thud.

"What's wrong with you?" he asked, spreading out the pork onto the frying pan. The meat hissed and smoked as the heat began transferring. "Why are you being so weird about breakfast?"

"Matt..." I replied, staring at him evenly. "You and I don't have breakfast together. That's not what we do. We're friends."

He scrunched up his nose, glancing over at me with an expression of befuddlement. "Huh? Isn't that exactly what friends do? Share meals?"

Stabbing a fork into the meat, he brought the food close to my lips. "At least try the sausage. Let me know if it's up to your satisfaction." He blew on the steaming pork gently as he raised his gaze towards mine. "I think you might find that you'll enjoy it after all. I haven't received a complaint yet."