Secret Diaries (Heartlake Cliche #1)

Chapter Twenty-Six

     “Then you got drunk.”

     “Hmph.”

     “Actually, that’s about it.”

     It brought Grace’s head up—her expression inquisitive—and Matt debated in his mind how much he would tell her. He took another sip from his tea, delaying the inevitable.

     “You threw up and I practically had to drag you just to get you into my car,” he added.

     Matt watched her face closely and it was obvious she had guessed that that was what happened. When she didn’t say anything after a few seconds, he assumed she was trying to come up with a way to ask her next question. There was no way she would accept such a vague answer about last night.

     “Did I, well, do anything stupid?” came the dreaded question.

     He didn’t bother to answer immediately. Instead, he finished a piece of futomaki and another of ebi nigiri before he looked up at Grace. Why is it so freakin’ hard to tell her? he thought. His eyes strayed towards her neck and saw her swallow in anticipation. He needed to know how much she could recall so he said with as straight a face as he could, “What exactly do you mean by stupid?”

     “Argh!” Grace screeched as she slammed her hand on the table. “Honestly, Matt! Can’t you answer a question directly?”

     He raised a brow in reply. “You want to hear a particular answer. What is it?”

     Her face screamed guilty and she looked away. “I seem to remember something embarrassing from last night…”

     A smirk formed around his mouth. “Now who’s not answering directly?”

     Grace’s head immediately snapped to face Matt. She looked utterly annoyed. “A kiss.” She bowed down before she continued, “But I don’t remember who it was with or if it’s even real.”     

     So. She doesn’t remember.

     “Actually, it was real,” he confirmed.

     He watched closely as her eyes slowly widened while her right hand ascended to touch her lips in shock.

     “With whom?” she whispered.

     The horror Matt saw on her face almost made him take back his words and tell her it was a joke. He sighed. There really wasn’t any point in lying to her. His eyes wandered towards the door as he let out another sigh.

     “Me,” he admitted in a quiet voice.

     A horrified gasp was the response he got and it triggered his desire to leave as soon as possible. Matt tried to mentally list possible excuses to leave without being totally rude.

     Nothing came up.

     “Sorry.” He turned to gaze directly to her eyes, hoping that she saw some sincerity from his. “I had several drinks myself…Sorry, I was stupid last night. Sorry.”

     Grace was on the verge of tears by the time he said the third “sorry” but there was confusion mixed in her expression.

     “It…wasn’t my fault?” she clarified.

     He took another breath then he said, “I kissed you first.”

     “I don’t understand.” It was obvious that she was getting more confused as he answered her questions. “Why?”