Page 27 of The Home Game

Matty’s phone buzzed in his pocket. It was Dom, so he gave Reese one last wistful squeeze, then gently placed him in the carrier. “Bye, sweet boy,” he whispered, patting his tummy.

“That’s my ride,” he told Antoni, rising to his feet.

“Okay.” Antoni stopped washing carrots and dried his hands. “I’ll walk you to the door.”

Matty nodded, oddly reluctant to tear himself away, wishing he had an excuse to stay in the small, cozy house longer.

“Well, you take care,” Matty said when they reached the door. “Good luck with the van repairs and house hunting and everything.”

“Yeah, thanks. I’ll text as soon as I’m done with the SUV. And I promise, I’ll take good care of it.”

“I know you will,” Matty said confidently. “Never thought otherwise.”

“Huh.” Antoni leaned against the wall and Matty took in the dark smudges under his eyes and the slump of his shoulders. “You’re really not like anyone else I’ve ever met.”

And Matty shot him a little smile because he didn’t know what to say to that. “See you around. Let me know if there’s anything else I can do to help.”

Antoni nodded and Matty slipped out the door, jogging down the sidewalk to where Dom was parked by the curb.

Matty slid into his Aston Martin, wedging himself into the too-tiny seat. “You had to bring this one, huh?” he groused.

“Fuck you,” Dom said. “This is what you get for making me leave a pool game I was winning.”

Matty grumbled but he fastened his seatbelt.

“Who is that guy anyway?” Dom asked with a frown.

Matty glanced toward the house but the door was shut and Antoni had gone inside.

“Just some dude I know,” he mumbled.

“Yeah? How’d you meet him?”

“Um, he kindatouredmyhousetheotherday.”

Dom froze. “Say that again at normal human speed. Because I would have sworn you just said that he kinda toured your house the other day but that would be absolutely insane so I’m sure I heard you wrong.”

“Uhh. Well.” Matty scratched the back of his neck.

“What the fuck, Matty?” Dom stomped on the accelerator, pulling away with a squeal of tires.

“What?” he asked as innocently as he could manage.

Dom shook his head. “You’re always doing shit like this!”

“Like what?” Matty was confused now.

“Letting people sucker you into helping out.”

Ouch. That stung. “I didn’t let anyone sucker me into anything!”

“Oh, right. You gave your fucking SUV to a stranger! That’s not getting suckered into anything at all.” Dom screeched to a stop at an intersection, then punched the accelerator again.

“Antoni’s not a stranger!”

“He’s a dude who you met three days ago!”

“It was … five days,” Matty pointed out. “And it’s not like he asked for help. Well, I mean, he called for a ride today but—”

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