Page 16 of Aisle Be The Groom
“He was supposed to return tomorrow,” I mumbled.
Matty scoffed. “Let me guess. He changed his mind. If you’re marrying the guy, you should know by now that my brother’s not very reliable.”
“He has his moments, but he’ll be here.” I frowned, squaring my shoulders. Gray had said if anyone gave me a hard time I should talk to him, but did that include his son? Matty was definitely being rude. “Did I upset you? I promise I wasn’tsnooping.” I showed him the food containers. “I just came downstairs to heat this.”
He shrugged. “Then go ahead. Nothing’s stopping you.”
The powerful urge to put the food back into the fridge and hide in my bedroom until morning washed over me, but I resisted. I’d done way too much of that as a fat kid. Whenever I was teased, I would run away. I hadn’t learned until later to stand up to bullies.
“Don’t mind if I do.” I took a plate out of the cupboard above the counter, dumped the food onto it, and put the plate in the microwave. The timer ticked away, the humming of the microwave disrupting the silence that had settled between Matty and me. I leaned against the counter, folding my arms across my chest, but his unnerving gaze kept me trapped until I couldn’t take it anymore.
“I get the feeling there’s something you want to say to me.”
“Why are you marrying my brother?” he asked bluntly. “You know he can’t make any decision about the ranch without me, don’t you?”
I sucked in a deep breath. Was he implying I was marrying Carter for his money? My face heated, and anger flared inside me. Where did he get off making his wild assumptions about me?
“Why I’m marrying Carter is my business.”
“You marry into this family, and you become all our business. I don’t mean to offend you, Ozzie, but Carter hasn’t invested one drop of sweat in this ranch, and I’ll be damned if he—”
“Matty, that’s enough!”
I spun around. Gray walked into the kitchen, his brow knitted, glowering at his son.
“Hey, Dad,” Matty said. “Ozzie and I were just talking.”
“No, you were being rude. Ozzie’s a guest, and you’ll treat him accordingly while he’s here.”
“Come on, Dad. The same thought must have crossed your mind.” Matty swept his gaze over me again and shook his head. “You know I’m right.”
Huh? What kind of language were they using? I didn’t understand what they meant.
Gray placed a hand on his son’s shoulder. “You’re tired. I’m glad you’re back home. Why don’t you go to bed and take a few days off the ranch to relax with some of your friends?”
“There’s too much to do to take time off, but yeah, I’ll take a shower, then go to bed.” He nodded at me without another word and walked out of the kitchen.
The microwave beeped, and I removed the steaming hot dish, acutely aware of Gray’s presence and the uncomfortable silence that followed Matty’s departure.
“Ozzie.” Gray leaned on the counter. “Don’t take anything Matty says to heart. I promise he’s a good kid. He’s just a little too serious about the ranch.”
Whereas Carter didn’t give a damn. I couldn’t understand it. I’d only glimpsed a small portion of the ranch, and it was a legacy worth being a part of.
“What did he mean by that last thing he said?” I asked. “He looked at me like he didn’t think I was suitable for Carter. It’s because I’m a big guy, isn’t it? You would rather have someone skinnier for Carter.”
“That’s not true.”
I dropped my gaze. “You had that same look on your face when I announced I was engaged to Carter last Christmas.”
“Just because you took me by surprise.”
“That I’m big boned.”
“Ozzie, you’re thinking too much.” He placed a hand over mine and squeezed. “I swear to you I don’t have any objections to Carter marrying you because of your weight. That would be shallow of me.”
“But you do object to something else?”
“I don’t. I think skipping dinner has messed with your brain. Come over here and sit. I’ll pour you some iced tea and join you.”
