Don't Tell Me

"You what?" I stared at him with wide eyes. I would have said more, but I forgot how to speak. It was probably a good thing he was holding me close to him because my legs forgot how to work too.
"I love you. You drive me absolutely mad, but I love you." I looked at him for a few seconds, completely clueless about what to do.
I pulled his head down the my level, connecting my lips with his. Even though I didn't exactly want to say it quite yet, I definitely loved him too.
It might have only been a few days since Aaron and I officially broke up, but it was pretty much over since the first night with Matt. It took me a while to realize it, yet everyone else seemed to have known.
"Are you doing anything else tonight?"
"Uh, no. I was gonna go home and probably watch movies with my dad, why?"
"Come home with me." It wasn't really a question, he was bringing me back to Denver with him. Not that I would have said no to him. We hadn't spent time together that didn't end up in a fight for weeks.
I went to find my family and told them where I was going then we were off to his house. He helped me inside and grabbed me a pair of sweats and a shirt to change into.
"Are you hungry? Do you want anything to eat? What about drink?"
"I'm actually fine, thanks."
"What about some wine?"
"Sounds great." He brought two glasses and the bottle to the couch that I was resting on. I could honestly fall asleep on this. It was more comfortable than the bed I had in Fort Collins. After a few minutes of thinking about the current situation, I figured it would be best to talk about it. "So how is this going to work?"
"How is what going to work?"
"Us."
He took a deep breath, probably wishing I hadn't brought this up, "It's going to be really hard, Maggie. I mean I've had relationships before but not with someone that lived an hour away."
"And you're going to Canada soon."
"You can come with me."
"Matt, I have a job." That I was thinking about quitting, but hey. Minor details.
"Then I'll cut my trip short."
"No. I'll come with you. But what about when I'm at school and it's season?" That was what worried me the most. I wouldn't be able to make the trip and he probably wouldn't either.
"I'll make sure you have a ticket on the days you can make it down here and the weeks you won't be able to make the trip, I'll come up for the night. It's not hard to make the hour trip after practice and leave a couple before I need to get back to Denver."
Having someone that would do absolutely anything, including drive an hour away a couple times a week to see you is something I hadn't experienced before. It was a little disconcerting. I sat there with wide eyes, not sure what to say. It hit me that we might be moving faster than I had wanted to.
"Maggie, what's wrong?"
"I uh- I. I don't know. It's just. Fast." I finished the wine in my glass and generously poured another, making Matt laugh. "I guess, I just didn't realize this was going to be moving so-"
"Fast?" He draped his arm over my shoulders, pulling me closer to him.
"Yeah."
"Then I'll only visit when you want me to. And you don't have to stay with me the entire time I'm in Canada." I nodded. That sounded like a good idea to me, but I still wanted the original plan.
"Fuck. I just feel so damn indecisive when it comes to you."
He furrowed his brow, "What do you mean?"
"I want you so much it hurts, but I'm scared. I'm scared that you're going to make all those trips and I'm going to be in too deep and then we'll break up."
"That's understandable. You just have to trust me." He kissed the top of my head, "It's going to be okay, Maggie."
"Okay."
We went through a few bottles of wine that night and sent a bunch of drunk snapchats out to his teammates. We were probably having more fun than they were, honestly. There was no pressure to do anything. All the tension between the two of us was gone. I didn't have to worry about Aaron. This is what I've wanted for a while now.
The next morning, we woke up in a lot of pain. I really need to remember that just because wine goes down like juice, doesn't mean I have to drink it like juice.
"What do you want to do today?" Matt asked as he made us pancakes. Shirtless. I could probably get used to this.
"Considering I don't have any clothes other than the ones I wore to the bar last night, I wouldn't mind just staying in today."
"No one in Denver saw you, you'll be fine. We can go wander around downtown."
"Crutches, Matt. They are a pain." I raised a brow, finishing my coffee. "I need more." I held out the mug, smiling.
"So do I have to do everything for you?" He smirked.
"Still recovering from that horrible accident I was in." Completely milking the whole thing, but the doctor said I still need to take it easy. I still had my cast on and would for a couple more weeks.
"Black?"
"Like my soul!"
He shook his head, "Yeah. Whatever."
I left the room to go change into my own clothes and go to the bathroom before eating. When I walked back into the kitchen, he was singing one of my favorite songs. One that wasn't performed by Chuck Wicks or Dierks Bentley.
"She's got her daddy's tongue and temper. Sometimes her mouth could use a filter. God shook his head the day he built her, oh but I bet He smiled."
"My dad says that song was written about me." I sat back down in the seat I was occupying earlier. "I may or may not have gotten a few moms up on their tables dancing before."
"I can see you doing that." Matt smiled as he handed me a plate of pancakes, going back to the cupboard to get the cinnamon sugar that I had him mix last time. "But I'm pretty sure that Sweet and Wild was written about you."
"I'm the girl everyone writes about. Duh."
Summer with Matt flew by. I was always with him. Whether it was in Denver, or back at the ranch. We spent as much time as we could together. Then before I knew it, he was helping me move into my house in Fort Collins. It was actually a family event that included some extra Avs hands. Luckily, I didn't have to do a thing.
"Sometimes I wish I had gone to college, just to see what it's like." Nate sat down next to me on my bed, taking a drink of his water.
"You're an NHL player that parties with other NHL players and you want to go to college?" I questioned him. I wish he could hear how crazy he sounded right now.
"Yeah, I mean I hear the parties are fun and you meet a lot of cool people."
I put a finger over my mouth, trying to hold back the comments that were rolling through my mind. I think he had taken one too many hits to the head.
"Okay. You can totally switch me for a semester. Go to class, do the homework, be on the rodeo team, and occasionally go to parties. I'll go play in the NHL for you."
"Yeah, I'll pass." He laughed, laying back. "It's gonna be awkward when Matt walks in your room and we're in bed together."
"There's no way she'd pick you over me, bud." Matt came to sit on my left, leaving me in the middle of the two Canadians.
"Sorry to crush your hopes and dreams, Mackinnon."
"Damnit Maggie. I don't know how I'm going to move on with my life now."
"Get a dog."
"We're going to lunch," Jared came into my room to inform us, "So you should probably get your happy ass up and join us."
Nathan followed my brother to the front room and I slowly stood up, stretching out my back.
"When do your other roommates get here?" Matt asked, copying my actions.
"Tomorrow, I think." The fact that I was living in a house with four other guys, somewhat bothered him. I told him not to worry, though. They were all like brothers to me. Actually, one was my brother. Besides, none of them had anything on Matt. "Don't worry, Jared would murder them if they tried anything. He's really protective of me."
"He never threatened me or anything, just yelled after the volleyball game."
"Yeah, well, he knows his limitations."
Later that night, when everyone went back home, Matt and I went to the barn to check on Cash and Merle. He had grown to love them and had started to accept the fact that I will never love him as much as I love those two.
"I'm guessing I'll be spending a lot of time here when I visit." I nodded as I continued to brush off my horse. There was something so calming about removing the hair and dirt off an animal. Even if it does go straight onto you.
"Kinda like if I come to visit you, I'll probably be watching you from the other side of the glass."
"I guess it could be worse." He rubbed the back of his neck and took the curry comb from my hand.
"Whoa there. Are you sure you want to get dirty, pretty boy?" I joked.
"Shut up."
I raised a brow, fighting back a smile, "Make me."
He immediately started laughing, "I'm sorry, but I can't take you serious when you're trying that hard to be sexy. You pull it off a lot better when you aren't trying."
"Thanks babe." I rolled my eyes and took off Cash's halter, putting it back in the tack room.
"So I have something for you." Matt stood outside of Merle's stall while I finished giving him grain.
"Okay?"
He pulled a little box out of his pocket and handed it to me. For a minute, I was freaked out. But when he didn't get down on one knee, I knew I was in the clear. I mean, we had only been together for a few months. Give it about seven or eight months before popping the question.
I opened it up to see a necklace with a couple diamond pendants. One was a horseshoe and the other was the Avs logo.
"I love it Matt, thank you." I hugged him, not wanting to let go.
"I love you." He leaned down for a quick peck on the lips.
"And I love you."

Notes