Free Trouble by Taylor Jamie Beckett Page B

feel. My dad has just left us. It can be
a terribly lonely feeling.”
    “ I used to cry myself to sleep.”
    “ It’s healthy for boys to cry. I’m sure your dad will come
around to seeing what a great son he’s got. He’s sure to change.
They all do.”
    “ I’m sure he will.” He welcomed the warmth of her body. He was
reminded of the Police Station scene where Byron had held her so
tenderly as she cried. He felt funny because their roles had
reversed. She was confident and affirming while he seemed unsure of
himself. It seemed that they were made for each other. They were
kindred spirits. They both had gone through personal trauma but she
was more resilient than him. He needed her to affirm his spirit and
convince him that he could rise above all the difficult things he
faced. It was an awesome feeling of love. He sorely needed that
kind of loving and he wanted lots of it!
    “ Can I make a confession to you?”
    There was
something about Matt that she found refreshing. He was not trying
to impress her but just being himself and being honest with his
feelings. It was almost childlike in its innocence.
    “ I suspect it has something to do with me,” she said
perceptively. “Can I punch you in the mouth if I don’t like the
sound of it?” she asked gently. She didn’t want a formal kind of
confession but a rather more casual one. If she didn’t like the
sound of it she could decline without sounding too formal and
rude.
    “ Yes, please. I’d love that very much,” he said liking her
style instantly. “I fell in love the first time I saw you in the
station. Your eyes were all red and you were in tears. When Byron
told me how you had defended Quentin I wanted to put my arms around
you and say, “That’s my kind of girl.” What I love about you is
that in spite of your problems you went out of your way to help
Quentin.”
    Natalie
stared at him noncommittally. “A knight in shining armor observing
her princess.” She knew she sounded awkward but she was trying to
hide the fluttering of her heart. He was so direct in the way he
spoke and his words sounded so powerful because he spoke so
sincerely from the heart. There was nothing contrived. He hadn’t
practiced and memorized the words to say. It just came out
naturally.
    “ You hear this all the time from boys trying to date you?” He
sound rather deflated.
    “ No,” she said rather too quickly.
    “ You’re not going to punch me?”
    Natalie
realized that in many ways Russ, Byron and Matt were birds of the
same feather. They all came from challenging homes. Matt was very
fortunate because he was able to process his issues very quickly.
He could be a positive influence on Byron and her on how to adjust
to the traumas and angst of growing up.
    “ I didn’t make my little speech after watching Gone With The
Wind,” Matt said trying to be witty.
    “ Or listening to Taylor Swift?” Natalie joked.
    “ I won’t bring you trouble,” Matt said paraphrasing the song’s
lyrics. He came closer to her and wanted so desperately to kiss her
passionately.
    Natalie
touched his mouth. He remained still as he kissed the part of his
lips that Byron had punched. It sent shock waves through his body.
He felt numb with the awesome feeling of falling in
love.
    “ And Nat I’m not very good at having a normal conversation. I
just found that out with Byron. I’m awkward sometimes. If I say
anything that hurts you in the next two weeks can you promise me
something?”
    “ What?”
    “ Can you punch me where you kissed me?”
    “ You’re impossible,” she sighed. She was beginning to like
him.
    “ Nat, I’m going to say this every day. I love you.”
    She was
not sure what to say and swam away to take hold of herself and see
how she should react to him. She was beginning to feel butterflies
in her stomach. She had felt a very warm tingling sensation through
her body when she kissed him.
    “ I’m free,” he shouted again.
    For the
first time in his life