Matt & Brooklyn: A Standalone in the "Again for the First Time" Family Saga (AFTFT Book 2) (23 page)

Today when I heard those words, there was only one reaction that seemed fitting and I went with it, deciding not to overthink anything, deciding that what I felt made perfect sense.

“I’m in love with you, too,” I admitted. “And I always have been.”

Where his chest touched my back, I felt his heart beating faster than before.

As hard as it was to admit it at first, Matt had been right about us all along. But me trying to control everything, I couldn’t see that. All I knew was I couldn’t afford to fall for him. However, now… nothing excited me more than the possibility of him being the one.

There in his arms, feeling happy and content, I thought of some of the advice my grandmother had given my sisters and I over the years. If she were here, she’d definitely approve of Matt—and probably our impromptu marriage as well. She was just open and free in that way. In a lot of ways, I could stand to be more like her. But tonight had been a step in the right direction, telling Matt about my past. At the thought of having laid everything out on the table, a dark cloud found its way over my head. There was in fact something I still hadn’t found the courage to share with him and it wouldn’t be easy, especially now that things were taking a turn.

We returned to our original positions in the bed, lying side by side. In the silence, I wrestled with the Johannesburg decision again. Time was running out, which meant I’d have to make a choice soon. It wouldn’t have been so bad if the opportunity didn’t potentially open so many doors for me; then it would be simple to turn it down and stay my course, but it wasn’t that clear cut. It felt like everything was riding on this one decision.

Literally,
everything.

One thing was for sure, though; the longer I waited to tell him, and the longer I put Raj off, this was only going to keep getting harder.

It was time to be firm one way or the other.

Chapter Ten

Matt

My hands were shaking. I couldn’t remember a time I’d been more nervous. When Glastenburg’s assistant approached, I stopped breathing.

“Mr. Glastenburg will see you now,” she said cheerfully.

I grabbed the briefcase I’d rushed out and bought the night before to make me look more professional, hoping and praying that the proposal I drafted would suffice. It wasn’t exactly what he was looking for, but considering the fact that I decided to cut Nick off completely until I could stomach him again, suggesting that I focus solely on Luke and Lissy this time was the best I could do.

Gripping the cool silk of my tie, I straightened it as we closed in on the intimidating, cherry wood double-doors at the end of the hallway. My future lie just beyond them—a reality that had my mouth dry and my brow sweaty.

The assistant knocked once and then turned the knob right after without waiting for a response. She gave that big smile again, but all I could do was nod her way.

Seated behind a sleek, glass-topped, wooden desk, was Glastenburg—a formidable man who hadn’t look up from his computer screen yet to acknowledge my presence.

“Thank you,” I said to the assistant as she retreated, leaving me to face the firing squad alone. It wasn’t until I approached the leather seat across from Glastenburg’s desk that we made eye contact.

I’d been here before—twice now. Last time, I was still relatively wet behind the ears and had little to lose. Now? I was beginning to make a name for myself. Because of that, I was keenly aware of the fact that what happened here today would drastically spin my career on its axis—one way or the other.

“Sit. Please,” Glastenburg suggested politely, his gruff voice carrying throughout the whole room. I did as I was asked and filed through my thoughts searching for what to say next.

Glastenburg leaned back in his chair casually. His eyes were set on mine and he grinned a bit.

“It’s been a while, Valente. All is well?” he asked.

I nodded and then tried to swallow my nerves. “Yes, sir. Everything’s great.”

He lifted his coffee mug and sipped from it. “So, I’m assuming Cliff filled you in, told you that I’d like to explore the
‘Just Say Yes Project’
a little more? Catch up with the stars of the original?”

Again, I nodded. “Yes, sir. He filled me in.”

I sounded like a robot, just rearranging his questions and regurgitating them as responses.

“I’m looking forward to working with you again,” I blurted.

He agreed and eased his glasses onto his face before reaching for a file on the corner of his desk.

“I’ve jotted down some notes—a few things I thought we might start with this time…
if
you’re on board, that is,” he clarified. “People responded really well to Luke and his wife, of course, but there was also quite a bit of buzz about that oldest brother of yours,” he said, chuckling a bit as he thought of Nick’s onscreen antics, I was sure.

I responded with a tight, nervous smile, but said nothing.

“Another aspect I think
everyone,
myself included, would be interested in is the backstory.”

My ears perked up at the word
backstory
.

He leaned in and rested his elbows on the edge of his desk. “Wouldn’t it be interesting to dig into the past? You know… find out where this all started?” There was a look of genuine intrigue on his face. “The second time I reviewed the raw footage, I let my wife peek in because the story was just so damn interesting,” he said, expressing himself with his hands. My heart seized in my chest as it hit me how much he really enjoyed my work, really felt the heart of the film like I hoped everyone would. “One thing she kept asking was what the whole story was with your grandfather and your sister-in-law’s grandmother. We both felt like there was more to her being reluctant. It was mentioned that Lissette, the grandmother, was encouraged to leave your grandfather alone, but why? Was it just the times they lived in?” he asked. “Of course race and interracial relationships were taboo back then, but was that all there was to it? Was the pressure too much?”

This conversation had my wheels turning and my blood pumping. “I see where you’re going with this.” Excitement literally had me scooting to the edge of my seat. “When I’ve talked to Granddad about it, he always seems a little foggy about the details, too, as if he himself was never really given much of an explanation either.”

Glastenburg nodded. “So, I say, you talk to your Granddad, interview, dig, get all you can from him, and then figure out where the story
really
starts. There’s got to be a starting point.” He grinned at me. “You’ve gotta find your ‘
big bang’,
Matt. There has to be something, or
someone,
who set this whole thing into motion. Has to be.”

He probably didn’t know it, but he’d just ignited a fire inside of me, renewed my drive in one sitting. I needed to inform him about Nick, though. That still might be a deal breaker.

“This, everything you’ve said today, it’s great,” I started. “I’m going to be honest with you, though. There’s a concern… with one of my brothers,” I elaborated.

Glastenburg eased back in his seat, somehow seeming less intimidating now than when I first walked in. “You have the floor,” he said politely, gesturing toward me.

Clearing my throat, I began, considerably less concerned about exercising discretion when speaking about Nick’s situation. My respect level for him had decreased drastically. “My oldest brother isn’t doing well. We just recently discovered that he’s an addict,” I explained. And as pissed as I was at Nick, I still didn’t feel right about exploiting him. Having a week to rationalize after going to Lindmore to confront him had calmed me more than I thought it would. “If there’s some way we could—”

“Say no more. We won’t even touch that,” Glastenburg interjected sympathetically. “I think that if you focus on Luke and his wife, focus on finding the original catalyst that sparked this whole thing… you’ll have another hit on your hands without throwing your brother under the bus.”

A slow, steady breath left my lungs at the realization that this project wasn’t dead in the water like I thought it would be.

“Thank you, sir. Thank you.”

Glastenburg gave a nonchalant wave. “Not many people know this about me, but my mother was addicted to heroin for the better part of a decade. It’s not easy watching them struggle with that. So, I absolutely respect how you’re protecting your brother,” he said. “You’re a good man, Valente,” he added, reaching across his desk to shake my hand for a second time. “There aren’t many people like you out here—men with integrity.” He stood from his seat and escorted me to the door of his office.

“You’ve got a pretty good amount of homework ahead of you, so we won’t set a tight timeline on this one. I’d prefer that you take your time with the project and deliver the most impactful film you’re capable of producing.”

I nodded in agreement. “Yes, sir.”

His hand patted the center of my back once and a look of mutual respect passed between us. “I have a feeling you’re gonna go far here, Valente,” he said with a laugh. “Just don’t forget us little guys when you’re on top.”

*****

I had so much to think about. For starters, there was the small task of finding out who or what scared Lissette, Brook and Lissy’s grandmother, off from my grandfather. The story I’d gotten was that her mother simply coerced her into being with someone other than Granddad. Maybe that was the key. Maybe it was actually
her,
the
great-
grandmother, who’d lived through an experience that influenced her to steer her daughter away from dating outside their race. I’d call Brook to dig there later, but for now, I wanted to reach out to Granddad.

I got to see him briefly when I was in town the week before to deal with Nick, but it wasn’t for nearly as long as I would’ve liked. My grandfather was quite the character, so he was always someone I’d want to talk to—even if I didn’t currently need his help with this project.

“Yeah? Hello?” he finally answered after dropping the phone twice and cussing in my ear while he fumbled with it.

“Granddad, it’s me, Matt.”

He lit up immediately. “Hey, Matty! How’s it going?” he asked.

I couldn’t help but to smile. “Everything’s great.
Really
great, actually.”

“That’s what I love to hear.”

“You sound good. How’s your knee feeling today?” He’d complained about it a couple times when I visited him the week before.

“Eh… comes and goes. Not bad enough to keep the old man down.”

My grandfather was one of the most resilient people I knew. It always did my heart good to see and hear how strong he still was even though he was getting up in age. He was one of the lucky ones; even at eighty, he could still drive himself, was in relatively good health, and he had a memory like an elephant… which brought me to the issue at hand.

“Listen, Granddad, I need to talk to you about something,” I said, easing off the expressway. “I know we’ve talked about your relationship with Brook’s grandmother, but you’ve never said much about how and why it ended,” I explained. “Is there anything more you can tell me?”

He was thoughtful for a moment and then spoke again. “Honestly, Matty, I often wonder myself what really happened. All I know is Sophia,
my
Lissette’s mother, was very cut and dry in her views. I never had a chance to have a one-on-one conversation with the woman, but she made it clear where she stood.”

This felt like another dead end.

“Well… was it ever brought up that Sophia
herself
may have had a relationship with someone outside her race? Could that have been it?” I was grasping at straws.

There was a long pause again while Granddad thought and I weaved in and out of traffic, waiting for him to answer.

“No… not that I remember. Lissette comes from Alabama, though, so I highly doubt it was anything like that. It could be as simple as all the blatant racism I’m sure they experienced down there just leaving a bad taste in Sophia’s mouth. Lissette was fairly young when they moved here to Lindmore, so she didn’t get the brunt of it, but there’s no telling what her mother saw, what she experienced.”

While that wasn’t the answer I was looking for. There was a chance that there wasn’t any more to it than that. Still, I’d look into it. “Thanks for helping me out. By any chance do you have the name of the city in Alabama they came from?” I asked, rummaging for a pen while I sat at the light. I found it just in time and snatched a piece of paper from my shirt pocket.

“Honeywell,” he answered. “Honeywell, Alabama.”

I jotted that down. “Awesome. Thanks, Granddad.”

“Anytime,” he replied.

Our call ended right before I turned onto my street and I was in a daze, thinking about the conversation.
Honeywell, Alabama.
Once I got my bearings with the film’s new direction and probably once I got settled into my position working for Pete, I’d most likely be taking a trip down south to visit the town where Brook’s grandmother was born. There was no telling if there was an actual story there for me, but in the very least, I’d need to get some footage of the area, maybe even a shot of the house she grew up in if it was still standing. That might be something Brook would like to see, too.

The windshield wipers cleared the few droplets of water that fell as the storm clouds above darkened. Shutting off the engine, I grabbed my things so I could take them inside. There were only a couple hours to kill before I was expected to attend yet another premier, but I figured I could still fit a nap in. I was beyond tired.

Before venturing out into the rain, I put a call in to Brook and her voice came through my Bluetooth.

“You have good news, don’t you,” she said, sounding giddy. “I can feel it.”

She’d been holding her breath about this meeting with Glastenburg just like I had. It never got old that she had my back the way she did.

“Well…,” I teased. She breathed into the phone, dying to hear how it went.

I opened the front door, dropping my keys back down in my pocket before heading to my room to change.