There weren't too many nice places in Tierney, to Matt and Grace took a night to drive into Knoxville for a nicer place for dinner. Kaylee was under the watchful eye of Grace's parents. Hopefully, their daughter wasn't too much trouble. Grace had gotten up from the table and was returning back from the restroom when a man came barreling around the corner, not paying attention. It had been in Grace's blind spot and soon there was a collision with the male. "My apologies sir." She was being polite. Though the eyes that pierced back at her were not friendly in the slightest.

"Your apologies?" The voice snarled. "You should watch where you are going," there was a slight pause as he huffed under his breath. "Pft women. Useless breed." He grumbled. Grace took a few steps back and felt the fear creeping into her. There was something about this guy, she didn't like it in the slightest. The man soon invaded her space and pushed her into the wall. "How do you like it when someone returns the favor?" He stated. Grace put her hands out keep from slamming into the wall.

Frantically looking around she did the first thing that came to mind and screamed for Matt. It was a piercing shrieking tone that alerted most of the restaurant. No one was stupid enough to try anything with all eyes on them. The man snorted. "Stupid woman." He moved out of the way. Grace scrambled to the side and then backward some more. She wasn't watching where she was going at all. She backed into someone else, all she could think was this was about to start all over again.

Tag: Petty Officer Matthew Cole

The place they had chosen wasn't the absolute finest restaurant the city had to offer, they couldn't justify going to a place like that for a night out when it wasn't an anniversary, but it was a nice place, nice enough worth traveling for and was fancier than most of the places Tierney had to offer.

Matt put his wineglass down on the table and smiled as he looked up and saw Grace across the restaurant returning from the restroom. She always looked so beautiful in his eyes with her bright and joyful smile and golden hair, but it was only a second later the collision occurred.

"How do you like it when someone returns the favor?"

Most eyes turned to Grace when she screamed out for Matt.

"Stupid wom-"

But Matt was already there, and he had the man shoved against the wall with his arm up his back before Grace could even get her balance back properly, "Hey what's your problem?" The annoyance came out clearly in his voice.

Matt stood close to the man, he put his head near the mans head almost talking into his ear, "Feel like a big man bullying a woman half your size, huh? You mouth-breathing-knuckle-dragger." Oh he wasn't happy with the jerk, but he was keeping a lid on his temper for the time being. Holding the guy's arm up his back just enough to neutralize the threat and get control of the situation.

"Now why don't you calm down, loose the attitude and give the lady an apology before this turns into a scene?"

Tag: Gracelyn Cole

Ooc: Oh you got straight in there with that didn't you? lol
So did Matt, he's on that guy like white on rice.

Grace gladly gave way to Matt and even moved somewhat behind him. Though she hardly wanted her husband to make a scene in the restaurant. “Matt…” she tried to get his attention. There was no way this guy was going to apologize and Grace knew better than to think Matt was going to give way.

Grace wanted to erupt in laughter at mouth breathing knuckle dragger. There were much better life decisions. Pissing the guy off more was not on her list of things to do. She didn’t need to make the situation worse. Though she knew there was going to be a problem as soon as the guy opened his mouth. “You can’t be a man in front of your lady, did she teach you to curse because that’s cute.” He taunted.

“He’s not worth it, Matthew just come on. Please?” The other guy wasn’t saying anything after Matt asked for an apology. Grace decided to open her mouth. It didn’t matter to her what Matt thought about her allegiance to the situation but she hardly wanted her husband sitting in the brig or losing his job over something as stupid as an assault charge. “Matt, I wasn’t watching where I was going. It was my mistake.” She took a step forward and put her hand on his bicep.

“You let your lady tell you what to do? Because it sure sounds like you do.” Grace could only bite her lip. Oh this guy was clearly trying to push buttons and Grace wasn’t happy that he was doing such things. Oh, this could start all kinds of issues. She only hoped Matt could keep his temper down.


Petty Officer Matthew Cole
(Yes, but I am not about to let it be over so quickly So don't worry about that)

“You can’t be a man in front of your lady, did she teach you to curse because that’s cute.”

Matt scoffed lightly, the weasel was talking to him about not being a man? It was almost amusing. As well as still trying to antagonize him given their current positions? That was just stupid.

How jerks like him thought cursing, picking on women and antagonizing people made you a man he would never understand.
He had been raised differently and he never took kindly to people who thought it was ok to mistreat a woman, especially when that woman was his wife.

“He’s not worth it, Matthew just come on. Please?”

Grace's words didn't fall on deaf ears, especially as she had used his full name. He was thinking the same thing himself but he didn't want to let go of the guy until he was confident that the creep's physical hostility had been neutralized enough.

“Matt, I wasn’t watching where I was going. It was my mistake.”

Matt glanced at Grace, it might have been her mistake but that didn't give the guy any right to shove her, or to talk to her like that either. But before he could say anything of the sort the guy kept on running his mouth trying to provoke a reaction.

“You let your lady tell you what to do? Because it sure sounds like you do.”

All Matt could think was that at least he had a lady, and she looked out for him as much as he looked out for her, but he didn't need or want to justify himself to this guy. Besides he probably wouldn't understand it anyway with his attitude to how "men" should be.

"Yeah, you keep sucking up air sad sack, but I'm not taking the bait. I came out to enjoy a nice evening with my wife and I'm not gonna let a punk like you spoil it. Now, can I let you go?" He asked, meaning was the guy calm enough to not do anything stupid if he let go of the hold he had on him.

They had come all this way to enjoy a nice meal together before Matt had to leave for his latest deployment, and he didn't want to waist the evening by pick a fight. No matter how much he had felt the urge to hit the guy he wasn't gonna be the one to throw the first punch, well not if he could help it.

Tag: Gracelyn Cole .

Grace was trying to stay out of the whole situation but given she had started this whole misunderstanding it was hard to stay out of things. Then there was Matt, who had someone by their neck. The other male moved to try and push Matt off of him. Sneering he refused to discuss anything with him any farther.

Grace could see she was hardly getting anywhere with Matt and trying to keep him from clocking the guy. She caught the glance but she still refused to let Matt land himself in jail for fighting with someone. “Maybe you oughta listen to your little lady friend, Matthew.” The guy added gritting his teeth. This guy was definitely a pompous brat.

“Let me down” the man hissed. Clearly the man was full of attitude despite Matt having him against the wall.

“Matt, there are more important things” She tried to remind him. Sometimes she forgot how protective Matt could be. Maybe calling for him to come help her out of the situation had been a mistake. Then again… what if she hadn’t. Grace dared to reach out and touch Matt’s shoulder from behind.

Grace hoped that the light touch to his shoulder would help him back off. “Sweetie, let’s just enjoy the rest of the evening.” There wasn’t any harm done to Grace which was probably a good thing given the circumstances. There was no telling what could have happened if she had been injured.

Tag: Petty Officer Matthew Cole

Matt felt a surge of annoyance pulse through him when the guy called him Matthew like that at the end of his pompous attempt to try and provoke him yet again. In any other situation it wouldn't have bothered him to have a stranger use his name like that, but this time his chest rose a little hearing it form the guy who had just shoved his wife. However he let it go, continuing to canton himself so as not to lose control of his temper and give the man the satisfaction.

Matt just twisted the man's arm a little harder and put it a little further up his back in a very controlled manner when the guy started to struggle attempting to get the trained SEAL off him. It was simply the easiest way for Matt to keep the guy under control until he calmed down enough to refrain from shoving anyone yet again.

“Let me down”

Matt took the guy's hiss as confirmation that he wouldn't do anything stupid if he let him go. Not that his tone inspired confidence in that, but Matt wasn't gonna stand there like that all night. Besides he could tell Grace was getting distressed by the situation so he released his hold and freed the man from being pinned face up against the wall like that when he felt her touching him on his shoulder.

Truth was the guy had only shoved Grace so Matt had stepped in and simply pacified the guy before he went too far, but if he had of actually hit Grace or hurt her in any way then that would have been a completely different story altogether.

“Sweetie, let’s just enjoy the rest of the evening.”

The man turned around to face Matt with a nasty look on his face, Matt just eyed him with a look of his own, "Yeah, we didn't come all this way to have some loser spoil our night." He replied to Grace in agreement, as he and the man stared off at each other for a moment.

Then Matt took a step backwards away from the guy ready to join Grace to walk away and go back to their table. He just hoped the guy wouldn't try to escalate the situation, he didn't want to be thrown out of the restaurant for being involved in a disturbance, much less get into a physical fight and have to deal with all the ripples that could cause.

Tag: Gracelyn Cole .

Grace could tell that Matt was trying to calm his temper. Getting kicked out of the restaurant wasn’t worth all of this. She was biting her lip watching the two exchange. She’d never been much a fan of altercations. It wasn’t that she couldn’t handle them herself; but when males got heated it always resulted in some macho competition of who has a bigger growl and bite. The thought made her roll her eyes.

Just put him down Matt she didn’t say it outloud because she was going to sound like a broken record. Grace knew the longer she stayed right here near this the longer this was going to continue so she headed back to the table after she dropped her hand from his shoulder.

Grace tried to focus on something else as she sat back at the table. Anything except Matt leaving or this mess here. Though she glanced at her phone and busied herself with checking on Kaylee. Not that her brother’s couldn’t handle their niece but sometimes she was just a little paranoid when it came to parenting.

She took a few breaths and tried to refocus her energy while Matt did whatever it was he was doing. Grace was trying not to listen to the end of it. Taking her water glass in her hand she didn’t look at the others in the room. Great now Matt and her were ‘that couple’ that everyone was watching.

Tag: Petty Officer Matthew Cole

The man just pulled his blazer sharply, straightening out any wrinkles as he piercing Matt's eyes with a nasty look. But Matt just turned and walked away, only a few steps behind Grace as they went back to their table with several people looking at them.

Matt straightened the wrinkles out of his own blazer's sleeves as he walked, looking a couple of gawkers in the eye as he went, refusing to feel embarrassed. He hadn't started the altercation and had only been trying to protect his wife, and protecting his wife was something he would never apologize for, though he would apologize if he overstepped the mark in his effort to protect her, but in this instance he hadn't. He had kept relatively calm and had used very controlled force to neutralize any possible threat from the aggressor who had started it all. If anyone needed to be gawked at and made to feel embarrassed it was that jerk, at least that was how Matt saw it.

Matt sat back down opposite Grace and watched as she was on her phone checking up on their daughter, "Everything alright with Kaylee?" He asked, although he assumed she was or Grace would have said something.

Once she had finished on her phone he looked at her, "Are you ok?" he asked.
He knew she hadn't been hurt by the push, but he also knew she didn't like confrontation and someone randomly shoving her and speaking to her so rudely could shake her up a little, "I don't know what it is with people like that, they think they can just throw their weight around and do whatever they want." He said with an annoyed frown, before picking up his wine glass and taking a drink.

Tag: Gracelyn Cole .

Twenty questions she should have guessed. “Yeah she’s good.” Grace just worried, her family was everything to her and when she wasn’t near Kaylee she grew crazy with worry that something wasn’t going to be just so. Grace had this funny way of having everything just so. It was just how she had always been.

Then there was the age old question of how she was and really she didn’t want to answer that. Embarrassed? Yes. Agitated? A little. Hurt? No. So what was the answer? “Yeah, I’m good.” It wasn’t a complete lie and there were no physical marks to speak of but she was hiding a few things. It wasn’t like she was trying to make a fuss; but bringing up the little things might infuriate Matt more and that wouldn’t help the situation. They could discuss it later, when they were home, for however long that would be.

Grace tried not to think about the looming deployment in front of Matt. She’d only just gotten here, it wasn’t fair. Then again when had the Navy ever been fair to them, or even the Army for that matter? Just don’t think about it. You came to enjoy the evening Grace now do it. she chided at herself and managed a smile.

Though Matt turned the conversation to people and entitlement. Grace just shrugged. She’d long since stopped trying to figure people and their motives out. Nothing good really came of it. Reaching out across the table she placed a hand over his, her quiet way of trying to get him to calm down. She knew he was still worked up, she could read it in his face.

Tag: Petty Officer Matthew Cole

Matt nodded when Grace let him know that their daughter was ok.
And he didn't push it when she said that she was ok too. He knew she didn't like altercations and could tell she was just distracting herself and avoiding the subject as best she could right now, and they had been married long enough for him to know not to push. She would talk about it later if she wanted to and as long as he knew she wasn't hurt he saw nothing wrong with just pushing it aside right now and make the most of their evening, rather than letting it spoil their entire night.

It was at that moment Grace reached out and put her hand on top of his.
Feeling her touch Matt turned his palm over to hold her hand and softly caressed it with his thumb, a gently smile on his face. She had always had a calming affect on him and ever since they had been together she helped balance and even him out, his better half.

He exhaled softly as he gently gazed into her eyes for a moment, "How is it you get prettier every day?"
Matt had always felt that Grace was a little out of his league and he felt truly blessed that he ended up with her anyway. And despite those days when she drove him crazy he was happy they were together, though he still often wondered how that had happened.

Slipping his hand away he picked up the wine bottle and started filling Grace a glass, "We came all this way. You're in a lovely dress." He complimented with a half nod before placed the bottle back on the table and lifted his glass towards Grace, "Let's just have some wine, make our order and enjoy the rest of the evening." He said, putting things back on track.

Tag: Gracelyn Cole.