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Ten minutes later, Layla corners me. “So, what did he say?”
“Please.” I roll my eyes. “You know what he said. You were standing right there listening to everything.”
“I know.” Her eyes twinkle as she giggles and snatches a glass of water off the table. “But what do you think he meant?”
“I think he meant we’re going to clobber my brother and win his contest.” One of Connor’s buddies hands me a glass of beer and asks the next person in line for their order. I must give my brother credit; he went all out for this party.
After taking a sip, I run a hand through my hair. I’m not a huge drinker, but one to loosen up and get primed for spending the next several hours brushing up against Cole wouldn’t hurt.
“No-o-o,” her eyes grow wider as she says the word in an exaggerated manner. “What do you think he meant?”
Two small boys run by, squirting each other with water guns while dodging the crowd on the deck.
“I don’t know.” I take another drink of the alcohol and let it cool my throat.
“What do you want it to mean?” Her expression shifts to seriousness as she waits for my reply.
“I don’t know that either.” I shrug and lower my voice so that no one is listening to our conversation. “I know I said it wouldn’t work, and I don’t know how it would even end well, but I think I’d like to try.” My face floods with heat. “If he’s interested, that is.”
“Oh, I think he’s interested.”
My gaze darts to where he’s standing. I don’t have to search the crowd to find him. I feel his presence even when I’m not looking. He’s talking to my dad.
When he looks up, his eyes meet mine, and my heart skips a beat. God, I thought he was gorgeous before, and now, holy hell, he’s hot. The things he can do. The way he touched me. His hands. His thighs. His mouth. The corners of his mouth arch upward, and he winks.
This is crazy. As he continues to study me, the noise around me disappears, and the need to try beats inside me like a drum. And before I know what I’m doing, I’m walking down the stairs and approaching them.
“Hey, babe.” My dad grins and wraps his arm around my shoulders. “Cole here said the two of you are taking down Connor and Austin.”
“That’s the plan.” I squeeze his side and inhale his familiar aftershave.
“Perfect. I can’t wait to see it. I’m glad you could make it.” He kisses the top of my head. “It’s not the same around here without you.”
“Thanks, Dad.” I fight back the mist developing in my eyes and tell him I’ll see him later.
When we’re alone, Cole shoves his hands into his pockets, tips his head, and bites his bottom lip.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing is a cop-out. What did you want to say?” The fact I’m not running to hide and seeking him out is liberating. I feel like a different woman around him now. Confident. Feminine. Strong. I take a sip of the beer. And it’s not the alcohol talking–yet. I finish the drink and sit it on a nearby table.
He clears his throat. “Your dad is right. It’s not the same around here without you.”
“Before or after last Friday?”
“Before and after, but for two different reasons.” He smiles, and my heart skips a beat. Lord, I’m playing with fire because harmless flirting is not something I can do with Cole. I’ve been half in love with him for years. Sex intensified it. Flirting and teasing. I’m going under. He steps closer until I feel the heat radiating off him, and every breath is filled with his cologne.
His face grows serious. “I’ve been thinking about stopping coming around. Things are different now.”
“Why?” I clutch my chest. “That would kill my brother and my parents. They love you. Please don’t do that because of what happened between us. We can forget it even happened.” I step back, dropping my arm to my side, and straighten my shoulders. As much as I’m drawn to him, I don’t want my selfishness to hurt anyone else.
Cole licks his lips and swallows hard. “I can’t fight what happened the other day. I wasn’t lying when I said I was doing something I’ve wanted to do for years.” His eyes never leave mine, and the raw vulnerability in them shakes me to the core. “And that’s not why I’ve been thinking about stopping coming around.”
He shifts his attention behind me as if meeting my gaze is too intense. “I don’t want to be here when you bring home the guy you’re going to marry. It pissed me off when you were dating that loser, but the next one….” He returns his attention to me, and my hands shake so hard I curl them inward to keep it from showing. “He might be ‘The One.’”
I bite my bottom lip as someone zips a football by our heads. On instinct, I duck, and Cole catches it one-handed before tossing it back to whoever threw it. “This is complicated. You know that, right?”
