She stared, mouth open. I watched the pieces slipping into place. “He’s Maisie’s father.”
“Yes.”
“Oh my god. After all these years?” She sat down hard on the closest bed. “I saw the resemblance at lunch, but I didn’t think…”
She lowered her voice. “Does he know?”
“I think so.” I swallowed hard. “The way he looked at us, I’m sure he put it together.”
“Ava, the Cole I know, the Cole Luke describes, would support you two.”
“I won’t risk Maisie.”
“Ava—”
“Don’t tell Luke. Not yet.” I grasped her hands, pleading. “Let me get through this weekend. It’s your wedding. You don’t need this drama. You deserve to have a weekend free of my troubles.”
“I’m sorry, Ava, but I can’t hide this from my fiancé. Cole’s his best friend. And Luke cares about Maisie.” Becky shook her head, stilling my protest. “I won’t go into my marriage lying to Luke. But I will ask him to give you two time to sort it out on your own.”
My shoulders slumped. She was right. It wasn’t fair to ask her to keep secrets from Luke. “Okay. But you have to promise to stay out of it. I’m Maisie’s mother, and it’s for me to decide what to do. You may know one version of Cole, but the Cole I met wasn’t the most stand-up guy.”
“I promise.” Becky’s eyes were troubled. “But try to give him a chance, Ava. People change.”
After she left, I lay down next to Maisie and tried to rest, but my mind wouldn’t stop turning around. Could I reconcile the man from six years ago with the one Becky and Luke knew? Cole never lied to me. He said from the start that anything between us would just be for one night, and I agreed anyway.
It was my fault that I’d hoped for more, thinking the hours we spent talking meant something to him. I was just another notch, and he’d made no secret about that.
When Maisie stirred an hour later, I still hadn’t slept. I got us ready to help Becky and Luke set up for the rehearsal dinner that evening. Maisie kept her tutu on but agreed to switch out the superhero T-shirt for a clean one with a purple unicorn. She also insisted on wearing her bright pink sneakers.
I kept her by my side through the setup and avoided Cole. He hoisted a stack of heavy oak chairs like they were made of plastic, and his t-shirt strained across his back, damp with sweat. Mymouth went dry. The boy I remembered had been lean and pretty, but the man in front of me was built for hard labor.
A deep, rich laugh rumbled across the room. My spine stiffened. I knew that sound. I’d heard it in my dreams for six years.
I tore my gaze away when his met mine. I didn’t want him to think I was trying to get his attention. The easiest thing for me would be if we pretended we’d just met that morning. Then Maisie wouldn’t get hurt.
“Hey, Ava, can you grab the box with the place cards? I left it by the door.” Becky and Maisie rearranged the flowers in the centerpieces. “I can watch Maisie.”
“Sure.” I was grateful for the excuse to move. My skin felt too tight, my awareness of Cole a constant, low-level buzz in my veins. I kept my head down, navigating the maze of half-set tables to the entrance.
I found the box on a side table. I grabbed it, turned, and nearly dropped it when I bumped into a wall of solid muscle. Cole. He didn't step back. He loomed over me, smelling of sawdust and sweat, blocking out the rest of the room as heat radiated from his chest to me.
My eyes flitted to the side, looking for a path past him, but his broad frame in front of me and the boxes at my sides hemmed me in. I took a step back, clutching the box like a shield. “Excuse me.”
He didn’t move. His gaze dropped to my mouth as I spoke, but then returned to my eyes. It was a complicated look. But I recognized the impatience. He was done waiting.
His voice rumbled through me, pitched low enough only we could hear. “We need to talk.”
Chapter 4
COLE
Ava still usedthe same shampoo. Apples and roses. The scent hit me harder than the whiskey I used to drink, but the fear in her eyes landed like a punch. Stripping away my anger until only the raw truth remained.
“She’s mine,” I rasped.
Her lips tightened, and I wondered if she would deny the obvious. Then, her shoulders dropped. “Yes.”
The confirmation was an explosion.
