Page 60 of Cole

“Your nipples say different. So, unless you want me to warm them up another way, wear my cut.” Cole leaned forward in his seat. “Besides, I don’t like the look of another man’s name written on your chest. A Hounds patch looks much better there.”

Arianna was watching us with amusement. I had no idea what to say to any of that, so I looked at her instead.

“What?” I asked.

She just shook her head. “Nothing. Marcus owes me ten bucks, is all.”

The buzzer sounded again, and the game restarted. I snuggled into Cole’s cut and watched.

“So, it’s like that,” Eve leaned dramatically past Selena to murmur at me.

“Like what?”

“Like that. It’s not just a hookup.” She glanced back over her shoulder. “He’s really into you. I mean, it makes sense… he doesn’t date around. You don’t hear stories about him hooking up with tons of women. He’s the kind of guy that when he falls, he goes all in.”

I snorted. “Goes all in? Hardly. I’m just a passing fancy. His little brother’s friend. That’s all. Probably it’s easier to hook up with someone outside the whole Clutch ecosystem. Or maybe he’s just burned through all the women there. They throw themselves at him enough, that’s for sure.”

Eve studied me. “Do you really believe that, or it just feels less scary to say it?”

No, I don’t really believe it.

I swallowed the truth I felt in my bones and just shrugged.

Then the Hellions scored, and the cheering carried my thoughts away.

I didn’t speak to Cole again until the end of the game. As we shuffled out of the seating area, I became hyperaware of how close together we were. He was deep in conversation with Arianna, but his hand kept brushing mine. We moved with the crowd, my friends chattering around me, while I felt like I was in a bubble, holding my breath, Cole’s fingers brushing mine the most real sensation I’d ever felt.

We got to the main foyer, and people started to go their separate ways.

“Are you coming to the hockey house?” Selena asked, looking just behind me and raising an eyebrow.

“I’m not sure. I’m pretty tired,” I said.

She grinned wickedly. “So, I hear. I guess you didn’t get much sleep last night.” Then she reached past me and tapped someone on the shoulder. I could have died.

“Cole, are you coming to the hockey house? Help me talk Isabelle into coming.”

I turned slowly. Cole was right there, at my back.

“I don’t think so. I’m a little old for the hockey house,” he drawled. “Besides, I’m pretty tired.” His hand slipped into my back pocket and squeezed my ass. “I didn’t get much sleep, if you haven’t heard.”

Selena laughed. “Oh, believe me, I’ve heard, though I’d love to hear more. I guess I’ll just leave you two to it then. Maybe you should see Isabelle home, since the rest of us are going to a party.”

“Hmm, sounds prudent, doesn’t it?” His body pressed into mine from behind and I nearly melted on the spot.

Selena nodded, smiling like a Cheshire cat.

“Definitely. Text me tomorrow,” she called to me as she backed away.

“What do you say, Goldilocks? Shall I walk you home? Maybe I can get a tour of your dorm room.”

I swallowed hard, the thought of Cole, all barely leashed power and violence, sitting in my teeny-tiny dorm room, lounging on my bed, made me weak at the knees.

“Isabelle?” A familiar voice cut through my overheated thoughts.

“Dad?”

My father was cutting through the crowd toward us. I jerked forward, away from Cole, without thinking. It was my baseline response around my dad. Stand up straighter, be presentable.