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“You like it that much?” Luckily, Cole only sounds curious, rather than disbelieving. If he scorned my obsession forThe Seven Siblings, I might have to end whatever this thing is that’s developing between us. No one gets to shit on the things I love.
“Like it? That’s the same as saying Willy Wonka onlylikedchocolate. Or that Smaug onlylikedtreasure.” My office chair squeaks as I swivel it to face Cole head-on, our stares locked. “The Seven Siblingsbrings me pure unadulterated joy. I adore this story. This author…” I gesture at my computer screen. “The Inked Dragon, they call themself. They’re one of the most engaging, wickedly creative authors I’ve ever read. If I had any idea who they were, I’d write them horrible love poems.”
“Horrible?” Cole is full-on grinning at me now, which only makes me more flustered and drives more gushing nonsense out of my mouth.
“Not intentionally horrible. But my ability to write anything creative is sorely lacking. I’d probably end up rhyming ‘perfection’ with ‘infection.’”
“Really?” Cole presses his knuckles against his mouth, and I have a suspicion he’s attempting to stifle some laughter. “How would that go?”
I fight my own smile. “Oh. You know.Your stories are utter perfection. They’ve taken me over like an infection.”
He barks out a short laugh, then cuts himself off. Resting his elbows on his knees, Cole leans toward me, a fascinating spark lighting up the cool blue of his eyes.
“I’m surprised.”
“That I like this story? Just because I’m a straight woman doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy reading about two men falling in love.”
“No.” He shakes his head, a wicked smile still in place. “I’m surprised you haven’t made the connection.”
His words linger between us, and I try to piece them into some sense, like a puzzle.
“A connection in the story? Do you read it, too? Is there some plot point you think I’m missing?” But how would he even know? It’s not like we’ve had a full discussion aboutThe Seven Siblings, which I could spend days digging into.
“I do read it. But that’s not what I mean.”
The second part of his statement barely registers because I’m too overwhelmingly excited to find out that Cole and I read the same story.
“You’ve read it?” My hands clap together under my chin as I gaze at him. “Do you love it? Are you up to date? Probably not, since the newest chapter just came out. I swear I won’t spoil it for you. But oh my gosh. It is so good. Do you want to read it now?” I wave at my computer.
Cole tilts his head, examining me. I smile wide to let him know I’m serious.
“Do you mind?” He gestures at my computer, and I want to cheer. I’ve always had to wait until Jasmine and I have a girls’ night before I can talk to someone about the story. But now, there’s Cole. He’s going to read it, and I’m going to have the best break ever getting a chance to discuss it with him.
Standing from my chair, I allow Cole to slide into my seat. As I move toward the vacated chair, Cole’s arm wraps around my waist, and he pulls me back toward him until I’m situated on his lap.
A much better seat than my secondhand furniture.
Long arms around me, Cole scrolls to the top of the EpicTales webpage.
Moving the cursor to the left corner, he clicks on the “Log In” button.
“Why do you have an account? The site is free for the public to access. Only creators have…” My words disappear as Cole’s deft fingers tap over my keyboard, filling in the username box.
The Inked Dragon.
All rational thought leaves me. My mind is blank, shock having wiped all thoughts clean as if my brain were a whiteboard.
Cole continues to type, filling in the password box before pressing enter.
The screen shows a dashboard different than the public view. There’s a box labeled “Tales.” In Cole’s Tales box, there’s only one title.
The Seven Siblings.
He clicks on it, and we’re brought to another page, one long list of all the chapters I’ve devoured more times than I could possibly count. And at the top of the screen is a beautiful blue button that reads “Add New Chapter.”
My little office has never been so silent.
COLE
