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He scares me half to death, and I scream. “Good hell, I’m right here.” Luke is right behind him, looking like he’s ready for a fight.
Cole runs down the stairs to me. “Where’s your phone, baby?”
“My purse I guess.” I walk over and rifle around in it, but I can’t find it. “It was here this morning. Maybe it fell out of my pockets and is between the sofa cushions.”
Cole stops me. “It’s not there, Cookie.”
I furrow my brow, trying to think what could have happened to it, when it dawns on me. “Elvis! Elvis stole my phone.”
Both Cole and Luke look at me like I’ve lost my mind. I exhale. I was hoping not to have to rehash this stupid story. “When I was at the grocery store. I ran into this guy, an Elvis impersonator. He dropped his eggs, and they splattered everywhere. Long story short, I slipped in them, and ended up on my ass covered in egg. He was such a jerk. My phone must have fallen out of my pocket, and he stole it. Elvis is supposed to mean good signs, not bad ones,” I say, ranting more to myself than anything. When I look over at Cole, he has that very cool, collected look on his face. It’s stops me dead in my tracks. Something’s wrong, but I don’t know what. He can’t be mad at me. I didn’t do anything wrong. I took security with me.
I look cautiously at him. “Are you mad?” He doesn’t say anything, his jaw just pulses.
“You are mad! Why?”
“Security.” The words come out between his teeth.
“I took security with me. Ask Luke. I texted him and sent someone over. I’m sorry I lost my phone. Why didn’t you just call me on the villa phone?”
He takes two long strides and encases me in his arms. I’m so flustered, I start to cry. I can’t seem to do anything right. “I’m sorry,” I sob. “I didn’t mean to lose my phone.”
Cole takes a deep breath, exhaling his anger. “Come sit down with me.”
I follow him over to the sofa, and he pulls me onto his lap. “Cole,” I whine, glancing over at Luke.
“Cookie,” Cole whispers. “Tell me about the grocery store. What time did you leave?”
I shrug. “About an hour after you left, so around two.”
“Who went with you? Was he nice to you?”
I scrunch my face. “It was Shane, and no, I didn’t like her. She had an opinion about each of my food purchases. She scarred the crap out of the Elvis guy. He backed all the way up the aisle then ran.”
“Anything else?”
“No, except she tried to go through the gift basket. But Trisha, the front desk lady, said it had already had a security check, so she stopped.”
“Gift basket?”
I point to the table where the remnants still lay. I watch Luke walk over and pick through it.
“Is that it?”
“She called me Miss Cook instead of Mrs. Holt. I was sufficiently miffed by the time I got home. That was it.” Cole kisses me behind the ear then trails kisses down my neck, stopping at the finally fading hickies he gave me last week, kissing them lightly. It sends tingles down my spine, and I shiver with delight.
“Kate” I glance up at Luke, who is still examining the gift basket. “What was in the basket?”
This gets Cole’s attention, and he glances at Luke. “Some candy, a few magazines and a book.” I try to capture Cole’s mouth but his jaw tenses, holding me he stands us up.
“What magazines?” Luke asks.
I rub my hands over my face. Seriously, what does it matter? I don’t need this drama today. “They were bridal magazines. They’re in the garbage if you want to look at them.” Apparently, both he and Cole want to look at them because they rifle through the garbage, pulling them out. I’m stunned. What’s the big damn deal about a couple of magazines?
“Was this the candy in the basket?” he holds up the box of empty mints.
“Yep.” I watch him shake the box until a lonely mint I missed falls out into his hand. He sniffs it, placing the mint back in the box and the box on the counter. Then he goes back to the garbage.
“Cookie, where’s the book? I don’t see a book here in the garbage.”
