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The kiss catches me completely off-guard. I’d assumed we were on the same page after our talk in the garden. But it seems I was mistaken because as I’d been preparing to tell him goodbye, he was plotting a way to kiss me. I didn’t think anything of the hug. Lots of people hug goodbye, especially when they aren’t sure they’ll see the other person again. I just thought it meant we were parting on good terms. Right up until his lips landed on mine.
My first reaction is shock. His arms are banded tightly around me, holding me against his body. The second reaction is aversion. Up until an hour ago I’d been considering taking our relationship to the next level. And it’s not like it’s the first time he’s kissed me. Each time has been pleasant, and I even felt a hint of desire for him. This is the first time I haven’t wanted him to kiss me. And I know the reason. Cole. My hands go to Michael’s chest, intending to push him away. A deep voice breaks through my thoughts.
“Excuse me.”
I’d know that voice anywhere. It sends a little thrill through me, even as I wish a pit would open and swallow me whole. Regaining my senses, I break off the kiss and try to put some space between Michael and myself. Turning, I see Cole standing a few feet away, his gaze not on me but on something behind me. I take another step back from Michael, unable to look at him.
That’s when I realize the elevator door is open behind me and Cole is waiting to enter. Michael and I had been blocking the doors with our little kissing session. My face flames red as I wonder how long we’d been standing there. How must it have looked to Cole? He wouldn’t have been able to see that I wasn’t a willing participant in that kiss. It’s not like I pushed Michael away immediately, after all. From his point of view, I’d been making out with my date before he left me for the evening.
Shit.
The last thing I want is for Cole or Michael to get the wrong idea.And just what is the right idea, Layna?I don’t know the answer to that question. I need some time and space to think things over. I need to figure out what I’m feeling. And I damned sure can’t do it while these two men are standing here looking at me. One looks like he can’t wait to kiss me again and the other looks like he wants to hit something. All these thoughts run through my head in the few seconds it takes for Cole to decide he’s tired of waiting for us to move out of his way. And my shell-shocked brain is just a little too slow to remember how to make my legs function so that I can stop blocking the freaking elevator.
Instead of walking around me and Michael, Cole opts to walk directly between us. It’s rude, but then so is standing in front of the hotel’s only elevator and having a make-out session. As Cole turns sideways to pass between us, he shifts to face me. His large body is so close that I can smell his familiar scent. I can see the flecks of gold in his dark eyes as they lock on mine. There’s a heat and possessiveness in his gaze that I know I’ve never seen before. Time seems to slow to a crawl. I forget about everything but his nearness as I fight the urge to reach for him. His mouth curves up into a half-smirk as he brushes past me. Then, he’s in the elevator and pressing the button. I can’t help but watch him disappear as the doors close.
My heart is pounding, and I know my face is still flushed. But this time it’s not from embarrassment. It’s not even from the kiss with Michael. It’s from whatever the hell I just felt when Cole passed so close to me. The urge to go after him is so intense it’s shocking. As many times as he and I have had sex, you’d think I’d have grown immune to his nearness. And I had. Or so I thought. But that was before the scene at dinner earlier. Before whatever that shift was between us. Before the balcony. The sound of Michael clearing his throat brings me back to the present and I remember that he’s still standing there.
Double shit.
I turn and give him a questioning look.
“What was that?”
He grins sheepishly. “I just wanted to give you something to think about. Just in case you were on the fence about me.” He winks. “Goodnight Layna.”
Then he turns and walks away. I watch him until he exits the hotel lobby, wondering how the hell I got myself into this predicament. I’d laugh at the situation if Cole hadn’t just seen that kiss. Not that it matters. Cole and I aren’t a couple. As far as he knows, I’m still dating Michael. So, it doesn’t matter if he saw us kissing.
But later, when I lie awake in my empty bed, it’s not Michael I can’t stop thinking about. It’s not the kiss we shared that consumes my thoughts. It’s that two seconds of almost contact I had with Cole before he got on the elevator. It’s the way he’d smirked as if he’d known exactly what I’d been thinking. It’s every dirty, wicked thing he’s ever done to make my body sing. And knowing that I want him to do all of them again.
Chapter 25
Layna
The next morning, I’m exhausted after a night of fitful sleep and dreams where Cole kept appearing and disappearing only to reappear, just out of reach. Each time I’d reach for him, he’d shoot me that knowing smirk before vanishing again. I woke up equal parts frustrated and horny with no more understanding of what I want than I’d had last night.
I spend a solid hour getting ready for Piper’s bridal brunch. Half of that time is spent on my makeup where I try to hide the evidence of my exhaustion. I’m not sure I succeed, because Piper eyes me with concern when I meet her at the elevator so we can go down to the restaurant together.
“You okay?” she asks.
I smile brightly. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
She lifts her shoulder in a shrug. “You just seem a little preoccupied. Are things okay with Michael?”
I wave away her concern. “I’m fine,” I say. “Stop worrying about me. Today is all about you. Let’s go meet the rest of the girls and have the best day ever.”
She still looks unconvinced, but she drops the subject and her lips curve into a smile. “If you say so,” she says. “But you’d tell me if you weren’t okay, right? If there’s something I can help with?”
I smile at my sister. “Of course, I would. But everything is fine. I swear.”
She nods as the elevator doors open and we move to step inside. Before we can, however, Cole steps out. He smiles at Piper before his eyes go to mine.
“Good morning, ladies,” he says. “You two look beautiful, as always.”
Piper smiles. “Such a charmer, Cole,” she says. “One of these days you’re going to find a woman who’s a match for that charm and you won’t know what hit you.”
Cole grins, his gaze still on me.
“Fingers crossed,” he says with a quick wink.
