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He wore a full wolf suit with a half mask over his face. He hadn’t been so sure about it at first, but the effect was actually pretty impressive, even with the granny hat and gown over his wolf suit.
He spun her easily and pulled her back in to his chest, where he preferred her. “I thought they were fitting. Given the situation.”
“And what situation is that?” She looked up at him through thick, dark lashes that made her look every bit the part of the innocently sexy Little Red Riding Hood.
He had to force himself to stay calm and move slowly when all he really wanted to do was twirl her right off the dance floor and into a private corner where he could tell her all the things he’d been thinking since the last moment he’d seen her. He wanted to take her and hold her until she understood that whatever was going on between them was real, even if neither of them understood it yet. They couldn’t ignore it and not even some stupid thing he’d said when he’d been upset and not thinking straight should keep them from figuring it all out. He wanted to kiss her until shefeltexactly what he was trying to say.
But it wasn’t time to do any of that. They were in costume, and he’d play the role. He’d play it as long as it took to convince her that whatever it was that he was feeling for her, it was real.
He grinned wide, knowing his costume likely made him look as wolfish and sinister as possible. “The situation between the innocent good girl and the wicked bad boy.”
Cole could tell she was trying not to, but a smile crept across her face. “I’m the innocent good girl?”
“Innocent enough.” He spun her around again. The twinkling lights strung around the dance floor sparkled and danced on her skin. “And I’m definitely bad enough.”
“Enough for what?”
He paused in mid turn and held her fast. “Enough to make this work.”
“This?”
“Us. The innocent girl and the Big Bad Wolf.”
She shook her head. “That’s not how the story goes.”
The music changed pace to a more upbeat song and Cole easily transitioned into a quicker step, moving Amber around the dance floor through the crowd, but he didn’t release his grip on her. “If I remember correctly, the Big Bad Wolf pursued Little Red Riding Hood, until she finally gave in.”
“That’s an interesting take on it,” Amber said. “If you call stalking and hunting pursuing.”
He gave her another grin. “Maybe I do. If it gets me the girl in the end.”
Amber’s smile faded and she shook her head slightly. “That’s not how the story goes. He didn’t get the girl at all. The woodsman came and saved Little Red Riding Hood from the Big Bad Wolf. He took the wolf out to the forest and she never heard from him again.”
Dammit.He hadn’t thought that part of the fairy tale through. But it was just that. A fairy tale. Having Amber standing in front of him—that was real. The way she made him feel—that was real. Everything about them and the last few days—that wasveryreal. She wasn’t going to get off on a technicality. This was too important.
With two fingers, he tilted her chin up so she was looking at him. No, she was looking at his wolf mask. It wasn’t good enough. He kept one hand on her back and with the other, he pulled off his mask so she was looking at his face. He couldn’t be sure, but he had to believe that she’d be able to see the truth in his eyes. “That doesn’t matter,” he said after a moment. “None of that matters.”
“Of course it matters.”
“No.” They’d stopped moving and couples danced around them, but he didn’t care. The only thing he cared about was the woman in front of him and fixing things between them. There was no way he was going to let her walk away from whatever it was they’d started. “It doesn’t matter, Amber, because we’re going to write our own ending.”
She tried to look down, but he wouldn’t let her. He cupped her cheek and held her so their eyes were locked.
“It will never work, Cole. I’m—”
“It will.” He nodded. “You’re a planner. You’re a rule follower and you’re responsible. I’m the exact opposite of that. I’ve never planned anything in my life and I definitely don’t follow the rules.” He winked at her and that got a smile, but he could see the unshed tear in her eye.
“That’s why this can never work.” The tear rolled down her cheek. “We’re so different, Cole. We come from different places. I just don’t see how…”
He couldn’t stand it anymore. Cole lowered his mouth to her lips and kissed her gently. “We’ll write our own ending,” he repeated. “This isourstory. We get to decide how it ends, Amber. Or at the very least, we get to write the next chapter. And whatever it looks like, I want my story to include you.”
“But…Australia…you…I’m…”
“Tell me you don’t want me.”
She shook her head and another tear slipped down her cheek. “I can’t.” A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. “I can’t tell you that, because I do want you. So much.”
Cole didn’t need to hear anything else. He slipped a hand behind her head and pulled her to his mouth, where he kissed her like he’d never kissed before. In fact, he could have quite happily spent the rest of the night kissing her if that’s what it took, but someone had other plans.
