Wasted

Chapter 17

Chapter Seventeen

Taylor

W hat the fuck is happening?

Groaning, I dropped my head into my hands, which were propped up on my elbows, resting on my knees.

Cole came all the way over here to make sure I was safe, admitted that he didn't hate me, and confessed that he still loved me. A brief intimate moment passed between us, but before I had time to relish in it, it was over, and he was back to being cold and short with his words.

I let myself believe that maybe there was a chance for us, which was ridiculous because I knew the day I told him I was marrying his brother, my chances were gone, but today, when he'd pressed his lips to my shoulder, I thought...

"Everything looks good," My head snapped up to see all 6'2" of him standing, shirtless in a pair of jeans so tight he couldn't button them and his baseball cap twisted backward, keeping his wet hair back, in the entranceway. Stubble dusted his sharp jawline and perfect full lips. Dark ink covered his chest and back. He was even more beautiful now than the last time I saw him standing there.

My breath hitched when his icy blue eyes locked with mine, and my stomach dropped at the same time my heart leaped. He still had the same effect on me, and I couldn't help but wonder if I had done the same to him.

"So," I choked out. "Can I come out?" Typically, I wouldn't ask or care, but it was obvious he needed a minute, and I understood that.

"Yeah." Cole turned away, disappearing out of the doorway. He called over his shoulder, "I'm going to check around the property. You should go in and get changed."

I ran up the steps wearing nothing but his old grey t-shirt and my panties. "You know I handled all of this on my own for two years," I snapped; he froze, the muscles in his back flexing as he slowly turned around. "I don't need you to do this for me." The words came out sharper than I intended. Cole froze mid-step, the muscles in his back visibly tensing. He turned around slowly, his jaw clenched. I crossed my arms, chin lifted defiantly. "You can go if you need to."

"I know you can take care of yourself." A smirk played at the corner of Cole's lips. "But today, you don't have to."

Those words hit me like a ton of bricks slamming into my chest. I'd not only had to take care of myself for the last two years but two other people and their entire lives, and never once had anyone said take a break. I got this. The fact that it was Cole was incredibly confusing.

I clenched my fists at my sides, steeling myself. "What are you doing, Cole?" The words came out sharp and firm. I couldn't handle any games right now.

"I'm just making sure the place is safe," he mumbled, swiping his hand across his face and wiping away the raindrops.

"That's not what I mean." I frowned. "Twenty minutes ago, you admitted that you still love me, but now you're avoiding me and any conversation about it."

His chest rose, and his fist clenched as he surged forward. "Because I'm still so fucking angry, Taylor," he growled, his body tightening with anger. "I'm angry at what you two robbed from me."

"What would you have done, Cole?" My voice cracked, betraying the emotion I was trying to hide. A tear escaped, tracing a warm path down my cheek. I brushed it away angrily, hating the vulnerability. "If the situation was different and you were in my shoes and you knew I had this amazing talent that was going to be wasted in this small town because you couldn't leave. Tell me what you would have done differently."

A gust of wind swirled around me, and a chill snaked up my spine as I wrapped my arms around me.

Closing his eyes, he exhaled, and I could see the fight leaving him. "You're freezing." He sighed. "Just go inside and warm up." I shook my head because I knew he'd be gone when I came out. He stepped forward into my space, his voice dropping to a growl. "Go inside, or I'll throw you over my shoulder, carry you inside, and strip you down..." Suddenly, he blinked rapidly, as if coming out of a trance. He took a hasty step back, his face flushing as the realization of his words sank in. "Please... Just get in the house and put some clothes on."

"Will you be gone when I get out?"

Cole's shoulders sagged as he shook his head. "No, unfortunately, we are stuck with each other tonight." He ran a hand through his damp hair. "My parent's place doesn't have any power."

He wasn't asking if he could stay. He was telling me he was, and I loved that he knew he didn't even have to ask. "Go inside and change, and I'm going to check the weather to make sure we are out of danger."

My gaze dropped to the waistband of his boxer briefs. "Let me at least find you something that fits." I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. "And then I'll change."

"Lead the way." He sighed.

I walked up the front porch, into the house, and up the narrow staircase.

Cole's gaze darted around the room, his brow furrowing. "Where's all your furniture?"

"There was some damage to the house a few years ago during a storm. Almost everything was water-logged, so we threw it all out."

Cole's gaze swept across the bare room, his brow furrowing. "Where do you sleep?"

"The sofa has a pull-out that I use when I'm here, but most of the time, I crash at the bar. If you're worried about having a place to sleep tonight, you can have the pull-out, and I'll take the floor." I pulled open one of my dressers and found a large pair of sweatpants that were probably Caleb’s and handed them to him.

Cole's fingers brushed against mine as he took the pants. "Thanks." I strolled past him into the bathroom, kicking the door behind me. With a deep breath, I peeled off my shirt and let it drop to the floor.

A chill raced up my spine, and the feeling of being watched overwhelmed my senses. Flicking a glance over my shoulder, my heart thrummed in my chest as my gaze locked with his heated stare through the cracked door. His head dropped, his gaze falling to the pants in his hands as I turned, facing him. His chest rose and fell with deep, ragged breaths, and he swallowed hard as his eyes lifted to mine. It was still there. The same chemistry we'd always had. I stepped forward, and he stepped back, clearing his throat and averting his gaze. It was still there, but he was fighting it, and I couldn't blame him. No matter how much chemistry we had, whatever it was between us now would never be the same as it was.

"Sorry." The word came out as barely more than a whisper. Cole hastily stepped into the sweats, nearly tripping in his rush to bolt from the room.

I finished changing, and by the time I made it downstairs, the sun was setting. I stepped out onto the porch and smiled when I spotted him on the front porch swing, listening to Country Gold at a low volume.

"I thought you bailed."

He shook his head. "I told you that you were stuck with me for tonight." He slid to the right side of the swing and nodded to the left. That was his invitation to join him.

"Thanks." I smiled, sinking onto the swing beside him.

We swung in silence through three songs that were older than both of us, but we knew every word because this was Cole's favorite thing to do every Saturday night. Sit on the front porch swing listening to old country.

Cole's fingers drummed against his thigh. He cleared his throat, his voice coming out low. "I've been thinking about what you asked me earlier." I bit down on my bottom lip as I searched my memories for what I'd said earlier. He dropped his gaze for a brief moment before turning to meet mine. "I would have done exactly the same thing you did, but that still doesn't take away the pain." I dropped my gaze to my fidgeting hands as his flicked forward. "I don't know how I feel about any of this, and I can't say that we'll ever even be half of what we were back then, but I'm ready to put the past behind us and move forward."

"So?" I narrowed my eyes.

"Friends, I guess."

I smiled. Friends was more than I ever thought we'd be again. "I can live with that."

"Friends who keep their clothes on." Cole's eyebrow quirked up, a hint of amusement in his eyes. I couldn't help but laugh out loud. The corner of his mouth twitched upward. "Is that funny?"

"No, I mean, yes, kind of..." Cole and I had never been the kind of friends who kept their clothes on, but that was then, and this was now, and we were two completely different people. If that was the kind of friend he wanted to be, I was happy that I'd at least have some type of relationship with him. "Are you hungry? I can make something."

"No, actually, I'm exhausted."

"Oh, right, of course." I pushed off the swing. "Let me go get your bed together." Cole's long fingers curled around my arm, stopping me. The warmth of his touch sent a shiver down my spine.

"Make the bed for two," he said. "We'll share tonight."

"Oh no," my brows pulled together as I shook my head, "that's okay. I don't mind sleeping on the floor tonight."

"Taylor." His voice was low, almost husky. Cole's gaze locked with mine, intense and unreadable. "Make the bed for two..." He swallowed hard. "Please."

My heart raced as I nodded, unable to find my voice.