Chapter 17
POV: Cole?
There was just something about Abby that made every inch of me on high alert.
The way she moved. The way she looked. The way she smelled. The way she tasted. The way she moaned. Everything.
I was hooked on her. And I knew it.
And I’m sure she did, too.
We were getting….closer. And I knew as time went a woman like Abby would want to define things. Though, I was happy without the relationship definition.
Right now things aren’t complicated. They were just as I wanted them to be—intense, passionate, undefined.
I stared at her car’s taillights in front of me as we turned down another winding road towards her house.
I insisted on following her home at this hour—it was dark as shit out and I didn’t want something to happen to her. So, I did what I always did when I…cared about something, I tried to control it.
And Abby was the type of girl that liked my domineering nature, thankfully, though she liked to push my buttons and purposefully disobey me in order to get her way.
Luckily, with this, she decided not to argue.
We pulled into her long, winding driveway and parked and turned off her vehicle, hopped out, smiling as she did, sauntering over to me in that short purple dress of hers, brown cowboy boots and jean jacket with a suspicious smile.
I got out of my truck and stared back at her, tracing over the beauty of her face.
God, I wanted to fuck her again—-in the back of my truck, hear her screams in that small space, and kiss every inch of her body.
But just as I began imagining the filthy things I would do to her—-her porchlight turned on and her front door opened right up.
And on the porch stood her old man and he looked pissed.
Abby’s gaze changed from happy to terrified in a matter of seconds.
I wanted to hold her and tell her to breathe but instead decided that pissing her old man off even more would only make things worse.
“Dad—” she began stuttering, wide eyed. “Leave,” she whispered to me urgently. “Like right now.”
I nodded, feeling as if that was probably the best option since I knew her father probably wasn’t keen on the idea the 36 year old cowboy was sleeping with his 22 year old daughter.
Then I heard it.
His voice booming from across the yard. “Cole.”
“Go—” Abby said again, this time louder. “Get in your truck and leave Cole. He’s really fucking angry!”
But I couldn’t turn my back on the man of the daughter I’ve been fucking. The daughter I actually cared about. Though neither probably thought that I did.
He approached, crossing the field with heavy steps, his gaze never leaving mine.
Abby got in between the two of us, trying to stop her father. “Dad, please, just stop. Cole just offered to follow me home because I closed late.”
“Abby, what did I tell you?” he yelled, looking at her with angry eyes.
But Abby didn’t give up.
“Go back inside dad, he’s just leaving!” she screamed at him, then turned to me and said, “Go Cole!”
But neither her father or I listened.
“I don’t approve of this—” he said, pointing at me with fire in his eyes.
“I’m an adult dad!” Abby replied, trying to pull him back but he just kept walking towards me.
I didn’t budge. I just listened.
“You know it’s not right—” he pointed right at me again. “She’s just got out of college. She’s young. She has her whole life ahead of you. She doesn’t need to be stringed along by a man like you—-almost double her age!”
I stood there, unflinching and unmoving just listening.
“Leave her alone, Cole. You know it—Abby’s too good for you!” he yelled again as Abby stepped in front of him.
“Dad, stop! Please!” she pleaded.
Abby turned and looked at me, with the same fire in her eyes from earlier.
She expected me to fight for her—probably to say something—tell her father that she’s different and I was serious about her—she probably expected me to be a man I’ve never been.
I knew she had expectations. And I knew I’d fall short.
Because even though I cared for her—those feelings I had for her—well, they terrified the fuck out of me.
And I wasn’t sure if I was ever going to be ready to commit or settle down.
“I just wanted to make sure she got home safe, sir.”
Her father scoffed. “If you hurt my daughter…I’ll kill you, Cole!”
And I knew his words were true. “I understand,” I nodded, turning away, not even glancing at Abby.
Because I couldn’t tell if I would end up doing as he predicted.
I knew Abby wouldn’t be happy with my response—about my lack of conviction—about my lack of assertiveness over whatever we were doing here.
And I knew I already hurt her and that hurt me, too.
I reversed out of the driveway, watching Abby and her father yell at each other in the field.
As her father stomped away, she looked towards me and I saw the pain in her gaze.
And for a moment, I almost stopped the truck.
But I knew I couldn’t. It would only make her life more complicated if I had.
It hurt me to leave her like that, but until I figured out if what I needed and wanted were the same thing, I needed to.