Chapter 25
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
COLE
“Do you want to stay for dinner?”
I glance over at Ella as she’s going through the last of her paintings.
After I found her in the middle of an anxiety attack, I wasn’t sure how the rest of her afternoon was going to go.
She asked me to stay, so I’ve been sitting in here with her trying to figure out which pieces I think Vera might want.
Remi took Chloe to get ice cream and when she called afterwards, Ella asked her if she could take her to the park to give us a little more time.
“I don’t want to impose,” I say, offering a soft smile. The last thing I want is for her to feel like she has to ask me to stay when that’s not what she wants. I know her daughter will be home soon and I should go before she is.
Ella rises to her feet, straightening her pants before she offers me her hand. I slide my palm against hers, letting her guide me to my feet. I stand in front of her, my chin tipping towards my chest and my eyes find hers.
“It’s not imposing if I invited you,” she tells me, her voice soft as she raises an eyebrow.
“What about Chloe?”
Ella tilts her head to the side, scanning my face before settling on my eyes. “She’s already met you once before and we have run into you a few times in town. I think it would be okay if she saw you again.”
The air leaves my lungs in a rush as my heart picks up the pace, stumbling over itself a bit.
This is a huge step for Ella. Even if she doesn’t want anything to do with me besides being friends, she still trusts me enough to be around her daughter.
She wouldn’t offer something significant like this if she didn’t see me somewhere in her future.
I smile at her, the intensity of the moment permeating my soul. “I would like that.”
“Perfect,” she responds, her smile lighting up her face. “I should see what we have that I can cook.”
My hand reaches for the side of her face, my thumb trailing over her skin. “Today has been a long and stressful day. Let’s get delivery.” I pause for a moment, my fingertips lingering over the pounding pulse in the side of her neck. “I do wanna cook for you one night, though.”
She inhales sharply. “I might have to let you do that.”
“Good,” I murmur, my fingers trailing beneath her chin, tipping her head back farther, revealing her slender neck. “There are a lot of things I want to do for you… and to you.”
She bats her eyelashes at me, her nostrils flaring as she closes the small amount of space between us.
My heart kicks into overdrive, blood rushing through my veins.
She steps closer and anticipation builds in the pit of my stomach.
Her chest brushes against my torso as her hands find the sides of my waist. Her lips part, and she begins to lift onto her toes.
“Honey, we’re home!” Remi calls from the front door as it shuts behind her. It opened quietly enough that neither of us heard her at first.
I groan and Ella falls back onto her flat feet, her shoulders sagging as she closes her eyes. She opens them, the hues of blue dancing within her irises as she lets out a soft laugh.
“I wasn’t expecting them already,” she says in a hushed voice. She takes a step away from me as the footsteps in the hall grow louder. Her eyes search mine. “If you want to stick around after dinner, perhaps we can finish what we started.”
Oh, shit.
I wasn’t expecting her to say anything remotely close to that.
“Momma!” Chloe’s voice echoes in the room as she comes bounding through the door, running directly to Ella. Ella bends down, sliding her hands beneath Chloe’s arms and lifts her into the air before tucking her against her body.
“Hi baby. Did you have the best time with Aunt Remi?”
Chloe nods eagerly, her smile bright and her eyes filled with amusement. She giggles and the sound drifts through the air, tangling around my soul. She looks like a replica of her mother. The softest features with the brightest eyes. Her smile lights up the entire room.
“Did you get everything figured out?” Remi questions her as she walks through the doorway. She half pauses, her eyebrows raising as she sees me standing in the center of the room. “Oh. Well, hello.”
“Hey Remi,” Ella starts as a blush spreads across her cheeks and she motions toward me. “Cole stopped by to help me and we were just talking about getting dinner from somewhere.”
Remi purses her lips with mischief dancing in her eyes. She knows we were doing a little more than that, judging by the look on her face, but she doesn’t call either of us out. “I am actually going to head out. My mom called and asked me to come help her with her new plates.”
Remi makes a face at herself and shakes her head, shaking it off before smiling at the two of us. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow, El.”
Ella bites back a grin and nods at her friend before she disappears from the room. Then she directs her attention back to Chloe in her arms. “Can you say hi to Cole?”
“Hi Co.”
A soft laugh rumbles in my chest. “Hi Chloe,” I smile at her, giving her a small wave.
“Do you remember Cole? He gave you the little pink truck.”
Chloe nods eagerly as she squirms in Ella’s arms to let her down. She runs out of the room, the sounds of her little feet padding on the hardwood floors as she heads into the other room. Ella abandons her art room, stepping out into the hallway before going to see where Chloe went.
I follow after her, anticipation and excitement filling me as we stop in the doorway of Chloe’s bedroom.
She has the pink truck in her hand with a few other toys in her other hand.
She walks right up to me and I crouch down in front of her to get to her eye level.
She opens her hand and I catch a small plastic elephant from her fingertips before it falls onto the floor.
“Dis for you.”
“For me?”
Chloe nods eagerly and her smile is infectious. “Yes,” she half giggles as she glances at her mother and then back to me.
“Well, thank you so much, Chloe,” I smile, lifting the elephant up to inspect it. “Does it have a name?”
“Ella.”
Ella snorts from behind me. “I told you she needs a new name, Clo.”
“I think it’s perfect,” I wink at Chloe and curl my fingers around the elephant. “I promise I will keep her safe.”
Chloe lifts her hand and pats me on top of my head. “Good boy.”
This earns a hearty laugh from her mother and I can’t help myself as a string of laughter falls from my lips. “Okay, who’s hungry?”
The sun sets in the distance, casting hues of yellow and orange across the horizon.
I lift my tea, taking a sip as I stare out at the colors mixing together.
Contentment settles in my soul and I adjust in my seat, setting my foot down on the ground, planting both feet and gently rocking back on the bench swing.
We ended up ordering takeout from the bar and hung out in the backyard until it was time for Chloe to go to bed.
I didn’t want Ella to feel like she needed to finish what we started earlier, but the moment I suggested I go, the disappointment in her facial expression told me everything I needed to know.
She wanted me to stay.
“Hey, cowboy.” Her voice slides like silk across my eardrums and I turn my head to look at her over my shoulder.
She changed into a different pair of cotton shorts and has an oversized t-shirt on.
Her long hair is pulled up in a bun on top of her head.
She’s truly the most beautiful piece of art I’ve ever laid my eyes on.
“Hey darlin’.”
Ella walks over and sits down next to me. Her leg is warm as it presses against the side of mine. “Thank you for today.”
I turn my head to look at her, taking in her side profile before she looks over at me. “You don’t have to thank me, El. I’m glad I was close enough to get here quickly. Thank you for inviting me into your home.”
She stares at me for a moment, her expression unreadable as she lets out a soft breath.
“I’m sorry about that. Sometimes I get easily overwhelmed and that’s when I really start to overthink and second guess everything.
” She pauses for a moment, chewing on her lip before releasing it.
“In a way, life has become easier since Chloe because I’ve been forced to make the hard decisions, but sometimes, things just feel like too much, you know? ”
“You’re trying to juggle a lot, Ella,” I say. “I admire your strength. You’re the best mother that little girl could ask for and it’s clear in how you handle things. If you weren’t havin’ a breakdown every now and then, that’s when I would be concerned about your mental health.”
She lets out a quiet laugh, shaking her head at me. “It’s not easy, trust me. I’ve found that things are easier to shoulder if I try to remain positive. I want Chloe to know that not everything in life is always positive, but you can get through anything if you keep your head up.”
My eyes trail over the planes of her face, memorizing every inch of her. “You’re absolutely right.”
“Will you come to the show with me?”
My chest cracks wide open, inviting her into the home she’s been constructing within the confines of my heart. Her eyes are filled with hope—with a light I never want to see extinguished. I will go anywhere this woman asks me to go.
“You don’t even have to ask.”