Chapter 45 Cole
COLE
Ibrush my teeth, go to the bathroom, and then I walk back into my empty bedroom.
It’s always felt like a place I belong, but everything changed that first time I saw her sleeping in here.
After she left the room, it felt empty in a way it never had before. It also smelled different. Just like it does tonight.
It’s like the second she steps inside, she permeates the air with her scent and shows me exactly what the room, the apartment, and my life are missing.
Her.
I comb my fingers through my hair as I pace back and forth, waiting for her.
When she called time earlier, there was a moment when I thought we were done. That I’d pushed too hard and made her shut down. Thankfully, that doesn’t seem to be the case, but I can see in her eyes that it would be easy to do.
Every day, she’s getting stronger and more confident. It’s easy to forget what she keeps hidden under the surface, away from the world to see.
I see it, though. And I fear she might just see the same in me.
It’s the reason she held me like she did earlier.
She knew that if she walked away, it would kill me.
For the first time in my life, I really want something—someone. And that puts a hell of a lot of power in her hands. The kind of power I’ve refused to give anyone since I was too young to know better.
Unease rocks through me, twisting up my insides until my stomach feels like it’s made up of knots.
If this is going to progress, then I know I need to get my abandonment issues under control. But that’s easier said than done when the only thing I’ve ever known is to be left behind.
I make it ten minutes before my need to go and check on her gets too much. After shedding my T-shirt and sweats, I march across the space between our rooms in just my boxer briefs.
I convince myself that I’ll find her curled up in bed, having changed her mind. It’ll hurt like fucking hell, but at least I’ll know the truth.
Just like everyone else, she doesn’t think I’m worthy of a tomorrow with.
But the second I step into her room, I discover that there isn’t a Freya-shaped lump in her sheets. She’s still in the bathroom, and as I get closer, I realize that she’s singing softly.
My music knowledge isn’t great. I can sing along to plenty of songs, but I normally have no idea who sings them or what the titles are. But there is no doubt it’s a Taylor Swift song.
I’m smiling, all my previous concerns floating away as my need to see her takes over.
As soon as my shadow fills the doorway, she looks up in the mirror, her eyes locking with mine.
Her hair is twisted up on top of her head, and she has a cotton hairband keeping it back. Her face is glistening with some kind of product, and she has a cloth in her hand.
“Couldn’t keep away, huh?” she teases, her eyes dropping to my body.
Her attention makes fire burn through my veins. “You’re taking too long,” I state as I rest my hip against the doorframe, intent to just stand and watch.
“I won’t be too much longer,” she says.
Crossing my arms over my chest, I let my eyes run down the length of her body. Her tank and shorts are skintight and show off all her beautiful curves. And the way the fabric cuts across her full ass…fuck me, I’m pretty sure I’ve died and gone to heaven.
“It’s okay. I can wait.”
When I get to her face in the mirror again, she’s smiling. The sight hits me right in the chest. What I wouldn’t do to make this woman happy.
She shakes her head at me but sets about continuing her nightly skincare routine while I watch.
I’m pretty sure if she were anyone else, I’d be bored out of my mind.
But this is Freya. I could watch her watching paint dry and I’d be enthralled.
I just can’t get enough. I want to know everything about her, and even once I know all that, I fear it won’t be enough.
Eventually, she puts the towel back on the rail and turns around.
My breath catches at the sight of her as she saunters toward me.
I knew what she looked like from the front thanks to the reflection of the huge mirror sitting behind the sink, but nothing could have prepared me for it in real life.
Her skin is clear, her eyes twinkling with a mixture of excitement and amusement. She’s braless beneath her tank, and her hard nipples press against the thin fabric, begging to be teased.
My mouth waters and my cock jerks as I consider just how she’d taste if I were to drop to my knees and tug the fabric down.
“Everything okay?” she taunts as she comes to a stop before me, forcing my eyes up to meet hers.
I swallow thickly as her scent floods my senses, only making the situation worse.
I’m terrified of scaring her off, but there is no way I can control what is happening in my underwear right now.
Not only does she look like that, but she’s about to crawl into my bed beside me.
I already know I’m going to be hard all night.
I just have to hope the lack of blood to my brain doesn’t leave any lasting damage.
“No, it’s not.” Her face drops, but then I quickly follow it up with, “You’re not in my bed yet,” before I reach out, throw her over my shoulder, and march her into my bedroom.
She squeals in shock and wraps her arms around my waist, holding tight.
“I hope you didn’t change your mind,” I mutter as we pass her bed, my fear resurfacing briefly.
“Didn’t even consider it,” she confirms.
“There,” I say after flipping her over and laying her out on my bed. “Damn, you look good.”
“I could say the same thing about you,” she counters.
I stand to my full height beside her. “Did you want to take another photo? You know for your screensaver, maybe one without those other assholes in it?” I offer.
She giggles, her eyes raking over every inch of me. It’s impossible not to notice that she lingers on my crotch. My dick jerks, more than happy with the attention, even if it is only her eyes.
“It’s okay. I’ve already got one,” she admits.
“Oh?” I ask as I slip into bed beside her.
“Mmmhmm,” she mumbles as I wrap my arm around her waist and drag her into my body.
“Tell me more,” I demand, the tip of my nose brushing hers as I stare into her eyes.
“Well…when I saw it, I just knew it had to be saved. It’s…perfect. The lighting, the angles. Honestly, I could stare at him every day and never get bored.”
“Is that right?” Conceited of me to continue assuming she has a photo of me from the underwear campaign as her screensaver? Maybe. But I fucking love the idea that she’ll see me practically naked every time her cell wakes up.
“Yeah, it’s a really incredible shot. Some might say a piece of art.”
Sliding my hand down her side, I hook it around her thigh and tug her leg over my hip, allowing us to get closer.
“Well, I can’t wait to see,” I muse as my hard cock grazes her pussy, making her gasp and her pupils dilate.
“You’ll love it. Super cute,” she continues, her voice a little raspier.
Lifting my head from the pillow, I nuzzle her neck.
“I’m sure I will.”
“I found a couple of others I loved today as well. Might have to turn them into a slide show so every time I wake my cell up it’s a different picture.”
“Sounds perfect.”
“Yeah, they’re all just so cute,” she muses.
It takes me a second to register her words; I'm too high on her scent and the softness of her skin.
“All?” I ask, confusion tugging at my brows.
“Yeah,” she teases, smiling at me like a little minx. “You know I love all dogs, but these ones are just incredible.”
“Dogs?” I ask.
“Yeah,” she confirms, her smile growing wider. “Why? What did you think I had as my screensaver?”
“Oh, nothing, Whirlwind. Nothing at all.”
I steal her lips in a filthy kiss before she has a chance to say anything else, and I can only hope that by the time I let her up for air, she’s forgotten all about this conversation.
I mean, of course, she doesn’t have a photo of me half-naked as her screensaver. I’m her boss.
I don’t know how long we made out for last night, but I do know that it was the best night I’ve had in a very, very long time.
It didn’t matter that we didn’t take it any further. It was perfect.
Just having her in my arms, her curves pressed against my hard planes.
I’m also learning just how much better I sleep with her beside me.
When I wake at dawn the next morning, I feel fresh and relaxed. Okay, sure, I ache like hell. I was so focused on Freya last night that I didn’t ice my knees, and my shoulder is smarting after cutting my session with Parker short with my need to see the girl wearing my jersey.
It’s all worth it, though.
There’s just enough light to allow me to watch Freya sleeping. Her lips are slightly parted, and more than a few locks of her hair are loose and now lie across her cheek. I reach out and tuck the loose strands behind her ear.
The instant I touch her, she whimpers, and her eyelids begin moving.
I freeze—I don’t even breathe for a couple of seconds as I wait to see if I’ve woken her.
Thankfully, I haven’t, and after watching her for a minute or two, I roll out of bed as gently as I can and slip into the bathroom.
Dressing in a pair of athletic shorts and a T-shirt, I pad through to the kitchen for a drink and then head to my gym to see if I can work out the soreness from last night.
I keep an eye on both the time and the door, not that I really think Freya will come back here. I haven’t given her a tour of anything past her bedroom. Maybe she’ll feel brave after our night together, or maybe she’ll slip straight into the kitchen, business as usual.
An idea hits me, and before I know what I’m doing, I’m off my bike. I strap a couple of ice packs to my knees, and I’m heading toward the kitchen.
A quick look into my bedroom confirms that Freya is still fast asleep.
With my cell in hand, I pull up a website and set to work.