Chapter 54 Freya
FREYA
Despite Cole’s offer, I manage to get to my feet and walk on unsteady legs toward the entrance.
Cole isn’t far away, though. He’s got me pinned to his side, his arm wrapped around my waist, his fingers gripping my hip as if he thinks I could disappear at any moment.
There’s a different doorman on shift tonight. And while he’s friendly and welcomes us home, he’s not Melvin.
With Cole’s penthouse elevator still out of action, we climb into the one waiting for us, and in seconds, the doors are closing, shutting us off from the rest of the world.
Cole turns and steps into my body, giving me little choice but to back up and bump into the handrail.
He stares down at me with heated eyes, reminding me that he’s gotten me off twice and I haven’t so much as touched him.
I can only imagine how he’s feeling right now.
“Watching you come in the back of that limo was the second hottest thing I’ve ever seen,” he tells me.
I frown, dejection threatening to take hold.
“Second?” I whisper, almost afraid to ask what might top me.
He smirks, and I instantly relax.
“Yeah, the first was eating you out on my island. Hottest thing I’ve ever seen and done. Hands down.”
My face burns bright red as I imagine what we might have looked like in those moments.
I’m never going to look at his counter the same way again.
“I meant what I said earlier. If I can have your taste on my tongue every single day, I’ll be a very happy man.”
“You’re crazy,” I muse.
“Yeah, crazy about you,” he confesses before he kisses me.
We don’t come up for air until the elevator dings to say we’ve reached our destination and the doors have been open for a good few minutes.
“I can’t wait to peel this dress off you,” he groans in my ear.
A little anxiety twists in my stomach. It’s been some time since anyone has seen me naked.
And I’d be lying if I said I had the same body confidence I once did.
I lost my curves after the breakup, and I’m still working on getting them back.
But Cole hasn’t once given me a reason to think he cares that I’m a little thinner than I’d like to be.
That my hip bones and ribs stick out a little more than they used to, and that my ass isn’t as round.
Sucking in as much confidence as I can muster, I slide my hand into his and allow him to lead me out of the elevator and down the hallway toward his apartment.
We’re about halfway there when a door closes ahead of us. I don’t think anything of it. Just because we’ve never seen anyone else up here since the elevator went down, it doesn’t mean the apartments are empty.
I keep my eyes locked on Cole’s shoulder muscles rippling and pulling as he races ahead of me; I don’t even register that someone is in the hallway with us until I hear his voice.
“Good evening.”
The words rip through me like a point-blank shot, and my blood runs cold.
“Hey,” Cole responds, having no idea who he’s talking to.
But I do.
I don’t need to look up to know who is standing before me.
“Evening,” a soft female voice joins.
A laugh almost tumbles out of me.
Of course, he’s with a woman.
I’m not jealous. I really don’t care. It’s just a reminder of what he did the moment he cast me aside without a second thought. Cole continues, but my legs have stopped. Panic has me frozen, even though I know it’ll make everything worse.
“Freya, wha—” Cole turns back to look at me, concern written across his face.
I stare at him with wide eyes, silently begging for him to get me out of this hallway and away from this entire situation.
I knew it was inevitable. Bumping into him has been on my mind all night. But I thought it would be at the club, or some other promotional event. Not in Cole’s freaking hallway.
I swallow thickly, but despite trying to find words, they just dry up.
“Whoa, Freya?” Rowan says, having closed the space between us all. “It’s been a while, huh?” It’s as if we’re long-lost friends.
I grit my teeth and turn to look at him.
He looks…well, awful, if I’m being honest.
His eyes are dark, his cheeks are sunken, his lips thin.
And tucked under his arm is an incredibly beautiful woman. A little recognition flickers in the depths of my brain, but I can’t put the pieces together. I’m too busy spiraling out of control.
“Rowan,” I force out, my voice cracked and shaky.
Cole steps closer and pulls me into his body, his arm wrapping around me and holding me tight. Protecting me.
Rowan looks me up and down, his top lip peeling back in disgust, which is a joke, if you ask me. He really should look in a mirror before judging anyone else.
“I see you’ve given up chasing musicians around. Pivoted to athletes, huh? Watch this one, Hansley.” Rowan lifts his hand as if he’s going to whisper a secret to Cole, but he ensures I both see and hear exactly what he says. “Leech.”
Cole’s body turns to stone, giving me a millisecond to predict what’s about to happen.
“No,” I cry, jumping in front of Cole before he has a chance to step forward and throw the punch that Rowan deserves.
The last thing we need is him landing an assault charge in Cole’s lap.
That’s what he wants. The drama, the press. He lives for it.
Rowan lets out a dark chuckle as I clutch Cole’s arms, staring up at him with pleading eyes.
Let it go, please.
But Cole doesn’t look down at me; his eyes are locked on Rowan’s, and they’re promising a whole world of pain.
“Right, well, I hope you two enjoy the rest of your night. Although I should warn you, you probably won’t. Dead fish…if you know what I mean.”
Cole vibrates with anger as a deep growl rumbles in his throat.
“Come on, we’ve got people waiting on us,” Rowan says, before walking away with his latest catch.
Cole watches them go, and it’s not until the elevator doors close that he lets out a breath that allows his chest to deflate and turns to me.
“Rowan Conaway?”
I flinch at the way Cole says his name.
It’s full of confusion, shock, and pure hatred.
My bottom lip trembles, and my eyes burn with unshed tears.
I don’t want to cry. Rowan doesn’t deserve for me to shed any more tears over him. But I can’t stop them, and they flow over under Cole’s intense stare.
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, I should have—”
“Whoa, shush,” Cole breathes, stepping closer and wrapping me in his arms.
I tremble violently in his hold as I break down.
“It’s okay,” he says softly between kisses to my head. “I’ve got you, baby.”
I don’t know how long we stand there in the hallway, but by the time I pull back from his chest, his shirt is soaked through from my tears, my eyes sting, and my chest aches.
“I’m—”
He presses two fingers to my lips to stop the next word that was going to spill free.
He shakes his head before pulling me into his side and guiding me toward his apartment.
We’re silent as we step inside, then hand in hand, Cole leads me to his bedroom.
He gently nudges me to sit on the end of his bed, and the moment I do, he drops to his knees before me.
I watch in awe as he gently slips one of my shoes from my feet.
He doesn’t immediately go for the other; instead, he massages it.
The second he presses his thumb into my arch, a filthy moan spills from my lips.
He looks up at me, his signature smirk in place.
Reaching out, I comb my fingers through his hair, needing him to know just how much I appreciate him.
He hasn’t asked any questions or demanded to know anything. He’s just here, silently telling me that he’s not going anywhere.
There’s a part of me that tells me to put a stop to it. To run out of his room, to lock myself in my own, and deal with this the only way I know how.
But for the first time since I walked away from Rowan, that isn’t what I want.
I want to be with Cole. I want him to remind me that not all men are like Rowan Conaway. I want to believe that Cole sees me for who I really am, not the broken girl Rowan cast aside, or the leech he just claimed me to be.
I never asked him for anything. He was the one who took me along on tour. He was the one who took me to designer stores and dropped eye-watering sums on clothes, shoes, and accessories just so we’d be photographed and the media would praise him for being a good man and boyfriend.
It was lies. All of it.
Nothing but an act.
“Oh no,” Cole warns softly, seeing my tears pool again. “Focus on me, baby. I’m right here.” He lifts my foot and presses a kiss to my arch. “Stay with me.”
I nod, watching as he moves to my other foot, removes my shoe, and repeats his actions, once again making me moan as he presses his fingers into my sore muscles.
Once he’s finished, he places both my feet on the soft carpet and stands.
I lean back on my palms and tip my head up to keep eye contact with him, but as his hands move, my gaze drops, and I watch as he works his way down the buttons holding his shirt closed.
My temperature rises with every inch of skin he reveals.
He’s so different from the man we just saw. Cole is powerful, strong, and determined in ways Rowan could never be.
I’m in awe of him and everything he’s accomplished in his life.
His shirt flutters to the floor, and then his hands drop to his waist. I follow the deep-cut V-lines, and my mouth waters when I find him straining against the fabric of his pants.
He still wants me.
Even after learning the truth, he still wants me.
Once his fly is undone, he shoves his pants down his thighs, revealing very fitted boxer briefs that leave hardly anything to the imagination.
He toes his shoes off, then kicks his pants clean off, letting me take in his thick, solid thighs.
This man is a vision.
He stands there at the end of his bed in nothing but his underwear, allowing me the time I need to take him in. When I eventually get to his eyes, he's wearing his signature smirk.
“Enjoying yourself?” he asks cockily.
“Yeah,” I confess before dragging my tongue across my bottom lip.
“If you’ve changed your mind, just say the word. But I’d really like to follow through on my promise.”
A smile twitches at my lips.
“Even after…” My words trail off.
“I don’t care about that, who he is, or what word vomit he spills. His opinion means nothing to me, Freya—less than nothing. You, however,” he says, stepping closer and looming over me. “You mean everything.”
My chest heaves as I gaze up at him, my arms trembling from holding me up.
“Say yes, and I’ll make you feel better than you ever have in your life. Say no, and I’ll grab you a T-shirt to sleep in and we’ll crawl into bed, and you can drift off in my arms.”
His eyes bounce between mine, trying to read my thoughts.
“Yes, Cole. With you, it’s always yes.”