9. COLE
nine
cole
I slide into bed next to Ivy and pull her close, the moonlight blinking across her bare shoulder through the blinds.
Smoothing her hair away, I whisper into her ear, “Not that I’m not glad as hell that we’re doing this, but what changed your mind? When I first mentioned a fling, I didn’t think you’d agree.”
“Then why’d you ask?”
“I had to shoot my shot, as the twenty-year-olds at the bar say.”
“And I’m glad you did.” She sighs as if she’s lost in a happy dream. “I wasn’t going to agree. Flings are for Neanderthals and not for ladies, like I’m supposed to be. But then I thought about how my brother is swimming with sharks and boozing his way through Jamaica. My best friend lives an exciting life as a journalist, and she’s had plenty of one-night stands while she travels. If other people can do what they want, so can I.”
“I’d love to hear more about these people who’ve had such a positive influence on you.” I cling to her and nip playfully at her ear. “I’d also like to thank them.”
“That tickles!” She squirms in my hold, and I chuckle, enjoying the way she feels in my arms.
She’s warm and thrilling.
Fun and sexy.
When we first met—it’s hard to believe it was only last night—she gave me a fake name because she didn’t think being herself was enough. But Ivy Smith is damn perfect.
I soak up all the details of her life. Her job as a teacher. Her friends.
I’m enamored by the tales of her brother and cousin during their summers in Sapphire Creek.
“If my brother, Josh, and I hadn’t spent most of our summers in South Carolina with my father’s sister, I imagine we would’ve gotten on very well with The Three Ghost-ateers.” I nuzzle my nose into the crook of her neck, her feminine perfume intoxicating.
Ivy shifts to face me and props her cheek into the palm of her hand, her eyelashes fluttering as she peers at me. “Who says we would’ve let you into the group? We were very exclusive.”
“Is that so?” I cock a brow. “I’m pretty sure I would’ve wiggled my way in. I have a lot of moves .”
Her shining eyes dim with mischief. “When you first told me you were a lawyer, I didn’t believe you. I just couldn’t picture it, but I can see it now. You’re very… persuasive.”
My body drums with arousal for this woman. Cupping the back of her head, I guide her toward me and drown in a slow kiss.
As my tongue languidly stroking hers, need furls in the pit of my stomach, and my dick stirs.
“Can I ask you something?” Ivy mumbles, interrupting the kiss with a shy smile.
Round two will have to wait .
I smooth my palm up and down her bare arm, rustling the sheet around her. “Of course.”
“When you first arrived tonight, were you agitated, or was that just my imagination?”
I blow out a short breath. Talking about dinner with my father is a worse mood killer than a bucket of ice water. I’d much rather skip the ugly details of our relationship and return to kissing every inch of her fucking body, but she stares up at me so earnestly I can’t refuse.
Besides, she’s been vulnerable with me today. She shared about her ex-husband, which I don’t imagine was easy for her. It definitely wasn’t easy for me to hear it. What kind of asshole lets someone like Ivy go? I don’t know the guy, but I’d bet my entire savings that he’s a schmuck.
“You don’t have to tell me if it’s too personal.” She shifts away like she’s going to get up. “I don’t know exactly how flings work. Is it a good idea to share these kinds of things?”
I curl my arm around her waist and tug her back into my embrace. “Maybe it’s not a good idea, but I’m going to tell you, anyway.”
This earns me an appreciative smile, and she relaxes against me.
“I was leaving my parents’ house when you texted me. We were having dinner, and it got a little heated. It’s nothing new, but for whatever reason, it still bugs the shit out of me.”
“How do you mean?”
I work my jaw back and forth. Where do I even begin? “My father— the loathsome old man , as your aunt calls him—is a lawyer in town. He’s sharp and effective, too. But he’s as relentless in the courtroom as he is in his personal life, including fatherhood.” I idly trace my fingertips along her palm as I lose myself in various memories, all of which end with me disappointing my father. “The only time he was ever proud of me was when I graduated law school and accepted a job with a prestigious firm in Charleston. He always wanted to get out of Sapphire Creek, but my mother refuses to leave her home. So, it always felt like he lived vicariously through me, and it was great. My father and I would shoot the shit and talk shop like we were old friends.”
“Sounds lovely.”
“It was… at first.” I clench my jaw, and she tenses in my arms as if she’s bearing my burden.
Even though my goal isn’t to put any of this weight on her, it’s oddly comforting. She’s in my bed for the first time, and I already feel less alone.
“What changed?” she asks.
“I did.” I frown as I recall the angry faces of several clients. “I was on a hot streak, winning case after case like I’d made a deal with the Devil, and there were times when I thought I had. I became greedy and arrogant, as if nothing could touch me. And one day, I met a woman at a coffee shop.”
“Oh?” Ivy shifts in my arms to meet my gaze.
“She was down-to-earth, easy to talk to, and smart as hell. We quickly became friends and often had coffee at the same spot where we met.” I swipe at the corners of my lips. “One day, she arrived with tears streaming down her face because her ex was going after her business in their nasty divorce. He wanted to take everything she’d built. She was out of her mind and anxious over it. I couldn’t stand by and do nothing. I had to help her.”
I pause, haunted by the beginning of my downfall, and Ivy’s gulp echoes across the room.
“I lost,” I confess around the lump in my throat. “I did everything in my power to help her win her case, but it wasn’t enough. In the end, I was blinded by my personal relationship with her, and I missed key things. Before her, I had diligently maintained professional boundaries for that very reason, and after her, I kept losing cases. I was like a golfer with the shanks. When failure gets into a golfer’s head, it’s hard to snap them out of it. So, instead of fighting the crushing tide, I got out.”
“I’m so sorry, Cole.”
“Me too.” I give her a tight-lipped smile. “My father hasn’t forgiven me. We’ve never been the same since I moved back here. He especially hates that I’m a bartender now. It’s like he’s ashamed of me.”
Ivy clutches the sheet around her chest and sits up, fire blazing in her eyes. “You did what was right for you and protected yourself. You have nothing to be ashamed about. In fact, I admire you for getting out of there. You’re very brave.”
She punctuates each word with conviction, and I can’t help but grin. This woman is a force to be reckoned with, whether she realizes it or not.
“I’d like to give your father a piece of my mind. Might I accompany you to your next family dinner?” She gives what appears to be a forced smile, and my chest tightens.
I rise to rest my shoulder against the headboard and thread my fingers through her hair. “He’s not worth the energy, darlin’.”
“Still.” She lifts a shoulder. “I admire you. Honestly, I probably should’ve left the city after my divorce. For such a large place, it can be suffocating.”
“Why did you stay?”
“I love my school and all the kids I teach, but parent-teacher conferences were so humiliating. It’s like every mother was only there to talk about my divorce instead of their kid’s progress.” She shakes her head and frowns. “Every school function was like that for a while, but I refused to leave, on principle. I was so adamant about standing my ground and showing people that Lawson didn’t break me, nor would I allow him to run me out of town. I thought leaving would only show weakness, even if I would’ve only been leaving for my own well-being.”
“Do you still think about leaving?”
“Sometimes.”
“Take it from me—running away doesn’t always solve your problems.”
“No, but it would feel damn good.” She tosses me a sly grin, and my heart tumbles like a measly branch in a storm.
“Your ex never deserved you.”
The exhale she releases carries on like she’s been holding that breath for months.
Her eyes fall to my lips just before she leans in and kisses me.
I match her enthusiasm and suck on her bottom lip, drinking her in as the energy around us thickens with desire.
And as we fall into each other’s arms again, I temporarily forget this is only a fling.