Chapter 25
Cole
This particular gala had many firsts. It was the first one in which I didn’t participate in the raffle since we decided that men’s dances should also be raffled.
It was the first time our guests asked if we were in trouble.
They’d heard about the problem with Gabriel.
We have a face-to-face hearing in one week, and the guy had actually had the audacity to spread the word about it.
It was also the very first one at which I got inebriated.
I wasn’t fully drunk yet, but I’d realized my reaction time was weird when I reached for a glass earlier and nearly tipped it over.
That was why I was sitting at a table behind a partition next to the stage.
It was where we went when we needed some time to recharge, away from the guests.
Before coming here, I’d searched for Laney around the room and found her in the kids’ corner with Avery and Heather.
Avery was sitting in Heather’s lap, while Laney was pulling up her hair in a ponytail.
The recognition that I wanted to have it all with this woman hit me square in the chest. Another first. She spurred instincts inside me that I’d never experienced before.
Tess joined me at the table, sitting three chairs away. “Are you drunk, brother?”
“A little.”
“How many glasses of wine is a little?”
“I don’t remember.”
“Oh, crap. Okay.” She tilted her head, inspecting me with a mix of worry and curiosity. “This is unlike you,” she murmured as Hunter and Ryker also sat down.
“What’s going on?” Ryker asked, looking from me to Tess.
“I’m trying to understand why our brother’s breaking host code. He’s a bit tipsy.”
Ryker and Hunter stared at me.
“He wouldn’t do that without a reason,” Hunter said.
“That’s right,” Ryker added. I’d never appreciated more that we knew each other so well that I didn’t even have to explain myself.
“I’m just trying to determine said reason,” Tess said carefully. Right. They might not expect me to explain myself, but sharing was practically a family policy. I just wasn’t sure where to begin.
“Does it have to do with my stupid husband joke?” Tess asked quietly.
I twirled my empty glass in my hand, not meeting my sister’s eyes.
“Not the joke itself… just Laney’s reaction.”
“Yeah, it was clear I made her uncomfortable. I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize it. I just… skipped right over it. I thought it was better than making a big deal out of it.”
“You did well,” I assured her. “It’s just that… I’m not so sure anymore that I can get Laney to lower her guard, let me in all the way.”
“Holy shit, that’s a lot of wine talking there,” Ryker exclaimed. I chuckled, dragging a hand down my face. He had a point. I wouldn’t usually own up to being insecure. Confidence was my middle name, and I was proud of that. It served me well. It wasn’t just a trait; it was a strategy.
“Cole, don’t say that,” Tess said. “You always come out winning. You’re excellent at making the things you want happen.”
“Yeah, we don’t admit that too often because you already have too much confidence, but you’re great at it,” my brother said.
I cocked a brow at him. “I think that’s the first time I heard you say that.”
“Damn,” Ryker said under his breath. “I’m too used to giving you shit. No clue how to actually say encouraging stuff.”
I laughed humorlessly. If Ryker was refraining from giving me shit, I was pitiable as fuck. Man, this was a new low.
“How about we bring up examples of stuff he’s succeeded at?” Tess suggested.
Hunter fist-pumped the air. “Bingo. Thanks for saving our asses, as usual, Tess. I’ll start. Remember how you win every single project you put your mind to? Even the ones I don’t think we’ll win? That’s incredible.”
“It’s business. Different skill set,” I replied.
“Remember how you convinced Skye and me to believe in our dream? We wouldn’t even have opened the online shop if it wasn’t for you.
We were both scared of venturing into entrepreneurship after Dad’s business bombed.
But you deconstructed that fear with us, made us analyze it from different angles. You’re really good at it.”
I grinned, remembering those months even through my tipsy haze.
My sisters had first run the idea by me, and I encouraged them to make a business plan.
Even after they finished, they were still afraid to take the leap.
But I’d analyzed every angle with them, helped them rationalize their fear with solid arguments.
“Yeah. One of my crowning achievements.”
“The best advice you gave us was to take things one step at a time. Sounds like you can apply it here too.”
“That’s right,” Hunter said.
“Love the confidence you lot have in me.”
Hunter clapped one hand on my shoulder. “Dude, you were the master of confidence even as a kid. You convinced Amelia of stuff the rest of us didn’t even dare ask for.”
“Thanks for the pep talk,” I said. Tess flashed me a smug smile.
I pointed at her. “Why so smug?”
“Well, my joke might not have come at the best time, but I was right. You are husband material.”
Hunter nodded appreciatively. “Look at him. He didn’t even wince at the word. That’s progress.”
“Can I go back to giving him shit about it now?” Ryker asked Tess.
Hunter was the one who answered, “Yes. I’m in.”
“By all means, go on,” I replied, encouraged that they thought I was ready to take their banter again.
Laney came over before Ryker even opened his mouth. “There you all are. What’s this? A secret gathering? Can I crash it? Oh wait, I already am.”
Tess rose from her seat. “We’re just taking a short time-out, but Hunter, Ryker, we should head back out. We can’t have half the hosts hiding from the guests.”
The guys rose from the table too, and they all went out, leaving me alone with Laney.
“You didn’t come find me after your rounds,” she said with a cute pout.
I cleared my throat. “I might have needed a longer time-out than the rest.”
Her eyes widened and her pout instantly gave way to a grin. “Mr. Winchester, are you tipsy?”
“Maybe. Want to check?”
Laughing, she sauntered toward me. She looked at my pupils and took my pulse.
“You look so much hotter playing doc when you’re naked.”
“I can hardly do that here, you wicked man. But the night isn’t over yet.”
“I have great plans for us when we get home. I like this,” I murmured kissing down her neck. She softened against me instantly.
“You like touching me all the time.”
“True. It’s just that every time, I discover new ways to make you blush.”
“Thanks for taking me with you tonight. I love getting to know your life a bit better, to be part of it.”
“I’m happy you’re enjoying it.” I didn’t say much more because my tongue was bound to be loose. I wanted her to be at every gala, or just every big event in my life.
Laney took my face in her palms. “I love you, Cole. Sometimes, that still scares me. I don’t know why, and I’m fighting it, but just know that I care for you deeply. I don’t know what you’re doing to me, but I want more of it.”
I covered her hands with mine. She was shaking a little, so I moved my hands down to her waist, holding her tightly. I wanted her to feel safe and adored, and bit by bit, she’d realize she had nothing to fear.
“I’m here to please you, Ms. Laney.”
I kissed her long and deep, moving one hand up her back, the other under her dress, teasing her thigh.
I had many questions, the most burning one being about how she imagined our future.
She’d said that she dreamed of a big family and a home, but that she was also afraid to dwell too much on those dreams. Had that changed at all?
I’d told her that we had all the time in the world, and I stood by that.
But I did want to at least know if she could imagine herself at my side a few years down the road.
This wasn’t the time to ask any of that, though. She loved me, and that was more than enough.
I’d always been the type who liked to keep things casual and not tie myself down, and yet now all I wanted to do was fight Laney’s fears, fulfill her dreams, anticipate her needs. She’d become an integral part of my life, and I wanted to keep it this way.