CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Holly woke to the seductive scent of bacon. That automatically meant it would be a great day. She dressed and followed her nose. Cole sat at the kitchen table, sipping coffee and chatting with his dad.
“You ready for a day in my world?” Cole asked.
“Sure,” she said. “I just hope no one dies today.”
“Bring your bag. We’re not coming back here.”
“Okay.” She wondered where they would sleep but didn’t ask in front of his parents. If he planned to take her to his apartment, she wouldn’t protest. Last night, when he’d hinted that he was open to sleeping together, it took every ounce of self-control to say no. And even though “no” was the smart answer, she wasn’t sure she could replicate it under different circumstances. Like being alone with him at his place.
She ate as much as was socially acceptable, packed her suitcase, and tidied the room she’d slept in. Cole’s parents seemed genuinely sad to see her go.
“Don’t be a stranger,” his dad said.
“Yes,” his mom agreed, clinging to her in a bear hug. “Come back anytime.”
Cole carried her bag out to the curb. She assumed he’d called for a cab, but he started down the street, rolling her suitcase behind.
“Where are we going?” she asked, scrambling to catch up.
“I know you didn’t get enough food,” he said. “First stop, brunch.”
“Yaaasss.” She pumped her fist.
“Thought you might like that.” He laughed. “Then we’re seeing New York my way. No touristy crap.”
“What if we get mugged? Would scaring a robber off like a bear work?”
Cole stopped and stared blankly. “If we get mugged, let me do the talking.”
She shrugged. “Copy that.”
As they walked, the cozy neighborhood gave way to a more commercial area, and Cole ushered her into a diner. A harried waitress told them to seat themselves and that someone would be with them shortly.
A thick layer of grime held the floor together, and the décor looked like it hadn’t been updated since the seventies. The menus were sticky and the table worn.
“Classy,” she said. “You sure know how to impress a girl.”
“Just wait till you taste the stuffed French toast. You’ll be singing a different tune.”
They ordered and waited. “So, what are we doing today?”
“It’s a surprise.”
“Hm. Not my forte,” she mumbled. “But okay. I was wondering…what happens now, logistically, after what happened with Cruz yesterday?”
“There will be an investigation, but since the whole thing was pretty cut and dried—with witnesses and hotel camera footage—it shouldn’t take too long. I’m still burning PTO for another week. They might have it done by the time I get back.”
“How do you feel about killing someone?” She mouthed the last two words.
“Cruz killed two cops, including my partner, and who knows how many other people. Maybe I’m in some kind of denial, but I slept like a baby last night.” He raised a shoulder.
The food arrived, and they dug in. “Oh my gosh,” she said. “You were right. This is delicious.”
She polished off the plate and patted her stomach. “That oughta hold me for a while.”
Cole shook his head, threw some cash on the table, and held the door for her.
“We walkin’ back to Manhattan?” Holly asked after they’d gone several more blocks.
He smirked. “We’re taking the train.”
“Is it safe? I didn’t ride it last time because of all the scary stories. And what about my suitcase?”
“Your luggage will be the least strange thing someone’s gotten on the subway with. Trust me.”
She did trust him. Enough to follow him into the dank underground tunnel. The stench of urine hit her hard, but passed as they walked on. Cole handed her a slightly worn MetroCard that she used to pass through the turnstile.
“What happens if you make eye contact?” she whispered, noticing that no one looked at anyone else.
“It’ll mark you as an out-of-towner. And a target.”
She nodded but couldn’t help herself. A woman with a small child in a stroller sat across from them, and Holly waved and made faces at the baby, who returned a gummy smile. Someone had lugged a cello onto the train, making Holly’s suitcase seem insignificant.
Once again above ground, they walked another few blocks to a tall brick apartment building.
“This is me,” he announced. “Thought we could clean up and drop your stuff.”
“Oh, yes,” she said. “That would be great.”
They rode the elevator to the fifth floor, and he unlocked his door. “It’s not much. But it’s home. My sisters crash here a lot. You can stay in the room they did up for themselves.”
Holly made herself at home in the guest bedroom and took a quick shower.
While he showered, she did a little light snooping. Nothing drastic, just peeking in the cupboards and perusing the bookshelves. Down the short hall, his bedroom door was ajar. A quick gander couldn’t hurt. On her way past the bathroom, she heard him singing softly in the shower and chuckled.
His room was sparse. Neat, but basic. A bed, a dresser, two nightstands. She inched open the door. On his dresser, the arrowhead she’d given him lay atop a crumpled copy of “Bear Safety: How not to Get Killed in the Woods.” It made her smile.
Back out on the street, he hailed a cab, which drove them to the waterfront. They got out and headed toward the marina.
“What do you think about a water tour?” he asked, leading the way to the dock.
“It’s a beautiful day. That sounds fantastic. You mean like a charter boat?” She looked around, only seeing personal vessels and a few houseboats.
“Actually.” He pointed to a mid-sized fish n’ ski boat. “That’s my girl.”
“ Ship Happens ?” She laughed at the stenciled lettering on the back.
“That was her name when I bought her, but it fit, so I kept it.”
He jumped aboard and held out a hand to help her on.
“Thanks. Do you go out much?”
“Hardly ever.” He shook his head. “I got her on a whim years ago, thinking it’d be good to get away every once in a while.”
“In my experience, boats are either very relaxing or very frustrating.”
“I can see that.” He rubbed the dashboard. “Please start, baby.”
The engine sputtered to life, and he smiled. Holly untied from the dock and gave them a shove. She used the hair tie on her wrist to make a ponytail as they chugged out of the marina. Once they cleared the no-wake zone, he hit the gas and sped down the river. When they got as close to Liberty Island as was allowed, he slowed and cut the engine. The Statue of Liberty rose majestically into the blue, cloudless sky.
“She’s so beautiful,” Holly said reverently, snapping a photo with her phone.
“She is,” Cole agreed. But when Holly looked back, he wasn’t looking at Lady Liberty. He was staring right at her. Gulp.
“Is it hot?” she asked, fanning her face. “Or is it just me?”
“It’s hot.” He grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled it over his head. The wind rustled his hair. The sun bounced off his broad shoulders. And water flooded her mouth.
“Can you put some sunscreen on my back? Holly?” he prodded when she didn’t answer.
She snapped her jaw shut. “Yeah, sure.” Touch him? He wanted her to touch him? His broad, naked, muscular body? This was a bad idea. A terrible idea. Where was the lotion?
He handed her a tube of sunscreen and turned his back to her. She squirted a dollop of white goo into her hands and gingerly started rubbing. His muscles tensed under her fingers. She didn’t want to compare him to Rick, but her mind went there anyway. Not that there was any comparison. Cole crushed him by a landslide. He was just so big. And muscly. And hot. The sun must be a hundred degrees. Hoo-boy.
The whole scenario was apt to go sideways fast if she didn’t get herself under control. Climbing him like a tree right under Lady Liberty’s nose—not to mention all the tourists surrounding her—seemed sacrilegious. She took a few last hasty swipes. That’s about all she could take of having her hands on him.
“Oh. Kay,” she said. “You’re done.”
He turned to face her. “Why, Miss Bennett,” he said with a smile, sensing and enjoying her unease. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so flustered.”
Oh, so he thought this was funny? Well, she could play his game. She threw a foot up onto the side of the boat and rubbed the excess sunscreen onto her bare leg in slow, sultry strokes. “Don’t want my legs to burn.”
His smile fell instantly, and heat filled his eyes. “Those legs will be the death of me.”
“What? These old things?” she teased.
“Fine,” he said, capping the lotion tube and dropping it onto a seat. “You win.”
“What do I win?” She stood in front of him, practically daring him to kiss her.
He took the bait and slid his arms around her waist, coming at her and kissing her slowly. Yes. She’d take this prize any day. “Lucky me,” she whispered between kisses. “I didn’t even know we were playing anything.”
“The hell you didn’t,” he grumbled.
They made out like teenagers until another boat sped by. “Get a room!” someone on board yelled as they passed.
Holly and Cole broke apart and laughed.
She peered over the side. “How many dead bodies you think are down there?”
“Between the three rivers? A lot,” he said simply. “Tons of guns and knives too, I’m sure.”
He restarted the boat, and they whipped around Ellis Island before heading up the east river to the Williamsburg Bridge. There, they flipped a U-turn and came back around the tip of Manhattan and up the mouth of the Hudson. Three hours later, they puttered into the marina. She helped him tie off, and he helped her out of the boat.
“That was awesome,” she said. “Is it lunchtime?”
“I could eat.”
They walked to a deli that boasted the best cherry pie in New York City. They sat at the counter and were served quickly.
“Why do people say ‘easy as pie’?” she asked.
He shrugged.
“I mean, have you ever made pie? It’s really an elaborate process. The crust is hard to get right and makes a big mess. Then you have to cut up all the fruit and get the consistency perfectly gooey. It’s also difficult to tell when it’s done. The crust might look browned, but is the inside cooked through?”
“You’re overthinking it. Maybe they just mean eating pie is easy.”
“Good point,” she said, slipping the last bite into her mouth. “If that’s the case, I agree.”
Outside, they encountered a naked man. Holly’s eyes popped wide. She felt Cole’s hand on the small of her back. “Just keep walking,” he said near her ear.
Eyes still glued to the man, she turned to continue on and ran smack into a scaffolding pole. “Oof.”
“Ya okay?” he asked, biting his lip to keep from laughing.
She rubbed her head. “That’s gonna leave a mark.”
At that, he did laugh.
“That something you see every day?”
“More than I’d like,” he deadpanned.
Dusk was eminent, and lights began popping on in the tall buildings. He whistled for a taxi, which took them for a long ride to Yankee Stadium.
“You’ll have to come back in the fall, and we’ll go to the Garden for a Knicks game. Yankees are the next best thing.”
“A Knicks game sounds amazing, but baseball’s cool too. And at the risk of sounding like a simpleton, I’ve never been to a Major League Baseball game.”
At the gate, Cole flashed his phone, and a worker scanned the tickets. On the way to their seats, she bought a Yankees baseball hat, sized it, and put it on, slipping her ponytail through the hole in the back. He led her to the section closest to the field on the first base side.
“These are great seats.”
“I bought them this morning. Best I could get on such short notice.”
They took their seats, and she soaked it all in—warm-up music blared, bright field lights came on, and the smell of roasted peanuts filled the air. Men carried trays of food over their shoulders, shouting their wares, and she got a kick out of purchasing from them.
“Play ball,” the ump yelled, and everyone cheered.
The game was slower than basketball, but the crack of the bats, the roar of the crowd. It was so…America.
After a hot dog and soda, she talked Cole into splitting a pretzel. He complained when her idea of “splitting” was giving him a bite or two. She was just about to dig into a tray of nachos when she saw their faces pop up on the kiss cam.
The Jumbotron showed both of them frozen with wide eyes. Finally, the pressure of the camera caused her to look at him. “I don’t think they’re moving until we kiss.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Let’s give the people what they want.”
She smiled as he slid a hand behind her neck and kissed her. When he pulled back and she opened her eyes, he was staring at her, his intent clear. She leaned in and kissed him again. The Jumbotron, the crowd, and the nachos all fell away. He was all-consuming—the smell of him, the sight of him, the feel of him. When he let her go, she’d forgotten her own name.
“I think we’re clear,” he said, putting his forehead to hers and breathing heavily. “Kiss cam’s moved on.”
“Yeah, good. Okay.” She pulled away reluctantly. This man could ruin her if she wasn’t careful. Fifteen more hours. She just had to hold out for fifteen more hours.
After the game, he laced his fingers through hers as they made their way out of the stadium.
“It’s gonna be tough to get a cab around here. Let’s walk a bit.”
Even when the crowd thinned, and he didn’t have to worry about losing her, he kept hold of her hand. As they walked and talked, she was careful to watch for scaffolding posts, which were everywhere.
She was babbling on about the game when he tensed and stopped. He put a finger to his lips, and she shut up. All of a sudden, she felt it too—danger.
To their left was a business doorway. It was indented from the sidewalk, and he pushed her into it. “Stay here.”
“What?” she whispered. “Don’t leave me!”
A woman screamed, and Cole sprinted toward her. Holly peeked out from her hiding place just in time to see Cole tackle a man who was mugging an elderly woman. Holly ran to them as Cole wrestled with the man on the ground.
“Police,” he yelled. “You’re under arrest.”
The woman stood by, frozen in fear, hand covering her mouth. Blood leaked out from under her fingers.
Holly studied the fight, intending to jump in and help Cole somehow, but his last punch KOed the robber. Cole cuffed him with some kind of plastic handcuffs he’d had in his pocket.
“Holly, can you sit on him for a minute?”
“Sure?”
Before she could actually do anything, Cole jumped up and ran off, telling her to call nine-one-one and saying something about a second assailant. Holly toed the man with her foot to make sure he was out, then plopped down onto his back and called nine-one-one.
Before any other policemen arrived, Cole returned, dragging another perp by the shirt collar.
“Thank goodness,” Holly said. “I think this guy’s waking up.” The man beneath her moaned, and Holly jumped off him like he was on fire.
“I didn’t mean sit on him literally.” Cole shook his head and chuckled. “What did dispatch say?”
“Someone’s on their way.”
Blue and red lights came up the street and stopped next to them.
“Robinson?” one of the men asked. “Whatcha got?”
Cole handed over the bad guy and explained the situation to one officer, while Holly led the other to the victim. “She’s hurt,” Holly said.
“I’ll be fine,” the woman said, dabbing a finger at her split lip. “Thanks to that man. He saved me.” She pointed at Cole and had a look in her eyes Holly could relate to. One that said Cole was a dreamy hero.
After the men were cuffed for real and put in a patrol car, the officers got statements from everyone and left. Cole flagged down a taxi, and they returned to his place.
“I was gonna stop for dessert somewhere, but we’ve had enough excitement for today.”
“You scared the crap out of me,” Holly said. “Running after that guy. What if he’d been armed?”
Cole shrugged. His hands went to her waist. Almost like they had a mind of their own. “Holly.”
“Let’s not talk about it. Let’s just enjoy the time we have.”
He nodded and dipped his head to kiss her. It was soft and tender. And it melted her heart even further. They fumbled their way to his bedroom and closed the door.
Their time together was short, so why not make the most of it? Fighting her feelings for him was a losing battle, so she surrendered willingly. Whatever happened tomorrow, they would deal with it then. For tonight, she was his.