Chapter 37 In Love and Insatiable
In Love and Insatiable
Harper
I wake up wrapped in warmth—Cole's arms around me, sunlight streaming through his bedroom window in soft golden bars.
For a moment, I just lie there, breathing in the scent of him mixed with clean sheets, feeling the steady rise and fall of his chest against my back.
This is what contentment feels like, I think.
This is what it means to be exactly where you're supposed to be.
I turn carefully in his arms, not wanting to wake him, but needing to see his face.
He's still asleep, eyelashes casting shadows on his cheeks, lips slightly parted, looking more peaceful than I've ever seen him.
There's something vulnerable about watching someone sleep—like you're seeing them without all the guards they put up during the day.
With Liam, everything was electric uncertainty. My heart would race, my thoughts would scatter, and I'd constantly wonder where I stood. The sex was good, too. But with Cole, there's fire—amazing fire—but there's also this foundation. This sense that I can trust him to catch me if I fall.
His eyes flutter open, and for a second, we just stare at each other. Then he smiles—this slow, sleepy smile that makes my stomach flip—and pulls me closer.
"I could get used to this," he murmurs against my forehead, his voice rough with sleep.
"Waking up to my bedhead?" I tease, running my fingers through what I'm sure is a disaster of tangles.
"Waking up to you." He says it so simply and something in my chest goes tight and warm.
I lean up to kiss him, soft and slow, and he responds by rolling onto his back and pulling me on top of him. We stay like that for a while, just kissing lazily, hands wandering over familiar territory, neither of us in any rush to start the day.
"Do you have practice?" I ask him between kisses.
He groans. "Don't remind me."
"I have that mountain of homework I've been avoiding."
"So what you're saying is, we should stay in bed and ignore all our responsibilities?"
I grin against his mouth. "That's exactly what I'm saying."
"I like the way you think." His hands slide under his t-shirt I'm wearing, and I shiver at the warmth of his touch against my bare skin.
Before things can go any further, there's a whine and a scratch at the bedroom door. Rex.
Cole drops his head back against the pillow with a laugh. "Worst timing ever, buddy."
"He probably needs to go out," I say, though I'm not exactly eager to move either.
"Fin probably care of it, but I’ll let him out." Cole sits up, and I admire the view as he walks across the room in just his boxer briefs. He catches me staring and grins, flexing his arms playfully.
I roll my eyes. "Show-off."
He opens the door and Rex bounds in immediately, making a beeline for the bed and jumping up to lick my face enthusiastically.
"Okay, okay, I'm happy to see you too!" I laugh, trying to fend off his slobbery affection.
Cole leans against the doorframe, watching us with this soft expression. "Rex is going to steal my girlfriend."
"Too late," I say, scratching behind Rex's ears. "I'm already in love with him."
The words hang in the air for just a second—"in love"—and even though I was talking about the dog, both of us feel the weight of them. Cole's eyes find mine, something flickering there that makes my breath catch.
But then Rex barks, breaking the moment, and Cole shakes his head with a smile. "Come on, boy. Let's get you outside before hump my girlfriend’s leg. That’s my leg to hump."
I giggle, watching him walk down the hall.
I throw the blanket off and follow them to the kitchen, feeling more comfortable here than I probably should after just one night.
But there's something about the way Cole moves around his space—confident but not cocky, at ease but still considerate—that makes me feel welcome.
He lets Rex out and then turns to me. "Breakfast?" he asks, already pulling eggs and bacon from the fridge.
"You're going to cook for me?" I lean against the counter, enjoying the view of his bare back as he moves around the kitchen.
"Don't sound so surprised." He glances over his shoulder at me. "Besides, you look like you could use some sustenance after last night."
Heat creeps up my neck at the reminder. "Confident, aren't you?"
He winks, and I roll my eyes even though my stomach flutters.
"Fine. But I'm helping."
"You can be in charge of toast. Think you can handle that?"
I narrow my eyes at him. "That sounds suspiciously like you don't trust me with real cooking."
"I just want to cook for you."
I smile at that. “Okay.”
I grab the bread and pop two slices in the toaster, determined to prove I'm not completely hopeless. Cole shows me how to adjust the settings, his body warm behind mine as he guides my hand, and suddenly I'm not thinking about toast at all.
"Harper," he says, his voice lower now, breath warm against my ear.
"Hmm?"
"You're very distracting in my shirt."
I turn in his arms, looking up at him through my lashes. "You want it back?"
His hands slide to my hips, pulling me closer. "Definitely not."
We're kissing again, soft and sweet, when the toaster pops and makes us both jump. I pull back to check on my handiwork and groan. "It's burnt."
Cole looks over my shoulder and tries—unsuccessfully—not to laugh. "That's... wow."
“I’m never going to hear the end of this,” I joke, looking up at him. His eyes scan my face, and that look makes my heart flip.
"I'm impressed." He pulls out the burnt slices and drops them in the trash. "Here, let me show you."
This time, he stands behind me while we put in fresh bread, his arms caging me in as he adjusts the dial. "See? Not too dark, not too light."
"Got it," I say, but I'm barely paying attention. I'm too aware of his chest pressed against my back, the way his breath tickles my neck, how his hands have moved from the toaster to my waist. I lean against him, pressing my ass against his cock.
"Harper?"
"Yeah?"
"Are you even listening?"
"Not even a little bit."
He laughs, leaning down to kiss me. "We're never going to actually eat at this rate."
"It’ll be your fault.”
He kisses me, tugging at my hair.
We do eventually manage to make breakfast—slightly burnt toast aside—and sit at his small kitchen table with our knees touching underneath.
Cole tells me about learning to cook from his dad during high school, and I share the story about the time Maddie and I nearly burned down our aunt's kitchen trying to make dinner for the family.
"What were you trying to make?" he asks, laughing.
"Spaghetti. Somehow we managed to start a grease fire with spaghetti."
"That's actually impressive."
"That's what the fire department said."
He reaches across the table and wipes a bit of jam from the corner of my mouth with his thumb, then licks it off his finger. The gesture is casual but charged, and suddenly the air between us shifts.
I set down my fork. "We should probably finish eating."
"Probably," he agrees, but neither of us moves.
Instead, Cole stands, walks around the table, and pulls me to my feet. His kiss is deeper this time, more urgent, and I melt into him as my back presses against the counter. The breakfast gets cold as we get lost in each other, his hands in my hair, mine sliding up his bare chest.
"Bedroom?" he murmurs against my lips.
"Bedroom," I agree breathlessly.
This time it’s fast and like we’ve done it a hundred times before. He pulls my hair, making me cry out louder. And when he slows down his pace, he compliments my ass. Then he grabs my throat gently and kisses me. I lean against him, getting lost in how good this feels.
Later we're sprawled on his bed, and he reaches for clothes. Him and I get dressed, and I can’t help but smile to myself. This is fun with him. He’s so hot and sweet, I just can’t.
“You okay?” he asks, turning around.
I shrug. “Perfect.”
Over the next few days, Cole and I fall into a rhythm.
He shows up at the library with my favorite coffee when I've been studying for hours.
We cook dinner together, getting slightly better at it each time.
Inside jokes develop—something about my terrible toast-making skills becomes our thing, and Cole's tendency to narrate Rex's thoughts in a ridiculous voice never fails to make me laugh.
"Rex thinks you should stay over again," Cole says one evening, doing his best dog voice. "He promises to be a good boy and not whine this time."
"Oh, Rex thinks that, does he?"
"He's very insistent about it."
Maddie rolls her eyes affectionately when she sees us together. "You two are disgustingly cute. It's actually offensive."
Sirus makes jokes about Cole being whipped, but it's clear he's happy for his friend. "Never thought I'd see the day Cole Richardson got distracted from hockey."
"I'm not distracted," Cole protests.
"Pretty soon you’re going to skating straight into the boards.”
I find myself smiling for no reason at random times throughout the day.
Cole's become central to my life so quickly, but I don't feel like I'm losing myself.
If anything, I feel like I'm becoming a better version of myself.
My grades are good, my relationship with Maddie is stronger than ever, and I'm genuinely happy.
One night, I'm lying in my own bed in the dorm, and I realize I'm smiling just thinking about him. I text him something silly, and he responds immediately.
Cole: Miss you already. Rex is sulking without you here.
Me: Just Rex?
Cole: Okay, fine. I'm sulking too. Happy?
Me: Very.
Cole: Good night, beautiful. Dream about me.
I'm about to set my phone down when another text notification pops up. My stomach clenches when I see a photo of Cole’s body.
Me: Sending nudes now?
Cole: For you to dream about tonight.
I roll my eyes.
But as I drift off to sleep, I put my hand down my pajama pants and touch myself to the thought of Cole.
Right when I’m at the edge, my mind jumps to Liam’s eyes.
I immediately stop, panting. I’m on the verge of an orgasm, so I try again, trying hard to think about Cole.
I rub faster, and it's Cole's face I see.
Cole's voice in my head. Cole's arms I imagine around me. And as my body trembles, it’s Liam’s eyes that pull me through.
I stop, panting. Why is my mind doing this to me?
I grab my phone and look at Cole’s body. I smile. I like him a lot.