Chapter 7
Nora
Harper had me thinking about things I hadn’t thought about in a long time.
Freshman-year me had treated sex like one more college milestone I was somehow behind on because everyone was supposedly ‘doing it.’ That panic hadn’t lasted.
I had classes, a career to build, and a whole life to figure out.
Sex had slid so far down the list I’d stopped wondering when I was supposed to check it off.
It hadn’t helped that my college boyfriend had apparently been everyone’s boyfriend.
Once I realized he was mostly interested because I was Gregory Adams’s daughter, any remaining curiosity about sleeping with him died fast. I wasn’t having sex just to keep up or make some idiot feel important. I’d do it when I was ready.
Now there was Cole, and despite how infuriating it was to be around him, I couldn’t ignore the fact that I found him attractive. He’d made me feel things no other man had made me feel before, and that was as frightening as it was stupid.
I couldn’t be with Cole even once. He was my dad’s enemy, and sleeping with him would feel like choosing a side I wasn’t supposed to choose. Not that Cole was offering. The man could barely tolerate me, so fantasizing about sex with him was pointless on at least two levels.
I lay in bed with my thoughts all over the place, but mostly on Cole.
He was tall, handsome, and I didn’t doubt his experience.
He probably had any woman he wanted and knew exactly what he was doing in bed.
Meanwhile, my experience stopped well before the part Harper had been talking about.
The imbalance alone should’ve killed the fantasy. It didn’t.
“Shit,” I mumbled to myself, groaning loudly in frustration. “I need a drink. Somewhere Cole isn’t.”
I stared at the ceiling for what seemed like forever while the silence in the neighborhood seemed to ring in my head. I glanced at my phone, realized it was just a few minutes after eight, and cursed.
I bounded from the bed, pulled on a pair of jeans, and decided to head to that spot Gran always told me about. Jen’s.
I fluffed my hair, applied a little lip gloss, and headed out. I passed Cole’s place on the way and realized his truck wasn’t there.
I’d wanted somewhere Cole wasn’t, yet I was already checking whether he was home.
* * *
Jen’s was every bit as busy as Grandma had promised.
Tables filled one side, pool tables the other, and a small dance floor had somehow claimed a corner of its own.
Beer, grilled meat, laughter, country music from the jukebox.
Nothing matched, nobody seemed bothered, and the whole place felt used in the best way.
I drew in a breath when heads turned in my direction, mostly men. The looks didn’t last long before conversations started up again, which somehow made it worse. Five minutes inside and I was probably already the newest topic.
I got a few winks and smiles as I made my way to the counter and did my best to be polite. I took a seat on an empty bar stool at the far end and browsed the rows of alcohol on the shelves as I tried to decide what to have.
I wasn’t hungry. I’d made salmon and rice before lying down earlier. All I needed now was something to drink to pass the time. A part of me wished Harper was here. She was the only friend I had so far, and I would’ve welcomed the company.
A graying, middle-aged woman with a pixie cut approached me. She had a smile on her face, warm eyes, and freckles dotted across her face.
I just knew she had to be Jen.
“Hi, good-looking. What can I get you tonight?”
I bit my lip in thought, my gaze shifting back to the shelf. “I think I’ll have a Corona and some mixed nuts, please.”
“Coming right up.”
“First night in?” she asked.
“Is it that obvious?”
“Only because I know everybody else.”
I smiled before my gaze wandered around the bar.
I smiled when I saw an elderly man laughing with his friends.
His laugh caught everyone’s attention. It was loud and full and came from the pit of his stomach.
There was no judgment, no one frowning or telling him to calm down.
Everyone was just… accepting. It was beautiful to see.
My breath hitched and the smile froze on my face when I spotted Cole in one corner of the room. He had a beer and a half-eaten burger that he seemed to have lost interest in.
He was staring right back at me, and I couldn’t help but freeze, unsure what else to do since he’d caught me by surprise.
My nipples tightened beneath my shirt, and a pulse started between my legs.
Damn it, Harper.
“Here you go, beautiful. Hiding in the corner already?”
I was happy for the distraction. I quickly turned to Jen and smiled, offering my thanks as I accepted and paid for my order.
I was suddenly uneasy knowing Cole was here and within sight of me.
I cleared my throat and took a large gulp of my beer, hoping for a little liquid courage to get me through the night.
I didn’t look in his direction. I did everything in my power not to. Yet somehow, I could still feel his eyes boring into my back, making me even more uneasy.
“Can I buy you another one of those?” a man asked as he slipped onto a stool beside me.
He wasn’t bad-looking. Green eyes, messy dark hair, and just an inch or so taller than me. He had a horrible mustache, though, that I hoped he’d get rid of soon—for his sake.
He looked close to my age, probably late twenties.
I was about to refuse his offer, but a voice in my head told me accepting might be a better idea. It was harmless. Men bought women drinks all the time. And hey—I was ‘putting myself out there.’
“Sure.” I smiled. “One drink. Don’t get excited.”
His face lit up immediately. He had the cutest gap, though.
“Too late,” he said.
“Hey, Jen, one more of these for the beautiful lady, please… and my usual.”
“Sure thing, Don.”
Don cleared his throat. “So now you know my name. What’s yours?”
“Nora.”
He smiled and leaned in a little closer than I liked. Not enough to make a thing of it, but enough that I noticed.
“Like the famous author?”
I nodded. “Yeah, like the famous author. I’m not her, though,” I quickly said, smiling.
He chuckled. “Wouldn’t matter to me. You’re pretty either way.”
“Thank you,” I said, taking a sip of my beer.
“You’re laying it on pretty thick,” I said.
“I don’t really have a line. Is it showing?”
“A little.”
“So, are you from around here? I’m pretty sure I would’ve remembered you.”
“Not really. I just moved here.”
His brows rose. “Oh yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“Wait, you must be Ms. Ellen’s granddaughter everyone’s talking about.”
I raised a brow. “They are? I’ve been here five minutes.”
He rubbed the nape of his neck. “Nothin’ bad, of course. You’re just new, and people around here talk. Everybody knew Ms. Ellen.”
I smiled. “I’m well aware. So much for keeping a low profile.”
“Good, you catch on fast. You’ll get used to it.”
I laughed softly, nodding. Don stared at me, watching every movement of my lips with a smile on his face.
“If you ever need a tour guide, I’m your guy. Or—okay, you probably already know the place. I could show you what’s changed.”
I nodded. “I used to visit before I decided to move here. I know my way around. I just don’t know everybody yet.”
He nodded. “Well, I’m glad you did. Imagine missing out on a face like yours. Okay, that was bad.”
I found myself blushing for some reason, and to hide it, I turned my head a little, forgetting Cole was here. My heart leapt in my chest when my gaze met his, and the smile I’d been holding fell flat.
His gaze was like ice, his jaw tightly clenched as he stared at me. I frowned, wondering what that was about, then turned to Don, who had his eyes stuck on my cleavage.
I cleared my throat, forcing a smile when he looked up.
“Oh, sorry.”
“It’s okay,” I said, downing the rest of my drink in one go. “Just aim a little higher next time.”
“Got it.”
Now I couldn’t concentrate on Don or the freaking drinks with Cole staring at me from across the room.
I told myself I didn’t care. My stomach kept fluttering every time I remembered his eyes were on me, which was annoying enough without knowing what the look even meant.
That kind of nervous weakness wasn’t normal for me.
“I’d like to get to know you better, Nora,” Don said, and my mouth fell open. “If you’re interested.”
Just then, Cole appeared beside me. I stiffened on my stool as his woodsy cologne hit me. He was so close I could feel the warmth from his body.
“Check, Jen,” he said, his voice somehow huskier than usual.
“Just a sec, Sully.”
I returned my attention to Don, who waited patiently for my response.
“So what do you say? I’d like to take you out sometime,” he said, and my pulse raced. “Just one date. Dinner? Coffee?”
“Er—”
“Here you go, Sully,” Jen said, distracting me once again.
Cole cleared his throat and moved around me to get closer to Jen. In doing so, he bumped against Don’s shoulder, almost knocking him off the stool. I frowned.
“Hey. You did that on purpose.”
Cole turned to him, jaw clenched, eyes shooting daggers. “Stay out of the way next time.”
“What the hell’s your problem?” Don snapped.
“Drop it.”
Don stood from his stool, but Cole easily towered over him, staring down at him angrily while Don’s fists clenched at his sides.
“I wasn’t in your way. You damn near knocked me off the stool.”
“Then keep your balance next time.”
“You want to take this outside?” Don demanded.
“Try me.”
Don scoffed, and I sat there shocked that this was even happening. Tension filled the bar as people stopped to watch. My heart pounded because the look on Cole’s face told me he was ready for whatever came next.
I wasn’t.
I needed one of them to stop, and Don was the one actually waiting for an answer.
“I’ll go out with you,” I blurted.
Just as I’d thought, Don turned toward me, a smile now on his face, the frown gone. He took his seat, all but forgetting Cole behind him.
“You will?” he asked, and I nodded.
“I will.”
My gaze shifted to Cole, and a shiver ran down my spine at the deadly look in his eyes.