Chapter 11 Grace
Chapter eleven
Grace
Cole manhandled me like it was nothing. When I’d put this dress on, Gabriella had accused me of doing it to get a rise from Cole and she couldn’t begin to imagine just how right she was.
He carried me up the stairs, tugging on the ends of my dress making sure my ass was covered. It was short, I had to admit that, but I loved the way it made me feel. Like I was sexy, so I’d pushed aside any reservations I had and wore it anyway.
It wasn’t until we were standing on the porch that Cole set me back on my feet.
“Grace,” he began, and the seriousness in his tone caught me off-guard.
When I stepped out of the car and I heard his low growl, I half expected him to bend me over the porch railing and fuck me until my knees shook. Instead, he stepped back, putting distance between us and acting odd.
“Wh-what’s up?” I asked nervously.
“Someone’s here,” he mumbled, and my heart sank. He had someone else here. He knew I was coming, he’d practically begged me to come, and he had someone else already inside.
I wanted to throw up.
I wanted to throw up and I wanted to run.
Cole reached for my hand, but I batted it away. I didn’t want him to touch me. The hurt stung too much. It was palpable. And I hated myself.
“I have to go,” I rushed out as I hurried down the steps heading straight for my car.
I needed to get out of there. The realization of how much it hurt was the worst of all.
We’d known each other less than a day and if his betrayal hurt this much already, then I couldn’t afford to go and fall in love with him.
He’d obliterate my heart without breaking a sweat.
“Grace! Grace!” I heard him call, but I was barely holding myself together. I couldn’t afford to look back. “Grace, would you stop a second please,” Cole begged.
I yanked open my car door and he was right there. Looking at me like I’d kicked his puppy.
“Cole, go inside,” I replied, feeling defeated. “You’ve got company,” I reminded him.
“Yeah, Grace, I do,” Cole confirmed. “And I want you to meet him,” Cole emphasized, snagging my attention.
I froze. “Him?” I asked, and a smile crept back across Cole’s face replacing the worry and removing the deep frown lines between his eyes.
“Zane. He’s a buddy from the army. He just showed up.”
“Oh.”
Cole edged around the car door that separated us, backing me up against my car.
“Yeah. Oh. And the only reason I stopped us,” he began, bending down and whispering in my ear, the warmth of his breath tickling my neck.
“Is because Zane does not get to see your ass. That ass,” he continued as his hands toyed with the edge of my dress before sneaking under the flimsy material, “is for my eyes only,” he finished before nipping on my ear lobe.
“Oh,” I repeated, unable to think properly or form real words.
“So, are you going to come inside and say hi, or do you still want to run?”
Cole was putting the ball firmly back in my court.
“You want me to meet him?” I confirmed, making sure I hadn’t heard him wrong.
Cole reached down and laced his fingers with mine. “Absolutely. Come on in. He’s a great guy. You’ll love him.”
I let Cole lead me into his house, and the moment we stepped inside I could hear a deep voice singing very badly.
Cole rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, he does that.” He shrugged before leading me into the kitchen.
I sat on a stool while Cole organized some drinks, and we chatted about our day.
I told him about Mr. and Mrs. Jefferson who checked in yesterday, and their drama.
They were great. They were like a sixty-year-old soap opera.
They fought and bickered and argued over every little thing.
Tonight, at dinner when Mrs. Jefferson ordered the lemon pie for dessert, Mr. Jefferson told her she didn’t like lemon pie.
For five minutes we stood there watching them argue over pie.
In the end, she ordered both the lemon pie and the chocolate brownie while Mr. Jefferson pouted.
“Sounds like there’s never a moment's peace,” Cole commented.
“It’s pretty crazy, " I confessed, knowing that every day was different at the B&B.
“You sound like you love it though,” Cole suggested.
“I love getting to spend time with my sisters. It feels like forever since we just got to hang out.”
“I get that. Do you think you’ll stick around for a while?” Cole asked.
I knew his question was innocent. At least, I wanted to pretend it was, but it was definitely loaded.
Sticking around Wattle Creek had never been on my agenda.
My plan, if you could even call it that, had been to come back, put myself back together, take a breath, and then move on to the next adventure.
Even though I could see the appeal of sticking around, I wasn’t ready to commit.
Before I could answer, the tallest man I’d ever seen stepped into the room. Wearing a pair of worn jeans, a tight white T-shirt, and bare feet, there was no doubt he was a man’s man. With dog tags dangling from a chain around his neck, the man was imposing.
“Hi, I’m Zane,” he introduced, stretching his hand out for me to shake.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Grace,” I replied, setting my hand in his.
“How do you know this ugly mug, Grace?” Zane asked, his easy-going nature and kind eyes relaxing me. Beside me, I felt Cole move a little closer.
“He picked me up on the side of the road,” I answered honestly, trying not to laugh.
It might be the truth, but it also sounded really weird.
We sat around on the porch for a couple of hours, sharing a beer and watching the lightning bugs dance while Zane told stories about what they used to get up to while they were stationed overseas.
He kept the tales lighthearted and although they laughed and gave each other shit, I knew they were only giving me half the story.
Something I was truly grateful for. I wasn’t born yesterday.
Wars weren’t pretty, no matter how you wanted to look at it, and if these two were still smiling, then that was a blessing in itself.
“So, what are your plans while you’re here?” I asked, picking at the label on my beer bottle.
“Not really sure yet,” Zane admitted with a shrug. “Cole said I could crash here for a few days…”
“Stay as long as you need,” Cole offered without waiting for Zane to finish.
I had no doubt Cole knew exactly where Zane’s head was at and what he was going through, and if giving him a roof over his head for a couple of days or weeks helped, then that’s what he’d do.
“Thanks, man. But I’m not freeloading. Put me to work,” Zane declared, and Cole just chuckled.
“Oh, you’re going to regret that.”
“Probably. But I can’t sit around contemplating my navel all day. I’ll be crazy by the end of the week. A bit of hard work will be good for me.”
“Great! We start at zero six hundred,” Cole told him, and now it was my turn to laugh. Cole turned to me. “What?”
“You.”
“What about me?”
“Zero six hundred.”
“Yeah?” Cole missed my joke. Too many years in fatigues I assumed.
“Firstly, nobody talks like that.”
“Like what?”
“Zero six hundred. We’re not in the military here,” I reminded him.
With a shake of his head, Cole reached for me and dragged me into his lap. “Old habits die hard I guess,” Cole murmured. “And secondly?” he pushed.
I couldn’t help but smirk. “What time did you start today?”
“That’s different.”
“How?”
“Oh, this is going to be good,” Zane chuckled, rubbing his hands together.
“I was … distracted,” he attempted.
“Distracted or dickstracted?” Zane teased.
“Someone kept me up all night and then insisted on a late start,” Cole attempted to shift the blame.
“Funny. I remember it a bit different.”
“You must be mistaken then.”
“No. I’m pretty sure I suggested you go off and do your farmer stuff and I go help my sisters, then next thing you know, I was thrown over your shoulder, ass in the air—” I didn’t get to finish before Cole’s hand clamped down over my mouth stifling my words.
“Farmer stuff?” Zane enquired, and Cole shot him a look that would’ve scared many. Zane didn’t even flinch.
“You distracted me, Grace Hamilton,” Cole accused. “And made me late for work.”
“And I didn’t hear you complaining,” I countered.
“Why the hell would I? I had you all to myself and …”
“And that’s my cue to call it a night. I’ll catch you in the morning,” Zane offered, rising from his chair and heading inside.
“See you in the morning,” Cole replied, like a good host. “If you need anything …”
“I’ll be fine.”
“There are extra blankets in the cupboard …”
“It’s all good, Cole. I’m sure I’ve slept in worse conditions than your spare room. Night, guys.” With one final wave, Zane disappeared inside leaving Cole and I curled together on the rocking chair.
His arms were banded around my waist, holding me to him, and I dropped my head against his shoulder, breathing in his scent. It was leather and sandalwood and something addictive. Maybe it was just Cole because this man was certainly addictive.
For a while we sat in silence, tangled together and caught up in our thoughts. I could feel the steady thump of Cole’s heart beneath his shirt as I burrowed in even closer. When he shifted his leg beneath me, I went to climb up.
“Where are you going?”
“Ah, home.”
“You’re not staying?” Cole was caught off-guard and his voice hitched.
“I didn’t think you’d want me to. With Zane here …”
“I want you to,” Cole declared, tightening his hold and placing soft kisses along my neck.
“But …”
“But what? You think I’m going to kick you out of my bed because Zane’s crashing here? News flash, sweetheart. It’s going to take a hell of a lot more than that for me to kick your cute butt out of my bed.”
“You think my butt’s cute?” I giggled, trying to distract him. If I was going to be accused of being a bad influence, I might as well live up to it and have some fun.
“You don’t even want to know all the things I think about your butt, Grace.” Cole’s comment was deep and dark and laced with intensity.
I leaped out of Cole’s lap and took a step back before folding my arms over my chest. “Well, I never.” I huffed, pretending to be scandalized.
“There’s always time,” Cole promised as he prowled toward me. “Now, I think it’s bedtime.”
I closed the distance between us and placed an innocent peck on his cheek before turning and bouncing down the steps.
“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” Cole’s voice boomed across the yard.
I turned around and looked at him. It was almost comical. He looked like someone had just tossed his favorite toy in the trash. His nostrils flared, his hands were on his hips, and his jaw was set. This man was a lot of fun to wind up.
“I’m just getting my pajamas,” I explained in the most sickeningly sweet voice I could muster.
I yanked open the car door, and just as I leaned in to grab the bag left on the front seat, I was tossed up in the air like a rag doll and onto Cole’s shoulder.
A loud slap came down on my ass. One that made my whole body tingle.
He stepped back and slammed my car door. My overnight bag still sitting on the front seat.
“My bag …”
“You don’t wear pajamas when you sleep in my bed,” Cole growled as he marched us toward the house and up the steps.