“No.” It was the truth. Her weak declarations that could be analyzed a hundred different ways depending on how long a man wanted to stay awake… those didn’t freak him out. Not when they were so pale compared to his feelings, live and vivid in a thousand different hues. He looked down, at the pile of shopping bags, and wished he’d picked a different location for this. It’d be too serious if he invited her to sit down, yet standing here, in this dim room, the fan above them off balance and ticking, wasn’t exactly how he imagined this going. Not that he had thought this through. If he had, he’d have duct taped his mouth shut. Bringing this up now could only lead to disaster.
“So talk.” Her shoulders had loosened a little, and her chewing quieted.
He took a deep breath and jumped off the cliff. “I meant what I said last night. A man would be crazy to cheat on you. A man would be crazy to want something else, when he could have you. I’ve had you—the real you—for these last eighteen hours, and I don’t want anything else. I don’t think I’ll ever want anything else.” He stepped closer and looked down at her. “Tell me we aren’t great together.”
She looked away, into a far corner of the room, then back up at him. “We aren’t, Cole. This…” she gestured between the two of them, her hand a floppy wave of heartbreak, “… this doesn’t even compare to what I had with Scott.” She lifted one of her shoulders in a tiny shrug of indifference. “I’m sorry.”
“But… you told me you loved me. I thought…” He stepped away from her and pressed his palms to his eyes, everything in his life spiraling down in one hellacious drain of WTF.
“You thought I was a terrible actress.” There was a smile in her response, and he looked up, confused. She blew a giant bubble and popped it.
“So you were acting? With me?” His mind started shuttering through their night, and she rolled her eyes, stepping forward and wrapping her arms around his neck, her mouth sugary when she pressed it to his lips.
“God, you are dense,” she whispered against his mouth. “Yes, we are great together. Yes, I don’t want anyone else either. Yes, you big stupid man who can’t say the words that every woman wants to hear, I love you too.” She leaned back to say more, but he didn’t let her go. He crushed her into his arms and somewhere, in the course of their kiss, he got her gum and swallowed it and then threw her over his shoulder and carried her upstairs.
CHAPTER 106
When we pulled into the Holden’s driveway, the gate was open, the string of stranger’s cars now in a neat line in front of my house. At our approach heads moved in the cars, doors opened, rigs were grabbed, and feet stepped quickly out, flashbulbs popping in the brightest sun that God could provide.
“Are you sure we don’t need to call Casey?” I asked nervously, Cole’s hand tightening on mine.
“First rule of Hollywood, babe. The gods don’t ask permission. Own your shit and don’t forget to smile.” He put the truck into park and leaned over, waiting for a kiss, his smile widening when I leaned over, and our skin was lit when the paps went crazy.
I giggled, and he smiled, taking one more kiss before he grabbed the handle. “Let’s go raise some hell.” I grabbed my handle and cracked the door, a stranger before me wearing a Lakers hat, his black shirt a poor choice in this heat, a camera in his hand one that probably cost more than my truck. I smiled politely and he lifted his camera in response. We met at the front of the truck, Cole’s hand reaching out for me. When I grabbed it, he pulled me all the way in, his arms supporting me as he dipped me low, my shriek in response captured by every camera present. He smiled down at me, and I scowled. Then he kissed me long enough that I blushed.
“Enough,” I murmured. “I think they got it.”
Cole pulled me up with a smirk. “Not yet.” He kept his hand on my lower back, and we stepped toward the house, the curtain moving in the front window, and I wondered what on Earth Mama was thinking of this. On the front steps, Cole turned, hugging me to his side and facing the group, seven or eight bodies scattered across the lawn without any concern over my planting. I glared at the closest one, and he moved away from my butterfly garden, his hands raising in apology.
“I’m assuming, since you’ve squatted yourself on this personal property, that you know this beautiful woman beside me. But what you don’t know is that she is mine. You fuck with her, you fuck with my team and—more importantly—you fuck with me. If I ever convince her to marry me, you all are invited to our wedding. We’ll be serving crème brulee, be sure to eat up.” I smacked his stomach hard enough to make him wince, and he pulled me against him, his head dropping for another kiss. “Just a joke, babe. Except for the marriage part. Too early?” He pulled off, his eyes on mine, a cautious smile on his features.
“Too early,” I said sternly. “Especially since, Mr. Masten, you’re still a married man.”
“Ouch.” He winced. “And you know better than to call me that.”
“Mr. Masten?” I said playfully and wheeled out of his arms, reaching for the door handle, his hand too slow when it tried to catch me.
“Damn woman.” He hooked a finger in the back tie of my sundress, pulling me back before I could twist the knob. “Have I told you that I love you?”
I didn’t respond to him, I just smiled, and then the door opened and Momma was there, and her smile was stretched bigger than I’d ever seen it.