“Huh?” As if someone had slammed on the brakes, Cole’s brain skidded along the stone patio.
“When you called me beautiful and kissed me.” She took another step back and curled her arms around herself as if the temperature on the roof had grown colder, when it felt like an inferno to him.
Cole shrugged, still trying to adjust to the abrupt change of gears. His hard-on strained against his zipper, also wondering what the fuck had just happened. “I guess I thought the idea of your ex bringing a new girlfriend to the party was kind of shitty. Who invited Olivia anyway?”
Shaun cast her eyes downward, and Cole clasped his hands in front of his lower region, attempting to hide his now awkward arousal. “My mother. She likes to meddle in my life, and she thought she could help Liv and I get back together.”
He nodded in understanding, puzzled over where this conversation was heading. Apparently Gloria Wright felt arranging for the two women to meet in an intimate setting was worth her daughter’s resulting agitation. However, Shaun’s mother and ex ranked high on the list of the last topics he wished to discuss right this moment. Not the kind of dirty talk he’d had in mind.
“Do you want to get back together with her?” he asked, not sure if he really wanted to know the answer.
Shaun returned her gaze to his and shrugged. “I don’t know. Seeing her with someone else so soon–”
His heart dropped along with his erection. But honestly, what had he expected? That she’d be swept away like a princess in some stupid fairy tale? That if he rode in to save her from the fire-breathing ex, she would go against everything she professed to believe in and give him a shot?
“I thought so. Look, I should probably get out of here.” He took his cue to leave and turned, tucking his shirt back into his pants and making a few other minor adjustments.
“What? Where are you going?” she called out, gripping his arm from behind.
“Leaving.” He took another few steps, dislodging himself from her hold. He couldn’t bear to have her touch him. Not when he felt just as used by her as he was by his uncle.
“I don’t want you to go, Cole.”
Cole stopped and faced her once more, almost losing his nerve. “And I don’t want to be just some convenient fuck you use to make yourself feel better about your ex and her new girlfriend.”
Her head pitched back as if the force of his words had pushed her physically. “That’s not what this is at all.”
“No?” He snorted. “I’m supposed to believe that you would have asked me here if Olivia hadn’t shown up with Jessica?” He didn’t want to hurt her. Not after everything that had happened that evening. But he couldn’t sit back and let his own feelings get trampled either. “Nah, I think you would have left me at the party to find my own way home once you succeeded with Myles. Just like you left me to arrive there by myself. He wants us to meet with him Tuesday, by the way.”
She didn’t deny any of it. His resulting pain was unexpected but deserved for the fool he’d been.
“Well, I think I have my answer. Thank you for the beer, Shaun. See you at work on Monday.” Cole didn’t wait for Shaun to stop him a second time, and left the princess alone on her balcony.
CHAPTER 13
Cole groaned at the sound of a car horn just outside his window followed by a text message on his BlackBerry. Why had he even agreed to go to the farmer’s market with Violet this early in the morning? He’d spent most of the day before submerged in a furniture order he still had open for Mrs. Clusky, a long-time customer of Jacobson’s who had bought a summer home in the Outer Banks and asked Cole to design a few items, including a porch swing. Anything was better than thinking about Friday. Cole still could not believe he had left Shaun’s apartment with hot, drunken sex an option clearly on the table. Each step toward the moral high ground sucked every ounce of air from his lungs, but deep down Cole knew he had made the right decision, even though his body adamantly disagreed. God, she’d felt and smelled so fucking good.
The horn honked again, reminding him he would have to sulk later, so Cole grabbed his jacket and headed downstairs. Violet stood on the curb next to a lime green Beetle. Wearing dark jeans and an oversized, heather-gray Ohio State sweatshirt, her black hair tied up in a messy bun, she reminded him so much of Lacey.
“I wondered if you fell back asleep.” She smiled wide, round cheeks pushing her glasses up high on her nose.
“I thought about it.” Cole slid into the passenger seat, ass landing on a furry green-and-yellow polka-dot seat cover. Basically, the seventies had thrown up on the Beetle’s interior. “Who the hell needs vegetables this early in the morning?”
“Someone who plans on making you the freshest, most delicious spring omelet you’ve ever tasted.” She bounced with excitement in her seat, starting up the punch buggy and peeling out into the busy street. Cole pressed his foot into the floor mat, hoping an emergency brake would magically appear and save him from a near-fatal crash. Violet weaved in and out of traffic like in a video game while toying with the radio in search of a station she liked.
“How far is this place?” Cole asked, hoping her eyes would return to the road before he felt compelled to take over the wheel himself.
She looked up in time to swerve into the middle lane, narrowly avoiding a stopped cab collecting passengers. Satisfied with some Taylor Swift tune Cole recognized only because of his sister, Violet sat up and began to drive like a normal human being. “Six minutes uptown.”
Okay, he thought to himself. He only needed to last six more minutes without throwing up the coffee that swished around in his stomach like battery acid, ready to implode. “So, a spring omelet, huh?” Cole figured if he kept her talking, she wouldn’t care so much about the radio.
“Yep, with smoked pancetta. Unless you had something else to do? Oh no, do you? Shit, I probably should’ve asked you first. I’m so sorry, Cole. If you do have something else to do, we could totally do brunch another time.” She continued to ramble quietly to herself, not turning her head to look at him.
“No, Vi, it’s fine. Really.”
“Great! Oh, there’s the lot.” Violet yanked the steering wheel hard to the left, cutting off a cab with its horn blaring, and veered the car toward a wide street with diagonal parking. A few empty spots remained, and she pulled the Beetle into one between a Volvo sedan and a Hummer. “Here we are,” she announced, slamming the shifter into park. Cole thought about jumping out and kissing the pavement in thanks that he still possessed all his body parts, whole and in working condition. Violet remained seated and poked around at one of the cup holders full of change in the center console, looking for coins to feed the meter.
“I think I have some quarters.” Cole reached into his front jeans pocket and pulled out fifty cents, the remaining quarters from a roll he’d bought for the laundry he’d done the afternoon before.
“Perfect! Let’s go.”
After paying for an hour’s worth of time, Violet collected the reusable canvas bags she had shoved in the back seat, and they joined the small crowd of people shuffling toward tents set up along Lake Erie’s edge. Boats of all shapes and sizes bobbed up and down with the wind-churned water. Cole tugged his jacket closed. The breeze blew with an added chill and strength in this part of the city, away from the obstruction of high-rise buildings. The few vendors selling their fresh produce and canned goods along the cement promenade reminded Cole of home, and the steady ache to be back returned.
Violet found the particular stand she was looking for and began selecting sweet onions and asparagus from the crates on display. “See anything you like?”
Cole shook his head. He knew his way around a kitchen and did the occasional meal justice, but he didn’t feel the urge to be creative. Instead, he longed to be in the kitchen of his mother’s house, sipping a simple cup of coffee while she prepared a breakfast that included her famous pancakes with baked apple slices, the syrup always collected from the red maple trees in the backyard. Damn, even his tas
te buds were homesick.
“Nah, I’m good.”
Violet moved to the fresh herbs, selecting bright green bunches of basil and parsley, then scoped out a vendor with a small selection of greenhouse produce, including a few tomatoes. Cole paid once she had found everything she wanted, thinking that was the least he could do. She reached into one of her bags and produced an apricot and handed it to him. “This should hold you until brunch.”
“Thanks.” Cole took a healthy bite, hungry from his wandering thoughts of a typical Sunday in Sweetwater, sucking at the sweet juices that overflowed and wiping at his chin with his jacket sleeve. Violet pointed out a bench and they sat down, enjoying the view and the fresh, cool air. A few runners passed by, bundled up in compression gear. The occasional crazy wore only a skimpy t-shirt and a pair of shorts, legs and face beet red from both exertion and the cool temperature. Cole imagined he’d be one of the crazies, not liking the constriction of too much clothing when he ran, a morning ritual with his dog Jester back in Sweetwater once the weather turned warm enough. Come to think of it, he could use a good run to work off his nervous energy as of late.
“So, you and Shaun, huh?”
“What?” Cole choked on the bite of apricot in his mouth, the question unexpected and random.
“Don’t try to deny it. I see the way you look at her.” Cole grimaced at the idea of being so transparent. Did everyone in the office think the same of him? “Why wouldn’t you? She’s beautiful, smart.” Violet paused and sighed. “She’s perfect.”
Cole ticked off all the reasons why he’d been infatuated with Shaun in his head along with Violet, but didn’t dare vocalize them. She swung her legs to and fro like a little girl, staring down at the grass below, a frown plastered to her face. “I hope one day a guy looks at me that way.”
“I’m sure you will knock the right guy off his feet.”
“You’re just saying that.” She shoved up her glasses and sniffed.
“No, I’m not. You’re pretty terrific yourself, Violet.” He smiled over at her, remembering having a similar conversation with Lacey last fall when the football player she’d crushed on didn’t ask her to the homecoming dance. The asshole of course asked the head cheerleader instead. Turned out, the whole team got kicked out of the dance for showing up intoxicated. Parents were called and small-town drama ensued. A wild night by Sweetwater standards.
“If so, then why aren’t you interested in me?”
Cole macerated on the posed question, well aware that anything he said could be counterproductive to his professed indifference toward Shaun. “It’s complicated, Vi. Very complicated.” Cole didn’t know how to answer without revealing feelings he hadn’t come to terms with himself. He wasn’t sure how deep the infatuation with Shaun went, so much of it tarnished by his uncle and the fucked-up proposition hanging over his head.
Speaking of which, Cole needed to figure out a separate course of action, because he would not sink to deplorable depths and betray Shaun. Not for Robert, no matter what he dangled in front of him. He would make it back to Sweetwater on his own terms, without any help from his slimy uncle, and a thought popped into Cole’s head regarding just how. However, a growl from his stomach reminded him of a more immediate problem.
“What does this market have to offer besides produce? And don’t think I’ve forgotten about the omelet you promised.”
“Fresh eggs!” Violet tapped her forehead with the palm of her hand and jumped to her feet. “I almost forgot. Fresh eggs are the most important ingredient. Come on, before all the cartons are gone.” She pulled him up by his arm. Cole discarded the pit of his apricot in the trash can and allowed her to steer him toward the largest tent in the park. Unlike the ones they had visited earlier, these vendors sold their goods behind freestanding glass counters instead of folding tables. Meats, cheeses, desserts, and other perishables filled each and every display, making Cole even hungrier. Violet stopped in front of balls of fresh mozzarella and other soft cheeses arranged enticingly inside a refrigerated case. Cole considered pressing his nose against the glass to test if they smelled just as good as they looked. He heard Violet squeal in excitement when the man behind the counter said he had two cartons of eggs left. She also ordered a pound of smoked pancetta and a few balls of mozzarella. Although Cole had been reluctant at first, Violet’s omelet was starting to sound more and more enticing.
Cole moved out of the way of customers who actually wanted to purchase something and glanced around the promenade, enjoying the small sense of freedom from the overcrowded city. The sky didn’t appear so gray and gloomy out here, improving his mood considerably.
Sure he was mistaken, Cole wiped at his eyes, but the impossible vision remained the same. The object of his weekend-long turmoil jogged along the cement path in gray print stretch pants, a crimson long sleeve top with thumb holes, and a matching fleece vest. Every long stride looked effortless. Poetry in motion.
A patron knocked into him, and he remembered where he was and whom he had come with, while Shaun headed straight for the tent he stood beneath. He scanned the crowd for Violet, praying she was finished. As much as he liked the idea of bumping into Shaun far away from the office, he couldn’t risk it with the technician in tow. He spotted his market companion and waved her over.
“I think I got everything we need.” She took inventory of the items in her sacks.
“Great, I’m hungry,” he replied, relieving her of the groceries and starting for the car in hopes she’d follow.
“You sure you didn’t want to grab something for yourself? They have a section with prepared meals that could last you the week.”
“Nope. All good,” he called out over his shoulder, picking up the pace of his stride.
“Ms. Wright?”
Cole stopped dead in his tracks and cursed to himself. There was no way to escape now.
“Ms. Wright,” she repeated. “I thought that was you, but I’m not used to seeing you in street clothes.”
The familiar warmth of Shaun’s laugh carried, heating Cole from the inside out. “Please call me Shaun, Violet. You make me sound like a school teacher.” Cole listened, but remained with his back to the women. “What brings you over here today?”
“Oh, I’m here with Cole. We’re just picking up a few things for brunch.”
If he thought he could fit, Cole would’ve jumped into one of the canvas sacks dangling from his arm to hide amongst the asparagus and pancetta. Two choices stood before him: continue his retreat to the car or turn and face the situation like a man. Cole began to take a step toward cowardice.
“Cole, come and say hi to Ms. Wright.” Decision made.
Cole kept his eyes fixated on the pavement and turned in the direction of his boss and the unintentional traitor. He swept his gaze up to find Shaun, wearing her usual mask of self-control, standing next to Violet. He stepped closer.
“Good morning, Shaun.”
Rose circles colored her cheeks and a sheen of perspiration slicked back the baby hairs along her hairline, the rest secured in a tight ponytail. “Good morning, Cole.”
Violet glanced back and forth between the two of them. “I told Ms. Wright– er, I mean Shaun, that I was making you brunch. A spring omelet, actually.”
“I heard,” Cole replied, tone clipped.
“Sounds delicious, Violet. Well, don’t let me keep you two. Enjoy your day.” Shaun cut her eyes at Cole and took off before Violet could stop her. Cole wasn’t sure what he’d expected, but Shaun had acted as if she couldn’t wait to be out of his presence. As if all that had occurred between them meant nothing, and damn, did that make him feel even more insignificant. Maybe he had been right that night. Maybe she had only intended to use him all along.
“That was weird,” Violet said, taking one of the bags from Cole to fish out a root beer candy stick to suck on.
“Yeah,” Cole agreed, choosing to focus on something else for a change. “Let’s get out of here. We have the freshest,
most delicious omelet I’ve ever tasted to make.” Violet smiled wide in response, and they made their way back to her car.
Cole double-checked the address he had scribbled on a sticky note before taking a taxi downtown from the office. From the outside, the space looked dank and deserted, a rotted wooden storefront with patched windows. It was nothing like what he had expected after meeting Myles at the Wright dinner party. The night he had walked out on sex with Shaun.
Although his cock might never forgive him, Cole knew he had made the best decision for the both of them. Shaun appeared to not be in much of a hurry to see him again after Sunday, or at least that’s what his self-focused insecurities convinced him was the case. She had worked from home the whole of the Monday and hadn’t shown at the office Tuesday morning either. A small part of him wondered if she would bail on the meeting with Myles as well.
“Here goes nothing.” Cole reached for the worn door handle, but paused at the sound of a car pulling up to the curb. A black Jaguar coupe parked right in front of the poor excuse for a restaurant, and none other than Shaun stepped out from the driver side, as beautiful as ever. The car suited her – sporty elegance. Dressed in brown plaid dress pants, a taupe pinstripe button-down, and a matching plaid cropped vest that dipped low in the front, she attempted to walk past him, but Cole kept his hand on the door.
“Do you mind?” she asked, removing her sunglasses. Her floral scent put a chokehold on his cock and everything in between. “I’m not a fan of being late.”
“I wanted to talk to you about the party and Sunday.” Feet planted, he refused to budge.
“There is nothing to talk about, Cole. Now, if you would get out of the way, we have a very important meeting to attend right now.” She glanced down at her wristwatch to stress the notion of time.
Just like that, she’d shut him out again. After everything that had happened in the first few days of working for her, he would have agreed that he deserved to be treated with callous indifference, but not today. Not when he had kept her best interests in mind on Friday night.
Drawn Through You Page 11
