by Zoe York
Scarlett bit her lip.
That sounded nice in theory, except she already cared for him a great deal. She’d exposed herself and connected with him in a way she hadn’t been prepared for. Deep down she knew she was well on her way to loving him, and that was where the danger lay. If she stayed on this path and fell for him, and then if he decided he didn’t want the same thing as her, he could destroy her. Could she handle that?
* * *
* * *
Cole was running off coffee and his cup was empty. He’d been in better shape than Scarlett that morning, that was for sure. The woman was a lightweight. He’d have to remember that in the future.
He checked his watch.
There was an hour break in the schedule he wanted to use to research food options for two diabetic patients. His go to brand wasn’t appetizing to one, and the other hadn’t responded to the special food the way they’d hoped. With all the new products hitting the market every year, he hoped to find a new solution for both. But that meant time and research.
He strode to the front of the clinic. The break room coffee pot was empty, but they kept a small machine in the lobby stocked for patients. He was hoping to make this his last cup of the day, so there was no need to brew a whole new pot.
“Afternoon, Luna,” he called out.
“Busy morning, huh?” She shuffled the papers around.
“That it was.”
“You had fun last night I heard.” Luna delivered the line as easy and breezy as though she weren’t fishing for information.
The picture of Scarlett laying in his bed, a pillow crammed under her head and her lip pinched between her lips came to mind. He hadn’t wanted to bring up the topic of labeling what they were to each other. If he did, he’d push too far. But she’d surprised him, wanting the same thing he did. Exclusivity that went hand in hand with their promise to be honest with each other.
“Yeah, I learned that the bartender at The Watering Hole has a heavy hand and my girlfriend is a lightweight.” Cole watched his cup fill, but he didn’t miss the beat of silence.
“I don’t think I’ve ever heard of Scarlett going to The Hole.” Luna turned toward him, her eyes twinkling. “Liam got a kick out of it. Said you two were getting real close. You better watch out for her brother.”
“You mean her cousin, Garth?”
“They are cousins, aren’t they?” Luna squinted. “I always forget that. Well, it sounds like you’ve landed on your feet. I wish I was surprised AK bailed on you the way she did.”
Cole didn’t know how to respond about Allie. She wasn’t perfect, but he’d been complicit in her plans to move them toward the altar. He hadn’t loved her though, and he’d known it. Deep down he hadn’t wanted to be with Allie as much as he’d wanted to belong somewhere.
It was because of Allie that he’d found his place here in Ransom. With Scarlett. He couldn’t be upset about that.
He crossed to the desk and set his coffee down on the tall counter overlooking the reception area.
“Don’t be too hard on Allie, okay? We weren’t a good fit for each other. I can see that now. She did the right thing.” Even if he didn’t like how she’d broken it off.
“Most guys would be pissed and bitter, but you aren’t.”
“Hindsight and distance. It’s perspective is all.” He shrugged.
“Well, I hope you and Scarlett have better luck. You look cute together.”
“Thanks.” Cole smiled. “I’ll be in my office if you need me.”
He beat a hasty retreat before Luna drew him into any further conversation. Things with Scarlett were good, but he couldn’t help feeling as though there was a shoe drop in his future. Something this good couldn’t last, could it? For a guy like him?
Try as he might, his research project wasn’t holding his attention. He clicked around the internet, following links and reading ingredient lists, but his head was foggy and his attention kept snapping back to Scarlett.
He cared for her a lot. He was scared of losing her, something he’d never worried about before. This thing with her was powerful, and it mattered. He hadn’t been looking for anything when Scarlett captured his attention, and now he couldn’t see himself without her.
She wanted a family and kids. Could he see himself in that picture?
With her it wasn’t a scary idea.
He glanced at his drawer where he’d locked his phone away to keep him focused.
One text wouldn’t hurt.
He unlocked the drawer and unlocked the screen.
There was no text or call or anything from Scarlett, but he did have one missed call.
From Hope House.
Cole swallowed.
Someone had called him back.
Was it Cal? Or maybe his wife?
What if this was their message to leave them alone?
What if it wasn’t?
Cole wanted to get up and go find Scarlett. She’d tell him to call back, he knew she would. But he wanted to hear her say it.
He glanced at the clock. Half an hour until his next appointment.
He hit dial and bounced his foot.
The last time he’d seen Cal was the morning CPS took him away. Cole had gone to school, but Cal and the others were sick. Cole hadn’t gotten to say goodbye. They were just there, then gone.
“Hope House,” a woman said in a sing-song voice. “This is Eve.”
Shit.
Cole pressed his hand to his mouth.
Cal’s wife.
She didn’t want Cole to have anything to do with them. He couldn’t blame her.
“Hello?” the woman said.
“Yeah, hi.” Cole cleared his throat. “Hi, Eve.”
Silence.
More silence.
“Cole?” the woman said slowly.
Cal was happy. Cole had to believe that. And all Cole would do was fuck that up.
“Yeah.” He squeezed his eyes shut. “I’m sorry about the messages. I shouldn’t have—”
“Oh my God.” The line rustled. “Cal! Cal, come in here now.”
“No—Eve. I mean…” Cole got up and paced the small office.
He should have waited. He should have driven up the hill to Scarlett. This was all going wrong.
“What?” a man asked, his voice faint.
“It’s him. It’s your brother,” Eve whispered.
The line rustled more. Cole could hear the faint sound of breathing.
“Cole?” the man said.
“Yeah. That’s me.” His stomach sank to the floor.
“Holy—oh, my God.” The man sounded nothing like the kid Cole remembered.
Then again Cal had always been a bit of a pipsqueak. Silly. Prone to laughing a lot. He’d been a clown. The bright spot to Cole’s day.
“You had a lot more to say last night,” Cal said. A laugh vibrated in his voice.
“I had a lot more courage, I think.” Cole chuckled, but it was a wooden sound.
“How are you? Where are you? I’ve got so many questions.” Cal spoke in a rush, without hardly a breath.
“You always could ask them faster than I could answer.” Cole shook his head.
“That hasn’t changed.” Cal laughed, and that was familiar.
“No, it hasn’t,” Eve said in the background.
“I—I’m good. The rest is kind of a crazy story. I, um, well. I just moved to Texas.”
“Where?” Eve demanded.
“I’m in Ransom, just—”
“I know where that is,” Eve said.
“Hush. I can’t hear over you.” Cal whispered something to his wife.
“Your sisters are going to be so excited,” Eve gushed.
“Sisters?” Cole braced his hand on the table.
“Yeah. They’re both in class right now. We didn’t call and tell them yet because they’re both stressed out about exams.” Cal kept talking in his rapid fire way. The boy hadn’t changed all that much.
Cole leane
d against the desk and listened.
The three of them had been adopted. Cal had said we. They’d got to stay a family. That was the best damn news.
Silence.
“I’m sorry, can you say that again?” Cole realized he must have lapsed. Yeah, he’d done that when Cal was little, too.
“Take a breath,” Eve chided her husband.
“I’m sorry, I’m just—this is amazing. We’ve talked about trying to find you, figure out what happened, but… The girls were scared of finding out, I think. I mean…”
“Were you guys happy? After?” Cole asked.
“Yeah, you know, our mother was a lot of things, but in the end she did right by us.”
“What?” Cole frowned, not following.
“The family she found to adopt us?”
“Wait—what?” Now Cole felt the rug yanked out from under him. He slid down into the guest chair and leaned forward. “What—are you saying that she arranged for the three of you to be adopted?”
“You…didn’t know that?” Cal asked.
“No. I went to school, came home, you guys were gone, and she said—she said CPS came for you. That it was just us then.” Because at the time Mom had been between men. It was one of the few times they were truly alone.
“You stayed with her?” Eve gasped.
“But she told us…” Cal’s voice trailed off.
Cole closed his eyes and shook his head. Their mother was a lot of things. Cal was right about that. Cole wished he could be surprised by this revelation, but he wasn’t. It was another strange chapter.
“I lived with Mom until I was…seventeen? I moved into an apartment with some friends then, got my GED early and started college. I saw her a couple times over the next few years, but I got fed up with her and cut ties when I was twenty. She always said CPS came and took the three of you away.”
“I can’t—I don’t understand,” Cal said.
“Don’t try to understand. I stopped.” Cole heaved a sigh.
“Okay, I think we need to get together,” Eve announced.
“Yeah, I’m sorry to call and run, but I have patients coming in soon.” Cole glanced at the clock.
“You’re a doctor?” Eve asked.
“For animals,” he clarified.
“Seriously?” Cal laughed.
“What’s so funny?”
“It’s perfect. It’s so damn perfect I could cry. I’ve told Eve about all your pets. Hey, remember that tank of tadpoles you kept hidden in the closet and how mad Mom was when they turned into frogs and hopped around?”
“Oh, God.” Cole shook his head.
“Dr. Odell?” Luna appeared in the doorway.
“Sorry, guys. I’ve got to go. Let me know when and where to meet you. I’ll make it happen.”
Eve and Cal called out goodbye as he hung up.
Still nothing from Scarlett. He wanted to tell her this update, but it was the kind of thing he should share in person.
“You look happy,” Luna commented, narrowing her gaze.
“Today is one of the best days of my life.” And he meant it.
He was going to see his brother and sisters for the first time in twenty years. He had a woman he cared about. And a place he belonged. It was everything he’d never had before, and he was going to hold on to it.
Chapter 11
Cole stared at the doors leading into the restaurant. He couldn’t recall the name of the place or take his eyes off that point to look at the sign. Ever since his phone call with Cal and Eve this morning he’d been operating in a daze. This wasn’t the hangover or lack of sleep. He was wound too tight for that. Anticipation and anxiety had his stomach in knots. He’d changed his shirt twice before leaving the house due to sweat.
He was a wreck.
Without looking at his phone he hit dial again and listened to the ringing.
Once. Three times. Five.
Voicemail.
He ended the call before Scarlett’s voice could tease him.
She’d been pretty rough that morning. Chances were she’d gone to work and was passed out already. He wanted her to be there with him, but this was all happening so fast. He couldn’t fault her for nursing her hangover.
A couple strolled toward the door of the restaurant. The man was in cargo shorts and a T-shirt. The woman wore leggings with a long, loose dress that draped over her pregnant belly. The entry light caught the man in profile as he glanced down at the woman with strawberry blonde hair, a grin curving his mouth.
Cole knew that face. That grin. His cheeks had been rounder with that chubby baby fat thing still going for him, but it was the same smile. Cal had always been a happy kid. Infectious. It was hard to tell anything else about Cal other than his hair was still dark.
And he was twenty feet away.
“Shit.” Cole blew out a breath and scrambled to open his door.
What did he say?
Was this a bad idea?
Why couldn’t Scarlett have answered his SOS?
“Cal?” Cole blurted.
The man and woman froze with the restaurant door open.
Cal’s wide eyes locked with Cole’s.
This was really happening.
Cole put one foot in front of the other, both dreading and excited about this moment. Just because Cal had been excited to hear from him earlier today didn’t mean history hadn’t reared its head.
Eve put her hand on Cal’s arm. He glanced at her then let go of the door and took a step toward Cole. One step turned into five, then they were toe to toe. Cal didn’t hesitate. He wrapped his arms around Cole in a tight bear hung, saving Cole from trying to figure out the appropriate greeting.
“It’s great to see you,” Cal said and pounded Cole’s shoulder.
Up close he could tell that Cal’s hair was still curly. His eyes had darkened to a deep green and he no longer had that gap between his front teeth.
“You, too.” Cole squeezed his brother back, noting that even as an adult Cal was barely chin-high.
“I see freckles are still a family thing.” Eve stood back, one hand on her stomach.
“Yeah, and he got all the height.” Cal turned and gestured at his wife. “Cole, meet my better half.”
“Nice to meet you both.” Cole glanced at her stomach. He couldn’t help it. His baby brother was going to have a baby.
“Let’s go inside and sit down.” Cal ushered them through the doors.
Cole stood back while Cal got them a table, one hand always brushing his wife’s arm or on the small of her back.
They were in love. And happy from the looks of it.
The hostess seated them in a cushy booth. Their waiter was there immediately to deliver menus and take their drink order, all which gave Cole a moment to catch his breath. A few months ago when he’d begun this search he’d thought it would be pointless. And now here he was sitting across from his brother and sister-in-law.
He had family. Real blood family.
For a moment they sat there staring at each other.
“Can I just say that I’m so excited to meet you?” Eve leaned forward.
“I keep thinking I’m going to wake up.” Cole dragged his hand over his face. “I was out late last night with my girlfriend. Today just feels like a blur.”
“You have a girlfriend?” Eve propped her elbow on the table.
“Don’t get ahead of yourself.” Cal chuckled at his wife. “I want to know how you got here. What have you been doing? How are you? How did you end up here?”
“That’s…quite a story.” Cole wiped his hands on his jeans.
“Start at the beginning then. Make me wait to hear about this girlfriend.” Eve sighed heavily.
“Ignore her. She’s on a big romance book kick lately.”
“Lately?” Eve arched a brow at Cal.
“Fine. More than usual.” He leaned over and kissed Eve’s cheek.
“Well, I was engaged. My former fiancé grew up in Ransom and insisted she
wanted to get married and live close to her family. She got cold feet and left me…” Cole frowned. It felt like months ago. “A month or six weeks, maybe two months ago? Doesn’t matter.”
“She left you and you’re here?” Eve stared, her eyes wide.
“We’d already leased a house. I’d quit one job, had another lined up. All our things were on a truck. It was a done deal. So here I am.” Cole shrugged.
“And your new girlfriend…?”
“Scarlett.” He nodded. “She manages the venue we were going to get married at. It sounds crazy and fast, I know. My ex and I weren’t in love, we were just…together.”
“And with Scarlett?” Eve had both elbows on the table now, her chin in her hands.
“It’s… We’re more serious about each other than I ever was with my fiancé.” Cole stared at the table for a moment. How had he ever thought he could be happy with AK?
“Was it love at first sight?”
“Eve.” Cal sighed.
“What?” Eve glanced at her husband and frowned.
“Don’t pressure him.”
“It’s a valid question.”
“It was something at first sight,” Cole admitted. “She was covered in mud fighting with a pig, so I don’t know if I’d call it love. But I knew when we met there was just something there.”
“Oh, that’s romantic.” Eve sighed. “Where is she? You should have brought her.”
“She was not doing so great this morning. We drank a little too much, and she’s a lightweight. I’m guessing she worked then crashed. I didn’t have the heart to go bug her into coming out with me tonight.”
“Well, I can’t wait to meet her. And the girls.” Eve glanced at Cal. “Your sisters are going to be so excited.”
“How are they?” Cole asked.
“Good.” Cal’s reply wasn’t as enthusiastic.
“Okay,” Cole said slowly.
“Cal.” Eve poked her husband. “He’s your brother.”
“Sorry.” Cal shook his head. “The girls are good. Really good. They’re both down in Austin on their first year of college. We’ve been really nervous about this. You remember our mother’s boyfriend right before we left?”
“I remember.” Cole clenched his hands into fists. “I always had a bad feeling about that guy.”
