by Alex Wolf
They’re both standing there, cutting up and laughing.
“Hey, assholes. You mind? Fuck.”
Bill holds a hand up. “Sorry.” He can barely contain his laughter. “Couldn’t help ourselves. We’ve never seen you get your ass handed to you by a woman before. It was a special moment for us.”
I throw up a middle finger and turn around to head back out toward Harlow. I can hear them dying laughing behind me, but it disappears when the door shuts.
As soon as I walk toward the octagon, Harlow’s gone. Her bag is gone. Yep, I’m not finding her. Those sons of bitches.
I wheel around and they’ve walked out of the locker room. “She’s gone. You happy? Fucking worst cockblocks in the universe.”
Pedro shrugs. “Don’t worry, boss. She’ll be back.”
“What?” I stare at him like I could rip his head off.
“We saw the looks between you two. We know things, Mr. Never Cries at Weddings. Trust the romance to the pros.” He wags a finger between him and Bill.
Bill smiles. “He’s not lying. I don’t know anything about relationships, but a blind asshole could see the way you two look at each other.”
I can’t stop myself from smiling at what they both just said, because it sends a heat through my chest, knowing I’m not the only one who can see the chemistry between Harlow and me. “You’re a regular wordsmith.” I sit down and huff out a sigh. “She drives me fucking mad half the time and I can’t stay away from her.”
“Those are the symptoms.”
I glance up at them and grin, even if they did chase her off. “I’ve never felt like this before. Ever.”
Chapter Fourteen
Harlow Collins
It’s been several days since the kiss at the gym and I still can’t stop thinking about it. He makes my life so awkward. How did he even do that? Why did I do that? I was just on top of him, his granite, rock-hard body digging into mine, and it just happened.
That’s what I notice most about Cole Miller. Things just seem to happen when I’m around him. Things I would never dream of doing if I were sitting back and employing logic and reason to my decisions.
It makes my life so much more difficult. Right now, I’m meeting up with Dexter at The Gage and I need to talk business stuff with him, but all I can think about is making an attempt to tell him about Cole and see how he reacts. Would it be possible? Could I get them on board with this whole Cole Miller situation?
Do I want there to be a Cole Miller situation at all?
Yes, you do.
“Cousin!” Dex greets me as I walk up, and shit, most of the brothers are here with their fiancées and wives.
I thought this was supposed to be a one-on-one with Dex.
Rick Lawrence, their firm’s private investigator, is sitting with them too.
I walk up to Dex. “Hey, thought we were talking business?”
He shrugs. “I know, I got here early and everyone else was here, so I called Abby and she met up too.”
I frown but say hi to everyone to try and be nice. I make sure to say hello to my baby cousins as well. Quinn and Paisley are both pregnant, just a few months apart, I think. I can’t wait to hold the babies and spoil them. The Collins brothers may technically be my cousins, but let’s face it, it’s like having four intimidating big brothers.
Before long, the pack has separated into female and male conversations. It’s how it usually goes. I usually end up with the boys, and this time is no different. It’s not that I don’t like girly shit sometimes, if the mood is right, but I just fit in better with the men. They say what they mean, and you don’t have to spend an hour trying to decipher what the fuck they’re talking about, because they just come out and say it. It doesn’t take an hour to tell a simple story and go through eighteen subplots about shit I don’t care about. I like things straightforward.
“So, what’s going on with you? You’re being quiet,” says Decker.
I take a drink of scotch and realize Decker just asked me the question. All of them are staring.
I hate having this secret from them. It’s agonizing. I hate that it has to be a secret at all. So, I decide to just rip the band aid off. Fuck it. I like Cole and I don’t like to hide shit. “Not much. I went to Cole’s gym the other night.”
All of them freeze, and as the recognition sets in, all of their jaws tighten. I love this so much about them, and at the same time it pisses me off. This protective shit of theirs is interfering with my life. My blood starts to boil and my face heats up. I need to just leave it alone, but I can’t.
“What for?” says Dex.
“He wanted to show me some self-defense techniques.”
“That’s all?” says Deacon.
I glare back and forth at them. “What do you mean that’s all?” I get off my bar stool and take a step toward them. “Is there a problem with what I do?”
They all shrink back a little, but they still look mad as fuck.
Dex shakes his head. “No, Cole’s just a player.”
“Thought he was your best friend?” I fold my arms over my chest and glare.
Donavan gulps a little. We already had it out a while back when he acted like a total asshole to me when I was meeting with Dex about doing business with the firm, so he knows better than to open his mouth now.
Dex’s hands ball up into fists. “He is my best friend. That doesn’t mean I want him putting his hands on—”
I cut him off. “So, what? I’m never allowed to touch another man?”
“Look, Harlow.” Decker’s words trail off when my glare shifts to him.
“You guys want me to look into his background? I could do some digging.” Rick, the only one still grinning, decides to speak up.
I slowly turn toward him. I barely even know him, and I’m not exactly sure why he’s even involved in this conversation. “Who the fuck are you, and why are you talking?”
He holds both hands up, eyes wide. “Sorry, it was just a suggestion.” He rolls his eyes and mumbles, “It’s not like you didn’t already make out with him the other night during your training session.”
My blood pressure skyrockets, and I see all the brothers’ eyes get big the second he says it. I lunge toward him, and he drops his drink right in his lap and looks like he might piss himself. You wouldn’t know because whatever he was drinking soaks his pants.
Before I can get to him, Deacon and Dexter have me held back by each arm as I try to fight through it.
“You following me around like some kind of fucking pervert?”
“Fucking hell.” He jumps from his chair and stumbles a few steps back.
“Calm down, Harlow,” says Dex, right in my ear.
“Fuck that.” I spin around on him. “Did you have him do this? You having him follow me around?”
“No.” Dex looks like he might shit himself.
I don’t blame him. I can’t remember the last time I was this angry. The thought of that asshole watching me makes my skin crawl. How the hell does he know I made out with Cole on the mat in his gym?
“It’s just what he does. It’s why we pay him so much. He just knows shit.”
I turn around and start toward the door. “Fuck this, I’m out of here.” I take two steps and turn around and point a finger at them.
I can’t help but notice all the girls staring at me with their mouths agape.
“If I want to date Cole Miller, I will damn well date him or whoever I please. I love you guys to death, but you’re fucking out of line, so get your shit together or we’ll have a problem.”
The second I say that, all the girls turn their glares right at the brothers and Rick.
I walk out.
Fucking family. It’s like the best and worst thing all at the same time.
Once I’m outside, the fresh air hits me and the only thing I can think is why the hell did I just do that?
Why am I so damn adamant that they approve of Cole and me dating? I don’t want him in my l
ife right now. I can’t deal with a relationship right now, especially one with a cocky, arrogant, tattooed asshole.
You’re a damn liar, Harlow.
It hits me in the chest, all at once, what I just did too. They’ll probably hate Cole now. I shouldn’t have done that. I just feel like I’m in a cage, powerless. If I want to date Cole Miller, I should be able to without being guilt-tripped and glared at by the people I love most in this world. It’s not fair.
Yeah, I shouldn’t date anyone right now, but it should be my choice. Not theirs.
I get about halfway down the street and I hear, “Harlow, wait up.”
What the hell?
Paisley, Tate, Quinn, and Abigail are all walking after me. Great, just what I need, some girl talk. I’d rather walk into oncoming traffic than endure what’s about to happen.
“You okay?” Tate eyes me carefully, like she does with everyone. I swear it feels like she can read my mind sometimes, Paisley too.
I shrug. “I don’t know. Sorry about making a scene back there, I’m just, yeah. Dealing with some shit.”
Quinn reaches over for my arm, and I pull away. It’s just a reaction. I don’t like people touching me like that. If I want physical contact, I’ll initiate it on my terms.
I know she’s just being nice, though, and now I feel like a bitch. “Sorry.”
“Don’t be,” says Quinn. “We just want to make sure you’re okay. We know you can be, well, you, but that seemed different back there.”
“Look, I love your husband like a brother.” I turn to the others. “I love all of them more than anything. They’re assholes, but they’re my assholes and I’d die for them. But they’re crossing boundaries. I got it when I was fourteen, but I’m twenty-six. They need to let me be an adult.”
“You’re damn right they do, and I don’t blame you for letting them have it. And Cole Miller is hot as fuck,” says Tate. “So if you want to date him, fuck him, whatever the hell, just do it.”
I glance back down toward The Gage, where all four Collins brothers are still inside at the bar. As much as I can’t stand them right now, I don’t want to disappoint them. They’re my heroes as much as my dad and my uncle. I’m closer to them than anyone else in the world and I don’t want to lose them. I don’t want to choose.
Tate reads me like a book, like she always does. She squares up in front of me. “You do whatever you want. We’ll take care of them. Okay?”
I nod, just slightly.
“What they’re doing comes from a good place, but they’re severely misguided and we’ll straighten their asses out. We can make their lives hell, and they know it.”
“The worst part is, I don’t even know if I want something to happen between me and him. I’m just confused, and I want it to be my choice. They’re making it worse, though. Even if they’re nice to me, how are they going to treat him?”
Paisley steps forward. “Don’t worry, they’ll behave. I promise.”
“Okay, thanks.” I gesture down the street. “I need to go.”
I bend down and tell Quinn and Paisley’s bellies I love them once more, then I walk off.
What the hell did I just set in motion? What did I just do?
Chapter Fifteen
Cole Miller
To say I’m nervous is an understatement, but this woman drives me fucking batty.
This is a bad idea.
She’ll never go along with it.
My inner voice is such a pussy sometimes. I’m Cole fucking Miller. Despite my little pep talk, my heart kicks up a notch with every step I take toward Harlow’s office. From what I’ve gathered, she’s a workaholic. If my plan fails, I can always resort to talking about business, though. It’s foolproof. I’ve never doubted myself in my life, but I doubt every goddamn decision I make regarding Harlow Collins, because our situation feels so damn fragile. We’re like a plate spinning on a pencil. One tiny vibration and it shatters all over the floor.
I take a step inside and the place is bare-bones and empty. Shit, is she even here?
There’s no bell ring thingie on the door, no receptionist. Just a few pieces of artwork, and one chair. The walls are white like nobody even bothered to paint them.
“Hello?”
Nothing.
I walk toward the little hall that leads back to what I’m assuming are offices. It’s just one office and a small conference room, though. It looks like a chop shop for the stock market, like in Boiler Room or something. Like she needs to be ready to flee an FBI raid at a moment’s notice.
I peek through the door and Harlow’s sitting there, staring at another woman on a huge screen who’s talking, but Harlow has a pair of headphones on.
I walk up behind her and it must be a video conference. The woman on the TV sees me and smiles. I hold up a finger and do the shh thing. This is going to be epic.
When I get to Harlow, I tap her on the shoulder, and she goes flying up out of the chair, trips, and lands straight on her ass. Her chest heaves up and down, and she leers at me through the headphones which are now twisted halfway around her face. If I were a decent man, I’d look away because I can see straight up her skirt, but instead I glance for just a quick second then smirk right at her.
Mother of God.
She looks like she wants to murder me. There is literal murder in her eyes and for some reason I can’t stop snickering. The whole thing is just hilarious.
She jumps to her feet, slings the headphones at the wall, cuts the video feed, and I can hear her forcing air into her lungs straight through her nose, like a bull about to charge a matador. There’s a split-second, a quick pause, then she comes at me. This time, I’m ready for her feeble attempts at basic Jiu Jitsu, though. I easily wrap her up and have one arm pinned behind her, my other hand holding her around the throat, my chest to her back. It pushes my cock up against her ass, and I’m hard as a fucking rock. Irritated Harlow Collins is the best Harlow Collins.
I pull her even harder to me.
“Let. Go. Of. Me.”
I whisper, “Are you going to calm down?” I make sure to exhale the words down her neck, and it’s not lost on me that asking a woman to calm down elicits the exact opposite reaction of what the question suggests.
“I won’t repeat myself.” Despite her words, her body relaxes against mine. She loves every second of this shit, doesn’t want it to end, but she’s too hard-headed to let me win.
I love that about her.
“Why don’t you get yourself out of this situation? Like you did last time? You’re a big badass right? You can work all alone up here, and nobody could ever take advantage of the mighty, strong Harlow Collins.”
She squirms against my hold, and I tighten it, just to let her know I can subdue her any time I damn well please if I want. Not to mention, I know this shit is turning her on like crazy.
Harlow Collins is no ordinary woman, though. She’s smart. Very smart.
She relaxes a little. “Maybe I don’t want to. Maybe I like it.”
“You know you fucking do. You can’t hide from me, Harlow.”
A soft moan parts her lips, and she grinds her ass slowly, right against my cock.
Fuck, I want her so damn bad right now. It’s torture to the nth degree. How hot would office sex with Harlow be? Bend her over this table and stare out at the Chicago skyline, so the whole world would see she’s mine and only mine.
Right when I loosen my hold on her, I know it’s a mistake.
She wheels around and shoves me in the chest. I go flying right over a chair in her office and land right on my ass. Before I even hit the ground, she’s pointing at the door.
“Get the fuck out of my office.”
I should be embarrassed that I just let that happen, but I’m not. I’m amused. I’m literally falling for this woman more every second I’m around her. I shake my head at her, slowly, grinning the entire time.
“I’ll call security and have them escort you out.”
“I’ll s
ign autographs for them and their kids, then take you on a date.”
What I say is so preposterous to her she laughs. “Is that so, Miller?”
She’s still laughing, though. Smiling. Goddamn, that smile on her face. Nobody else makes her smile like I do.
I nod and make my way to my feet. She looks like she’s calmed down a little. I think I just startled her, and fight or flight kicked in. Fight is always going to win with Harlow, not to mention she had nowhere to go.
Goddamn, she’s amazing. And gorgeous. And I get lost in her eyes and time doesn’t even seem to exist when I look at her.
She looks away when she sees the way I’m staring at her. “I have work to do. It’s the middle of the afternoon.”
I hold out a hand this time, letting her make the decision on her own. “Come on. Work can wait.”
She stands there, slightly shaking her head back and forth. “This is such a bad idea. So fucking bad. It’s the worst.”
“But you’re gonna do it.”
“What the hell makes you think that?”
I grin. “Because you feel the same way I do. I should be at work right now too. It’s eating me up inside, but I can’t fight this. I just know it’s right.”
She glances to my hand, then back up at me again. Finally, she takes it, shaking her head the whole time. “I don’t know how you do this to me.”
“The fucking feeling is mutual. Trust me.”
The car ride over is somewhat quiet for a bit, then I reach in the backseat and grab the flowers I brought and hand them to her. They’re black roses. I thought it was a nice touch.
She jolts a little when I set them in her lap. “What the hell is this?”
“Flowers. Women love flowers.”
“Not me.” She stops for a second. “Wait, why didn’t you bring them up? Isn’t that what men normally do when they ask someone on a date?”
I shrug. “I didn’t want to look like a pussy carrying them into your office. I thought there’d be people there.”
