by Cathryn Fox
As she thought about Cole, she wondered if he might have changed his mind about attending the charity event. Now that they shared a common goal and he was getting involved in her no-kill shelter, would he want to attend to learn more about her cause?
Benefactors would love to hear stories about bomb-hunting dogs working in the field, and how he and his comrades wanted to train new service dogs and place them in the hands of ex-soldiers. If he took the podium, it would go a long way to help them both. Except Cole was a private guy, one who held his secrets close—compliments of a hard childhood no doubt—and it wouldn’t be right for her to ask him to step out of his comfort zone to help her in such a manner. He was already doing enough as it was. And honestly, it wouldn’t be fair of her to ask him to dredge up memories from the field. After what he’d been through, it couldn’t be easy for him, or any soldier, to rehash those dark days.
A noise at her door had her glancing up from her screen. Ripples of sensual pleasure danced over her skin when she spotted Cole lounging casually against the doorjamb. By God, no man should ever look that good.
Desire turned to worry as she thought about why he’d be here. “Is Charlie okay?”
“He’s home resting.”
She angled her head. “Why are you here?”
“I thought I’d walk you home.”
Knowing it wasn’t in her best interest to spend any more time with him than necessary, she said, “I can walk myself.”
“It’s dark.”
“I’m not afraid of the dark.”
“You used to be.”
“I used to be a lot of things,” she countered, remembering how shadows created monsters on her walls when she was young and how Cole would stay with her until she fell fast asleep.
Everything in the way he looked at her, the way he dropped his head and drove his hands deep into his pockets, reminded her of the Cole from her youth. She thought about the boy who’d searched all night for her during a raging thunderstorm when she went riding in the woods and lost her way, a boy who’d held her hair back when she’d snuck out to a party, drank too much and became violently ill. A boy who’d turned into a man and didn’t want her the same way she wanted him, which gave credence to her logic to keep her distance from him.
“It’s on my way,” he said.
She arched a curious brow. “I thought you said you were moving out of Jack’s today.”
“I did.”
The way he averted his gaze instantly gave her pause. She took a moment to focus her thoughts. As understanding dawned in small increments, a slow burn began deep in her belly. She climbed from her chair and braced her hands on her desk.
“You’re the one who bought the condo across from mine, aren’t you?” she asked, praying she was wrong.
“Yeah,” he said. “It’s nice and close to work.”
Nice and close to work my ass.
Her heart began beating wildly and anger surged through her veins as her brain leaped to the most logical conclusions. “Cole, seriously,” she said, shaking her head. “Tell me you didn’t buy that place because it’s across from mine and you want to keep an eye on me because you still think you need to protect me.”
“Gems, it’s not like that,” he said, but from the way he was shifting his feet she knew it was just like that.
“I don’t need a bodyguard,” she bit out.
“Gems—” he began, swaying like a guilty schoolboy standing before his principal, but when she took in his watchful eyes she cut him off.
“Fine, then,” she said. As she moved swiftly across the room her mind raced with outlandish ideas before her inner bad girl settled on the most devious one. “You can play it your way,” she added. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t play by her own rules. If Cole insisted on watching over her, she would damn well give him something to watch. And maybe, just maybe, in the process it would alter his perception of her and he’d finally see she was all woman.
What the hell did she think she was doing?
Night blanketed the city as Cole stood near his living room window, watching Gemma mill about her condo through the crack in her curtains. His condo might be the only one with a direct view into her place, but if someone passed by on the street, they could easily see her barely clad body moving from one room to another.
Dressed in a silky little piece of nothing that had his passion-rattled mind urging him to go over there and fuck some sense back into her, he fisted his hands, drove them into his pockets and rocked back and forth on his heels.
A slow tremor worked its way through his body. His cock, still hard since setting sight on her four days ago, when she’d answered her door in a silky nightgown, was ready to break through its zippered barrier and rise up for a front row seat. Seeing her standing there looking all warm, soft, sexy and sleepy, had him aching to capture her in his arms and carry her straight back to her bed. Once he had her where he wanted her he’d climb between those long legs of hers and bury his mouth in the apex of her thighs—something he’d been dreaming of doing for far too long now. Christ, what he wouldn’t have done to spend the rest of that day making her scream for him. And scream she would. He growled, and on the floor near his feet, Charlie, who had healed up quite nicely since his surgery, thumped his tail.
Cole gave a hard shake of his head in a failed effort to clear it. He’d been watching her for three long nights now, going into his fourth, and he was pretty sure the girl next door—one who suddenly seemed more seductive than sweet—was up to her old tricks, teasing and tormenting him to the point of distraction.
“That girl is going to be the death of me,” he said to his dog, and Charlie gave a whimper, like he was fully aware of Cole’s discomfort.
The light in her living room flicked off. Cole shifted, about to grab a cold beer to help tamp down the heat inside him when her bathroom light came on. Jesus, with her curtains parted he could see her standing in front of her mirror, her hands gripping the hem of her camisole. He swallowed, hard, and tried not to look. He really did. But by God, even though ogling the half-naked beauty across the street was all kind of wrong, there was nothing he could do to tear his gaze away from the woman who’d become the object of his obsession. After all, he was a man, and a man only had so much willpower.
She peeled her top off to expose the most luscious breasts he’d ever set eyes on. As lust settled deep in his groin his cock throbbed, aching for attention. Working to summon a modicum of control as she wiggled, he gripped the windowpane and swallowed down the saliva pooling in his mouth. He couldn’t see below her waist, but from the way her breasts were swaying, her long dark curls flaring around her face, he could only guess she was shimmying out of her panties.
Fuck.
She turned her back to the window and reached into her shower to turn it on. If he wasn’t mistaken she shot a sassy glance his way before climbing in. Son of a bitch. She really was fucking with him.
Cole backed away and headed straight for his fridge. He grabbed a beer, cracked it open and took a long swallow. After draining half the contents in one gulp, he dropped it onto his counter and looked around. If he didn’t find something to do with his hands he was either going to take his cock into them or go over there and fuck the hell out of her.
Just then his phone rang and he was thankful for the distraction. He grabbed the receiver.
“Yeah,” he said, trying for normal.
“Cole, it’s Jack. You busy?”
Cole grunted. Here it was Saturday night and he was home watching the sexy girl next door get ready for her banquet when he should be out prowling. What he needed was a woman to help take his mind off his friend’s kid sister and all the ways he’d like to fuck her.
“The guys and I are going to the park to shoot hoops.”
“I’m on my way.” He hung the phone up and looked at Charlie. “Let’s go, boy.”
Cole spent the next hour shooting hoops with the guys while the dogs played in the park. But not even
the exercise, sweat or camaraderie could help take his mind off Gemma. He continually tripped up and missed even the easiest of shots.
Josh razzed him about being off his game as Cole reached for his towel, deciding he’d had enough. “I’d better get Charlie home,” he said, knowing it was a half-truth. Some part of him was anxious to get back to his place, to catch a glimpse of Gemma before she left for her event.
“What time are we on for tomorrow?” Josh asked, taking another shot.
Cole might have spent the last few nights watching over Gemma but his days had been spent at the abandoned base with his comrades. Jack’s father had called in a few favors and managed to get approval to use the space. The four guys had already erected a detection wall inside one of the compounds and were now building boxes to take training one step further. Once they had everything in place they’d be able to test the dogs and determine which could be trained.
“Early, I want to be done before the heat of the day hits.”
After a round of agreements the guys dispersed. Cole leashed Charlie, tucked his ball under his arm and made the short trek back to his place. When he rounded the corner he spotted a limousine outside Gemma’s condo. A man climbed from the back seat. As Cole looked him over, a surge of possessiveness raced through him. Picking up his pace, he closed the distance between them and the second he caught a glimpse of Gemma exiting her condo, his breath left his lungs in a rush.
She was dressed in a form-fitting, sexy black cocktail dress that hugged her curves and showcased a supple body. While his fingers itched to caress her, she accepted the arm of her date. At first she didn’t see Cole standing in the shadows, but then Charlie barked, excited to see the woman who’d stitched him up.
She turned, and her hand went to her chest. “Cole,” she said, sounding breathless as she peered at him. “I didn’t see you there.”
“Gems,” he returned and switched his attention to her date, taking note of his expensive suit and how everything about him screamed wealth—the kind of guy her mother would want her to marry.
She quickly recovered from the shock of seeing him and said, “This is Douglas Washington. Douglas, this is Cole Sullivan.” A pause and then, “Cole and I go way back.”
A confused look came over Douglas’s face as his glance moved over Cole’s sweaty clothes. He greeted Cole with a curt nod before he put his mouth close to Gemma’s ear and said, “We’re running a bit late, darling.” She nodded and he slipped his hand around her back to guide her to the waiting vehicle.
Seconds before she got into the car she said, “If you change your mind, we’ll be at Grand Union Ballroom and there’ll be an invitation waiting for you at the doors.”
Charlie barked and Cole watched her drive off. While he should walk away, considering Douglas Washington was the kind of guy she should be going out with—rich, sophisticated, a guy from the right side of the tracks—he couldn’t bring himself to back off. Truthfully, he should be blessing the union, yet there was something about the guy that rubbed him the wrong way. Perhaps it was his arrogance, or perhaps it was simply because he was escorting Gemma to her event.
Either way, he didn’t like the guy, and if he wanted to keep the vow he made to her brother, he had no choice but to go to the banquet and watch over her from a distance. He twisted back around, because while he didn’t own an expensive suit himself, he knew Jack would. After all, he wasn’t known as Jack of all trades for nothing, and as the son of a general, he attended many formal events. Ten minutes later, he and Charlie stood outside Jack’s door.
He knocked twice, then found Jack staring at him. Colby came over to greet Charlie, and since both dogs were tired after playing in the park, they went to the water bowl before dropping onto Colby’s bed next to the television.
“I need a suit,” Cole said, giving his friend a glance over, thankful they were the same size.
Jack laughed. “You? In a suit?”
“Do you have one or not?” he bit out, much harsher than he intended. But goddammit, Gemma had completely thrown him off his game and lit a dangerous fuse inside him, one he’d better find a way to extinguish before he did something he could only regret later.
“What’s gotten into you? You look like you’re ready to go off.”
“Nothing,” he said, raking his hands through his hair. “Look, I didn’t mean to bark, it’s just…I think I should go to the benefit tonight.”
“You want to go to the benefit?”
“Yeah. If we’re going to help Gemma out, I should learn a little more about what she’s trying to do over there.” While it wasn’t a lie, it wasn’t the entire truth either. But he wasn’t about to tell his friend, a guy who took him in when he had nowhere else to go, that he couldn’t stand the idea of Gemma being there with another man. Fuck. There was an unwritten rule amongst his comrades, an honor amongst the brotherhood. They took care of each other’s families, they didn’t lust after them, and Jack was fully aware Gemma was his late friend’s kid sister.
Jack gave him a long, thoughtful look before disappearing into his bedroom. He came back with a suit inside a zipped garment bag. He handed it over and asked, “You sure you know what you’re doing, Cole?”
“Yeah,” he lied, never more uncertain in his life. “Can I leave Charlie with you? I don’t want him alone for any length of time after his surgery.”
“You know it,” Jack said. “Colby would love the company.”
Leaving his dog in good hands, he tossed the fabric bag over his shoulder and hurried back to his condo. He jumped in the shower, then dressed. Close to an hour later, after opting for his truck over his bike, he made his way to the other side of town.
He stepped into the grand entrance and took in the opulence of the upscale hotel. A concierge made his way over to him. “Right this way, sir,” he said, guiding him through the lobby to the ballroom at the far end.
A woman sat outside the closed doors and smiled politely as she asked for his invitation.
“Cole Sullivan,” he said, trying not to fidget or pull on his starched collar.
“Yes, of course.” She sifted through the envelopes on her table until she found the one with his name on it. “But you’ve missed the speeches,” she said and pulled open the door for him.
Cole walked into the dimly lit ballroom and took note of the people milling about. A waiter came by with a glass of champagne. Even though he was a beer drinking kind of guy, he accepted to be polite. Keeping to the shadows, he scanned the room, looking for Gemma. The second he saw her, his entire body tightened with a need that nearly rendered him senseless.
His throat dried as he watched from a distance, taking in the familiarity of her hand gestures as she spoke passionately to a benefactor. As he registered every delicious inch of her, he drew a fueling breath and noted the slow tremor making its way through his body. He worked to bank his desires, but unfortunately, his damn cock refused to cooperate. Watching her for the last few days had played havoc with his libido, and there was no denying she’d gotten under his skin in a way no woman had ever done before. He panned her contours and the sight of her in that sexy cocktail dress evoked a myriad of sinful thoughts, mainly going over there and dragging her to one of the rooms upstairs where he could finally have his way with her.
“Cole,” a familiar voice said, and he turned to see Audrey Matthews coming his way, her arms outstretched. Shifting his stance and knowing he’d been caught admiring Gemma, by none other than her mother, he took a swig of champagne to wet his parched throat.
“Audrey, how are you?” He bent to give her a hug. “I’ve been meaning to call.”
Blue eyes that mirrored Gemma’s glistened as Audrey looked him over. “Gemma said you were back.”
“Yeah, and listen, I meant—”
“Oh, don’t be silly, Cole. I know you’re busy and you’ll come by when you get the chance.” She gave him a wink and added, “Besides, you’ve been in the field a long time and probably had a few oats
in need of sowing before you did anything else.”
Uncomfortable with the direction of their conversation, especially because he’d been caught lusting after her daughter, Cole tugged on his tie. “I…uh.”
She waved a white-gloved hand. “Oh now, no need to be embarrassed.” Just then, a woman stepped up to Audrey and spoke quietly to her. As they conversed, Cole studied Audrey, happy to see how well she was doing. The last time he’d seen her she’d had the strain of losing a son all over her face.
When the woman left, she turned back to Cole. “Gemma told me how you, Jack and the others were going to help her cause. You’re a good boy, Cole.” Her voice dropped, became conspiratorial. “You know, I’m glad you came home when you did. Gemma is living all alone now, and I don’t like it one little bit.”
“Don’t worry, Audrey. Nothing will happen to her as long as I’m around.”
She smiled. “That’s my Cole. I knew I could count on you.” She blew an exaggerated breath. “But I realize you have your own life and until I get her married off and know she has a man in her house to protect her every night, I’ll never rest.” She blinked up at him. “Promise me you’ll stay as close to her as possible until that happens.”
“I promise.”
As his gaze strayed to Gemma, he watched her back straighten and he instantly got the impression she knew he was here. Her eyes scanned the room and when they locked on his, passion and heat swimming in their stormy ocean blue depths, everything inside him screamed possession.
They exchanged a long look and he swallowed, trying to appear unaffected when her date stepped up to her, his hand going to her lower back.
“They do make a lovely couple, don’t you think?” Audrey asked as her gaze locked on Gemma and her date.
“Yeah,” he said, biting the inside of his mouth to stop from telling her what he thought. That he’d like to walk over there and punch the guy in the face and tell him to get his fucking hands off Gemma.
