by Hadley Quinn
He smiled and shook his head. “I just had a stupid question about cooking.”
She looked at him for a few seconds. “Well what’s your question?”
“It’s nothing, never mind.”
“Cole, just ask,” she said with a dainty laugh. “I won’t make fun of you, if that’s what you’re afraid of.”
“No, I’m not afraid of that…”
“Then just ask me. I would love to help.”
He knew that to be true of Dani, so he played along with his earlier ploy to get a visit with her. “Um, well… It’s just about eggs.”
“Eggs?”
“Yeah, um, how do you cook them?”
She stared at him for a just a moment and had to smile at the way he seemed so embarrassed. “You mean like an omelette, or over-easy, or—?”
“No, I mean in the shell. How do you cook them in the shell?”
“Oh, you mean hardboiled eggs?” she asked. When he smiled he nodded, and Dani had to chuckle. “You just boil them in water.”
“Yeah I get that, but—”
“Oh, I get it. Yeah you put the eggs in the water while it’s still cold, then you bring it to a boil.”
“Yeah, that’s what I wasn’t sure about. Do you take them out right after they start boiling?”
“Well, you— Well, do you have some eggs you want to boil? Let’s just do it.”
“What? Now?”
“Sure.” She got up from the couch and headed for the kitchen, and Cole was glad that he actually did have some eggs in the refrigerator. He joined her when she said, “Find me a pot and we’ll boil some eggs.”
So he found a pot and followed her instructions. When they were done he had five hard-boiled eggs to return to his nearly empty refrigerator. Dani actually commented on his sparse shelves, but Cole’s answer that he just wasn’t home enough to cook very often seemed to pacify her.
“You’re always welcome to come over and eat with us,” she said as she cracked an egg that had cooled. She ran it under the faucet for a second before she started to peel it and added, “Cody’s always raiding our fridge for leftovers. Same with Scotty and Gary. Paul too, but don’t tell Marnie.” She smiled at the secret and it made Cole smile too.
“No, I won’t tell her. What about the guys on the other half of The Block? They don’t venture over here?”
She shrugged. “Sometimes. I don’t really know those guys very well, yet. Blaine is in his mid-thirties and he thinks we’re too young for him. He does come over once in a while but he’s got a different girlfriend every week. Nick and Greg aren’t really here much because they both work two jobs. And Calvin bartends, so he’s gone late into the night. So see? I’m limited for who’s around to feed. You’re an easy victim.”
He smiled and shook his head. “Nah, don’t worry about feeding me. I manage.”
She glanced at him and handed him a freshly peeled egg as she grabbed another one to peel. “Probably better that way since I’ve barely been in the kitchen this past week.”
Cole figured that to be true and decided his previous assumption that she was going to insist on feeding him wasn’t going to work out now. “Well maybe I take that back,” he told her. “Maybe if I give you a reason to be in the kitchen, you’ll actually start eating again.”
She eyed him carefully for a moment and then smiled. “You’re going to use my sympathy for a different angle? I eat just fine.” She took a bite of the egg she held as proof. “In fact,” she said after she swallowed, “I’m making spaghetti tonight and you’re invited. My sister is coming over with her kids, and a few people from The Block. We’ll make it a party.”
He was intrigued with that, pleased that he could be around more of Dani’s friends and family without having to investigate a different way. Right now it was Paul he was most interested in, and he was happy to hear that he would be there too.
Dani left a few minutes later, stating that she had a few things to do that day. It was true since she had barely cleaned the apartment in the past week; it would be nice if she could get the laundry off the couch. Cole promised he would show up for dinner at six, and once she left, he was on the phone with Jack.
***
“I don’t like him hanging around her,” Paul said under his breath. He kept an eye on Cole talking with Dani and Jaime as he murmured to Cody and Scott at the same time. “The guys say he’s always near her, always finding a way to talk to her.”
“Yeah I heard that too,” Cody said. “She was at the Divehouse again this morning and he might as well have had his arms around her. She was upset.”
“How come you didn’t talk to her?”
“She had that look, you know? –Like ‘don’t come near me’ or something. And I don’t do well with chicks and their emotions. I’d just rather she be the one to talk to me, you know?”
“Yeah, I get it. Marnie says she’s a closed book when it comes to Van. I know she’s got something to say, she just keeps it in. But that guy there,” he added, nodding toward Cole. “I don’t trust him.”
“Mickey vouched for him,” Scotty shrugged. “I think he’s all right. Maybe he just doesn’t know his place when it comes to Dani, but he’ll learn soon enough. But other than that, he seems legit.”
Cody nodded his agreement.
“Yeah, I guess,” Paul said reluctantly.
Cole could feel the three of them talking about him, but so far neither one had discussed much with him besides MMA. He could tell they were cautious of him around Dani and that made him curious. He knew what kind of guy Van was and it appeared that everybody at the Divehouse had his back, but there were ways to test that for sure. Sooner or later he’d find the truth.
“Hey, I forgot that I have a phone call I need to make,” he said to Dani, lightly touching her elbow. When she looked at him he added, “I’m gonna head to my apartment and then come back if that’s okay.”
“Sure, that’s fine,” she nodded. “The door will be unlocked, just come right in.”
“Okay, thanks.”
He pulled his phone out of his pocket as he walked across the room, fully aware that Paul and Cody were still watching him.
Paul took the opportunity to follow him out the door, and when he saw Cole halfway down the hall, he also heard him on the phone, talking to someone about a used car.
“Yeah, just have him call me back when he gets in,” he heard Cole say. “Yeah, this same number. Okay, thanks.”
Cole hung up the phone, well aware that there was someone else in the hall with him, but pretended to be surprised when he glanced behind him and saw Paul. At first nothing was spoken, but Cole slid his phone into his pocket and said, “I hate playing phone tag with people.” Paul barely scoffed and just eyed him for a moment. Cole figured this was his opportunity so he added, “Can I help you with something?” He took a few steps closer to Paul, and the challenge was instantly met.
“Maybe you can answer a few questions for me.”
“Oh? Like what?”
Paul looked him over again, not at all afraid. But he was sure if they got into a scuffle, it definitely wouldn’t be an easy one. “Let’s just say that I don’t like you hanging around Dani all the time. This is the only break I’m gonna give you for being the new guy; just consider yourself warned.”
“Warned?” Cole chuckled sarcastically. “Warned for what?”
“Just stay away from her. If Van wasn’t locked up right now, he’d beat the shit out of you.”
“For doing what? Talking to her? Are you kidding me? She’s my neighbor. What, I can’t talk to my neighbors? I thought this was supposed to be a great place to live when you fight for Mickey. What happened to a brotherhood with your fellow fighters?”
“You’re not looking for a brotherhood,” Paul scoffed. “You see a beautiful girl that’s alone and fragile right now, and because her husband isn’t around to fuck you up, you think you can work your way into her life! I’m telling you right now to back off!”
“You mean that’s all she’ll give you,” Paul smirked. “Don’t tell me you wouldn’t jump at the chance to be with her if she wasn’t already taken.”
“Who wouldn’t?” Cole replied honestly. “Yeah, she’s a pretty girl. And she’s nice. I’m sure you’d like a little sweetness in your life, too.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
Cole only shrugged, and that made Paul angrier. Before he knew it, he had Cole by the shirt and slammed him up against the wall.
Chapter Twenty-Six
A few of Dani’s guests heard a commotion and they stepped into the hall to see what all the yelling was about. Dani was confused at first when she saw people leaving all of a sudden, but then she realized something was going on in the hallway. She rushed to join them, only to find a full-blown fight happening outside of her apartment. There was punching and grunting, blocks and takedowns…
And blood.
“Hey!” she yelled.
Cody was there and she gave him a look to break it up, but he didn’t want to get involved. He would step in if his buddy needed him, but it was better to let Paul get his point across. Gary and Scotty held their hands up too, signifying that they’d rather not interfere, either.
Dani marched over to the two men, now tangled up on the floor. She couldn’t tell who was submissive to whom and decided they were probably in an equal lockup. “Hey, knock it off!” she yelled. Paul was within her reach so she shoved him as hard as she could to separate the two. “I said knock it off!” she screamed.
When Paul paused, Cole pushed him away and the two of them returned to their feet. Dani didn’t know what to say—grown men could take care of their own problems, right? —but she’d noticed tension between them before and decided to get it out in the open.
“What is your problem with each other?” she asked.
Paul brushed away the blood on his busted lip with the back of his hand and Cole worked his jaw to make sure it wasn’t broken. But neither of them said anything. She realized there was still an audience at her doorway, so she motioned for them to go back inside. Once it was just the three of them Dani looked at Paul and said, “Tell me why you were fighting.”
Paul sighed and looked at Cole for a second. Finally he said, “Just a misunderstanding.”
Cole was good with agreeing to that, but Dani said, “Bullshit. I don’t buy it. You two have had this thing between you and I want to know what it is. And you,” she growled, pointing at Paul. “You followed him out here. I want to know why, and you will tell me why right now.”
“You wouldn’t understand,” he replied.
“Try me.”
He sighed, and he was going to answer, but Cole cut in when he said, “It was nothing. He’s just being a good friend to you, and to Van, and that’s all it was. Message received; I won’t overstep my bounds.”
“Overstep what bounds?” she asked, looking between the two of them.
Paul decided to speak when he said, “It’s a guy thing, Dani. I’m just trying to keep an eye on the homestead, you know? Look, I’m gonna head out. Thank you for dinner, and the food for Marnie when she gets off her extra shift. I’m really sorry if I ruined your night.”
He gave her a brief hug, which was totally within his right as Van’s buddy, and he turned around and left for his apartment. Dani was confused. Did Paul imply that he needed to warn Cole to stay away from her?
“Tell me the truth,” she said to Cole when they were alone.
“I didn’t want to embarrass him, so I didn’t disagree.”
“I understand that, but I want to hear you say it.”
With a sigh Cole responded, “He warned me to stay away from you.” She groaned to herself and he added, “I told him we were just friends, he accused me of feeling differently about that if you weren’t married, I didn’t disagree and countered the same thing…”
He wanted to be completely honest with her because he knew she’d be talking to Paul about it, too. She didn’t say anything right away because she was contemplating his words, but Dani really didn’t know how to respond. Finally she sighed. “Van wouldn’t have said anything.”
“Excuse me?”
“To you,” she clarified. “He doesn’t react like that to other people. I don’t know why Paul did that because it’s not what Van would have done.”
“Are you sure? Because according to Paul, Van would have fucked me up.”
He said it with a tiny smile, so that made her smile as well. “He could have, yes. But he would not have. There’s a difference. Van tries to avoid any type of conflict if he can. I know you probably think he’s— Well I don’t know what you think since he was arrested for murder…”
Cole examined her features for a moment, and although he could read her pretty well, there was actually one thing about her that he wasn’t certain about. “Can I ask you a question?” he finally said.
She met his eyes and nodded her head. “Sure. I guess.”
He paused briefly as he shifted his weight to the other foot. “I don’t want to embarrass you.”
“What?” With a shrug she added, “I don’t think anything would matter, but just ask.”
“Okay. The other day you said something about everything going back to normal, so that you guys could be a happy family. In and of its self that sounds fine, but there was something about the way you said it… I got the impression that… Well, Dani, are you pregnant?”
She was shocked to hear him say that. Nobody knew, not even Van, and Dani herself had just found out a few days ago.
“See, I shouldn’t have asked,” Cole said because of her reaction.
“How did you know? I mean… I’m barely a month along. How would you even…?”
“I just read people,” he shrugged. “I shouldn’t have said anything, but I’m just concerned for you. Already you don’t seem to be doing very well, and I just want to make sure you take care of yourself. Van would want you to take care of yourself.”
“Van can’t know. Not now. Not yet.” He gave her a curious look and she added, “I don’t want him to feel worse. I don’t want it to be one more thing that he has to think about not having in his life or whatever. I want to tell him when it’s the right time. Now isn’t it.”
“Yeah, I understand. But like I said, I just want you to take care of yourself.”
“I know, and I am. I’ve already quit one bad habit.”
He chuckled and asked, “You have bad habits? I don’t believe you.”
She smiled but in a low voice said, “I used to smoke.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Really.”
“Yep. When I lived in New York it’s the one thing that kept me from overeating. Well, according to my mom I was overeating. I realize now that I wasn’t, but smoking was a bad habit I picked up from the industry. I’m not proud of it.”
“So you don’t smoke anymore?”
“No. Well… Every so often I would have a cigarette. Just when I was feeling really stressed. But since I found out I was pregnant, no way I’ll be doing that. Van knows I used to have an occasional smoke, but I haven’t done it since we’ve been married.”
Cole thought about that for a second, but instead of asking what he really wanted to ask, he said, “Yeah, I used to smoke too. But I couldn’t just have a cigarette and be done. If I had one, I think I’d be hooked again.”
Dani smiled and said, “I’ll be sure not to tempt you.”
“Well of course not, you’ve got a baby on board.”
“Oh, right,” she chuckled, and she barely touched her hand to her stomach. “Well, I’d better get back to the party,” she motioned behind her.
“I think I’ll just hang out in there,” he replied, pointing to his own apartment.
“I’m sorry about Paul. He really is devastated about Van. He’s taking it really hard.”
>
“Yeah, I understand. I don’t hold it against him. But just so you know, you’re too in love with your hubby and I had zero plans to make a move on you.”
She laughed at that and nodded her head. “I know. You’re a decent guy, Cole. Have a good night.”
He turned for his own apartment and entered without looking back. Decent guy? Would she think that if she found out how much he actually lies to her? Would she think that if she knew what he truly thought about her and the images that recycled in his head? He didn’t even understand himself when he felt jealousy nudge him at the thought of her carrying another man’s baby.
But as soon as he was alone he pulled out his phone and made a call. “I think you need to find someone else for this job. I’m done.”
***
Jack was not in the best mood when he showed up to visit with Van the next day. Van was already waiting for him when he arrived and Jack didn’t waste any time when he said, “The bullshit is over. It’s time you tell me something useful and you’re gonna tell me now.”
Van was surprised at his tone but glared at him. “What the fuck is it that I should tell you?” He didn’t like his integrity challenged and he was going to let Jack know it.
Jack sighed and realized he was barking up the wrong tree. “Sorry, kid. I’m just… Damn it, I’m your lawyer. I’m supposed to be reassuring you that I can do this.”
Van’s heart fell a little but he was sympathetic. “I understand the challenge, Jack. All I expect is your best. I know you want to help me.” Jack only sighed again and rubbed his face with his hands. “What’s got you bothered this time?”
Jack didn’t want to tell him. He couldn’t. But he knew he had lost his composure and owed him an explanation. “My best investigator is no longer on the job. He… Well, something came up.” Something between his pants, he wanted to add. Damn it, of all people… Cole? Cole was having a hard time separating his emotions from a case? It just didn’t make sense.
“So what does this mean?” Van asked. “There’s no one else to help?”
