"Okay," I said, ignoring her question.
"Is he hhhhot, Livy?" she said teasing me even more.
"Okay, I'll talk to you later," I said.
"Livy," she said before I could hang up.
"What?"
"Do you like him?" She put emphasis on the word like so there'd be no mistaking what she meant.
"I'll be home later," I said. "Love you, bye." I hung up, not paying attention to the fact that she was still teasing me and giggling on the other end.
I stashed my phone in my lap with no intention of looking at the other texts that had come in. "Do you want to put your address into the GPS?" Cole asked, gesturing to the screen on the dash.
I nodded and sat up to access the device without even glancing at him. Disappointment weighed heavily on me, and I found it difficult to fake a smile. He was leaving the next morning, so this would likely be our final goodbye.
My face stung with the effort to hold back tears at the thought of never seeing Cole again. I adjusted the air conditioner vent so that cold air would blow right into my eyeballs as I stared at the dash, looking like I was trying to figure out how to type in my address. Cole's finger came up, and with two clicks, he got to the keypad where I could type in my address. I sat there staring dazedly at the screen while letting the cold air hit my eyes.
I hated the idea of never seeing him again—it wasn't an option for me. I hesitated, feeling like the last thing I wanted to do was push my address into his GPS. I wished we would have kept driving all the way up to San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, Canada, heck, Alaska. I would drive around the world if it meant not saying goodbye to Cole Martin.
I was frustrated, and I wanted him to give me no other choice but to stay by his side until his last seconds in California. "I'm having a hard time remembering my address," I said, after my finger had been hovering over the screen for several long seconds.
"I guess you're coming to my hotel," he said, causing my heart rate to speed up. He let out a little chuckle. "That might not have come out like I intended," he said. "I just meant that I was planning on heading back to my hotel after I dropped you off, and if you didn't tell me your address, then I'd have to bring you back to the—"
"I knew what you meant," I said. "Believe me, I didn't think you wanted to take advantage of me or anything."
I felt frustrated and hurt, so my comment might have come out more sarcastically than I intended.
Cole glanced at me from over the console with an unreadable expression. "I'd love very much to take advantage of you, Ms. Olivia Torres. Make no mistake about that. I'm just not going to." There was an edge of seriousness and desire to his tone that made me feel like he was telling the truth, and it made me feel slightly better.
"It's still early," I said. "Were you just planning on going back to your hotel?"
He nodded. "My dad's bugging me for some details from the meeting. I'll probably talk to him and then get some takeout later." He paused and glanced at me. "Do you want to hang out?"
I gave him a wide-eyed smile as I nodded.
"I want to keep hanging out," he said, lifting his shoulder. "I just assumed you needed to get back to your life."
"I already told you how I feel about my life."
He smiled and reached out to touch my arm. "You better watch what you say, or I really will bring you home with me."
I giggled like his statement was light-hearted, but somewhere inside I wished he was being serious. I stared at the side of his face as he drove, feeling like I already knew him—like he was someone from my past who I already had some familiarity with. Maybe it was just that I was so attracted to him that I wanted to think of it as some natural familiarity—like that would mean this was all meant to be. Meant to be. I groaned inwardly at myself for having such thoughts. How was it that this morning, Cole Martin was a stranger to me, and now I was sitting here having meant to be thoughts about him? I stared at his profile, wondering what in the world had come over me.
"I'm good with hanging out a while longer if you want," I said, tentatively. "I could take care of some phone calls while you talk to your dad, and then we can get take out or maybe go somewhere."
Cole nodded. He didn’t say anything, but I could tell by the way he smiled and relaxed into his seat that he liked the idea of not bringing me home. This was a huge weight lifted off of my shoulders, and I felt thankful to have dodged a goodbye yet again—at least for a little while.
Chapter 9
I kept my head down as we walked into his hotel. The last thing I needed was for someone to take a picture of me going to a hotel with the mystery guy even though our intentions were innocent. I told Cole of my plan to go through the lobby quickly, and he helped me by wrapping his arm around my shoulders and letting me take cover next to him. I hoped it was what he would do when I told him I wanted to keep hidden, and it made me feel giddy to snuggle up next to him.
There were three other people in the elevator, but no one paid attention to us. The others got of on the third floor without saying a word, and Cole and I rode up to the eighth floor.
"This is nice," I said when he unlocked the door and we went inside. There was a tiny living room and kitchenette area with an adjoining bedroom.
"Nothing like what you're used to I'm sure." There was no denying that. In spite of it being a nice place, it was not at all what I was accustomed to. Hotels bent over backward to accommodate Estela and me because they knew how much exposure we'd provide them. She and I never had a normal room. We always had first-class accommodations with fresh flowers, chocolates, and lavish bath supplies. I knew there was no bother denying his statement, so I just smiled at him and shrugged shyly. "At least I'm reluctant about being so spoiled," I said.
He let out a little laugh.
"Does that count for anything?"
He set down some things he had brought in from the car, and I set down my purse, not even bothering to take my phone out of it. "You shouldn't feel guilty about enjoying your life," he said, tossing his keys onto a nearby table as he slipped out of his shoes. "You are who you are, and you're better off not apologizing for it." He smiled. "I'm gonna slip into some jeans, and call my dad," he added, totally changing the subject. "Are you good out here for a few minutes?"
I nodded and crossed to the other side of the living room with the intention of looking out the window.
"For the record," he said, turning to look at me from over his shoulder before he disappeared into the bedroom. "I would have a really hard time being in the spotlight, too. My dad has to do some public speaking as owner of the company, and I am not looking forward to that aspect of taking over." He paused and smiled. "I'm just trying to say it doesn't make you ungrateful to admit you don't like something."
I gave him a little smile. "Thank you," I said since I didn't know what else to say.
He closed the door, and I went to the window to check out the view. I could hear Cole having a conversation from the living room, but I couldn't make out what they were saying. I knew it was better that way. If I had been able to hear them I would have turned on the TV just to avoid it. I took off my glasses and put them on a nearby table, running a hand through my hair for good measure.
Cole came out of the bedroom five minutes later wearing jeans and a T-shirt. He had on slacks and a tie for the meeting with my dad, and seeing him in a T-shirt and jeans had me feeling all warm and fuzzy—like he was Cole from Louisiana. I rather liked the sight of it. I had been staring at his change of wardrobe, so it took me a second to notice his face.
He walked toward me, shaking his head and wearing a regretful expression. "I'm sorry," he whispered almost inaudibly.
He handed me the phone, and I could see by glancing at the screen that he was still on the call with his dad. I furrowed my eyebrows at him and made a curious expression, which caused him to smile. He moved to the phone toward me a few inches to signify that I should take it from him.
"Sorry," he whispered again. "My mom want
ed to say 'hi'."
I took the phone from him and gingerly held it to my ear. "Hello?" I said, hoping my voice didn't betray me and crack. I stared at Cole with a deer in the headlights expression, and he smiled at me.
"Is this Olivia?" I heard her ask on the other end. She sounded sweet, and she had a little bit of an accent.
I smiled. "Yes."
"This is Cole's mama," she said.
"Oh, okay. Cole was telling me all about you guys."
"He was telling me y'all spent the afternoon together, and I just wanted to tell you 'hello', sweetheart. My niece was all excited about her cousin meeting you. She said you had a real popular website. She came over here and brought up a picture of the two of you on her phone. You're a beautiful girl, and Cole looked handsome in it, too. She was all excited."
Cole reached out to take the phone from me even though he couldn't hear what his mom was saying. It was obvious that he thought she had taken long enough, but I shook my head at him and ducked to avoid him taking the phone. I held my finger out, telling him to give me a minute.
"If you're talking about Amelia, I talked to her earlier from Cole's phone. Cole showed me pictures of her, too. She's adorable."
"Oh, she's gonna have a fit when I tell her you said that," Cole's mom said. "She thinks you're the cat's meow."
Cole reached out to take the phone again, and I shook my head at him like he better not dare. We smiled playfully at each other, which made me weak in the knees.
"Well, I just wanted to thank you for showing my baby around today and tell you what a pretty young lady I thought you were."
"Thank you," I said.
Cole tried to tickle me to get the phone away, and I dodged, but couldn’t stop a little laugh from escaping.
"It was nice talking to you," she said. "Maybe one day I'll get to meet you in person."
"I'd like that," I said, dodging Cole's tickles again.
"Okay, bye, sweetheart. Tell Cole I said bye."
"Bye," I said.
I hung up the phone with a smile before handing it to Cole.
"I'm sorry about that," he said.
"Why?" I asked. "She was really sweet."
"I hope she didn't ask you to send an autograph for my cousin." He was standing only two feet from me, wearing a T-shirt that hugged every curve of his broad, muscular chest.
"She didn't," I said. "But I'd be happy to sign something if your cousin asked you to ask me."
Cole shook his head. "She did, but I told Mom not to mention it to you."
"Well, your mom listened," I said. "But I'm still sending a note to Amelia now that I know."
"How about a note for me?" Cole asked, taking a step toward me. There was something in his expression when he said it—like he was asking where we stood. We had been together all afternoon and it was the first time the conversation turned to the subject of us.
I felt nervous about responding. Fear of saying the wrong thing made me hesitate to say anything at all. "I'll write you a really long note," I said.
Even as the statement left my mouth, I was groaning at myself internally. Really long note? Really? Was that the best I had? What a big goober. He smiled at me and I rolled my eyes at myself.
"What's your really long note gonna say?" he asked. He tilted his head as if waiting for my answer.
"What do you want it to say?" I asked.
He stared at me for a few seconds. He was confident and manly, and I felt drawn to him—like our chests were connected by some invisible cord.
"I want it to say, 'Dear California, I'm leaving for Louisiana, and I don't know when I'll be back. Love, Olivia'."
"I'd probably sign it Liv," I said, feeling breathless.
He shrugged. "You can sign it however."
I smiled at him. "I thought we were talking about a note I'd write to you," I said, narrowing my eyes at him.
"We were?" he asked innocently. "I thought we were talking about just any note."
I shook my head like I was sorry but that wasn't the right note, which made him smile. His smile literally made me lightheaded. His straight, white teeth, all lined up between his perfect curved lips made me feel dazed and confused.
He rubbed his hand over his jaw and chin as if really contemplating something. "All right, I guess if the note has to be to me, I'd have it say, Dear Cole, I'm moving to New Orleans, Love, Olivia."
I hesitated for a second before saying, "I'd probably sign it Liv."
He smiled and we stood there and stared at each other for a minute.
I was unable to form words.
I felt the strangest urge to abandon all logic and reason to run away with this man. The idea of doing that seemed more reasonable than continuing with my regularly scheduled life.
"Maybe you should just stick with writing Amelia a note," he said.
I knew he was just letting me off the hook, but I still squinted at him. "Maybe you shouldn't give up so easily," I said.
We stared at each other for several seconds. "You better quit daring me," he said, finally.
"Or what?" I asked, challengingly.
"Or I'm dragging you home with me for real," he said.
My heart was beating a million miles an hour. The room was quiet. All I could hear was my own heartbeat. My eyes stung like I wanted to cry just looking at him, but I held back the tears. "Cole," I said, my voice sounding vulnerable. "I feel crazy right now."
"Like what?" he asked, his expression softening at the sound of my vulnerability.
"Like I’m gonna miss you." I said sincerely, but barely over a whisper.
"What?" he asked, even though I was pretty sure he heard me.
"I feel crazy for even saying that," I said. "I mean, I just met you today."
Our eyes were locked.
"I feel crazy, too, if it makes you feel any better," he said. He reached out and cupped his hand around the back of my arm. I felt his warm hand come around my elbow, touching me gently. "It usually takes me months to let my mom talk to one of my…" he hesitated, and shook his head, as if he knew he'd already made the wrong choice of words. "I feel crazy right now, too."
The mention of his past girlfriends (even though he stopped short of actually saying it) had me feeling like I wanted to smash something. Sometimes my trainer made me hit a huge truck tire with a sledgehammer as a part of our conditioning routine, and that's what I felt like I wanted to do. The thought of someone else being Cole's girlfriend made me want to sledgehammer every available tire in Orange County. I was so overtaken with emotion that I put my face in my hands and rubbed like I could somehow erase how crazy this guy made me feel.
"What?" he asked, seeing me rubbing my face.
"Nothing," I said.
Cole used his hand on the back of my arm to pull me toward him, taking me gently into his arms. He put a hand on my back, giving me a loose hug. I collapsed onto him, taking in the feel of his chest under my cheek and the smell of his T-shirt. His grip on me tightened when he realized I relaxed, and I wrapped my arms around his middle, feeling like I wanted to hold on for dear life.
"Let's just take this minute by minute," he said. "No pressure and no expectations. Let's just enjoy each other's company while I'm here."
I pulled back and smiled up at him. "I'm good with that," I said, smiling even though all I could think about was the moment when we had to say goodbye. I thought he might kiss me while he had me there like that, but he didn't. I could tell he wanted to, and I wondered why he didn't.
We made a pot of coffee and sat on the couch together, talking and laughing. We started out talking about Louisiana traditions like Mardi Gras and crawfish boils, but that got us talking about music and food, which somehow led to art and movies, and about ten other topics.
We sat there and talked for so long that we forgot to eat dinner. It was 8PM when we called room service. It was midnight when we decided it was okay for me to stay as long as we slept in separate locations, and it was 3AM when I finally fell asleep.
We were both sitting on the couch, spacing out to whatever was on late-night TV. I hadn't slept well the night before, so I passed out on Cole's shoulder. I must have been sleeping like a rock because I fell asleep on the couch, I ended up in the bed, and I don't remember making the transition.
I woke up to the sight of Cole sitting on the edge of the bed next to me. He was showered and dressed, and I sat up, feeling disoriented and a bit like I was late for something.
"I slept on the couch," he said, like the first thing I'd be concerned about was making sure he didn't sleep next to me. There was nothing for him to worry about. I knew he didn't sleep next to me. He was way too much of a gentleman for that. For goodness sake, I'd been waiting for him to kiss me since the moment I laid eyes on him, and he hadn't even done that. We had intimate moments all right, but they all centered around heartfelt conversation or prolonged eye contact. I had no idea how in the world Cole Martin had the ability to make me fall in love with him without even touching me, but he did. I was crazy about him.
"I brought you a cup of coffee," he said, gesturing to the nightstand.
There was a paper cup that I knew came from a coffee shop because I could see the name of it written right on the side. The sight made me glance at the clock. It was 7:30AM. I blinked, feeling disoriented and thinking that seemed early.
"Did you get any sleep at all," I asked sleepily.
He smiled. "A little. We need to leave in about ten minutes if I'm gonna get you home before I head to the airport."
Chapter 10
I walked into the living room area of Cole's suite, feeling out of sorts. Cole had given me a minute to wake up, and he was waiting for me in the little kitchenette when I entered the room. He was dressed and ready to go, wearing an easy smile as he leaned against the cabinets. My time with him had somehow slipped through my fingers, and here we were, at the end of it without any plan to see each other again. I felt nauseated and heartbroken, but I smiled, hoping that any hesitation in my expression could be mistaken for tiredness.
"You okay?" he asked.
Dear California (Martin Family Book 2) Page 6
