“You ready to be shown off a bit?” he offered as he held out his hand for mine.
I gave him an ‘are-you-kidding-me’ glare. “Cole, I’ve been ready and waiting for this all day.”
“You have not. It took you over an hour to get ready. Who takes an hour to get ready for a bonfire?”
“I do,” I said matter-of-factly. “Are you complaining?” I asked with a wry smile.
Cole took the opportunity to look me up and down again, shaking his head earnestly. “Hell, no. It was worth every minute. You sure do look pretty, Ames,” he said, pulling me gently to him and kissing me softly on the lips. I was blushing again, I could feel it.
“Stop that, or we’ll never make it down the hill to the party.”
“Promise?” Cole asked with a mischievous glint in his eye.
“Cole,” I said in a playful tone, “One foot in front of the other, my dear. Go.”
I gave him a gentle shove in the direction of the music and laughter, before falling into line beside him as he entwined his fingers with mine. I let him lead me through a wooded area and he helped me navigate down the steep incline of the pit in my heeled boots. Perhaps they hadn’t the smartest choice for such a rugged event, but my accessory choices were limited. I also knew that the boots made my legs look a little longer and they gave me a little extra height, which I welcomed.
“Just remember what I said about Jeremy, okay?” I reminded him.
Cole looked at me, and his jaw tightened reflexively. After yesterday’s encounter, I just wanted to go to this bonfire and have a good time. If we saw Jeremy, I’d be polite, but Cole wasn’t going to talk to him if he could avoid it. He seemed to agree this was the best plan, and I just hoped we could pull it off. A public event was no place to be rehashing yesterday’s conflict.
“I know. I won’t even talk to him,” Cole said flatly.
The pit was crawling with more people and booze than I had seen during any of my shifts at Rustic’s. All age groups and walks of life were accounted for and I wasn’t at all surprised to see Maria near the long table boasting a large array of various finger foods and drink mixes. She caught sight of me seemingly at the same time I had noticed her, and I gave her a little wave with my free hand. Cole turned his head to see who I was gesturing to just as she turned her head and walked off in the other direction. He pointed at her when he saw where she’d sat down.
“She’s sitting over there with Ryan,” Cole said into my ear. I struggled to see through the crowds of people, but I didn’t see either of them.
“So, there is a way to get Ryan out from behind that bar. I was beginning to wonder,” I said with a laugh, and I saw the amusement in Cole’s eyes. He looked down at me and winked.
“Look, Ames, maybe I should have talked to you before about this.” Cole trailed off for a moment, and I wasn’t sure if he was picking his words carefully or just unsure of what to say. I also wasn’t sure if I should be excited or bracing myself for some bad news. I waited for him to continue.
“I was hoping I could introduce you to a few people, some friends of mine,” Cole stated, running his hand through his hair nervously. “As my girlfriend.”
My gaze stayed locked with his, but I could tell Cole was holding his breath, even if he didn’t notice. So, we had come to the point where we needed to define our relationship. And why shouldn’t we? Cole and I had been inseparable for weeks. Label or no label, people knew we were seeing each other and that Cole was spending every waking moment with me when the two of us were not at work.
As far as I was concerned, he’d become significant to me long before now, and I was confident he’d assumed the same thing. I still had many moments of hesitation and uncertainty, but that wasn’t because of anything Cole had said or done. For me, it was still difficult to imagine I had moved on and could actually say I had a boyfriend.
I’d had one of those once before, and it hadn’t turned out well. Ethan had made sure everyone knew he was my boyfriend, that he had staked claim of me, and that I was his. Cole had never made an attempt at all to publicly claim me, short of a subtle touch on the shoulder or his arm around my waist.
He was the exact opposite of what I had come to believe a boyfriend was. However, things had changed. I had done something to alter the course of my life and, in the end, I had found Cole. My boyfriend.
“I would like that very much,” I said quietly, and we both smiled crookedly at each other, a mutual agreement understood between us without the necessity of further words.
“Come on,” he said, tugging on my arm. “I want you to meet the guys I work with.”
It was immediately obvious to me that Cole’s construction crew had heard about me well before tonight. Although I wasn’t sure how much they knew about me, I was certain that Cole wouldn’t have told any of them about the elements of my past.
The five guys—Eric, Charlie, Daniel, Lewis, and Anthony—all seemed to have similar personality traits to Cole’s. They came across as laid-back, and all seemed to love a good joke and sarcastic comments. Needless to say, the introductions did not occur without Cole being badgered about hiding such a beautiful woman away and keeping me all to himself. Then, of course, Daniel quickly pointed out that he couldn’t blame Cole for wanting me all to himself, and I blushed.
Cole slid his arm protectively around me, letting me know Daniel meant no harm. They seemed to be a good group of guys, and I could understand why Cole enjoyed going to work every day with them.
“Let’s get you a drink, Ames,” Cole whispered in my ear. “And I wouldn’t mind one myself.” I nodded up at him and welcomed the chance to break free of the thousand conversations that were happening around me all at once.
I turned toward the table and coolers just as one of Cole’s crew members, Charlie, called his name. Cole motioned for me to go on ahead, holding up one finger to indicate he would only be a minute. I zigzagged through the crowds of people, the cliques and groups of friends still managing to make themselves evident at such a community based event.
I stooped down to one of the big coolers and pushed back the lid. Beer, vodka coolers, and a variety of wine spritzers stared back at me. I guess the party was technically on private property and, even though I didn’t know everyone here, I didn’t see anyone who looked underage, but I was still surprised. People just trusted other people to follow the rules, I suppose.
I grabbed a beer for Cole and a Smirnoff Ice cooler for myself and quickly replaced the lid. I had to rummage around on the table to find a bottle opener. I took a small swig from the bottle and was surprised at how good it tasted. It had been a long time since I’d had vodka.
Ethan had never let me drink liquor after we finished high school. I had never gotten rip-roaring drunk from it or anything, but I suppose he didn’t want me making a fool of myself—or of him, for that matter. God forbid if I’d lowered my guard for a moment and told someone tidbits of the secret possessive life we’d lived together.
I was watching the people interacting around me when I saw Jeremy making his way through a crowd of intoxicated women, his gaze locked on mine. He was wearing that cocky little grin, too, which irked me. I looked in the direction of where Cole and his friends were, but I knew I couldn’t make it there in time, and I sure as hell did not want to have Jeremy intercept me anywhere in close proximity to Cole.
“Fancy meeting you here,” Jeremy said, a half full beer in his hand. Once again, he wasn’t wearing his uniform and he looked very different from the other times I had seen him.
“I’m here with Cole,” I stated flatly, trying to sound defiant. I hoped I did, but Jeremy’s grin in response to my words showed he found this more amusing than anything.
“I figured as much,” he said in return, shrugging slightly. “I just wanted to say hello, Amy.”
“Hello,” I said quickly, turning to make my way back toward Cole and his friends. Jeremy reached out and put his hand on my arm to stop me. The action didn’t portray harm o
r impending violence in any way, but he caught me off guard nonetheless. I shook my arm loose from him and stared at him incredulously.
“Let go of me, Jeremy,” I said, but my words came out just after I had already pulled myself free of his grasp. Jeremy held his hands up in surrender.
“I just wanted to say I’m sorry,” he began again, still holding up his hands. “I never—”
“Sorry is exactly what you’re going to be if you ever touch her again, Jere.” Cole’s voice sounded behind me, and I turned to see him standing there. He was not looking at me, though. His eyes were intently set on Jeremy. His arm, however, gently came out in front of me and pushed me behind him protectively. He was right, this wasn’t just my fight. But I didn’t want them fighting, either.
“Cole,” Jeremy said in a taunting voice. “Good to see you, man. I was just telling your lovely girlfriend here that I figured you wouldn’t be far away.” His tone of voice annoyed me. I despised the way he talked to Cole and the way he looked at me. It was obviously even worse when he had alcohol coursing through his veins.
“If you knew that, then you should just keep your distance, Jere. Nothing’s changed between you and I since the last time I saw you,” Cole advised him, and the betrayal I heard in his voice made me instantly sad. It was obvious their friendship was irreconcilable; Cole was still hurting. Jeremy, on the other hand, seemed to find this conversation amusing. I thought of what Jeremy had said to me previously about what actually happened, though, and I knew that it was only the alcohol talking.
“The last time you saw me you were pissed off at me, Cole. Someday, maybe you’ll stop avoiding me and have a goddamn talk with me about it all,” Jeremy stated, and I could feel something in the air between them change.
Cole was angry, but maybe there was more to the story between him and Jeremy than I knew about. Jeremy had obviously tried to mend the brokenness between them and Cole hadn’t allowed for it. Not that I blamed him, of course.
“Pissed off? Jeremy, you’re damn right I was pissed off. I still am. And as for talking to you about it, well, I’m pretty damn sure your actions spoke volumes over anything you could say. Now, do me a favor and get lost before this turns into something I don’t want it to.” Cole’s words were sharp, and the venom in his tone was what made me stay exactly where I was.
I looked around and saw that a small crowd had started to form. It was a small town, so of course everyone probably knew the details of the feud between these two men much better than I ever would, and what they didn’t actually know, they would make up and gossip about later on. Even the relatively harmless exchange of words that had already taken place would undoubtedly be the topic of conversation at tomorrow morning’s meeting of coffee drinkers at the local diner.
“Cole,” I said quietly from behind him, hoping to steer his attention away from Jeremy. He didn’t turn around to face me, but I could see his shoulders relax slightly at the sound of my voice, and I felt suddenly confident that I had made the right decision in intervening, even if it was a meek effort.
“Let’s get out of here, Amy,” Cole said, not taking his stare off Jeremy. “I’d really like that drink now,” he added.
Jeremy watched Cole’s every move, seeing him put his arm around my waist and start to turn and walk away from him.
“Fine. I’ll see you tomorrow night, Amy,” Jeremy announced, covering his smug smile as he brought his bottle of beer to his lips.
With that, Cole stepped forward, his arm jutting out in such a quick and calculated movement that I didn’t actually react to his closed fist hitting Jeremy’s jaw squarely until after Jeremy had staggered backward with his hands covering his face. An eruption of gasps and shallow screams from the growing crowd of party goers was heard, but my own scream at Cole’s sudden act of violence was heard over all other voices in the gravel pit.
“Cole!” I screamed, leaping forward to grab at his arm and pull him back away from Jeremy. “Enough!”
Cole let me pull him back a few steps and I watched as Jeremy stood up tall and steady with his gaze on Cole. Although I couldn’t see his face, I knew Cole’s eyes were staring back at him and I knew him well enough to know that his jaw was probably clenched, holding his anger in again the best he could.
“I’m not doing this again, Jere. Leave her the hell alone. I mean it,” Cole warned. I raised my eyebrows and suddenly had so much I wanted to say to both of these grown men who were acting like children, but I decided to keep my thoughts to myself until a less hostile time.
Jeremy looked as though he was about the say something, but thought better of it and remained silent, too.
“Come on, Cole,” I said, pulling on his arm again. “He is not worth it.”
“No, Amy, he’s not,” Cole said in a measured voice, still staring daringly at Jeremy. “But you sure as hell are.”
With that, he looked away from Jeremy and turned completely around, letting me guide him through the crowd of people that had surrounded us. As I made my way, I saw Ryan standing off to the side of the dispersing crowd. As much as I would have loved to talk to him, I decided Ryan and I would have to wait until tomorrow night’s shift to discuss tonight’s events. I was confident I would never hear the end of it from him.
Cole ran his free hand through his hair and sighed audibly as I dragged him by the hand back to the edge of the pit where we stood in a copse of trees.
“I’m sorry, Amy,” he said quietly.
“The animosity between you two is dreadful, Cole,” I said, ignoring his apology as I sat down and leaned back against one of the trees. Cole followed suit and crouched down beside me. He grew quiet again and I let him have the time to collect his thoughts.
“Jeremy is the one who slept with my ex-girlfriend,” he said simply.
I swallowed hard. “I know. I told you I already knew.”
“I know, but I think it’s the first time I’ve ever said it out loud.”
Neither of us said anything more for what seemed like a long time. The music of the party wafted through the air but was muted by the distance we had put between ourselves and the middle of the pit.
“I may be a lot of things, Cole, but I’m not a cheater,” I said finally, breaking the silence.
He turned his head and looked at me questioningly. “Where did that come from, Amy?”
“When you were talking to Jeremy, you said you wouldn’t do this again. Well, you won’t have to with me because I would never cheat on you. Not with anybody. And especially not with Jeremy.”
Cole sighed again and I watched him stare up into the starry sky as though searching for answers in the vast blanket of darkness above us. “I never meant that you would. I didn’t mean it like that, Ames. I’m sorry if it came across that way, but it’s not how it was intended.” He met my gaze and reached over to squeeze my hand gently. “I know you wouldn’t do that to me. Or to anybody, for that matter. I’m sorry.”
I nodded and squeezed his hand back. He was right. Cheating was just something I would not and could not do. “I’m all yours, Cole,” I said, trying to lighten the conversation. Cole leaned forward to kiss me softly, the faint grin on his lips pressing warmly against my own.
“I’m sorry if I’ve ruined your night, Ames.” The edge in his voice was gone, replaced by pure apology.
“You haven’t. Although, I could have done without the brawl in front of the booze table,” I said, unable to hide my smirk. Right now, it was better to try to make light of the situation.
“I’m sorry, Ames. I mean it,” he said. “The night’s not over. Let me make it up to you.” The glimmer of mischief in his eyes shone brightly in the moonlight. He leaned down and kissed a trail from the side of my face to my neck. “Please,” he added in a whisper.
A chill of anticipation and pleasure ran up my spine as his breath tickled hotly against my ear lobe. “What did you have in mind?” I asked, and I realized that my voice was already coming out shallow and hoarse.
“You know what I’m suggesting, Ames.” He gently nipped my ear lobe. “Let me take you home. Let me love you like you deserve to be loved.”
I didn’t move, I couldn’t. I also didn’t argue with him, and that was because I realized I didn’t want to. I could practically feel my inhibitions leaving me when I looked at Cole and, surprisingly enough, it didn’t scare me.
I nodded against the side of his face and kissed his cheek in response. No words came to me that would be a proper answer to such a suggestion by such a beautiful man. Cole stood without a word and held his hand out to me, the emotion in his eyes telling me he was just as eager to get home as I was.
I was never a big party person, anyway.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Ethan peered through the trees, watching Amy with a stranger. Who the hell was that guy? The proof was directly in front of him, almost as if she were taunting him. Amy was dating someone else. She was sleeping with someone else. The thought enraged him unspeakably. There was another man out there who was putting his hands all over his Amy. Ethan’s hands trembled from pent-up anger just thinking about it.
Did that man know she had left him? Even more, had he helped her? Had Amy defiantly left Ethan for him? He shook his head, his breath growing ragged.
As he watched her leave, Ethan knew they must be going back to Amy’s place and that man would have his hands on her again in no time. Damn them both for thinking that was acceptable, because it sure as hell wasn’t.
It was obvious even from this distance that Amy acted differently around that man than she had when she had been with him. The change in her was evident. She seemed more comfortable and freer with her touches and gestures toward this man. The two of them exuded happiness.
Amy had never been like that with him, not even in the beginning. Eight years of him being her boyfriend had never made her act that way. Fine. If Amy wanted to be a different person and play a different character here in this little town, she could do it. Obviously, this little act of hers had helped her obtain a new boyfriend. Good for her.
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