Slowly, his kisses moved to her cheek, her neck, and she heard him inhale deeply. He rested his chin on her head and sighed. “Wow.”
She regained her breath and equilibrium and sighed as well, enjoying the strength and comfort of a man. It had been too long since she was held and kissed like that.
Suddenly, she came to her senses and regret seeped in. It was wrong. She wasn’t ready. He wasn’t Adam. Sam did have a family and obligations. She shouldn’t be making out with a man on her front lawn at midnight, no matter how sexy he might be.
“I have to go,” she said and fled inside.
Chapter 8
For ten days, Cole did his damndest to walk on eggshells around Sam. He flirted with her as he would with any woman, but his smiles never reached his eyes, his hands never reached her body and hell, his lips never touched her mouth.
A nor’easter dumped a foot of snow on most of New England that left Sam pretty busy plowing and shoveling for three long days. From what he could see from his frequent drive-bys of his properties, she was having no trouble at all keeping up with the snow. Most of it fell in the early morning, giving her all day to plow.
But now that the snow had been cleaned up, it was time to start on his own home improvement project. One that Sam had willingly said she’d help with. Cole sent a text earlier telling—not asking—her to come to his farm after she dropped off Levi.
If the morning chores were done a little sloppily and he finished up early and had time to take a shower before she arrived, well, that was simply plain coincidence. Before his hair had time to dry he heard the crunching of tires on packed down snow and gravel in the driveway.
“Come in!” he hollered when he heard the doorbell ring, knowing she’d be more relaxed if she let herself in. He busied himself by brewing coffee and making a quick breakfast sandwich. When he heard her enter the kitchen he asked her if she wanted one too.
“No, thank you, but I would love a cup of coffee.”
Progress, he thought. “Sure. Help yourself.” There was no need to point out where the mugs were; they hung on a rack under the counter next to the coffee maker. He flipped his egg on the skillet and topped it with a layer of cheese. Checking to see if the English muffins were grilled to perfection, and pleased with what he saw, he slid a sausage patty on one half of the bread, topped it with the egg and cheese and then capped it with the muffin top.
“Amazing. I’ve always thought those things at McDonalds were pretty disgusting, but you make that concoction look pretty good.”
Leaving the breakfast sandwich to cool on his plate he leaned against the counter and studied her. “Really? You’ve never had one? Well, sweetheart, you don’t know what you’re missing. Farm fresh eggs and sausage. Ain’t nothing like it. I make a kick-ass breakfast. Ask anyone.” He smiled and then realized what he said. “I, uh, didn’t mean that I make breakfast for a lot of people. I mean…”
Sam laughed. “That’s okay. I’m sure you have made them for many of your adoring fans. Practice makes perfect, right?”
Stunned by her lightheartedness, he stared at her and then picked up his sandwich and offered her a bite.
“No, I’m good.”
“Absolutely not. Try a bite. If you hate it, I won’t be offended. If you can bring yourself to admit that it’s the best thing you’ve ever tasted, I’ll make you one. Open up.” He didn’t wait for her to come to him and brought the sandwich to her lips. “Open,” he whispered.
She looked up into his eyes and obediently parted her lips. Trying hard to focus on the sandwich and not her soft, wet mouth, he gulped and stepped back after she took a bite.
“Oh wow,” she said around her bite of egg and sausage. “You’re right. This is awesome. Go make me a sandwich while I start working.”
“Have you always been so cute, or do you have to work at it?” He laughed as he opened the fridge and took out the ingredients. “Upstairs, first room on the right. The carpet is going so I’m not worried about making a mess with the paper. All the tools are up there as well.”
“On it. Now get cooking.” Sam turned and left the room.
Cole shook his head in disbelief and major confusion. The woman kept him on his toes, that’s for sure. Here he was worried that it would be awkward having her in his home, in his bedroom—future bedroom—for the next week. He’d hoped the project would take longer than that but knew she’d plow through it in no time. While he was baffled with her friendly demeanor, he didn’t want to ruin it by asking why she fled after their scorching kiss.
When the breakfast sandwich was ready, he slid it on a plate and went upstairs to the master bedroom. She stood on the ladder, her backside covered in a sexy pair of jeans, a tool belt hanging low on her hips. Stretching up toward the ceiling, her shirt rode up revealing a patch of milky white skin. Once again he swallowed his tongue but couldn’t stop his mouth.
“Your daddy must have been a baker, because you've got a nice set of buns.”
Startled, she looked over her shoulder and grinned. “Took you long enough. I’m practically finished in here.”
He laughed as he looked around the room at the four walls still covered in that god-awful paper. “You’ve got a ways to go, sugar.”
Sam stepped down from the ladder, took the plate from him, and then smelled the sandwich. “If you promise to have one of these waiting for me every morning, I’ll even redo the bathroom.” She bit into her food and moaned.
God, she was killing him. If she put this much emotion into eating food, what kind of noises and expressions would she make if they…when they…he couldn’t think about that now. Cole turned, adjusted himself in his jeans and coughed.
“I have to give the horses some exercise today. I’ll be in and out. Help yourself to whatever.” He left her standing in the middle of his soon-to-be bedroom, moaning in ecstasy.
*
So far, so good. Making a conscious decision to return things to “normal” with Cole, Sam entered his house in a good mood, accepted his flirting as part of who he was and didn’t shy away from his hospitality. The breakfast threw her for a loop. She didn’t expect to fall in love with a simple food concoction. Didn’t expect fresh food to taste so…amazing. Didn’t expect the sexy bachelor to know how to cook.
When he fled, she knew she’d gone too far. The moan had escaped from her mouth, and at the time she didn’t think anything of it. She cringed at how her moans over a stupid sandwich reminded her of similar noises she’d made when Cole kissed her. It had been a long time since anything made her feel so good.
And once again guilt set in, ruining her mood. The logical part of her mind knew it was okay to move on and make a life for herself. But the other part of her brain told her she was betraying her husband, her marriage vows, his memory. How could she move on and be with another man when Adam lay six feet under the ground? He missed his son’s birth, Levi’s first steps, first words, first day of preschool. Adam wouldn’t be there when Levi climbed the steps on the school bus for the first time or be there when he had his heart crushed, or when he fell in love again. No, Adam would be a distant memory if Sam didn’t keep him alive.
And Cole was a distraction. He made her forget about her husband and the ten years they had together, which wasn’t okay. He had acted like the perfect gentleman this morning, not counting the flirting, but to Cole, that was normal. If she didn’t make a big deal about it, they could continue with their platonic relationship and forget about the passionate kiss they shared ten days ago—not that she had been counting days.
While her mind wandered between Cole and Adam, she sang along with the radio. Sam had the entire master bedroom stripped and the walls cleaned before he came in the room again.
“You’re faster than I thought.”
“The steam cleaner you rented made the job a lot easier. I’d be at this paper for another few days without it. Did you know there were three other layers of wallpaper under this one?”
“That’s it?�
�� Cole snorted. “Guess I didn’t need to rent this contraption.” He picked up the machine and set it by the doorway. “I figured the walls would be an inch thick with paper.”
“Not quite, but there is a lot of patching we’ll…I’ll need to do.”
“We is right. I’ll help. I had no intention of sticking you up here to do this all by yourself.” He picked up a garbage bag and started shoving wallpaper scraps in it.
“Oh, well, when you told me about the job, I figured…I guess I assumed you were tied up with the farm business and needed someone to do the inside.” She dropped to her knees and helped him pile the debris.
Cole stepped in the bag scrunching the paper down flat and continued to fill it. “You assumed right. I hired you to be my right-hand man. Or woman, whatever. I needed a handyman. Or handywoman.” Cole stopped and looked right through her. “What do you call yourself?”
She chewed on the inside of her cheek, thinking. “Awesome pretty much sums it up.”
He tipped his head back and laughed, one that finally reached his eyes and showed off his dimple. “Yeah, I’ll second that.” He looked at his watch. “You better get going if you plan on picking up Levi on time.”
Sam reached out and grabbed Cole’s wrist and tilted the watch toward her. “Shoot. I have to go. I’ll finish cleaning tomorrow,” she said as she ran down the stairs.
It was very unlike her to lose track of time and be late. After starting the truck and buckling herself in, she called the preschool to let them know she’d be there in less than ten minutes.
They weren’t too worried about it, but it bothered Sam. It was very out of character for her to be less than five minutes early for anything. Coming to New Hampshire was supposed to prove her independence. How could she do that if she couldn’t remember to pick up her son on time?
The flirting, dancing at bars, and tardiness was all completely out of character, and it all was because of Cole Tucker. What Sam couldn’t figure out was if these changes were a good thing or bad.
* * * *
Damn, but if that woman didn’t drive him crazy. If she wasn’t bipolar, he surely was. Or their relationship was. Every time he saw her he wasn’t sure if he had to tread on water, lay on his flirt, or be serious and aloof.
It struck him funny—no, odd—that Sam seemed to be most at ease when he dropped his lines. She either waved them off or laughed but never took him seriously. However, the women who did respond to his lines he didn’t take seriously.
He wasn’t one to pussyfoot around when it came to women. He always made it clear he only wanted a good time, typically a one-night stand, and if she was offended, she wasn’t the girl for him. Of course he had more tact than that, but the women who latched to him were the ones who were in it for a good time as well.
But not Sam.
She was different.
Giving her the ultimatum of hooking up for one night probably wasn’t the best approach, but damn, he wanted to hook up. For more than one night. Junior couldn’t take the up and down—literally—roller coaster ride she’d put him on.
The kiss they’d shared told him she was hot and heavy and very interested. But the cold shoulder for days after told him she thought it was a mistake. And then today, she nearly had an orgasm while eating his breakfast.
Yeah, he needed to deal with the crazy ass chemistry they had right away. And the only way to do that was to barge in and rock her world.
After the animals were fed, he showered, splashed on some neglected cologne, and picked up a pizza he’d ordered. Fifteen minutes later he leaned on her doorbell, a smile on his face and a pizza in hand.
“Oh, hi. I didn’t expect you,” she said cautiously through the partially open door.
“It’s the element of surprise that always turns me on.” Leaning down he kissed her lightly on her lips and whispered, “If you were a steak, you’d be well-done.” He pulled back, gently pushed himself and the pizza through the door. “Hope you haven’t had dinner yet.”
“Um, I have turkey loaf in the oven. What are you doing, Cole?”
“Having dinner with two of my favorite people.” He set the pizza on her kitchen table, rifled through the cabinets for plates—Spider-Man for Levi and grown-up plates for him and Sam—and served up three slices.
“Levi isn’t here. He invited himself to a sleepover at your mother’s house.”
Cole laughed. “Smart kid. He’ll have my ma wrapped around his little finger before long.”
“Oh, he does already. He misses both his grandmothers in Connecticut dearly and took a liking to your mom right away.”
He tucked his hands into his front pockets and leaned casually against the refrigerator. Sam looked nervously around the room and chewed on the inside of her cheek. His tongue slid across his lips, itching to tangle with hers.
No, he wouldn’t force himself into her bed, but he’d at least make it to second base. Quietly telling junior to stand at ease, he shifted behind a kitchen chair and pulled it out for Sam. “Sit and eat. You can have your fake meatloaf tomorrow when Levi comes home.”
Still hesitant to sit with him, he helped her to be more at ease. “You know, I would die happy if I saw you naked just once.” He winked at her and picked up the pizza from the Spider-Man plate.
Rolling her eyes, she sat across from him and ate. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier you were planning on stopping by?”
“It was a spur of the moment decision.”
She stiffened. “Is it when you found out I’d be here alone?”
This time he rolled his eyes. “Give me some credit. If I knew you were here alone I would have come over hours ago, and I wouldn’t have been delivering pizza.”
Seemingly satisfied with his perverted—but all too true answer—she continued eating. They ate nearly the entire pizza while talking and joking like two friends.
And that needed to end soon. Cole pushed back his chair and cleared their plates. Sam wiped down the table and wrapped the rest of the pizza in tin foil. Now that he had her at ease, he cornered her in the kitchen, trapping her between the counter and his body. Expecting her to tense, he smiled and whispered, “Are you going to kiss me, or do I have to lie to my diary?”
He didn’t move or pressure her. Their bodies were close and he could almost feel her heart beat, but they weren’t touching.
Yet.
Keeping his face close to hers but not initiating the kiss, he stared into her wide, amber eyes and licked his lips.
She followed the movement of his tongue, and he waited for her to come to him. Sam leaned in and closed her eyes, but he didn’t meet her halfway. No, he wanted her fully invested in the kiss. She opened her eyes, and looked questioningly at him and then at his lips.
Cole grinned. “You’re killing me, sweetheart.” Unfortunately, it broke the mood and she drew back. He dropped his hands from the counter, letting her slip away. Still, he’d made progress. She wanted him, but he wanted her to want him even more.
Cole had always been into playing games and Sam would make the game, and winning, worth the wait.
“You should probably go,” she said.
“Not a chance. It’s the perfect night for us to preview Iron Man 2.” He moved to the living room, sat on the couch, stretched his feet across the coffee table and patted the seat next to him. “Come on, when was the last time you saw a movie?” He held up a finger to stop her predicted response. “Levi’s little kid movies don’t count.”
“I thought this movie is for little kids.”
Damn, she caught him on that one. “It’s a multi-purpose movie. One a grown, mature man such as myself can enjoy.” He ignored her undignified snort. “And one a lady such as yourself,” he snorted, “will like; and little kids will like the costumes, super powers, and things that blow up.”
Sighing she said, “Fine, let’s get this over with.”
Two hours flew by with little interruption other than Sam asking if he wanted any more iced tea. When t
he credits rolled, she stretched her shoulders and turned to face him on the couch. “Not something I want him to watch every day, but I’ll allow it. Hopefully he won’t pick up on some of the language.”
“So, you admit I’m right?”
“About?”
He smirked at her sassiness. “The movie.”
“I never said you were wrong. I said I didn’t think it would be appropriate. It’s not the best, but I don’t think Levi will pay attention to anything other than the action scenes. He usually plays with his Legos and pretends to shoot things up while watching movies.”
“So I was right.” Cole did a fist pump. “Yes! That’s two for two.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I won our first bet and this is the second.”
“Wait a minute, buster. We didn’t make a bet on the outcome of the movie.”
“Sure we did.”
“Really? And what was the wager?”
Cole dropped his feet from the coffee table and turned one knee to face Sam. He relaxed an arm on the back of the couch and the other he set in his lap. For now. It itched to touch the loose, blonde curl by her cheek.
“If you won, meaning if the movie was a disaster, you didn’t have to show it to Levi.”
“Oh, whoop-de-do. No big winnings there.” She crossed her arms across her chest and pouted like a child.
Once again he bit back a laugh. “And if I won, which I did, I would get whatever I want.”
“And what is it you want?” She raised a precarious eyebrow at him.
“You.”
She sucked in a breath and dropped her arms.
“Sam,” he said as he touched the blonde curl. “You feel something too. I know you do.”
She shook her head. “I can’t. I…can’t”
“Can’t or won’t?”
“Can’t,” she whispered.
Torn between his head and groin, Cole took the more respectable route and pulled back. “Okay.” He stood, turned his back to her so he could adjust himself, and then turned back to face the petite woman with the large heart.
“Okay?” she asked.
False Impressions Page 8