by Natalie Ann
After a few minutes, he leaned back and looked at her. She was a mess and didn’t care. The hat she always wore was on her head again—it was snowing when they left and she was cold. But she wasn’t feeling an ounce of the chill now. Nope, now she was burning up. This was like oral sex. Oh wait, that wasn’t it, where was her mind going? Mouth, oral, sort of, no, way off base.
Her face was flushed, she knew it, she felt it, and her lips had to be swollen, because she felt the heat there, too. But all he did was run his thumb over her bottom lip, hold her stare, then lean in and kiss her one more time gently. “Have a good night. I’ll talk to you soon.”
Somehow she managed to unbuckle her seatbelt and climb out of his truck without falling. Though there was a close call when she slipped on the snow walking to the garage door. He opened the door quickly, but she righted herself. “I’ve got it, I’m good,” she said. Stupid heeled boots she had to stop wearing in the snow.
“So you ended up having a date with Cole,” her grandmother said, sitting across from her at the dinner table.
“Yeah. It was nice. He’s nicer than I remember. I mean I remember him always being nice, but not like this.”
“What does that mean?” her grandmother asked.
Rene shrugged. “He’s always been helpful, but now he’s considerate. I don’t know. He seems to worry if he insults or offends me.”
“That’s Cole. He hasn’t always had an easy time in life.”
Now might be a good time to find out more. Though part of her would rather hear it from Cole, she knew her grandmother wouldn’t say anything untruthful.
“How so? I mean, I know about Celeste and everything she went through. He told me about being in the Air Force and that he’s still in the reserves.”
She wasn’t surprised to hear that he still served his country. Part of that scared her a bit, knowing he could be called to war, but he explained that he was usually called on for training, or disaster emergencies.
“You probably don’t remember much about his parents, do you?”
“Not really. Cole told me his father Tom died in the line of duty, and that is why he ended up coming back. He said his mother, Ginger, struggled in the beginning with being a widow, but now she’s fine. I mean, I remember how big Tom was, and how sweet Ginger was.”
“Yeah, that’s a good description. Ginger is a nice sweet lady. Loves her kids. Dotes on them, really. Tom was closer to Celeste and everyone knew it. That hard outer shell of his could only be cracked for his wife and daughter. He never seemed to be so soft around Cole.”
“Meaning what?”
She remembered Tom not really smiling much, and being extremely intimidating, but he was never mean. Then again, Rene didn’t stick around when she saw Tom, either. She didn’t stick around when she saw Cole that much as a kid.
“Just that he put a lot of responsibility on Cole at a young age. I don’t need to tell you how hard things were when Celeste was sick. Most of the attention was on her, and rightly so. Cole often got pushed aside, but it never seemed to bother him, at least to the outside world.”
“I wouldn’t think so. I mean he seems so secure about things in life.”
“Every kid needs to feel acceptance from their parents, Rene. Even you know that.”
She did. She’d always been a Daddy’s girl herself, and still never felt she could measure up to Nick in anyone’s eyes. Then later realized she was the only one with the measuring stick in her hand.
“What else?” she asked her grandmother.
“Tom worked a lot. That’s part of the job. Nights, weekends, emergencies. It’s not a normal life. Then factor in a sick child that needs treatments out of the state, and there was just a lot instability in his life.”
“That’s a bit harsh, don’t you think, Grandma? I wouldn’t call Cole unstable.”
“I didn’t mean it that way. I mean there wasn’t a lot of stability in his home life. He had to step up at a young age. His grandmother often confided in me that Cole never had a true childhood. He never got to be a kid. He was always watching out for his mother and his sister. Sure, some of that is part of his nature, but still, he deserved to be a kid, too.”
“I don’t get the impression he resented that.” Instead she felt he embraced it. It seemed like that was so much a part of Cole’s personality—to help others.
“No, I don’t think anyone thought he resented it. At least that anyone knew or suspected. What I mean is there is more to him than meets the eye. He’s not the person everyone sees on the outside.”
“Since I’m kind of new to the area, I don’t know much about him on the outside other than the last month. I guess that’s what I’m going to try to find out.”
“He’ll be good for you.”
“I’m not so sure about that,” Rene said. “I mean, he won’t be bad, but I guess I’m not sure why you think he will be so good, either.”
“He’s going to take you out of this comfort zone you’ve been living in. He’s going to make you do and feel things you’ve never felt before. That’s good for you.”
They were getting on uncomfortable ground here. She didn’t want to talk to her grandmother about how she felt about Cole. How he made her feel when they were together, or how she felt when he kissed her. Talk about embarrassing.
“We’ve agreed we’re opposites. It was his suggestion to try something new for both of us.” She took a deep breath. “He told me I wasn’t his type. I knew it and was glad he was up front with it, but another part of me was kind of annoyed.”
“Don’t be annoyed. Be happy he was honest. I’m sure it was of no shock to you to hear it. There is a reason people say opposites attract. He’s a tall drink of water, Rene. Take your time sipping it for now.”
“Grandma,” Rene said, her face flame red.
“Oh, don’t be embarrassed. You kids. You think I’ve never had sex?”
“Urgh,” Rene said, putting her hands to her ears. “Please stop. I can’t talk to you about this.”
“Fine. I’ll let you have your way. Just go with the flow then. Have fun for once in your life. Don’t always be the responsible one.”
“It seems to me Cole was always the responsible one.”
“You’re right, he was. He is. Which means you two aren’t as opposite as you think.”
The Way You Are
“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” Rene asked on Sunday afternoon.
“I wouldn’t have asked if I wasn’t,” Cole said, holding his hand out and urging her to slide into the booth.
“Don’t you have to sleep?”
It’d been a few days since their first “date” and both of them had been busy with work. Cole started his night shift rotation yesterday and had to be at work in a few hours.
“I just woke up about forty minutes ago, showered, and picked you up. I got a little over six hours, that’s good enough.”
“You don’t sleep before you go in though?”
He laughed. “Not really. Just the first night of the rotation. If I can, I lie down for a short nap; otherwise I’d be up over twenty-four hours. I’m used to this now.”
“If you’re sure. I don’t want to be taking you away from sleep. I had a hard time doing a few night shifts with my clinical. There was no way I could handle it full time.”
“This might be the only way we’ll see each other when I get on this two-week rotation. Between you working days and me nights, and or weekends, it’s this or nothing.”
“Sorry. I don’t mean to sound ungrateful.” She was afraid she’d just insulted him and hadn’t meant to.
“Don’t worry about it. It takes some getting used to. I guess that’s something you’ll have to decide if you want to deal with or not.”
“Meaning?” she asked.
“If you want to bother with someone who has a crazy schedule like this.”
“That doesn’t bother me in the least. When I’m on call, I won’t be around much and won’t be
able to make plans. So I guess I should ask if you’re okay with it, too?”
It really hadn’t occurred to her in the least. But maybe there were people out there who didn’t want to be with someone who worked odd hours and couldn’t just leave their job at the door when they left.
“Of course I am. Trust me, my job is much worse than yours. I guess it makes us both understanding then, so that’s a good thing.”
She nodded. “Since you just got up, we should have gone to an all-breakfast diner or something other than here.”
“Why?” he asked, confused.
“So you could have breakfast,” she pointed out, reasonably in her mind.
“Oh wow. Aren’t you sweet.” He paused while she narrowed her eyes. “Sorry, I’ll correct that. How about silly? Food is food, Rene. I eat anything at any time. Haven’t you ever had cold pizza for breakfast?”
“Of course not.” She didn’t like the laughter in his eyes and was starting to feel prim and proper again. All the things she wanted to move away from.
“Then I guess I’ll have to get you to try that some morning,” he said, winking at her.
She felt the blush fill her face over that comment, but gathered her courage. “I guess you will.”
They placed their orders, and when the waitress walked away he asked, “Okay, tell me about your work. What are you doing or learning there? Remember, opposites here, so teach me something. I just taught you that any food can be eaten at any time.”
“You didn’t teach me that. You just expressed your opinion. My opinion still holds that I might prefer eggs right after I get up, even if it’s at two o’clock in the afternoon.”
“I’ll have to work on your opinion. Back to my question. Work?”
“I did my first laser resurfacing on Friday.”
“What’s that?” he asked, picking up his soda and drinking.
“We have this machine in the office that gently burns off the top layer of the epidermis—skin—and smooths out wrinkles and imperfections. It’s a good treatment for people in their twenties and thirties who only have mild wrinkles now, or scars and sun spots.”
“I know what epidermis is,” he said smiling at her. “And I think gently burning skin off someone’s face is an oxymoron, but if you say so.”
“Amber did most of it and I only did a small part. I’ve got to learn, so we give patients a discount for that. I gave Amber some fillers, too.” That made her nervous, but she knew she had to learn and it was best to practice on someone she knew.
“Fillers?” he asked.
“Like Botox.”
“Amber gets Botox?”
“You don’t have to look so shocked. Most of the girls in the office do. It’s a common thing. They’re trying to talk me into it, but I’m not sure.”
“Don’t do it,” he said quickly. “You don’t need it.”
She didn’t think she did either, and wanted to say no, but was feeling the pressure. “It’s safe enough, but I really don’t think I want to. I mean it’s a maintenance thing. On the flip side, it’s nice to be able to tell the patients I’ve had it done, too. I might do a few of the other procedures. All the girls do them on each other. It’s how we learn and practice.”
“Like what procedures?” he asked, frowning. “You shouldn’t be a guinea pig.”
“I’m not. It’s all safe and all my choice. Things like today. The skin resurfacing.”
“You want to do that?” he asked, looking appalled.
“Maybe. At some point. Not now. I’ve got some spots I wouldn’t mind having removed.”
“Where?” he asked, staring at her face more closely, causing her to blush even deeper.
She turned her head and pointed to a spot on her cheek. “I’ve got acne scars from when I was a teen. And a few dark spots from the sun, too.”
“That’s nothing,” he said, waving his hand. “You don’t need anything done. You look pretty damn fine to me.”
“Thanks. Amber said she scored me some implants from a rep, too.”
“What?! Breast implants?” he asked.
More heat was traveling up her face. “I told her to get lost and Max laughed and told her to leave me alone. She said I’d catch a man if I had bigger breasts.”
“Do you want bigger…” He put his hands in front of him and waved them around, almost like he was embarrassed to say the word. Now wasn’t that funny coming from a guy who admitted he picked women up in a bar and brought them home.
“Breasts, Cole. They’re called breasts. Or you can say boobs, it won’t offend me. And the answer is no. I’m not big, but it’s who I am and the way I’m staying. What about you?”
“No, I don’t want breast implants,” he said, straight-faced, then burst out laughing. “Do you mean, do I like a woman with them?”
“Yes.”
“I can go either way. I’m not fussy. I don’t know too many men that are,” he said grinning. “I don’t like anything obvious, though, if that makes sense.”
“It does. Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For not being one of those people who thinks everyone needs something done.”
“It’s your choice. I’m not telling you that you can’t do anything. I just want to make that clear. I’m only saying I don’t think you need any of that stuff. I like you the way you are.”
***
Forty minutes later, Cole watched Rene standing in front of a dartboard concentrating hard and yet not even coming close to hitting the wall, let alone the board.
“Whoa there, don’t put a hole in your shoe,” he said, trying to smother the urge to burst out laughing. He’d never seen someone almost puncture their foot throwing darts.
“Sorry,” she mumbled, her face a slight pink tone.
She blushed more than any woman he’d ever seen before. More than anyone he’d ever dated. He knew she was shy and a tad bit naive, but this was almost overkill.
Then again, he was used to the fast and uninhibited…something Rene was not.
He was starting to think maybe this wasn’t a good idea. Dating and getting to know her. He threw it out there originally, hoping to prove everything that he’d been saying to Celeste all along was correct. That there wasn’t someone out there for him. That there wasn’t anyone that would put up with his schedule or lifestyle.
No, he didn’t stop to think about all his coworkers that had spouses or kids. All he thought about was his own difficult childhood, trying to please his father and never measuring up. Trying to be the man of the house when he was nothing more than a child himself, because his father spent more time at work than with his family.
Never letting anyone know what he felt or thought and keeping it all bottled up. Doing his duty without complaints. Just like his father said everyone needed to do at points in their life.
When Rene said she didn’t mind his schedule, he was slightly disappointed. He knew he was looking—hoping—to find something that would make him say “I guess it won’t work” but that didn’t happen. At least not yet.
The worst part about their conversations so far was him fighting not to come off like a Neanderthal. The topic of her having Botox and skin burning or something else made him ill. Not that people had it done or she performed the procedure, but that she might do it herself. That someone was pressuring her to try it.
Yeah, it was her body, blah, blah, she could do what she wanted with it. Only he didn’t think she needed anything done. She was beautiful the way she was. Even standing there in front of him with a dart in her hand, one eye closed, the other squinting while she moved her arm back and forth figuring out how and where to throw the dart.
“Let me help you,” he said, moving to stand behind her.
She was so tiny against him, her back against his chest, her head not even hitting his chin. He took a moment and inhaled the scent of her hair…something floral and assaulting all his senses.
Placing one of his large hands over hers, he started
to guide her with the proper motion. “Keep your shoulder and arm level. Just move from your elbow. Imagine part of your arm resting on a board, keep your wrist straight, and move it like a pendulum. Follow through when you release the dart, like you’re pushing it through the air.”
“Hmm,” she said low in her throat. “What?”
She wasn’t paying attention to his words, and he was fighting to think of the game himself.
“Just release the dart when I say it,” he said quietly in her ear. He moved his arm back and forward with hers following since he was still holding her hand. “Now.”
The dart sailed through the air, hitting the bottom of the board.
“I hit it,” she said all excited, then turned and gave him a quick kiss on the lips.
“Yeah, you did,” he said softly.
A Wild Ride
Monday morning, Rene was sitting at her desk before the office officially opened, going through the appointments for the day. She wasn’t sure where Max wanted her, in with him during surgeries or doing office visits, but she liked to be aware of what was scheduled for the day.
“Morning,” Dena said, walking in and booting up her laptop, too.
She looked up a minute later when she heard fast feet and saw Amber stomping into the office. “Why didn’t you tell me you were dating Cole?”
Part of her was surprised it took this long for Amber to hear the news. The other part just decided to have fun. “Cole who?” she asked seriously, then glanced back at her computer calmly.
“McGuire. Cole McGuire. How many Coles do you know?” Amber asked sarcastically.
“Well, I went to school with a Cole Hauser, and then college with a Cole Praught. So that would make three.”
“Not funny,” Amber said, then turned to Dena. “Now she has a sense of humor. Really? Why didn’t you tell us?”
Rene smiled brightly and looked at Amber with her hands on her hips and Dena staring at her intently. “What’s there to tell?”