“I’m going to take a shower. You can have my room.”
She doesn’t answer.
When I come out, she’s fast asleep on the couch, one hand tucked under her cheek, the other wrapped in the blanket
I pick her up gently and place her in my bed.
Two weeks. That’s all I have to show this woman how much of me she owns.
I can feel the tug, it’s so fraught with tension it’s going to snap soon. I don’t know what that means, but at least I know what I’m working with now.
Natalie might not believe in soulmates and her family’s curse, but I’ve been living within the pages of her family folklore for years. After these next few weeks, heaven help me, she’ll be living in them too.
CHAPTER
TEN
NATALIE
“Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.”
Frantic, panicked rummaging jerks me awake. A white-hot pain hammers behind my right eye, and I groan, yanking the blanket over my face. Where am I? Flashes from last night play in a succession of cringey reels in my brain.
Crying on Cole.
Drinking.
Way too much.
Smashing cookies with my face. Feral and unstable.
Oh, no. Oh god.
The next reel starts with me climbing onto Cole’s lap and him gently pushing me off. His words don’t come. Just the “No.” And then I fell asleep on the couch.
How I ended up tucked into this pillow-soft bed, drowning in cedar and lemon, is anyone’s guess.
“Fuck me. This is the last thing I needed.” Cole’s groan comes from the bathroom.
“You okay?” I ask, emerging from my cocoon and tiptoeing toward the warm light spilling from the bathroom.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.”
“It’s fine. My parents want to get on the road by nine anyway.”
“Right.”
I lean against the door and press my throbbing temple against the cool wood. Very little relief finds me. “Hey. So. Are you still planning on coming? Because I understand if you’re rethinking the whole ‘two weeks with an emotional dumpster fire’ thing.”
There’s silence. A muttered curse. Still no response to my question. I get the hint.
“Yeah. Okay, that’s fair. Bye!” My heart sinks as I walk away, even though I shouldn't be disappointed.
“Sorry, you’re not getting rid of me that easy. I’m coming. How are you feeling?”
“I feel like I’m the one who got hit in the head at the game last night, but other than that fine. How are you?”
“Good. Good.” Cole says, his voice is calm, but there’s a decided edge to it, like the calmness is a sham. “There’s bacon and eggs on the counter for you.”
