I shudder under the soft touch and wish for a moment that he would do it again. And again. And again.
"Don’t youeverrun away again, little darling."
I try to nod but have no idea if my head moves because my body tingles everywhere.
Every time he calls me that, I like it a little more even though it doesn’t make any sense.
"Now come on. You’re freezing." He lets go of me but takes my hand and guides me to his pickup. "We’re going home."
THIRTEEN
COLE
Words can’t even begin to describe how mad I got when Jules told me that Sophie was no longer in her room. I don’t remember the last time that I was so out of my mind, but when I suddenly saw Sophie walking along the side of the road, it felt like having Mount Everest lifted off my shoulders.
The adrenaline still rushes through my veins, but I’m just relieved right now because I found her.
She’s sitting in the passenger seat while I dial Jules’s number. As I do so, I reach back between the seats with my right arm to grab the hoodie lying on the back seat.
Jules answers the call, completely out of breath. "Did you find her?"
"Yes," I answer without hesitation, upon which she exhales in relief.
"Thank God."
"Where are you? Do you want me to pick you up?" I ask while I hand Sophie the hoodie because she’s shaking like crazy.
"No, I’m fine. I’m almost back at your place because I wanted to check if she came back."
"Okay. See you soon, then."
"Cole?" She stops me from hanging up. "Is she okay?"
I glance at Sophie. She’s just slipping the sleeves on, and I can’t stop the corner of my mouth from twitching because the hoodie is way too big for her. She would fit in it three times.
"Yeah. I think so," I reply, shifting the gear into drive.
"Good. See you in a minute." Then she hangs up.
After I do a U-turn, I drive back into town. When I have to stop at a traffic light, Sophie’s voice reaches my ears. "Why did you wait at that traffic light?"
I don’t know what she’s talking about, so I look at her with a frown. "Which traffic light?"
"The one at my house."
Ah…thatone. I’ve never seen anything more pointless than that traffic light in the middle of nowhere, but my principles are unbreakable. One of them is to never run a red light.Ever. And usually, I stick to that. Even if it costs me three minutes of my time and gets a girl to jump into my truck.
I avert my gaze from Sophie before answering, my voice sounding harsher than intended. "Bad things can happen if you ignore these things. That’s fucking why."
I can see her nod from the corner of my eye before she looks straight ahead again, remaining silent for the rest of the ride.
I don’t have to ask her a second time why she ran away. If she overheard what I told Jules earlier, it’s almost understandable. She must have thought I was trying to get rid of her when all I did was blow a fuse.
Jules knows about my temper and the fact that not every word I say should be taken literally when I’m mad. Heavens… How many times have I told her to go to hell without actually meaning it? But Sophiedoesn’tknow me. She has no idea that I can be a real jerk who sometimes spouts a lot of bullshit.
After I parked the car, I stop her from getting out. "Sophie?"
She pauses and turns to me, looking at me with questioning eyes.
