Chapter seven
Grace
Iwoke up warm. Warm and well rested.
Then I opened my eyes, and the panic struck.
I wasn’t alone.
I wasn’t in my bed.
I wasn’t in any bed actually.
An arm was wrapped around my waist, holding me tightly.
There was a warmth on my neck and something hard digging into my ass.
“Fuck,” I swore under my breath.
As reality hit, I started to freak out. I was at Cole’s house. I’d fallen asleep. We’d fallen asleep. I’d spent the night wrapped in his arms.
He murmured in his sleep and tightened his hold.
I wanted to flee but I didn’t want to wake him. This was bad, so very bad.
I shifted an inch and waited to see if I roused him, but his breathing remained even.
Slowly, carefully, I inched out of his grip and fell to my knees on the floor beside him. He was so gorgeous it should have been illegal. Somehow, after a night spent talking and watching movies and sleeping on the couch, he was effortlessly handsome. I forced myself to stop staring and found my feet.
I padded down the hall into the bathroom and took care of business before washing my hands and splashing water on my face. Where Cole was beautiful first thing in the morning, I certainly was not. My hair was a mess, and my eyes looked tired with deep black bags under them. They looked deep enough to carry all my emotional baggage. I tried to finger-comb my hair before pulling it back in a messy braid. I squeezed a blob of toothpaste onto my finger and did my best to brush away my morning breath. The walk of shame was bad enough without the furry feeling on my teeth, or worse, my breath smelling like I’d licked a trash can.
“It’s as good as it’s going to get without a shower,” I told my reflection as I dried my hands and prepared to sneak out.
I crept back down the hall and found my boots, the last thing I wanted to do was to pull them on. Tucking them under my arm, I grabbed my things and headed for the door. I almost made it too. Almost.
“Didn’t take you for one to try and sneak out,” Cole grumbled, his voice thick with sleep freezing me where I stood.
“I wasn’t,” I lied, turning around.
Cole rose from the couch and stretched his arms high above his head, causing his shirt to rise, giving me a glimpse of those hard planes of his stomach I’d admired.
“Join me for coffee?” he invited, and I swear my jaw hit the ground.
“I shouldn’t,” I declined, my head swiveling from Cole to my car and back again.
I could already hear my sisters’ taunts now. Barely back in town and already out all night. If I could sneak up to my room before they found out, maybe I could avoid it, but coffee with Cole … I wasn’t sure I was ready to say goodbye to him just yet.
“Yes, you should. Let me duck to the bathroom real quick, then I’ll get breakfast started.”
“Breakfast? I thought you said coffee,” I called him out as I set my boots down by his front door, not missing the hiss of breath he sucked in.
A mischievous smirk danced across Cole’s features. “I’m a lot of things, Grace, but I don’t kick women out the door after they’ve spent the night in my bed.”
Cole flashed me a wink and strutted down the hall no doubt thinking he got the last word. But one thing he’d soon learn about me was, I liked having the last word. I needed to.
“So, I guess it’s a good thing I didn’t spend the night in your bed then,” I replied to his retreating ass.
Cole mumbled something I didn’t catch, but I made my way into his kitchen. It was magical in here this time of the morning. The sun streamed through the huge windows, you could tell this was the heart of the home. Flashes blinded me of chaotic Sunday breakfasts filled with family and Saturday nights shared with friends. I shook off the images, reminding myself Wattle Creek wasn’t my forever, and started the coffee.
