Cole had an idea of what kind of help they were offering, but he kept his mouth shut. His brother’s propensity for sharing their women had been a well-known fact for their entire lives—at least since they had started noticingwomen.
“Clint?” Tomi’s soft, feminine voice drifted into the room, and Cole turned to see her rubbing her eyes with the heels of her palms, as if she were just waking up, looking sexy as hell in the baggy sweatpants and T-shirt he’d given her towear.
“Tomi Tomlin, just as beautiful as ever.” Clint hooked his thumbs into his pants pockets and leaned back against the white doorframe in thekitchen.
“Clint Fury, just as flirty as ever. Why are you here?” Tomi surveyed the room, her eyes widening when she took in Carter’s presence against the sink. He gave her a small wave but keptsilent.
She frowned. “If this is some kind of sick, twisted Fury brother game, count me out. I don’t want any part ofit.”
“I think that’s our cue to leave.” Carter straightened from the sink, nodding to Tomi as he passed by her. “Good to see you, Tomi. Clint, go.Now.”
Clint winked at Cole, “As I said, we’re here to help.” And then he followed Carter out of the room and then out the front door, leaving Cole and Tomi alone in the smallkitchen.
Her irritation vanished, replaced by uncertainty. She started fumbling with her fingers, twisting the hemline of the long T-shirt, as she looked more at the floor than at him. “What’s going on,Cole?”
“Sit down, Tomi.” Cole pulled out the chair right next to him, scooting closer. If he was going to get her to trust him, he needed to push her boundaries a littlebit.
Tomi frowned and pulled out the seat on the opposite side of the table, flopping into it. “Now, are you going to tellme?”
Cole held up his hand when Tomi’s lips parted. “How did you end up at that auction? Thetruth.”
Tomi sucked her bottom lip in between her teeth, staring back at him with worry, just like she used to when they were younger. His gut tightened; he wanted to suck that lower lip between his teeth. But Carter had been right—he couldn’t just rush her. She needed a gentle hand, like a wild mustang. He didn’t want to break her. He’d never wanted to break her. But he did want to hold her fire in his palms and mold it, feed it so that it grew but didn’t burn them both alive in theprocess.
“You won’t believe me. You don’t want to believeme.”
Cole crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back, straightening his legs out to get comfortable. He wanted to show her that he was in absolutely no hurry. “I do want to believeyou.”
Tomi’s temper flared, and she slammed her hand's palm flat on the table. “I demand you let mego.”
Cole shook his head slowly. “Can’t do that, baby girl.” The old endearment slipped past hislips.
And from the way Tomi’s eyes narrowed, it had pissed her off. “Don’t call methat.”
“Why not? Never used to bother youbefore.”
He’d started calling her that toward the beginning, when they’d first started messing around with a little bit of BDSM. She used to get so wet when he’d call her that, squirming on his lap. Fuck, the thought made him hard as a damnrock.
“You know why,” shesaid.
“Fine, I won’t call you that until you ask me to—if you tell me what happened. You’ve got one shot. Don’t blowit.”
“If I do, will you let mego?”
“No.”
Her baby blues rounded. “Then why should I tell youanything?”
Cole kept his mouth shut. Her imagination would do a much better job of intimidating her into telling the truth than anything he couldsay.
Seconds stretched into minutes and still she didn’t talk. “I’m hungry,” she saidfinally.
Cole bit back a smile at her sullen expression. “You can have something to eat as soon as you give meanswers.”
“So, I can add starvation to my list of grievances, along with kidnapping andslavery?”
“If it makes you feel better,” Coleshrugged.
“Why are you doing this?” she criedout.
