Cole’s fingers startedto drum out an aggressive tempo on top of the table as he held back from blistering her ass for everything she had put him through.He’d felt a sense of panic when Tammy, his foreman’s wife, gave him the papers and explained what happened.Then, acute fear when he couldn’t find her, and the fact that she’d left her purse and phone on the office desk made it worse.Now, a depth of anger he’d never felt before was trying to take his control.
Victoria swallowed when her stress rose as he sat staring at her, not talking.“I’m done with you trying to use my feelings for you against me.Now, please go.”
“That’s it,” he barked.Cole stood and started to stalk her around the table.
Victoria held out an arm and backed away from him.
“Cole, please, I want you gone.I can’t take any more right now.”
He paused at her pain-filled voice.“You wouldn’t be going through any of this if you had just...”
“Sold you the ranch?”she asked sarcastically.
He growled.“Let me finish.If you had just asked me about the fucking papers.”
“What?”she burst out.“What would you have told me that would make sense?”
“How about I didn’t have my lawyer send those?”he growled.
Victoria snorted.“They don’t do shit like that on their own.They have to be told what to do.”
Cole’s teeth snapped together.“I know, goddamn it.That very first day, I called him on my way home and told him to get the papers ready.I never called him back until today to see why the hell he sent them.”
“Why?What did he say?”
“He didn’t.His new secretary did.She did it to several people.She’d found the file of to-dos the old secretary left and thought she’d take the initiative to take care of them.He scrambled all day to fix the commotion she caused.”
Victoria had stopped when he had but then began moving away from him when he started coming toward her again.“Oh...”
“Is that all you can say?”he snarled and narrowed his eyes.
“Would you stop following me?”she demanded.
“No,” he barked.
Victoria stomped her foot.“You can’t stay.I’m tired and want to go to bed.”
“That’s fine by me.Let’s go to bed.”
“No, you’re not staying tonight.I’m not up to taking care of your urges.”
“What the fuck does that mean?”
“All we are is fuck bud...”
“Don’t you dare say that shit again,” he warned.
She tilted her head to the side.“Why?That’s what we are, isn’t it?”
“One, I don’t like those words coming out of your mouth, and two, it’s not true.”
She studied his tight, determined expression.“First, I can say whatever the fuck I want, and secondly, how can you call us anything else?”
“Woman, you are so close to going over my knees.”
“No,” she said simply, copying his form of communication.“If you can say no, so can I.”
Victoria swallowed when a menacing smile crept across his face.
