I’d completely forgotten about the meeting, and I stifle a smile. I look up, meeting his gaze directly. “Not really. There are only so many major event companies in the city.”
“You didn’t think to share that particular bit of information?” he asks.
I tilt my head, flashing him my sweetest smile. “It didn't seem relevant at the time.”
“Not relevant?” His voice rises slightly.
I stand up, needing coffee. “You were treating me like an unwelcome houseguest because I am an unwelcome houseguest. My professional relationship with your team doesn't change that.”
He follows me into the kitchen, and suddenly the space shrinks with both of us in it.
“You should have told me,” he says, his voice low.
“Why?” I turn to face him, and my heart skips a beat at how close he’s standing. Close enough that I have to tilt my head back to meet his stare.
His eyes flash with an emotion I can’t identify. Cole’s gaze drops to my mouth. Without thinking, I do the same, my eyes tracing the firm line of his lips before snapping back up to meet his intense stare.
Then he takes a step forward, closing the distance between us. Before I can process what's happening, his hands are framing my face, and his mouth is on mine.
His lips are hot and demanding, and his mouth tastes of mint toothpaste and heat. I kiss him back with a hunger that shocks me. A raw, desperate sound escapes my throat as my hands fist in his hair, pulling me closer. His tongue tangles with mine, and his other arm bands around me, crushing my body against the solid wall of his chest.
The low groan that rumbles from his chest vibrates straight through me.
The kiss is a wildfire, consuming us both in seconds.
The thin fabric of my clothes feels like nothing, with every point of contact becoming hyper-sensitive.
My nipples tighten into hard, aching points. They brush against the bare skin of his chest with every ragged breath I take, a sharp, sweet friction that makes me shudder. My pussy throbs, and in seconds, my panties are soaking wet.
Pressed against me, his cock is hard and unmistakably thick, even through the layers of our clothes. A desperate, involuntary sound catches in my throat as my hips rock forward, grinding against that rigid length, desperately craving the friction.
The refrigerator chooses that moment to kick on, its hum suddenly escalating into a loud, rattling cycle that jolts me out of my bubble of lust.
I drop my hands from Cole’s hair like I’ve been burned.What am I doing?
Cole tilts my chin, forcing me to look at him. “That,” he says roughly, “is why you should have told me.”
6
Cole
The massage table is heated to the perfect temperature, but I can't relax. Hillary works her hands along my shoulder blades, trying to work out the knots that formed during this morning's practice, but my mind is elsewhere.
On Harper. On that kiss.
Christ, the way she tasted. Like coffee and heat. That raw, desperate moan that left her throat when I kissed her. The one that’s been on a loop in my head for two days.
The way her hips moved, grinding against me like she couldn't help herself. She wanted me just as badly as I wanted her, and that knowledge is driving me insane.
“Your shoulders are like concrete blocks,” Hillary says, digging her elbow into a particularly stubborn knot. “What's got you so tense?”
If only she knew. “Just thinking about the season opener.”
“Mmm. Well, try not to think so hard. You're making my job harder.” She moves to work on my lower back.
I try to focus on the pain of the deep tissue work, on the game tape I reviewed this morning, on anything other than the factthat my best friend’s little sister is currently turning my brain and my body into mush.
It’s no use. The more I push her away from my mind, the more the memory of Harper becomes more vivid. The feel of her body against mine. The damp heat of her through her shorts.
