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CHAPTER SIX

COLE

I grab Reine’s hand and hold it tight. Her stiff fingers slowly relax against mine. I rub deep, slow circles into her soft palm, watching her face. Nothing on earth could make me let go of her. Nothing.

“Do you always get what you want, Cole?” Her voice is shaky, her eyes a mess of confusion. She draws her bottom lip between her teeth and slowly nibbles. The sight punches all the blood in my body straight to my cock. I bite back a groan, desperate to run my tongue along that pink, tempting lip.

“Not always,” I say. “But I’m persistent as hell when I want something.” I don’t let go of her hand. I’d glue it there if I could. “And I’ve never in my life wanted anything as much as I want you.” Fucking hell. I sound crazy, but I don’t care.

The waitress interrupts with a bottle of wine and a crystal decanter for my whiskey, but I barely notice her. All I care about is the woman whose skin is soft and warm against mine, whose eyes are a storm I want to drown in.

After the waitress slips away, I pour Reine a glass and slide it over, but don’t touch my own. “Let’s try this again,” I say, voice low. “I’m not going away, but we can slow things down if that makes you happy.” Her lips part, but she doesn’t pull her hand away. I can literally see her brain short-circuiting as she tries to make sense of the two of us. There’s color in her cheeks, and her chest is rising and falling fast.

I want to throw her over my shoulder and take her straight back to my hotel room, but I know she isn’t ready. So, I play it cool and just rub my thumb along her palm, nice and slow.

She lets out a shaky laugh. “You are… a lot, Cole Carrington.”

“Sweetheart, you haven’t seen anything yet.” The words come out rougher than I intend, but fuck it, she needs to know what she’s dealing with. “I’m not gonna scare you off, but I am going to make damn sure you know exactly how much I want you.”

“I’m not going to just jump into bed with you.” I love the way she cuts through bullshit. I respect it. I want to see how honest she’ll be if I push her.

“All in good time,” I give her the patented Carrington smirk. “But we have plenty of time for that.” I pause, let my thumb stroke her wrist. “And yeah, I want you in my bed, but that’s just the icing. I want everything.”

She looks at me for a long time. Not blinking. Not even breathing. “You’re crazy.”

“Only for you,” I say. I can hear the corny pick-up line in my own voice, but it doesn’t matter. It’s the truth.

She blinks first, and I win. She takes a slow sip of her wine, then says, “So, you think you’re my knight in shining armor?”

“God, no,” I say, making her bark out a real laugh. “Hudson is the family knight in shining armor. I’m the one who likes to cause the problems.” It’s time to cool things off a little before I scare her off.

“Tell me about your family.” She fucking reads my mind.

I can’t help grinning. “You sure you want to open that can of worms, sweetheart? There’s a lot of us, and we’re all a little crazy.”

She meets my eyes over the rim of her wine glass, her mouth twitching like she’s trying not to smile. “Try me.”

I squeeze her hand tighter, feeling the delicate bones beneath her soft skin. "Okay, but you asked for it." My thumb traces slow circles on her palm. "I've got one sister and three brothers, all annoying as hell in their own special ways. Our parents died in a plane crash several years ago, and Hudson, my oldest brother, stepped in to take over running the family. The big asshole is big on rules and responsibility and has a stick up his ass the size of Texas. But he’s all about family. I'm next in line, the better-looking one." I wink at her, loving how the vein at the base of her throat pounds away. "Then there's Tanner, the real Carrington smart ass. Next is Silas, my youngest brother, who thinks he's God's gift to the world, but he’s really just a pain in my ass. And Maggie—" My voice softens despite myself. "Silas' twin, the smallest thing you ever saw, but twice as fierce. She married her old high school crush. After my brothers and I tortured him a little bit."

Reine lets out a snort loud enough to make the couple in the next booth glance over. “I bet you did. You look exactly like the kind of brother who’d haze someone just for asking your sister to the prom.”

I can’t help it—I start laughing, for real. “We gave Todd hell, but the fucker survived, but barely.” I shake my head, thinking of the time Silas slipped ghost peppers into Todd’s breakfast tacos. “He’s a good guy who fucking loves my sister. Maggie gives him hell and he loves it.”

She’s watching me, blue eyes sparkling, like she can’t decide if she wants to roll her eyes or kiss me. Fuck, I hope it’s both.

I lean in closer, still holding her hand under the table. “That’s the thing about my family. We’re a mess, but we’re loyal. You get one of us, you get the whole pack. And if anyone ever messed with you…” I trail off, letting the threat hang thick between us. I squeeze her hand, just tight enough to let her feel it. “I’d make them regret it. Nobody fucks with what’s mine.”

Her cheeks go pink, but she doesn’t look away. Damn, she’s got guts. I love the little tremor in her jaw, like she wants to tell me off and crawl into my lap at the same time. I want both. Hell, I want everything.

She gives me a look, blue eyes sharp. “That’s big talk, Mr. Carrington.”

I grin, slow and dirty, and squeeze her hand tight enough that she can’t pretend she doesn’t feel it. “It’s not just talk, sweetheart. I mean every word.”

Her cheeks flush even deeper. She tries to glare, but her mouth quirks at the corner, and I know she wants to smile. Fuck, she’s so damn cute I want to bite her. “You’re insane.”

I squeeze her hand, heat pouring off me. “Only for you, sweetheart.”

Her blue eyes go wide for a second, like I just knocked the wind out of her. Oh, shit. Did she think I was kidding? Not a fucking chance. I want to tattoo my name on her soul and make sure every man in Montana knows she’s off the market for good.