Happily Ever All-Star: A Secret Baby Romance - Sosie Frost Page 0,256

asked. “You don’t want the deal. You don’t want to stay at the practice facility with the team. You hate interacting with people, and you’ll ruin every good opportunity just so you can stay hidden.”

I didn’t answer.

“You know, I always thought it was strange…why you came home so early every day. Out the door at dawn, but back mid-afternoon.”

Christ. I didn’t have the patience or strength to deal with this.

She forced me to listen.

“The team practices in the mornings and has meetings in the early afternoon,” she said. “Then the players usually train in the weight room together. Not you though.”

“Not me,” I agreed.

“You come home as soon as you can leave.”

I gestured to my state-of-the-art, quiet, private weight room. “Why would I stick around when I have this?”

“It’s not the equipment, Cole.”

I gritted my teeth. “What do you want from me? I’m a loner. You know that.”

“Why?”

“Why what?”

“Why are you a loner?”

I didn’t answer.

“Cole, look at me.”

Piper’s voice tore from her, a blend of anger and frustration. She should have stormed out of the weight room, cursing me for hurting her. Instead she confronted me.

Why? What did she want? An answer? A reason why I couldn’t bring myself to look at her?

Did she want me to admit it?

It was because she was so beautiful and gentle and smart.

And the longer I stayed in her presence, the more I hated myself.

“You live in this big, fancy house all alone,” she said. “Why?”

Were we really doing this? “I like it that way.”

“You like this much property? The taxes? The estate upkeep?”

“What’s a gardener or a maid matter to me?”

“This is your parents’ house?”

Good. A history lesson. “And my father’s father’s. And his father’s before him.”

“Where are your parents?”

“Dead.”

“You don’t mourn them.”

“Hard to mourn someone I don’t miss. My mother died when I was young, my father took his sweet time following.”

Piper nodded, like she figured me all out, like it was that easy. “You didn’t get along with your father?”

“What’s that got to do with the house?”

“You said before that he hit you.”

“Everyone gets beat by their father.”

Piper raised an eyebrow. “Not me.”

“Right…yours just fires you and leaves you homeless without any alternative.”

“I had an alternative.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Marry Rose’s father.”

The thought set fire to my blood, and I didn’t even know the man. “But you didn’t.”

“No.”

“Why?”

“Because Jasper isn’t a good father to my child.”

And so she talked with me? Fucked me?

My guts churned with ice.

That made sense. Piper wanted to use me for a quick fuck. Nothing more.

Hell, I had no idea what else I could offer her.

“At least you took your comfort in my bed,” I said.

“Yeah. I took a nice tumble in those sheets.” She stepped closer. “And I don’t regret it.”

“You will.”

“Do you want me to?”

No, but it was inevitable. A woman like her needed a prince charming, someone responsible and safe. Someone she could trust with her baby.

“I did what you asked of me,” I said. “You wanted to be fucked. I fucked you.”

“Yeah, you’re real magnanimous that way.”

“Aim to please.”

“And you did, even if you don’t believe me.”

“You’re not very subtle, beautiful. You came and nearly wrenched my cock off.”

“So what’s the problem?” she asked. “You’ve been trying to get in my pants since the moment we met. Now that you’ve been down and back twice, you won’t even look at me while I’m talking to you. What happened? Wasn’t I any good at it?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“Not experienced enough for you?”

I heaved a breath. It didn’t extinguish the burn in my chest. “You were perfect, beautiful.”

“Do you think I’m…easy now?” Her voice edged in a hidden pain, like she actually thought I find something wrong with her. “Am I damaged? You fucked me. Am I now repulsive to you?”

“Jesus Fuck, Piper. You think I’m repulsed by you?”

“What am I supposed to think? I don’t know if you like me. I don’t even know if we’re friends. I have no fucking idea if you actually want me here.”

“Fuck me, Piper. You don’t understand.”

“Then help me understand.”

She wanted the truth? The ugly, horrible, heart-breaking truth?

Fine.

My voice lowered, harsh and unbreaking. “I asked you to move to the estate because when you and the baby are around, I feel like less of a monster.” I stared, willing my gaze to punish her for summoning the beast. “I’m not repulsed by you, beautiful. I’m repulsed by me.”

Piper stepped back, but she wasn’t getting away this easy, not now.

“Why?” Her voice quivered. “Why do you hate yourself so much?”

“What’s there to