Losing Control - By Robyn Grady Page 0,59

much on my plate, too much to keep in order, to have to worry about a relationship."

"Like Meredith said at the reunion, you can't run forever."

"I can try."

"You need to ease up on yourself. Quit taking all the responsibility for Hunters. That's too much for anyone."

"You say that as if I have a choice."

"Oh, it's a choice, all right. Don't try to say you don't like being 'the man.' At school, if you didn't get 'school captain this' or 'regional champion that,' you dragged your feet for days."

"It's healthy to be competitive. It's natural."

"Until it starts to screw with your life."

"Work is my life. With all my family tangled up in it, it has to be."

"I'll give you my take. I think this woman's in love with you. And my bet is you're in love with her, too."

After the moment of shock had passed, Cole barked out a laugh. "Remember who you're talking to? I've never been in love." He held up a warning finger. "Meredith McReedy doesn't count. Hell, I've only known Taryn a few weeks."

"Sometimes it happens that way. Fast and deadly, like a snake bite."

"I'm not looking to get hitched."

"All I've heard about this lady is how strong and beautiful and perfect she is. But you're not really seeing it."

Cole drained the rest of his beer then set the bottle down on the table hard. "I don't see any ring on your fat finger."

"Maybe that's because I haven't found the right person."

Cole's thoughts skidded to a halt as those words echoed through his brain.

Was that it? Why he couldn't for the life of him shake her from his mind. And the fascination was growing worse every day. Love? It was great his mother and father had shared it. He'd always thought that someday he'd settle down, too.

Question was, if Brandon was right - if this was it and she was the one - given that she hated his guts...

What did he do now?

* * *

The next day was Saturday. At home, Cole was about to settle down with that pain-in-the-butt Liam Finlay contract yet again. He got this was an important deal with a huge amount of money hanging in the balance, but he was beginning to wonder if Finlay was playing games, stretching this out, making him suffer because of his past unsatisfactory dealings with Guthrie. Still, what could he do? Hunter Broadcasting needed this deal. Therefore Cole couldn't slack off. Or, rather, not again.

His home phone extension rang. Business calls came through on his cell. Majority of his personal calls, too. Probably some poor sales sap doing another cold call. Or...

Tate knew that number. He'd learned it off by heart. When the phone stopped then rang again, a shiver ran through Cole's blood and he picked up. Sure enough, that familiar sweet voice filtered down the line.

"Daddy's not home and Mommy says I'm too noisy," Tate said. "She's tired."

"Where your dad?"

It was the weekend and Guthrie had been spending most of his time at home lately. Where else might he be?

"Don't know." Cole imagined Tate's little shoulders shrugging. "Can you come and play with me?"

Cole recalled that tome of a contract sitting on his home desk. There was loads of other work he could catch up on, too. But then he thought of Tate, what a bum deal he'd gotten having a mother like Eloise, feeling as if he had to get around like a mouse when he was a robust five-year-old boy who should be out kicking a ball, not stuck inside playing with electronic games.

Cole scrubbed his jaw, made his decision.

"Are you watching TV, kiddo?"

"Uh-huh. SpongeBob's just started." Tate laughed. "He's funny."

"Grab a hat. By the time your show's over, I'll be there."

* * *

Cole arrived bang on time and let Creepy Nancy know that he was taking Tate out for the day. Eloise didn't bother to come downstairs to say have a nice time. Wearing a bright red tee, Tate sat like an angel in the passenger-side seat while they drove to a park, the one Cole and Taryn had paddled those boats in, not that he'd intentionally planned his and Tate's time together today that way.

Cole parked and grabbed the football he'd brought along. They filled their stomachs with hot dogs and Coke first. Watched the ducks on the lake while the food settled. When Cole couldn't control Tate's fidgets any longer, they kicked and tossed the pigskin back and forth. Cole showed his brother techniques required for a handball, a