Counting On Cole (Wilde Ways #8) - Cynthia Eden Page 0,21
want to cover the facts so you understand exactly what’s happening before we move in together.”
Hold on. “Before we do what?” Evie blinked.
“I’m moving into your place. If I’m providing twenty-four, seven protection, that means I’m with you when you sleep. I’m with you when you work. I’m there when any threat could come.”
“I…don’t have a guest room.” Yes, she’d blurted that. Probably the least of her concerns but…
He smiled.
That smile of his sent heat churning straight through her. So much for being immune to his charm. Dammit. When it came to Cole, she still reacted the same way. Which was…way too much.
“Don’t worry. I can sleep on the floor. I did that last time, remember?”
Until the last night, when he’d slept in the bed with her. Would things end the same way this time? “I have a couch,” she told him crisply. “I’m sure you saw it when you came into my place. It lets out into a sleeper.”
His eyes gleamed. “You told Leopold I was your bodyguard. You can tell everyone else that, too. Or, if you want to keep things on the down low, you can say I’m your lover. Not like that part is a lie, either.”
“You’re not my lover anymore.”
“Who is?”
The jealousy was back. She could see it in his gaze.
Her stare shot to the door on the left. Where was her brother? Shouldn’t he have been back by now?
“Still covering the facts,” Cole added roughly. “And the fact is I am jealous as fuck when it comes to you. Two years didn’t change that. I doubt twenty years will. When it comes to you, I tend to think one thing.”
Evie was afraid to ask, but she could not keep the stupid question back as her attention slid to him once more. “What?”
“Mine. I tend to think you’re mine.”
Evie shook her head. “I only belong to myself.”
“Once upon a time, I could have sworn you were mine.”
“Cole—”
“And I was yours.”
She’d wanted him to be.
“But you make the rules this time, Evie. You want my hands off you? Then they will be off.”
Suddenly, all she could think about was the way it felt to have his hands on her. Dammit. Had that been a deliberate trick? A mind game he’d just played on her? Like when you do reverse psychology on someone so they’ll do the opposite of—
“Protecting you is my priority. I wanted you to know how I still felt so there would be no confusion between us.”
Confusion was making her head spin. “How you feel…” A breath. “You still want me.”
“I never stopped wanting you.”
But you left.
“Did you stop?” His voice had gone rougher. “Or do you still want me?”
The door to the left creaked open. “Evie!” Harrison’s voice. Sharp. Worried.
Her head turned, and she saw his gaze jumping from her to Cole, then back again.
“There a problem?” Harrison demanded.
She hadn’t answered Cole’s last question. For once, her brother had exhibited absolutely perfect timing.
Chase sauntered out from behind Harrison. He slapped a hand on Harrison’s back. “Of course, there’s no problem. Wilde is on the case.” But his focus shifted to Evie. “Aren’t we? Do you want us to keep working your case?”
The pounding of her heartbeat sounded very, very loud. For a moment, she remembered being on the street near the restaurant. The sound of screeching tires.
The fear and fury she’d seen on Cole’s face as he lunged for her.
Cole could be scary. He could be fierce. He could kick the ass of bad guys and get the job done. The problem? While he did all of that, he might just break her heart again. Because even though she hadn’t answered him, the truth was that…yes, she still wanted him.
“I will protect you,” Cole vowed roughly. “I will do everything in my power to keep you safe. But if we go down this path, you decide now. You follow my orders. You trust me.”
That part was going to be tricky.
She licked her lower lip. There were other bodyguards out there. Plenty of them. But…
She’d never forget being in that closet back in LA. She’d never forget Cole’s voice calling out to her and telling her that she was safe. That he was going to protect her. He’d broken down the door to get to her. Carried her out of her nightmare.
And…
“Do we have a deal, Evie?” Cole asked. He seemed to hold his breath.
She’d said they were going forward. When it came to kicking ass and taking names, Cole was a master. “We