Total pages in book: 42
Estimated words: 39538 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 198(@200wpm)___ 158(@250wpm)___ 132(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 39538 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 198(@200wpm)___ 158(@250wpm)___ 132(@300wpm)
Viper had kept to his word and hadn’t asked any questions about Megan.
Cole traced the outline of the delicate shell of her ear. Her skin was so translucent that you could see the tiny veins running underneath. Scooting closer to her rather than chance moving her, he tightened his arm around her waist.
God, how much he loved this woman. He no longer regretted the time he lain spent in a coma, nor the years he had spent more child than man. He was meant to be here, at this moment in time, for her. He thought it was so ironic she was worried about Marty when she was letting herself slip away without a fight.
Viper was right about one thing—she was fighter. The problem was she had been knocked down so many times she’d had the fight knocked out of her.
Today gave him hope. He had seen the flare of jealousy when she asked about the robes and pajamas. She had also shocked him when she knocked on his door.
Cole had to constantly watch his reactions not to scare her off. Megan was timid as a doe once she lowered her guard with him. He could practically read her mind. She had come prepared to have sex with him, then she would keep him at a distance as if it never happened. That was why he made certain she got his message—he was no one’s one-night stand. Megan wasn’t going to find it easy to return to Treepoint and resume their causal relationship. She was his, and he was going to make certain he didn’t leave Treepoint without her, even if he had to stay there to convince her. All he had to do was be careful. Her past was a minefield he had to navigate carefully, or he would damage her budding love for him.
When she had closed her eyes, he had been about to get out of the bed and throw cold water on the desire he was hiding from her. Thankfully, she had fought through what was holding her back and showed him the woman she could be when she wasn’t afraid.
All his little fighter needed was confidence. The confidence to be herself, to know that someone was capable of loving her like she deserved to be loved and, most importantly, have the confidence to face the past. Cole feared that most of all. He was afraid if she lost that battle, there wouldn’t be a way to get her back.
He ran a gentle hand over her short, curly hair and brushed his lips over her forehead.
“Why are you awake?” she murmured in a groggy voice.
“I wasn’t finished loving you.”
Megan buried her face in the covers. “I’m sleeping.”
Cole grinned, rolling her onto her back. Then, pulling the cover down, he stared into wide-awake eyes. “What are you doing awake?”
Her body melted into his, her thighs going around his hips. “I guess I wasn’t done loving you either.”
Nineteen
Megan practically skipped after leaving Dustin’s office. If she were any happier, her hot air balloon would be entering outer space.
Turning her heat on full blast once she was back in her car, she checked her gas gage, ecstatic she wouldn’t have to swing by the gas station to complete the next delivery.
When she pulled out onto the road. she calculated how much more money she needed to buy Joel’s car—a couple more days. And if the tips kept coming in the way they had been, she would have enough to buy Cole a nice Christmas present.
She was so worried about running out of time with having so much to get accomplished in the few days left before Christmas that she hadn’t even bothered to look for an apartment. Right now, an apartment was the last of her priorities. Car first, then an apartment, she had to remind herself constantly.
Chelsea made living at the hotel unbearable. She constantly found something to badger her about, even when she had no cause. If there were another hotel in town, she would have left. Unfortunately, the next closest was in Jamestown, and her car wouldn’t make the drive twice daily, especially in the icy weather they had been experiencing.
In her mind, she went over what she wanted to say as she passed The Last Riders’ compound. Sparing it a brief glance, she spotted Cole’s SUV.
She had seen him every day since they came back from California. She let him stay the first night back, but the next day, Chelsea had called her to the office.
From the moment she had walked inside the office, she knew Chelsea was going to pull something to get her to leave. And Chelsea didn’t disappoint.
“You’re not allowed overnight guests.” she’d spat out. “You paid for a single. Cole stayed last night, so you owe twenty-five dollars, which needs to be paid immediately.”