h
tely ignoring Cole like he
me, old man, sam
n before I could
d his arm lightly. "
honey, Jake doesn't have any family in Chicago, he's a foster kid, and ever since we drafted him at
rying to process everything
oring Cole's hand on my waist compl
h his girlfriend and her name was Chl
second too long. I knew Jake liked me, he'd never been shy abo
ightened around my waist
e room fe
tepped between us and his chest f
e enough that his breath brushed
a warm shiver ran through
away from my girlfriend, Sterlin
her hands together. "O
steps on the stairs caught everyone's attention, and
view, and his gaze swept over me in a
N
sweaty and my
t with two months ago, I'd left the mor
ognized me, and a slow smi
own my spine and I
on't let him be
ke," Cole's mother sai
still see her talking but her words sounde
. I'd slept with
t my ribs and this had t
, pr
he present and he extended his h
and tried to move
's en
l, and he stared at his brothe
rked. "Hey, big b
e any woman forget her own name,
s to rest," Cole said, a
hands in surrender, but his gaze
way everyone in the family looked
room and toward the bedroom we'd be sharing, and of course he wasn'
the bedroom, Cole lock
"Why did y
d and unreadable, the kind of cold that
sounded like," he said as he walked toward me, slow and deliberate,
y back hit the wooden wall with a soft
ed, but my voice di
voice low and tight, like the
s with him, trying to read what was ang
n his bar, in his bed?" The questions came out too fas
Cole, w
gh me, not just loud but raw, and th
se I couldn't understand what could make him act like a
ing the word, letting it sit on his ton
ing me against the wall, his arm braced beside my hea
his name?" he asked quietly, his eyes d
e, s
my waist, firm and possessive, his palm hot through the t
ou like you be
height of it all, the line
e at once, rising from my stomach up to my throat, because who did he
e I don't belong to anyone!" I snapped, my voice
had, and he stumbled back one step, his eyes wide, and I could see the sh
ore your stupid fake contract, before your fucking rule three, you hired me to p
outside the window the frozen lake cra
d shoved him, then back at me, h
s voice low and rough. "It's not my
ving me space for the first time since we entered t
e the problem wasn't
ht have agreed that my
ready told me he wasn't goi
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