Page 85 of Muddy Messy Love

“Well then, I guess I’ll have to stop fantasising about Betsy’s untimely demise in some freak accident.” Jen makes air quotes around the wordaccident, then eyes Betsy with newfound admiration. She looks up a moment later. “It was nice to meet you, Cole.”

“Likewise,” he says.

Jen throws me a wink. “Talk later, babes.”

“Thanks for today,” I say.

Cole bear-hugs me from behind and walks us inside, his steps straddling mine. It’s new and awkward but completely adorable. “Betsy?” he asks.

“Uh-huh. Liam is special. Let’s just leave it at that.”

“Jen seems nice.”

“She’s the best.” I glance up at him over my shoulder as we step inside, then turn in his arms to face him, pushing the front door shut.

“So you guys had a fun day?” He searches my face with soft eyes, like he’s committing every detail to memory or refining the last one he had.

“Apart from running into Slade, it was perfect.”

Cole stiffens. “What?”

I shake my head, trying to downplay the situation, but his tension radiates like heat from a grill. “He saw Liam’s car. It was no big deal. We told him where to go.”

Releasing me, Cole steps away, carving fingers through his hair. “That son of a bitch. I warned him to stay away from you. You could be in prison because of him, and he approaches you like nothing happened?”

“Well, I’m not in prison, thanks to my knight in shining armour. He and his shady snooping tendencies saved me.” I wink, trying desperately to conjure levity. I knew mentioning this would mean trouble but keeping it a secret meant betrayal. Rock, meet hard place.

Cole’s hands find his hips, and he shakes his head at the ground. “You should take out a restraining order.”

“What? Are you serious?”

Sharp eyes meet mine. “Deadly. The guy’s trouble. There are things about him I don’t think you know.”

“Like what?”

“Like his juvenile record reads a mile long. Like he pickpockets the elderly and sells drugs to children. And you know about the cars. Should I go on?”

Sladehurts children?Targetsgrandmas? My gut twists. That’s a special kind of low. “How do you know all this?” Juvenile records are sealed, or so I thought.

“Connections.”

I grow dizzy. Am I that crap a judge of character? My shoulders slump as I stare at my feet. How can I trust anything I feel when my intuition seems AWOL?

Cole winces, then ambles back to me and rests his hands on my shoulders, kneading out the knots. “Look, I’m sorry to push. I need you safe, is all.”

From the first day we met, he’s been saving me, protecting me, and keeping me close. If I weren’t so deliciously cocooned in the cosiness that brings, I might ask why.

I look up to meet eyes that ache. “I told Slade to leave me alone. He won’t bother me anymore, and I won’t fall for it again. With or without you in my life.”

Cole tucks me against his chest, cradling my head. “I’m sorry. I’m glad you told me. Really, I am.”

My muscles unwind, and I pull back, choosing to smile and forget this ever happened. “Good. Now c’mon, I want to show you what I found today.”

I hold out my hand, and with a resigned but playful sigh, Cole takes it. “Lead the way.”

I grin and drag him through the gallery, but he stops in front of the pottery wheel. “I can’t see you throwing pots in the entry. Are you sure there isn’t someplace else you’d like me to put this?” There’s an air of caution to his words.

So he does know what it is. I stare at him silently while I consider the question. Jen’s corny advice twirls through my head.Don’t let fear captain your ship. Huh. Easier said than done. If a picture’s worth a thousand words, a sculpture’s worth a million. It’s showing someone the encyclopedia of my heart and the shadows of my mind, then still having to look them in the eye afterwards. But Cole’s seen my worst, and he’s still here. That’s gotta count for something.

---