Page 79 of (Un)Expected

Tears started to prick my eyes again. Damn him. By the time we left the city, I’d have cried enough to fill the entire lake back home.

I nodded. “Thank you for trusting me.”

“Of course,” Adam said. “Now, I do have one more favor to ask.”

“Anything.”

“The industry party tonight. I’d understand if you weren’t up for it, but I think we should still go. Get out of this hotel room and have some fun. Everly’s been blowing up my phone, asking if you were coming tonight.” He held out his hand. “What do you say, Alex? One last fake date?”

I thought about it for a minute, the word no on the tip of my tongue, but Adam was right. I’d already wasted so much worrying about Nate. He wasn’t going to take any more time from me.

I smiled as I placed my hand in his. “One last fake date it is.”

THIRTY-FIVE

After my talk with Adam, the rest of the day passed without incident. Before I knew it, it was evening, and once again, I barely recognized myself. The same hair and make-up team came to style me, working some kind of magic to hide all the blemishes and redness from last night. Looking in the mirror, I saw the face of someone entirely different from the girl who woke up in this room.

I leaned forward in the mirror, dabbing my pinkie nail on the false eyelash to ensure it was secure. As I inspected the rest of my reflection, I sighed, not sure how much of a happy act I could put on tonight. Yesterday, it was easy. The excitement and grandeur of the event made my cheeks hurt from joy. I felt like a queen, whereas tonight, I feel like a jester playing a role she was never destined for.

The dress for tonight was much more form-fitting, as if someone poured a vat of black ink over my skin. Luckily, the slit wasn’t as high, so I didn’t have to worry about anyone noticing the bruise on my leg.

It had taken extreme coordination and subterfuge to hide it from Cole. When he returned from the gym, he was in my room, silently pressing for answers about last night. He was smart enoughnot to push me outwardly, but his eyes never left me, studying every one of my movements for signs of distress.

It was…odd, having someone care if I was okay or not. My friends were amazing at checking in during difficult times, but having a partner at your side was different. Even if I didn’t talk to him about what happened with Nate, his presence alone calmed me.

That, and knowing that our secret was out, at least with Adam. That he took it in stride lifted a boulder from my shoulders. Once this event was over, we’d head back to Saint Stephen’s Lake. Away from the city, away from the constant threat of Nate lurking around every corner, maybe Cole and I could sit down and figure out what was happening between us.

Because as much as I tried to keep my heart from getting carried away, there was no use. The last threads of self-preservation snapped when he showed up at the hotel last night.

My heart was Cole’s if he wanted it.

I sat back in the chair, wishing he was here now. He’d made himself scarce when Theo showed up, unsure he could keep his distance from me. He was getting himself a different room so no one would question our sleeping arrangements in the two-bedroom suite. The three of us agreed that Theo could not know about us, not until I dissolved the contract with Adam. Adam might trust that Theo would do the right thing, but I wasn’t so sure.

As I stood to rummage through my jewelry options, a knock sounded on the door. “Come in,” I called, expecting Adam on the other side.

“God damn.”

The words made me stop, and I turned around slowly to face Cole. I smiled brightly at him before walking over and kissing him softly. “What are you doing here? I thought you were avoiding Theo.”

“Fuck that,” Cole chuckled. “No way he was keeping me away from my girl.”

I laughed, pushing back to meet his eyes. “Oh, I’m your girl now?”

“Damn straight, sweetheart.” His eyes darted down the length of my dress, rising slowly, as if he wanted to take in every inch of me. “And I’ll never stop thanking the stars for that.”

When our eyes met again, there was no mistaking the hunger in his gaze. While that sort of attention usually made my skin itch, under his gaze, I felt empowered, like I could ruin him with a single brush of my lips. It was a heady, overwhelming sensation that almost took me out at the knees.

I managed to stay standing, barely moving until he did. Swallowing a knot in his throat, Cole stepped forward. “You’re fucking stunning, Alex.”

My cheeks flooded with color, forcing my gaze back down to my feet. “Thanks. It’s all the dress. I don’t know who made it?—”

My words were silenced when his fingers ghosted the line of my jaw, tilting my eyes back up until they met his steely ones. “Not the dress.You. You are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.”

We continued to take each other in, unable to move after that soft confession. Words I had no right to say, not this early, screamed loudly in my head. However, it was becoming apparent how much I cared about this man. I couldn’t imagine my life without him. I wanted him at my side for every milestone, the good and the terrible. I wanted to be his anchor in the storm, the peaceful calm he’d find solace in.

Instead, all I muttered was a quiet “Thank you.”

Cole rubbed the back of his neck, suddenly filling the room with an anxious energy. “I got you something,” he muttered, pulling a small blue box out of his pocket. “I was going to wait to give this to you when we got back home, but I’m an impatient bastard. Last week, a couple of us were walking downtown and saw this cool antique shop.”

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