Page 44 of Only Ever His

I shook my head.

"Not as much as I should. I used to come here all the time when I first opened the boutique," I added, glancing around at the familiar surroundings.

I continued, “Back then, I was constantly second-guessing myself. Marcus always told me I couldn’t handle things on my own, that I’d never make it by myself.”

Cole’s face tightened, and I immediately regretted bringing Marcus up. I wanted this moment to be about us, about something new.

But then Cole surprised me by reaching out, his hand covering mine in a gentle, steadying warmth.

“That must have been tough, feeling like you had to face everything alone,” he said.

I nodded. "It really was. It took me a long time to rebuild my confidence, to believe that I could actually stand on my own.”

Cole’s gaze held mine, and for a moment, I felt the weight of his own thoughts hanging in the air between us.

“You know, most people see me as this…confident guy, I guess. Maybe even arrogant sometimes. They think I’ve got everything figured out.”

He laughed, but it wasn’t his usual easy laugh—it was low, almost self-deprecating.

“Isn’t that true, though?” I asked, only half-joking. “You’ve built this incredible company. You have a family who adores you. You’re…successful in every possible way.”

Cole smiled, but there was a sadness in it.

“It might look that way. But the truth is, there are a lot of expectations. Expectations that I carry every day, whether I want to or not.”

He glanced down at our intertwined hands, his thumb brushing softly over mine.

Cole continued, “I grew up watching my dad build the company from scratch. I was a kid when it started, but I saw the sacrifices he made. The late nights, the pressure, all for us.”

I listened quietly, something inside me softening as I watched him open up.

It was a side of him I hadn’t expected—a vulnerability beneath the confidence.

“And you feel like you have to live up to that?” I asked.

He nodded, looking out over the lake.

“More than that. It’s like…if I don’t succeed, I’ve failed him. Failed everything he worked for. My siblings—they look up to me. They rely on me. It’s not something I regret or resent, but it’s there. And sometimes…sometimes it’s heavy.”

He turned to me then, a wistful look in his eyes.

“I envy you, you know? That you could find a place like this to escape to. That you allowed yourself to need that,” he said.

My breath caught at the openness in his words. He wasn’t just the smooth-talking, confident man I’d met.

Here, in this quiet moment, he was just…Cole.

“I guess we’re more alike than I thought,” I said softly. “Maybe we’re both trying to escape something. Maybe we’re both stilllearning that it’s okay to want more than just…success or control.”

His hand squeezed mine gently, and for a moment, we sat like that, connected and understanding each other in a way I hadn’t thought possible.

Then, without thinking, I leaned closer, feeling the warmth of his shoulder against mine.

He turned to face me, and suddenly the tension that had been simmering between us was undeniable.

My heartbeat quickened as I met his gaze, his eyes holding mine with an intensity that sent a shiver down my spine.

Slowly, he lifted a hand to my cheek, brushing a stray hair back behind my ear.

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