Page 28 of I Wish I Would've Warned You

Michael straightens. “We were just dancing.”

“She’s done dancing.”

“She can speak for herself.”

Cole’s eyes don’t leave mine. “Emily?”

I open my mouth to answer, but everything tilts. The lights blur. My balance slips for half a second, and suddenly I can’t tell if I’m standing on sand or cloud.

Cole sees it.

He steps in, wrapping one arm around my waist, steadying me with a grip that’s all muscle and heat. The scent of him—soap, salt, something darker—cuts through the fog in my head.

He holds me close and starts walking me away from the fire.

I don’t resist.

I can’t.

He doesn’t let go of my waist until he has the passenger door open. His hand brushes my thigh as I climb in, and the contact sparks through me like a match head.

I sink into the seat, breathing hard, the night pressing in around me like wet fabric.

The car is cool, dim, and quiet.

He blasts the A/C and presses a chilled bottle of water to my neck. I shiver, then sigh. My head is spinning, and I can feel the outline of his fingers still pressed into my skin.

Everything slows.

And then everything goes dark.

When I wake up, my throat is dry and my stomach is heavy. I shift under the blankets, blinking hard against the light.

I’m in my bed.

My head pounds softly, but the worst of the spin is gone.

“I would ask you to help me into pajama pants,” I mumble, voice rough. “But that guy took my panties.”

Cole’s across the room, quiet.

He walks to my dresser and pulls out a T-shirt and clean underwear. Doesn’t say a word. Just sets them gently beside me on the bed.

“Here.”

I change slowly, each movement careful. I can still feel the heat of the beach in my skin. The noise of the crowd echoes faintly in my ears. But everything feels muted now. Sharpened.

He tugs the blanket over me once I’m dressed, his hands careful, almost reverent.

I watch him. The way his jaw shifts. The way he avoids my eyes.

“Why did you step in?” I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.

He doesn’t answer.

“Were you jealous?”

Nothing.

---