Page 36 of Heartbeats and Hashtags
“Yeah, already forgotten,” he agrees, focusing intently on his food.
I nod, ignoring the lump forming in my throat. Good. It’s good that he agrees.He doesn’t want anything more either. Great.
I suddenly realize how little I truly know about the man seated mere inches from me. Beyond his Navy SEAL background, which he only mentioned, his life is an utter mystery to me. Does he have a family waiting for him back home? Friends he grab drinks with on rare days off? A string of brokenhearted ex-girlfriends? He remains frustratingly inscrutable.
“Do you have a family?” The question tumbles out unbidden, my nagging curiosity getting the better of me.
Cole's dark brows lift in. “A family?” he repeats as if the concept is entirely foreign to him.
“Yeah, you know — parents, siblings?” I pry, sensing I may be breaching sensitive territory but unable to quell my curiosity.
He drags a hand across the back of his neck and starches upward, exposing a tantalizing glimpse of the toned abs beneath his shirt. I jerk my eyes away.
“Well, I'm here, so I clearly had parents at some point,” he replies wryly, giving me a side smirk. I give an eye roll at his trademark evasiveness, but I'm secretly hoping that the earlier tension between us is dissipating.
“And no siblings,” he adds after a weighted pause, his gaze turning distant, shuttered. Reading his reluctance to elaborate further, I don't press for more details.
“What about you? You’ve mentioned your father before. What happened there?” he cocks his head to the side.
I sigh. I hate talking about him.
“Not much to tell. He made a load of money in real estate, and then he packed up and left my mom and me pretty much to fend for ourselves. It’s why I spent so much time at a youth center. Mom was working all hours to support us. He’s got a new family now. His wife is only a few years older than I am. She forgave him, but I never have,” I can hear the bitterness in my voice, but I’ve never understood why my mom let it go so easily. Heabandonedus. “We had a big argument a few years ago, and…it doesn’t matter. He isn’t even worth speaking about.”
“You know, when we first met my dossier mentioned your father being in real estate. I’d assumed that you grew up privileged.” He scratches the stubble on his jaw slowly. “I should know better. I’m sorry. I was clearly wrong.”
My chest tightens, and I blink away the tears threatening to form in my eyes.
“Its alright.” I take a sip of water.
“Besides, you areusuallywrong.” I wink, and he grins wolfishly.
I settle back into my seat with a shaky exhale, reassured that our easy banter has returned. Soon, I'll be home, and Cole will resume his role as my nameless, faceless protector.
But even as I cling to that thought, I struggle to believe it.
COLE
I'm glad to be back in Miami. I’m not sharing a bed with Everly, and I haven’tmonumentally,royallyfucked up here.
A part of me was hurt when she said we were a mistake, a one-time thing. But the logical, rational side of me knows she’s right. We can’t work. That we would never work. I have seen how relationships go. You get together, everything is great, you fall in love, then one person either leaves or dies. I have seen that level of heartbreak, and it’s not anything I wanted to subject myself too.
I pull out my phone and dial Clara. Lily answers on the second ring.
“Uncle Cole!” she squeals in delight. My chest swells at the joy in her voice. Of all the people in my life, Lily and Clara are the ones who are most important to me. I was all they had left, and Lewis would want me to check in often.
“Hey, kiddo.” I grin. “How's my best girl?”
She first chastises me for calling her kiddo, reminding me that she is, in fact, twelve years old now. She launches into an animated story about the latest show she's binging and her new friends at school. I listen intently, offering “ooh” and “ahh” where appropriate, cherishing this glimpse into her world.
After a few minutes, Clara takes the phone. “She's been waiting all day for your call,” my sister-in-law says warmly. “How was the Bahamas? Was it a good trip.”
I imagine telling the truth. It was great, Clara. I woke up next to my client with a hard-on and proceeded to break the only rule I am absolutely supposed to stick by – don’t fraternize with the person you’re protecting.
Instead, I say, “It was...good. Busy. Everly keeps me on my toes.”
“We miss you,” she says, and I become still. “Any chance you can get away for a weekend visit soon? Lily's dying to see her favorite uncle.”
Guilt twinges through me, and the room feels small all of a sudden.
