Page 40 of With Conditions

“You’re the woman I need to thank.” Meg’s voice approached as she took a chair beside me. Reading her was a bit hard. Everyone I talked to was only nice when they wanted something in return. No one was this sweet all the time but I could tell this was her truth.

“Why is that?”

Her eyes now meeting mine. She looked out at her boys, now men playing football on the beach. “I never thought Cole would return after the accident.”

“Accident?” Her face stilled, immediately as if she was hiding something. Confused by the comment but noticing I didn’t see his father in any of the photos I guessed something happened to him. “I’m sorry, he hasn’t told me about your husband.”

She chortled, “I’m divorced.” She leaned in closer whispering in my ear with an eye-roll, “and, unfortunately, he is still breathing.”

Having a hard time holding back my smile I tried sitting with a straight face. She was witty and charismatic which also ran in the family. She stood up from her chair saying, “Well, we are so happy to have you, and if you need anything, don’t go to Stephanie.”

This time, I really did laugh out loud.

“That’s the laugh as I was trying to win over,” she winked in my direction as she gracefully followed those leaving towards the house.

The day passed, and people started to disappear from the beach slowly. The sky started to turn gray, and I watched the waves crash with peaceful madness. Never had I imagined life to be that still. Finally, Dalton, Asa and Brody headed toward the house, and Cole’s figure started approaching my direction. He plonked himself next to me, and I could feel the warmth of his body on my side. Cole was the only man I could sit next to in silence and feel stimulated. Looking out at the sun, I found myself wanting to look at him. But, in my peripheral, I could feel that he was already staring.

“Your family is pretty amazing,” I used it as an excuse to look at him.

He turned towards me and smiled. Butterflies started turning in my stomach, and I could feel my face blushing. He gave a sexy grin, and I knew I was busted, so I quickly added, “especially Asa.” His face portrayed no signs of jealousy. Wow! This guy really doesn’t like me.

“He’s single, you know.” His reply left me speechless. “But you have Miles, and I won’t let you do that to him.”

My smile dropped, and I looked back out at the sunset. I could still feel him looking at me as regret sank in. The entire day I didn’t think of Miles once. I needed to contact him before going to bed. My stomach growled, and my skin jumped at the touch of Cole’s hand grazing on my belly. My eyes met his, and he leaned in close. He interrupted the electric waves running between us, “let’s grab you some food.”

As we made our way up to the backyard, I found it lit with soft hanging lights. Music played in the background, and everyone was sitting at the table eating. Cole grabbed my hand and led me into the house. A large table was filled with food. He pushed a plate at me and started making one for him before going back outside. After making my plate I walked outside. Asa moved over and patted the bench beside him. The bench had only enough room for me, and I was elbows to elbows with Asa, but he didn’t seem to mind. He passed me an open beer, and I immediately took a swig.

The family drank a lot, but no one seemed drunk. It was the perfect place, and the food tasted delish. Cole sat next to one of Stephanie’s friends, whose name I had already forgotten. We locked eyes, and he looked to Asa and then back at me with a deadpan face. I tilted my head and moved my beer towards Asa’s, “cheers!”

Not leaving Cole’s eyes, he squinted, but he kept the same smirk on his face. “Cheers!” Asa’s bottle clicked mine, and we gulped a mouthful.

“So, what do you do, Asa?” I asked, my fingers picking up barbeque chicken from my plate.

“I’m a pilot,” he replied softly but his emotion of pride peeped in through his voice.

“That sounds incredible. Maybe I could book a fight with you sometime.”

His eyes met mine but not before looking over at Cole. “I don’t think you need to book one. It’s on the house.” Our eyes stayed locked.

“Hey Soph, when you’re finished, I can drive you to an area to call Miles,” Cole interrupted from across the table.

I hated that he called me that but it was evident he was doing it merely to get a reaction. Not entertaining him I ignored that comment. Digging into my food and listening to Stephanie talk about her Paris trip, I could feel eyes on me. Looking forward, Cole was staring intensely.

“Welcome Sophie, my home is your home,” Meg exclaimed. Looking up at her, I gave a blank response because I just realized I had been locked on Cole, so hard even to know what was going on around me. I smiled at her and she stood up collecting her plate. Everyone started cleaning up and clearing the space, and as I stood to turn around, Cole was right in front of me. “I’m heading in for the night.” His voice and face were cold.

“I think I will hang out with Asa a little more,” I said trying to get a reaction. He turned around without a response.

After a little while everyone was hanging out by the fire pit but I started to feel super tired. Ambling into the room, I found Cole was in the bathroom. Out of habit, I picked up my phone and started moving around, looking for a signal. Nothing. This place was my worst nightmare but fantasy at the same time. I groaned, “How do people live here?”

Still searching for a signal I paced out onto the front porch. My phone showed one bar. “Yesss!” My excitement was backed with a feeling of victory. Finally! Hunting for Miles’s number, the screen went blank. I grunted, “What the hell!”

“Your battery died because it was searching for service all day. Rookie mistake.” Cole was standing in the doorway wearing nothing but charcoal sweatpants. The fire from the two tiki torches lit his abs perfectly.

“How does Stephanie do it?” I asked knowing well that she couldn’t live a day without her phone.

“Here, I’ll show you,” he walked towards me, holding out his hand to help me off the porch and heading down a path on the side of the house. Tripping on the branch, I fell hard into his arms. His body was rock solid, warm, and felt amazing. He radiated so much heat, but it was welcoming. My eyes were locked into his root beer eyes and, as if automatically, my hand reached on the side of his face brushing his jawline softly. His gaze kept mine and the sexual tension made my sex clench with excitement. He softly put me on my feet and backed up a few steps. “We own a guest house that is up the hill a bit. I can show you, but I have to warn you, enter at your own risk. It’s like a nude beach but in a house, if you know what I’m saying.”

Laughing out loud at the way he described it, I shook my head as a mental image of his brother and girlfriend running around the house naked crossed my mind.

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