Page 81 of Mine For The Winter

“Only when it was late at night and Cole was asleep and I was curled up in bed alone. I used to pretend you were downstairs, closing up the house before bed. Then pretend you were in Cole’s room reading him a story.” Her voice wobbled. “Sometimes I used to pretend he was yours.”

“That would have been a miracle.” They’d both known better than to sleep together when they were trying to support Lyle. That would have been the ultimate betrayal.

“I used to think about that, too,” he told her. “When I was in London, alone. I guess that’s why I ended up getting engaged.”

“You wanted a family.”

“I thought I did. Turned out I wantedmyfamily. That’s another mistake I made. Another load of pain I caused.” He brushed his lips against her brow.

“Did she forgive you?” Kelly asked.

“Yeah. She’s happy now. Settled with a family.” He looked pleased about that, and it warmed her heart. “So now it’s just you I need to work on.”

“I forgive you.”

He chuckled. “You can’t go forgiving me that easily.”

“I can if I want to.” She lifted a brow. “I can do what I like.”

His gaze dipped to her lips and then back to her eyes. “I know you can.”

“And if I want to forgive you I will.”

“I’m not arguing.” There was that half smile again. He looked like the kid she’d once loved.

“And if I want to kiss you I will.”

He blinked. “Okay.”

She leaned forward, her mouth warm against his. His lips were soft, his hands steady as he cupped her hips. She arched into him, their kiss deepening as he parted her mouth with his, their tongues tangling, their breath hot.

And when they parted she was breathless.

“And if I want to do more than that…” she trailed off.

“Then you can. But possibly not in freezing temperatures.” He cupped her cheeks. “Let me take you home.”

* * *

She woke up the next morning feeling antsy, like something was wrong. Her heart was slamming against her ribcage as though a dream had seeped into reality.

Sitting up, Kelly gasped a breath, then frowned, looking around. It was okay, she was at home.

And then she remembered last night.

They hadn’t talked much as he drove her home. Kris hadn’t turned the radio on either. But the silence hadn’t been annoying. It felt like another form of communication with him.

And when he’d pulled up outside of her house, he’d kissed her softly then pulled back, getting out and walking around the car to open her door.

“Don’t you want me to come home with you?” she asked him, feeling confused. Because they’d been kissing and then they’d stopped dead.

“Not tonight.” His voice had been soft. “Tonight I want you to go inside and think about what we talked about. I don’t want to wake up in my bed and find you’ve left again.”

So here she was waking up in her own bed. Alone. And confused. Because every time she thought about him it felt like her body was on fire. Maybe she felt a little rejected, too, but then she was the one who’d ran away last time.

Maybe he was right. She had a lot to think about. But every time she tried it made her heart hurt.

By some miracle Cole was up and dressed by the time she walked into the kitchen, a bowl of half-eaten cereal in front of him, his cellphone glued to his ear.

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