The present tense of that sentence didn’t escape either one of them. It just hung there in the air between them because Cole realized that it was true. Love had never been the problem. Priorities and trust, those were the issues.
Scott just stared at her, afraid to probe in any way those three words. If she took them back, it would kill him. If she didn’t, it would change … what?
“You hear from Doc Rob lately?”
It took Cole three seconds to remember who he was talking about. Oh yeah. Him. She shrugged. “I might have exaggerated our relationship a bit.”
“How much?”
Good question. Was she ready to say she had lied just so she wouldn’t sound like a loser in love, or let him think she was still pining for him? They had barely reconnected when she told that story about the podiatrist. Now, after all that had happened in the past two weeks, that reasoning seemed meaningless.
“Let’s just say we haven’t been in touch in a while. A good while.”
Scott tried not to feel too happy about her news. But it had him grinning from ear to ear inside. “So, we’re free to exercise our options.”
Cole ducked his suggestion. “You sure you don’t have any issues I should know about?”
Just like that, all the issues Scott had pushed aside when he walked in on her in the bathroom came roaring back. Hell yes. He had issues.
He had an ex-con on his tail. Had he forgotten? His parents were in a shaky situation, living in a motel until their home was redone. His father’s health was compromised and he didn’t yet know what the full ramifications of that would be. He was a task force leader with a mission barely under way. He had no damn business trading confessions with her while these things hung over his head.
Panic stabbed his gut. He wasn’t ready.
“Let’s get the fuck outta here.”
His good mood gone to shit, Scott strode out of the restaurant, pushing past customers mobbing the bar while waiting for a table.
Cole followed closely behind him, confused by his sudden mood swing and getting more than a little annoyed herself. Noel and Sam were on the town. She should never have dredged up the problems of Scott and Cole. Except that he had been the one to bring them up.
Near the front door she stepped on someone’s foot and tripped. She would have fallen if she hadn’t been caught by strong hands grabbing her by the arms. She looked up into the face of a smiling man. “You okay?”
“Yeah. Fine. Thanks.” Cole straightened up only to realize her purse had slipped from her shoulder and fallen onto the floor. She looked around. “My purse! Someone must have kicked it.”
“Let me help you look.” Her savior craned his head to look around the crowded space. “What are we looking for?”
“It’s brown leather with— Oh, there it is.” She reached between the legs of a customer and snatched it up.
Her savior smiled as he helped her hoist the strap back onto her shoulder. “Can I buy you a beer to say sorry?”
“Get your hands off my wife.”
Cole looked up into Scott’s very angry face. He grabbed her arm. “Come on.”
They were out on the sidewalk of the nearly empty street before he released her.
As he expected, Cole swung around on him, spitting mad. “What the hell was that?”
“That guy was hitting on you.”
Her eyes narrowed at his words. “So what?” She flung her hair back from her face with a hand, fury glinting in her eyes.
“Come on. You don’t need that kind of cheap thrill.”
Cole marched up to him and poked him in the chest to punctuate her words. “You have no idea what I want, Lucca.”
“Oh, I know. I know exactly what you want.” He grabbed her by the arms and hauled her to him until she was plastered to his body from shoulder to knee.
There was no question in Cole’s mind that he was aroused. She braced a hand on his chest and pushed hard. “Let me go.”
Scott’s usually mellow baritone was reduced to a dark hiss. “You came with me. You leave with me.”
Cole looked into his angry face, her feelings too complex to pull apart. She lifted a hand to touch his hot cheek, genuine puzzlement in her voice. “Why? What is it you really want from me, Scott?”
A few latecomers rushed into the alley, their laughter bouncing eerily off the brick walls of the narrow lane before they disappeared into the pizzeria.
Cole didn’t hear them. She was locked in Scott’s arms and his mouth was on hers, lips and tongue explaining in explicit detail just exactly what he wanted.
*
Scott’s promise to himself that he wouldn’t touch her until she asked him to was shot to hell. Now, he’d probably made her so angry hell would freeze over twice before she forgave him.
His closed his eyes, dragging his mouth away from hers. But his hands didn’t loosen their hold of her waist. “Bad idea.”