“Cole?” Shock registered on her face at the sight of him there, waiting for her.
If she was shocked now, she’d be ten times more so when his two brothers invaded the tiny hallway. Cole’s mind raced; the voices were growing louder. He stepped forward, his hands sliding under her coat, the warmth of her body seeping through the long sweater dress she wore.
Her lush pink lips parted in a gasp as he shuffled her into the restroom. “What are you doing?”
“Saving you from a family reunion with my brothers,” he told her, kicking the door shut behind him.
She was flustered by his unexpected behavior. Her pretty, pale cheeks were flushed. Her hands rested on his chest, ready to shove him, yet she attacked with words, not actions. “Whatever the reason, it’s not okay. You bullied me into a restroom without asking permission. And you’re in the women’s restroom!”
He arched a brow, amused, turned on. That damned prim quality she exuded was downright hot. “Without asking permission?” he inquired, watching her flush deepen. “I’ll ask next time.”
She pursed her pretty lips, not at all pleased with his rebuttal. “There won’t be a next time!” she countered. “I’m leaving.” She dropped her hands, tried to sidestep him.
Voices sounded—his brothers. Then the sound of the back door.
“His truck’s still here,” Jacob said clearly. “Maybe he left with that woman.”
Cole tightened his hands on her waist. “That’s them,” he told her. “Do you really want to be seen walking out of here with me? Because I can promise you, it will amuse my brothers, among others. It’s a small town. Gossip is king.” He let go of her, but stayed close, again giving her a choice.
A frustrated sound slid from her lips. “Yes,” she said. “I know that all too well. I grew up here.”
His interest piqued, Cole would have probed for more information, but she wasn’t done voicing her distress just yet. Panic brushed her features, laced her voice. “I don’t want my parents embarrassed by this,” she said, her hands fluttering in the air with the words and causing her scarf to slide off her shoulders to the ground.
Cole bent down to pick it up at the same moment that she did, their hands colliding in an electric charge of instant sexual awareness. They were facing each other, knees brushing, hands touching. Their eyes locked, lingered, burned with smoldering attraction. Her lips parted, as her chest rose with an inhaled breath—an invitation to kiss her that he barely resisted.
Instead, Cole slid the scarf around her neck and held on to it, resisting the urge to pull her closer. “I just want you to myself, Holly. Not a part of the circus of my brothers’ well-intended fun.” The familiar sound of their voices gave him pause, and he motioned to the hall. “Listen.”
She strained her ears along with him. His brothers’ voices were growing more distant. “They’re leaving, for now.” He took her hand and helped her to her feet.
“Oh, thank goodness,” she whispered. “Now if we can dodge any other attention.”
He was still holding her hand. “I’m parked out back,” he told her. “Come with me. Another bar, a restaurant, anywhere you want. Just not here.”
She hesitated. “I don’t know. I . . . This isn’t going how I planned this.”
“Few things go as planned,” he commented.
“Actuall y—”
He cut her off by pulling her close and pressing his lips to hers, swallowing her gasp as his tongue slid into the deep, warm recesses of her mouth and caressed. It was a short, sensual play of his tongue along hers before he pulled back and said, “Planning is overrated, Holly. Don’t plan. Don’t think. Just say yes.”
She blinked up at him, her chest heaving slightly. He could sense the kiss had rattled her, aroused her. Shook her to the core. Well, she wasn’t the only one. Holly had him twisted in knots. He wanted her. Had to have her on a primal level that reached beyond simple lust. It burned clear to his soul. “Just say yes, Holly.”
She swallowed and shook her head. “Yes.”
Chapter Three
Holly followed Cole down the hallway, his big hand swallow ing her smaller one, her heart racing a million miles an hour. Good Lord, the man could kiss. It was almost embarrassing how well he kissed. Or rather, how Holly reacted to his kiss. She was wet. Wet! When in her life had one kiss damned near brought her to orgasm? Every inch of her body was aware of this man. And it both scared the heck out of her and excited her at the same time. Holly liked it, too. Liked this edgy, daring, sexy feeling Cole created in her.
And he was right. Planning was overrated. She’d certainly never planned to end up in that restroom like she did, but had she not—she might never have been kissed like that.
She wanted more of those kisses, which meant leaving was good. And unlike Thanksgiving evening, tonight the place was bustling with people; Haven’s wagging tongues were piled into The Tavern in force and she wanted no part of them. No wit nesses. No connection beyond the night. No tomorrow or judgment.
With a hard shove, Cole pushed against a wicked wind to open the exit door. Snow fluttered furiously around them.
They stepped outside, where the cold air battered their bodies, a violent contrast to the heat they’d generated in that restroom.
Holly huddled deeper into her long, cashmere black coat, shivering violently, her gloves and hat still tucked in the bag hanging over her shoulder. Clearly, her decision-making where wardrobe was concerned was far too rooted in Texas living, because, suddenly, her dress, tights, and winter boots felt about as appropriate as a bikini. The cold cut a path up her skirt and chilled her to the bone. One didn’t dress to impress a date in this weather. One dressed to stay warm. An old lesson she was relearning the hard way.
Protectively, Cole pulled her close, under his shoulder, so his big body blocked the wintry elements from attacking her, without concern for the absence of his coat, which he’d apparently left behind.
“You need your coat!” she yelled against the wind. The navy, long-sleeved tee and jeans he wore were barely enough to be called decent in these temperatures. The man must really want to avoid his brothers, but then, she had sisters, and could appreciate where he was coming from. She could love them and want to beat them within an inch of their lives, all in one beautiful, twisted moment.
Cole pointed to the far corner of the parking lot where a black pickup truck set in a secluded corner, one of the three vehicles parked in the rear of the building. “I’m over there.”
Holly nodded as a gust of wind darned near turned her to ice, and she eagerly melted farther under the shelter of Cole’s arm, which was draped around her shoulders. They couldn’t get to his truck fast enough to suit Holly, and when he clicked the lock and held the driver’s door open, she eagerly scooted inside. She couldn’t see through the ice and snow on the windows; they would need to defrost to travel. Holly barely had time to slide her purse to the floorboard, let alone contemplate seating arrangements, before Cole had closed them inside the cabin, started the truck, and cranked up the heat. The next thing she knew, he was reaching for her.