Sweet Satisfaction

The receipts had all been tallied, and I made a spreadsheet with the past two years’ expenses along with a projected forecast for the rest of this year. I was impressed that my applied business skills were coming in handy .

I heard the familiar ring of my phone, and smiled when I saw Mary Ellen’s picture flash on the screen. “Hey .”

“Hey, girl, you haven’t called to give me the scoop,” Mary Ellen shouted into the phone. It was doubtful she was alone. “Are you ok ?”

“I know. I know. It’s just be

en so crazy here. How are things in Myrtle Beach?” I leaned back in the office chair, happy to have a break from the numbers .

“Awesome. There is a swim-up bar. You should see it .”

“Sounds cool.” I looked at the freshly printed spreadsheet. Mary Ellen and I could not be having more opposite types of spring breaks .

“Ok, so are you going to tell me about what’s going on with Cole ?”

I spotted Cole walking across the parking lot toward the office. “I can’t. He’s on his way in. I’ll call you later—promise .”

She sighed. “All right, but I want to know what’s going on with you. I miss you .”

“I miss you too. We can talk later when he’s not around. Ok ?”

“Ok, but you better call.” Mary Ellen sounded like she was pouting .

“I will. Bye .”

“Bye.”

I slid the phone in my back pocket as Cole entered the room. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to share my Cole story with Mary Ellen. I told her absolutely everything, but my North Carolina life seemed so far away right now. How could I explain Cole to her? In only five days, I felt like I had a whole new life, with new friends and the man I’d always crushed on .

I adjusted the new tank top I had bought this morning at Tassels, and brushed my bangs to the side. It would be nice to go to lunch together at Peabody’s. I was willing to risk Hank’s nosey questions to have a few minutes with Cole .

“Damn it,” he muttered. The doorknob had broken off in his hand .

“Too bad there’s not someone around here who could fix that,” I joked. I walked around the side of the desk to greet him with a kiss .

He threw the metal handle in a nearby trash can. “I have to run to the mainland for more supplies. I’ll be back later.” He brushed past me, grabbed a clipboard from behind my shoulder, and slammed the door behind him .

What just happened? I shook my head and fumbled with the doorknob to follow Cole. Something was bothering him—that I could tell. As annoyed as I was, I couldn’t stop myself from wanting to figure out what was upsetting him. Maybe he just needed to talk about it. I chased him down the sidewalk. He was several paces ahead of me .

“You want me to go with you? I can ride with, help you load up the cart? Maybe we could grab lunch. I’m starving.” I smiled, trying to sort through his mood and find the guy who had flirted with me this morning about a sneak peek fashion show .

Cole didn’t slow down. He climbed into his truck and started the ignition. “No, I don’t have time to play around, Kaitlyn. Just go to the beach or pool or something.” He slammed the door, and I stared in disbelief as he careened the truck onto Gulf Boulevard .

“That little shit,” I uttered the words into the Padre breeze .

I stormed into the office, banging the door behind me. My beautifully color-coordinated spreadsheets stared me in the face. I had just spent six hours organizing his numbers and making forecasts, and he treated me like that . He couldn’t spare thirty seconds to attempt basic manners? I shoved all the reports into the top drawer of the desk and marched into the afternoon heat. I was done helping him today .

I didn’t want to lie out at the pool or on the beach, and I didn’t want Cole to treat me like some kind of child that had gotten underfoot. He didn’t see me that way last night—at least it didn’t feel like he did. All I felt when he looked at me and kissed me was that, without him, I would probably lose all ability to breathe in and breathe out. I just didn’t realize how true that was until I saw him spin out of the Dunes’s parking lot. I was in deep—Texas-size deep .

Eighteen

Cole

H ow was I supposed to tell Kaitlyn I had an email from her brother? That the world we thought we lived in together was filled with consequences. There was a good chance I was going to lose my best friend when he got home .

And what came with that? What else did I lose because I couldn’t resist what I shouldn’t want? The Sinclair family? The only people who had accepted me like a son. I’d done an amazing job repaying them. I’d fucked their precious Kaitlyn every way I could come up with .

Welcome home, brother. I’ve defiled your sister .