Reckless Love (Cowboys & Angels 7)

Cord’s look of surprise—and then dread—made me frown.

“Eric was with her?” he asked.

I leaned in closer. “Yeah, does he like her? Is there something going on with them?”

The way Cord’s throat bobbed made me realize he knew something he wasn’t telling me.

“No, I think they’re friends. That’s all.”

My brow lifted. “You think they’re just friends?”

He half shrugged. “I mean, I get the feeling he might like her, but…”

Cord’s voice trailed off.

“But?” I replied, motioning with my hand for him to keep going.

His cell phone rang, and he quickly grabbed it. Smiling, he answered.

“Hey, Maebh, y’all having fun?”

He smiled, so I was guessing the girls’ day party was a hit.

Glancing at his watch, he said, “I’ll pick you up in about an hour. I’m on my bike.”

I glanced down at the schedule again and made a few notes while Cord finished talking to Maebh. When he ended the call, I looked back at him. The smile on his face even made me smile.

“Jesus H. Christ, dude. You look like you’re on cloud nine.”

He seemed to glow with happiness. If I wasn’t so happy for him I would think he was pussy whipped and call his ass out on it.

“I am. I honestly didn’t think I would ever be this happy.”

My chest ached because even if I didn’t want to admit it to myself, I was jealous of Cord. His smile faded, and he leaned over, placing his arms on his legs.

“Trevor, I’m pretty damn sure Scarlett loves you.”

Mixed emotions swirled around in my head. I was happy Cord had said that, and scared, and confused as to why he’d said it. How in the hell would he know how Scarlett felt about me?

“How do you know that?” I asked.

“Maebh and Scarlett have become close the last couple of weeks. They share…things.”

“Like?”

His head dropped, and he groaned. He was for sure keeping something from me and I could tell it was eating him up. When he looked up at me, he blew out a breath.

“Listen, all I can say for sure is that if you don’t figure this shit out, you’re going to lose her and a helluva lot more than that.”

“Lose her to Eric?” I asked, half joking, half serious. The look on Cord’s face was one-hundred-percent serious.

“Yes. To Eric. I think he has a thing for her, and he’s been hanging around her a lot the last few days. He knows she is…vulnerable. He’s a good guy, and I don’t think he’s taking advantage of anything, but they’re growing closer. You need to figure this out, Trev. Fast.”

I dropped back in my chair, scrubbing my hands down my four-day stubble.

“I’ve messed things up so bad with Scarlett. I’ve said some things to her I know she can’t forgive. I’ve been trying to call her and she keeps ignoring me.”

“Because she keeps seeing a different woman hanging on you, dude. How do you expect her to ever forgive you or give you a chance if you can’t keep your dick in your pants?”

“I haven’t been with anyone in months besides Scarlett. The last time we were together, things got pretty intense. I’d never in my life felt the way I felt that night I was with her, and I sort of walked out on her.”

His eyes filled with understanding. Did he know Scarlett and I had had unprotected sex?

“Did Scarlett tell Maebh about that night?”

Cord’s eyes left mine, and he looked down at the floor. “Yes.”

Damn.

“I’ve never done anything like that before, it’s just, we got so caught up in each other and…hell…Scarlett has always made me feel different.”

Cord’s brows pulled in tight. “What do you mean, ‘always made you feel different’?”

I laughed. “Fuck, I’ve had a thing for her since middle school.”

Shock rushed over my brother’s face. “What? I didn’t think you even knew her that well before Mom made you take her to the benefit dinner. I mean, y’all played together when you were younger, but I thought once she left town for school, you didn’t think twice about her.”

With a shake of my head, I told him about how she had been the first…and last…girl I’d ever asked to dance with in middle school. How I never even asked anyone to dance at any school function after that. I told him about the night Scarlett and I went and had coffee and how I’d had kissed her.

“Wait, Trevor, you’re telling me you’ve liked Scarlett for that long?”

I swallowed hard, ready to admit to myself and to him the truth. “Yes.”

“What the fuck are you doing then?”

“I don’t know! I guess I’m scared.”

“Of?”

“The same fucking reasons you were with Maebh. I’m worried I’m going to hurt her, or worse yet, she’ll hurt me.”

Cord stood and started pacing. What in the hell was wrong with him?

“Trevor, you need to talk to Scarlett. Y’all need to work this out. This trying to push her away because you think you can forget how you feel about her, it’s not working, and you…you…you really need to talk.”