Assured (Soul Serenade #2) (6 page)

Restraint. I need a fucking medal or something. I could hear her moan when she stepped into the shower. It took more willpower than I knew I possessed to not bust into the bathroom and take her. I’m out of my element here. I don’t want to treat her like a good time and then toss her—I know she’s better than that. Besides, Kacen’s warning keeps ringing in my damn ears. Fuck! He needs to get out of my head.

I’m sitting here in her hotel room with her while she’s naked.
Naked!
I never hesitate, but my boy is all up in my head telling me that she’s permanent. That word—permanent. That’s not a word I would associate with women; never has a woman other than my mom or my sister been in that category. Regardless, it doesn’t change the fact that I want her, ache to be inside her, and I have for months. I just need to not do it today. That way, I can be honest when I tell Kace I didn’t fuck her after the wedding. But after today, after we leave this hotel? All bets are off.

I shift in my seat and adjust my cock, which is angry as hell that we’re passing on what he thinks could have been ours today. I’m just as disappointed as he is.

“It will just take me a minute to get packed up.” Stacy’s voice pulls me from my thoughts. Thoughts of her and my cock.

I run my fingers over my eyes. I’m a mess today. I’m sure it’s because I’ve tasted her, and from her surprise at seeing me at her door this morning, she doesn’t remember any of it. Just like I knew she wouldn’t.

“I got nothing but time, sweets.”

She busies herself running around the room like a little hurricane, gathering everything and shoving it into her suitcase.

“Okay, I think that’s everything.” She lugs the suitcase off the bed and wheels it toward me.

I reach out and take the handle from her. “Sounds good. You hungry?”

“Um . . . yes.”

Her answer is cautious, as if she’s trying to figure out why I would ask. “Good, I’m starving. That damn doughnut didn’t even touch my appetite.” I don’t wait for her to respond, instead wheeling her suitcase to the door, which I hold open for her. She hesitates before releasing a heavy sigh and walking out the door.

As we stand and wait for the elevator, thoughts of last night flash through my mind. “So, you don’t really have to check out, just turn in your key. Kacen and Logan took care of it.” I try to control the conversation to keep my mind off the fact that I just had the woman I’ve been lusting after in a hotel room and left voluntarily without even trying to get with her.

An amused chuckle falls from my lips.

“What’s so funny?”

“I had you alone, naked, and here we are leaving said location.” Honesty is always the best policy in my eyes. That’s something no one will have to worry about from me.

“I’m just as surprised as you are.”

Wait, what?
“Meaning?” I ask.
Is she saying what I think she is?

“Just that you’ve been a relentless flirt for months now. I’m surprised that when it’s just the two of us, you clam up.” She smirks.

“Clam up? Woman, I’m trying to be respectful.”
Does she seriously think that I “clammed up”?

“I’m just saying. It doesn’t make sense to me. I guess you’re all talk and no action.”

What. The. Fuck?

Reaching over, I hit the Stop button on the elevator.

“What the hell are you doing?” she shrieks.

I abandon her suitcase and stalk toward her. She tries to back up, but she’s already leaning against the wall, palms flat. I place mine on either side of her head, caging her in. “Trust me, sweets. I still want you. I want to slide into that tight little body and get lost in you. I’m being respectful. Kacen made me promise not to make a move last night, because you were wasted. I promised my best friend that you would be safe from me. Not to mention I want you to remember the moment that it happens. Remember every detail of when I slide inside you. As soon as this day is over, all bets are off. He knows I want you.
You
know I want you.” I lean in a little closer and push my hard length against her belly. “Does this feel ‘clammed up’ to you, Stacy?”

Her breath hitches as her chest rapidly rises and falls. I watch as her tongue slips out and runs across her lips. She’s not unaffected by me like she wants me to think.

“Yeah, you and me? We’re going to happen. It’s not a matter of ‘if,’ sweets. It’s ‘when.’”

“Cocky,” she breathes.

“Assured,” I fire back.

If she only knew the thoughts that I’ve had about her, about us.
Clammed up. Pfft.

“They’re going to wonder what happened.” She looks over at the control panel.

Slowly, I pull away from her, reaching over and hitting the button that will resume our descent to the first floor. I step as far away as I can get, but I never take my eyes off her. She’s trying to get herself under control; I see it with every deep breath that she takes.

A gold fucking Olympic medal for the restraint it’s taking to not have my way with her. Kacen is just going to have to deal.

I remember Logan referring to Kacen as Hurricane Kacen. I think I now understand what she meant. Cole is . . . intense and sexy and cocky as hell. That’s not usually an attribute that I’m into, but it works for him.

“This okay?” he asks as he pulls into the lot of a small mom-and-pop diner.

It’s perfect. I’d rather be here than a big fancy restaurant chain any day.

“Yeah,” I say instead—I don’t need his ego inflating any further. I climb out of the truck and meet him in the front. He opens the door for me, not that I’m surprised; just because he likes variety in his bed doesn’t mean he’s an asshole. All four of the Soul Serenade members are great guys.

His hand rests on the small of my back as he guides us to a booth in the back of the diner. It’s a sweet gesture, and it’s when he’s like this that I’m in the most danger of giving into him. In this moment, he’s not Cole Hampton, lead guitarist for Soul Serenade. Here, he’s just Cole.

Before we are even settled, an older lady with silver hair appears beside us. “Cole, good to see you. Where is the rest of the clan?” she asks, laying menus in front of us.

“Hey, Mable. Kace and Logan were married yesterday and the guys are probably still nursing hangovers.” He grins.

Mable just shakes her head.

“Mable, this is Stacy. Stacy, this is Mable.”

“Hey, girlie. How’d you get stuck with this one?” She points her pen toward Cole. His grin widens.

“Kidnapped,” I deadpan.

Mable throws her head back and laughs. “Honey, I know several women who come here with that single hope in mind, and you sound as if it’s a hardship. Cole’s a nice boy,” she tells me.

Boy? Cole is hardly a boy.

“Yeah, I’m a nice boy.” He smirks.

“You all are. Now,”—she turns to me—“kidnapped or not, there has only been one other girl the boys have brought in here besides you, and I have it on good account that she just got married yesterday. I’m not buying it.” She winks and saunters away.

I stare after her until she disappears into what I assume is the kitchen area. Turning my gaze toward Cole, I just stare at him until he elaborates.

“Just Logan.” He sighs. “This is a nice place where we can come and eat and just be us. The crowd is small and most of the time, even if the patrons recognize us, they leave us alone.”

“You don’t bring your dates here?” Not that this is a date or anything.

He shakes his head. “I don’t date, sweets. I hookup and then move on.”

I cringe.

“Don’t do that. Every single one of them knows the score before it happens. I make no promises. Sure, some of them think they can ‘change me’ or whatever, but it’s just not happening.”

I take a minute or two to let that sink in.

“Ya’ll ready to order?” Mable asks.

Cole looks at me for confirmation, and I nod, not once having looked at the menu. “Go ahead.”

He rattles off a list of breakfast foods that have my stomach growling. “I’ll just have the French toast and a glass of water, please.”

“I’ll have this out in a jiffy,” Mable says before walking away.

“Why?” I ask, once she’s gone.

“Why what?”

“Why is it that you don’t want more? Why is it always just a one-time thing?” I’m not asking because I want more with him—I’m genuinely interested in why he feels that way.

Settling back against the booth, he crosses his arms over his chest. “Nothing specific or tragic in my past. I guess it’s the career I’ve chosen. I’ve never been in a relationship, so to speak. I’ve hooked up with the same person more than once, but it was always very casual and never lasted long. There’s temptation everywhere on the road. My career, what we do, women throw themselves at us. The guys and I have never had a reason not to take full advantage. The only one of us who didn’t is Kacen.”

“So, you’re saying that if you were to be in a relationship you would cheat?” I’m trying to understand his reasoning.

“No.” Uncrossing his arms, he leans in, resting them on the table. “I would never. What I’m saying is that it would take a hell of a woman to be secure enough to know that, even though there are woman throwing themselves at me, she is the only one I want. I can’t imagine what it would be like if the roles were reversed, to watch guys go to the extreme to touch my girl, offer her sexual favors.” His fists clench. “I don’t want anyone to have to go through that. Not to mention I’ve yet to come across someone who I felt was worth the effort.”

“The effort?” Why I keep drilling him about this, I have no idea. I can’t seem to stop the words from falling from my lips. Especially since he’s answering me honestly.

“Yeah, I can imagine that, when I find her, if that day ever comes, it’s going to take work on my end to let her know that she’s it for me. I’m not opposed to that, but I’ve yet to come across someone who’s worth it.”

His eyes bore into mine, my guess is to see if I’m offended. I’m not. We’ve spent time together in social situations, but never just us. Knowing if someone is worth it takes time. Time we haven’t had.