Cole: Red, Hot & Blue, Book 5 (2 page)

Cole scanned the clearing and noticed that scattered amid the guys were a few girls milling around. Among them, tucked off in a corner looking embarrassed while holding a cup but not drinking, was Bobby Barton’s little sister, Lizzie. Only she didn’t look like she used to. Somehow since he’d been away she’d absolutely blossomed. Her dark hair was still long and wavy, but it wasn’t in pigtails anymore. She still wore the T-shirts and denim mini-skirts he was used to seeing her in, but boy-oh-boy, she really filled them out nicely now.

She’d always been a good kid—kind, smart, sweet, but that was it. She’d been a kid. Now… Wow.

A wave of guilt hit him. If Bobby ever saw him looking at Lizzie like this he’d slug him. Cole took a closer look around the clearing and realized that although Lizzie was here, Bobby wasn’t.

Cole poked the guy closest to him. “Hey, where’s Bobby at?”

“He’s always busy now. He’s been working at the grocery store and taking classes at the community college. Getting a degree in criminal justice or something so he can join the sheriff’s department.”

Cole nearly choked on his beer. “Really? The sheriff’s department? Wow.”

He felt guilty he’d lost touch with his best friend from high school while away at college. It wasn’t intentional. It was just tough playing ball in college while trying to keep up with classes. Weeks had turned into months, and before he knew it the whole school year had flown by.

He glanced at Lizzie again. Even as a child she’d always had the trademark Barton dark hair and brilliant blue eyes that made all three distinguishable as siblings. Now, Lizzie had the body of a woman too. What a change from the little rug rat who used to trail along behind him and Bobby for as long as he could remember. Smiling at the memory, Cole started to work his way over to her. Hell, it couldn’t hurt to say hi and ask about Bobby.

When he reached her side she smiled up at him—right as all hell broke loose.

Spotlights flashed on, making the clearing bright as day. The sheriff and two deputies strode out of the trees, yelling for everyone to stay right where they were. Cole didn’t think twice. After flinging both his and Lizzie’s beer cups into the bushes, he grabbed her and pulled her into the shelter of the trees.

They ran, Cole leading Lizzie by the hand as he tried to avoid tripping over stumps and getting whipped in the face by branches. When they’d managed to get a good distance away from the clearing, he stopped and listened for anyone who might be pursuing them.

The only sounds he heard were Lizzie breathing and his own pulse pounding. “I don’t think they saw us leave.”

He barely saw her nod in the dim moonlight filtering through the pines. “Thank you for getting me out of there. I can’t tell you how much trouble I would’ve been in if my parents or even worse, Bobby, had to bail me out of jail. And on my birthday too.”

“Happy birthday. How old are you?” Cole tried to remember if she’d been two or three years behind him and Bobby in school.

“Eighteen.”

Wow. Could she be that old already? He figured she could be and decided he was happy about it. Cole turned fully toward her and grabbed both her hands in his.

“Your eighteenth birthday is important. We can’t have it ruined by the sheriff. Come on. My car is parked not far from here. We’ll celebrate, the two of us.”

“I’d like that.” She smiled and then hesitated. “But…”

“But what?” He gave her hands a little squeeze.

“I’m worried about Anna. She was at the party with me.”

Anna and Lizzie were still friends? That was a surprise. He’d never seen two more different people.

“Savannah Jordan? I wouldn’t worry about her if I were you. She can definitely take care of herself. Besides, if we go back to look for her, chances are we’ll get caught.” Cole seriously doubted Anna was worrying about where Lizzie was. From what he knew of her, Anna was probably off sucking face with some boy in the woods by now.

“You’re right.” Lizzie sounded reluctant but nodded, glancing behind them nervously. “We should go.”

“Come on.” Still clutching her small hand in his, he blazed a path through the moonlit woods to the road where he’d left his new gift.

He’d loved the car before, but he was even happier now that he had his convertible to impress Lizzie Barton with.

Chapter Two

Lizzie worked hard to slow her breathing as she sat next to the guy she’d had a crush on for as long as she could remember. The one she never ever thought would look at her as anything other than Bobby’s little sister.

Of all the ways she’d imagined her birthday, this particular scenario had never occurred to her. She said a silent prayer of thanks that the sheriff had raided the party. That twist of fate had led her to where she was now, sitting next to Cole at the drive-in movie theater in his new car.

She tried not to hyperventilate as he laid one arm along the back of her seat, then let his fingers trail onto her shoulder. It was a classic, timeless come-on move. She’d seen it in old movies. Before long, as she expected, his hand strayed down and ran up and down her arm. She’d been afraid to hope that anything like this would happen with Cole. There was no doubt now though, something was happening between them.

When they’d arrived, he’d put the convertible’s top up and parked way off to the side by the trees. She was pretty sure he did that because he was planning to make a move on her during the movie and he wanted the privacy.

Lizzie snuck a look at him. It had been so long since she’d seen him. His sandy hair and golden brown eyes. His crooked smile and strong chin. She needed to remind herself not only how gorgeous he was, but that he was really here with her.

She found he was looking at her too. He smiled. She blushed, embarrassed by the unexpected attention. “What?”

Cole shook his head. “Nothing. It’s just, you’ve really grown up.”

Steeling her nerves, she went for it. Lizzie sat straighter in her seat and leaned close to him. “Yes, I have.”

She’d purposely made her voice sound sultry and suggestive, and hopefully mature. He definitely got the message. Cole’s eyes went wide. Perhaps she’d been too aggressive. She hadn’t meant to frighten him off. Feeling a bit dejected, not to mention rejected, she started to back away from him, but he laid a hand on the back of her neck. As Cole leaned in, he pulled forward until their lips met.

Her eyes closed at the contact. She practically saw fireworks against her eyelids from his kiss. She raised her hands out of her lap, wanting to touch him. Unsure exactly what to do with them, she rested them lightly on his chest and felt the hard muscles beneath his shirt.

Cole tilted his head. Taking the kiss deeper, he pushed his tongue between her lips and into her mouth.

Lizzie had played spin the bottle once or twice, but those had been barely pecks compared to this heavy-duty kiss. Following Cole’s lead, she leaned in closer and let his tongue explore her mouth. Never had she imagined actually French-kissing Cole Ryan, but here she was.

He brought one hand up to her breast and caressed her through her T-shirt. She’d let him touch all he wanted. Her heart pounded harder as he slipped his hand under her shirt and she felt him skin on skin. Cole kept exploring until he slipped his finger beneath her bra. He found her nipple and rolled it between his thumb and forefinger.

She moaned as the sensation shot through her, all the way to parts Cole hadn’t even touched yet but where she really hoped he would.

Her lips felt swollen from all the kissing, but she wasn’t ready or willing to stop. Especially not when Cole’s touch strayed down to her leg. He ran his hand over her bare skin. She held her breath as he inched his way up under her skirt. Then his hand was between her thighs. She’d been in love with Cole since she was a little girl. And now that she was legally a woman and he was actually showing an interest in her, she was finally going to do what she’d always dreamed of.

Lizzie spread her legs. With more room to explore, Cole slid one finger over the fabric of her panties. Her heart thundered fast and loud. She was afraid he would feel it. If he did, he didn’t comment, but he did kiss her harder. She was breathing heavier, partly with anticipation and a little bit with fear, when he explored further.

Thank goodness Cole had stopped kissing her mouth and had moved on to her throat or she wouldn’t have been able to breathe at all.

He stroked a part of her through her underwear that felt so good she could totally ignore the common sense telling her they should stop. To heck with stopping, she wanted more. Trembling, heart pounding, Lizzie did the boldest thing she’d ever done, she reached down and pulled off her panties. Cole’s eyes narrowed as he watched that action. He drew in a deep, shaky breath and then leaned in again. His tongue plunged into her mouth as he pushed his finger inside her, causing sensations she’d never experienced before. She angled her hips and his finger slid deeper.

A small sound escaped her throat. Cole echoed it with one of his own. His thumb strummed a spot that had her lifting off the seat seeking more. His movement quickened along with her gasps until she was shaking all over. His kiss became frenzied. He pushed another finger inside her and moved them both in and out. She lifted her hips higher and drew him in deeper. He plunged inside her faster and she realized this would be what it would feel like to make love with Cole. To have him inside her. She wanted that.

He stopped. She opened her eyes to see why and found him struggling with his belt buckle in the dark of the car.

Lizzie swallowed. It was really going to happen. The big
It
, with a capital I, and she wanted it to. Anna had done it long ago. Besides, she loved Cole. She always had. The first time should be with someone you loved. That’s what everybody said.

She watched as he slid his seat all the way back and then unbuttoned and unzipped the fly of his jeans. Cole wore boxer shorts, which answered one of her life-long burning questions about him. That thought fled as he pushed the elastic waistband of his underwear down and she saw in the dim light
that
part of him.

He was breathing heavily as he took her hand and placed it gently on his…she couldn’t even think what to call that part of him. Every word she knew was too ugly to describe it.

Gathering enough nerve, she stroked him, amazed at how something could be so hard and feel so soft and silky at the same time. Touching the tip, she found it was wet and slippery. She touched there again and slid her finger over the slit in the top. A tremor ran through him.

She glanced at Cole’s face and watched his eyes close as she stroked him. He blindly reached out and grabbed for her. He pulled her over so she was sitting in his lap. She reached down again, touching him as he touched her. He plunged his fingers inside her and set a steady rhythm. She trembled, breathing uncontrollably.

His hand withdrew and she felt him holding her hips. Opening her eyes, she discovered he was watching her. Cole wet his fingers and reached between her legs again. She felt how slick they were as he circled her entrance, then he was moving her body over his hard length.

He kissed her again, plunging his tongue in and out of her mouth. At the same time he stroked the tip of himself over the sensitive spot he’d already made quiver with his fingers. The wide head stroked her tender flesh until she was trembling and wanting more.

Cole’s breath was coming in rapid gasps. So was hers. He moved faster, rubbing against her harder, then the tip of him slipped inside. Lizzie’s breath caught in her throat. He stilled, his gaze meeting hers.

There was such desire in his expression, desire for her, she wanted nothing more than to give Cole everything she had. How many nights had she lain in bed imagining this until her insides ached? And now he was here, with her, and she wanted him. Wanted this.

Lizzie pressed down, pushing Cole deeper inside her. His body shook as he slid inside.

It was a tight fit, but her body weight forced him past any resistance. He drew in a stuttering breath. His lids drifted lower over his eyes, giving him an almost dreamy expression. Cole squeezed her hips tighter and pushed her down until her body completely covered his. She felt stretched, completely filled by Cole.

His gaze never leaving her face, Cole started to move inside her. He thrust up while pressing her down, slipping in and out of her with more ease than she’d imagined possible given how tight it had been in the beginning. He set a slow pace that started to speed as sounds of pleasure rumbled from within his chest with each stroke.

“Lizzie?” He gasped out her name without slowing.

Her heart leapt. When she’d dreamed of this moment, she’d pictured herself gazing into Cole’s eyes and he into hers. Then he would tell her he loved her. Maybe, just maybe…

“Yes, Cole?”

“Are you on birth control pills?”

Lizzie’s heart fell all the way down to the pit of her stomach. “No.”

“That’s fine. I’ll pull out.”

She didn’t have time to wallow in her disappointment as he pounded into her a half a dozen more times and then yanked her off him. As he shuddered beneath her, she felt short bursts of liquid warmth hit her thigh.

Then it was over. There had been no “I love you”. No cuddling afterward the way there was in the movies.

He felt in the center console and cursed. “Can you reach the napkins?”

She looked where he pointed toward the floor on the passenger side where she’d put the empty popcorn bucket and napkins from the concession stand.

“Sure.” Lizzie made her way back to her seat, trying not to make a mess as she did. She felt wetness creeping down her leg. She handed one napkin to Cole and kept one for herself. Glancing over she saw Cole wipe himself off before he refastened his jeans. On her side of the car, she mopped at the stickiness on her leg and tried to see where her underwear had gone.

Up on the movie screen the closing credits rolled. Around them the night was filled with the sound of ignitions starting. Headlights flipped on and cars began to move out of the lot.

That’s it. Her first time was over. She glanced at Cole again. He was buckling his seatbelt. She pulled on her underwear and tugged her skirt back down over her thighs. She strapped herself in just as Cole started the car and pulled out of their parking space.