Chapter 29

Cole made it as far as Penelope’s office before he realized he didn’t have a plan.

Which would have been fine had he paused before opening the door, but nope—he’d gone flinging the door open without a single thought as to what he was going to say or do.

The result?

Two very startled pairs of eyes staring at him.

One pair of eyes—the big brown ones—he could drown in. Happily.

The other…

Cole focused all of his attention on the other man in the room. “Kolb.”

“Hey, Sharpe!” Todd Kolb had been standing behind Penelope, one hand braced on her desk, the other on the back of her chair, as they both looked at something on her computer screen.

Whether it was because he sensed the death glare from Cole or because of ingrained manners, Todd left Penelope’s side to shake Cole’s hand.

Cole might have shaken it harder than necessary. It was a clichéd move. Totally pathetic.

And absolutely unavoidable.

Cole did not like this man. He’d just now decided. Didn’t like his reddish hair. Didn’t like the preppy glasses. And his tie was the color of shit.

Penelope wouldn’t really date a man wearing a shit tie.

Would she?

“So, what’s going on in here?” Cole asked. He tried to keep his voice casual and curious, but it definitely seemed to come out vaguely predatory, and he could see from Penelope’s subtle eye roll that she noticed.

“Todd was walking me through some of the players for the off-season game tonight. Did you know that his uncle owns—”

“Yeah, I know,” Cole snapped.

Honestly, why did everyone think he didn’t know that? It was insulting.

“Next time I get tickets it’s your turn,” Todd told Cole, doing an admirable job of sounding apologetic. “I just thought since Penelope is new to town and hasn’t been to a game yet—”

“Yeah, that’s great,” Cole said. “Sounds good. But actually, Penelope and I have a meeting that was supposed to start five minutes ago, so—”

“Oh. Sure.” Todd looked a little surprised, but then gave a little shrug as though he wasn’t the least bit worried to be leaving the woman he was dating alone with Cole Sharpe.

Wrong, dude. You should be worried. Very worried.

Cole all but put his shoe up Todd’s ass in an effort to get the other man out the door, and then slammed it shut with more force than was necessary.

Then he spun around, to find her—

Typing at her computer.

Hell, she wasn’t even looking at him.

“Sorry if I was late to a meeting,” she said, not looking up. “I didn’t have anything on my calendar, but Outlook’s been so weird for me lately. Have you noticed—”

Cole ignored all of this, making it across the room in record time, moving around to Penelope’s side of the desk, and roughly spinning her chair to face him.

Except that this put her face level with his crotch, which was nice, but not exactly appropriate for the moment, so Cole slowly leaned down, his hands on either side of her against the desk as he caged her in.

“Cole?” She kept her shoulders straight as though unfazed, but her voice had gone decidedly breathy.

A good sign. Definitely.

He wanted to give her words. All the words. But first…

Cole couldn’t help himself from bending his head and pressing his lips to the soft skin just below her jaw. The tip of his tongue flicked out and he felt a surge of triumph when she shivered.

“Tell me you won’t be seeing him again,” he said, kissing her neck, slower this time.

“What? Who?”

Good. Excellent. She couldn’t even remember Kolb’s name.

“Todd Kolb.”

Cole gently raked his teeth against her neck and she gasped. “Oh, but…I really want to go to the game.”

“I’ll take you to the game,” he whispered.

She laughed softly. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

His stomach clenched and he pulled back slightly. “Because of your new boyfriend?”

Her nose scrunched. “What new boyfriend?”

“Don’t play games with me, Penelope.”

“When have I ever played games with you? I don’t even know how.”

Good point. She was a straight shooter.

“Todd Kolb,” he said. “Aren’t you dating him?”

“Dating him? I don’t even know him.”

Cole frowned. “What?”

“I just met him about ten minutes ago,” Penelope replied. “Cassidy introduced us because he thought I might like going to the game—”

“But Cassidy told me—” Cole broke off as the pieces snapped into place as he straightened.

Oh, hell. He’d been thoroughly played by his boss.

“That bastard,” he muttered.

“Who?” Penelope asked.

“Let’s just say Cassidy knew exactly what buttons to push,” he said, feeling foolish.

She motioned for him to back up. “Move, you’re making me crane my neck.”

“You crane your neck even when we’re both standing, Tiny.”

“True,” she said as she stood. “But at least when I’m standing I don’t feel quite so lamb to your lion.”

Any confidence Cole had felt at the way she’d responded to his neck nuzzling evaporated when she looked up at him with a cool expression.

He couldn’t tell what she was thinking. She looked utterly calm.

She crossed her arms and tilted her head. “Are you all right? You look kind of off.”

He let out a little laugh. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m off. I’ve been off weeks.”

“Well, I don’t know why you’re hollering at me about that. You dumped me—”

“I didn’t dump you.”

“Um, beg to differ. I came to be with you while your brother was in the hospital, bought balloons, and you said, and I quote, See you around, Pope. I actually went home and googled that, because I thought it might be a line from The Godfather, or some guy movie. But nope. Just you being a jerk.”

“I know. I know I did all that, I said all that.” He squeezed his eyes shut. “What are the chances we can pretend that day didn’t happen? That I didn’t act like a foolish ass?”

“Okay.”

Cole’s eyes flew open. “Okay?”

It couldn’t possibly be that easy.

“Okay,” she repeated with a little shrug. “Let’s say I give you a do-over. Let’s pretend we’re back on the sidewalk outside the hospital. What do you say?”

Oh. Fuck.

“Uh.”

She nodded. “Good start.”

He could do this.

“If I got a do-over…” He cleared his throat. “I’d tell you thanks for coming, of course.”

“Of course.”

“And I’d…Shit. Here’s the thing, Tiny. A few months ago, I made you a promise that I wouldn’t fall in love with you.”

She nodded slowly.

He stepped closer. “I’m going to have to break that promise.”

Penelope’s breath caught, and he lifted a hand to her face and pressed forward. “I’ve fallen in love with you, Penelope. Yes, that scares the shit out of me. And yes, it caused me to freak out. But my head’s out of my ass now, and I just, I want…I’m yours, Penelope. If you want me. Irresistibly yours.”

She stared at him, looking stunned, and Cole felt his chest tighten.

He dipped his head for a second, trying to gather his last bit of courage, before he looked up to meet her eyes. Tried again. “I love you. That’s all I’ve got. I love you.”

Penelope stood perfectly still as her eyes searched his face, not saying a word, her features betraying nothing.

Be patient. Be patient. You’ve treated her horribly, and she’ll need time. You can’t go begging—

“Please say something,” he blurted out.

Smooth, Cole. Good job on the no begging thing.

She swallowed and dropped her eyes to his chin. “Just trying to think of the best way to tell you that I broke my promise a long time ago. You’re really an impossible man not to fall in love with.”

Cole had the strangest urge to pump his fist in triumph, but instead he settled for pulling her closer. “Is that so?”

She smiled and went on her toes as she kissed his chin. “It is. And I love you.”

He bent and kissed her cheekbones. “Say it again.”

“No way, you say it again.”

“Not until you—”

“Here’s an idea,” came a male voice from the doorway. “Say it at the same time. Then you both win.”

Cole glanced up to see Lincoln leaning in the doorway drinking a smoothie. The haunted look was gone from Lincoln’s face, and now he wore a shit-eating grin.

“Don’t you knock?” Cole asked.

“I don’t know, Jake, do we knock?” Lincoln said, raising his voice and looking to his left. “I’m pretty sure we don’t.”

Jake Malone came into the doorway, saw Penelope in Cole’s arms, and grinned. “You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this moment, Sharpe. All the shit you’ve been giving me for the past year, and—”

Cassidy appeared in the doorway, his cool green eyes betraying nothing, but there may have been just the slightest upward tilt of his lips.

He leaned forward, his hand finding the doorknob of Penelope’s office door. “Sorry about my Relationships and Travel editors here,” Cassidy said. “I’ll just give you a moment of privacy…”

“Hold up,” Cole said before Cassidy could close the door. “I have a bone to pick with you, boss. You deliberately let me think—”

“Never happened,” Cassidy called, shutting the door with a sharp snap.

It opened a half second later, and Cassidy poked his head in the door.

“You guys do remember we have a staff meeting in ten?”

Cole was already kissing Penelope, and waved a hand over her head. Get out.

The door closed again, and Cole pulled Penelope closer, deepening the kiss. If he only had ten minutes, he was going to make every damn one count.

Penelope, however, had other ideas, because she shoved him back after two minutes.

“Wait. Does this mean I don’t get to go to the game with Todd tonight?”

“You have other plans,” Cole said, running his hands over her, just because he could.

“What am I supposed to tell him? I already said I was available.”

“Tell him there’s been a change of plans and you’ll be spending the night naked, at my place.”

“What if he asks to go later this week?”

“You’re busy then too.”

“Next week?” she asked, her voice just slightly exasperated.

He smiled against her neck. “Let me make this really clear. You’re going to busy all of the nights. Forever. With me.”

She pulled back. “That sounds to me like commitment, Mr. Sharpe.”

He grinned. “It does, doesn’t it?”

“Okay, but I’m thinking I should get this one in writing. You’re obviously terrible at keeping your promises, and—”

Cole cut her off with a kiss. Penelope didn’t know it yet, but he was pretty damn sure she’d be getting his promise in the form of something shiny and sparkly.

Say, along the lines of a diamond ring…