The Wedding Hoax (9 page)

The bartender set plates down in front of them, and she turned to eat. Cole couldn’t tear his gaze from her. His chest warmed, and the nervousness and tension he’d been feeling finally melted away. It had nothing to do with the liquor in his stomach and everything to do with the woman at his side—the woman who’d said she’d always believed in him.

The head of the Benton empire can’t have a wife taking away his focus, Cole—and you
really
can’t afford the distractions. Didn’t you learn anything from me?

His father’s words played through his head, and then his mom’s image flashed through his mind. Disappointment, resignation, and hurt played out on her face in an expression of raw emotion, always at something his father did or said. He’d learned a lot from her, too—success for one marital partner came with the sacrifice of the other. He’d never make someone sacrifice her needs like she had.

You’ll never make the magazine a success if you can’t keep your head in the game and your heart out of the boardroom. Maybe I should have chosen your screw-up brother after all.

No one ever believed in him.

But Daisy did.

And now that he knew, he couldn’t stop from wanting to be with her more. It wasn’t simply lust. The ache in his chest was something else. Something deeper.

As he watched, Daisy took a bite of her Alfredo pasta, the sauce splattering onto her lips and chin. Before she could grab her napkin to wipe it away, he swiped his thumb across her skin and licked the creamy sauce from his finger. She froze, eyes unblinking, mouth parted slightly, her tongue hiding just beyond his view.

Tonight, promise or no promise, he would show her how much that one comment meant to him.

Chapter Ten

Daisy wasn’t sure what caused Cole to get that puppy-dog look in his eyes, or why he’d taken it upon himself to be her personal napkin. She did know that his touch on her lips had only lasted a fraction of a second, but it had been enough to set her insides blazing. When he licked his thumb, she’d almost fainted at the idea of him licking her directly. He’d always been good with his tongue. The thought sent her squirming in her seat.

He smiled—seductively if she wasn’t mistaken—then turned to his burger, taking a big bite as if he hadn’t just acted in a completely suggestive manner. Maybe he hadn’t. Maybe his smile was simply friendly, and he’d been trying to be helpful when she’d made a mess of herself.

She should have stopped at one margarita tonight.

“Need another?” he asked, motioning to her still-half-full drink around a mouthful of burger.

“This will be plenty for me.”

He laughed. “I forgot you were such a lightweight.”

Something about the devious twinkle in his eyes made her question his innocence. “Are you sure you’re not waiting for me to get loopy so you can try to seduce me again?”

“Don’t be silly. I could seduce you without alcohol.”

“So you admit it’s your goal in all of this. And here I fell for your Mr. Nice Guy act, thinking you wanted to have dinner with me.”

“I did want to have dinner with you.” He smiled and dug into his burger again, conveniently ignoring her other comment about his goal of seducing her tonight. Guilt by omission maybe? Or wishful thinking on her part?

Truth be told, it wouldn’t take alcohol for her to want to end up in his arms again. Hell, she hadn’t been able to stop thinking about his strong arms, or hard chest, or flat stomach since she’d seen him sitting in that boardroom with Mason when this whole thing started. When he’d kissed her, her thoughts had only gotten dirtier.

Nope. Can’t happen.

Kissing Cole again would lead to nothing but heartache, and she wasn’t going to do that again. Nope. Not even when he looked at her with that sexy as sin glint in his eyes. Not even when he complimented her work. Definitely not when he wiped sauce off her lips. She wasn’t going to give into temptation.

This was a temporary arrangement, and no amount of tequila would let her forget that.

By the time dessert arrived, her margarita was no more than a drop of pink in the bottom of her glass, and her head felt like she was riding a Tilt-a-Whirl. She really was a lightweight when it came to alcohol. She licked chocolate sauce off the handle of her fork from where it had dripped down the metal. The cheesecake they shared was delicious, but the chocolate sauce on top was to die for.

She glanced up at the sound of a hard breath. Cole’s eyes were intense and unwavering as his breath came out in a long sigh just shy of a groan.

“Don’t do that, Daisy,” he said, his voice deep and strained.

“Do what?” she asked, tilting her head to the side. She hadn’t done anything wrong. And then she realized. “I’m sorry. I’ve almost eaten the whole slice, and we were supposed to share. You have the rest.” She pushed the plate toward him, but he stopped her by putting his hand on hers.

“That’s not what I was talking about. Eat the damn cheesecake; just don’t lick your fork while you do it.” He set down his own fork and gripped his glass instead. His knuckles turned white. “You have no idea what you’re doing to me, do you?”

She shrugged and tried unsuccessfully to hold in a giggle. Something about the way he seemed so high-strung and frustrated struck her as hilarious. She could count the number of times she’d seen him lose his calm, cool demeanor on one hand. It didn’t happen. Nothing rattled him. That was what made him such a good businessman.

“I guess I don’t,” she said, unable to keep the laughter from her voice. It felt so good to finally relax around him again. Until right now, she hadn’t realized how much tension she’d been holding in every time she was near him. Tequila took the tension away, and she liked it.

“Crap,” he swore under his breath, but she still heard him. “Now she’s giggly. Great.”

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“You’re drunk. That’s what.” He signaled for the check. “I swear I didn’t bring you here to get you sloppy drunk.”

“I’m not sloppy. And I’m not drunk,” she said, slapping him on the arm. His biceps swelled under her touch as he moved to sign the bill. She’d forgotten how large his arms were. Or maybe they were even bigger now than when they’d dated. The man did enjoy working out.

She traced the ridge of his biceps down his arm to the elbow, then back up again, pausing to give it a gentle squeeze along the way. Yep. He’d absolutely been working out harder since they’d dated. “Where do you find the time?”

“Where’d I find the time for what?” he asked, sliding off his stool and gripping her arm to guide her off hers.

“Working out. Building all these muscles.” She grabbed his arm again as she swayed on her feet. Apparently the bar made strong drinks. She’d only had two.

He shook his head. “Damn it.”

“What’s up with you?” Sure she was tipsy, but definitely not drunk. And that wasn’t really a reason to get grouchy with her. “I’m tired, these heels are killing me, and my head is slightly spinning, so if you’re grouchy about something, you’re going to have to spell it out for me, because I’m not standing around long enough to guess.

She might not be in the right mind-set to figure out his issues, but she didn’t have any trouble focusing on Cole. All six feet of him, if she remembered correctly. And that’s how she knew she wasn’t completely drunk—she remembered a lot about him right now. Delicious things. Tempting things.

“Nothing’s up with me,” he muttered. “Would be easier to keep it that way if you’d stop touching me.”

If she hadn’t been standing right in front of him, looking at his lips, she would have missed the comment. Daisy stood straight and took her hand back from his arm. If he didn’t want her touching him, she wouldn’t. Swallowing her annoyance at his words, she strode with confidence to the elevator and pushed the button. She rocked back and forth from heel to toe, waiting for the elevator.

“See. I’m perfectly fine,” she said, leveling him with her most confident stare.

“If you say so.”

She stepped into the elevator and leaned back against the wall while he punched the number for their floor. She already felt more clearheaded after walking around. She eyed him as the elevator started its descent. All day she’d tried to ignore how good he looked. Too bad she couldn’t indulge in more than dessert and drinks with him tonight. Of course, that would involve touching, and he sounded pretty set against that idea.

“Don’t look at me like that.” He leaned his head back and looked up at the ceiling, sighing loudly.

“Like what?” she asked, genuinely confused. He was full of demands tonight. He could be pretty demanding in bed, too. Lava pooled deep inside her at the thought. Her head spun again, but not from the alcohol this time.

“Like you’re thinking about us together.” His voice was edged with tension.

She laughed, heat rushing to her cheeks. She hadn’t meant to look at him like that, but his accusation was correct. “We are together…in this elevator.”

“That’s not what I meant, and you know it,” he said. He met her gaze. She saw fire in his eyes. But not from anger or annoyance. Fire from passion she hadn’t seen in a year. Fire that had always preceded their best nights together.

Uh-oh.

She bit her lower lip.

“Bite your lip like that again, and I’ll bite it for you.” He crossed the short distance between them, his gaze never leaving hers. He didn’t touch her, but his eyes made her feel as if his hands were on her in a thousand spots at once.

Seeing that passion in him again sparked something deep and primal inside of her. It didn’t matter that they didn’t want the same things in the future when he looked at her with that expression. It didn’t matter that their fake relationship came with an expiration date. The only thing that mattered right now was the way Cole made her feel—alive.

She hadn’t realized she’d been missing something since they’d broken up. But right here, right now, with Cole, she felt it again. She felt whole. And she wanted to hold on to that feeling for as long as she could, regardless of the price she’d have to pay later.

Tonight, she didn’t want to think about her future, or lack of future, with Cole. Tonight she only wanted to feel his arms around her, his lips on her body, his tongue tasting her.

She licked her lips, then pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and bit down gently, never taking her eyes off him. He leaned toward her, bracing one hand against the elevator wall.

“Now’s not a good time to push the limits with me.” He nudged her chin up with his free hand. “We made a deal. You made me promise. And now you’re deliberately teasing me. That’s not very nice.” His lips hovered above hers but stopped short of kissing her.

Behind him, the elevator chimed, and the door slid open, breaking the spell between them. He walked out into the hallway without a glance back. She sagged against the wall for a second, gasping for a breath. He had taken hers the instant he’d closed the distance between them.

Just as the doors started sliding closed again, she darted out after him, falling into step at his side. In her peripheral vision, his face looked brooding and determined. Not at all the sexy bedroom face she’d been hoping for. She readied herself for the rejection she knew was coming.

Should she say something? What could she say? Breaking the rules wasn’t her usual style, but if she was ever going to start, this felt like the time to do it.

They moved down the hallway in silence. Once his arm brushed against hers, and she had to resist the urge to reach out and touch him again. He obviously wasn’t interested, and she shouldn’t be, either.

“I’m sorry about that…in the elevator… I don’t know what got into me, but I won’t let it happen again. Just stop giving me the silent treatment.”

He said nothing as he used his key card to open their door, then held it for her. She glanced up as she passed in front of him. His expression was unreadable.

She walked into the living-room area of the suite and kicked off her shoes, annoyed at herself for letting the tequila go to her head. Now her emotions were running wild, and she was never going to live down the humiliation of another one of his rejections.

Her mind went back to before she’d asked for more in their relationship—before she’d been rejected by him and everything had changed. Back when their nights were filled with good food, great conversation, and mind-blowing hours wrapped in each other’s arms. Back when it was okay to flirt with the sexiest man she’d ever laid eyes on, because he planned to ravish her body until she came undone in his arms. Back when life with him was simple and made sense. Back when she had it all and never realized it.

Daisy went to her room and closed the door. Perched on the edge of her bed, she drained a bottle of water and took some deep breaths until she felt her clouded judgment dissipate.

She needed to stop thinking about what used to be and simply focus on what was—a business arrangement with Cole. Nothing more.

She headed back out to the living room, knowing she needed to apologize to him for her behavior tonight. Although, given the opportunity, she’d still pounce on him. Being clearheaded hadn’t stopped the ache of longing she had for him tonight. It didn’t change her wishing she could be with him again, in that way. In every way.

Unable to look him in the eye, she made a beeline for a new bottle of water, cracking the seal and drinking deeply, hoping it would buy her a few seconds to figure out what to say.

“You made me promise, Daisy. You made me swear to keep my hands off you. And then you have the nerve to come on to me tonight. This isn’t right.” His voice was stern behind her, and she wanted to do anything but deal with this moment. But she had to. Everything he said was true.

“I’m sorry. I got carried away thinking about how things used to be between us,” she said, turning around to face him.

He strode toward her, pulling his now unbuttoned shirt from his body and tossing it to the floor. He pressed her back against the wall. His thigh forced her legs apart, anchoring her in place. Her chest heaved against his as she struggled for air. Cole, half naked and between her legs, made it hard to breathe, to think, to focus on anything but his body.

Wow. More. Now.

“You tell me one thing, then send me signals for another. Tell me honestly, are you still feeling tipsy?”

She shook her head, unable to respond verbally.

“Good.” He wrapped his hand around the back of her neck, stroking his thumb along her jaw. His lips found hers. He took what he wanted, tasting her, tangling his tongue with hers. After what felt like far too soon, he broke away. “We shouldn’t do this.”

“You’re right. About everything,” she whispered. She ran her fingers up his chest, settling on the tattoo of an anchor entwined with rope over his left pectoral muscle, tracing the lines of ink.

He sighed and rested his forehead against hers. “Then stop touching me, Dee. I can’t resist you much longer. You’re making this so damn hard.”

“You don’t have to tell me that. I can feel it for myself.” She wiggled against his thigh.

He groaned as she moved. He really was holding back for her. Because she’d made him promise he would. She ran her finger down his chest and abs to his waist. A second later, one of his strong hands was wrapped around both of her wrists, pinning them above her head.

“Tell me what you want,” he demanded, his voice hard and edgy.

“You,” she whispered, tilting her chin up to give him a better angle. She knew getting involved with him was a bad idea. The very thing she’d swore she wouldn’t do. And yet she couldn’t stop herself. Right now she needed him more than she’d ever needed anything else.

“This won’t change anything between us, you know?” he said, meeting her gaze. “I haven’t changed. I’m still the same guy I was last year.”

“And I’m still the same woman, only I don’t want forever with you anymore. But I do want right now. So are you going to stand here talking, or are you going to take me to bed?”