Page 45 of Tempted Hearts
“I still can’t believe you found this place. You’re full of surprises, Cole.”
We sat on the rocks with literally no one else around for miles, except Marco. Other boats passed in the distance, but so far we were the only swimmers.
“Rosalie said he was the best. She was surprised he was still available for today, so I think we got lucky.”
“I would say so. Thanks again for arranging this.”
He sat the same as me, legs sprawled out in front of him, catching some rays. His body? Perfection. Obviously Cole didn’t skip leg day at the gym.
Also, no glasses.
“Can you see?” I asked, wondering how much he needed them.
“You’d be hard to miss.” It was as though Cole couldn’t help complimenting me but didn’t want to. Pushing him shouldn’t be so much fun. Poking holes in his carefully curated control was highly entertaining. And would probably backfire.
“Careful with the compliments. Don’t want to find my back against another wall.”
His jaw flexed.
I’d been going back and forth on whether or not to mention it, but since it was pretty much all I’d thought about since it happened, ignoring it felt dumb.
“I’m sorry about?—”
“I wasn’t asking for an apology.”
“I’m giving you one anyway,” he said, stubbornly.
“Too bad I’m not accepting it.”
His eyes darkened. Yep. Dangerous territory, letting Cole know I’d liked it. More than liked it… Even now, my core clenched thinking about it.
“You’re gonna be the death of me,” he said finally, his shoulders stiffening.
“Most people go on vacation to loosen up. You’re the only one I know who could tense up on a rock in the middle of the Ligurian Sea on a sunny day.”
Maybe he hadn’t realized it before because Cole did drop his shoulders now. I’d loosen the guy up if it was the last thing I did on this trip.
“To be fair, I had no plans on an Italian vacation a few days ago.”
“Carpe diem,” I said, firmly believing in such a philosophy.
He shook his head. “Where did you come from?”
“My parents. Duh.”
He gave me a “you know what I meant” look.
“Are you more like your mom or dad?”
I thought about that for a second. “I’m not sure, actually. I really think a combination of them both. One thing they have in common is their love of travel. It’s the one thing I’d change about my schedule. I wish I could do more of it. Even if I had the money, which I don’t, so many gigs don’t leave a lot of flexibility.”
“Well,” he said. “Which is the one that ties you down the most?”
“Private tutoring,” I said. “Without a doubt. The teaching is fine. It’s only part-time and there’s a lot of breaks, and time off. As you know. But the private stuff… it’s my least favorite too. But it pays too good to give up.”
“Finish your thriller, sell it and make up the income.”
I laughed. “You make it sound so easy.”
