Chapter 246
1241 Words
Cordelia stared out the SUV window, trying to not think about the next twelve hours. Here she was, trapped in a motorized box with hands-down the sexiest man she’d ever known – the same man who treated her like she was a mere i***t secretary.
But even as she had that thought, she mentally rejected it. No, Hunter didn’t treat her like a brainless moron, like a giggling twit who photocopied her ass and messed up simple tasks. He clearly respected her abilities and he’d openly said so, more than once. But still, but still… that f*****g comment about just worrying about answering the phones and not faking kindness after the op ended. That still nagged at her, and she had to let it go damn soon.
“Cordelia?”
“Yes?” she said without looking at him.
“You want to stop for coffee before we hit the highway?”
“Sure.”
Sully pulled into the Starbucks and parked. He opened his door. “You want to come in?”
“No, thanks.” Now she did look at him. “I’ll get to work on the file.”
“Sure,” he said, already knowing that this was going to be a long f*****g road trip if she wasn’t going to talk to him. “You want anything for breakfast?”
“No, thanks. I’m good.”
“OK. Five minutes.”
Cordelia nodded, opened the thick file and immersed herself in it.
Sully ordered the coffee – remembering that Cordelia loved a shot of cinnamon syrup in hers – and then waited for the order to be filled. As he stood there, he found himself staring at her lowered head. Even though she’d memorized those files over the past three days, she was still poring over every single syllable, he just knew it. Christ, she was going to kick ass on this op. She wouldn’t stand for anything less.
Sully collected his order, deliberately ignoring the way that the eyes of the woman behind the counter roamed over his chest and forearms. He was well aware that he was a huge, strong man, and he’d enjoyed more than his fair share of female attention over the years. Nothing serious, of course, but no one-nighters, either. More… friends with benefits. That was Sully’s speed, and he liked that arrangement just fine. Or, at least, he had liked it just fine. Until Cordelia.
As he approached the SUV, he decided that he wanted to get Cordelia to warm up to him again. He was no fool: he knew exactly when her behavior towards him had changed. It was that day that she’d surprised him with a cup of coffee, and he’d told her to drop the little wife act and get back to answering the phones.
God, the look on her face when he’d said that… he didn’t remember the last time that he’d felt like such an asshole. Instead of giving him the smart backhand that he'd so thoroughly deserved, though, she’d just turned away from him. He’d watched her go to her desk, everything in his body wanting to call her back, to apologize and explain.
But he didn’t do it. He didn’t want her to want him that way, he didn’t want her to think he was a guy worth wanting. A woman like Cordelia didn’t do friends with benefits, he was certain, and he didn’t do more than that. OK, so maybe they had a mutual attraction, but so the hell what? Acting on it was a no-go, and that was it.
Or was that it? As Sully got closer to the SUV, he found himself wishing for that easy, teasing relationship that they’d had in Foxburg Falls. He’d loved spending time with her, loved picking that razor-sharp brain for ideas, loved protecting her. She was the whole damn thing: smart and beautiful and compassionate. What the hell was he doing, actively making this woman dislike him?
Jesus.
So. Maybe they couldn’t do the whole committed relationship thing, but that didn’t mean that he had to be so cold and removed.
There was no reason why they couldn’t be friendly, right? But even that much wouldn’t happen until he showed her some basic decency.
Come on, man. Time to launch Phase One of ‘Making Up For Being Such A d**k’.
He opened the door and she didn’t even glance up.
“Hey, hon,” Sully said.
Her head jerked up now, and those amazing eyes stared at him, confused.
He handed her the cup carefully. “Here’s your coffee. Hot and spicy, just like you.”
She took the coffee, still puzzled. “Ummm… what?”
He climbed in, slammed the door, started the engine. “Ready, baby?”
She blinked. “Wait. Are you – are you Garrett?”
He grinned. “Of course I am.” He buckled up, pulled out of the parking spot. “Your loving husband of twelve years.”
“Oh.” He saw her shake herself, force herself to slip into her professional role. “And what great years they’ve been.” She choked out the next word. “Babe.”
“Come on, now,” he chided her. “They’ve been awesome years, huh? Remember our ten-year anniversary trip to Bali?”
She grinned at him now, relaxing into the game, settling into the rapport. “Yeah. Those fruity drinks on the beach damn near killed us.”
“Uh-huh,” he said, delighted that she was playing along now. “But they also led to some hot and heavy fun down in the sand.”
“I remember,” she said. “Too bad we got sunburned in such sensitive places.”
He laughed. “We survived.”
“Yeah.”
Sully stopped at the stop sign, waited for some traffic to clear. As he did, he looked over at her and met her dark gaze. Their eyes locked, hard, and the air between them sparked and crackled. Neither one of them looked away, though. They held on, studying each other’s faces, trying to see if the thaw between them was beginning. Sully longed to ask her if it was going to be OK after all, even after his thoughtlessness and pushing her away.
“It’s OK, Hunter,” she said softly, as if he’d asked the question aloud.
“You sure?” He didn’t bother to ask her what she meant: he knew she’d seen it on his face. She saw everything, and that was the biggest reason that he had to fight so hard to be cold and distant around her.
“I’m sure,” she said. “I know you’re sorry. I’ve known it for a while.”
“You have no idea, Cordelia.” Relief smashed through him at finally being able to talk about this. “I’ve wanted to take those stupid words back a thousand times.”
She smiled. “Once is fine.”
“I’d take them back if I could. I’m sorry.”
“Apology accepted.”
“Alright then.” He breathed out, pulled on to the highway. “So, Millie. Let’s go and break up a goddamn kidnapping ring.”
“Sounds good, Garrett.” She took a sip of her coffee, and warmth spread through her chest as she tasted the shot of cinnamon. “Let’s go and do that.”
- Writer
