Read Online Hate F*@k: part three by Ainsley Booth - Free Book Online
Authors: Ainsley Booth
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Cole’s bedroom. More modern stuff. No piles of laundry. It doesn’t smell nearly enough of him.
I hate it.
“It’s a long story,” he says as he jams his hands in his pockets, shoving his jacket out of the way. He hangs his head for a moment, looking at the floor, and when he glances up again, his face is ragged—there’s more emotion in his eyes and around his mouth than I’ve ever seen before, but it’s not all good. “How much of it do you want?”
“I don’t know,” I say quietly. Only a few feet separate us, but it’s too much. I step into his space. He keeps his hands in his pockets. I ignore that and touch him anyway, finding some comfort in the tensing ridges of his abdomen. He holds ever-so-still, heat radiating off him, as I wiggle my fingers up his torso. When I’ve grounded myself in the reassuring solidity of his tall, broad, and delicious body, I grab a fistful of his shirt in the middle of his chest and scowl. “Let’s start with the fact that Penny is an agent of what? ”
“She works for the Department of Justice.”
“As…”
“A Federal Marshal.”
“She looks like a socialite!”
“She’s that, too.”
Processing that takes a minute. I breathe in his sweet, spicy cologne, remembering how it used to drive me crazy. It still does, but now it’s also…there’s this promise with Cole, that he’ll always be there for me. He’s going to piss me off and hurt me by accident, but he’s always going to try to make it right.
“So she’s not just an ex-girlfriend.” I release his shirt, and like a shot, one of his hands is out of his pockets and wrapped around my wrist. Holding me to him.
“I should never have called her that,” he says roughly, dragging my hand to his face. He presses a kiss to my palm and closes his eyes.
“But you did.”
“I did. Just to you.”
“Why?” I already know, but I feel like we need to recap this, just in case I’ve been dreaming all this time.
“To push you away.”
“It didn’t really work well, did it?”
He laughs and shakes his head, still pressing his face into my palm.
“But she’s still in your life.”
“This is the first time I’ve seen her since that night at the opera. It’s only because I needed to introduce her to Clara.”
“So your relationship before was just professional?” He freezes, and my stomach flip-flops uncomfortably. “Uhm, forget I asked that.”
“No.” His jaw clenches against my fingers, and he opens his eyes, fixing that bright amber gaze right on me. Unwavering. “I want you to know.”
“Why?”
Cole just stares at me. “Because I love you.”
I blink up at him and burst into tears.
—nine—
Cole
“Fuck me,” I mutter under my breath. Shit, I suck at this. “Is that bad?” I bend at the knees, bringing us face to face as Hailey furiously wipes away the tears on her cheeks. “Hailey?”
“I love you too, you asshole.” She glares at me and it’s the best thing in the world.
I laugh and pull her close. “That would be more believable without the last bit.”
The tension I’ve been holding in my chest eases as she slides her arms over my shoulders, burying her face in my neck.
“You love me?” she repeats, her words muffled as she burrows deeper into my skin. That’s okay. It’s where she belongs.
“Yeah.” I clear my throat. “Didn’t really know how to say it. Never have before.”
She shakes her head at me.
“What?”
“That’s how you make everything right. You make me melt, Cole.”
I can’t help but grin. Damn, I like the sound of that. I like how she kisses my throat and along my jaw even better, and when she finds my lips with hers, I don’t care that there are people on the other side of the wall. I’ve got decent insulation. I push her lips open with the tip of my tongue, just a tease because we’ve still got stuff to talk about, but enough to remind her of our conversation this morning, and how I kissed her neck and
I hate it.
“It’s a long story,” he says as he jams his hands in his pockets, shoving his jacket out of the way. He hangs his head for a moment, looking at the floor, and when he glances up again, his face is ragged—there’s more emotion in his eyes and around his mouth than I’ve ever seen before, but it’s not all good. “How much of it do you want?”
“I don’t know,” I say quietly. Only a few feet separate us, but it’s too much. I step into his space. He keeps his hands in his pockets. I ignore that and touch him anyway, finding some comfort in the tensing ridges of his abdomen. He holds ever-so-still, heat radiating off him, as I wiggle my fingers up his torso. When I’ve grounded myself in the reassuring solidity of his tall, broad, and delicious body, I grab a fistful of his shirt in the middle of his chest and scowl. “Let’s start with the fact that Penny is an agent of what? ”
“She works for the Department of Justice.”
“As…”
“A Federal Marshal.”
“She looks like a socialite!”
“She’s that, too.”
Processing that takes a minute. I breathe in his sweet, spicy cologne, remembering how it used to drive me crazy. It still does, but now it’s also…there’s this promise with Cole, that he’ll always be there for me. He’s going to piss me off and hurt me by accident, but he’s always going to try to make it right.
“So she’s not just an ex-girlfriend.” I release his shirt, and like a shot, one of his hands is out of his pockets and wrapped around my wrist. Holding me to him.
“I should never have called her that,” he says roughly, dragging my hand to his face. He presses a kiss to my palm and closes his eyes.
“But you did.”
“I did. Just to you.”
“Why?” I already know, but I feel like we need to recap this, just in case I’ve been dreaming all this time.
“To push you away.”
“It didn’t really work well, did it?”
He laughs and shakes his head, still pressing his face into my palm.
“But she’s still in your life.”
“This is the first time I’ve seen her since that night at the opera. It’s only because I needed to introduce her to Clara.”
“So your relationship before was just professional?” He freezes, and my stomach flip-flops uncomfortably. “Uhm, forget I asked that.”
“No.” His jaw clenches against my fingers, and he opens his eyes, fixing that bright amber gaze right on me. Unwavering. “I want you to know.”
“Why?”
Cole just stares at me. “Because I love you.”
I blink up at him and burst into tears.
—nine—
Cole
“Fuck me,” I mutter under my breath. Shit, I suck at this. “Is that bad?” I bend at the knees, bringing us face to face as Hailey furiously wipes away the tears on her cheeks. “Hailey?”
“I love you too, you asshole.” She glares at me and it’s the best thing in the world.
I laugh and pull her close. “That would be more believable without the last bit.”
The tension I’ve been holding in my chest eases as she slides her arms over my shoulders, burying her face in my neck.
“You love me?” she repeats, her words muffled as she burrows deeper into my skin. That’s okay. It’s where she belongs.
“Yeah.” I clear my throat. “Didn’t really know how to say it. Never have before.”
She shakes her head at me.
“What?”
“That’s how you make everything right. You make me melt, Cole.”
I can’t help but grin. Damn, I like the sound of that. I like how she kisses my throat and along my jaw even better, and when she finds my lips with hers, I don’t care that there are people on the other side of the wall. I’ve got decent insulation. I push her lips open with the tip of my tongue, just a tease because we’ve still got stuff to talk about, but enough to remind her of our conversation this morning, and how I kissed her neck and
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