“Busy.” Well, it was the truth. She’d been busy doing a lot of things. Thinking about him. Thinking about Luke. Wondering what the hell happened and how she had experienced ecstasy for only a brief moment before it was ripped away from her all too quickly.
“I heard you landed a couple of clients from the conference. Congratulations.”
“Thanks.” Sierra figured her mother was the reason for the gossip, or possibly Sam, which didn’t surprise her.
She must have been staring blankly at him because Cole placed his arm around her, as though they hadn’t spent the last few weeks not talking, and led her to the front door. Rather than knocking, he walked right in like he owned the place.
The second they were inside the brightly lit foyer, they were greeted by a big black dog, his tail wagging, and his tongue lolling out of the side of his mouth. Sierra stopped momentarily, instinct telling her to tread carefully. The animal was a beast, and she didn’t want to become dinner.
“He won’t hurt you. Bear’s just a big teddy bear. Aren’t you boy?” Cole leaned down and gave the dog a firm pat on his back.
“Is he Logan and Sam’s?” Sierra asked, offering a tentative hand toward the dog. When Bear merely pressed his giant head into her palm, Sierra smiled and offered him a gentle rub.
“No.” The one word answer was said with a little irritation, but Cole didn’t offer any further explanation and Sierra didn’t ask.
“There you are!” A cheerful voice called from the living room, and Sierra looked up to see Sam coming her way.
The woman was dressed casually in a pair of faded Levi’s and a red t-shirt that accentuated her shoulder length blond hair, and a pair of Dr. Marten’s on her feet. Sierra hadn’t bothered to ask what the dress code was, so she felt a little overdressed with her jean skirt, black t-shirt and her favorite suede black boots, but she wasn’t uncomfortable. She was somewhat grateful she had taken the time to dress up since she had run into Cole.
When Sam reached in for a hug, Sierra returned the gesture, but when she stepped back, Cole was no longer beside her. She didn’t want to look obvious, so she kept her eyes on Sam, not wandering around the immaculately decorated house looking for him like she wanted. What did she care? He hadn’t bothered to call her at any point in the last few weeks, so her pride shouldn’t let her be curious about where he went.
Even if her body was begging to find out. Damn hormones.
“Did you have any trouble finding the house?”
“Not at all. Your directions were spot on.” Sierra stated, taking a step back. “I love your house, by the way.”
“Thanks. Technically it was Logan’s first, but I can’t complain.” Sam smiled sweetly. “You look like you could use a drink.”
She did? Well, the fluster was likely thanks to Cole’s unexpected presence. “That sounds great.”
“What can I get you? Wine? Vodka? Soda?”
“That’s a tough one.” Sierra grinned. A few minutes ago, before she saw Cole, Sierra would have been satisfied with a glass of wine. Being that her body had ignited despite her insistence that it sit down and shut up, she figured she’d probably fare better with the hard stuff. “I’ll take a vodka and 7Up if you have it.” Sierra said as she followed Sam through the living area into the wide open kitchen complete with stainless steel appliances and all the bell’s and whistle’s.
Sam smiled. “My kinda girl.”
~ * ~ * ~ * ~
From the moment Cole caught sight of Sierra from the corner of his eye, he’d been mesmerized yet again. For the last two weeks, he’d done everything in his power to stay away from her. He hadn’t called. He hadn’t shown up at her house. Nothing. All in hopes that somehow Luke would come to his senses. Apparently the man was more stubborn than Cole had given him credit for.
Seeing Sierra was a complete surprise, especially knowing that Luke was in attendance at this little shindig put on by Logan and Sam. The instant he saw her, Cole knew Luke’s twin had an ulterior motive. And Luke’s new sister-in-law was a matchmaker with a heart of gold, but Cole feared she was getting in over her head this time. Not only had they invited Luke and Sierra, they’d also invited Ashleigh Thomas and Alex McDermott. If they were expecting fireworks of epic proportions tonight, Cole suspected they were in for a show.
Granted, when Logan extended Cole the invitation, he’d attempted to say thanks, but no thanks. Logan hadn’t let him off the hook that easily, which explained why he was standing in the shadows watching Sierra as she disappeared into the kitchen with Sam. His preference would have been to hang around, continue to breathe in the uniquely fascinating scent of the woman and to see the smile that shone on her sweet face. Instead, the second he’d had a chance, he’d walked away from her.