The minute he was lodged deep inside her, she cried out, arched her hips, and screamed as he gripped her bare ass with his sticky hand and placed his other palm by her head.

“Rachel?” Although he was trying to get her eyes to refocus, he was putting forth more energy into trying to get his body under some type of control.

When her eyes opened and she looked up at him, he gave her a slow smile and leaned down over her.

Next to her ear, he whispered, “Thank you for my surprise. Now, I won’t be able to eat a caramel without thinking about being balls deep inside your sweet, warm pussy.”

As he bit her ear, he felt her core grip his cock tight as she screamed and pulsated around him. That was when he finally let go and pounded inside her. He lost himself in the sublime as she fell apart around him, dragging him down deeper into her soul. Nothing had prepared him for the way she destroyed his control with every glance, every action, and as he finally came on a loud roar, every breath she took.

She had crawled under his skin, and he knew he would never be the same.

* * *

After a warm shower, Rachel was naked and lying in bed beside Cole as she ran her hand down over his chest to the tattoo of the wolf.

This man, who she was currently pressed up against, continually threw her off balance. Tonight, she had expected that she would be on the giving end of the equation, but unlike Ben, she was finding that Cole had the ability to change and adapt.

He was capable of letting go of his rules and demands if something felt better. He also gave her the opportunity to explore her own desires without the pressure of punishment if she didn’t obey.

This whole relationship they had entered into felt different, yet it still evoked the same side of her that Ben once had. While Ben had been cruel with the power he wielded, Cole used his to persuade, arouse, and ultimately, bring her the most pleasure she had ever felt.

Cole was a man who exuded confidence. He projected strength and determination in every aspect of his life, and it only made sense that he would carry it over to the bedroom. This wasn’t a man who was playing at anything; this was a man who lived the only way he knew how. Yes, it just happened to roll over into the sexual aspect of his life. And aren’t I the lucky one?

She rolled over to her side, so she was looking down at him. “Do these all have some specific meaning?”

Cole looked down at her finger tracing over his skin. With a question of his own, he answered, “What do you think?”

Lifting her eyes from her finger’s path, Rachel stated plainly, “I don’t think you do anything without some kind of motive or meaning.”

“Well then, you have your answer, don’t you?”

Frustrated with him, Rachel lifted her hand and pinched the nipple near the wolf.

Almost immediately, one of his large hands came down on top of hers. “Careful,” he cautioned.

“Well, answer me. Why do you always deflect?”

“Why aren’t you more specific?” he countered, still pressing her palm to his piercing.

“Fine. What does the wolf mean? Even though I can probably guess.”

Cole lifted his hand and placed it back under his head. “Well, that sounds interesting. I want to hear your thoughts on it.”

Rachel pouted as she stared down into his twinkling eyes. “So, you can laugh at me?”

He reached out one of his hands and twisted a piece of her hair around his finger. “No, I want to see what you think you know about me.”

Rachel went back to her imaginary finger painting over the dark ink. The tat was of a wolf facing forward. With his tail in the air, his snout and two front paws stalked toward her.

“I think this has something to do with your personality and how you see yourself—possibly as a lone wolf. For me, I see it as stealth and power.” She stopped and stared up into burning eyes. “An alpha male.”

She knew she hit the nail on the head because Cole made a show of smiling at her while baring his teeth.

“All the better to eat me with?” she questioned with a small giggle.

He hugged her in close. Instead of answering, he asked, “Aren’t you tired, Rachel? I don’t know how you do all that you do.”

Rachel rubbed her cheek against his side as she ran her fingers down the center of his chest and then over to where the silhouette was intricately inked down his ribs. Shifting in the bed, Rachel scooted away from him to really look at the side profile of the lady. She was so delicate yet strong, etched forever into this complex man’s skin.

“Don’t deflect. What about this one?”

“No theories?” he pushed.

Rachel didn’t really want to voice the one thing that came to mind, so she remained silent.

“Really? Nothing comes to mind?” he pushed as he stroked a finger down her scrunched up nose. “I think you’re thinking of something. Tell me. Nothing you say will annoy me, and nothing you say will make me mad.”

Rachel took his finger in her hand and looked up at him with cautious eyes. “A girlfriend?”

Shaking his head, Cole swore solemnly, “Nothing on my body is a souvenir of long-lost love, Rachel. I don’t believe in making something permanent unless I am one hundred percent sure I won’t regret it.” Reaching up to the back of her head, he stroked a palm down her hair. “That being said, this is for my mother, whom I love very much.”

Rachel felt her heart swell at Cole’s intimate confession.

“Is she…” Rachel paused, not quite sure how to ask the looming question.

“Alive? Yes, but she’s no longer with me.”

Frowning, Rachel was confused by his answer. She pulled herself up, so she was hovering over him. Daring to cup his cheek, she turned his face, forcing his eyes to fixate on her instead of the ceiling.

“What do you mean? Did she leave you?”

Cole’s eyes took on a haunted look, fracturing a part of her that she hadn’t realized she had taken him into, as he whispered, “Yes, and she’s never coming back.”

Before Rachel could ask more, Cole wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his chest. “No more questions tonight. Sleep, Rachel. Sleep, and have peaceful dreams for the both of us.”

Closing her eyes, she rested her cheek on the wolf and placed her hand on his chest, trying to soothe the beast. As she drifted off to sleep, she found herself wondering if Cole Madison knew that he had somehow managed to infiltrate her body, mind, and soul.

14

As Rachel waved good-bye to Katie, a potential new employee for Precious Petals, she felt as though a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Rachel liked Katie, and if no one else bothered to show up for interviews, she would be more than happy to hire her.

Moving around her shop, Rachel stopped in front of a bouquet of colorful tulips and took a moment to picture her mother tending to her garden back at the little yellow house that currently sat empty. The house had once been so full of life, and it still held all her most important memories, so it always amazed Rachel that it was now lifeless and sitting for sale.

Shaking her head, she turned away from the tulips and reminded herself that this week was all about finding a way to move forward and to decide what she wanted in life, not to let herself be overwhelmed by the loss she had been feeling for quite some time now.

Naturally, the thought of moving forward automatically made her think of Cole.

Now, there is definitely a welcome distraction. Who knew?

He had marched into her life and demanded she let him in, and with that, he had reintroduced her to a side she had tried to deny.

When Cole had dropped her home this morning, he appeared like the professional businessman he was. It was hard to imagine him as the lover who had taken her on his kitchen floor. Then, he’d leaned over, kissed her, and pressed his card into her hand with the suggestion to come and find him for lunch.

Looking up at the clock, she saw it was two forty-five. She had told him she could just close the shop a little early and be there at three thirty. If she wanted to make it into the city and on time, just the way he liked it, she needed to leave now.

Grabbing her purse, she glanced in the mirror and blew her reflection a kiss, making herself a promise to just go with it, follow her instincts, and let it take her where it would.

And, right now, that was to Cole.

* * *

Cole was across town and seated behind his desk in the middle of a much longer than expected conference call. As he glanced up at the clock, he clenched his teeth as the big hand shifted to three forty-five. Shit. He was late for lunch with Rachel.

As Mr. Fogerty, one of their top clients, continued on about how he was not responsible for the fact that one of his employees was suing him for wrongful termination, Cole looked over to Logan. Logan was sitting on Cole’s couch, examining his nails and looking exceedingly bored. He finally raised his eyes and rolled them behind his glasses.

Cole gestured him over and continued taking notes, giving Mr. Fogerty noncommittal answers. Logan stood, smoothed his jacket, and walked over to Cole’s desk. Switching to a separate page, Cole scrawled: Woman in lobby. Name is Rachel. Go get her.

Logan picked up the paper and read its instructions. As he glanced down at Cole, he tapped the note with his opposite hand. “What does she look like?” he asked in a hushed tone.

Looking him dead in the eye, Cole whispered, “Like a woman you will only ever dream about but will never have the balls to take.”