Cole(48)

“Carter Reed. I couldn’t believe it, and I can barely believe it now.” He eased his arm out of the man’s grasp. “As quick as you ever were.” He lifted his hand as if to clasp him on the shoulder, but the man narrowed his eyes in warning. Mahler’s hand fell back to his side. He cleared his throat. “How are you, Reed? I didn’t know you came around these parts anymore.”

“Fuck.”

I was the only one who seemed to have heard Jake’s quiet curse, and I glanced at him. His eyes were wide and trained on this Carter Reed person.

Reed had wolf-like blue eyes, dark blond hair, and a dangerous air. If Sia had been here, and not been with Jake, she would’ve been gushing over him like when she first saw Cole at Gianni’s. This man was powerful. That was obvious. Carol and Hank seemed frozen as well, their reactions close to Jake’s.

Who is this guy?

“I have to say, it’s not a good surprise to see you, Reed.” Mahler spoke again since the other man refused to respond. “Where you go, bodies tend to pile up.” When everyone else remained silent, he laughed at his own joke. He was the only one.

Reed only watched him, an icy glint in his eyes. He didn’t seem annoyed or scared, just like he was waiting for the idiot to shut up.

Carol jerked into motion. She reached for Mahler’s glass. “I think you’ve had one too many, Alfred.”

“Oh, come on.” He was still laughing. “It’s funny. Besides, what are you nervous about? Reed’s out of the game. Right?” He reached for the man’s shoulder again, and he was evaded again.

“If you try to touch me one more time, I will break your hand.”

The soft threat shut him up. It was as if Mahler suddenly realized who he’d been poking, like a child pointing a stick at a cobra. His face became even more flushed.

“Uh.” He took a step back, cramming his hands into his pockets as he tried to recover. “Who are you here with?” He craned his neck to see who had been standing behind the taller man. As he did, Reed’s companion moved forward, and Hank and Carol moved aside. They kept their eyes focused elsewhere.

I should have, too.

Reed’s associate came into view, and I felt punched in the diaphragm.

It was Cole.

I could only stand there and stare. I hadn’t thought he’d be here. I hadn’t thought he was even in the state. I’d just been with him a few nights before, and he’d said nothing. He’d texted a couple times since then, asking how I was, but he’d given no indication he was coming back to town. These thoughts were racing in my mind, but all I could do was swallow, feeling a knot moving up my throat.

I tried to keep my mouth from falling open and gaping at him, but that was where my jaw should’ve been, on the damn floor. I couldn’t help noting how he looked and how my body was already leaning toward him, like it wanted to go into his arms, like that was the most natural thing in the world.

Like that was where I was supposed to be, and why the hell was I still only standing here, not going to him?

I knew that wasn’t rational, and I tried to shut off that side of my brain. Anger, annoyance, and some other sensations I didn’t want to identify churned in me. If I let myself feel them, it’d be a recipe for disaster. I would not make a scene here. I would not demand answers. That would be later, but not in front of my in-laws, or in front of anyone, for that matter.

Instead, I took in how striking Cole looked. His friend was striking as well, but I preferred Cole. He was dark to his friend’s light. Each balanced the other, drawing attention from everyone around us and other groups beyond them. They had an animal magnetism. They were affecting the crowd. People grew restless, feeling a shift in the air.

Both were deadly. Both knew it, and both gazed at Mahler like he was their next meal.

Mahler was finally struck speechless. He could only stare at Cole, as could I. Cole narrowed his eyes at Mahler, then Jake, then swung his gaze to me. He lingered a moment before returning to Mahler.

Complete silence settled over the group. What was going on? They couldn’t have known about us. Reed was staring at me now, and I froze for a beat. Curiosity mingled faintly with an amused look in his eyes before he shifted backward to stand shoulder to shoulder with Cole.

“You were full of drunken stupidity when you saw me, Mahler,” Reed spoke. “Now you can’t say a word?” He glanced to Cole. “Or maybe you weren’t aware that Cole was in town?”

Mahler sputtered out some words, but none made sense.

My ex in-laws didn’t seem surprised to see him, or maybe they’d gotten over it faster. Both had their eyes trained on the floor, their shoulders slightly hunched forward. They were the vision of demure and timid.