She didn’t care about his plans. She wanted him out of her life. At least, a part of her wanted him out of her life. The other part wanted him to kiss her again. She nearly groaned in frustration.
“You’re having a tough week,” he said. “You need to have some fun.”
She dodged her way around a group of pedestrians, then skirted a trash can and a stroller. “What? This doesn’t look like fun?”
“Well, I’m having fun.”
“What do you want, Cole?”
“To take you on a date.”
His words shocked her to a halt.
He took her arm and drew her under a shop awning, next to a brick wall and out of the flow of pedestrians. “I can only guess at how hard you’re working and how tired you must be. I want to help you take a break. Come out with me tonight. Let’s walk through Atlantic Station, see the lights, drink hot chocolate. Or we can go skating. You said skating was your favorite.”
“I don’t like you, Cole.”
“To be fair, you don’t know me.”
“I know enough.”
“You only think you know enough.” His gaze captured hers again, and the noise and commotion of the sidewalk seemed to fade.
“I’ll sweeten the pot,” he said. “We’ll go to the penthouse. I’ll work my magic and put Zachary to sleep. Can Isabel stay for the evening?”
“You’re bribing me?”
“Absolutely.”
“Why, Cole? The jig is up. I know you were using me to worm your way into Coast Eagle.”
“Amber, I don’t need you to worm my way into Coast Eagle. I walked through the front door and got a meeting with the soon-to-be president without an appointment.”
“Roth’s not going to be president.”
“Good decision.”
“You just switch your opinion on a dime, don’t you?”
“I never thought he should be president.”
She didn’t know what to say to that. She didn’t care what Cole thought. Still, for some reason she was glad to hear him agree with her.
“You need to get out for a while,” Cole continued. “Take a break. Forget about everything.”
She fought a smile at the absurdity. “What I want to forget is you.”
His expression faltered, and she felt a stab of guilt.
“I’m sorry to hear that, Amber.”
She was sorry she’d said it.
Wait, no, she wasn’t. No good could come of her attraction to him. A date? The idea was absurd. He lived in Alaska, and her life was a mess.
The best they could hope for was a one-night stand. Which, when she thought about it...