Cole’s strong hand came down on her shoulder. “Are you okay?” he asked softly.
She swallowed. Her voice came out on a pained whisper. “I’m so frightened.”
“I know.”
She shook her head. “No, you don’t. You can’t possibly understand.”
She was going to lose Zachary, and there wasn’t a thing she could do about it.
He gently turned her. She didn’t stop him as he drew her into his arms. It didn’t seem to matter that he was one of the enemies; she accepted the strength he offered.
His voice was deep and steady. “I know you can’t let yourself believe anything I say. But I want what’s best for Zachary. I promise I’ll do what’s best for Zachary.”
She tipped her chin to gaze up at him. She wanted so badly to believe it was true. She needed some hope to hang on to.
Minutes ticked slowly past.
He reached up to brush her chin, his voice low and sexy. “You are amazing.”
She knew she had to pull away. She had to shut this down before it went any further. His eyes were smoldering, his desire completely obvious. His hand crept into her hair. His gaze zeroed in on her lips, and he bent his head.
He was going to kiss her.
She wasn’t going to stop him.
His lips touched hers, warm, soft and gentle.
She stretched up, leaned in, let her arms twine around his neck as he took the kiss deeper. She’d missed him. She couldn’t believe how much she’d missed him.
Her world was dissolving around her, and he felt like the only anchor point. His hand splayed her back, pressing her close. A moan rose up from her chest, and she met his tongue. Flicking flames of desire rose up inside her, heating her body, sensitizing every nerve ending. She needed to get closer, to feel his skin.
But suddenly, he drew back. “We can’t do this.”
She was mortified. What was she thinking? What was she doing, throwing herself into his arms?
He braced his hands around her upper arms, putting a few inches between them. “We need to talk.”
“Talk,” Amber managed to agree.
He put a hand lightly on the small of her back, guiding her from the nursery, down the hall, back to the living room.
She went straight to the far corner of the sofa, struggling to pull her dignity around her.
She could feel Cole’s gaze on her from where he sat in the armchair. But she couldn’t bring herself to look at him. She couldn’t imagine what he thought of her. He’d deceived her, used her to gain information about Coast Eagle, Samuel and Zachary. And yet she’d been willing to leap into bed with him a second time.
There was something terribly wrong with her.
“What will Roth do?” Cole asked into the silence. “If he wins custody, what will he do?”
Amber struggled to move past emotion to logic. “I expect he will hire a nanny. I hope he keeps Isabel, but I don’t know that he will.” She had to stop for a breath. “Then he’ll use the power of his guardianship to get appointed president of Coast Eagle.”