“The family suite. I saw you at the glass with that little hand thing you two did.”
She gives me a look that has me blushing. We haven’t told anyone else that we’re together. I guess that secret is out now.
“I’m glad to see him win tonight,” trying to alleviate the awkwardness.
“Me too. He played a great game.”
The players emerge from the locker room, showered and dressed in designer suits. They wave and talk to others hanging around, including the press. Finally, Cole appears, his blond hair wet but clean and looking sharp in his charcoal suit.
His mom greets him first, hugging and kissing him before introducing the man with her, Greg Adams. Cole shakes his hand and gives him a once-over before they walk away. Then he turns all his attention on me, ignoring the reporters wanting a chance to talk with the newest Dragon.
“Good game,” Talon tells him, smacking him on the back. “I delivered the package just as you asked. She’s all yours tonight, treat her well.” He kisses me on the cheek and leaves down the hallway we came from.
I raise a brow at Cole, “We have plans tonight?”
“Yep, ready to get out of here?” He offers me his arm.
“Absolutely,” I answer, weaving my arm through his.
Cole leads me back through the maze of hallways until we exit into a parking lot. We find his Lexus, and he opens my door so I can get in.
"Are we going somewhere fancy?" I ask him when he slides into the driver's seat, looking down at my jersey and jeans.
"No, you'll be fine in that."
It only takes a few minutes, and we’re pulling up in front of a ritzy-looking hotel. Cole gets out and goes to the trunk, pulling out a duffel bag. He meets me at my side of the car, where he helps me out and then gives the valet his keys. We walk into the lobby together.
I raise a brow, "We're staying here tonight?"
"I wanted us to be able to spend some alone time together, completely away from the others."
He checks us in, and we take the elevator to the tenth floor. Our suite is enormous. We walk into the space with a living room, small dining area, and kitchenette. There’s an ice bucket with champagne, two glasses, and a plate of chocolate-covered strawberries waiting for us on the table. I smile up at Cole.
"Too much?" he asks as he hands me a strawberry. I take a bite and let out a moan of happiness. So good.
“What is all of this?" I ask, still savoring the sweet and tart taste of the treat on my tongue.
He sweeps his arm out, encompassing the room. "This is my grand gesture."
"Your what?'
"A grand gesture. In every romance movie, the man does something idiotic and makes a grand gesture to the woman to show how sorry he is. Welcome to mine."
He pours each of us a glass of champagne, grabs the plate of strawberries, and leads me to the couch. After we sit, he hands me my glass, and I take a sip.
"Please forgive me, Blake. For abandoning you when you needed me most. For walking away from my best friend and not being there when she needed me most. I promise my actions have nothing to do with you and how I felt about you. I was drowning in expectations, and it was a hit to my ego that my girlfriend wanted to see other guys. Instead of talking to you, I ran away. I've loved you for as long as I've known what love is. I don't want to live my life without you being a part of it, the best part of it."
"I love you too, Cole. I always will.”
As the final word leaves my mouth, Cole is on me. He puts every bit of love he can into the sweet kiss he gives me. But it turns passionate and needy quickly, causing us both to moan and cling to each other.
"Can we take this to the bedroom? More surprises are waiting there," he asks
I nod and let him lead me there.
Cole brings the champagne bottle, and I grab the plate of strawberries. In the center of the candlelit bedroom is a king-size bed covered in rose petals. I smile at Cole and throw myself on the bed.
“Oh no, clothes don’t get worn in that bed. Let’s take this into the bathroom. There’s a nice tub to soak in.”
