Page 12 of Cole

It would be interesting if she ended up working with Lexi. Though Annie had promised nothing, Cole thought she’d seemed curious about the idea Lexi had proposed.

“Do you think someone can support themselves just selling things like this?” Cole asked as he held his phone over Skylar’s shoulder.

She took the phone and bent her head to look at the screen. “I have no idea. But I guess maybe? She said it was what she did, so I guess she’s figured out a way to make it work. Some people don’t need much money to live.”

That certainly wasn’t him. Over the years, his lifestyle had risen to match his income. He had three cars, even though he was the only one who drove them. He had a house in Bel Air, as well as an apartment near the practice facility, so he didn’t have quite as far of a commute when he had practices and games. Then there were the expensive clothes and shoes.

He didn’t live beyond his means, but he certainly didn’t live frugally, either.

“She seems nice,” Skylar said. “And her brother treated Amelia well.”

“What do you mean?” Aiden asked.

“He pulled her chair out for her, which is almost unheard of these days,” Skylar said.

“Haven’t had anyone pull out your chair for you in a while?” Cole asked.

Skylar gave a huff of laughter. “Nope. Can’t say that I have.”

Cole poked Aiden in the head. “You could remedy that, and you’d be doing better than most of the guys in her life, apparently.”

His sister tossed his phone over her shoulder, and it was only his excellent reflexes that allowed him to catch it before it hit him in the face. “Why the aggression, sis?”

“I don’t know,bro.”

Cole laughed as he slumped back against the seat. Until he’d been back with Aiden and Skylar, he hadn’t realized how much he’d missed them. How much he’d missed the three of them hanging out together.

In fact, he was enjoying being back in Serenity, though he wouldn’t have thought that was possible just a few short months ago.

It was amazing how a little health scare could bring everything into focus.

He wouldn’t be staying in Serenity for too much longer, unfortunately. Even though it was the off season, he still had commitments he had to honor. Contracts that had been signed for commercials, as well as interviews he’d agreed to do.

Still, even the quick trip home had been a nice break, one he planned to enjoy each moment of. Which was why he’d reserved a pontoon boat for the next afternoon.

Looking down at his phone, he realized he should have invited Annie and Benji to join them the next day. But maybe he needed to see who in the family wanted to come with him first, to make sure there was enough room for everyone.

As it turned out, there was plenty of room on the pontoon the next day. However, Annie declined his invitation to come out on the lake with them. Benji did go with them, though. Much to Amelia’s delight.

Cole still had fun with his siblings and friends. He just thought he might have hadmorefun if Annie had been there. He was leaving Serenity later that week, and it would probably be awhile before he’d be back.

So even though he would have liked to spend more time getting to know her, it wasn’t going to happen. Plus, he had a feeling that whatever interest he had in her would no doubt wane once he was away from Serenity and back into his professional life.

He wasn’t in the market for a serious girlfriend anyway, and Annie had serious written all over her. It wouldn’t be good for her to think he was interested in seriously dating when he wasn’t. He didn’t want to lead her on, so it was probably best that she hadn’t wanted to come on the boat with them.

Still, he had a hard time getting her beautiful eyes and gentle smile out of his mind.

CHAPTERFOUR

While still burrowed beneath her comforter, Annie reached out to pick up her phone from where it sat on her nightstand. The room was dark, with only a soft glow coming from the diffuser that softly pumped scented steam into the air.

She blew out a soft breath, trying to wake herself up more fully. With a tap on the screen of her phone, all the metal blinds that covered the windows on the upper floor began to lift. Usually sunshine flooded the space, but that day, all she got was a dull, muted light.

Once the windows were fully uncovered, Annie could see the rain sliding down the glass, blurring the trees into green smudges. It was the perfect day to stay in bed with a good book.

Unfortunately, she had things to do, so while she could linger for a bit longer in her comfortable bed, she couldn’t stay there all day.

She shifted so she could see the big window on the opposite end of the large open area that encompassed her work and sleeping space. The main floor included her kitchen, living room, another bathroom, and a guest bedroom.

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