Page 111 of Thunderstruck
The elevator stops at the third floor, and Cole reluctantly steps out, looking back at me with an expression I can’t quite read.
I smile. “I’ll see you in the morning for breakfast.”
The door slides closed, and I slump against the handrail as the last of my energy slips away. This weekend was a wild ride, but like Liam, I don’t regret anything. Except maybe the fact that I didn’t kiss Cole goodnight. That was stupid of me.
The elevator slows on the fourth floor and comes to a stop, and when the door slides open, I shift to make room. Only, it’s Cole who stumbles inside, gasping for air, and I stand up straight in surprise as he boxes me into the corner.
“Did you just run up the stairs?” I ask in alarm.
He nods, still heaving, and then his mouth is on mine, hungrily claiming that goodnight kiss I was too tired to remember until it was too late. We reach the fifth floor, but neither of us moves to exit. I’m too busy memorizing the feel of his mouth because I’ll have to go a whole night without him.
“No,” he says against my lips, like he’s reading my mind. “Stay with me tonight.”
I stiffen. That’s a big step. “Cole…”
He shakes his head, eyebrows pulled low and his caramel chocolate eyes fixed on mine. “I just want you near me. Please. Two floors is too far.”
As the elevator door slides closed again, leaving us alone in a silver box, I smile and press my hand over his heart. “I couldn’t agree more.”
We kiss until someone triggers the elevator down to the lobby, and then we head back up to the third floor where I fall asleep in Cole’s arms, dreaming of this and everything else for many nights to come.
Hollywood Hot Scoop
Rugby Rockstar—Cole’s Secret Talent
Look out, Liam Lovers,because we may have found a reason for you to pick a new favorite of the Glam Gang! In a shocking reveal, rugby legend and former Portland Badger Cole Evanson took to the stage at Liam Connolly’s Oregon show and blew the crowd away with the dulcet sounds of a voice made for the stage.
That’s right! Cole cansing.
And it gets even better, Scoopers, because Cole sang straight to his sweetheart, Carissa Paxton. Carissa, who has been lauded as the best addition to the team in recent years by many of the LA Thunder, was in tears over the emotional display of Cole’s affection at the show, and something tells me these two aren’t going to take long to follow their fellow Glam Gang members in settling down with their soulmates.
(Did you miss our story on Liam’s proposal to Kasey Graham or our top five picks of paint colors for Hank McAllister’s front door on his new LA residence? Check them out here, and be sure to subscribe so you don’t missanything in the future!)
And never fear, my Scoopers. Of course we have a video of Cole’s debut performance! What do you think? Will we be seeing an album in the scrum-half’s future? Only time will tell, but we here atHot Scoopwill be the first to let you know! XO
Chapter Thirty-Four
Cole
The world looks differentnow that Carissa is officially a part of it with me. I can’t quite explain what has caused the change other than the feeling of stability in my chest that keeps me grounded, but everything is brighter. Bolder. Full of colors I’ve never seen before. And though I’ve been to Derek’s house more times than I can count, I feel like this is the first time I set foot on the stone patio overlooking the ocean.
I need to be at practice in an hour, but this conversation is important too.
Derek leans on the wall surrounding the patio, his gaze on the horizon and a far-off look in the eyes, like he’s not really here. He gets this way sometimes when he has a quiet moment, something that has been happening less and less often lately, and I’m tempted to wait instead ofinterrupting. He probably needs to cherish whatever downtime he can get.
Unfortunately, he’s not as alone as I thought he was, and Freya’s voice breaks the silence through the phone in Derek’s hand. “Cole! You are back from Oregon!”
As Derek glances back at me, snapping back to the present moment with a couple of blinks, I move closer and smile at the princess on the screen. I wonder how long she’s been sitting in silence. “Hey, Peach. You’re lucky I survived long enough to make it back, after what you put me through.”
“You were fine,” Derek says.
“Only because I had Carissa with me,” I argue.
“That was the point,” Freya says. “Derek never would have let you go without her.”
I glance at him, and when he lifts an eyebrow, I groan. “There was a whole scheme happening yesterday, wasn’t there?”
“You must know there is always a scheme when Derek Riley is involved,” Freya says, a bit of a grumble in her tone.
