Page 92 of Stolen Summer
He folded his arms over his chest. “It shouldn’t.”
“Maybe I like that it bothers you,” I said boldly.
He leveled me with a cool glance. “Don’t go catching feelings on me, Killer.”
Ire boiled in my blood. “As if that could happen with a jerk like you.”
“If you hate me that much, why are you here? Did something happen?” His form, which had only just relaxed, stiffened again, as he braced himself for me to tell him something bad had happened.
“I just want to sleep,” I admitted, running my hand through my windblown hair and sinking against the wall.
He searched my face, looking for answers to questions I didn’t know. “So, you came here?”
I shrugged. “I can’t let my guard down at home. I don’t feel safe. Not with someone out there trying to kill me. What if they came looking for me?”
“You’re worried they might hurt your father.”
“Can you blame me after what happened today?”
Cole’s lips pursed in the dark. “No, you can stay…for now,” he added, letting me know this was a temporary arrangement. That was all. “No one will hurt you here, and if it makes you feel better, I can put a security detail on your house—at least until I deal with Gianna.”
I fiddled with a ring on my middle finger. “I knew she was unstable, but this is insane. She almost killed my best friend because she thinks I’m a threat.”
“When it comes to money, especially the amounts that have the power to change lives, people will do things they never thought they were capable of. Including murder.”
“So it isn’t about some obsessive, misplaced love?”
“For Gianna, it probably is. That…and the pressure of her father.” Shadows shrouded his eyes.
“You’re worried about her father,” I murmured, reading the flicker of unease he didn’t want me to see. “If he is anything like the spawn he produced, I can understand the concern.”
“He makes Gianna look like a kitten,” Cole admitted, foreboding present in his tone.
“Fabulous,” I grumbled, dropping my head against the wall.
Icouldn’t remember the last time I slept past noon, but clearly, I needed it. Kicking off the covers, I sat up in bed and checked my phone, rubbing a hand on the nape of my neck. Beads of sweat dripped down my back. Why am I sweating?
If I was at my house, I wouldn’t have questioned it, but the Rileys had air-conditioning, and even when they weren’t home, the temperature remained at a comfortable level. What I felt now wasn’t reasonable.
Stuffiness coated the air, making the bedroom unbearable.
I went to the balcony doors and opened them, letting some fresh air in, but after a minute, I couldn’t decide if that helped or made things worse. My skin was so damn sticky, and I walked outside. Leaning on the railings, I looked out over the pool. Waves splashed in the distance, lapping on the beach, and all I could think was how amazing a dip in the cool water would feel.
What’s stopping me?
I still had no job. I had nothing to do.
Why not take a dip in the pool?
I hadn’t packed a bathing suit, but that never stopped me before.
A shadow appeared from under the balcony, and I watched it move until Cole strolled around the deck, sipping something out of a glass. He hadn’t noticed me yet, and I took advantage to admire the view with a different lens.
He was good-looking. There was no doubt about it, and I finally understood all the hype around the Riley boys. This was one of those times rumors hadn’t been fabricated. The sun gleamed off the black ink across his broad back.
He walked to the end of the pool, and as he turned to the side, I noticed he was on his phone. Our eyes locked, and I couldn’t look away. Something stirred inside me. I should have been afraid, and yesterday I would have been, but I was reminded how precious life was and how quickly it could be altered or taken from us. I had to stop lying to myself.
There was no point in denying my feelings. I’d gone and done the very thing I promised I’d never do.