Illusions of Love (11 page)

Pine
Hollow looked exactly the same as I remembered it. It was still the same small
town where everyone knew everyone else. The closer we got to Cole’s house the
more nervous I got. I just didn’t see this going as well as Cole seemed to
think.

Cole
reached over and squeezed my thigh. “I told your uncle we would stop by once we
got settled.”

I
smiled. “That sound great.” That as the one perk of this whole vacation. I
hadn’t spent that much time with my uncle the last few years. It would be nice
to spend time with him.

Cole
pulled into the driveway of his parent’s huge house. There was definitely some
good memories in that house. Cole climbed out and walked around to my door. He
opened the door for me. I climbed out and looked up at him. He had that sparkle
in his eyes that told me he was up to no good. He pulled me against his chest
and pressed his mouth to mine. I deepened the kiss enjoying the feel of his
lips on mine. There was no better feeling in the world.

Someone
behind us cleared their throat startling us. Cole spun around then smiled.
“Mother, it is nice to see you again,” he said as he stepped forward and hugged
his mother.

Her
eyes fell on me and I could tell she was already fighting the urge to say
something rude. “Please come in. Your father is waiting,” she said then turned
on her hell and marched back toward the house.

Cole
took my hand and squeezed it gently. “At least she didn’t say what she was
thinking,” he whispered.

I
sighed. “She hasn’t said it yet,” I countered as I let him lead me into the
house.

He
followed his mother into the main living room. His father was seated on the
couch. He was watching some type of football game. He smiled up at us as we
entered. “There you are Cole. I thought you would be here earlier. The game has
already begun.”

“I’m
sure I haven’t missed much,” Cole said amused as he helped me out of my coat.
He slid his own coat off and led me to one of the couches. The whole thing was
kind of awkward, but I was going to play along for Cole. He seemed like he
really wanted this to work. I sat silently and tried to pay attention to the
game. Cole and his father did nothing but discuss the game. His mother looked
at me every once in a while, as soon as I would look at her she would look
away. My phone rang startling me a little. I looked at the screen, it was
Mandy.

“Excuse
me,” I said apologetically as I hurried from the room to take the phone call.
“What’s up?” I asked when I was clear of everyone.

“Hey,
how’s the vacation?” she asked.

“Um
kind of tense,” I said glancing back at the living room where they were all
waiting.

“I
was calling because we got a lead on the payout to your attacker. They tried to
cover their tracks, but they didn’t do it that well. The money came from an
account in Pine Hollow. It was registered under John Michaels.”

I
hesitated when she said the name. I didn’t understand it. Mayor Michaels never
acted like he wanted to hurt me. It didn’t make any sense at all.

“Katie
do you know him?” Mandy’s voice interrupted my thoughts.

“Ya,
I do. Thanks for the info I will look into it,” I said softly.

“Just
be careful. Someone there sent a hit man after you. You never know, they could
be getting nervous and just decide to come after you themselves,” she said
sounding worried.

“I’ll
be fine. I’ll keep you updated,” I said softly and hung up. I touched my gun to
reassure myself. I refused to leave it behind after what happened. I didn’t
want to be caught off guard again.

“Everything
ok?” Cole asked coming out of the living room.

I
looked at him for a second trying to decide if I should tell him. I decided
against it. I didn’t know who was involved. I did know the David family was
close to the Michaels family and that made me worry. “Fine, just Mandy updating
me on a case,” I said as I forced a smile.

He
looked like he didn’t believe me. He crossed his arms defiantly like he was
gearing up for a fight. “You need to tell me what is going on. I know you don’t
trust me, but…”

“It’s
nothing,” I said firmly cutting him off. He was right I didn’t trust him, not
at all. I wanted to trust him, but he kept hiding things. Things like Tiffany
Daniels.

He
looked a little startled at my sudden outburst. “I didn’t mean to make you
mad,” he said softly.

I
sighed and ran my fingers through my hair. “I’m sorry for snapping I am just
tired. Where are we sleeping?” I asked trying to sound apologetic.

“My
old room; upstairs to the right,” he said softly.

“I
remember,” I said as I smiled. He smiled to and I felt a little bit better.

I
hurried upstairs to his room and closed the door. I wasn’t sure what I was
going to do. I decided to call my uncle and see if he had any insight. He
answered on the first ring. “How’s my favorite niece?”

I
smiled. “I’m fine Uncle Mike. I am back in town, and I was wondering if you
could help me out with a case?”

“Of
course, what do you need to know?” he asked sounding worried.

“I
traced a money transfer related to a crime back to an account that Mayor
Michaels has at the bank in town. Could you find out who has access to that
account if I send you the info?” I knew it was a lot to ask considering I
didn’t have a warrant yet, but my uncle knew people in town.

“Of
course. I know the bank manager Marge. She should help out. What kind of
crime?” he asked sounding worried.

“I
don’t want to say over the phone. Can you meet me at the station a little
later?” I asked knowing he would agree.

“Of
course, just call when you are on your way and I will be there,” he said
quietly.

“Thanks
Mike,” I said softly then hung up.

I
paced the room trying to figure out what my next move should be. I didn’t want
to just confront Mayor Michaels. If I did that he would probably lawyer up and
that would be it. The door opened and Cole looked at me.

“You
don’t look like you are sleeping you look like you are working,” he said
testily.

I
smiled nervously. “I was just following a lead.”

He
scowled. “Captain Hilliard said a month, and you agreed to come back here and
try to make our relationship work. How can you do that if you are still worried
about being a cop?”

I
didn’t like his tone; so of course I immediately got annoyed. I didn’t want to
be told what to do, and I didn’t like him forcing me to work things out. “Come
on Cole, you should cut me some slack if looks could kill I would be dead
already thanks to your mother.”

“Why
are you being so difficult? All I want is for this to work,” he said sounding
more like he was pleading than anything.

“Why?
Why not start over with someone else?” I asked trying to figure out what he
wanted from me.

He
watched me for a second then ran his fingers through his hair. “No one makes me
feel like you do, Katie. I tried starting over and you see where that led. I
truly believe we belong together despite your constant resistance.”

I
sighed as I sat down on the bed. “I’m not resisting I just don’t want to be
fooled again.”

He
walked over to me and sat on the bed next to me. “What do I have to do to
convince you I want this? I will sign everything over to you if that’s what it
takes. If I leave you, or do anything to ruin this I will lose everything. Will
that make you trust me?” He sounded desperate, and I didn’t understand why he
was willing to go to such lengths to keep me with him.

“I
don’t understand why you didn’t fight to get me back earlier. Why now?” I asked
confused.

“I
thought I could live without you. I was arrogant and stupid. I tried dating
other girls, but it didn’t work. Nothing ever worked out. I know we belong
together. We always did. I was just too stupid to see it,” he said softly. He
took my hand and squeezed it as I looked at him.

My
pulse quickened as I looked into his beautiful blue eyes. I was crazy about
him. I understood how he felt. I just didn’t think he could feel the same way
for me. I leaned into him and gently pressed my lips to his. He cupped my cheek
and deepened the kiss. He pushed me down on the bed, and laid kisses down my
jaw to my neck. I closed my eyes and savored the feel of his lips, and hands on
my body. He pressed his lips to mine again and my fingers went to the buttons
on his shirt. I unbuttoned the buttons on his shirt, then slowly slid it off. I
kissed his chest as he worked to pull my shirt and bra off. I unsnapped the
button on his slacks, and ran my hand over his hard shaft. I moaned in
anticipation. I wanted him in my mouth. I pushed him down on the bed and
positioned myself over him. I laid gentle kisses down his taut abdomen. I slid
his pants down further, then I covered his hard cock with my mouth. I moved
slowly over him, sucking and teasing as I did. Groans of pleasure escaped his
lips. The excitement rushed over me. I wanted him inside me. I stood, and
quickly stripped my jeans and panties off. I crawled back on the bed over him.
His eyes widened in surprise and pleasure when I slid down onto his hard shaft.
I closed my eyes and began to move over him. My body was reeling with pleasure.
I knew it wouldn’t be long before I lost control. His chest heaved as he panted
obviously enjoying what I was doing. Pleasure began to slowly wash over me. I
moaned in ecstasy as my body tingled and flushed.

He
rolled pinning me to the bed. He pressed his mouth to mine and kissed me
hungrily. He moved his hips thrusting as hard and as fast as he could. He felt
so good. I cried out as another wave of pleasure crashed over me. He buried his
face in my hair and groaned as he released. I laid under him trying to catch my
breath. My body felt like it was on fire. Tingling sensations were still
rolling over me.

He
shifted and nuzzled my ear. “I love you, Katie,” he whispered.

I
felt my chest tighten at his words. “I love you too,” I said softly as I gently
stroked his hair.

There
was a loud knock on the door breaking the silence. “Cole, dinner is ready,” his
mother’s said from the other side. She sounded like she was even more irritated
than usual.

Cole
rolled his eyes and climbed off the bed. We will be down in a minute,” he
called.

I
could hear her mutter something, but it wasn’t audible. She definitely wasn’t
happy. “This should be fun,” I said dryly as I gathered my clothes.

He
smiled as he slid his shirt on. “She will get used to this, don’t worry.”

I
decided to wear a dress for once. It was a pretty blue one. I liked it because
I knew it was Cole’s favorite color. I put a pair of high heel sandals on; then
I sat back down on the bed. I watched Cole dress. I loved looking at his
perfect body. I really loved when I could see his muscles flex. The thought
that I was just crazy about him because the sex was good bothered me a little.
We never really talked about anything serious. Whenever anything got tense we
just got naked or stormed out. Nothing ever seemed to be resolved.

He
smiled at me and offered his hand. “Are you ready for this?” he asked amused.

I
sighed and took his hand. “Not really.” He laughed and pulled me into a hug as
he led me out of the room.

Dinner
was more awkward then I expected. His mother sat like a silent matriarch. She
didn’t look at me, or even talk to me. Cole and his father attempted to keep
things from getting too awkward by talking about business or sports. After a
few minutes a silence had fallen over the table while everyone focused on
eating.

“Lana
Michaels is home for a couple weeks, you should stop by and see her Cole,” his
mother said out of nowhere.

Cole
glanced at me; then looked at his mother. She didn’t even bother to look up from
her plate. “Mother I’m married,” Cole said sounding confused.

She
scoffed. “This is just a phase. You go through them every now and then,” she
said like it was no big deal.

I
rolled my eyes, and looked down at my plate. I wasn’t going to fight with her.
It was exactly what she wanted. Her words bothered me a little because what she
said was my fear.

“Mother
this isn’t a phase. Katie and I are married and I love her,” Cole said firmly.

She
glared at him like he was annoying her for protesting. “You can do better and
you know it. She is taking advantage of your confusion.”

“I
am the one that asked her to come with me. I have had to fight for everything
because of how I screwed up. If she was taking advantage of me I would think I
wouldn’t have to do so much work,” he countered.

“Did
you get her pregnant like you did that other girl?” she asked sounding
exasperated.

I
was a little shocked by her bluntness. Luckily my phone buzzed. It was my
uncle. ‘I’m outside,’ he text.

“Well
this was lovely. I have to go. I’ll see you a little later Cole,” I said then
hurried out of the room.

“Damn
it Katie wait!” Cole growled as he caught my hand.

“What?”
I asked trying not to sound too annoyed.

“Where
are you going?” he asked sounding a little hurt.

“My
uncle is here. I am going to spend some time with him,” I said trying to soften
my tone.

“You
can’t run every time things get tough,” he said angrily.

“And
you can’t expect this to work out. Your mother isn’t going to change her mind
about me. All she is going to do is cause fights until one of the two of us
calls it off,” I countered.

He
released my arm. I could tell by his expression he wasn’t happy with me. “I
won’t be the one to do that, just remember that,” he growled and walked back
into the dining room.

I
sighed and hurried out the door. I was relieved to see my uncle’s police
cruiser. Dinner was getting extremely tense.

“Everything
ok?” Uncle Mike asked after I settled in the passenger seat.

I
nodded. “The wicked witch is on her broom,” I said dryly.

Uncle
Mike smiled. “I don’t know why Cole thinks that woman is going to change her
ways. When she doesn’t want something done, she makes sure everyone knows it.”

“I
know, and so does everyone else. Cole is the only one that seems determined to
make it work. So did you find anything?” I asked hoping he did. I wanted to
know who sent the guy, but I didn’t want it to be my father. I didn’t really
know him, but I just didn’t want it to be him.

“Ya,
the account is under John’s name, but it is Lana’s expense account. I figured
we could go talk to John and see what he has to say,” he said as he pulled out
of the driveway.

“Lana?”
I said confused. I didn’t know much about her other than she was a pain the
entire time I went to school. She was my arch enemy. Her mother hated my mother
because of me, and I was sure that hate rubbed off on Lana.

“Yep,
Lana. If anyone knows what is going on it will be John. Lana is supposed to be
in town. I haven’t seen her yet. I know John is downtown at his offices and
that is where we are going,” he said as he drove toward downtown.

I
sighed and leaned back in my seat. I was a little relieved it wasn’t Mayor
Michaels, but I was kind of confused about it being Lana. I didn’t think she
hated me, it was more of a mutual dislike because of family history.