Momentary Lapse (13 page)

Cole frowned. “When I move down here, I guess,” he said, avoiding her stare. “Or if Jess doesn't need you anymore.”

When I don't need you.

The unspoken words lay between them and her chest squeezed tight. In some ways, it was a relief to hear the truth. This brief interlude with Cole was a solar flare, blindingly sweet but not enduring. She needed to keep reminding herself of that, in case she fell into the trap of wishing it could last forever.

And it forced Madison to keep thinking about her own future. She couldn't stay wrapped in the cocoon of another false world, no more real than the one her mother had created.

She closed her eyes and resumed the flick and slide of her fingers across the smoothness of his skin, letting the reality of her situation sink in and envelop her.

Sooner or later, Madison's past would catch up with her. Sooner or later, she'd need to decide once and for all where she belonged.

For now she was content to live in limbo and share Jess and Cole's world. Although that wasn't always smooth sailing either. Brother and sister were often quick to fall into sibling bickering, usually focused around what Jess was doing….or not doing.

Something Madison was reminded of later in the morning when Cole finally let her out of bed. Jess got up not long after them and as soon as he saw her, he couldn't help himself.

“I haven't seen you do your stretches for a while.” Cole never seemed to be able to leave well enough alone. And he failed miserably at reading the situation where his sister was concerned. He took poking the bear to a whole new level.

“I do them in my room,” Jess was quick to snap back. “When you're not around to badger me.”

“Well maybe if I saw some kind of improvement…” Cole muttered under his breath.

Jess opened her mouth to argue, but Madison cut in. “I'm heading out for coffee. Want to come, Jess?” She grabbed her bag and jacket from the rack by the door. “It's single origin day at Kiva's. Jamaican beans. You haven't tried those.”

“What. Ja' makin' me crazy?” The start of a smile appeared on Jess's lips.

Jess had been fancying herself as a bit of a coffee connoisseur since Madison had introduced her to better quality beans. The promise of a new brew was the one thing guaranteed to get Jess out of the house.

“So, you'll come?” Madison opened the door, as if she didn't care whether or not Jess followed. She'd figured out early Jess was not a girl to be pushed.

“Yeah. Wait up, I'll grab a sweater.”

“Why don't I come along? My treat.” Cole stood, sharing a small smile of thanks with Madison.

But Jess obviously wasn't ready to forgive his latest dig. “Oh. Well, if you're going, I won't bother.” She stopped half-way to the door.

If Madison hadn't been looking at Cole when Jess rebuffed his offer, she would have missed the flicker in his eyes—the flash of hurt he hid behind a shrug and a smile.

“No, that's okay. You go ahead. I have to drop in and see Marcus anyway.” He carried on flipping the laptop lid down and grabbing his keys as if his sister hadn't just stabbed him in the heart.

Madison busied herself with her bag, not wanting Cole to know she'd witnessed Jess's deliberate snub. She felt for him. Cole loved his sister. Anyone could see he would do anything for her. And Madison was beginning to understand his game, the way he drew Jess's anger, set himself up as a target so she took her pain out on him. Not on herself.

“You'll be okay?” Madison couldn't help asking.

“Sure. Why wouldn't I be?” Cole dropped a quick kiss on her lips as he went out the door.

Madison didn't let him escape so easy. She slid her arms around his neck and drew him closer. His mouth softened against hers and she stroked her tongue inside his mouth, deepening the kiss. She pulled back slowly, tugging on his bottom lip with a gentle nip of her teeth.

“Until later then,” she said, her words full of dark promise.

Desire sparked in his eyes as he let her go.

“Later then.”

Chapter Fourteen

Was he letting her get too close?

Cole stretched out on the couch, his leg pushed up against Madison's bare, short-clad thigh, watching the interaction between her and Jess. He'd never have imagined two women from such different worlds would have so much in common. Topics he'd never thought Jess would have any interest in, like fashion and the up-and-coming political elections.

And Cole.

He held back a smile, wondering how he'd gone from heroic older brother to the target of their humor in five easy steps. He enjoyed it too. True to form, Jess was all-out raucous and in-your-face, whereas Madison had a hidden, almost shy type of humor. A quick thrust and parry before retreating behind her elegant put-upon charm. Captivating.

Too captivating. Instead of finding out about Salamond Holdings, Cole's days were spent ferrying Jess back and forth from college and his nights with Madison in bed. And afternoons. Mornings too.

Too much time… So why didn't it seem like enough?

His attention caught on her long tanned legs and he knew the answer. She was exquisite, sexy as hell and funny and sweet.

And he still didn't know if he could trust her.

His gaze flicked to his sister. Was he inviting more trouble, having her live with Madison? Madison seemed to like Jess, but Cole knew Madison hid her feelings well, behind a mask of graciousness and polite laughter. He'd seen it too many times in others not to understand the signs.

Thomas had been like that too. When Cole had started going to the same school, Thomas had seemed excited to have his cousin there. He'd done his best to stand up for Cole against his prissy friends. Until it hadn't suited him any longer.

Cole's grip on his coffee cup tightened as bitter memories and old humiliations rose.

“Come on, Cole.” Jess leaned against the counter, her face glowing with humor. “It's no fun if you don't bite back.”

“Don't worry about him,” Madison pushed up from her seat. “He's obviously too old to keep up.”

“That wasn't what you said this morning.” Cole turned his scowl into a grin and tipped his cup at her. “In fact, I think your words were, ‘Ooooh, Cole, you're so—'”

“Ew. No. You are
not
taking me there.” Jess's nose wrinkled. “Now, stop harassing the poor girl. We need to work on her résumé.”

“A résumé?” That caught his interest. His gaze lit on Madison and he tilted his head. “Why?”

“Jess thought it might be a good idea to look for work, seeing as I don't have much else to do.” Madison got busy pulling her laptop out of the drawer, trying to hide her reddening cheeks. “You know. Get me out and about.”

Cole sank back into the couch, his mouth pulling into a frown. He hadn't considered Madison getting a job…but then, hadn't she questioned more than once when it would end? His frown deepened. Was Madison looking for a way out?

Cole rubbed at his chest, staring across at the two girls working together, heads bent over Madison's laptop. As if she sensed his unease, Madison looked up and their eyes met. Fire on ice. She smiled and shrugged, but he had no clue whether she wasn't happy with their little arrangement or if she was just another victim of his sister's misguided
help
.

He tapped his fingers against his thigh. Obviously, more thought needed to be put into future living arrangements. Cole had fully intended to buy an apartment in town once construction started and move Jess in with him. Did he need to fast track those plans? He ran a hand through is hair. He didn't want Jess left out in the cold if Madison decided to go back to her old life.

“Creative flair.” His sister threw out suddenly and she jabbed at the screen. “Put that in the skills section.”

Madison looked dubious. “I'm not that creative,” she protested. “And I don't think shopping constitutes as an understanding of sales either.”

“You are creative.” Jess wiped away Madison's concerns with a swish of her hand. “I mean, just look at this perfect ensemble you put together for me today. Don't you agree, big bro?” She twisted around to grin at Cole, flaring out her skirt and dropping a curtsey.

Cole buried his head in his book and pretended not to hear. She did look good, better than good. Nice clothes helped, no doubt about that, but the healthy glow on her cheeks spoke volumes about her well-being, the extra bounce in her step instead of the tired shuffle she sometimes resorted to.

Madison was a maestro at getting Jess exercising without her realizing it. Each morning, they made a four block trek in search of what Madison claimed was the only coffee place to go in Wellsford, even though they passed two other coffee shops on the way. Jess dutifully trailed after Madison to the gym each day, spending time in the spa after doing a couple of laps in the pool.

Yes. His sister was doing well. Which pretty much cut out any lingering reasons Cole had to stay in Wellsford. True to Marcus's words, he hadn't achieved anything by being here. They still hadn't learned who was fucking with his development land. Cole drained the last of his coffee. He really should be shifting his ass back to Buffalo to tie up the last of the loose-ends.

Besides, the sooner he left Wellsford, the sooner he could come back to settle for good. His home was here now. With Jess.

And Madison?

Even though Cole may not trust her fully, the thought of
not
seeing Madison again brought more than a hint of dread.
Not an option.
He wanted her to need him. To trust him. He wasn't ready to lower his guard completely, but when Cole returned from Buffalo, he might consider renegotiating their deal. Maybe find out what other skills she had.

Which led Cole to all sorts of thoughts about those long, bare legs spread out in front of him, her clit a delicious invitation…

Cole swallowed a groan and Madison's head came up, her mouth falling open as she met his blistering stare. Yeah. The quicker he got back, the better.

“I need to get to class.” As if sensing the blaze of heat between them, Jess pushed to her feet and gathered up her books. “Don't worry.” She waved him off as he started to rise. “Tash is picking me up.”

Cole shrugged, his thoughts already on laying Madison down and getting rid of those itty-bitty shorts.

Mmm.

The room sizzled with unfulfilled promise. He didn't even wait for Jess to close the door before advancing on Madison. Her squeals of protest at having her shorts and panties removed were quickly cut off, replaced by soft murmurs and moans of pleasure as he pushed her onto the couch and found a position between her legs that suited them both.

“Will you miss me while I'm gone?” he growled, staring up past her belly, a streak of possessiveness gripping him hard. She damn well better.

“I'll miss you,” she said. She curled her fingers into his hair as his face lowered between her thighs.

“What will you miss most?” His breath blew across her sex, making her squirm. “This?” He kissed the top of her thigh, licking into the dip of her hip with a lip-smacking sound. “Or this?” His nose ran above her hairline, down the other side until he'd positioned his mouth over her glistening slit. He spread her with his fingers to reveal the plump, pink prize below. “Oh, yes,” he rumbled, mouth salivating for her honeyed taste. “I'll miss that too.”

By the time Cole left Wellsford there wasn't an inch of Madison's body he hadn't kissed goodbye.

* * * * *

“Maybe I should get a job too.” Jess scanned the computer screen over Madison's shoulder, taking in the pages of ads on the job seek website.

“You're studying law, what do you need a job for?” Madison grumbled, beyond disheartened by the number of vacancies she
wasn't
qualified for. Just as well she wasn't actually going for a job.

Jess plopped down beside her with a sigh. “Cole wants me to be a lawyer. In case you hadn't noticed, he does like setting things up for me,” she said dryly. “Much like he's done here with us. Don't worry.” She patted Madison's hand. “This is one of his better ideas. He likes to organize things for us lame ducks.”

Madison cast her a sideways glance. “Lame ducks?”

“Yeah, you know… Down on your luck, need a favor, need a friend. Cole laps up crap like that.” She bounced out of her seat again and headed off to get ready for class. Classes, which, according to Jess, Cole had organized for her.

Leaving the smile to slide from Madison's face.
Lame duck?
No. Cole didn't see her like that…did he? A queasy awareness traveled like a cold chill down her spine as she thought back to that day at Crovens. And how quickly he'd come up with the solution for her to keep tabs on Jess…or was it to keep an eye on Madison?

She shook her head. Cole hadn't liked her then. Even now, he couldn't take her seriously…and never would if he was paying her way.

Shit.
The sick feeling settled in her stomach. He didn't really need her to babysit Jess. He'd done it to help her out too. Her head fell into her hands. Madison didn't want Cole to see her as pathetic and needy. She wanted him to think she was strong and sexy and good.

Which he never would if he thought he had to support her.

Madison had thought she was so brave going against her mother, hiding the truth about her relationship with Logan. But really, all she'd done was trade one lie for another. She relied on Cole to tell her what to do, something she'd done all her life with her mother. She didn't want to ruffle the peaceful waters or cause grief. It was easier to bob along to someone else's tune, so you never incurred their disappointment. Or their wrath.

When had she become so reliant on placating others she'd stopped thinking for herself?

Rolling her shoulders to release the build-up of tension, Madison scrolled back to the top of the page, determined to read each of the employment opportunities again. Soon she'd have to end this charade with her mother and take control of her life. On her own.

To do that, Madison needed money. And to get money, she needed a job.

“Experience, experience, experience.” Madison clicked through job adverts, one after another, after another. “Shit.” It seemed even waitresses needed experience these days, and funnily enough, no one was in the market for an ex-pageant queen who could babysit twenty-two year old women.
Go figure.

“Can I borrow that red and black sweater I wore last week?” Jess poked her head out of her bedroom door. “It goes great with my spangly tights.”

“Spangly?” Madison pushed aside her mounting despair and looked down her nose at Jess. “Spangly is not in the fashion vocab. Sparkly perhaps, or even sequined. Never spangly.”

“So sorry.” Jess held back her laughter enough to deliver a mock apology. “I meant to say my bejazzled tights. Not to be confused with ve-jazzled, because believe me when I say that's another thing entirely.”

“Oh, I believe you,” Madison spluttered, shaking her head. Seriously, the things that came out of Jess's mouth… “And yes, you can wear my sweater. Or…” She drew out the sound, tempting her friend. “I have something that would look even better.”

Jess's tongue was practically hanging out by the time Madison joined her at her huge walk-in closet. She smiled. One thing she and Jess had in common was their love of clothes. Fine clothes. Madison had given Jess free range, seeing as she'd never get around to wearing half of it anyway.

“Go ahead and look through while I find what I have in mind.” She nodded toward the racks and headed for the large set of drawers where her jumpers were neatly folded between layers of tissue. No doubt Jess would dig up something other than her spangly tights. Madison shuddered. She was counting on it.

“What's this? Is this new?”

A gasp and the crinkle of plastic heralded Jess's find. Madison knew exactly what had caught her eye. She straightened, watching Jess peek through the plastic at the stunning designer gown Madison was to show off at St. Mathew's ball in a few weeks' time.

Her stomach clenched tight. The hospital ball. The one her mother was attending as one of the patrons.

The one she was supposed to go to with Logan.

“I'm modeling it for a charity.” Madison cast her eye over the exquisite glittering gown. There was fierce competition to secure the largest donation for the hospital from selling each garment. The designer had allowed her to bring the centerpiece of his collection home so she could play around with her walk and show off the gown to its full advantage.

She pulled a silver and black jumper from the drawer and handed it to Jess. “This will look super-cute with your spanglies,” she teased. “And grab that silver belt.” She pointed to the rows of accessories hanging on hooks behind the door. “It'll go perfectly.”

“Are these the shoes that go with it?” Jess ignored Madison's offer and was busy hauling the matching nine-inch plaited stilettos from the bottom of the bag. She clutched them to her chest, petting them like they were precious. “Oh my god. I have to try these.” Jess threw herself on the ground and fumbled with her laces, trying to get her shoes off so she could put on the ridiculously, precarious shoes.

“Ah, no can do. Sorry.” Madison scooped up the heels. Jess would have to slobber on them from afar. No way could Madison let her teeter around and break her damn ankle. Cole would never forgive her. “The designer made me promise on my life not to touch them until the show.”

Jess pouted. Until Madison opened the zip of the dry cleaning bag to show her the full effect of the gown. The strapless bodice linked in a series of gold knotted thread, flaring into volumes of gold and black gossamer silk. Jess stood, mesmerized, running her fingers over the sleek fabric.

“Yeah. It does that to you, doesn't it?” Madison agreed.