Break In Two (34 page)

He wondered how long it would take for this pain to go away. The thought that Claire was feeling as utterly hopeless as he was haunted Cole. He wanted her to be happy and move on with her life, even though the thought of another man touching her made him physically sick. His mind wandered to Gabriela, in her cabin alone. She was certainly beautiful and sexy but he had no interest in being with her again. Any love that they had shared was over and he just hoped he could find a way for them to co-exist peacefully. Maybe someday he would want to be with her again, but for now, he just couldn't think about another woman in his life or his bed.

He rolled over and turned his phone back on, finding the picture of Claire in the blue lingerie. He gazed at her image for a long while, letting his mind drift back to that night. He moved his hand under the covers and into his underwear, pulling them down to release his cock. He was hard from the sight of her pouty lips and her eyes staring back at him. He could hear her voice in his mind and see her mouth moving as she begged him to fuck her. He was moving over her, teasing her, coming close to entering her and then moving away.
'Fuck me, Cole, please, now'
. He gripped his cock, moving his hand up and down its length as he heard her little moan, felt her mouth on his, and her tight pussy wrapped around him, drenching him. He continued moving his hand as he imagined her riding him, rubbing herself over him, arching her back as he pulled down her negligee to reveal her breasts. He could feel his mouth sucking on her nipples and them growing hard under his lips. He let his mind wander until he finally came, releasing all the pent up lust that he had for Claire.

*              *              *

In London, Claire lay in her bed staring at the clock. It read 4:07. She had been wide awake for over an hour. She picked up her cell phone but there were still no messages from Cole. He was keeping his word and hadn't contacted her. She couldn't stop herself from wishing she would hear from him though. Some little sign that he was still thinking of her.

In her heart she knew he was feeling as lonely for her as she was for him, but her mind couldn't help but imagine him with Gabriela. She could picture the two of them watching their little boy play, eating together and laughing over a glass of wine. She wondered how long it would be before they slept together. She knew Gabriela would be working on it, making sure she claimed her prize. Claire could hardly blame her; if he
was
Tomas's father, of course she would want to make them a family. The image of it was pure hell for her. She had left so that Tomas would have a chance for his parents to make a go of it and logically the thought of it should bring her some type of satisfaction, knowing she had done the right thing by him. There was no joy for her in it though. Not even the tiniest bit.

She thought about Christmas and how much she had been looking forward to spending the holiday together, exchanging gifts, sleeping in, making love. Being truly in love for the first time during the holiday season would have been magical for her but now it was just one of many dreams that she needed to forget. They should have been planning their trip to London and their wedding instead of her laying here alone and miserable.

She decided to listen to some music to help her relax. She put in her ear buds and selected
Fix You
, by Cold Play. Immediately, she was transported back to the restaurant at the ranch. It was late in the evening and she and Cole had just finished a candlelit dinner after their first big fight. The song came on and Cole pulled her to him to slow dance. She could feel his hard body and smell him as though he were right there with her. The feeling of his hands on her waist, caressing up and down her body, gripping her ass, the way he looked at her with such adoration as he lifted her shirt over her head - it all seemed so real to her.

Claire let her hand wander down her body as she fantasized about Cole. She caressed her breasts and then let one hand find its way inside her panties. She gently slid her fingers inside her warm pussy, rubbing herself as she dreamed of her perfect cowboy. In her mind, it was his strong fingers inside her panties, pressing against her flesh, moving slowly but firmly. She could feel his kisses on her neck, him sucking on her ear lobe, and his mouth on her nipples. His muscular body was hovering over hers now, pressing himself into her over and over, bringing her a pleasure she hadn't known existed until she met him. With these images in her mind, she brought herself to a slow, sweet climax, giving her some release from the hollow existence that was now her reality. She drifted back to sleep eventually, with the feeling of hopelessness settling in on her chest like a boulder.

Colorado

Over the next week, Cole was swamped with preparations for Thanksgiving. They were fully booked for the holiday and although he needed to oversee creating a winter wonderland, his heart was definitely not in it. He worked quietly and quickly, without feeling the joy that this time of year usually brought him. His parents had left for a week to visit friends, making it lonelier for him.

Peter, the new chef, was working out as well as Claire said he would. He knew his way around the kitchen and had created an excellent menu for the Thanksgiving holiday. He was enthusiastic and kind. Cole was grateful that he was there so he didn't have to worry about that end of things at least.

Cole repeatedly caught himself wanting to talk to Claire about how much he liked Peter and then remembered that he was there because she was gone. Each day seemed to bring with it a new realization of just how much he had lost when Claire left. She wasn't just the woman that shared his bed, she was the one with whom he had shared his dreams and his life in its entirety. In a very short period of time, Claire had helped him to develop the vision for the future of the ranch. They had become partners in the truest sense of the word. And now she was gone. He knew without a doubt that Gabriela had no interest in the ranch other than maybe the potential revenue and what type of lifestyle it could afford her. She would never love it; it would never really be her home.

Gabriela had invited him for supper several nights that week. He made excuses a couple of times and ate with her twice. He wanted to be around Tomas as much as possible without leading her on.

Saturday afternoon found Gabriela making last minute finishing touches to her makeup and clothes. She spritzed on some of her perfume that used to drive Cole wild, and inspected herself in the mirror. It was definitely harder to make a sexy impression in the winter. She had put on a fitted ivory dress shirt, with the buttons open to reveal a hint of her perky breasts which were held in place by a light pink lacy push-up bra. The colour of the shirt showed off her olive skin tone, still dark and creamy in spite of the past few cold weeks. Her shirt was tucked into skinny jeans in dark denim and she wore tall black leather boots. She decided to go with a glossy red lipstick and pulled her hair up into a maze of twists at the back, giving her a polished look.

Cole knocked on the door right on time to pick up Tomas and bring his things over to his cabin. Gabriela flashed him her best smile as she opened the door.

"Hey you," she said, leaning against the door so he had to brush against her to get inside.

"Hi Gabby," Cole answered, "Where's my little guy?"

Tomas was sitting on a blanket on the floor of the living room, surrounded by toys. He turned when he heard Cole's voice and grinned at him. Cole took his shoes off and walked over to Tomas, crouching down to say hi.

Gabriela walked over holding a necklace in one hand, "Can you help me with this?" she asked.

Cole stood and took the necklace from her as she turned her back to him and tilted her head to the side a little to reveal her long neck. "I got so excited about a day out that I might be a little overdressed for shopping."

Cole managed to close the tiny clasp, "There you go. All ready?"

"Yes, I have all of Tomas's things packed," she said, turning back to him as she put her earrings on.

"Great!" Cole said, grabbing Tomas's winter coat off the top of his diaper bag and walking over to get him dressed to go outside. "You ready to go little man? You get to stay at dad's house tonight! Just you, me and Otis. What do you think of that?"

Tomas grabbed Cole's chin and tried to eat it. Cole zipped up his coat and then attempted to gently put his fleece hat on his little head while Tomas squirmed in irritation.

"Here, let me help you," Gabriela said, sliding the hat on Tomas's head. "There. Now, if you take the playpen and my little sweetie, I'll bring his diaper bag. All the bottles are in there, some rice cereal and jars of baby food."

"I can easily carry everything. You get going. Enjoy your freedom," Cole ignored the look of disappointment on Gabriela's face. He continued to smile politely at her as he slung the bag over his shoulder and picked the playpen up with his free hand.

"Okay, Tomas, say bye to your mom."

Gabriela stepped over and gave the baby a big kiss and said good-bye in Portuguese. She smiled at them both and said, "I hope my two favourite guys have a terrific time!"

"Thanks, we will," Cole said as Gabriela opened the door for them.

*              *              *

That night, Cole got into bed content for the first time in weeks, feeling as though he had done well with his little boy. Cole had taken him for a long walk outside, played and read a few board books together in the armchair in Cole's bedroom. He enjoyed feeding him his meals and giving him his bath and bottle. Tomas didn't seem to be upset about his mother not being there. Cole decided to have him sleep upstairs on the other side of his bedroom, in case Tomas woke up in the night. Cole went to sleep without having a night cap, another thing that hadn't happened in a long while.

Drifting off quickly, he dreamed about Claire. It was a hot, summer day and they were sitting outside together on a picnic blanket playing with a baby. The baby looked like Tomas but was Claire's child. Cole watched her lovingly as she laid on her back with the baby sitting on her tummy. She held the baby's hands and talked and laughed. She looked so happy and his heart was full of warmth.

She looked into his eyes with a smile and said, "Let's get this little guy to bed early so we can have some grown-up time together."

"Oh, just how grown up are we talking?" he asked.

"NC-17 rating stuff," she grinned.

"My favourite kind," he said, leaning over and kissing her.

Suddenly, they were in bed together, it was night time. Claire was dressed in a black bra and panties. She was straddling his body, massaging his chest and arms. She leaned her face down and kissed him sweetly, parting her lips and letting her tongue glide across his mouth. He reached up and cupped her breasts in his hands, loving their fullness. She kissed his neck and moved her body down slowly over his, finally reaching his rigid cock. She looked up at him as she held him in one hand and traced the head of his cock with her tongue.

"I want you to come in my mouth," she purred. There was something strange about her voice but he couldn't quite figure out what. She pushed her lips over his length, drenching him. He laid on his back, excited by her sucking him firmly.

"Oh Claire, yeah..." he heard himself say.

She suddenly lifted her mouth off of him, "Meu amor, there is no Claire. She left you."

Cole woke with a start. He suddenly realized that there really was a woman under his covers. He scrambled out of bed and flipped the light on. Gabriela was there, completely nude and looking annoyed and lustful at the same time.

"Gabby, what the fuck!?!" he exclaimed, grabbing his boxer briefs and pulling them on.

Tomas woke with the light and the noise and started to cry. Cole walked over and patted his back, pulling his blanket up over his shoulders and shushing him. Gabriela quickly turned the light off and laid back with a frustrated sigh. After a minute, Tomas went back to sleep.

Cole put on a t-shirt and his pyjama pants and motioned for her to get up and meet him downstairs.

He walked down to the kitchen and turned the light on above the stove, leaning against the counter. He was fuming, feeling both manipulated and guilty at the same time. Gabriela came down the stairs a moment later in his bathrobe, clearly thinking she could convince him to let her stay. She had a naughty grin on her face.

"Cole," she laughed, "I'm sorry I startled you. It is just that you have been so sad and I can make you feel
so
good."

She crossed the kitchen as she spoke, reaching out to touch his lower abs with her fingertips. Cole took her hands and removed them, placing them by her sides and letting go.

"I didn't invite you into my bed. I'm not ready for any of this, Gabby and we woke Tomas. He was right in the room with me for God's sake!"

"Cole, he would have slept through the whole thing if we had been quiet. But if you aren't comfortable, we could just stay down here for a while... I seem to remember us making good use of this counter before," she undid the belt on the bathrobe, letting it fall open to reveal her nude body.

Cole took a deep breath and then reached out and closed her bathrobe. "Thank you for trying to cheer me up, Gabby. But I just can't. Give me some time, okay?"

Gabriela sighed and looked down at the ground, filled with humiliation. She had never in her life been rejected like this before and it stung.

"Am I different to you now that I've had a baby?"

Cole looked at her with surprise, "Of course that's not it. You look exactly the same, but you have to think of what the last month has been like for me. My whole life has been turned upside down and I need time to sort everything out and to learn to trust you again."

"Okay," she said, tearing up with embarrassment more than remorse. "I'm so sorry Cole. I hope someday you will forgive me for what I've done. I just want you to know that I'm here waiting for you."

She wrapped her arms around his neck, "You've forgotten how good we are together."

She kissed him full on the mouth and then turned to go back upstairs to get dressed, hoping he would change his mind and ask her to stay. When he didn't come upstairs, she returned to the kitchen, fully dressed.

"I'll come by and get Tomas first thing in the morning," she said stiffly.

"You can leave him here as long as you like, really. I have the day free and we had a lot of fun together. I could bring him by in the evening if you want."

"Well, maybe lunch time then," she said with a little nod, walking out the door and closing it behind her. She walked back to her cabin with a feeling of panic in her chest. She needed to have Cole wrapped around her little finger before Trey came back for Christmas holidays. If she couldn't do that, he would ruin everything.