Freight Trained (5 page)

"So I guess it's safe to say, he's not gay.  Right, Deb?"  Maggie asked, with a smirk.  "And I guess it's also safe to say, he's interested in Abby."  This was said in what Abby could only describe as a teasing coo.

Thankfully, their waitress appeared, halting all conversation.  "You ladies ready to order?" 

"I'll have the patty melt with onion rings and a large diet soda," Maggie said, not missing a beat.

The waitress looked at Abby.  "And you?"

"I'll just have an iced tea, please."  Note to self, talk of Cole added with the big, fat butterflies his nearness created in her stomach apparently causes a loss of appetite.

The waitress nodded, walking away, and Maggie turned her attention to Abby.  "Aren't you hungry?"

Abby peeked Cole's direction.  He was still staring.  She shook her head.  "I had a big breakfast, I'm still full from that." 

Maggie seemed to accept that answer, and the girls went back to babbling and bickering.  Abby tuned them out, instead placing all her concentration on the sugar packet she mutilated with her fingers, and not the sexy guy in the corner booth.  She'd been largely successful in her distraction technique until she heard the deep voice she'd committed to memory drawl, "Ladies."

Startled, Abby whipped her head up.  Their eyes locked for a few beats before he tipped his hat to the table and turned to walk out.  The table fell silent as they watched his departure from the restaurant.

Maggie fanned herself with her hand.  "Woowee, that man has one nice ass." 

Abby silently agreed.  Too bad she was always watching it walk away.

Chapter Five

What the heck was she doing?  Well, she knew what she was doing, she was sitting in her car in front of Cole's ranch.  The question was why.  Well, actually, she knew the answer to that, too.  Ever since yesterday, when Maggie had said Cole was interested in her, she couldn't get that small kernel of thought out of her head.  And like a seed usually will, it took root, growing into the fantasy of Cole wanting Abby.  Foolish she knew, but then, most fantasies usually were. 

And although he couldn't leave her house fast enough the other day, he
had
stared at her in the diner, giving her foolish brain a tiny sliver of hope she wasn't alone in this attraction.  An attraction so strong, it pulled against the very make-up of her being.  It shoved her shyness to the side, making her do something completely out of character and totally out of her comfort zone, leaving her in a situation she'd never dreamed in a million years of being in
—
taking steps to purposely attract a man's attention.  Her biggest problem?  She had no idea what she was doing nor what to do with Cole if she did manage to attract him.

The scent of freshly baked, chocolate chip cookies filled her nose as she took a deep breath, exhaling it slowly, trying to calm her jitters.  Last night, while trying to fall asleep, she'd decided that making Cole cookies to thank him for helping in her hour of need was a neighborly thing to do.  Never mind the fact, it gave her an excuse to see him again. 

People in L.A. didn't know much about being neighborly.  Hell, you were lucky if your neighbor bothered to call 911 if they saw your house on fire.  But Abby had watched a lot of TV over the years and learned people thanked one another in small towns with food.  Fortunately for Abby, she kicked ass in the kitchen. 

Abby took another deep breath, holding it for a count of five before slowly releasing it.  It was a relaxation technique she'd learned from yet another TV program.  Unfortunately for Abby, the technique didn't seem to work because she still felt nervous.

Should she get out of the car?  She needed to decide soon.  She couldn't sit parked in front of Cole's house forever.  In fact, the reason she'd driven to Cole's house instead of walking was so she wouldn't have time to ponder the pros and cons of visiting Cole.  He was only a mile up the road from her
—
a distance easily walked even holding a plate of cookies
—
but Abby had worried the walk would give her too much time to think, giving her a chance to change her mind and chicken out before she reached her destination.

But her plan clearly hadn't worked for here she sat, debating anyway, no closer to deciding whether or not to get out of the car and go knock on Cole's door.

The dilemma she faced was almost too much for her to process.  Thankfully, the decision was taken out of her hands by a loud tapping against her driver's side window. 

* * * * *

As Cole came around the side of the house, the white Ford Fusion parked out front stopped him in his tracks.  Abigail O'Neal seemed to have that effect on him.  When she'd first walked into the diner yesterday, all done up in her sexy schoolteacher outfit complete with four-inch "fuck-me" heels that made her legs look fantastic, he'd nearly choked on the bite of burger he'd just taken.  Even though it had gone against his natural instinct, he'd forced himself to stay away from her, once in his life wanting to do the right thing and think of someone else before himself. 

He knew she'd understood his "brush-off" the day at her house.  Saw her shut down and retreat back in her shell right before his eyes, and it had killed him.  Little did she know, his rejection had been for her benefit, not his.  He was a selfish bastard, but something about Abby made him want to be a better man, and a better man would keep his filth far away from someone so sweet. 

But now she'd come to him, and that was a game changer.   

He tossed the saddle on the ground and pulled off his leather gloves.  He was dusty and sweaty from working Apollo, his latest acquisition, a three-year-old American quarter horse he'd been hired to train.  He needed a shower desperately but found his feet taking the steps to Abby's car, regardless. 

As he neared, he spied her through the window.  She seemed in deep concentration, and he couldn't contain his grin.  His little mouse was debating the consequences of getting out of her car.  Yeah, she was his now, her actions today sealed the deal.  His struggle with taking what he wanted ended today.  Little did she know, the consequences she weighed were high, but she was about to find out.

So lost in thought, she didn't notice him standing just outside her car door until he rapped on her window with his knuckles.  The sweet sugary smell of baked goods hit him as she rolled down her window.  He took a deep whiff, his stomach rumbling and his mouth watering in anticipation.  Whoever had said a man could be bought through his stomach had not been wrong.  Cole's stomach and dick usually ruled the show and right now, Abby and her goodies
—
all her goodies
—
had command over both those organs.

With his arm draped across the roof of her car, he leaned into the open window.  "Something smells good," he drawled, his tone suggesting he might be talking about more than baked goods and an eye sweep of Abby that would confirm any uncertainties she might have of his meaning.  She was dressed casually today in a body-hugging, yellow T-shirt and cutoff jean shorts that had those little teasing strings dangling from the hem, drawing his attention to her tanned thighs.

Their faces were close, giving him a good view of her lips as she licked them before speaking.  "I made you some cookies."  Her voice was a throaty whisper that sent goose bumps up his arms.  "For um..."  She licked her lips again.  "To say thank you for helping me the other day."

He slowly took in her features.  The bright blue of her eyes surrounded by long thick lashes that weren't aided by any helpful goop.  Her small, pert nose atop lips so full and lush he knew they would feel fucking fantastic wrapped around his cock.  But it was her blush that made her cheeks a becoming shade of pink that sealed her fate. 

Taking a step back, he grabbed the handle and pulled the door open.  "Get out of the car, Abby."

* * * * *

This was it, the moment of truth. Did she get out of the car, stepping out blindly into the unknown or did she hightail it back to the security of her home, forever to wonder what fate would have held in store for her?  She wasn't a risk taker, never did anything that wasn't planned or thought out, but the allure of Cole, the way he made her feel, longings she'd never felt before were too much an enticement to pass up.  Reaching a decision, she picked up the tin foil covered plate from the passenger seat, and with Cole's helpful hand on her arm, stepped out of the car.

As if he'd deduced her internal struggle, he leaned in and spoke close to her ear, "There was no choice, Little Mouse.  That was taken from you the moment you stopped in front of my house."

She shivered but was unsure if her reaction was from his hot breath playing across her cheek or the ominous sound of his words.  The plate tipped in her hands, and he was there to steady it, pulling it from her shaking fingers.

"Hate to lose this," he said, peeling up a section of the tin foil, trying to peek inside.  "What kind did you make?"

"Chocolate chip."  She hated that her voice sounded shaky.  She wanted him to see her as worldly and sophisticated, someone that would entice his interest and not the scared
little
mouse
he so obviously thought she was.

He reached two fingers under the foil, scissoring a cookie, and popping the whole thing into his mouth.  He chewed a few times, his powerful jaw working, before giving her a grin.  "Mmm, that hit the spot." 

Again, his words sounded like a double entendre, and she wasn't sure how to respond without sounding like a fool.  Clever and witty comebacks were not her forte so thought it best to keep her silence.

He led her into his home.  From the outside, she knew his house was large, much bigger than her own but from the inside, with so much open space, it appeared massive.  There wasn't much furniture
—
a brown leather sectional with matching chair and ottoman, an oversized, wood coffee table with only a remote for decoration, and a big, flat-screen TV hanging on the wall presumably the mate to the lone remote.  That was it.  Nothing else adorned the walls, no knickknacks lined the fireplace mantle, not one personal object displayed anywhere. 

She stepped farther in, following Cole with her eyes as he traversed the living area, his boot heels pounding on the wooden floor, creating an echo as he made his way to the kitchen.  She followed slowly behind, stopping at the long breakfast bar that separated the kitchen from the main living room and that Cole had set the plate of cookies down upon on his way to the fridge. 

A cooking lover's dream, the spacious kitchen held a wide variety of shiny appliances and ample white, marble countertops.  It even had a kitchen-island at its center with its own sink.  Abby could spend hours lost in cooking heaven. 

"You want something to drink?"  He asked, coming out of the fridge with a beer bottle in his hand.  He twisted the cap before taking a long pull, and she noted for the first time, he looked as if he'd been working.  His clothes held a layer of dust, and his dark-blue T-shirt had barely visible sweat stains under the arms and down his chest.  Even his face held a layer of grime.  But instead of a turn-off, Abby thought his state of dishevelment made him sexier in a rough and rugged way that had her squeezing her thighs together for relief.

He watched her, and she realized she'd never answered his question.  With her throat suddenly parched, she gave him a small nod.  "Water would be great."

He reached into the fridge, coming out with a bottle of water then slowly made his way over, stopping about a foot in front of her.  "Tell me why you're here."

He reached out and softly traced a path down her cheek with the water bottle, and she shivered when the icy, plastic cap hit her skin.  "I'm not sure what you mean," she spoke softly, barely above a whisper, but they were close, and the room was quiet so knew he heard her.  "I'm here to thank you."

He continued his trail with the water bottle down her neck, over her collarbone, coming to rest in the V of her T-shirt.  "That's the excuse, but what's the real reason?"

His eyes bore into hers, daring her to look away.  She couldn't even if she wanted to.  They held her mesmerized.  She'd been right, his eyes were light, jade green with a darker shade of moss ringing the edge.  Shiny, golden flecks caught the light, making his eyes appear to glow and the longer she stared, the more transfixed she became in their depths.

She couldn't bring herself to tell him the real reason she was here
—
that he fascinated her, made her feel things she'd never felt before, made her long for something she'd never known she wanted
—
so instead took the chicken's way out repeating her earlier words.  "To thank you, it's the neighborly thing to do."

"Neighborly?"  His lips turned up into a small smirk.  "Okay, we can call it being neighborly if that helps you sleep better at night.  But know this," he leaned in close, his lips but a hairsbreadth away from hers, that if she moved forward but a fraction, their lips would touch.  She held her body as stiff as the marble counter she leaned against, not even daring to breathe.  "I plan on eating more than just your cookies."

She watched his hand approach, as if in slow motion, hovering so close to her cheek, only to be gone in a blink, quickly disappearing over her shoulder.  He took a large step back, a cookie pinched between two fingers.  "I need to take a shower.  I'm sweaty and dirty from working the horses.  Make yourself at home, I'll only be a few minutes."  He popped the cookie in his mouth, gave her a grin then disappeared up the stairs.