“Cole, you’re just sexually frustrated, that’s it. Put any other girl in my position, and you’d still feel the same because it's only sexual. I don’t possess a magical vagina that gets men all captivated with me.” She explains with a smile when I groan.
“Could have fooled me,” I say, pulling her close and pressing my forehead to hers, closing my eyes. I lick my lips. “If what you’re saying is true, then, say we have sex again, it should diffuse the tension between us. If you claim it’s just sexual frustration, then there’s really only one way to test your theory.”
Shayla’s eyes narrow. “And what if we have sex and it diffuses nothing. Then what?” She questions peering up at me inquiringly. I smile and look into her eyes, brushing my fingers through her hair, I cup her jaw.
“I mean,” I grin, licking my lips slowly. “I’m not opposed to keeping at
The rest of the day, I buried my head into work. I’ve been really distracted lately, so I put my air pods in and drown out the rest of the world. I frown when I realise it's not my music playing. I look at my phone and realise its Shay’s playlist. She synced it with my phone, so we could listen to it in the car. I glance over at her desk and watch her for a couple of minutes whilst she works. She’s so freaking beautiful. I could watch her forever and never get bored.With a drawn-out sigh, I try to focus on working for the remainder of the day. I seem to find my flow, and the next time I look up was when I hear a knock on my door. I was expecting it to be Shayla, but to my surprise, it was Sophie at the door. She doesn’t wait for me to give her permission to enter, and she walks right in and closes the door before she saunters over to my desk. Twice in one week, what does she want now?“Sophie?” I greet leaning back against my leathe
I stare at my reflection in the bathroom mirror as I wash my hands and couldn’t help but feel giddy. Our moment in the kitchen last night keeps replaying in my mind. I’m trying so hard to keep things professional between us, but it doesn’t seem to work. I mean, let's be honest, if you were in my shoes, would you be able to resist him? I think not.I feel the butterflies explode in my stomach just at the thought of seeing him. I fluff up my hair and freshen my makeup before I leave the bathroom. He should be finished by now. I’m freaking starving, and the office is near enough empty. I walk through the empty office toward my desk. I can hear voices coming from Cole’s office. I stop in my tracks when I see Sophie in his office, they’re arguing about something.The light on my intercom is flashing, which means the button was pressed. I reach over, push the button, and hear Sophie's voice.“Your wife?” She says, standi
As I stare out of the window, I feel my phone vibrate, he’s calling me. Probably noticed I had left. Surprised, he came up for air long enough while kissing Sophie to even notice I was gone. Bastard. I decline the call, and a few seconds later, he calls again. I stare at his name flashing on my screen, and a part of me just wants to answer it and tell him to go fuck himself but the other side of me, the proud part doesn’t want to give him the satisfaction of knowing he could hurt me. I won’t give him that power over me.Cole sends a text when I don’t answer the three times he called.Cole:“Where are you? Have you gone home?”Me:“No. I’m spending a couple of nights with the girls.Cole:“Oh. Okay, why aren’t you answering my calls? What’s wrong?”Me:“Nothing. I just miss my girls. I need to spend time with them. I’ll see you Monday.&rdq
“Yeah, because he was talking about giving me a fuck I'd never forget. He’s just horny Aimee. He can’t sleep with anyone else while he’s married to me, because of the contract, of course, he’s going to say he wants me. He’s got no other choice. Six months is a long time for a guy to go without any sort of sex.” I say and shake my head. “That’s why he’s so adamant about sleeping with me, not because he wants me, but because he has no other choice. I feel so stupid for trusting him. I thought he wanted me, and I almost convinced myself to sleep with him. I’m such an idiot!”Aimee sighs, “That does make sense. He is a guy, after all, he might just be biding his time, and he’s clearly thinking with his knob.”“Shayla, you don’t know that,” Jo Interjects throwing a side glare at Aimee who shrugs.“He said he will always love her Jo, right before she kisse
I nod, smiling, “I believe so. Big player. I don’t really quiz him about his love life, ya know.”“Bitch, you’re surrounded by all these hot men all day, how you get any work done baffles me.” I laugh while she pulls me with her to dance again.An hour, and four cocktails later, I was buzzing, and my feet were aching. Jo was still with the DJ flirting away, and Aimee was talking to some guy she was dancing with.“Hey, gorgeous.” A deep voice burs in my ear from behind. I turn and look up at the tall brunette standing in front of me. “Can I buy you a drink?”I hold my glass up to him, “Already have one. Thank you.”“How about a dance then?” He asks, stepping close, so close I can smell the bourbon on his breath. I shake my head and pull my head away.“No, thanks. I’m going to go sit.” I turn to walk when he grabs my arm and stops me. I look u
He looks at me, “I want to know what your problem is.”“You want to know what my problem is? I want to know why you lied to me?” I question, and Cole frowns confused.“When did I lie to you? About what?”“The real reason you’re pretending to be ‘happily married’ to me. It’s not entirely about wanting your father and grandfathers’ shares, is it? It’s about Sophie. You’re still hurt that she left you, so you’re using me to get her back because you’re still in love with her.” Cole blinks and shakes his head.“Shayla, what on earth are you talking about? Using you? I would never do that. Where are you getting all this from?”I look away from his gaze and bite the inside of my cheek to keep the tears at bay. I will not cry. “Don’t stand there and lie to my face. I heard you arguing in your office earlier.”Cole sighs
What the fuck is happening?That was all I could think as I stood in that dark alley watching Shayla storm off. Did she just say she feels worthless when she’s with me? I’ve never done anything, to make her feel worthless. My rational side is telling me to let her go and give her time, but the other side refuses to let her be. I stare at her retreating back and shake my head before I go after her.I was worried when she disappeared earlier that something was wrong because it's not like her to leave without a word. Even the text messages she sent me was cold and direct. I can only imagine what she must have thought overhearing that conversation with Sophie, but she really did get it all wrong. Was a small part of me hoping to get a reaction out of Sophie when she found out I was married, yes it did. I loved her with all my heart, and she broke me when she just up and left me. I didn’t do this to get her back or get one over on her. It just went in that
“Oh, my bad, I didn’t see no ring.” He claims. I nod and lift her hand, look at the diamond ring on her wedding finger, and look at him.“Can’t really miss it mate.” I hiss putting a little emphasis on the ‘mate’ “Leave.” I growl and watch as he holds his hands up and backs away. As soon as he leaves, I spin Shayla around and look down at her. Her usual light green eyes go dark the moment our eyes meet.She was pissed.So, here I am, at one in the morning chasing her down the street. I grab her hand before she could get too far and pull her back to me. “Shayla, will you please just get in the car and let’s talk?”She sighs and stares at the ground. “There is nothing to talk about. Go home, Cole.” She tries to pull her hand out of my grasp and looks up at me when I tighten my grip, not letting her go.“We’re going to talk about this, and you’r
Twenty minutes later, the house smelt sensational with home-cooked goodness. Cole strolls into the kitchen while his wife cooks pancakes. He wraps his arms around her from behind and kisses her pulse. “As good as this food smells, I can’t wait to eat you later,” Cole growls in her ear hungrily, making her grin. “Shh, baby, the kids are going to hear you,” Shayla whispers back, looking up at him, and he matches her grin leaning close. “They’re not even in here.” Cole chuckles, kissing her softly. Shayla wraps her arms around her husband’s neck and parts her lips when his tongue silently requests permission to meet her own. “Oh, barf. Mum and Dad are making out again.” RJ grumbles, walking into the kitchen, followed by Alaia, who grimaces as they take their seats at the dining table. Shayla and Cole laugh as they pull apart. “Now you know how we feel watching you slobber all over your little ‘friends’ you keep bringing over.” Alaia retorts, making air q
Sixteen years later…On a beautiful Saturday morning in the month of August, Shayla Hoult rolls over in the bed she shares with her gorgeous husband Tristan Cole Hoult and smiles contently. At the tender age of forty-six, he was still every bit as handsome as he always was. She lay on her side and admired him while he slept. He still looked the same—but older with fine lines that came with maturity, which made him even sexier. The stubble of his beard had specks of grey, which she loved.“Why are you staring at me?” Cole mumbles, his eyes still closed, causing his wife to start while she was lost deep in her thoughts. Shayla smiles, her cheeks flushing ever so slightly, and reaches over to brush her fingers over his cheek. Cole smiles, peels his eyes open, and blinks, looking at his beautiful wife smiling at him lovingly.“How long have you been awake?” Shayla giggles when he wraps his strong arm around her waist and drags he
I exhale slowly, and Cole sits up and turns the night light on, blinking a couple of times till his eyes adjust to the light. “My water broke,” I tell him, and he shifts and pushes the covers off himself and gets out of bed. I watch him walk around the bed to my side, and he takes hold of my hand to help me sit up.“Are you having contractions?” He questions, brushing my hair away from my face, and I nod. “What do you need me to do?”I exhale slowly when another contraction comes. I wait for it to pass before I speak. “Call my midwife, then my mum. Tell her I’m in labour, and we’ll drop Laia to her.” I instruct him, and he kisses my forehead before he grabs my phone. While Cole was on the phone, I take off my wet clothes and change into a pair of grey comfortable tracksuit bottoms and one of Coles oversized hoodies. The pain was getting worse by the minute, and I was worried we wouldn’t make it to the hospital. “Cole, we have to go. Like right now.” I whimper, and he l
“Shay.” I lift my gaze from staring at my huge baby bump and look at my husband, who rolls over when I turn the night lamp on. “You okay?” Cole questions drowsily, and I glower at him.“Why won’t this baby come out.” I hiss angrily, and Cole groans, leaning up on his elbow and looks at me, his green eyes narrowed.“Maybe he likes it in there and isn’t ready to leave just yet.” He smiles, rubbing my bump, and the baby squirms inside me at his father’s touch. My due date was six days ago, and this stubborn child is showing no indication of arriving anytime soon.“I’ve had enough.” I whimper, agitated. “I’m uncomfortable. I haven’t slept a wink in days, and I’m swollen like a beached whale. Look at me.” I complain, gesturing to myself, and Cole lets his eyes wander over me, and he smiles. “What are you looking at?”He blinks, bemused.“You just said—”“You get this baby out of me right now.” I huff, and Cole scratches his forehead, his brows fu
Shayla pulls back and looks up at me, tears flowing from her beautiful eyes. “Did you...” She trails silently, asking me if I had something to do with her killing herself off, and I shake my head.“No, I had nothing to do with that. She obviously couldn’t handle being locked up. The warden did say girls like her are like fresh meat to a hungry lion.” I explain, brushing her tears away.“I did.” I turn and look at Sam, and Shayla frowns. “I may have visited the prison. A guard there is a friend of mine, and when he found out you were my sister, he did me a favour.” He explains with a shrug, stuffing his hands into the pocket of his jeans. “It wasn’t enough that she was locked away, I wanted her to suffer, so I had my artist friend paint a photo of you and Cole kissing on the wall opposite her cell, she’d be forced to stare at it, be reminded every second, of every day that she didn’t break you,” Sam tells her. Shayla pulls away from me and runs into her brother's arms.
“That was a great party. I’m a grown arse man, and I had a blast.” Josh chuckles, sitting back on the sofa, taking a sip from his beer. I smile and nod, looking over at my mother and Shay’s mother directing the kitchen's cleaning crew. Sam comes across with baby Trey in his arms and sits on the sofa with a tired sigh.“It really was. Shayla did a great job with organising everything.” I tell him, and Josh nods, looking over at the baby in Sam's arms.“How’s fatherhood treating you, bro?” Josh questions putting his beer bottle down and taking Trey from Sam.“Tiring man, but I wouldn’t give it up for the world,” Sam admits looking over at Trey curled up on Josh’s chest. “To think I was terrified of ever having one of those, now I can’t picture my life without him.”I smile in understanding. “Yeah, they really do change your life, especially if it's with the right woman,” I state, and both men nod in agreement.“I feel so left out. I can’t wait to hol
“Happy birthday, princess.” I croon, looking down at Alaia, who just rose from her sleep. She smiles up at me as soon as she sees me, displaying her two teeth. She’s always so happy in the morning, and this morning was no different. She’s just lying in her crib, kicking back with her hands behind her head. “Good morning, my sunshine.” I pick her up and kiss her cheek affectionately. “Is my baby girl one-year-old today?” We walk out of the nursery back to our bedroom, where Shayla was still asleep. “Let’s go wake up, Mummy,” I whisper, kissing her temple and smile when I see Shayla lying on her front, peacefully sleeping. I crawl up on the bed and lay Alaia down on her stomach, and she immediately crawls over to her mother. I lay on my side and watch as she makes cooing sounds, pressing her hand to Shay’s face, who stirs from her sleep and smiles.“Mm, good morning, birthday girl.” She sighs, lifting her arm and wrapping it around Laia, who tries to crawl over her. She looks o
We see Josh and Aimee in the waiting room, along with Jo’s father, “How is she doing? Any news?”Aimee shakes her head. “Not yet. We got here not long ago.” I sit beside her, and Cole walks over to Josh, talking to Jo’s dad, Phil. “Did you look in the mirror before you left the house?” Aimee grins, her blue eyes raking over me.“No, why?” I ask apprehensively and look down at myself.Aimee laughs, “You look fucked out, girl. You could have at least run a brush through your hair.” I stare at her dumbfounded and reach to comb out my hair with my fingers.“We left in a rush,” I whisper, unlocking my phone and loading up the camera. “Do I really look that bad?” I look at my reflection in the camera and gasp a little. My face was all flushed, my hair a tousled mess, my lips were swollen, and I had love bites all over my neck. “Oh shit.” I curse, pulling my hair over my shoulder to cover up the love bites.Aimee nudges me, grinning wickedly. When I look
Later that evening, Cole and I were sitting on our bed, me on my tablet and him on his, looking through emails. “Do you not think we’re going a little overboard with this birthday party?” I ask, looking away from the tablet to him, staring intently at a document on his device.“No,” Cole utters, typing away on the screen. “What my baby wants, my baby gets.” I frown.“Cole, she’s turning one, she doesn’t have a clue what she wants. She’s not even going to remember this.” Cole looks at me and shrugs.“She’s aware of more than you realise.” He replies, his brows lifting to his hairline. “Don’t you see the way her little face lights up when she sees Moana on the screen?” I smile and nod, “Or the way she sways side to side when she hears the song.”“That is adorable.” Cole nods, smiling, and leans over, puckering his lips for me. I lean in and kiss him softly.“Let’s give our baby girl the birthday she deserves.” Cole mumbles against my lips, and I grin