Love and Other Games (17 page)

As the game progressed, Brenna's thoughts quieted. There were mere seconds left on the clock, and the game was tied. Cole had control of the puck, and he was skating toward the goal. He drew back to line up for the winning shot when someone from the opposing team skated by, winging his arm, causing him to swing the puck to the right. He missed the shot. The clock ran down to zero and the buzzer sounded.

Cole's team had lost the gold.

She couldn't imagine what he must be feeling. Her heart broke for him. So much for that stupid lucky torch they'd found. With a deep sigh, Brenna followed the crowd outside so that she could get some shots of the team as they did the obligatory interviews and received their silver medal. She watched and listened. Most of the team seemed really upset about losing the gold, yet they were congratulatory of the other team. Cole didn't seem to be bothered by it as much as she thought he would be. It wasn't lost on her how the members of the press and female fans surrounded him. Women attempted to get his attention by reaching out to touch his arms, shoulders, and back. From the size of the smile on his face, it was evident he enjoyed it. A fiery ball of jealousy landed hard in her chest. She had to get out there.

Cole continued to smile despite his annoyance. For the first time in his life, he didn't want to be bothered with taking pictures, answering questions, and signing autographs. All he wanted to do was get to Brenna and talk to her. He scanned the crowd and saw her in the back. At least she was still here. That calmed him a little. He averted his gaze back to the fans who were clamoring for an autograph. He smiled and made small talk with them. Several moments passed before he was able to once again look for Brenna. He saw her turn and walk away. She was leaving! He couldn't let her leave. Something in the pit of his gut told him that if he let her get away, he would lose her for good.

"Brenna!" he shouted, pushing his way through the crowd that seemed determined to block his path. "Brenna!" His heart was in his throat as he watched her walk farther and farther away from him. Either she didn't hear him, or she was ignoring him. He prayed to God it wasn't the latter.

"Mr. Campbell … Mr. Campbell … who is Brenna? Is she the woman you were kissing before the game?" asked a male reporter.

"Is she your girlfriend?" asked another.

"No comment," he said absently as he kept his eyes on Brenna's retreating form. He took off on a run after her, motivated by pure fear and desperation. Then she turned the corner and he lost sight of her. He stopped in his tracks and swallowed the dread that threatened to choke him. Why hadn't she waited? He'd asked her to wait.

"Hey, Cole!" Jason jogged up behind him. "Where are you in such a hurry to go? Coach wants us to meet him back in the rink in five."

Cole hung his head and sighed. He couldn't go find Brenna and make it to the rink in time. Glancing one last time in the direction she'd gone, he turned and followed Jason back to the rink.

Cole was out of breath by the time he reached Brenna’s room. He stood outside of her door and took several deep breaths in an attempt to calm his racing heart.
Dear God, please let her be here. Please don’t let me be too late.
He raised his hand to knock on the door, but it swung open before he had the chance. Brenna stood in the doorway with her luggage in tow. Her eyes were red and puffy. She’d been crying.

“Cole.” She sounded and looked surprised to see him.

“Going somewhere?” he asked, blocking the door so she couldn’t get past him.

“Yeah, I’m going home. The games are over. My job is done.”

He drew a controlled breath to keep his anger in check. Is that all this ever was to her? A job? Did everything they’d shared mean nothing to her? Christ, he knew she was cold, but damn this was just plain heartless. “Were you going to bother saying goodbye?”

She shrugged. “Nobody likes an awkward goodbye. I figured I’d save both of us from that.”

Cole gritted his teeth and crossed his arms over his chest. There was no way in hell he was going to let her leave until he had a chance to speak his mind. “I asked you to wait for me. I told you there was something important I wanted to talk to you about.”

“We both knew what this was, Cole, and I knew what you wanted to tell me. Just like I know why you’re standing here right now being more obnoxious than normal.”

“Oh yeah?” He cocked a brow and frowned. “And what exactly do you
think
you know, Brenna?”

In a sarcastic tone that was clearly supposed to be a mimic of him, she said, “It’s been fun, but things could never possibly work out between us. We live in different states. We have different lives. I’m not the settling down type. Blah, blah, blah.” She rolled her eyes. “I know all of that, Cole. I don’t need to hear you say it.”

“Really?” He nodded his head. “Well, I hate to tell ya, darlin’, but you’re wrong.” Cole took a few steps toward her, causing her to take an equal number of steps backward into the room, which is exactly where he wanted her. He slammed the door hard enough to make her jump. Good. At least he had her attention now. The look in her hazel eyes was one of pure defiance. She was obviously ready for a confrontation and he was more than ready to give her one.

Brenna released her hold on her rolling suitcase and dropped the bag hanging over her shoulder to the floor. “What part am I wrong about?” she asked, tapping her finger to her lips. “Hmm, well, everything I’ve said is a fact, except for the part about it being fun. Is that it, Cole? It was no fun for you? Well, I’m sorry I wasted your time.”

“Wrong again.” He took two more steps toward her. She didn’t step back this time, and they were now face to face, inches apart. His gaze lowered to her lips, lingering there for a moment before shifting back to her eyes. “In fact, the only thing you’re right about is that we live in different states.”

“Whatever.” She rolled her eyes and reached for her suitcase. “I have a plane to catch. Good luck with everything, Cole.” Brenna pushed past him and headed for the door.

“You owe me.”

“Excuse me?” She laughed sardonically, and then turned serious, angry. “I don’t owe you a damn thing.”

“You owe me an explanation. Why didn’t you wait for me like I asked you to?” He could tell by the look in her eyes that she was hiding something from him, and he wanted to know what it was.

“I already told you why. There was no reason to put either of us through an awkward goodbye.” She once again released her luggage and glared at him, her arms crossed over her chest.

“Liar!”

“Don’t make this into something it’s not.”

“And don’t you go minimizing it, either,” he shouted, pointing at her.

She sighed. “Let’s just part ways as friends, okay? Personally, I’d like to leave here with some good memories of you.”

“Is that why you’re crying? Because your memories are so good?”

“I’m not crying.” Her breath hitched.

He gently took her face into his hands and wiped a stray tear from her cheek. “Liar,” his voice was low, regretful for shouting at her a moment ago. It broke his heart to see her cry, especially knowing he was the cause of her tears.

“Why are you doing this?” Her lips trembled. “Is this some sort of ego boost for you? Do you get off on knowing that you got me to trust you? Is it a turn on to know I let my guard down, that I let you into my bed, that I actually felt something for you?” She pounded her fists on his chest. “Let me go, damn it!”

Brenna shoved at him, but he didn’t budge. He did drop his hands from her face, though. And then he wrapped his arms around her, hugging her to him. This is what he’d been fighting so hard for—to get some sort of emotion from her. Now that he’d gotten it, he wasn’t going to let it go. Hell no! He was going to push her until he heard what he knew she didn’t want him to hear. “What do you feel for me, Brenna?”

She stopped struggling and rested her forehead on his chest; her hands went to his waist. “I don’t know.”

He heard her choke back a sob. Cole put a finger under her chin and tilted her head up to him. Then he lowered his mouth to hers, capturing her lips in a soft, searing kiss. He’d never kissed anyone like he kissed her then. It was so full of emotion, so full of uncertainty and hope. Everything he wanted to say but couldn’t was poured into that single kiss. “Please don’t leave, Brenna. Stay for the rest of the games and fly back with the team like planned.”

“Why?” Her tear soaked eyes pleaded with him. “Why prolong the inevitable?”

“Because the thought of letting you leave here, of not seeing you again … ” He shook his head and swallowed tightly. “I’m scared shitless.” There, he’d said it.

“Scared of what?” Her hands slipped under the hem of his shirt and snaked around his stomach.

Her touch set him ablaze, awaking something dormant deep within him. It was primal, animalistic, and powerful. There was no fighting it. “Of how I feel about you,” he said right before claiming her lips in another kiss. As far as he was concerned, they belonged to him anyway. She belonged to him.

“How do you feel about me, Cole?” she asked with a hint of a smile as she lifted his shirt up his torso and over his head. She lowered her mouth and planted several hot kisses along his chest, stopping to linger on each of his nipples, her tongue circling the hardened peaks.

Cole groaned. “God that feels good.” He speared his fingers into her hair and brought her mouth to him, plunging his tongue between her lips and kissing her until they were both gasping for breath. Brenna reached for his belt buckle, frantically tugging at it to get it undone. He honestly hadn’t come here with the intention of having sex with her, but he wasn’t stupid enough to tell her no, either. They proceeded to tear the clothes from each other’s bodies, leaving a trail from the door to the bed, touching and kissing every inch of each other that they could get to. Cole’s need raged out of control as the back of Brenna’s legs hit the edge of the bed causing her to fall backward, bringing him down on top of her. He fumbled in the bedside stand for a condom and rolled it on without ever releasing her lips.

He moaned as he sunk deep into her sweet, welcoming body. “Brenna, baby.” He bent his arms on either side of her head, smoothed the hair from her forehead and kissed her while working in and out of her. Shit, she felt too good. There was no way he was going to last very long. Not when she lifted her hips, meeting him thrust for thrust, her fingers curling against his back sending shivers down his spine. He nipped at her lips, groaning, not wanting to ever leave the warmth of her body or the safety of her arms.

“Cole,” she whimpered.

“Yeah, that’s it.” He increased his pace. “Let it go. I’ve got you. I won’t let you go. I’ll never let you go,” he whispered. Cole put his arms under her shoulders and pulled her against his body as they gave into their passion, giving over all control to their physical needs. He collapsed on top of her, burying his face in her neck. Brenna kept her arms wrapped around him, holding him as if she were drowning and he was her lifeboat.

Brenna’s lips puckered against his shoulder, eliciting a shudder from him. “I’ll stay,” she said.

He sighed with relief. It felt as though a weight had been lifted. She wasn’t going to leave him—at least, not right away anyway. Shifting his weight into his arms, he looked down at her. She smiled up at him, and his heart tripped several beats. God, she was beautiful. He had to tell her. He had to tell her the truth about how he felt because the thought of any other man being with her like he was right now was enough to drive him to murder.

“What is it, Cole? Why are you staring at me like that?”

Licking his lips, he said, “I’m falling in love with you, Brenna.”

“What?”

“Believe me; I know how crazy that sounds considering how long we’ve known each other. And trust me, I’ve tried to make sense of it, to explain it, and I can’t. All I know is that I want to be with you.”

***

Brenna was dumbfounded. Had she just heard him correctly? Was it possible? Did Colton Campbell really just say that he was falling in love with her? How was she supposed to respond to that?

"You asked me if I'd be willing to change my ways for the right woman. Well, here I am, Brenna. I'm willing to change for
you
."

She was speechless. Her heart beat in her chest like a caged animal wanting to be set free, wanting to shout that she was falling for him, too, and that she would do whatever it took to be with him. But her mind yanked on the brakes, bringing her to a screeching halt. This was Cole Campbell she was dealing with. He was an Olympic athlete who enjoyed women—those were two qualities she swore she'd never accept in a man. Could she really trust him with her heart?

"I know it won't be easy with us living in different states, but I'm willing to try if you are."

Tears spilled down the sides of her face.

"Brenna, baby, please say something."

She took a deep breath and wiped her tears. "Yes," she whispered and nodded.

"Yes?"

"Yes." Brenna smiled. "I want to try. God, you have no idea how badly I want to try." She laughed through her tears.

Cole's soft lips brushed over hers, teasing her with an almost kiss. "You never answered my question."

"What question was that?" She closed her eyes and parted her lips, waiting and anticipating a kiss that still didn't come.

"How do you feel about me, Brenna? In here?" He placed his hand over her heart. "I need to know."

She hesitated. Did she tell him that she was in love with him? Or did she take the less honest route and tell him that she was falling for him? There was no falling for her. She'd already fallen—hard.

"Look at me," he whispered, rubbing his nose against hers.

Brenna opened her eyes. One look at him and she knew she had to be honest. "I'm in love with you, Cole."

He smiled, and then he gave her the kiss she'd been waiting for. "We'll make this work. I promise."  It was a promise he had every intention of keeping no matter the cost. Cole couldn't wait a moment longer to start making plans for their future. It was a future Cole was looking forward to more than he'd been looking forward to the Olympics just a few weeks ago. He'd gone for the gold and left with something worth so much more.