LITMIR.BIZ

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the backseat with more force than necessary. “Something about how I deserved better.”

      “You do,” he said quietly.

      She wasn’t going to fall for the sincerity in his voice. No, what Cole really meant was that he deserved better. “Are you dating anyone?” she asked huskily as the emotions clawed her throat. “Wouldn’t she be upset if you started hanging around your ex? Or would she understand that it was just for an assignment?”

      “There hasn’t been anyone since you.”

      Angie didn’t realize how much she needed to hear those words until he had spoken them. If he’d been in a relationship with someone else, it would have destroyed her. “I find that hard to believe,” she said hoarsely.

      “It’s true.” He took a step closer. She took a step back and bumped up against her car. “I’ve spent all my time and energy building up my agency.”

      “And what’s up with that?” she asked, her voice rising. “Not once did you talk to me about having your own business. You were passionate about what you did. About working with Missing Persons.”

      “It’s still what I do,” he said, his eyes sparking with annoyance. It was clear he didn’t want to discuss it. “My agency specializes in tracing people. Reuniting families.”

      “I thought everything was fine and then it was like you changed overnight.” And it wasn’t easy to ignore when his abrupt change occurred. It was right after she lowered her guard. Once she started taking charge in the bedroom.

      Her face burned as she remembered that. She had felt sexy and desirable. Strong and assertive. She thought Cole loved it. That he wanted her to reveal this side she didn’t share with anyone else. Those moments had been special. Intimate.

      She had only been fooling herself. Seeing what she wanted to see. She thought they were solid as a couple, but she was blindsided when he dumped her two weeks later. He had walked away, saying he couldn’t give her what she needed.

      But what he really meant was that she was undesirable. Unwanted. Her fantasies were not his. She couldn’t give him what he needed. She had given him everything but she hadn’t been good enough.

      “I didn’t mean to hurt you.” His whisper was heavy with regret.

      She straightened up and offered a tight smile. “I’m over it,” she lied. “I just thought you were different from the other guys.”

      Cole frowned. “What do you mean by that?”

      “That you weren’t in it for the challenge.” What a few men had tried to do in the past. To take on Angie Lawson. Soften her up and tame the tomboy.

      * * *

      COLE TOOK A step back and stared at Angie. “You think I dated you because I like a challenge?”

      Angie was a challenge, all right. She was stubborn and impatient. Independent almost to a fault. She was brazen but he also saw the insecurities she tried to hide.

      “I don’t know why and I don’t care,” she declared. “All I know is that I’m not going to put myself through that again.”

      “Angie, our time together meant a lot to me. I can’t tell you how difficult it was to leave you.” It had been the hardest thing for him to do, but it had been necessary. He had started to think he could be with Angie forever. That she could fall in love with him. But that was a fantasy. Even if he tried harder and tried to be better, he wasn’t worthy of love. His family had proven that to him years ago.

      Cole stepped away from Angie and looked down. He didn’t want her to see the struggle in his eyes. “Angie, it’s very hard for me to ask, but I need your help.”

      He felt her hesitation. She was the kind of woman who automatically offered her help, but it was different now. He knew how awkward it was to offer help to someone who had once discarded you.

      “You were always there when I needed you.” He hated how his voice cracked. Hated how much her loyalty had meant to him. “And I was there for you.”

      “We were a couple then,” she said softly.

      “You are still very important to me.” She was the most important person in his life, but he couldn’t tell her that. Angie wouldn’t believe him, anyway.

      “So important that you couldn’t stay in touch?” she asked bitterly.

      He dragged his gaze to meet hers. Staying in touch would have been a constant reminder of what he couldn’t have. “I thought a clean break would be best. It hasn’t been easy for me, either. It still isn’t.”

      “And you think that being my date for the wedding will make it better?”

      “No, but I think we’re at a point where we can be friendly with each other. Do you really want to deal with that bride on your own? Think of me as backup.”

      “She is unbearable,” she said as she considered his suggestion. “It would be nice to show up with a stripper boyfriend.”

      He jerked back. “Say what?”

      “Most of the wedding guests will think that you’re a stripper.” Angie bit her lip as she tried to contain her smile. “Patrick and some of the other guys will know the truth but I could tell them that our breakup sent you into a tailspin.”

      He had crashed and burned once he left Angie. It had taken him nearly a year to get back on his feet. “You want me to continue the role as a stripper?”

      “Why not? You’re the one who started it. And no one would question my sudden wedding date. After all, you showed me special attention last night. Thanks for that.”

      He ignored her sarcasm. “You’re really considering this?”

      “Brittany is going to have a fit that I’m bringing a date at such late notice.” She grimaced as if she were imagining the bride’s reaction. “I’ll talk to Cheryl, her assistant. She’s in charge of the details.”

      “Think you can get me into Heidi’s room today?” He knew he was already pushing her, but he was running against the clock. If he didn’t get answers in the next few days, chances were he never would.

      “I was going to visit her today after Brittany’s meeting,” she revealed reluctantly. “I’ll meet you at the hospital and we’ll go in together.”

      “Thank you,” he said. He wasn’t sure if the relief he felt was because he could move forward with his assignment or because Angie was on his side once more.

      Angie gave a sharp nod and got into her car. “By the way, my stripper boyfriend is totally into me,” she said. “He can’t believe his luck that he landed me.”

      “I can do that.” He wouldn’t even have to pretend. He had felt that way since she had accepted his invitation for a first date. He had no idea what he did to convince her and often felt he was living on borrowed time. He knew someday she would wake up and see she could do much better than him.

      “But I’m not really into him,” Angie warned Cole. “Everyone would get suspicious if I was all clingy and affectionate.”

      Especially since she didn’t act that way in public, Cole thought. But when they had been alone, she was very demonstrative and explicit in her requests. “So it’s only physical attraction?” he teased.

      She grinned. “Yeah, something like that.”

      “Then that will be our cover. By the end of today, everyone will think we’re having a red-hot but brief reunion,” he promised. It had to be short-term for his sanity. One touch from her and he’d want another. One kiss and he wouldn’t stop. Unless this had a predetermined end date, he’d start to believe he had another chance. He’d forget that she never loved him—couldn’t love him—in the first place.

      “A wild fling?”

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