Page 14 of Cole (Dirty Misfits MC 4)
He sighed. “Go find something else to do, or make a friend, or come play with Max.”
I leaned into the car. “Exactly. Now, unbuckle yourselves and get back to playing. Just know that I’ll be watching as well as listening.”
The kids scurried out of the car without another word and blazed a trail back toward the playground. I peeked over at Cole and found him staring at me, which shot a jolt of electricity up my spine. I gave him a thumbs up and I watched his smile grow as he waved his hand at me. Then, he threw a ball around that both Max and his dog, Opie, chased after.
And for some reason, that made me feel more confident in my decision to let him watch the family dog.
I walked over to the children’s park and took a seat by a bench. It was sort of halfway between the playground and the dog park, so I could sort of keep an eye on all things at once. And the longer I sat there, the more I found my stare gravitating over to Cole while the children played somewhere in my peripheral vision.
Why is he so captivating?
I snuck glances and moments of staring to try and figure out why this stranger affected me as much as he did. But I simply couldn’t put my finger on it. I sat there for almost two hours listening to the children wear themselves out while Max and Opie ran around together. However, no amount of time staring at him provided me with an answer that satiated me.
Sure, he was hot.
Sure, he was kind.
Sure, he was good with dogs.
Sure, he had a nice smile.
But that didn’t explain why my body felt as if it wanted to magnetize itself to his side and never leave.
You’re losing it, Molly. Time to go.
I stood to my feet. “Okay, kids! Time for lunch!”
I got no qualms or arguments from them as they stumbled away from the playground. They were both covered in sweat and looked like they were on their way to taking a very long nap, which boded well in terms of quietness for my afternoon. I ushered for them to go climb into the SUV as I made my way into the dog park, hoping to steal a few more seconds from the handsome man that had watched Max for two damn hours.
And after watching the kids close the SUV doors, locking themselves in, I turned my attention toward Cole.
“I can’t thank you enough for what you did for me today,” I said as I sat by him.
He whistled for the dogs to come and they both rushed up to us. Max leapt into my lap while Opie nuzzled against Cole’s leg, and the scene unfolding made me smile. Cole bent down and buried his face in Opie’s head while his dog tried to lick him, and my heart soared at the innocence of it all.
He was so kind, good, and gentle with his dog. With Max, too.
It gave me a glimpse into the kind of person he really was, and I felt myself growing fond of him. In my life, it was hard to come across good men. Kind men. Faithful men. Especially with the kind of father I had growing up.
And I found myself hoping we might run into one another again here at this dog park all the way across town.
Seven
Cole
All afternoon, I kept staring at her before one of the dogs would nudge me and cause me to look away. All afternoon, I kept running my eyes up and down her shimmering legs while drinking in the fact that her freckles were peppered across more than simply her face. Her thighs were covered in them. They painted themselves up and down her calves. And even though I couldn’t see her arms as much since she kept waving down the kids with them, I knew they were probably dotted all over them as well.
I found myself wanting to kiss every single one of them.
A dog nudged my ankle and I looked down to see Max dropping Opie’s ball at my feet. I looked around for my dog and I found him lounging in the sun on his back, and the scene made me chuckle. I shook my head as I picked up the ball and chucked it as far as my sitting position would allow.
And I watched as that border collie took off like a bat out of hell in order to chase after it.
“Good boy!” I exclaimed as he gathered the ball in his mouth.
I clapped my hands as he charged back toward me and set the ball softly in my lap.
“Oh, you’re such a good boy. Yes, you are. Good job for being so gentle.”
The dog almost seemed to smile at me as I scratched him behind his ears. But once I plucked that ball out of my lap, he was at the ready to peel off after it. I cocked my arm back and stood up, chucking it all the way across the damned dog park. Well, maybe not all the way, but pretty much all the way.
