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Even as I think that, her reaction still stings a little.

The question is on her lips. She wants to ask if we’re a thing, but Cole answers her unspoken words by reaching over and placing his hand over mine and giving it a squeeze. His touch almost jolts me back into my body and his question about being ready to order.

He’s just doing this to reinforce the message around town, so it’ll get back to Drake.I tell myself. Because I know for sure it will get back to him if Cassie has anything to do with it.

“I’ll have the chicken and vegetablewok box,” I say quickly, closing the menu and placing it back on the counter.

“I’ll have the beef wok charred noodles,” Cole adds.

“Anything to drink?” she asks him, notably looking down at his hand still on mine, not even bothering to acknowledge me any further.

“I’ll take a root beer.” He glances at me. “What about you, babe?”

There it is again. “I’ll have the same,” I croak out, loving way too much the feel of his warm hand on mine. I’m loving even more that he doesn’t remove it. My heart is stupidly soaring that he’s making our ‘fake dating’ thing known to Cassie Middleton and whoever else might happen to spot us.

“Perfect.” She hastily grabs the menus, not sparing me another glance, and walks off with a huff back to the counter.

“Geez.” I grab my glass of water, needing to seriously lubricate my dry throat. “She looked like someone told her there was no Santa this year.”

Cole’s deep chuckle has me looking up. He still hasn’t removed his hand, and those eyes… they’re more than pools of liquid honey… there’s something else — heat?

“That’s Cassie for you.” He finally leans back and slides his hand away, and I hate to say that I miss his touch the instant it leaves me, but I do.

??

Cole

Warmth radiates through every fiber just being here with her, and it’s not just the steam from the wok barthat’s getting me into a spin. It’s pure Ainsley. And she seems to have no idea how stunning I think she is.

“Why did you… um … call me that?”

I raise my eyebrow as our root beers are delivered, not by Cassie. “Call you what?”

She gives me a look that tells me I should know. “Babe,” she murmurs.

A wry smile pulls from my lips. “Because I wanted to. And I like touching you in case you wondered that, too.”

She leans forward to pick up her drink. I watch as her lips find the rim of the glass and she takes a sip. “I think Cassie is into you,” she says, placing her drink back down.

I wave it off. “The feeling isn’t mutual,” I say simply. And it’s the truth. I don’t know why Ainsley beguiles me so much, maybe because she’s genuinely a nice person. I find that very attractive in a woman. Kindness is sexy. Maybe it isn’t something I’ve always thought about in the past, but you kinda get bored with the same type of girls that don’t have much substance or common goals. “There’s no one else I want to be here with, Ains.”

She looks up at me under her lashes and smiles, genuinely smiles. So much so, it makes me smile too.

“In saying that, we have a bunch of shit to get down on paper by Wednesday if we don’t want the Mayor on our backs.”

She glances at her watch. “I mean, it’s not late, so maybe we could go over things at home later… I mean… your place… or my place…shit?—”

I chuckle, loving the way she blunders, the way her cheeks pinken. “Are you inviting me over later?”

“Well, I have a new coffee maker if you want to come try it out?”

“I’d love to. I don’t think we’re going to get much committee stuff sorted out here. It’s way too loud. And I’m sure Fudge will have made himself at home somewhere in your house.”

She laughs. “Like only he knows how.”

We get our food pretty quick and whilst I’m hungry; I don’t end up eating it all. Neither does she, so we get the rest to go and walk back to the Town Hall where everything has been locked up for the night. I lean against her open door, holding the takeout bag in my hand. “I guess I’ll see you at home,” I say, as she slides in and starts up the engine. The way that sounds stirs in my chest.At home. Even though we live in different houses.

“See you there.”