Violet P.O.V

20 minutes into the movie, I figured out that trying to cover my eyes and my ears was not realistic, so I covered my ears and buried my face deep into Cole’s chest. I wanted to give Cole a dead leg for laughing at me every time I jumped at something, and I can promise you that I would have it that didn’t mean that I had to uncover my ears.

I am not the typical girl that uses a scary movie to jump into a guy’s arms. If we watched a scary movie a few years ago I could have gotten through it without too much of an issue… but ever since… I just can’t do scary movies anymore.

“I’m gonna go to the kitchen and get something else to drink. Vi, baby come help me grab the drinks?” Cole asked as he lifted me off his lap and stood up.

“Um,” I cleared my throat and tried to stop my knees from shaking and knocking together. “Yeah sure, we’ll be back just now,” I said to the others, I just heard mumbles in agreement before Cole grabbed my hand and dragged me to the kitchen.

Once we got to the kitchen Cole flicked me around, grabbed my hips and lifted me onto the counter. He tapped my knees asking me to open them, so he could stand between them. “Want to tell me what has got you so scared? You don’t strike me as the girl that gets scared during those types of movies.” It was at that moment that I knew that Cole could see through a lot of the walls that I had put up to protect myself. I am not the type of person to overshare about my life story. I averted my eyes, trying to hide the tears that started to well up. I did a very unglamorous and unladylike sniff to try and keep the tears at bay, but one fat stubborn crocodile tear escaped my eye.

I felt a warm rough hand swipe under my eye, capturing the little traitor, and cupping my cheek with his big hand. I fought to not look into his eyes that I knew were studying every emotion flicker onto my face. Flip, I am such a baby sometimes. I have worked so hard trying to deal with my past demons, to be able to tell the difference between reality and fantasy. I was just a little wimp who couldn’t seem to get through a scary movie. Who couldn’t get through a scary movie? And why in the world did I think it would be a brilliant idea to wear my hair in a messy bun? I do not look cute, which I was aiming for. Instead, my eyes were a little swollen, my bun was lopsided and those “messy tendrils”, yeah it looked like someone just rubbed my head with a balloon.

Cole just pulled me closer than I thought possible, considering how close he already was. He leaned down and allowed his lips to hover, before he kissed my forehead and whispered, “It’s you and me, Vi. I will keep you safe.” Cole lingered there for a while, allowing us to enjoy our little moment where nothing in the world existed but us. Too soon he pulled back slightly, before his eyes flicked down to my lips, silently asking permission to kiss me.

My heart was pounding like a jack-hammer as I started to lean towards him, looking into his eyes, giving him all the approval he needed. I felt myself lean into his hand that was cupping my cheek, while his overhand moved to the nape of my neck. The gentle way he was holding me alone brought tears of happiness to my eyes, but nothing could have prepared me for what it would feel like when my lips met his. His soft lips caressed mine, sparks flew like an electric current between us as Cole’s lips molded against mine.

Who knew that kissing someone could make you feel this way… That they could take over your whole mind, and the kiss would capture your mind and make you forget everything else in the world but him. I can’t remember the last time that I have ever wanted to kiss someone this much. Now I can say with confidence that I have never been kissed by anyone like that in my entire life. I never wanted to stop kissing Cole, but he seemed to have consumed my being so much that I forgot I needed to breathe. I drew back, breathless and wide-eyed. I let my head fall against his chest as I tried to gather my thoughts and my breath, both of us having been whisked away with a single kiss.

“Baby I swear if you keep trying to hide from me..” He said in a warning tone. I felt my face flush at the tone of his words and a giggle bubble up in my throat. He gently pulled my face from his chest and turned me to face him. “Let’s go sit upstairs, we can watch a nice regular movie on my laptop and cuddle.”

“I’d like that,” I whispered. He was so close to me I didn’t have to talk any louder. “Oh shoot. How are we going to tell the others? I don’t want them to assume things. I mean, we all know how Georgie can be...” I felt my blush come back at full force although I’m not sure it had ever really left my face. Cole just chuckled, “I’ll talk to them don’t worry, and even if they do think things. Our business stays between us and doesn’t have anything else to do with them.”

“Okay deal,” I agreed as he helped me down from the counter. I was so short next to him, I barely came up to his chest, but he was a freaking giant I swear. I mean I was 5 ‘5 so I wasn’t that short, he was just massive.

Cole turned to walk out of the kitchen. I’m presuming to go tell the others we weren’t going to be joining them but I didn’t want to be left alone. It was now really dark, the sun having set relatively early and after that movie, I didn’t want to be on my own. I followed behind him closely and slammed into the back of him when he suddenly stopped.

“Baby, what are you doing?” He asked half laughing and confused as to why I was following so closely behind him. “I… I didn’t want to be alone,” I whispered.

“What was that I didn’t hear you?” he asked as he wrapped an arm around me and pulled me to him. That smug bastard did hear me. He just wanted me to say it again.

“You heard me,” I grumbled, not amused at him at all.

He laughed, “Yeah, but where’s the fun in that? I’m not gonna leave you, babe. Come with me,” he said while grabbing my hand, leading me to the living room. I nodded and allowed him to pull me along.

* * *

When we rounded the corner, he stuck his head in, “my girl and I are going to head upstairs and watch something else, before heading to bed. We’ll see you all tomorrow night,” he called out without giving them time to say anything before whisking me away upstairs.

We reached the guest room Cole was staying in, and he was somehow able, to set up what looked like, to be a mini-office. There were folders spread across the desk with an apple desktop monitor and the new MacBook Pro. Where in the hell did he get a bloody desktop monitor? An iPad was sitting haphazardly on the edge of the desk with an empty coffee cup sitting next to it.

He must have seen me looking weirdly at all of it, “Oh yeah sorry I didn’t know how long I’d be gone so I bought the basics so I could get some work done while I was here. Everything has been super crazy at the moment so there are some things that I just couldn’t leave until I got back.” He embarrassingly laughed and scratched the back of his head, “I know it’s a bit of an overkill.”

I felt really bad, he obviously was really busy and now he had come running after me. To be fair I didn’t expect him to come after me but still, I didn’t want to interrupt his work. “I just feel really bad that you had to make do in the middle of nowhere.”

His hand cupped my face, “I wanted to come after you, hell I shouldn’t have even let it get this far that you thought you had to leave.” He intertwined his fingers in mine, “Now that we’re here I’ve got everything I need to be out of the office for a month, so a couple of days won’t kill anyone. Let’s just watch a movie okay.”

Cole unplugged his laptop, and went and sat down against the headboard, “You coming?” He asked. I nodded before awkwardly clamoring onto the bed and sitting off to the side. Cole rolled his eyes at my ridiculousness and reached for me, pulling me into his side. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but I do believe that I mentioned cuddling when I made this suggestion,” he pouted like a little kid. As I settled into his side and rested my head on his chest, Cole wrapped his arms around my waist and placed a delicate kiss on my forehead. He rested the laptop on his legs and pulled up Netflix.

“What are you wanting to watch, Vi?”

We scrolled through before I chose a new comedy that I have heard good things about. We settled into each other, snuggling as close as possible.

Cole’s P.O.V

I was the type of guy that sometimes used scary movies to get a girl to snuggle in close. I found them funny because they were so ridiculous. It was about twenty minutes into the movie, that I started to notice that not only was Violet being dead quiet, but she was also making herself as small as humanly possible. I didn’t want to say anything in case she may feel embarrassed.

After another minute or so of her shrinking into me, that was enough, my girl wasn’t going to tormented over some stupid movie. I picked Violet up off my lap and stood up, making an excuse to go to the kitchen and taking her with me. I saw her hands shaking as she tried to gather herself.

When we got to the kitchen I wasted no time picking my baby girl up and placing her on the counter; so I could face her as well as be able to hold her. I tapped her knee calmly so she could part her legs and I could stand closer to her. I hated that this movie made her so scared and that she felt the need to hide it from me. We haven’t known each other for a long time but our relationship was built on trust and vulnerability. I couldn’t have her hiding from me. She was already so special to me and it broke my heart to see her battling with such a huge inner turmoil.

My curiosity got the best of me and I probed her why she was trying to hide. I pulled my precious girl into my arms and held her tight, her pain seeped into me as I took it on as my own. I could smell her soft scent and how amazing she felt up against me. I couldn’t help but think about kissing her. When I pulled away, she had to lick those amazing lips, making them even more inviting. She had no idea how naturally beautiful she was. Violet didn’t even need to try to look gorgeous. My eyes darted down to her lips before looking into her eyes, asking for her permission to kiss her. It was like there was a magnetic pull between us, but she automatically leaned forward, staring at my lips.

Kissing her felt different. A good difference. The connection that I have with Violet is something that I have never had with anyone else. It was electric and I just couldn’t get enough of her. Every time I was with her, I could feel myself getting wrapped around her finger even more.

I knew that what Violet and I had was special but when I felt her luscious lips against mine, it took all of my will power to keep going slow. The feel of her small body against mine was enough to drive me mad and make me sweep her up in my arms, take her upstairs and have my way with her. Typically that would work, but not with Violet. She was slow to trust and every time you were able to peel back a layer, she was even more beautiful and pure.

She pulled away panting slightly and hid her face in my chest. What was with her and hiding from me? I couldn’t understand how a woman that was as beautiful as she was, wanted to be so invisible. She was obviously made to stand out and she needed to be confident in herself. The sassy side that I sometimes see with Violet hints that she wasn’t always so shy. I was going to kill whoever destroyed the confidence she had in herself, and I was going to make sure that she was going to get it back.

She needed to hear from me how desirable she was to me, “Baby, I swear if you keep trying to hide from me…” A cute little nervous laugh escaped her lips when she picked up the double meanings. I gently cupped her face and lifted her head so that she could look me in the eyes. There was a small gasp that escaped her lips as her eyes met mine. My eyes were full of desire and heat for her. Then her adorable blush flashed across her cheeks. I grinned knowing the type of effect that I have on her. “Let’s go sit upstairs, we can watch a nice regular movie on my laptop and cuddle,” I suggested half out of worry for her and half because I was selfish and wanted her all to myself. ”

Violet stared at my makeshift office on the desk in the spare room that had since become ‘mine’. I guess she already knew this spare room well since it was her friend’s house. I had to set up a mini-office because I couldn’t actually afford to be taking these days off. I wasn’t going to tell her that, or that I was up most of the night working on stuff for the office.

So instead I just tried to play it off, “Oh yeah sorry I didn’t know how long I’d be gone so I bought the basics so I could get some work done while I was here. Everything has been super crazy at the moment so there are some things that I just couldn’t leave until I got back.”

She still didn’t say anything so I nervously rubbed the back of my neck and admitted, “I know it’s a bit of an overkill.” What the hell is this girl doing to me? First, I chased after her and now I feel like a nervous high school boy trying to impress his crush. She still looked unsure, I could just see her blaming herself. She started to try and apologize but I was quick to refuse the apology and assure her that there was nothing else in this world that I would have rather done. She studied me with curiosity before dropping the subject.

I unplugged my laptop and went and sat on the bed, “You coming?” I asked her, patting the spot next to me. My invitation to sit next to me seemed to have gone right over her head because she couldn’t choose a spot on the bed that was further away from me. Deciding to throw subtle out the window I pulled her over and sat her right next to me so we could lie next to each other. She blushed madly, “Correct me if I’m wrong, but I do believe that I mentioned cuddling when I made this suggestion,” I promptly told her while wrapping my arm around her small waist. I couldn’t help but notice just how small she was. I loved the feel of her body and I wouldn’t change it for anything in this world but I couldn’t help but notice that she felt just a little too thin.

I pulled up Netflix and let her choose whatever she wanted to watch, she chose some comedy that didn’t look half bad before crawling closer to me. I pressed play and pulled her closer.

* * *

The credits of the movie started playing and Violet could barely keep her eyes open. “I think it’s time for bed,” I suggested while putting my laptop on the bedside table and switching on the lamp.

Violet nuzzled her head into my shoulder, nodding in agreement as she tried to hide from the sudden light.

As much as I wanted her to stay here with me, but I knew she was too sleepy to move to her own bed. Although the past two days with her have been amazing, I knew having her spend the night in my bed might be moving a little too quickly for her. The last thing I wanted was her to wake up in my bed the next morning and have any sort of thought of me taking advantage of her.

With that, I carefully picked her up and carried her to her room. She mumbled something about where we were going, but I just shushed her pushing her head back into my neck and carried on walking to her bedroom. I tucked her into bed, and I couldn’t help but kiss her forehead as she had fully passed out by then.

I was worried about her after that movie earlier. I was rather annoyed at her friends for putting on a movie that would scare her so much. Surely they knew that she didn’t like them? I understand they were probably wanting to make her cuddle with me, but I would have cuddled her to whatever movie we were watching.

I couldn’t help but admire her as she slept peacefully, with her beautiful blonde hair fanned across the pillow... She was so stunning. Her eyelashes cast shadows on her cheeks, which were still flushed slightly from the day. I ran my thumb gently over her jaw before I kissed her forehead one last time, walked out of her room, and closed the door as I left.

I sighed as I felt my phone vibrate on the walk back to my room. There was a text from Mia.

To Cole:

Sorry to bother you but there’s some file I desperately need you to look at regarding fashion week. I’ve just emailed them over to you now. Please get them back to me as soon as possible. I need to Facetime with you tomorrow as well so you can see the final designs as the deadline is tomorrow afternoon and I need them for the show this weekend.

Mia

Shit! I had completely forgotten that I was meant to go over the final product of my designs tomorrow. I’ll facetime Mia tomorrow morning, and hopefully, if the weather is clear, I can convince Violet to fly back out to New York with me. There was more than enough space in the helicopter for all of the girls, myself and Steve. I sat down at my desk to begin working on the files, hoping I could get through them as quickly as possible so I could go to bed. I was exhausted, spending the whole day battling outside in the snow with four other grown adults, had me spent.

* * *

I don’t know how much time had passed, but when I heard a slight knock at the door it startled me out of the work grind I was in. Standing up, I walked over to go see who was at my door at this ungodly hour and what they could possibly want. There standing in the doorway was Violet with dried tear tracks running down her cheeks.

She was wearing my hoodie again, except it looked like she wasn’t wearing anything else, I tried not to gulp at the thought. I couldn’t tell because it hung down well past her thighs, and the sleeves were so long but she had bundled them up into what I believe is called ‘Sweater Paws’. She looked adorable, but I was worried why she was crying, “What’s wrong pet? Why are you crying?” I asked worriedly, opening the door wider and gathered her into my arms.

She sniffled almost as if she was trying to swallow her tears; I felt my heartbreak slightly. We stayed in prolonged silence before she managed to speak, “ I, um, had a nightmare.” she hiccuped.

I hugged her harder and stroked her hair before she pulled back slightly, and continued, “I um, couldn’t get back to sleep because of my nightmare. It really freaked me out…” she trailed off before looking me in the eyes. They were filled with fear and I could just see her vulnerability. It seeped into my soul and tugged on my heartstrings. She stuttered out nervously, “I… I was hoping I could come sit here with you for a bit.”

“Yeah pet, of course. Do you want to just stay here with me instead?” I asked her? I’d honestly feel better if I could hold her all night, and I had a feeling she would too.

“Can I please?” She whispered. She looked adorable and I loved how shy she was. I wish she was comfortable enough with me to know she never has to ask, but that doesn’t mean that I didn’t think she looked adorable while she was asking me with such uncertainty...

“Course you can baby, you don’t have to ask. I’m not going to turn down having you in my bed.” I said, trying to lighten the mood and get her out of the dark headspace she was obviously in.

With that, I pulled her into my chest and walked us over to my bed. I picked her up and carefully tucked her into the one side before walking around to the other and getting in myself. I cuddled up to her, carefully spooning her. I enjoyed holding her little boy in my arms. I waited for her to drift off before drifting off myself.