“Yes.”
“Can you take any of them online?”
I blinked. “I don’t know.”
“Look into it,” he said.
“Don’t tell me what to do,” I said without any real heat, and it caused Colt to give a small smile.
“You like it when I tell you what to do. I think you like it more than you want to admit.”
“Don’t you have somewhere to be?” I asked pointedly.
Colt was unable to hold in his laugh. He shook his head and then left. I wished I could say I enjoyed the quiet after our heated exchange, but I still felt the current of tension in the air. Tension that wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
I had two choices: commit to being with Colt and everything that entailed, or remain his houseguest until he could get me out of Waco safely.
There was no middle ground with him.
I put the dirty breakfast dishes in the dishwasher and then wandered into the den where Colt had a new desktop computer set up. For the next few hours, I researched online classes offered at the local community college. I had a few lined up and ready to go, but I couldn’t pay for them until I got my new credit card.
By mid-afternoon, I was going insane. I couldn’t do anything about my college courses and I replayed my conversations with Colt over and over in my head.
I needed to talk to someone who might be able to offer me some insight. I scrolled through the three numbers in my phone and shot out a text message to Joni asking if she wanted to come hang out with me. Chances were she was working a shift at the hospital, but I crossed my fingers and hoped.
“I don’t understand your brother,” I said, half way through my first margarita.
Colt’s sister grinned and raised her almost finished cocktail. “Tell me all the things.”
“I thought men were scared of commitment.”
“They are.”
“I thought bikers were unfaithful—according to my friend Shelly.”
“Some are,” she agreed. “Except my brother isn’t wired that way. He’s never been wired that way. I mean, he’s had his interludes, of course. He is a dude. But he was never a playboy.”
“Has he ever been serious about anyone?”
“No.”
“Why does he want me?” I asked in confusion. “I’m a mess. I’m trouble. I’ve got the Iron Horsemen on my back. If he was smart, he’d send me on my way and wish me well.”
“Colt never takes the easy road. And you give him something no one else does.”
“Lip?”
Joni laughed. “No. He keeps himself separate, you know? He’s my older brother, he’s the president of the Blue Angels. He runs things, but he hasn’t—he doesn’t let people in. Not even those he considers family. But you, he’s different with you. I don’t know how to explain it, but you have to trust me. Colt isn’t like this withanyone.”
“That only adds more pressure. Thanks.”
She stared me down, swirling her margarita in her glass. The ice clinked and it was the only sound in the otherwise quiet kitchen. “It would be worth it. All the bullshit, all the ups and downs. Colt has so much inside of him, and if you choose him, the way he’s already chosen you, then he’ll never let you regret it.”
“It’s too soon.”
“Says who?”
“Says—”