Coda Books 06 - Fear, Hope, and Bread Pudding (MM)

both my father and Taylor about my plan to surprise Cole. Still, I’d hoped to beat him to the door, but of course he was anxious to meet my dad’s “date,” so I ended up behind him. He swung the door open, already talking. “George! I’m so glad you’re here. I—”
    And then he froze, staring at Taylor.
    “Dinner smells wonderful,” my dad said, stepping inside as if nothing unusual were going on. “Is it lobster bisque?”
    Cole didn’t stay stunned for long. He jerked quickly into motion as his cheeks flushed red. “It is. Good guess.”
    “My favorite.” And then, almost as an afterthought, Dad said, “You know Taylor.”
    “Of course!” Cole took her hand and led her inside. “I’m so glad to see you, honey. Come on in! Here, let me take your jacket. Jon !” He turned and shoved Taylor’s coat roughly into my hands, glaring at me as he did. “Take that!” he said, his voice low enough that they probably couldn’t hear him. “I think you know where you can stick it.” Of course, he had a perfect smile on his face again by the time he turned back to her. “Come in. Sit down! I just have to go in the kitchen for one teensy little minute to turn down the burner. I don’t want to burn things up like last time.”
    If looks could kill, I would have been one very crispy critter. I held a finger up to my father and Taylor, indicating I’d be right back, and followed Cole into the kitchen to receive my punishment.
    The minute I walked through the door, a flying potholder smacked me square in the face. “How could you?” he asked as he threw another one at me. “How could you do this to me?” Another potholder, and then a dishtowel. “I hate you right now, and I’ll never forgive you, either.” He threw a wet sponge at me, but I managed to dodge that one. He began searching for something else to use as ammunition, and I crossed the room before he could pick up anything hard. I took his arm and turned him toward me.
    “I’m sorry, but this was the best way.”
    “What? To humiliate me in front of her? Again ?” He struggled against my grip, but not much. It was more a gesture of defiance than an actual desire to escape. “As if I didn’t do it well enough on my own last time?”
    I tried to pull him close, to wrap my arms around him, but he wouldn’t let me. I was reminded again of the early days of our relationship, when he’d insisted on pushing me away. I settled for keeping my hand on his arm. “Cole, listen to me. Do you know why she didn’t like us?”
    “It wasn’t ‘us’ she didn’t like. It was me! Probably because I’m not all butch and macho, right? Because I’m a fruitcake! Isn’t that what your father says?”
    I winced, scolding myself for thinking that Cole could ever have not known about my father’s little joke. And yet my father adored him. He had to know that too. “Stop being a drama queen and listen to me.”
    He froze, and his nostrils flared. “I can’t believe you just said that to me!”
    “Do you want to know the real reason she turned us down or not?” He didn’t answer, but he was listening. “She thought you were afraid of me.”
    In the blink of an eye, his anger was gone, replaced by surprise. “Are you kidding?”
    “I’m completely serious. She thought I was a bully, and even wondered if I might be abusive.”
    “Why in the world would she think that?”
    “Because of the bruise on your eye. And because you seemed to defer to me on everything.”
    “Ha!” His laughter was loud and sudden, but just as quickly, he clamped his hand over his mouth. Still, I could see the amusement in his eyes. “I shouldn’t laugh, but really….”
    “Exactly.”
    “Do I defer to you?”
    “Not nearly often enough. It makes me want to sit her down and tell her who the real bully is in this relationship.”
    He rolled his eyes at me, but he was smiling nonetheless. He flipped his hair back out of his eyes so he could look at me directly. More importantly, he finally let me put my arms around his waist and pull him close. “Still, Jonny. I behaved so horribly—”
    “The only thing you did wrong last time was you tried to be somebody you’re not.”
    “I wanted her to like us.”
    “I know, and it’s perfectly understandable, but it’s not you. You’ve never given a damn what people think, because you’ve never had anything to lose. And more often than not, it works for you. You manage to win people over, and the ones you