“And look at where that got her. She was ready to move in with you.” Patrick shook his head with disbelief. “She was afraid you’d say no, but she went for it, anyway.”
Angie had been nervous? He would never have known. She seemed almost casual when she suggested they move in together. But it had been a big deal for him. He had wanted to jump at the offer but experience taught him to hold back. He made a decision to revisit his past instead and was still reeling from that trip down memory lane.
“And you couldn’t get away fast enough.” Patrick looked at him with disgust. “I told her it was a bad idea.”
“I loved Angie but I couldn’t live with her.” He realized how that sounded. Angie wasn’t the problem; he was. Cole was tempted to explain, but that would require revealing too much. “It would never have worked.”
“You loved her?” Patrick gave a harsh bark of laughter. “You have a funny way of showing it.”
“It doesn’t matter now,” Cole said, forcing back the anger. He learned long ago not to show how much someone meant to him. That knowledge would be used against him. “I messed up and she’s won’t give me another chance. She’ll drop me once this wedding is over.”
“Good.” Patrick’s tone was low and emphatic. “She needs to move on and stop listening to the gossip.”
Gossip? He couldn’t imagine anyone judging Angie. That could only mean he was the subject. “What gossip? Was it about Angie and me?”
“I’m not getting into it.” Patrick turned and headed for the door.
“You came here and started this,” Cole reminded him. He needed to know what was said to Angie. “What were they saying?”
Patrick faced him and scoffed. “There was some talk about why you broke up with Angie.”
His gut twisted. That was impossible. No one knew about his family life around here. They didn’t know about his history, but maybe that didn’t matter. People made assumptions when they didn’t know the truth.
Patrick’s gaze slid away. “Rumor was you wanted someone hotter.”
Cole slowly blinked. “Excuse me?”
“You wanted a hotter girlfriend. Someone—” he motioned at his chest “—you know. Sexier. Girlier.” He dropped his hands. “A lot of people told Angie that she lost you because she wasn’t doing enough to keep you interested.”
“I... What?” How could anyone think that? Angie was fun, sexy and had a wild streak that left him breathless. She was uninhibited in bed and demonstrated a woman could be strong and feminine.
Patrick shrugged and took a few steps to the door. He was clearly uncomfortable with this discussion. “I’m only repeating what I heard. I didn’t say I believed it.”
“Good, because that is the furthest thing from the truth. Angie is more than beautiful. She’s amazing and—”
He held up his hand. “Dude, I really don’t want to hear it.”
“Why would she think that?” Was it something he said or did? But what? He didn’t feel that way about her at all.
“She’s been told that crap for years,” Patrick said. “Angie’s different from the women around here. Always has been. She got teased a lot about that at school until she started kicking ass in sports.”
Was that why she was shutting him out? Was it because she believed he was faking his attraction? He thought she complained because it reminded her of their past. Could it be because she felt insecure about her sex appeal?
“And remember,” Patrick said, “you didn’t hear it from me.”
Cole nodded absently, trying to think of a time when Angie had felt shy with him. “And I promise, I’m not going to cause any problems with Angie and the wedding.”
“We’ll see about that,” Patrick muttered as he left the office. “I won’t hesitate to kick you out of the church.”
“I’ve been warned.” And he deserved to get banned from the ceremony if he tried to sabotage the wedding.
But right now he had more pressing matters. He had to clear up these lies with Angie. Right now. He didn’t want her to think for another moment that she wasn’t good enough for him.
Didn’t she realize that it was the other way around?
* * *
COLE STOOD BY Angie’s apartment door and flexed his hands. He looked around and counted all of the security features that were lacking in her hallway. He hated that she chose to live in a renovated factory in one of the most run-down neighborhoods. But he had to admit that the old brick building suited her. The large arched windows would welcome the rare sunshine and the oddly shaped studio apartment was the perfect backdrop for her flea-market finds and mismatched furniture.