Coldhearted King (Empty Kingdom, #1)

by L.M. Dalgleish

I look her mother right in the eye. “Now I believe love is there if you look for it, regardless of who you are, and if you’re lucky enough to find it, you hold on to it with everything you have. I think the only people who don’t deserve love are those who refuse to believe in it, even when it’s right there in front of them.”

“Of course, that’s the easy part,” she says. “Now you have to convince her. Do you have a plan for that? Or are you going to wing it the way you just did?” I grimace. “To be honest, I haven’t thought past getting to see her again.” There’s a noise outside, and she looks toward the front door. “Well, I think you’re going to get your chance.”

I stand firm. “Why are you here, Cole? I’m pretty sure I said everything I had to say to you at the awards night.”

“Is that an apology?” I ask.

His brow creases a little, his hands coming up as if he wants to grip my arms and pull me toward him. Thankfully, he doesn’t make contact, letting them fall back to his side. “Not enough of one. I’m sorry, Delilah. I’m sorry for all of it—every bit of pain I caused you. But I’m here to make it right. I’m here to win you back.”

“Cole, there is no winning me back. I may not have said the words, but I was offering you my heart. I stood there in front of you, begging you not to leave me, and you walked away and put a ring on Jessica’s finger. I’m sorry things didn’t work out for you two, but that doesn’t mean you get to come running back to m...

He doesn’t let that deter him, though. “I want another chance to be the man you need, Delilah.” “No.” Tears fill my eyes and I shake my head. “I already gave you a second chance. I’m sick of having to give everyone a second chance. My father was given all the chances in the world to be in my life. I gave Paul a second chance and look where that got me. I shouldn’t have to give everyone more than one chance to love me.”

Then his presence looms behind me. “You’re right. You shouldn’t need to give me another chance, because I should have realized what I had before I lost you. But I’m going to fix this. I’m going to fix us.”

He ducks his head so he can meet my gaze with unwavering eyes. “There’ll be an us in my heart forever, Delilah. Even if there isn’t in yours anymore. I’m not leaving until I’ve done everything in my power to convince you that you’ll never have to give anyone else a second chance again. I’ll be the last chance you’ll ever need to take.”

But I’m too hurt, and my heart is too scarred to open for him again so easily. He says he’ll stay until he convinces me there’s still an us, but I bet he’ll be gone as soon as he’s needed in New York. And then I’ll know. I’ll know exactly what I’m worth to Cole King.

“I’m not trying to buy your heart back. It’s worth far more than I have.”

“Then why did you think turning up here with a new car and a plot of land would win you any favors?” His eyes darken. “Because it’s the only thing I can offer you—the only thing I can give you that you need.”

A relationship isn’t supposed to be transactional that way. It’s about being with someone because you can’t imagine not being with them. It’s about sharing your heart and soul with someone, knowing they see you for who you really are—that they understand you in a way no one else can.”

He nods, steps closer, and reaches up to brush a strand of hair off my face. “I’ll do better next time.” “Next time?” I say weakly. “I thought you’d have to go back to New York soon.” “I don’t need New York. I need you.”

His lips tip up at the corners a little. “I’m not giving up, Delilah.” It’s all he says before he turns and walks down the path toward the driver and car waiting for him.

“He was using his money, that’s true, and it’s not how he should try to win you back. But you have to remember, that’s all he knows. It’s how he’s lived his life, and it’s not always easy to change that way of thinking. And . . .” Mom pauses for a moment, her expression turning soft. “He knows you, Delilah. It might not look that way on the face of it, but he knows you.”

“For better or worse, you’ve driven yourself so hard all your life. Why is that?” I swallow past the lump in my throat. “Because I want to give you a better life.” I admit it, saying the words to her for the first time. “The life stolen from you when you got pregnant with me. I want you to be happy and have nice things—”

“If he was just throwing his money around, he would have used it to buy you jewelry or fancy clothes you don’t want. He would have bought you a car. He wasn’t using his money to impress you. He was using it to give you something you care deeply about.”

“I think you should give him a chance, Delilah. If I didn’t believe he was truly sorry and that he cares about you, I’d never say it. But he does care. A lot. He just hasn’t quite figured out the best way to show you yet.”

And I know I’ve spent your life telling you to be cautious with men—with giving them your body and your heart—because I didn’t want you to go through the same pain I did with your dad. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want you to experience great love, and you’ll never know if Cole could be that for you if you don’t take a chance. From what you’ve told me, he didn’t have much love growing up, so maybe he doesn’t know how to express that part of himself. But he’s trying, Delilah. It might take him some practice, and it might take you to show him the way, but I can’t think of anyone better to show him how to love with his whole heart than you.”

Unfortunately, I haven’t come up with another plan yet. Everything I think of involves money in some way. So for now, I’ll just keep showing up. Being near Delilah, even if she hasn’t forgiven me, is far better than spending hours alone in my hotel room. And maybe something will come to me when I see her.

“Hello?” Delilah’s mom pops her head around the corner. “Oh, Cole. I’m back here, honey.” I pause at the term of endearment. Sure, I’ve had women call me that before, when they were trying to be cute or seductive, and it never did a thing for me. But hearing it from Delilah’s mom, spoken with an undercurrent of what seems to be genuine affection, tightens my chest.

Pain pierces my chest. It’s something I never would have imagined wanting before, and now the thought of not having it feels like an unbearable loss.

She stops in her tracks when she sees me. What thoughts are running around behind those pretty green eyes when she looks at me? “Hi,” she says softly. “You came back.” “Of course.” Didn’t she believe me when I said I wasn’t going anywhere? “And you’re helping Mom plant beets?” I glance down at my fingers wrapped around the spade. “It appears so.”

You’ll have to take a photo and send it to my brothers.” She’s silent for a moment, dropping seeds into the holes I’m digging. “Do they know where you are?” “I told them I was coming to try to get you back at the same time I told them I wouldn’t marry Jessica.”

“And your brothers didn’t have a problem with that?” I face her then. “There was an intense discussion, but once they realized how serious I was, they came through.” Her eyes brighten. “They showed up for you.”

I nod. “Maybe there’s hope for my brothers and me after all.” “I’m happy for you, Cole.”

“I enjoy talking to you like this, Delilah,” I say softly. “I like being in the house where you grew up. But I want to make it crystal clear why I’m here. I’m here for you. I want a future with you. I’m not just looking for a casual fling or your friendship. I want all of you, heart, body, and soul. The only future I can envision now is one with you by my side.

“I love it,” I say, hoping she can hear the sincerity in my voice. “I love what I see so much that I don’t think I can live without seeing it anymore.” My eyes drift over her face, drinking in every detail.

Her breath turns uneven. “I had the impression you didn’t believe in love.”

“I didn’t believe in much of anything until I met you,” I admit. “You showed me what love looks like, how it fe...

“Delilah, I will never let you go again. It’s not an option for me. Before you, my life was empty—I was empty—and I didn’t even know it. I can’t go back to that. I won’t. And I’m not just saying that because I need you to forgive me and love me again. I mean it. I will always mean it. I won’t let anything come between us. Not money, not my company, nothing. You are the most important thing to me. You’ve changed everything, and I can’t imagine going back to the way I was before, thinking wealth and power were enough to make me happy. It’s you, Delilah. You’re what makes me happy.”

“I never knew you were so poetic.”

“I love you, Delilah. It took me too long to admit it to myself, and not because I didn’t feel it—fuck, it was because I was feeling too much of everything I’d never felt before. But now that I’ve said it, I don’t plan to stop. Maybe one day, if you forgive me, you’ll be able to say it ba⁠—”

“I love you, Cole. I never stopped, as much as I wanted to. And I won’t make you wait for me to say it, because I’ve already forgiven you.” And right there, in her mother’s garden, with the setting sun bathing her in golden light, she kisses me.

“Thank you, Ted,” Mom replies, finally deigning to look up at him. “Is there some reason you’ve come over here?” I’m so proud of her composure. For a moment he looks uncomfortable. But only for a moment. “I saw that you’re dining with Cole King tonight,” he says, and it all becomes clear.

“Cole is my boyfriend. But I’m sure you know that already.”

“I’ve been wanting to meet you. I have some fantastic investment opportunities I think you’ll be⁠—” “You don’t,” Cole says. My father stops, obviously confused. “Sorry?” “You don’t have any investment opportunities I’d be interested in, because you no longer own the majority share of your company. The King Group does.”

He gives her the smile I love to see. One filled with the easy affection that has grown between them over the eight months Cole and I have officially been together. It warms my heart to see him receive the type of maternal care he never received growing up. To be short, she mothers him and the big, bad billionaire that he is eats it up.

There’s a brush of knuckles down my spine, and then, “Turn around.” I bite my lower lip in anticipation of what’s coming, and I turn, only to gasp when my eyes drop and I see him on one knee. He’s holding out a turquoise ring box, with the most beautiful diamond engagement ring shimmering against the satin material inside.

“I love you in a way I didn’t know was even possible. From the moment you sat down next to me in that bar, you’ve made me feel things I’ve never felt before. Every time I think I can’t love you more, you prove me wrong. Being with you makes me want to be a better man. The kind of man who can be a good husband and”—he takes a deep breath, his grip on the ring box tightening—“a good father.”

“I want to spend the rest of my life showing you how much I love you.” Cole’s voice becomes deeper, rougher. “I need to know I can make every one of your days happy. So please, kitten, marry me. Be my wife and let me show you just how incredible our lives can be together.” His brows lower, his eyes glittering with intensity. “And don’t forget what you promised.”

“Yes, Cole.”