There was a brief silence shared between them. Only to be interrupted by Anna's attempt of stepping out of Colton's embrace.
"That's enough Mr. Collins." She tried to pull back by shoving his chest, but her gloves were too big to wedge in between their bodies. "I told you I'm not in the mood for your gam-"
"Anna." Colton's voice was smooth yet demanding. He wanted her attention and he would make sure he would get it. "I already warned you about my uninterest in doing things your way this time. So you either calm down and talk to me, or you're going to be thrashing around in my arms until sunrise." He could see her eyebrows pull together as her eyes lit up in anger.
"You can't act like this just because we have history together." She hadn't stopped squirming in his arms, but her tone stayed professional. Not wanting to give in to his demands. Regardless of how much her pulse quickened.
"It's because of said history that I'm here." His gaze was intense, but his hold on her was gentle. Almost loving. Had he not been forced to keep his arms rigid of course. "I'm not going to make the same mistake as last time. So give it up and talk to me. I know you're mad."
. "If it's a complaint you want then I'll submit a report tomorrow detailing the flaws to your improvised plan. But I'm not going-" She couldn't get the last of the words out.
"Anna." He said with a more serious tone. "I'm not talking to you as an employee." Colton tightened his hold on her and lowered his face. "So unless you want me to end the conversation and make you understand my intentions with action and not words, then I'm begging you to drop it a few notches and talk to me."
Then there was silence. And if the years she had known him taught her anything, it was how serious he was.
Colton had always been the designated goof ball of the group. Although he could command with unwavering confidence and could hold his own against pretty much anybody, he truly was tender hearted. Especially towards his girls. But make no mistake, he could be just as ruthless. The kind of ruthlessness that could only be cultivated in a place as wicked and cruel as the Phoenix Clan. Did Claire bared the grunt of torture in their youth? Absolutely. But Colton had also been born into the main family. Meaning that he could be just as intense as his beloved little sister.
Had it been any other person present in his current state they would have probably buckled with fear. Having such a fierce, bossy and rather intimidating man as big as Colton give an order was grounds to be afraid. Maybe even causing somebody to resent him for acting so demanding. But Anna wasn't one of those people.
She knew that regardless of his occasional iciness, there was no real threat with him around. He would rather chop of his own hands than hurt her. Which was exactly why she always aid him, regardless of how mad she was with him. And it was also why she could never allow herself to be close enough to hurt him. Not again.
"It's not my place to-" Her feeble attempt of keeping her protests going were yet again interrupted.
Colton inched his face even closer to hers while not letting her finish her sentence. "Last warning babe." His voice was so hushed it could have been confused with a whisper.
After a few seconds, she internally sighed. There was no winning in this situation and she knew it. So after stopping her obviously failed attempts at creating space, she just spoke honestly.
"I can't believe you would betray our trust like that." Her eyes were now filled with a deep disappointment.
Colton couldn't help but feel guilty. He would never regret any decision made involving the well being of his girls, but it didn't mean he enjoyed the look on Anna's face.
"I'm sorry I couldn't keep you in the loop this time. But I had to do something and fast." His eyebrows knitted together as if frustrated with his thoughts. "But you can't pretend to not understand why something had to be done."
Even if they weren't always seeing eye to eye, Anna didn't need much to understand what he meant. After all, it concerned her best friend. "She's stronger than what you've portrayed her to be. It wasn't right to go behind her back, keep us in the dark and even recruit somebody we only met a few months ago to help you. I know she's been having a hard time, but she could've handled it if you just-"
"I couldn't." Colton interrupted. "I couldn't handle it. I know better than anyone how much we've invested in this whole operation, but I just....." Something sad swirled around in his eyes. "I couldn't risk letting her lose herself again. I almost lost her last time. I can't.....I can't..."
"I understand." Only two words, yet they were enough. Anna saw and heard everything she needed to. And she truly did understand now. Having seen first hand what he referred to, she could now more than justify why he acted in such haste.
A brief, yet somehow saddened silence, passed between them before she decided to continue. "Have you been able to talk to her?"
"She was already on her way to rip Aiden a new one before I could even reach her." A low nervous chuckle later, he continued. "I'm praying to any and every divine being there is that he's able to get through to her. Who knows what'll be lest of me if he can't."
Anna offered him a gentle smile in response. Another few seconds went by before remembering how close they were. So taking a confident step back, she finally managed to create some much needed distance. Her heart wouldn't have been able to survive much longer.
Colton immediately missed her warmth in his embrace. But having been successful in getting a real conversation out of her, he decided to not push her any further. For now at least.
"I'll leave you to finish your training then." He said with a loving expression on his face. After turning around and hopping towards his crutches, he expertly placed him under his arms and swiftly turned back around. "Remember to get some rest. Goodnight."
Anna watched as he made his way to the door. Alone again, she slumped on to the weight lifting bench and sighed deeply.
"For everybody's sake, I really hope he can get through to her too."