Cole and Liam gawked at each other in silence. Did Cole hear right, or the TV was broken? Or was his ears aching him, all of a sudden?
Did Shantel ust deny what they had together?
No. It wasn't possible.
Liam opened his mouth to speak, but he did know what to say. They could only stare at the TV as the interviewer continued questioning her.
"Really? Do you want to tell us why you aren't in a relationship with someone? Is it that you haven't found the right person, or you're just focused on your career? What is the reason?"
"Well, it's a little bit of both," Shantel replied.
"So, is this an indication to the male fans who are drooling over you that they can shoot their shots and try their luck?"
"Like I said, that one of the reason I'm single right now is because I'm trying to focus on my career, but oh well... You can try you luck," she said with a shrug and a light chuckle, which the interviewer responded with hers.
"Well, it was nice having a conversation with you-"
Before the interviewer could wrap it up, Liam saw a remote control fly from Cole's hands, headed straight for the TV.
"Cole!" Liam screamed in shock at the bluntly shattering sound of the remote control breaking the TV, half of it's body finding it's way into the TV, causing TV's screen to show different colors.
Liam couldn't tell if it was a coincidence or Cole's perfect aim, but it landed perfectly at Shantel's face.
"You need to get a hold of yourself, Cole," Liam said to Cole, his voice showing hint of reprimanding and concern.
"Get a hold of myself? Did you not just hear what that devil said? Didn't you hear her deny our relationship in public?!!" Cole questioned in rage, as he jumped to his feet. The anger in his veins couldn't have him sit in one place. He began pacing from one end of the room to the other.
The fire in Cole's eyes scared Liam so much that his wolf pulled him some steps back in fear, even though he was the one who denied the relationship.
"Still, you need to calm down. You just broke your TV worth half a million bucks, just because of her," Liam said and immediately, Cole stopped pacing and shot Liam a glare.
"Is it the TV that matters the most to you?!!" He inquired in anger.
"What do you want me to say?! She's said what she said. You can't kill yourself over it. There's nothing else to tell me-"
"Then maybe you should go home," Cole said through gritted teeth.
Liam was stunned by Cole's words.
"Are... Are you sending me out of your house?" Liam pointed to himself in shock.
"We'll talk later, Liam. For now, leave my house. I don't need anyone consoling me or justifying her actions. You're not helping matters, so please leave."
Liam hated to leave his best friend like this. This was when he needed him most, but he was right. There was nothing he could do or say now that would calm him down.
Without saying a single word, he broke his eye contact with Cole and turned heading for the door.
He reached the door, but his wolf was holding him back.
"You can't leave him, now! Tell him something! Anything!" His wolf argued.
He closed his eyes and tried to suppress it without saying a word. He turned the door knob and exited the house.
Cole could only watch as Liam left his house in silence. He knew that he wasn't supposed to transfer aggression on his best friend. Liam was only trying to help. But he didn't need his help right now.
When the door slammed shut, he picked up his phone from the sofa and dialed Shantel.
As usual, she didn't answer at the first ring.
He called her again, and she didn't pick.
He kept ringing her line, until the call finally came alive from the other end.
"Cole, what do you want? What is it that you want to tell me that cannot wait? Why do you want to burst my phone with calls-"
"Why did you say you were single?" He cut her off and questioned her.
"What? What are you talking about-"
"Don't play stupid with me, Shantel! This is not the time!! I was watching the fashion show you headline recently, and during the interview, you said you were single, and fans could shoot their shots! What was your reason?!!"
"Oh, that. I didn't know you were going to watch that. You never watch my work, so-"
"So you thought it was appropriate enough for you to say anything you liked? Or is this you trying to flip this on me, now? Answer my question, now!!"
"Look, all this yelling's unnecessary. I'm a model. Fans, event coordinators... Everyone prefers a model with no boyfriend than one with a love life. If I'd said I had a boyfriend, my ratings would dropped immediately. You heard the interviewer say I'm the most sough-after model in the world. Do you think I did that by throwing my business in the sun?!"
"I can't believe this," Cole muttered with a scoff.
"So to you, this is enough excuse to deny what we have together in public? This is what I get after forcing myself to be with you-"
"The audience do not know about me and you together. You've always been private.You're famous in the business world, but not that known in the model world . You're just a boring businessman. So it's not like I spoilt your reputation when I said I was single. As for forcing yourself to be with me, trust me; I also have those feelings too. It's not like we can call what we have a real relationship. I'm not the only one at fault here, you also are. Until you come out publicly to announce that I am your girlfriend, do not bother me,"
"Shantel-"
"If this is the reason you called, I'm going to have to get off this call. I have more important things to do with my time," she said and the next thing was a long beep before the call ended.
Cole stared at the broken TV, lost for words.
Never in his life had he been insulted like this.
Where he stood, he had different emotions flowing his veins.