by Anna Blakely
He’d no more said the words when a happy, pleasant voice came from his parents’ quaint front porch.
“There’s my boy!”
Coop turned to see his mom coming down the sidewalk to greet them. “Hey, mom.”
“Don’t you hey, mom, me. Get over here and give me a hug.”
He slid a look to Mac and winked. “Told ya.” Coop made it all of two feet before his mom pulled him in for a big bear hug.
“What a nice surprise.” She held him close and patted his back. “What brings you out this way?”
Stepping out of her loving embrace, he played it casual. “The team has some time off, and I finally convinced my partner to come see how the other half live. I hope it’s okay if we stay a few days.”
“Of course it is.” She stepped around him. “You must be McKenna. It is so good to finally meet you.”
“It’s nice to meet you, too, Mrs. Cooper.” Mac returned his mother’s hug.
“Please. Mrs. Cooper was my mother-in-law. Call me Cheryl.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
His mom looked back at Coop, her blue eyes gleaming. “Gorgeous and she has manners. I like that.”
“Of course she has manners. She was a Ranger, too, remember?”
“Oh, that’s right.” She gave Mac a grin. “You’re such a cute, tiny thing. It’s hard to picture you as a tough-as-nails soldier like my boy, here.”
Coop snorted. “Trust me, Mom.” He put his arm around his partner’s shoulders. “Mac’s as tough as they come.”
“I suppose she’d have to be to put up with you all this time.”
Mac burst out laughing as Coop clutched his chest and feigned insult. “Taken down by my own mother.”
“Seems like she knows you pretty well,” Mac teased.
To him, his mother ordered, “Grab your things and come inside. You can put them in your old room and then go out to the barn to get your father. I was about to make some lunch. Maybe Mac wouldn’t mind pitching in a hand?”
“Oh, um…I should probably help Coop with the bags.” Mac glanced over at him.
“Nonsense. He’s a strong boy. I’m sure he’ll manage.”
When his mother started back toward the house, Mac stammered a bit before catching up with her. “Oh, uh…o-okay. I’d be happy to help.” As she followed his mom up the porch steps, she shot him a doe-eyed look from over her shoulder.
Coop nearly laughed out loud at the terrified look on Mac’s face. With a wink and a smirk, he turned away, leaving the complicated woman to deal with his sweet, but sometimes overbearing, mother on her own.
If they were going to be together for the long haul —and he was bound and determined to make that happen—Mac was going to have to learn what being a Cooper was all about.
“Is this enough, or do I need to keep slicing?” Mac held the knife steady and waited to see what Coop’s mom wanted her to do.
“I think that’ll be plenty. Here.” Cheryl handed her the platter of meat and cheese. “Why don’t you go ahead and set this on the table, and I’ll put those onions over here with the tomatoes.”
Doing as she was told, Mac took the platter from the woman’s hands and carried it over to the round, wooden table next to the section of windows in the corner of the room.
“You have a beautiful home.” She made her way back over to start gathering the condiments.
“Thank you.” Coop’s mom smiled. “The land originally belonged to my in-laws. Shortly after Sean was born, they offered to sell a portion to Sean’s dad and I for a heck of a price. Of course, we knew we’d never get land like this that cheap anywhere else, so we went straight to the bank, secured the loan, and bought it. Over the years as they got older, we started purchasing even more of their land. Acre by acre, until we got to where we are now.”
“How much land do you have total?”
“Two hundred acres.”
Mac made a low, whistling sound. “That’s a lot of land.”
“Not as much as some, but we do all right. It gives us the privacy we enjoy, plus there are a couple of ponds on the property where Robert and the kids like to fish.”
“Not you?”
“Nah.” Cheryl shook her head. “I get too bored sitting and waiting for a fish to bite. The deal’s always been, they catch it and clean it, and I’ll cook it.”
She couldn’t help but smile. “Sounds like a pretty good deal to me.”
Coop walked into the kitchen from the back door. “Bags are all upstairs, and Dad’s on his way from the barn.” His eyes met hers. “You two got everything ready, or have you been too busy talking about me?”
Mac shook her head. “Sorry to disappoint you, but we have better things to talk about than you.”
“Oh, really?” He sauntered up to her, her heart skipping at the hungry look in his eyes. “Such as?”
“Your mom was telling me about how she and your dad bought this land from your grandparents.”
“That, they did. What else did you talk about?”
“Fishing.”
He grinned. “We catch it. She cooks it.”
“Don’t forget you have to clean it, first.”
Coop’s smile grew wide, his eyes shining in a way she’d never seen before. It had to be this place. He was home with his family, and he was happy.
I’d love to give him that someday. A home and a family.
Taken off guard by those mega-serious thoughts, Mac cleared her throat and looked away. “We, uh, have some ham and turkey on the table. Oh, and there’s cheese, too.”
“Did you say your father was coming?” Coop’s mom asked.
Cheryl looked toward the back door at the same time a man who looked like an older version of Coop walked through it. The resemblance was uncanny.
“Never mind.” The sweet woman grinned. “There he is, now.”
“I heard a rumor there was food, so I figured I’d better come check it out for myself.” The older man unabashedly leaned down to give his wife a quick kiss on the cheek. “Looks good, baby. I’m starved.”
“Well, it’s ready, so wash your hands and have a seat.”
Coop waited for his dad to dry his hands before introducing her to him. “Dad, this is Mac. Mac, this is my father.”
“Mr. Cooper.” Mac held out her hand.
“Pleasure to finally meet you, Mac. And please, call me Robert.”
“Nice to meet you, Robert.”
“That’s quite a firm handshake for a young lady.” The man smiled. “Of course, from what Sean tells us, you’re quite the operative.”
Feeling herself blush, Mac’s eyes slid from Coop’s father to him and back. “I try.”
“I’m sure you do. Come on. Let’s all sit for a spell and fill our bellies.”
Nearly an hour later, the four had engaged in a lot of small talk while eating a fulfilling lunch of sandwiches and homemade potato salad. When they were finished, everyone pitched in to help Cheryl clean up the mess and put the leftover food away.
Mac was about to ask Coop what they were going to do next when Cheryl said, “So, Mac. I was going to spend this afternoon planting some new flowers out front. Would you like to help?”
Suddenly feeling very inadequate, Mac was embarrassed to admit, “I’d love to, but I’ve never actually planted flowers before.”
Coop’s mother looked appalled. “Never?”
“Nope.”
“She grew up in Manhattan, Mom. Probably not a lot of opportunity to garden there.”
“Oh, that’s right.” The older woman shook her head at herself. “You told me that once.” Removing her adorable apron, she laid it over the edge of the ceramic, farmhouse style sink and looked back at Mac. “Well I’d say it’s high time you learned how to do a bit of gardening.”
Surprisingly, Mac found herself excited by the idea. “I agree.” She looked down at her jeans and white blouse. “Should I change first?”
“I have an extra knee pad you can use, so your jeans
should be fine. But that blouse will be ruined if you try planting in it.” To Coop she said, “Sean, why don’t you run upstairs and get her one of your old t-shirts? There should still be plenty in your dresser.”
Coop raised his brows. “You still have that stuff in there?”
“Of course, I do. You never know when you’re gonna need an old shirt to work in.” Cheryl pointed to Mac. “Case in point.”
Remembering Coop’s blunder of the common phrase, Mac bit her lip to keep from laughing.
Not paying them any attention, Cheryl spoke while she made her way to the back door. “I’ll go get everything ready while you change, dear. Sean, get this girl a proper gardening shirt and then you can help your father with whatever it is he’s working on in the barn.”
Grinning at his son, Coop’s dad tipped his head. Turning for the back door he said, “You know where to find me.”
Coop gave Mac a look as he passed by on his way out of the kitchen. “I saw that.”
“What?” Mac rolled her lips inward to keep from laughing out loud.
Throughout lunch, he’d said a few subtle, flirty things. At first, she thought he was doing it to get under her skin since his parents were right there.
After a bit, she realized he was just being Coop. Her fun-loving partner who always joked and flirted with her. Only now, the flirting seemed like more than a friend goofing around. It seemed real.
Because it is real.
Despite the fact that his mom and dad had been sitting next to them, Mac actually caught herself flirting back a couple of times. With his parents out of the house, she suddenly wanted nothing more than to follow him upstairs and have her way with him, right there in his old bedroom.
Instead, she planted her feet and waited for him in the kitchen.
Minutes later, he returned from upstairs holding an extremely worn t-shirt in his hands. He handed it to her “Here you go. There’s a bathroom around the corner on your way to the living room. You can change in there.”
Mac held up the Poison concert t-shirt and grinned. “You’re letting me wear your favorite band’s t-shirt?”
Coop’s lips spread into a wide grin. “Brett Michaels was instrumental, no pun intended, in pumping me up before every high school football game I ever played.”
She looked at the shirt again. “And what…you thought I needed to get pumped up before I help your mom plant flowers?”
Chuckling, that grin turned into a sexy smirk. Flickers of heat ran over her skin when his voice turned low. “I picked this one because, well, I wanted to see you in it.”
Her insides fluttered, but Mac held her reaction in. Shaking her head, she tried to give it back.
“I don’t want to wear this to work in the yard.”
“It’s fine, Mac.” Coop pushed the shirt toward her. “Seriously, this shirt has seen a lot of sweat and dirt. Trust me.”
“I know.”
The space between his dark brows scrunched together. “So what’s the problem? Why don’t you want to wear it?”
“Oh, I want to wear it.” She gave him her best sultry look. “To bed.”
Coop’s pupils dilated, his hard swallow more than a little audible. “I’ll get another shirt.”
Before Mac could tell him she was only kidding—because she was serious about not disrespecting his parents by sleeping with their son in their house—the silly man was spinning around and running back upstairs.
Yes, she’d been teasing, but after seeing his reaction, Mac began to think putting it on later would be the perfect way to torture him. The thought made her smile.
The real reason for their visit to his parents’ place was serious, and they needed to continue working on figuring out who’d sent her those pictures. But that didn’t mean they couldn’t still have a little fun while they were here, right?
9
Coop watched his mom and Mac talk and laugh while they planted some bright red flowers along the edge of the house. He hadn’t brought a girl home here since high school, and even with them, he’d never felt a sense of belonging the way he did when he saw Mac with his parents.
She belonged here. With him.
“So you gonna tell me why you’re really here, or should I guess?”
He looked over at his dad. “I told you why.”
“No, you told me what you wanted your mother and I to hear. I’m asking for the truth.”
“What makes you think I haven’t been truthful?”
“Fatherly instinct.” His dad set down the piece of wood he’d been cutting and turned to him. “Son, other than holidays, you haven’t come home to stay for more than a few hours since you were still active duty. And you haven’t been able to take your eyes off your girl for more than a minute or two at a time.”
Shit. Coop thought he was being careful about that. Not wanting his dad to worry, he went with the lesser of two evils.
“You know me. I’ve always been a sucker for a pretty girl.”
His dad laughed. “Yes, that is true.”
“So is this.” He drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I like her, Dad. A lot. We’ve been partners and friends a long time, and recently we’ve become…”
“More than that?”
Coop grinned. “Yeah. A lot more.”
“I’m happy for you, son. I truly am.”
“But?”
“But there’s still something you’re not telling me.”
“Dad, I’d rather not—”
“I can see the concern shining in those eyes of yours.” The intuitive man cut him off. “Now, I could be way off base, and if I am, feel free to tell me. But I think Mac’s in trouble, and I think you brought her here to keep her safe.”
How does he do that? Coop didn’t bother to deny it.
“You always have been able to see right through me.”
His dad smiled smugly. “One of the many gifts God bestowed upon me.”
“You’re right, Dad.” He slid his hands into his pockets. “Someone from Mac’s past is trying to get to her. We thought we knew who it was, but it turns out we were wrong.”
“So you two came here to hide out.”
“Basically. But don’t worry. I wouldn’t have come here if I thought it would put you and Mom in harm’s way. The danger to her seems to be centered in New Jersey, where Mac lived as a teenager after her parents died.”
“What does she think about being here?”
“She thinks we’d be fine staying in Dallas, but until we figure out who our target is, I didn’t want to take any chances.” He glanced out the barn window at the two women. “Not with her.”
“You in love with her?”
Coop’s gaze shot back to his dad’s. “I…we’re partners. We’ve always got each other’s backs, and—”
“That’s not what I asked, son.”
His chest tightened, his fingertips tingling. Coop had never admitted it out loud. Not to anyone. Until now.
“Yeah, Dad.” He stared at her beautiful form through the glass pane. “I love her.”
“I take it you haven’t told her yet?”
“No.” Coop shook his head. “Our…personal relationship is new. Plus, with everything that’s been going on, I thought maybe it would be best to wait.”
“I’m probably the wrong person to have this conversation with, because waiting’s never been my thing.”
Coop smiled at the other man. “No, it hasn’t. You and Mom knew each other, what, a month before you proposed?”
“Five weeks and two days.” His dad grinned. “It’s true what they say, Sean. When you know, you know. If God’s telling you she’s the one, you should listen to Him.”
“Mac’s not like Mom, Dad.” He ran a hand over his jaw. “Her family…let’s just say she had a pretty rough time growing up.” Coop went with the massive understatement to protect Mac’s privacy. “I’m really worried about her.”
His dad stepped up next to him. The two men looked out the same win
dow together. At the women they loved.
“Given everything you’ve seen and experienced, Sean, you know how life can change on a dime. When your mom and I were dating, everyone had an opinion. Most thought it was far too soon to be thinking about marriage. But in the end, it was my life. Our life.”
“After forty-plus years together, I’d say you proved the naysayers wrong.” Coop grinned.
With a hand on Coop’s shoulder, the wise man continued on. “This is your life, Sean. You need to do what you believe in your heart is right.” His dad paused a bit before asking, “Do you still pray?”
“Sometimes,” he answered his father honestly.
“Good. You know, all that training you’ve had, those big guns you use…those are all very powerful weapons. But praying, that’s a power that’s become highly underrated in this day and age.”
Not that he didn’t agree with the wise man, but Coop had to ask. “What’s your point, Dad?”
“You should turn to God, son. Ask Him to help you protect that sweet girl. While you’re at it, get His opinion on the other. Maybe you’ll be guided toward building a future with Mac. Maybe you won’t. One way or another, He’ll show you the path that’s right for you both.”
“Thanks, Dad.” Coop patted his father’s hand. He saw his mom and Mac stand up and brush themselves off. “Looks like they’re finished for the day. I think I’ll go give Mac the ten-cent tour.”
“Be sure to be back before supper’s on the table. You know how your mama gets when you’re late.”
“Oh, I know.” With an exaggerated look and a wave of his hand, Coop walked out of the barn and headed up to the house.
“Flowers look great.” He smiled at them both. “You ladies did a fine job.”
“Yes, we did,” his mom agreed. “Your girl’s a natural.”
Mac laughed. “I don’t know about that, but it was a lot of fun. I do have one question for you, though.” She put her hands on her hips and got serious. “You didn’t actually put red food coloring in your sister’s shampoo when you were fourteen, did you?”
So they’d been talking about him. Interesting.
With feigned innocence, Coop said, “I still plead the fifth on that one.”