by Terri Osburn
Chapter 15
“You’re killing me, dude,” said Ian O’Malley while rubbing his inexplicably flat abs. “I haven’t eaten since lunch. What are we waiting for?”
Young Mr. O’Malley, Cooper’s cousin on his mother’s side, swallowed more calories in a day than could be found in one of Lorelei’s cookie displays, yet he remained skinny as a rail. The family had long ago determined that Ian had the metabolism of a hummingbird. Ironic, since he moved at the speed of a drunk slug.
“Not everyone is here yet,” Cooper explained, not for the first time. “The grill is hot and once the meat hits the fire, it won’t take long.”
“Let me cut the brisket,” Ian begged. “That’s been done for hours. If I don’t get something soon, I’m gonna start gnawing on my boots.”
“If you don’t shut up, you’re going to be sitting on my boot.”
“Aw, jeez,” the younger man grumbled.
“Time to set up the buffet line,” Lorelei said as she and Caleb positioned bowls and casserole dishes on the table to Cooper’s right.
“Everyone isn’t here yet,” he reminded them. Abby had let him know two days before that all four females in the house would be joining them. And they would get their food hot and fresh off the grill like everyone else.
“Relax, big boy,” Caleb said. “Carrie says Haleigh’s car just pulled up.”
Unexpected nerves sent his stomach buzzing like a hive knocked from a tree. Haleigh had been to his house before, but she hadn’t seen his pride and joy. Like any man, Cooper felt the inside of the house served no other purpose than to hold his stuff and keep him from getting wet in the rain.
But the backyard. That was where a man lived.
“I hope we aren’t too late,” Haleigh said as she handed Cooper a bucket of fried chicken. “The drive-thru was slow. My mother would be scandalized if I showed up at a social gathering empty-handed.”
Cooper couldn’t respond. Haleigh never failed to look pretty, but with the color high on her cheeks, a layer of gloss on her lips, and hair shining like spun gold in the light of the tiki torches, she took his breath away. Signs of exhaustion around her eyes were the only hint of imperfection in an otherwise flawless face.
Pulling himself together, he said, “You can never have too much food when Ian is around.”
“Ian?” she asked.
“You remember the little kid who went around stealing everyone’s bread during Thanksgiving dinner?”
“Sticky Fingers O’Malley?”
Cooper chuckled at the old nickname. “We all thought he’d grow up to be a thief, but it turned out he just likes food. A lot.”
Abby walked by with a wave, but said nothing. Jessi approached holding Emma on her shoulder. “Where can I change her?” she asked.
“I’ll show you,” Carrie answered before Cooper could open his mouth. “The bed in the back bedroom works great.”
As the two mothers disappeared into the house, Haleigh said, “Carrie knows a lot about your bedrooms.”
Refusing to take the bait, he said, “Is there a question in there somewhere?”
She shook her head. “You two just seem like a sensible pairing. Spencer and Lorelei. Caleb and Snow. You and Carrie.”
Leaning close as if sharing a secret, Cooper said, “If you’re trying to suss out the truth of my availability, I promise that I am one hundred percent single.”
“You’re so full of yourself,” she said with a grin. “It’s a wonder all those baseball caps you wear actually fit on your big head.”
He raised a brow. “You really want to give me an opening like that?”
“Please.” Her efforts to appear unamused failed miserably.
Loading the grill with marinated ribs, he said, “You’re in a good mood tonight.”
With a teasing smirk, she said, “Is there a question in there somewhere?”
“A smart-ass remark. Definitely the sign of a good mood.”
Haleigh sighed. “I didn’t want to come any more than Abby did, but that’s the reason I’m here. If we’re both antisocial at the same time, there’s no hope for either of us. She’s dragged me from the abyss on more than one occasion. It’s about time that I returned the favor.”
Cooper took the opportunity to point out what Haleigh would never see on her own. “That’s the kind of thing that a good person would do.”
“More like a guilty person,” she snorted. “I’m running out of IOUs to hand out.”
If they kept going in this direction, he and Haleigh would end up in another standoff. Cooper brought them back to the subject of Abby.
“Do you think having Jessi and the baby around is making her worse?”
Snatching a peanut-butter-filled celery stalk from the table, Haleigh looked to be contemplating her answer. “She was already moody before Jessi moved in. And the only time I see her smile anymore is when she’s holding Emma and doesn’t think anyone is watching.”
“I talked to Miss Hattie about this J.T. person.” Cooper flipped the chicken breasts. “She’d never heard of anyone in town going by that name, and she’s lived here her whole life.”
“It’s obvious that Jessi’s mother made up this J.T. person,” Haleigh sighed. “But how are we going to tell her that? And if she does finally give up this pointless hunt, where will she go?”
He felt as if they were devising a way to tell a child that Santa Claus was a fraud. “What’s the harm in letting her think we’re still looking for him?”
“Again with the lying,” she said. “But in this case, a tiny fib might not be a bad idea. Still, are you going to tell Abby that this temporary arrangement might not be so temporary? She’s been the person most put out by all this.”
Cooper spotted Abby talking to Lorelei and Snow. She was almost smiling. Getting her out was definitely the right thing to do.
“I’ll tell her. Which reminds me, how did you get her to come?”
“Funny story,” Haleigh said, but she didn’t sound amused. “No lie required. I simply told her about the invitation and said I was coming whether she did or not.”
That didn’t explain why Abby agreed to come. “You lost me,” he said.
Pointing toward Abby with her celery stick, she said, “She doesn’t trust my intentions toward you.”
Liking the sound of that, Cooper said, “You have intentions toward me? I think we should explore this further.”
Haleigh rolled her eyes. “She thinks I’m going to break your heart. Which is ridiculous because you’re Cooper and I’m a walking disaster and no one knows either of those facts better than I do.”
He definitely didn’t like the sound of that. “Skipping the I’m Cooper bit, because I have a feeling that’s the sainthood bull crap again, let’s clear up the second part. You are not a walking disaster.”
“Come on, Coop,” Ian cut in. “I’m shriveling down to nothing over here, and the smell coming off that grill says the food is done.” Sparing Haleigh a glance, his cousin did a double take. “Hello, gorgeous.”
“Hey yourself, O’Malley. The last time I saw you, your head had yet to grow into your ears.” Haleigh grinned. “It’s nice to see some things never change.”
“Dude,” he mumbled out the side of his mouth as if Haleigh couldn’t hear him. “How does she know my name?”
Cooper transferred a rack of ribs onto a platter, then waved his tongs toward his cousin. “Big ears and very little between them,” he said. “Ian, this is Haleigh Rae Mitchner. She’s Abby’s best friend who used to spend holidays with us. Which means she knows not to let you too close to her plate.”
“Aw, I don’t steal rolls anymore.”
“A true sign of maturity,” Haleigh said with a wink.
“That smells awesome,” Jessi said as she joined them, hands empty and looking like the cat who’d just spotted a canary. “Hi,” she greeted Ian. “I don’t think we’ve met.”
Of course they hadn’t met. She’d been in town less than two
weeks, and spent most of that time shut in with a newborn.
“I’m Ian,” the bean stalk said with a familiar look of awe on his face. “Ian O’Malley. Cooper here’s my cousin.”
“I like the name Ian.”
“Jessi is pretty, too.”
Well, hell. “I thought you were hungry,” Cooper said to Ian. “Get yourself a plate.”
“I can wait,” he answered, eyes locked on Jessi’s brown ones. “Did you get a drink yet?” he asked her.
“Not yet. You want to show me where they are?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
As the pair walked off, Cooper yelled, “Nonalcoholic,” but the kids had already tuned him out.
“That girl moves fast,” Haleigh said.
Cooper loaded the platter with the rest of the ribs. “Too fast. She’ll eat that boy up and he won’t know what hit him.”
Haleigh watched the young couple with a tilt of her head. “I don’t know. Maybe a boy like Ian would be good for her.”
“You mean spending time with a guy who doesn’t knock girls up and then take off?”
“Yeah,” Haleigh agreed. “Why not?”
“Why not, indeed,” he said, recognizing an opening when it came his way. “Which leads to the conclusion that spending time with a nice guy who doesn’t treat a woman like crap would be good for you.”
With narrowed eyes, Haleigh held Cooper’s gaze as she yelled, “Food is up! Everybody come eat.”
The food was excellent. And the company wasn’t so bad either. As often happened at these sorts of gatherings, the women split off on their own, while the men lingered around the grill, patting each other on the back and talking about sports or things that go boom. At least that’s what Haleigh assumed men talked about.
Most men, she corrected. Marcus preferred subjects such as net worth and Italian leather shoes.
“How do you like being home?” Lorelei asked Haleigh. “I can’t imagine leaving Memphis for Ardent Springs.”
“You left LA,” Haleigh pointed out.
“Touché. But I never intended to stay here.”
Venturing into territory that likely wasn’t any of her business, Haleigh asked, “Then why did you?”
“For lurve,” Snow answered for her friend.
Without argument, Lorelei said, “Damn right. Nothing else would have done it.”
“I’ve never lived anywhere else,” Abby said, “but I don’t think Ardent Springs is so bad.”
“Neither does Lorelei,” Carrie chimed in. “Regardless of what she says.”
“Hey.” Lorelei pointed at Carrie. “I have a rep to protect.”
A collective spurt of laughter erupted at that statement, though Haleigh couldn’t help but notice Abby’s lack of mirth.
“Speaking of love,” Snow said, “your new mother seems to be smitten over there.”
Ian and Jessi had been the one exception to the gender break out. They’d been talking since dinner, and Haleigh had to give the young man credit for not running scared the moment he met Emma. Especially since her choice of greeting had been to hurl down the front of his shirt. He was currently pushing them both on Cooper’s rope swing.
“From what I’ve heard, her taste in guys has left much to be desired,” Haleigh said. “Please tell me Ian doesn’t fancy himself a playboy?”
“Hardly,” Abby snorted. “He rarely musters up the courage to talk to a girl. I’m surprised he made it this far.”
“Jessi made the first move, and I don’t think she gave him a choice but to talk to her.”
“I like a girl with chutzpah,” Lorelei said.
“Chutzpah is what landed her in the maternity ward,” Haleigh pointed out. “If she manages to grow a little common sense to go with it, her future will be a lot simpler.”
“She’s already a single mom,” Abby said. “How simple could it be?”
“I’m a single mom, and my life isn’t so bad,” Carrie interjected. “You make it sound like a handicap.”
Abby doubled-down. “Her life is going to be harder now than it would have been if she’d not had a baby. That’s just a fact.”
“You don’t know that,” Carrie argued. “There are worse things in life than having a baby on your own. She could have ended up with a guy who used her for a punching bag. Trust me, that’s a crappier life than raising a little one by yourself.”
“Who wants another drink?” Haleigh asked. “I’m buying.” Why Abby had turned anti-single-mom was a mystery, but this was no time for a cat fight.
“I need to check on Molly,” Carrie said. The little girl had fallen asleep less than an hour before and had been put down in a playpen in the kitchen.
As the offended mother strode into the house, Abby said, “I need a break,” and took off around the side of Cooper’s house, presumably toward the front porch. Or maybe to the car. Haleigh wouldn’t be surprised if she sat in the Fusion for the rest of the evening. At least she hadn’t demanded that they leave. Yet. Shocking as it sounded, Haleigh was actually having a good time.
She hadn’t hung out with a group of women in a long time, and the lazy feeling of having nowhere to be and nothing that she should be doing felt refreshingly liberating. Technically, she should have been sleeping, but as someone famous once said, she could sleep when she was dead.
Or retired. Either way, Haleigh wasn’t ready for the cookout to end.
Lorelei broke the silence. “That wasn’t awkward at all.”
“Not a bit,” Haleigh agreed. She could have apologized for her friend, but Abby’s behavior belonged to Abby alone. If anyone gave an apology, it would have to be her.
“Oh, hey,” Lorelei said. “Has Cooper introduced you to his ladies?”
“Um . . .” Haleigh mumbled. “His what?”
“Cooper!” she hollered across the expansive back yard. “You need to show Haleigh where you keep your girls.”
As if this wasn’t the most bizarre request ever, Cooper saluted with his beer bottle, excused himself from the men, and headed their way.
“Okay,” Haleigh said, dragging the word out. “This should be interesting.”
“It’s quite posh, actually,” Snow assured her as Cooper took Haleigh’s hand.
“Come on,” he said. “Let’s take a walk.”
Too stunned and confused to argue, Haleigh allowed Cooper to lead her into a copse of trees. The daunting thought occurred that this was exactly how teenage girls ended up murdered in all those horror movies. Lured by the cute guy to find a secluded spot where they could get frisky, and then bam, out jumped the serial killer.
“Whoever these girls are, they’re alive, right?”
“From saint to murderer,” he said, navigating them along a stone pathway. “You really need to make up your mind about me.”
“Just keep walking, smart-ass,” she murmured. “And don’t get any funny ideas.”
Heaven knew she was having enough for the both of them.
Chapter 16
“I’m not sure if they’re outside or not, but they make an appearance when I turn on the light.” Cooper flipped two switches on the side of the shed and waited.
“You have to be kidding me,” Haleigh said. “Is that a chicken coop?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Are there chickens in it?”
“Nope,” he teased. “Rhinos.”
That earned him a smack on the arm. “Don’t be a jerk. I can’t believe you have chickens.” When she noticed the sign over the door, she said, “Coop’s Coop? Really?”
He gave a half shrug. “That’s what it is.”
As Haleigh inspected his latest project, Cooper took the opportunity to study her. In the moonlight, her hair glowed like braided reeds of wheat, while her lashes created tiny shadows on her cheeks. The face almost always etched with skepticism softened to resemble the girl who’d teased him over his cereal bowl and helped him pass geometry.
When they were kids, Haleigh had been fearless. The first to
jump in the pool or flip on the trampoline. In their teen years, she’d pulled back. Preferred studying over skateboards. The library over loud parties on the river bank. Cooper couldn’t help but believe the gutsy young girl remained buried in there somewhere. Based on the look that crossed her face as the girls popped out of the coop, his suspicions were confirmed.
“Oh my gosh,” she said. “There they are. I haven’t seen chickens up close like this since elementary school when they took us out to Silvestri’s farm and called it a field trip.”
“I loved those trips,” Cooper said, remembering how Haleigh had shrieked as they chased the pigs. “You would have caught that piglet if the other one hadn’t tripped you up.”
Haleigh grinned. “I had the taste of mud in my mouth for a week.” Wrapping her fingers around the chicken wire, she said, “I can’t remember the last time I thought about those trips. Feels like a lifetime ago.”
“A couple decades,” he said. “Not so long.”
“Leave it to you to put a positive spin on us getting twenty years older.” Moving toward the entrance to the run, she said, “Can we go in?”
“Sure,” he said. “I don’t normally feed them this late, but you can throw down some scratch. First, I need to tell you a little about them, so you’re prepared.”
She stared at him as if he’d offered to explain why water is wet. “They’re chickens, Cooper. What else is there to know?”
“The pecking order is very important,” he pointed out.
“Is that supposed to be a pun?” she asked.
Cooper had half a notion to send her in uninformed and let her find out for herself. “Do you want to get closer or not?”
Haleigh sobered, but struggled to keep the smile from her face. “Yes. Of course. Teach me, old wise chicken-tamer.”
“You’ll thank me for this.” Pointing through the chicken wire, he said, “You see that darker one there? That’s Mabel. She rules the roost.”
A snort escaped through her smirk. “You’re doing that on purpose.”
Ignoring her, he continued. “The other two with lighter feathers around their necks are Trixie and Dixie. They try to ruffle Mabel’s feathers now and then, but she rules with an iron beak, so they pretty much stay in line.”