Cooper tilts back and looks at me. “So?” I ask, and he laughs.
“I’m not really sure.”
“It wasn’t bad,” I say quickly.
Cooper gives me a disbelieving look. “It was . . . nice.”
“But . . .” I say.
Out of all the vivid, what-if situations that played in my head, this definitely wasn’t one. I thought maybe the stars and fireworks would explode and we’d be naked, or Cooper would make me forget my name, Trent’s name, or a hundred other amazing experiences. Never did I conjure the idea that the kiss would be awkward or feel as if I were lip locked with a friend in spin the bottle.
Cooper groans and I sit back against the couch. “Unreal. I’ve waited a long time to kiss you like that. I didn’t think it would suck so bad.”
I slap his chest and giggle. “Hey! I’ve been known to be a great kisser.”
“Well, I’ve never had any complaints, either.”
“Yeah, Betsy loved tellin’ all the girls how you stuck your tongue down her throat in seven minutes in heaven.”
“She was a prude.” I lean into his side and let out a little sigh. “How are we so bad at this together? It’s like there’s been something keepin’ us apart from the beginning.”
I drop my head to his shoulder and let out a slow breath. “We shouldn’t’ve had to work so hard at this.” I sit up and tuck my leg under me. “And there has been somethin’ between us, Coop. And even if he’s not here right now—he’s here,” I say as I touch my heart.
“You told me all of that, but I thought I could win you over somehow.”
“I really wish you could’ve.”
I close my eyes and lay my head on his shoulder a split second before a loud screaming noise echoes through the house. The fire alarm blares loudly, and a second later, the house alarm joins it.
Both of us jump, covering our ears against the deafening sound. I look around and see the smoke billowing out from under the kitchen door.
“Shit!” I scream. “The pie!”
It’s been hours, and I completely forgot about the damn pie. Now, my house is on fire.
Chapter 12
I rush toward the kitchen , hoping I can save my house. Unreal. Absolutely unreal.
“Don’t go in there!” Cooper’s arms wrap around my waist as he moves me over to the side. “Where’s the fire extinguisher?” Cooper yells.
“In the damn kitchen!” I scream and follow him in there, moving to open the window as Cooper grabs the completely destroyed pie from the oven.
After a few minutes, we get the alarm to silence by fanning the hell out of the kitchen. The smoke is cleared out, and I call the alarm company to cancel the fire department, but they explain they’ve already been dispatched.
“Well,” he lifts the charred pie, “I’d say our desert is done.”
I attempt to smile so I don’t burst out in tears. “I’ve never, not once in my entire life, burned a pie!” My hands cover my face to hide the fact that I could no longer stop myself from crying. I’m sure Cooper will think it’s about the damn pie, but really it’s about so much more. This pie is just one more thing I’ve failed to do right.
“Don’t cry.” Cooper grabs me and pulls me against his chest.
“You don’t get it,” I cry into his shirt. “I burnt the pie. I slept with Trent. He told me he loves me, and then I kissed you. I’m a mess. I don’t even know who I am!”
Cooper rubs my back and kisses the top of my head. “I promise, it’s going to be fine.”
“Grace!” Voices yell from outside the house, and I hear the sirens, faint but growing louder with every passing second. “Grace, are you in there?”
“Oh my god!” I grumble against Cooper’s chest. “This can’t be happening!”
“Grace!” A familiar voice yells louder as they continue banging on the door. “I’m busting the door down!”
I lean back and wipe my eyes. I’m not about to have a broken door on top of all this. Our volunteer firemen will do it without question. They’re a little overzealous when it comes to fire safety since we haven’t had a fire in . . . ever.
“No!” I yell as I rush toward the front door. “I’m fine! We’re all fine!”
I throw the door open as I see Beau’s foot in the air. “You’re really okay?” he asks quickly and drops his foot.
“Everyone is fine,” Cooper says from behind me. “Some food spilled over in the oven and created a lot of smoke.”
Beau looks disappointed. “I still need to check things out to be sure.”
I give him a pointed stare. “No hoses in my house. There’s no fire. We’re not on some episode of Chicago Fire .”
“Killjoy.”
Cooper jerks his head to the side and puts his hand on my shoulder. “Yes, sorry that we didn’t set the place on fire so you had something to do.”
I watch him walk off and turn back toward Cooper. “I’m sorry about tonight. Hell, I’m sure we can go back a month and still not cover all the things I should apologize for.”
Cooper grabs his jacket and walks toward me. “It’s me who should be apologizin’, Grace. I never should’ve pushed you. I knew you weren’t feeling anything, but I needed to know for sure.”
Beau walks back out and shakes his head. “No Southern woman burns a pie like that. It’s unheard of.”
I ignore his jab. I’ll be sure to send his wife a text about his new hunting bow he’s been hiding in my store, thinking she isn’t going to find out.
Cooper punches Beau in the arm and chuckles. “He’s an idiot. I had a good time tonight.”
“I did, too.”
“Until you set the kitchen on fire,” he jokes, making my lips tilt in a smile.
“Shut up.”
He comes in close and holds me tight. I wrap my arms around him and squeeze. Cooper kisses the side of my head.
“Well, at least we didn’t have Trent show up this time. Come to think of it . . .” There’s no way Trent wouldn’t be here. Angry or not, if he heard my address and a fire, I can’t imagine him ignoring it. He may not always do the right thing when it comes to our relationship, but he’s extremely protective of me. This wouldn’t be a call he’d ignore.
I step outside and search for the police cruiser I know is somewhere close. “Hank?” I yell, and he turns to me with a smile. “Isn’t Trent workin’ tonight?”
“You didn’t hear?” His grin falls as he walks toward me. “Rhett collapsed this afternoon. We rushed him to the hospital, but he was still unconscious when I left. It’s been a busy day for us.”
“Oh my God!” I clutch my chest. “Is he all right?”
Hank shrugs. “I haven’t heard much. The whole family is there. Trent worked on him until they got him to the hospital.”
“I have to go! I need to be there!”
I run back inside, and start searching for my things. I can’t find my purse. Where did I put my purse? My heart races as I think about Trent and his family. His father means everything to them. I don’t know what is wrong or why he didn’t call, but I have to go.
“Grace, calm down.” Cooper’s hand is on my shoulder.
“I can’t find my keys! I don’t have my phone. Why didn’t anyone call me? I should be there! I didn’t know and no one told me. Where the hell are my damn keys?”
“Okay, okay. Where did you put them?” Cooper asks.
“I don’t know! I just . . .”
“Listen, you’re not in any state to drive. I have my keys right here, grab your phone and bag, and I’ll drive you there.”
I cover my mouth with my hand and nod. “All right.”
Cooper helps me locate the items I need and we climb in his truck. I’ve been a part of that family for a long time. Rhett and Macie are like a second set of parents to me. My leg bounces as he drives. I think about Trent working, whatever that means, on his father. I envision them all gathered around and how alone Trent must feel.
“I’m sure it’ll b
e okay, Grace,” Cooper tries to reassure me.
“Thank you for drivin’ me.”
Cooper smiles with sadness in his eyes. “I told you we’d always be friends.”
He did, and it’s clear he keeps his promises.
“Coop?” I pull his attention back. I want to ask him something, but don’t know how it’ll go. “Are you upset? About . . . you know . . . this?”
“You mean me driving you to the man you truly love?” he asks, and I nod. “Before I came over tonight, I talked to Presley,” he admits. “I told her about what happened this morning and on our date, and she of course laughed, but she tried to explain what it’s like to love someone the way she loves Zach. I think the way she feels about him is how you are with Trent. I could never compete with that.”
“Coop,” I try to stop him, but he takes my hand in his.
“I’ve known you my whole life, and you’ve never looked at anyone like you look at him. I may wish it was different, but it’s the truth.”
“I never wanted to hurt you.”
He shakes his head and chuckles. “You didn’t. We’re friends who tried to see if there was anything there. I told you that I had no expectations. We both deserve to be crazy about each other. Shit, I want a girl to come runnin’ into my arms and not get enough of kissing me.”
“I’m sorry I’m not her. You deserve that, you really do.”
And he does. Cooper is a textbook perfect man. He’s like my daddy. He works hard, loves harder, and is a good man. He’s going to make some woman very lucky someday. I hope he finds her fast because he deserves everything he wants.
“Thanks.” He gives me a rueful smile. “In another life, I think we would’ve been perfect. In another time, we would’ve been happy. More than anything, I want that for you.”
“Cooper Townsend, walkin’ away from you is going to be my greatest regret.”
He smirks. “I can live with that. Just make him treat you right.”
I don’t say anything because my knee-jerk reaction is to defend Trent, but that isn’t right. Cooper has a right to say what he needs to, and he isn’t wrong. Trent hasn’t been great, which hasn’t been a secret.
“Thank you for being such a good guy.”
“I guess all the clichés are comin’ true. Nice guys do finish last.”
“That’s not true.” Cooper doesn’t see the flip side. “Settling with me would’ve been you comin’ in last. Now, you can find the girl that deserves your love.”
We enter the hospital’s parking lot, and my nerves start to rise. I don’t know how he’s doing or if he’s okay, and I want nothing more than to run into that building and find him. Yet, when I reach for the door handle, I pause, turning back to Cooper.
He shakes his head and gives me an encouraging smile. “Go to him,” he instructs.
I lean over, kiss his cheek, and rush out of the truck.
The hospital isn’t hard to navigate, but with how many times I get lost, you’d think I’ve never been here. The white walls all look the same. I called Presley and Trent again, but got no answer. I decide to ask a nurse where Rhett is, when she refuses to release the information, I lie and tell her I’m his daughter.
Now knowing where to head, I follow the red line to the intensive care wing. My heart is heavy with worry. The Henningtons are a strong unit, with Rhett being the head of them all. I can’t imagine what the boys or Mrs. Hennington are going through.
I round the corner and stop dead in my tracks when I see Cooper standing there.
“Hey. What are you doing here?”
“You forgot your purse,” he explains as he holds out my bag.
“Thank you! I didn’t even realize. I’ve been walkin’ around this place for what feels like forever and I still haven’t seen any of them. I don’t know if he’s all right or . . .” I say as my eyes mist over. “I can’t get ahold of anyone either.”
“If something happened we’d know. My mama and yours would’ve called.” Cooper’s hand touches my shoulder in a comforting way.
He’s right. I can’t imagine our parents wouldn’t let us know. Okay. I feel a little better.
I look up and Cooper’s entire body goes still. When I turn to see what has him on edge, relief fills me before flickering away, causing my heart to plummet.
Trent is standing there with a murderous expression on his face. His hands clench into fists and he stomps forward. I’ve seen him like this two times in my life. The first was when he found William after he killed Scarlett and the second was when he heard someone beat their infant to death a town over.
He wanted to tear them both limb from limb.
And it looks like Cooper is the object of his rage right now.
Cooper’s arm drops, and I rush toward Trent, hoping to diffuse a situation before it happens. “Trent, I came as soon as I heard. Is your dad okay?” He doesn’t look at me. He keeps moving toward Cooper. “Trent!”
His gait halts, and he turns to me. His face is hard and his jaw clenched. His deep blue eyes lock on mine, allowing me to see the emotions playing out: confusion, surprise, anger, and lastly, resentment. “Why the hell are either of you here?”
“What?” I ask with shock. “Why would you ask me that? Why wouldn’t I be here?”
“I’ll let you two handle this.” Cooper puts his hands in the air and retreats.
Trent turns his head toward Cooper and the vein in his neck pops. “How noble of you.”
Cooper bristles and shakes his head. “Look, I didn’t come to start anything.”
“Then maybe you shouldn’t have come here.” His voice is hard as his eyes slice to mine and he adds, “Either of you.”
I thought coming here was the right thing to do. I wanted to offer him support, but he’s being an ass.
I take a step back and try to hide my hurt. “I wanted to be here. I wanted to be here for you.”
Trent laughs. “You and your boyfriend? How nice of you. So, not only do I have to deal with the fact that my father is dying but also I get the added benefit of seeing you with another man.”
Cooper jumps in before I can. “You need to calm down and listen to what she’s sayin’. All I did was I drive her here.”
“Sure you did. You couldn’t help but be her knight in shining armor. Here comes perfect Cooper and his white horse.”
“This is your problem, Trent,” Cooper says. “You act like this. She heard about your dad and couldn’t get here fast enough. She was too upset to drive, so I gave her a ride. So, if anyone should be pissed off, it’s me. I drove her to you.”
“Was that after you worked on her farm all day? Or after dinner?” Trent sneers and then looks at me. “Your house okay? I would hate to see you without a place to live. But then again, maybe you can move in with Cooper.”
Tears flood my eyes and start to fall. He has this all wrong. I’m not here with Cooper. I’m here because Cooper was kind enough to drive me. I’m here for Trent, and he’s treating me as if I’m a heartless bitch who wants to rub Cooper in his face.
“Stop it.” I put my hand on his arm and he tears it back. “Cooper and I had dinner, but I’m here for you because I wanted to make sure you were all right and your dad was okay. You would know that if you would just listen.” I wipe my face and try again. “We’re not . . .”
He puts his hand up. “I don’t want to fucking hear it. I’m dealin’ with enough right now. My father is lying in a hospital bed, dyin’ of cancer, and I don’t need to add this on top of it.”
Cooper scoffs and shakes his head. “I’m going to check on Presley and Wyatt. If you need me, Grace, you know where to find me.”
I nod and watch him walk away.
“You can go with him,” Trent says with hostility. “I’m sure he wouldn’t mind.”
“If you’d—”
“Just go, Grace.”
I get that he’s hurting. I understand completely that he’s in pain and angry at the situation he’s dealing with, but if h
e’d stop lashing out at me, I could explain.
“No.” I shake my head, digging my heels in. “I’m not leavin’.”
“I don’t want you here.”
I hear the slight tremor in his voice. He may say he doesn’t want me here, but I think he’s scared. This family has been through a lot in the last two years. Losing his father is going to be a major blow.
When I step closer to him, my voice is low and comforting. “I think you do.”
Trent’s eyes go hard and his voice is ice. “I tell you I love you. I lay it all out, and you fucking ask me to leave and then spend the day with him. What do I get to do? I get to spend the entire day thinkin’ about you. I have to wonder if he’s touchin’ you, kissin’ you, or makin’ you smile, and then you come here with him. I don’t fucking care what you think you know, because you’re wrong. I don’t want you here. I don’t want to see you or him anywhere.”
Too damn bad. I am not leaving. I need to stand my ground. He isn’t pushing me away anymore, and I’m not running either. It’s time that we fight for each other rather than against each other.
I lean forward and push onto my tiptoes so we are chest to chest before I grab his face between my palms. When I open myself completely to him, two things can happen. Either he’ll hear what I say and see the truth in my words or he’ll push me away. Our lives’ course will be determined on how he steers the horse, he can throw us off or ride steady.
“I’m here because I love you, you thick-headed, unwilling-to-listen, lovable idiot! I’m here because I choose you. I’ve always chosen you because I can’t imagine my life without you. I’m here because I love you so much my insides hurt no matter how many times I tell you that I shouldn’t keep runnin’ back.” He tenses, and I watch the shift in his gaze. “So, if you want to keep arguin’ about this, I’m happy to, but you said you love me, and I’m standin’ before you askin’ you to let me do the same.”
Trent searches my eyes and his breathing stops as he touches my cheek. “What?”
“I said I love you.”
His thumb grazes my lip. “Say it again.”
“I love you.”
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