Intercepting Love

by L. P. Dover

  My God, it’s been too long.

  After practice was over, Evan stayed behind with me in the parking lot while Cooper disappeared to the locker room to take a quick shower. “How you holding up today?” he asked hesitantly. “Any contact from Scott’s parents?”

  “Not yet,” I replied, releasing a heavy sigh. “It’s been a year since they last contacted me, so maybe they’ve moved on.”

  Evan shrugged. “There’s no telling, but if they give you problems you need to let me deal with it, okay?”

  “I can handle my own problems, Evan.”

  “Kate,” he warned, glaring down at me, “don’t start with me. I’m only looking out for you.”

  “I know,” I murmured softly as he put his arm around my shoulders.

  “So what’s up with you and Cooper?” he asked. “Everyone was giving him hell about you today, but he claims nothing’s going on. Does Luke know you two are getting close?”

  “It’s not like that,” I assured him. “Cooper’s the one who moved into the house two doors down, and we figured since we live beside each other it made more sense to ride together.”

  He stared at me as if he didn’t believe a single thing that came out of my mouth.

  “Okay, Kate, whatever you say. You’re still going out with Luke on Saturday, right?”

  I nodded. “Yep, I wouldn’t miss it.”

  “Good, because he’s pretty stoked about it. Go out with him at least once before you break his heart. I swear I always thought it would be the other way around.”

  “Evan, me and Luke haven’t even gone on one date. There’s no breaking hearts here. We have a date, and I’m sticking with my plans. Cooper and I are just friends, and to be honest, he’s actually not that bad.”

  “Oh, I know he’s not,” Evan admitted. “He kicked ass out there today. I just don’t want you getting in over your head with him … or Luke for that matter.”

  I groaned and bumped him with my shoulder. “I don’t plan on it, and even if I did it’s my choice. You’ll just have to get over it.”

  When Cooper emerged from the locker room, his hair was still damp and mussed from the shower, and even from the distance I could see the devilish smirk on his face. His heated gaze followed my body up and down, and without thinking I smiled and bit my lip.

  “Oh hell, this isn’t good,” Evan groaned, snapping my attention back to him. “So help me, if he hurts you I’m going to kick his ass. I can see it now that you two aren’t going to behave.”

  “Everything okay?” Cooper asked, glancing back and forth between me and my brother.

  Evan sighed and glared right at him. “It is for now, and it better stay that way.” Squeezing my arm, he sent one last warning glare to Cooper before strolling over to his truck.

  “I’m assuming that was directed at me?” he asked.

  “Of course,” I groaned, “but you were warned before getting mixed up with me.”

  Taking my elbow, Cooper guided me to his car and opened the door. “I’m not worried about your brother, Kate. I’m not going to do anything to you unless you ask me to.”

  “Like what?” I asked coyly.

  Shielded from view by the car door, Cooper leaned in and brought his lips closer to mine, opening them slightly. I couldn’t move, but then again … I didn’t want to. Instead of kissing me, he murmured across my lips, “I’m sure you’ll figure that out when the time comes. If you want me to kiss you, I’m not going to do it until you place your soft lips on mine first. If you want me to touch you, I’m not going to unless you beg me for it. It’s all on you now, love.”

  Breathing hard, I pulled back abruptly and cleared my throat. “Good,” I blurted out, “I agree. Now there won’t be any complications.”

  “Exactly,” he agreed.

  Exactly, I repeated in my mind.

  Smirking, he shut the car door and ambled over to his side. From the look on his face he didn’t believe me, and even worse … I didn’t believe myself.

  Cooper had a grin on his face the entire way to the restaurant, and the whole time I felt like an idiot as I scowled out the window. My evening only happened to get worse when my phone buzzed in my purse. I was afraid it would be Scott’s family, but it wasn’t; it was Luke.

  “Hey,” I answered, sneaking a glance over at Cooper.

  In the past two years, I went from a completely desolate love life to now having two very hot and extremely sexy men interested in me. If anything, I needed to stay far away from Cooper. Luke would be the better option if I had to make a choice.

  Yeah, keep telling yourself that.

  “Hey, babe,” Luke replied excitedly. “So listen, I know we have our date on Saturday, but there’s something I wanted to tell you. I thought maybe we could meet up tonight so I could give you the good news.”

  “Oh, Luke, that sounds great, but I’m actually headed over to The Carolina Tavern to eat dinner. Lara wanted me to stop by. Do you want to meet up afterwards?”

  “Actually, I’ll just meet you there. I’ll see you in a minute.” He hung up so fast that I didn’t even have time to call out his name and stop him; he was already gone.

  “Great,” I muttered sarcastically, sliding my phone back in my purse.

  “What’s wrong?” Cooper asked. “And who’s Luke by the way?”

  Sighing, I blew out a nervous breath. “He’s my brother’s best friend. He asked if he could see me tonight, and before I could stop him he said he’d meet me at the tavern.”

  “I thought you said you weren’t dating anyone.”

  “I’m not,” I replied truthfully, keeping my gaze on the road. “We have our first date this Saturday.”

  Cooper chuckled and immediately I glared over at him. “What’s so funny about that?” I asked.

  “Nothing really,” he said between laughs, “it’s just, I should’ve known something like this was going to happen. No worries, though. I can play nice. It’s always good to meet the competition.”

  “Cooper, that’s not what this is about. There’s no competition!”

  “Sure there is,” he added. “He wants you and I want you. You’re not promised to either one of us, so that right there makes us competing for you.”

  “Did you have to compete for Claire?” I asked softly. I knew he didn’t want to talk about her, but I also didn’t want to put him in the same situation that hurt him.

  Tensing in his seat, he gripped the steering wheel tight and released a heavy sigh. “No, that situation was completely different.”

  “How is that?” I asked.

  “Because I didn’t have a chance with her, Kate. I wanted to believe that I could make her happy … but I couldn’t. I saw it in her eyes.”

  “And what do you see in mine?”

  Patting me on the knee, he turned to me with his mischievous blue eyes and grinned. “In your eyes I see exactly what I want. You’re not here with me because of my money or because of what I do. You actually see the people you’re around and the goodness inside of them. That is what gives me hope.”

  “Hope for what?” I asked breathlessly, mesmerized.

  He brushed my hair away from my face and smoothed his thumb along my jaw. “Hope that one day you will see in my eyes what I see in yours. There’s a craving deep inside of you that I can see each time I touch you. It burns brighter every single time. I’ve never seen that with anyone, and that is how I know I have a chance.”

  “Now,” he continued, staring out at the road, “where exactly am I going? I’m curious to know what I’m up against. Care to enlighten me?”

  Closing my eyes, I laid my head against the seat, my stomach in knots. “If you take a left at the next light, you’ll see a sign for the restaurant. You’ll be enlightened soon enough.”

  When we pulled into the restaurant parking lot I saw Luke’s blue and black Suzuki GSX-R1000 sitting in the front. I was hoping we’d get there first so I could get Cooper seated, and then find Luke to explain. The last thing I w
anted was for there to be a problem at my friend’s restaurant. Quickly, I pulled out my phone and texted Lara.

  Me: I need you to make sure Luke sits at the bar ASAP.

  Lara: Already done. I knew when he said he was meeting you that there had to be some sort of mix up.

  Me: Thank you. We are coming in now.

  Cooper and I got out of his car and walked side by side up to the door. For some reason, I didn’t believe him when he said he’d play nice. Please don’t let them fight.

  “Why are you fidgeting?” Cooper asked. “I mean, it’s not like there’s something to hide, right? Maybe you should ask him to join us?”

  Narrowing my gaze, I froze in place as he opened the door. “Are you serious?”

  He’s testing me, I can see it. Better yet, I’ll just test him. “You know what,” I said, smiling innocently up at him, “I think that’s a great idea. Thank you for letting me include him.”

  Annoyance flashed in his gaze for only a second, but I caught it. He didn’t want Luke joining us, but if I didn’t have anything to hide then it wouldn’t matter. They could both sit at the table and I’d be perfectly fine because they were both just my friends.

  Yeah, right.

  When we walked in, Lara met us at the door with a big smile on her face and her blue eyes twinkling with mischief. “Hello and welcome,” she announced, glancing back and forth between us.

  She had on a soft, yellow sundress, and her hair fell perfectly straight, slightly past her shoulders. Lara was such a people person; she was perfect at talking to the customers and making them feel at home. All of the locals who came in every week loved her.

  Holding out her hand, she said, “You must be, Cooper. I’m Lara. It’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

  “Really?” Cooper took her hand, but then lifted a brow at me and said, “What have you said about me?”

  I rolled my eyes and shook my head. “Don’t look at me. Apparently, Lara knows more about you than I do.”

  “Actually,” Lara cut in, glaring at me, “I think we know some people in common. I’ll tell you all about it later, but right now I have your table all ready for you.”

  We followed her to the back, where there was a private room that was used for special guests or when people requested it. I should’ve known Lara would put us back there, or maybe she put us there in case Cooper and Luke made a scene.

  “Thank you, Lara,” I said sweetly before turning to Cooper. “If you want to get a drink, I’m sure Lara will keep you company while I go talk to Luke. I’ll be right back.”

  Cooper nodded and took a seat while Lara winked and shooed me off. The bar was on the other side of the restaurant, and when I finally made it there I instantly saw Luke, dressed in a pair of jeans and a red T-shirt, his blond hair tousled from his helmet. He was talking to Grayson—who was the co-owner of The Carolina Tavern—and the brother of Summer’s deceased husband. Grayson was a good looking man with closely cropped auburn hair and green eyes, and the sweetest personality of any guy I knew. He could also talk your ear off, so it wouldn’t surprise me if Lara asked him to keep Luke occupied until I got there.

  Luke must’ve seen me approach because he immediately turned my way, smiling and getting to his feet. Grayson also looked my way with a sly smirk on his face. Oh yeah, Lara recruited his help.

  “Well, there she is,” Luke announced, passing me a glass of white wine. “I went ahead and ordered your favorite.”

  Smiling, I took it from him and gulped it down, earning a wide-eyed stare from both he and Grayson; I needed more to get me through the mess I was about walk into. “Thank you,” I gasped. Grayson took my glass and filled it up with another round. I held it up and tapped it against Luke’s beer. “Thank you, again.”

  Chuckling, Luke sat down and pulled out a bar stool for me to sit in. “Hard day?”

  Downing the other glass of wine, I nodded and pushed the chair back in. “No, but it’s about to be. Come with me. I have a table in the back.”

  Grayson took my glass and chuckled. “Have a nice evening you two. Don’t get into trouble back there.”

  Luke’s devilish grin grew even wider. “You reserved the back room for us? I must be special to get that kind of treatment.”

  “I wouldn’t exactly say that,” I mumbled, hating that I was about to ruin the night.

  With a hand on his arm, I stopped him and pulled him to a vacant corner. “Actually, we’re not going to be alone back there,” I remarked as fast as I could. “When you called I had plans to come here with someone else.”

  There, I said it.

  “I thought you said you were meeting Lara. Who are you here with?” he asked, furrowing his brows.

  Sheepishly, I squeezed my eyes shut and groaned. “Cooper Davis,” I answered.

  And just as I expected … he snapped. “You’re kidding me, right? Why the hell would you be here with him?”

  “Lara wanted me to bring him, and since we rode together to practice …”

  Eyes wide, Luke’s mouth dropped open. “You rode with him to practice, too? What the fuck, Kate? I thought you didn’t like the guy. I seem to remember the other day you said you couldn’t believe your team actually wanted him, and now you’re spending time with him. Please tell me you’re not falling for the guy.”

  “Look,” I snapped impatiently, “I’m going to tell you exactly what I told him. You’re my friend, Luke, and believe it or not so is Cooper. I’m still going on our date Saturday and we’re going to have fun. He knows that I’m going out with you and that’s all that matters, but right now I’m getting ready to eat dinner with him. You’re more than welcome to join us.”

  Groaning, he hung his head and blew out a frustrated breath. “All right, I’ll join you. At least he won’t make any moves on you while I’m there.”

  I wouldn’t put it past him.

  My head started to feel fuzzy and it felt like I was moving in slow motion. It was probably stupid to drink two glasses of wine on an empty stomach; however, it felt good … relaxing. Everything I’d been stressing about, such as Scott’s death, was finally slipping away.

  Luke lifted his head when I stated, “You don’t have to worry about him making the moves on me, Luke. He said he wouldn’t touch me unless I asked him to. I think we’re both safe.”

  Placing his hands against the wall, Luke trapped me in and murmured in my ear, “Hmm … he’s better than I thought. You know he’s just playing games with you, right?”

  “Everyone plays games in their own way, Luke. Even you do, but it’s not going to change anything,” I told him.

  “Good,” he murmured huskily. “Although, I’d have to say that’s where me and him differ.” He trailed his finger down my cheek and past my neck to my collarbone. “I’d be afraid you would never ask me. That’s why I have to take what I want until you tell me no.”

  Backing up to give me space, he smiled and took my hand in his. His skin was warm and rough, most likely from riding hard all day in motocross training. “Okay, let’s get this dinner going. The sooner it gets started, the sooner it can be over.”

  I couldn’t have said it better myself.

  “So tell me how you know about me? Who do we know in common?” I asked. Leaning on her chin, Lara smiled and looked down at the menu. “Well, from what I hear you’re probably not going to be happy with one of the friends we have in common, but at least all I’ve heard about you is good things.”

  My uncle lived in Charlotte, but I knew she couldn’t be talking about him. Other than that there was only one person I knew, and it was the one person I loathed more than any other. He was the same person that took the only girl I’d ever loved away from me.

  “You can’t be serious,” I said, curling my lip incredulously. “There’s only one person I know from around here, and you’re telling me that after I packed my shit up and left California I still can’t escape from him?”

  “Kind of,” she answered sheepi
shly. “I know Claire chose him, but don’t you think it was for the best? I mean, now you have Kate.”

  “I don’t have her,” I grumbled. “And I’m not the only one who wants her.”

  “Yeah, but you’re the one she needs.”

  That got my attention. For a long time, I thought Claire needed me, but she didn’t. We were independent from one another, but we always found our way back to the other. I couldn’t see Kate being like that. With her, I wouldn’t want to go my separate ways all of the time. I would want her to depend on me. Claire didn’t want me to fight for her because it would’ve been a losing battle. Kate, on the other hand, needed to know I wouldn’t go down without a fight.

  “I know it has to be a shock to come here and be reminded of everything,” Lara explained. “I don’t talk to Mason and Claire, but my sister does. When Mason moved to California, he let my sister move into his house. Summer and Claire talk to each other a lot, and my sister usually tells me what they talk about. Although, I will admit I had no clue you were moving to North Carolina.”

  I scoffed. “Well, it wasn’t by choice.”

  Lara’s head snapped up and she glared at me. “Hey, it’s not that bad here. I think our team has a shot at winning this season. Besides, you came here with one of my good friends, who was hesitant on bringing you until I persuaded her. I believe a thank you is in order.”

  Smugly, she crossed her arms at her chest and pursed her lips. “Thank you,” I said with a smile.

  “You’re welcome.” Grinning, she uncrossed her arms and pointed to the menu. “And just so you know, Mason and Claire were the ones who helped me and my sister get this restaurant running. We get all of the wines from Claire’s winery, and we also had her give me some ideas as far as entrees. Do you recognize any of them?”