by Reana Malori
Seeing the same look in his eyes that had been reflected last night, she knew she was in trouble. “No way, buster. I need to recover,” the soreness in between her legs was making itself known.
“Then if you don’t want round seven, I would suggest you cover those up before they become my breakfast,” he said.
Grabbing the sheet, she covered her ample chest, shielding her body from his gaze. She knew it was too late to turn modest now, but still. “Can I at least get some clothes?” Considering he looked to have already gotten a jump on her in the shower department this morning, she had to at least ask. “Just something so that I can cover up?”
Shaking his head, he crossed his arms over his chest as he stood there looking like a Norse God. “No. I want you just the way you are right now. You’ll need to call your office and let them know you’ll be back tomorrow. Today, you’re all mine and now that Madison isn’t here, it’s time to show you what we’ve both been missing.”
Faith shivered in anticipation and her stomach quivered. Did he just insinuate that he was holding back last night?
Leaning against the bedpost, his blue eyes stared at her. His gaze never straying far from her, he continued to devour her with his eyes. “Go on, baby, eat your breakfast. After that, it’ll be my turn,” he said with a wolfish grin as he licked lips.
Instantly, her core began to clench in anticipation and wetness began to seep from her. Cooper’s mouth was like nobody’s business. Was he really going to have her for breakfast? Taking one look at his face and his predatory stance, she knew that’s exactly what she was going to be. Breakfast.
Without another word, she reached over and picked up a bagel. It seemed she was going to need more energy. Smiling to herself as she took a bite, she wondered if Cooper could be convinced to play hooky from work tomorrow as well.
Chapter Fourteen
If someone had told him all those months ago that his beautiful, sexy, sassy neighbor would be the woman he loved, he would have called them crazy. There was no way he would have expected them to go this far. His only hope was that things between them were always as good as they were right now.
It had been a week since they had first made love and not a day went by that they weren’t together. Even more than before. He was sure that Madison had picked up on the changes, but she never said anything. Plus, since she got to spend even more time with Faith, she was probably even happier.
Now here the three of them were, driving up to Delaware for a long weekend with his family. Faith sitting by his side and Madison asleep in the backseat, safely strapped into her booster seat as they cruised on the freeway. Cooper couldn’t be more pleased. This is how life was expected to be.
“Don’t be nervous, baby. They’ll love you as much as I do,” he said to her as he grabbed her hand tight within his. Faith had been looking a little green around the gills after she told him that she had changed her mind about Miami.
“No, I’m fine. I just wonder if we can keep our relationship a secret,” her voice held a hint of sadness.
“Why would we do that,” he asked, genuinely confused.
“Have you ever brought anyone around your family before,” she asked, turning in her seat to face him.
“Faith, you’ve been around my family before,” he laughed.
“Not like this. Have you told them about us yet?” She quizzed him, pressing him to answer.
“No, but then again, I don’t have to.” He respected her concern, but he needed her to trust him on this. “I don’t need to clear my romantic life with my parents, Faith.”
“I’m not saying you do,” she huffed, while facing front and staring out the window in silence.
“Honey, what’s wrong? Something’s going on in that beautiful head of yours. What is it?” Although he had an idea of the issue, he wanted her to say it. They needed to get past this.
After a few minutes, he heard her ask, “Will Heather’s parents be there?”
And there it was. For some reason, she still harbored fears that he hadn’t completely moved on. He had known that she still doubted whether or not he was truly and completely committed to their relationship. Seeing an exit off of the freeway, he veered over, taking them off-course.
“Cooper, what are you doing?”
“Hold on. We need to get this out in the open once and for all,” he said as he pulled into a large shopping center just off the exit. Putting the truck in park, he exited and walked around to her side. Opening the door, he stood back, “Let’s go. Out.”
“Cooper, what are you doing? Why are you asking me to get out of the truck?”
Shaking his head, he was amazed. This fool woman thought he was mad at her. “Baby, please step out of the car. I want to talk with you and I don’t want to drive while I do it. Nor do I want little miss big ears hearing us.”
She stared at him for a few moments before moving and stepping out of the vehicle. Closing the door behind her, he raised his arms and put them on each side of her head, effectively closing her in.
“Faith, tell me something. Do you trust me?”
“Yes, of course I do,” she responded automatically.
“Do you love me?
“Yes, I love you very much. Cooper, what does…” she began, but he cut her off.
“Do you believe I love you? The truth,” he pressed.
“Cooper, I don’t understand,” she answered. He noticed that it wasn’t a response to his question, so he asked again.
“Faith, answer the question. Do you believe me when I say that I love you? That I want to be with you and only you. Do you trust me when I say that you are my future?” He waited while she just stared at him and he realized her answer was taking too long. “Faith?”
“I believe that you believe that, Cooper. I know that you want to love me. I know that it seems like I’m the one you want, but what if you change your mind? In my heart, I love you enough for both of us and I’m willing to have you for as long as I can, even if…”
Not able to take anymore, he kissed her. That was the only way he could think of to stop the words from coming out of her. Words that had no business coming from the mouth of the woman he loved. Her hands had reached up to grip his shirt, her soft moans were music to his ears. Pulling her close to him, he pressed his lower body to hers as their kiss deepened. The acceleration of a nearby car brought him back to his senses and he broke the kiss.
“You are mine. And I am yours. What we have, this thing between us is real and I will do everything in my power to prove it to you. Trust me, Faith, when I say that I love you and if I don’t show you just how much I love with words and actions, then make me.” Taking a deep breath, he touched his forehead to hers and spoke the words in his heart, “Oh, baby, you make me laugh, even when I don’t want to. When I’m around you, I can breathe easier. I can’t see my future without you in it. Yes, I was stupid and I’ve admitted that more times than I can count.”
“Yes, you really were,” she broke in, a watery smile on her face.
“And I will continue to make up for my stupidity for the rest of my life if need be. Faith, don’t doubt my love for you. Don’t doubt me. You make me whole and there is nothing, and no one, that compares to you. It may have taken us a while to find each other and who knows what twisted roads life has in store for us.” Reaching up to grab her face in his palms, he tilted her head so that she could not look away, “I need you to have faith in me, in us.”
Still remembering his words to her, “I need you to have faith in me, in us,” she was awed and humbled by his words. How else could she respond? What could she say to help him understand what she was feeling inside? After their little detour and Cooper’s impassioned plea, she accepted that she was a goner. There was nowhere in the world that this man would go, where she would not follow.
“I do. I will. Always.” After planting a kiss on her that curled her toes, he smiled at her in that sexy, ‘Just wait until I get you in bed later’ way and she almos
t melted on the spot.
“Get in the car, babe, we still have a ways to go.”
Finally arriving at the Branson family vacation home, Faith took in the scene before her. It was breathtaking. Her window had been rolled down for some time and she inhaled the distinct, yet peaceful, smell of the ocean. She spied seagulls as they flew overhead in search of food. Cars and trucks were parked haphazardly around a large home with a landscaped front yard. As she craned her neck, she noticed that the home seemed to back up right to beach. However, what made her feel most comfortable, was the large group of people milling around. Kids were running around playing tag. What looked like a group of both teens and adults were playing volleyball using a well-worn volleyball net on one side of the house. All in all, it looked just like she had hoped. A family coming together to have some fun.
Cooper put the vehicle in park and looked over at her. “You ready for the onslaught?”
“I was born ready,” she responded lightly.
Stepping out of the truck, Faith grabbed her purse. Going to the back door, she opened it for Madison since the child lock was engaged and she wouldn’t be able to let herself out. Unbuckling her from the car seat, she peered through the window on the other side of the vehicle and watched Cooper greet his mother. Other family members started to pour out of the house and the volleyball game was paused, everyone giving hugs all around to the new arrival.
“You finally made it!”
Watching Mrs. Branson as she stood at the door, Faith heard her yell across the large yard. She watched Cooper’s mom walk rapidly down the front porch steps and move toward the car.
As soon as Faith placed Madison on the ground, she took off running. “Grandma! Grandma! We made it! And see, we brought Faith,” Madison couldn’t hide her excitement as she made her way over to the group of people.
“Yes, I see and I’m very happy to see all of you,” picking up her granddaughter in her arms, she turned to Faith who had just come around to the other side where everyone was gathered. “Come on, Faith, let’s get you all settled. Most of us are on the back porch and Cooper’s uncle wants to challenge him to a game of poker.”
“Yes, Mrs. Branson. I’m going to help Cooper with the luggage. We’ll be right behind you,” she responded cheerfully. Although she had met her before on a few occasions, Faith wanted to make damn certain she was on her p’s and q’s this weekend.
Tilting her head to the side, she gave Faith an appraising, but not unfriendly look, “Sweetheart, we’re way beyond that Mrs. Branson mess. Call me Eileen,” she said. Placing Madison on the ground, she gave her a kiss on her forehead and allowed her to run free across the yard to a group of little girls calling out to her. Eileen took a few steps toward the house, but stopped and glanced back at Faith. “Or, considering how deeply my son has fallen in love with you, you can always just call me mom.” And with that jaw-dropping statement, she turned and walked away from them.
Standing there looking like a fish in water, Faith’s mouth opened and closed as she tried to comprehend what just happened. Turning her head to look at Cooper, she called out, “Um, Cooper?”
Pulling the bags from the back of the truck, he looked over to her, “Yeah, babe?” Closing the back, he locked the truck and walked over to her. Stopping by her side, he dropped their bags at her feet. Wrapping an arm around her waist, he pulled her close. “You okay, Faith?”
Finding her voice, she looked at him with some confusion, “Did you hear what your mom said?
“No, what did she say? Come on, let’s walk inside,” he said as he picked up their bags again.
“She said that you’d fallen in love with me,” she was afraid to say the words into the air.
Stopping to look at her, he arched one eyebrow, “What’s wrong, baby? You already know that I love you. We just talked about this, Faith.”
Smiling at her in that predatory way she loved so much, he grabbed her around the waist and brought her close to him for a deep, but much too short kiss. “If you hadn’t realized the truth of my feelings by now and still doubt me, then I must be doing something wrong. Don’t worry, baby, I plan to make sure that I remove any doubts tonight when we’re alone.”
Faith couldn’t help but melt at the prospect of exactly what he would do to her tonight. Once they finally broke apart, she smiled at him, “I know you do, Cooper. And I love you, too. It’s stupid, but I just didn’t know that she had any idea that things has changed.” Rubbing her thumb across his lips, she wiped away her gloss from his lips. Standing on her toes so that he wouldn’t have to bend down, she kissed him on the corner of his mouth, “I’m glad she knows. Makes things much easier. Come on, baby, let’s go inside.”
Making their way to the house and walking through the front door, they heard greetings from all over. Waving to everyone as they stood in the foyer, Faith saw Madison running around with another little girl, laughing as they skipped and ducked around the adults in the room. She was actually glad she had come on this trip with them.
“Babe, I’m going to go put our stuff upstairs. Are you going to be okay?” Cooper asked her as he turned to the staircase.
“Yeah, I’m fine, honey. Go on upstairs. I’ll go find your mother and see if she needs help with anything,” she said with a smile. After his mother’s greeting, she was feeling much more relaxed about this weekend.
Weaving her way through the people milling about and relaxing, she headed toward the kitchen. She looked out the large window in the back of the house and saw Cooper’s mother, Eileen, sitting on one of the deck chairs surrounded by other family members. As she approached the kitchen, she heard voices. Recognizing the voice of Heather’s mother, who had just said Faith’s name, she slowed down. Not that she was trying to be sneaky, but since they were clearly talking about her, she was simply curious as to what they were saying.
“I just don’t understand how Cooper could bring her with them. This is a family event and she’s not family. My daughter must be turning over in her grave. That woman spending so much time with her family? She has no right. Cooper has no right to do this,” she finished while shaking her head.
The other woman spoke up, “Marge, I don’t think you’re being fair to him. He loved your daughter, I’m sure he still does. In his own way, of course,” the placating tone in the other voice was heard by Faith, even while standing so far away.
“You can guarantee that I will be speaking with Cooper about this. It is totally unacceptable to have her around my granddaughter,” she said, still sounding offended.
Nostrils flared in anger, she was tempted to make her presence known. Not wanting to make a scene, but having heard more than enough, Faith walked away from the open kitchen door. Forcing a smile as she weaved her way through the large gathering of family and friends, she headed outside to get some fresh air. Exiting the front door, she took a few deep breaths as she tried to calm her temper. Anger coursed through her body, her hands shook, and her brow was furrowed in frustration.
“How dare she? Cooper is a grown man,” she spoke into the air. Becoming more agitated by the second, she began pacing back and forth, waving her hands erratically as she spoke to herself. “She knows nothing about me. Nothing about my relationship with Cooper. How in the hell am I supposed to handle this.”
Feeling the breeze on her face and the hearing the sounds of fun and laughter, she stopped suddenly. Why was she hiding? They had nothing to be ashamed of and they weren’t doing anything wrong. There was no reason for his former mother-in-law to dislike her.
Other than the fact that she was not, nor would ever be, Heather.
The front door opened behind her and even before she heard his voice or felt his arms wrap around her body, she knew it was him.
“Hey, baby. Why are you out here,” he asked.
“I’m just taking a break. There were too many people in the house,” she tried to interject some happiness into her tone. She realized it didn’t work when Cooper turned her around to face
him.
“Whoa. What’s that tone I hear? That might fool anyone else, but not me. Tell me,” his dipped down and looked her in the eyes.
Not willing to keep her feelings hidden, she told him what she had overheard. At the end of her speech, she took a deep breath. “You should have told me she would be here, Cooper. I can’t battle the memory of a dead woman. I can’t stop her mother from wishing she were here with you instead of me.”
“You don’t have to, Faith. I told you before, I don’t answer to her. I never have. I’ve respected her and Stan’s feelings these past years, but that has nothing to do with us. With you and me.”
“Yeah, well, tell that to her,” she tilted her head toward the house. Face screwed up, she wore a look of utter frustration.
Laughing at her, Cooper kissed her on the lips and pulled her body closer to his, “Don’t be mad. I’ll take care of it.”
“I’m not mad,” she responded in a tone full of piss and vinegar. ‘Okay, yes, I am. And no, you won’t handle anything. We’re in this together, right?” Her tone of voice dared him to say otherwise.
Turns out, Cooper is a pretty smart man after all, “Yes, together. You and me, sweetheart.”
Sighing deeply, she laid her head on his chest, inhaling his uniquely masculine scent. “I won’t let you go, Cooper. Not for anyone, dead or alive. You’re mine. And I will never apologize for that. For loving you.”
“And you don’t have to. She had no right to say what she did and I—,” he stopped when she lifted her head and glared at him. “I mean—we, will handle it. You are a part of my family now. Madison knows it, my mother knows it, and anyone whose opinion I care about knows it. That’s all that matters to me. It should be the only thing that matters to you. Got it?”
Smiling up at him, she fell in love with him all over again. God, this man was amazing. “Got it.”