by Melody Anne
They were taken outside, where patio lights and heaters were strategically placed around the deck, though they didn’t need them quite yet.
“We’ll have some appetizers and drinks, and then eat dinner while the sun is setting,” Cooper told her.
She wasn’t even handed a menu. For a moment that offended her, but then she was impressed when he placed an order. Most of what he asked for sounded delicious.
When the Escargot Royal with a toasted bagel came out, though, she passed. Cooper laughed at her as he took a bite. She sipped on her red wine, surprised when she enjoyed the smooth flavor. Normally, she was a white wine sort of girl.
“Sometimes it’s important to try new things. I learned that long ago,” he told her, offering a bite of the escargot.
“I don’t mind stretching the boundaries, but I’m not eating snails,” she insisted. Instead she picked up a coconut-encrusted tiger prawn and dipped it in Thai chili sauce. That was much better.
They talked and slowly the wine relaxed Stormy as she gazed out at the stream trickling by and ate her roasted beet and baby spinach salad, the tangy raspberry vinaigrette dressing delicious.
“You must really enjoy living in this area and finding places like this,” she said.
“I grew up in Gig Harbor and spent my entire life there. My dad worked in the city, but didn’t want to live stacked on top of people, and my mom fell in love with the small harbor early in their marriage.”
“Are both your parents still alive?” she asked. She’d only heard him make one comment about his mother.
“My dad passed several years ago, but my mom is still here, thankfully. She’s amazing. I can’t believe you haven’t actually met her yet. She comes to visit quite often,” he said with a laugh.
“You enjoy her visits?” she asked.
“Of course I do. It’s my mom,” he said.
She laughed at that. “You would be surprised how many people forget they have parents who love them. I adored my parents, but I have so many friends who never visit, never call, don’t even know what their parents are up to,” she said. “I would give anything to have them back for even five minutes.”
“I’m so sorry you’ve lost them, Stormy,” he told her while reaching out for her hand. “Family is who we can count on when the rest of the world fades away. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for mine,” he told her.
Her admiration for the man jumped up a few more notches. She didn’t need to keep looking for reasons not to fall for this man.
“Yeah, I agree. I wanted to get out on my own and prove I could do it, but there are so many times I want to just run home and cry on my mother’s shoulder before I remember she’s not here anymore,” she admitted.
“I wish there was something I could say to make your pain go away.” His fingers continued rubbing her hand, which made her fidget with the silver bracelet she was wearing so she wouldn’t reach out for him. “That’s beautiful. I see you wear it a lot,” he pointed out.
“I love it,” she said with a smile. “My mom and I went to a class and made the bracelet then designed a few of the charms. Then every new place we would go, we’d add a new charm to it. It really was the thing that started my love of jewelry design.”
“It looks like there’s room for another one,” he said as he ran his finger over her wrist, making her pulse jump.
“Yep, a few more spots,” she answered with a gulp as she tugged on her hand. “It’s too bad they aren’t here to help me finish it.”
He didn’t release her right away. The longer he touched her, the more nervous she became. This wasn’t supposed to be as romantic as it was turning out to be. It was just supposed to be friends sharing a meal.
“Just remember the good times you had. And you can complete the bracelet in their honor,” he pointed out.
“When I think about making the charms, I get scared, like if I do that, then I’m really trying to go for my dream, and failing at it horribly,” she said shyly.
“I think you should go for it. Why don’t you?”
“Because school isn’t cheap and it seems like there’s never time to do it,” she told him. Yes, it was an excuse, but she didn’t believe in herself enough to make a career out of creating art.
“Where there’s a will, there’s a way. I think you should pursue your dream,” he said as he leaned across the small table to be closer.
She was very quiet as she tried to decide if she was going to allow him to kiss her or not. But she pulled back at the last minute. It was just too intense.
Their dinner was served and it was as delicious as he’d promised. She had butternut squash ravioli with wild Maine lobster. He had the New York steak and potatoes. When they finished, both were comfortably full.
“Let’s watch the sun set,” he said.
He didn’t give her a chance to tell him no. Instead, he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her over to a fire pit with benches around it. She was afraid to even breathe as they watched the sunlight dim over the creek.
“I’m glad you picked me up from work,” she told him, enjoying the feel of his arm around her. “Thanks, Cooper. The night has been perfect.”
“It doesn’t have to end now,” he said.
Something about the darkness gave her a bit of boldness. Turning to see his silhouette in the soft light from the fire, she struggled with how much she wanted to lean into him, accept the kiss he wanted to give her.
He didn’t give her any more of a choice.
He took her mouth without giving her a chance to rethink it and the kiss overwhelmed her with how right it felt, how familiar. She took pleasure in his arms, heat warming her within as his lips caressed hers, growing more and more hungry with each passing of his tongue.
Finally, she pulled back before she got to the point of no return.
“Yes, it does have to end,” she finally said.
He looked as if he was about to argue, and then he surprised her instead when he stood and helped her stand.
“Thank you for accompanying me. Now, let’s head home.”
Cooper paid the bill, hugged the hostess good-bye, and then escorted her back to his car. He played the radio on an oldies country station on the way back, both surprising and delighting her.
When they got back to the house, he walked her to the bottom of the stairs and kissed her cheek. “Thank you again.”
He turned and walked away.
She couldn’t tell how he was feeling by his tone. She almost wanted to rush back to him. But she knew that wasn’t a wise idea. So instead, she made her way up to her bedroom—alone.
When she finally lay down, she wondered why she was fighting this so badly. There wasn’t a reason to.
Maybe because she knew if she slept with him again, he was going to own her heart. And she didn’t think he would want to keep it for very long. It might just be worth a little pain now in order to avoid a hell of a lot of pain later.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Three days came and went without Cooper making another move on her. Stormy wondered if that had been his one and only attempt at romance. The thought of it was slightly heartbreaking, even if it was for the best.
Then one night she couldn’t stand being in her room any longer and found herself slowly coming down the stairs, unsure if she were intruding on Cooper or not. Before she saw anything, Stormy could hear the crackling of a fire and the smell of something delicious in the air. The darkened house was lit by the flickering glow that emanated from the great room.
The couch was positioned in front of the fire with the coffee table in between. On the table were two plates and two glasses of wine. Cooper sat quietly on one end of the couch, looking incredibly inviting.
Her cheeks flamed. What if he had a date? The thought of that made her eyes prickle with tears, though she felt like a fool to be feeling that way. It would be good if he had a date, she tried convincing herself. But the pressure on her chest assured her she really didn’t feel
that way at all.
She turned around to scamper away before he could see her humiliation. But that’s when he called out to her.
“Come sit, Stormy.”
“What is this?” she questioned as she turned back to him.
“You’re on my mind constantly. I thought we’d have a nice evening together,” he told her.
Stormy’s breath caught as she looked at this man telling her that she meant something to him. Was it real? It seemed real. He felt real.
She had two choices. She could accept the invitation or she could run and hide. Stormy was sick of running and hiding. So she moved forward and sat—on the other end of the couch, which made Cooper chuckle.
Handing her a glass of wine, he raised his own in a toast.
“This is to you, Miss Stormy Halifax. You make me . . . I don’t know, feel something I haven’t felt in a very long time.”
Dang, she loved hearing him say this to her. It brought back that moonlit walk, that night when she had felt special. Was her prince back to stay?
“Thank you, Cooper. You’ve been incredible,” she said.
“I should warn you, I’m doing all I can to get you to come back to my bed—willingly,” he said with a smile and a wink.
She flushed as the image of the two of them entwined on his bed shot to the forefront of her mind. Oh, how she wanted that more than she wanted breath. But it couldn’t happen. She decided it was time to change the subject.
“Now that I’ve met your brothers, why don’t you tell me more about your family?”
“That’s a boring topic,” he said with a slight choke. Of course it was a lie.
“I’ve met the Armstrongs, or a good amount of you, and boring is never something I would use to describe your family,” Stormy said with a raised eyebrow.
“My dad was a pilot for Pan Am, but died several years ago. My mother was a talented photographer who sold her art in galleries around the country. Just your average family, really—I have three brothers, no sisters.”
“That would explain all the photographs of you around the house. You obviously enjoy spending time with your family.”
“Yes, my brothers and I are incredibly close.”
“Okay, so I know Nick is in the Coast Guard, but what does Maverick do?”
“Are you sure you want to hear about them? I’m much more interesting,” he said with a laugh.
She agreed. But to know him she needed to know his family, too.
“Yes, I’m sure I want to hear.”
“All right. First there’s Nick, who you know is a Coast Guard pilot. Then there’s Maverick, who flies an F-18 for the Airforce and is based here at McChord Field. Then there’s Ace . . . Ace has been away for a while.”
The slight crack in his voice intrigued her, but she could see that wasn’t something she could push him to talk about so she didn’t.
“It’s really cool that you all share a love of flying,” she mumbled.
“Yeah, it just sort of happened. Our father and our uncle were pilots, and we all fell in love with flying at a young age, none of us realizing that it would become a career for us,” he explained.
“What made each of you choose such different avenues of flying?”
“I don’t know, to tell you the truth. When I decided to do it as a profession, I wanted to fly bigger and bigger planes, though I’m telling you it’s not as much of a joy as flying my personal aircraft. Mav always wants adventure and speed, and I think Nick likes being a hero,” he said.
“You are quite the trio,” she said. She desperately wanted to ask about Ace, but he wasn’t speaking of his youngest brother so she didn’t want to pry.
“Do you want more wine?”
“I think I’m good,” she told him, knowing she didn’t want to lose her wits.
The darkness of the room, the warm fire, and the wine were quickly sinking her resolve. And the look in Cooper’s eyes nearly burned her alive.
“Good, then I’m going to hold you.”
He didn’t give her a chance to refuse him; he simply stood up, picked her up, and then sat back down, pulling her onto his lap.
“I don’t think this is a good idea, Cooper,” she said, though she wasn’t trying to pull away.
“A lot of things in life aren’t a good idea,” he replied.
His hand trailed down her back and Stormy leaned into him without even realizing it. This man was affecting her more than she wanted him to.
He said nothing else and she felt her eyes drooping as her head rested against his chest. She struggled with whether to take this to the next level, to make love with him again . . .
Soon the decision was out of her hands. She drifted peacefully to sleep.
Cooper glanced down, realizing Stormy had relaxed enough in his arms to let her guard down. Smiling, he gazed at her peaceful beauty. He leaned in and gave her a kiss on the forehead.
“We’re getting closer,” he whispered.
He slowly stood, cradling her in his arms. He was falling for this woman in a way he’d told himself he never would. And it was both terrifying and exciting. But even being shaken to his bones, he still couldn’t manage to take her to her own room.
He slipped inside his door and laid her on the bed, not even letting her go for a moment as he clasped her in his arms and held on tight.
For the first time in a long while, he fell asleep with his lips tilted up.
CHAPTER THIRTY
The ringing of the doorbell startled Stormy as she was putting the finishing touches on a new bouquet on the kitchen table. She’d never had access to beautiful flowers, and now that she did, she decided it was a luxury she would continue when her time at Cooper’s was over. She loved how bright they were and how they left a subtle scent in the air.
She turned toward the door. It was the first time someone had come to the house with just her there. She didn’t know why she was concerned.
Obviously whoever was visiting had the code to the gate to get in, so there was nothing to worry about.
When she peeked out the side window and found Sherman standing outside, she immediately unlocked the house and threw the door wide open.
“I’ve missed you,” she said, not hesitating as she threw her arms around him.
“I was going to say the same thing, young lady. I thought you promised to call me when you were free for a visit.”
“Oh, Sherman, I’m so sorry. I’ve been busy with work, and well . . .” She trailed off.
“What are you hiding from me?” He was on instant alert.
“It’s nothing. But I did want to ask you what is happening with the cottage. There are guys there, but they don’t seem to know what they are doing. And then no one will be there for days at a time. One time I even saw three men sitting out there on the cottage porch drinking beers,” she finished in a hushed voice.
His cheeks flushed, and she figured he was probably upset. She didn’t want to get anyone fired, but she also thought it fair to let him know what was happening.
“I will have to check in on that,” he finally murmured. “Now tell me what it is that you’re hiding. I know it’s something.”
Should she tell this man she was dating his nephew? What if he thought she was using Cooper? That would break her heart. Still, the way he was looking at her made her feel like she had to confess.
“I’ve sort of been dating Cooper, if you could call it dating, but I probably shouldn’t say we’re dating. It’s more just . . .”
She trailed off. Had she really just been about to tell Cooper’s uncle that she and Cooper were friends with benefits? What in the heck was wrong with her?
“Cooper sure talks about you an awful lot,” Sherman said with a secret smile she couldn’t quite understand.
“Yeah, well, we are living under the same roof,” she easily explained.
“Are you happy with him?” Sherman asked as he moved into the kitchen. He grabbed a soda and some chips and then sat down.
“Yes, but it isn’t anything serious,” she said, not wanting this conversation to get back to Cooper and freak the man out.
“Any time two people are in an intimate relationship, there’s nothing casual about it,” Sherman assured her, making her squirm in front of him. The only thing holding her in place right now was that she had convinced herself it was nothing serious.
“That’s not what I meant exactly,” she hedged.
“I wasn’t born yesterday, missy, and you know there are many forms of intimacy. Don’t mistake what you have with my nephew as casual.”
“He holds himself back,” she said, feeling as if she were tattling.
“There’s been a lot that’s happened in his life. There’s reasons for that, but he’s opened up a lot since meeting you. I’ve seen him blossom in the past month or so,” Sherman assured her.
“He doesn’t talk about his past. I don’t know a heck of a lot about him, actually,” she said with frustration. “Besides the fact that he’s a pilot and has pilot brothers and one who is gone.”
“The boys had a very difficult time when they lost their father six years ago. It wasn’t easy on any of them, and they had to do some growing up,” Sherman said with a sigh.
“Six years ago?” she asked.
“Yes. Why?”
He’d immediately clued in to her uncomfortable shuffle on her seat.
“No reason,” she said, not making eye contact. Had Cooper’s father died before they’d had their night together? If she had the courage to ask him, she just might know. “What’s happened with his family?”
“I’m not one to gossip,” Sherman said before smiling.
They both knew that was as far from the truth as a polar bear living in Arizona.
“I won’t say a word to anyone,” she promised, holding her fingers up and sealing her lips.
Sherman smiled as he got a bit more comfortable. This might be a long story.
“The four brothers were once so close, but life has a way of sweeping our feet out from beneath us,” he said with sadness.
“Please tell me what happened. I want to understand.” Anytime Ace’s name was mentioned, Cooper became instantly distant. She wanted to know why.