by Ryan, Kaylee
“I feel like I’m dreaming.”
“Yeah?” he asks. “Good dream or nightmare?”
“The best dream,” I confess.
“You’re my dream.”
I can’t explain what his words do to me. It almost feels as though my body is melting into his as I relax into his hold. His words put me at ease and have my heart leaping from my chest.
“Football,” I prompt.
“I like the team. The guys are great.”
“Come on, Coop, you can do better than that.”
“To be honest, I was in a haze most of the season. I went to practice and gave my all there and at games, but socially, I didn’t do a lot. I had a few guys from the team over a few times, doing my part to fit in, but I spent most of my time in the gym. I was missing you like crazy, in a new city all alone, and I just threw myself into my job.”
“It shows,” I say, resting my hand on his chest.
“Don’t tempt me, baby,” he says, swatting my ass playfully. “What about you? How’s work?”
“I like my job, but there is a lot of government red tape we have to go through. There’s a lot I didn’t get to see during my externship. I just want to help people. There was this woman… hell, she’s my age. She came into the office. She’s a nurse’s aide and a single mom. The dad is not in the picture and gives her no financial support. Anyway, health insurance is expensive, her deductible is outrageous, and her son, who’s four, has asthma. She was trying to get the medical card to help offset the deductible. She’s struggling to buy his meds and make ends meet. I helped her submit for financial assistance, a medical card, anything to help lessen the burden. She made five dollars too much. Can you believe that? Five dollars kept her from getting the assistance she needed to keep her head above water. I hate it. It’s so hard to tell them that news. I thought being a social worker, I was going to get to help people, help make a difference in their lives, and it’s been the exact opposite so far.”
“I’m sorry.” He places another soft kiss on my forehead.
“Well, I’m glad one of us has our dream job.”
“Maybe it’s just working for the county. Are there other avenues, places you can work that you can feel more fulfilled?”
“Possibly. I like my coworkers. I’m just riding it out, getting some knowledge and experience under my belt for now.”
“Maybe you can look for a new job,” he suggests.
“I’ve thought about it a lot recently.”
“Maybe you could look in Indy.”
It’s a casual suggestion, but the meaning behind it is nothing close to casual. “Maybe. Although adding the stress of finding a place to live and learning a new city doesn’t sound appealing.”
“You could live with me.” He tightens his hold. “Just consider it, Reese. I hate the thought of being away from you. We could see each other every morning and every night.”
“Do you know the definition of slow?” I ask him. I’m teasing. I know that he knows. I’m just trying to distract my heart as it thunders in my chest at his suggestion.
“Not when it comes to you. No.”
“That’s a big step.”
I feel him nod. “It is, but at the same time, we’re not strangers. Yeah, this is a new development in our relationship, but to hear everyone around us talk, they’ve been waiting on this and expecting it for years.”
“Who?”
“My parents, your parents, our friends. Everyone says they saw this coming. I just wish they would have pointed it out to me sooner. Maybe I could have pulled my head out of my ass a long time ago.”
“Did they tell you that? Our parents?” I ask. Although, I’m not surprised. My mother has dropped hints for years how she thought Cooper and I looked good together. I would roll my eyes, while inside I was secretly thrilled she thought so. Looks like I didn’t hide my feelings as well as I thought I did.
“They did. Nixon too.”
“Yeah, Tess said something similar while we were in Mexico.” I guess it’s not a bad thing we have so many people in our corner.
“I want this, Reese. I want you. I agreed I would try to go slow, but I need you to know that slowing this down doesn’t change the way I feel about you. It doesn’t change the fact you’re all I think about, and the life I want with you is all I can see when I think about the future.” He’s quiet for a few minutes. “Every future has a past, Reese. This is our story. We choose the ending.”
I’m certain he can feel the way my heart is racing. His words make me want to throw caution to the wind and jump in eyes closed, hoping for the best. I just need a little time, and I need to talk to Hunter, though. He really does deserve an apology.
“You’re making this hard for me,” I confess.
“Good. Because the thought of being away from you is tearing me up inside. This last year was pure hell, and I never want to go through that again.”
I snuggle into his chest, needing to be close to him. “I missed you too, Cooper.”
He doesn’t reply, but the tight hold of his arms around me tells me everything. He’s never been like this. We used to cuddle a lot, but this, needing me close, and not being able to stay away. That’s all-new. It’s new, and even so, my heart craves it. Not just my heart but me. I crave him. There’s no doubt in my mind that Cooper is the man for me. And somehow, here in the darkness of my room, he’s managed to chip away at my doubts that this is really what he wants.
I want him. I want this life he talks about, the two of us and happily ever after. I guess only time will tell what the future brings.
Chapter 9
Cooper
The morning sun gleams in through the window. I blink slowly, opening my eyes and adjusting to the light. A smile immediately breaks out when I see Reese is still in my arms, still facing me just as she was last night. I’ve woken up in her bed before, and her in mine, but this time it’s different. This time she’s going to wake up knowing she slept in the arms of the man who loves her.
Carefully, I push her hair out of her eyes, and they flutter open. “Good morning, beautiful,” I say, leaning down and kissing the corner of her mouth.
“I need to brush my teeth,” she mumbles.
“You’re here in my arms. That’s the last thing I’m worried about. How did you sleep?”
“Like a rock.”
I want to puff out my chest at that. She slept like a rock in my arms. Mine. Where she belongs. “What’s on the agenda for today?” I ask instead of gloating. I have a feeling that will get me nowhere.
“Toothbrush, shower, and food. In that order.”
I chuckle at her. “What’s after that?”
“I need to call Hunter.”
I nod. “Are you surprised he hasn’t reached out to you before now?”
“No. Not really. He’s a good guy. He’s never pressured me, and I know he’s hurting.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Me too, but it’s for the best. It might have been bad timing, but it’s better in the long run. I mean, he was saving himself for his wife. I could have taken that from him. I know we would have made it work, and maybe in time, I would have been able to give him more of me, but… I don’t think so.”
“Why is that?” I ask. My heart hammers in my chest, waiting to hear her say it. I know the answer; it’s me. Don’t judge me. I need a small morsel of something when it comes to her.
“You.”
It’s not a confession of love, but I’ll take it. “The offer still stands. If you want me to go with you.”
“No. I need to do it on my own. Besides, that’s kind of a slap in the face bringing you with me.”
“Why? For all he knows, we’re just friends.” I’m sure by now he’s heard rumors or even figured it out on his own. Nixon said it was written all over my face. It’s also no coincidence I was the one that rushed out of the banquet hall after her.
“I think our friends and family have proved otherwise.”
“Y
ou’re right. I don’t hate the guy, but he wasn’t the man for you.” I lean down and kiss the tip of her nose. “No one can love you like I can.”
“Who are you and what have you done with my best friend?” she asks, a slow, sleepy smile playing at her lips.
“Didn’t you hear? Your best friend fell in love,” I say, and her eyes soften. “Now, go grab that shower and toothbrush you were rambling about, while I make us some breakfast.”
“I’m not sure what our options are. I guess I should add going to the store to my list of things to do today,” she says, climbing out of bed.
“We can do that.”
“We?”
I nod. “Yes, we. Now go.” I walk toward her and snake my arms around her waist before she can get away. I give her a hug and kiss her neck softly before releasing her. I leave her to grab her shower while I rummage through her cabinets.
She’s right. She has nothing. There’s a small diner just down the street we used to frequent in college. After a quick search, I have their number, and I call in an order. I should be back just as she’s finished getting ready. Not wanting to find me gone and think I ran, I head back down the hall and knock on the bathroom door.
“Yeah,” she calls out over the running water.
I push open the door and curse the fact she has a dark green shower curtain. “Hey, babe, I’m going to run to the diner and grab us some breakfast. You were right. The kitchen is bare. You need anything else?” You know, like help with that shower?
“Told you. No, I’m good. Thanks, Coop,” she calls back.
Reluctantly, I close the bathroom door, grab the keys from the kitchen counter, and lock up behind me. I walk since it’s just a block over, and call Nixon on my way.
“Where should I send the bail money?” is his greeting.
“What the fuck? What makes you think I need bail money?” I ask.
“Because I know your stubborn ass, and Reese sent Tess a message telling her you were waiting at the airport for her. I know your stubborn ass too well and assumed Reese had to call the cops to get you to leave.” I can hear the humor in his voice.
“For your information, I stayed at her place last night.”
“Really?” He’s surprised.
“Yes, but nothing happened. We talked a lot, and then I might have got fed up with the couch and crawled into bed with her,” I confess.
“How’d that go over?”
“She didn’t kick me out. We talked some more, and I woke up this morning with her in my arms, where she’s supposed to be.”
“You know, I’m kind of glad you didn’t realize you were in love with her until now,” he tells me.
“Why’s that?” I’m almost afraid to ask.
“Because I would have had to listen to all this sappy ‘I’m in love’ bullshit all four years of college.”
“Like I didn’t listen to you when it came to Tessa.”
“Dude, you don’t hear yourself. You’ve got it bad.” He laughs.
“Yeah, I do. I’m not ashamed to admit it. I also know what it’s like to not have her in my life, not fully. When you experience that, you’ll learn to cherish what you have and shout it from the rooftops too.”
“You think I don’t cherish my fiancée?” he asks, surprised.
“No, I know you love her. I just mean that until you know what life is like without that person, you won’t get it. You and Tessa are solid, have been since day one. Be grateful for that. I was the dumbass who pushed Reese away. Then, I was the same dumbass who found out what life is like without her. It changes you. At least it did me. I want anyone and everyone to know how I feel about her.”
“Tess, babe!” I hear him call out.
“Yeah?” she asks.
“Cooper loves Reese.”
I can hear Tessa’s loud laugh through the phone. “This isn’t new news,” she tells him.
“Did you hear that?” Nixon asks me.
“Yeah, I heard her.” I’m not sure where he’s going with this.
“So, you see, you might think you need to tell the world, but we already knew. Seems to me that you and Reese are the only two who didn’t get the memo.”
“Well played, my friend, well played,” I say as I enter the restaurant. “Anyway, I need to go. I just got to the diner to pick up breakfast. Just wanted to check in.”
“You two need to come and visit,” he tells me.
“I’m not sure if Reese can get the time off work. I’ll talk to her about it and let you know.”
“We can go to them.” I hear Tessa say in the background.
“If not, we’ll come to you,” he tells me.
He might not be as boastful about his fiancée, but I know damn well she’s the love of his life. They have it together and are where I hope Reese and I can one day be. One day soon. Sliding my phone into my pocket, I step up to the counter. “Order for Reeves,” I tell the waitress.
“Oh my God, are you the Cooper Reeves?” she squeals.
“That’s me,” I reply awkwardly. I love my fans, but I just want our order so I can get back to Reese.
“What are you doing here? I mean, I know you went to college here, but what brings you back to town?” she asks, batting her eyelashes at me.
She looks not a day over eighteen, if that. No, thank you. I’m not interested. Not now, not ever. “My girlfriend lives here. And breakfast?” I hear myself saying. I fight back my grin at calling Reese my girlfriend. She’s not there yet, but to me, that’s what she is. In fact, she’s more than that, but saying you’re getting breakfast for the love of your life sounds weird, even to me. However, this girl doesn’t seem to be getting the hint. I might have to use that line to get our food.
“Me and some friends are hanging out at the bar next door tonight. You should stop by.” Again, she bats her eyelashes. They’re fake as hell, and that’s just not sexy. Not to me.
“No, thanks,” I tell her flatly.
“Oh, come. It will be fun.” She winks.
“I’ll be spending the night in with my girlfriend, and since you didn’t catch that the first time, let me break that down for you. I’m not interested. She’s the love of my life. No bat of your eyes or any other offer you have is going to change that.” I give her a hard look.
“Whatever,” she quips. “Your loss.”
“Not hardly,” I say, not giving a fuck if she hears me. She rings up my order and hands it to me. I don’t miss her writing her number on the back of my receipt before she drops it in the bag. Taking my card and sliding it back into my wallet, she smirks, handing me the bag. I reach in, pulling out the receipt and make a show of wadding it up. “Can you toss this for me? No point in bringing home more trash,” I say, and turn to walk out.
I’m seething mad at the audacity of her, and not watching where I’m going, which is why I collide with someone. “Sorry,” I say, looking up to see my victim, and I freeze. “Hunter.”
“Cooper.” He nods.
I don’t have to ask him if he just heard my declaration. I can see it written all over his face. “I’m sorry, I—”
He raises his hand to stop me. “I don’t want to hear it. Give Reese my best,” he says, stepping around me.
I reach out and grab his arm. “She wants to see you.”
“We don’t always get what we want.”
“Don’t take this out on her.” I plead her case.
“No, after your little speech, I concluded you were just as much to blame. Not that I didn’t already know that.”
“We didn’t mean for this to happen.”
“So, what? She runs out on me and now she’s yours?” The anger and the hurt in his question are evident.
She’s always been mine. “Not exactly,” I say instead. “Just let her explain. Please.”
“Yeah, we’ll see. You better get that food to the love of your life. It’s going to get cold.” He turns and rushes down the hall to the restrooms.
I debate going after him, but
I’ve caused a big enough scene as it is. People are staring. My only saving grace is that Hunter kept his voice down. No way could anyone hear our conversation. Not that they needed to. The tension was thick and obvious.
I rush out the door and start toward her place. When she hears this, she’s going to be pissed. How was I supposed to know Hunter was going to be there? And the waitress, I told her I was taken, and she kept flapping her jaws about meeting up. I was over that shit and wanted to end it. I’d much rather today’s event occur than it get back to Reese that I was entertaining the idea. Yeah, fuck that. It is what it is, and we’ll deal with it. Together.
Chapter 10
Reese
When Cooper got back to my place yesterday and told me about his run-in with Hunter, my time was officially up. I knew before then, but I needed to reach out to him. It was way past time. I called him, but he didn’t answer, and I had to leave a message. Four hours later, I sent him a text, and three hours after that, he finally replied. I was able to convince him to meet me. He chose his place. Today at six. Which is why I’m standing outside his apartment building, trying to garner up the courage to go inside.
My phone vibrates in my purse, and I’m grateful for the distraction. “Hey,” I greet Cooper.
“Hey, babe. You almost there?”
He wasn’t thrilled about me coming to see Hunter right after work. Something about too long a time without seeing me, but when he found out I was coming to Hunter’s apartment, that complaint was thrown out the window as he tried to convince me to change it to a more central location. I get where he’s coming from, but he doesn’t know Hunter like I do.
He’s a great guy, he would never hurt me. I’m the one who’s been doing that all on my own. If he feels more comfortable at his place, that’s what we’ll do. It’s a small concession after leaving him at the altar.