Chapter Three
“Do you know what you’re doing?”
Zach stopped shaving and looked over to where his brother stood. Cooper was already dressed to go into the office.
“Getting ready to go to brunch and then trying to figure out how to get my reports done asap so I can spend the afternoon with her, too. After the conference meeting, of course. Can’t miss that, but then I think Big Tag won’t care if I have everything done that I need to do.”
He was feeling optimistic, but then a night of ridiculously hot sex with a woman he was crazy about put him in a good mood. It hadn’t simply been the sex. It had been the real intimacy. She’d been open and honest with him. They’d really talked.
He’d really lied. But not about the important stuff. Just the stuff that could get her killed.
“I meant with Devi. Hunter told me you played with her last night, and Tris mentioned you two left the club together. I happen to know you didn’t walk into this house until about an hour ago,”
Cooper pointed out.
Damn. He washed the shaving cream from his face and dried off before turning to Cooper.
“I stayed at her place. We went out for waffles and ended up talking all night. I didn’t realize there was a curfew. I’m sorry. I’ll let you know next time. I appreciate you letting me stay here. I hate getting stuck in hotels.”
“And if I ask you to back away from Devi?”
Cooper asked.
Wow. He felt himself stand up straighter, felt his fists threaten to clench. He kind of thought he would pick his brother over anyone, would do whatever it took to make Cooper feel comfortable around him but this…no. He liked Devi. He felt good when he was around her, and even if this wasn’t going to last forever, he wanted the time with her. She was important.
Before he could formulate a response, a slow smile crossed Coop’s face.
“You like her.”
He breathed a sigh of relief. His brother was pressing a button to see how he would respond. He could understand. Cooper had known Devi his whole life.
“I like her. I like her a lot. I…I don’t think I’ve liked anyone in a long time the way I like her.”
“I think that’s great,”
Cooper said, leaning against the wall. He looked all happy and carefree now.
“Devi’s a great girl, and she’s been looking for a play partner for a long time.”
It felt too good to have his brother on his side, but he should make his position clear.
“It doesn’t bother you I want to date Devi?”
Cooper sobered.
“Date? As in see her outside the club?”
Why did everyone think he only wanted a club relationship? He liked regular things. He liked movies and waffles and hanging out in places where there were no spanking benches.
“Well, I definitely saw her outside the club last night. I’m planning on the same tonight.”
Cooper nodded.
“I like it. Devi needs someone with a firm hand when it comes to D/s and an indulgent one in life. But you know she’s planning on moving, right? She wants to get back to Manhattan.”
He thought Coop was wrong. They’d spent several hours in an all-night diner talking about this. She’d told him what was going on in her career.
“It’s not about the city. It’s about the job. She’s been applying at a bunch of design houses. That’s what she called them. The New York ones didn’t pan out. She’s trying to get into sportswear or something. I think she should do fet wear. The stuff she does is stunning and easy to use, if you know what I mean.”
Cooper nodded.
“She did a couple of Kala’s corsets, and she designed Carys’s wedding dress. Not that she got to wear it for long.”
Zach winced. He’d heard about what happened at the failed wedding of Aidan and Carys. He was kind of glad since he knew how much Tristan loved them both. Tris was trying to distance because of the secret op they were involved in. The one none of their team knew about.
But then Tristan didn’t know the whole story either. Tristan had no idea how Zach manipulated the situation, and he was going to keep it that way.
“She showed me some of her work when we went back to her place. She’s so talented. If she ends up in LA or Paris or wherever, the good news is I can travel.”
“I’m glad you’re serious. Devi’s great. You should know though that Kala loves her cousin and if you fuck her over…”
“She will kill me. I’m cool with that. I have zero intentions of fucking Devi over. I’m going to get to know her.”
Cooper stepped back, shaking his head.
“I do not know who you are right now. It’s the smile.”
He rolled his eyes.
“I smile, asshole.”
Cooper shrugged.
“I mean is it a smile?”
He smiled. Sometimes. He intended to smile way more.
“I’m heading over to pick up Kala before we go into work. She’s a beast without a pitcher of coffee and a chocolate croissant,”
Cooper said.
“You need a ride?”
This was something they should discuss.
“Nah, Devi’s picking me up in half an hour. We’re going to some brunch place she likes and then she’ll drop me off. We were talking about maybe seeing a movie or something tonight. I should get a car.”
Cooper shrugged. “Why?”
Then his brows rose.
“Are you talking about renting something or buying a car, because you pretty much don’t need one in DC.”
Dangerous ground, but he was feeling like pushing his luck since it seemed to have changed the night before.
“Well, that is something I wanted to talk to you about.”
“I am shitty at buying cars,”
Cooper admitted.
“I’m a complete walk in the door and pay whatever they want because haggling seems rude. But if you take Kala with you, they’ll give you a deal just to shut her down. She can be brutal, and she knows way more about engines than you think she does.”
He knew a lot about them, too, but he wasn’t supposed to be that smart. Like they didn’t realize he spoke a couple of languages. He was the military grunt. They didn’t need to know he was actually a hell of a hacker and had fooled Tristan Dean-Miles a couple of times. Kala’s best friend and the team’s resident tech expert, Louisa Ward, thought he was a moron who could barely turn a computer on, and that was the way he needed it for now.
“Well, then I’ll have to ask her to go in with me. I might not need a car to get around DC, but Dallas is another story. If I want to go anywhere outside the city, I need a car.”
“Seriously? But Zach that would mean…”
Cooper left the statement open ended, as though trying to figure out if Zach actually knew what he was saying.
His himbo cover worked way too well.
“I’m going to talk to Big Tag soon. I know they want active military to work with these teams, but like Tristan, I don’t want to spread my focus too much. It gets messy. I can still liaise with military even if I give up my active status and work strictly for the Agency and for our team. Which means I would move to Dallas and probably have a cover job with McKay-Taggart. I hear they’re always looking for bodyguards.”
Cooper sighed and seemed to consider the problem for a moment.
“I think your timing is impeccable. I was wondering how I was going to justify staying here without a roommate. It’s kind of a big house. You looking for a place to stay?”
This was actually happening. Everything he’d wanted was right in reach.
“I was hoping you would say that. It is a good time because after that scene last night, I think those three are going to figure it out. Eventually, but don’t Tris’s parents own this place? Are they willing to be our landlords?”
“Serena actually bought this place a couple of years back,”
Cooper explained.
“She was clear that I could stay as long as I want, and she’s open to me buying her out over time. I like it here. It’s comfortable.”
More importantly Kala liked it here. She’d mentioned a couple of times how much she liked what she called the boys’ place. Of course she’d also mentioned one of the reasons she liked it was the backyard had plenty of space for a pool.
Yeah, he knew what that meant.
“Then I would love to take one of the empty rooms. Let me know what my share of rent is and I’ll start handling half the bills until you bring in someone else.”
There were four bedrooms in this big rambling house, though Cooper had only ever had two roommates. Tristan and Aidan once had rooms here. Nate Carter was supposed to move in, but he’d only been around for a week or so before he ended up engaged to Daisy O’Donnell and living at her place.
“The only person I might invite is my brother if he needs a place to stay, but he seems happy in my parents’ pool house for now. I think that might change when he finishes up his masters and goes to work. But he could surprise me and move states for all I know. He promised my dad he would get his education and then he could roam around the world for a while. So it might not happen. He might be like our sister and never come home again.”
Vivian McKay lived in London, and he knew Coop felt the distance. He loved his siblings.
It made him wonder what it had been like to grow up with Alex and Eve McKay as parents. In that big comfy house with a brother and sister and a found family that never let him down.
“Hunter’s a good kid. I wouldn’t mind at all. I promise I’ll be a quiet roommate with very little drama.”
He would be Cooper’s steadfast brother even if he never knew.
Coop nodded and pulled his cell out.
“See that you do. And the room is one hundred percent yours. Maybe when we get back from the Montreal op we can find you a car. I need to go. You’re sure you don’t need a ride?”
He’d already gotten three adorable texts from his sub. Oh, they didn’t have a contract, but she was his sweet sub and he was going to enjoy it.
“She’ll be here soon. And just so you know we’re going to a showing of old-school Star Wars tonight. Devi’s only seen the prequels.”
Coop’s eyes lit up.
“You know Kala loves Star Wars. She mentioned something about it. If you two don’t mind, we might tag along. Like a not double date since we won’t mention that I’m dating her without her acknowledging it.”
“A not double date sounds great.”
Everything was falling into place. He wasn’t even tricking Devi into a double. Last night she’d been the one to mention Kala loved old-school Star Wars, and wouldn’t it be fun to show her how nice it was to date. She loved her cousin, knew her cousin loved Cooper, and was trying to make it as easy as possible for Kala to fall into a relationship.
Kala could be complex.
“Then I’ll see you at the office where I’m sure we’ll get a shit ton of lectures on how to protect Carys and Aidan,”
Cooper said with a grin.
He strode off, and Zach could hear him pick up his keys from the tray near the front door. It opened and closed, and he heard the lock slide into place.
Zach moved through the house that would soon be his home, contemplating the fact that when he asked Big Tag to move him fully onto the team, he was going to tell him why he’d been assigned to the team in the first place.
He poured himself the last cup of coffee and switched it off. He needed to get dressed. She would be here soon.
Would Ian be upset? Or would he roll his eyes and say he already knew and had some plan to make him a weird in-house double agent against his military enemies?
He moved to the hallway and saw Devi’s graceful form silhouetted in the opaque window of the door.
Damn. He’d do it. He would pretty much do anything Big Tag asked him to because he wanted to be part of whatever family that woman was in.
He set his mug down and wished he wasn’t about to open the door wearing his sweatpants and nothing else.
He was supposed to be ready.
He was supposed to be on time and prepared.
It was kind of his brand. Zach Reed. Not too smart, but damn the man is on time.
He opened the door and she stood there wearing jeans and a cute top that showed off her midriff.
She was beautifully put together.
Casually elegant with a hint o.
“look, I go to the gym.”
She’d dressed for him, and he wasn’t even ready on time.
“Hey, sweetness. I’m so sorry I’m running late. I’ll be two minutes.”
She stepped inside, and her eyes roamed his chest, a fine flush coming over her skin.
“Oh, I think you can do way better than two minutes, Sir.”
She leaned in, her hand going to his chest and her mouth tilting up in invitation.
All thought fled and utter lust took its place. He locked his mouth over hers, kissing her like she was all he needed in the whole fucking world.
Brunch would have to wait.