Chapter 21
21
Isla
THAT DID NOT go the way she expected.
She hadn’t anticipated the genuine interest that would come her way, and she hadn’t expected Cooper’s reaction to be so…
Reactive.
Or that the whole thing would end in a bar brawl and multiple arrests.
Listening to Griselda was a bad idea. She never should have pushed things—Cooper—the way she did.
Except it kind of worked. So far.
“I have to go in to check on some paperwork and clock out.” Cooper parked his cruiser in one of the numbered spots at the back of the gated lot behind the station. “Then we can go home.”
That was the second time he’d said that, and she was still wondering exactly where home was going to be. Would he be dropping her off at the door of her apartment? Wish her a good night and then send her on her way?
Or was he taking her back to his house to touch her the way she was so desperate for? Only time would tell, and hopefully it said something she wanted to hear. Because after this, she was out of ideas.
Cooper got out of the car and she did the same, prepared to follow his lead since she wasn’t sure where to go or what to do. In so many freaking ways.
Instead of going straight for the unmarked door at the back she assumed was the employee entrance, Cooper came her way, sliding his hand around hers and holding tight as he led her across the lot. Once they were inside, he kept his grip on her, only letting go to sign papers or type on the computer.
The place was pretty empty—probably since it was almost midnight—but they did come into contact with a few people. Cooper introduced her, his hand staying on her in some way as he did.
After quickly clocking out, he took her back out to the parking lot and loaded her into his truck. It only took two turns for her to figure out they were going to his place and not hers. Which was good news? Probably? Hopefully.
“We’re going to your house?”
This whole thing tonight was supposed to make her feel more certain. Griselda promised it would show her how Cooper really felt. But instead, she was just as confused as before. They’d been walking the line between friends and more for weeks now, and it made it impossible to tell which side of it they were on.
“We’re going home.” He said it like it explained everything.
And it did… Sort of?
“ Your home.” She needed clarification. Now more than ever. Because the not knowing was starting to get to her. It was making her do things she wouldn’t normally do and think things she wouldn’t normally think.
Like maybe she was still just as delusional as she had been with Eric.
Cooper’s head turned her way, his eyes moving over her face. “Is that really how you see it?”
Isla pressed her lips together, not wanting to admit the truth. That she’d imagined his home being her home more times than she could count. That she’d imagined him being hers more times than she could count. “I don’t know.”
“I think you do know.” He put his eyes back on the road, hands gripping the wheel tighter than normal. “And I think you’ve been as afraid to admit it as I have.”
Damn. He’d called her right out on that one.
But not only had Cooper called her out, he’d insinuated something that made her feel like a jerk. “You’ve been afraid?”
“You mean of losing the person I value most in the world because I pushed for more than she was willing to give?” He shook his head. “Wasn’t worried at all.”
Well, fuck.
“I need to tell you something.” She twisted her hands in her lap, guilt gnawing at her insides worse than uncertainty ever could.
Cooper pulled into the driveway of his house, parking right in front of the garage before opening his door to climb out. “Come on, Princess. Time to go inside.”
Opening her own door, Isla slid to the ground, feeling a little sick. She was a terrible person. She’d tricked the man she loved into making a move he wasn’t ready for. Pushed him farther than he wanted to go.
All because she was impatient. Because she was ready to move forward. Because she didn’t want to end up sitting around waiting to find out a man didn’t really want her like she thought he did.
Walking behind him, she trudged through the garage, following his path to the door. Cooper opened it and stepped inside the laundry room.
She walked past him, hanging her coat up before turning back, facing Cooper just as he peeled away the protective vest layered over his uniform.
That’s when she noticed it wasn’t in its normal state.
“Is that dirt?”
Cooper chuckled. “Yeah.” He set the vest onto the bench running along the wall. “I had to chase some guy across a pasture and we both went to the ground.”
She swallowed hard as he unbuttoned the dark shirt that went under his vest, each flick of his fingers revealing a peek at the black T-shirt beneath it. “Did you get hurt?”
“Just some bruises and scrapes.” He peeled away the layer, tossing it into the open washing machine. “I’ll survive.” His strong hands gripped the cotton covering his stomach and pulled, tugging it free of his pants. “What did you need to tell me?”
Oh God.
That she was an awful person. That she not only tricked him, but did it after he’d put his life on the line chasing some random criminal across a field.
“I messed up.”
“Okay.” Cooper tossed his T-shirt in with his uniform top. “How did you mess up?”
She swallowed hard. Because this might be it. Because Cooper might drive her conniving butt straight home and never look at her again.
And because his abs were ridiculous.
“I went to The Creekery tonight to make you jealous.” She spit it out as fast as she could. The verbal equivalent of ripping off a Band-Aid. “Griselda said she had to threaten to find someone else before my grandpa would admit his feelings for her and I was starting to get frustrated, so…” It sounded so awful when she said it. “I just…”
Her eyes lifted to the ceiling as they started to burn, blinking hard in an attempt to control the moisture trying to break free. Crying would be even dumber than tricking Cooper was. This was her fault. She couldn’t get all whiny about it now.
“Isla.” Cooper’s voice was sharp, making her eyes jump to where he stood, peeling away his pants. “You’ve got three seconds before I’ve got all this off, so you better run.” His gaze was dark as it leveled on her. “Because as soon as I get my hands on you, I’m not letting go until you’re coming on my cock.”
Her brain stumbled over the bluntness of his words. The image they created.
He angled a brow as he peeled away a sock. “I’m serious. I will fuck you right here on the laundry room floor.”
Her eyes dropped to the hardwood. It was perfectly clean. But that wasn’t the issue making her pause. It was the lack of comfort. Not for her—she probably deserved to suffer a little—but for the man who’d already gone to the ground once tonight.
So she turned, pulse picking up as she rushed through the house.
“Shoes off, Princess.” Cooper called out after her, a smile in his voice. Like he was enjoying slowing her down. “And just so we’re clear, I’ll fuck you on the stairs too.”
That sounded even more uncomfortable than the wood floor, so she started bouncing on one foot as she gripped the shoe on the other, propelling herself forward as fast as possible while wrestling the cute bootie free. It fell to the floor, and she grabbed the second just as the door of the washer slammed shut.
“You’re running out of time.” Cooper’s voice was taunting. It also carried a hint of a challenge. Like he didn’t believe she’d be difficult to track down.
He might not be wrong, but she hated the thought of him being any more uncomfortable than she’d already made him tonight.
So as soon as the second bootie hit the floor, she took off, running through the kitchen and into the living room. Past the sofa she loved so much to the stairs. Taking them two at a time, her pulse skyrocketing at the sound of bare feet racing her way.
Holy shit he was fast. No wonder Cooper was the one who caught the guy running across the field.
She reached the landing and made a hard right, skidding a little as she rounded the doorway to the main bedroom. After being such a jerk, the least she could do was bust her ass to give Cooper what he might want most in this particular situation.
Besides taking her on just about every surface of his home.
While he seemed pretty darn interested in all sorts of locations, there was one spot she was always in a hurry to be after a rough day. And he was probably the same way. Especially after meeting the icky end of a cow pasture.
Her left foot had just crossed the threshold of the attached bathroom when a hard chest slammed into her back, propelling her forward and fully into the space she’d been aiming for.
“Is this your way of telling me I need a shower?”
Cooper’s voice was low and deep in her ear, the rumble of it sending a shiver down her spine. One wide palm pressed to her belly, sealing her back to his front, the thick prod of his dick lined right down the crack of her ass.
“I just thought you might want to take one after…” She sucked in a breath when the hand on her belly grabbed the fabric of her shirt, fisting it tight as he started to peel it up.
“After I played in the dirt with a criminal? Or after I almost kicked that cowboy’s ass for trying to put his hands on you?” The rumble was more of a growl now. Almost angry.
“I didn’t think anyone would notice me.” She closed her eyes. “I just wanted you to stop pretending.”
Cooper dragged her shirt over her head, dropping it to the floor. “What did you think I was pretending?”
“That we were friends.” She gasped when the clasp on her bra snapped free, the cups sagging forward.
“We are friends.” Cooper’s slightly rough fingers slid along her shoulders, dropping the straps down her arms until the undergarment hit the floor. “You’re the best friend I’ve ever had.”
Was he serious right now? “I don’t want to be your friend, Cooper.”
“Too bad.” His touch skimmed back up her arms, tracing a path over her collarbones before each hand shifted forward to cup the weight of her breasts, his thumbs teasing over her nipples. “You’re my friend whether you like it or not.” His breath was warm as his lips ghosted along the column of her neck. “My friend. My chauffeur. My hen helper.” He nipped at her skin. “My entertainment. My sidekick.” Cooper’s lips brushed over the shell of her ear. “You’re my everything, Princess.” His hands released her breasts, sliding down her stomach to the fly of her jeans. “I want you more than anything I’ve ever wanted.” He flipped the button loose. “That’s why I was afraid. Without you, I’d be fucking lost.”
“Oh.” All the air rushed from her lungs as he wiggled her jeans past her hips, taking the panties under them along for the ride. “I don’t want you to be lost.”
Cooper’s laugh was low and soft. “Good.”
Her jeans hit the floor and he pushed against her, all warm and solid and hard.
Very, very hard.
They reached the shower and he slid aside the door to reach in and switch on the water. “Girl temperature or boy temperature?”
She tipped her head, peeking at him over one shoulder. “How do you know what girl temperature is?”
“I think you know how I know.” Cooper’s hand came to her face, his thumb dragging over her lower lip. “I’ve got a past, Princess. Just like you do.”
She wrinkled her nose. “I don’t want to think about that.”
Weirdly enough, it was Eric intruding on this moment that bothered her more than the thought of Cooper with someone else. Of course he’d been with other women.
Look at him.
He was sweet and kind and hard-working and gorgeous and caring and gentle and would fuck you anywhere you wanted him to.
At least that was the claim he made, and she was inclined to believe him.
“Good, because I don’t want to think about it either.” He pushed the shower door open wider, urging her in with the press of his body. “All I want to think about is you and me and how many times I can make you come before I pass out from exhaustion.”
She laughed at how quickly he’d gone from zero to one hundred. “Pretty big words coming from a guy who’s never even kissed me.”
Cooper crowded into the shower behind her, one hand gripping her hip as he turned her to face him, pressing her back against the slick tiled wall. He ran his nose alongside hers, mouth hovering just a whisper away. “I knew once I kissed you I’d never be able to stop.” The hand at her hip shifted, sliding across her belly to tease between her thighs, fingertips brushing against the seam of her pussy. “So you should probably brace yourself.”
She managed to pull in half a breath before his lips were on hers. There was no hesitation when he claimed her mouth. No careful exploration when his tongue swept inside, melding his taste with hers.
Isla looped an arm around his neck, holding on as he overwhelmed her senses. Took everything she’d wanted to give.
The probe of his fingers parted her, sliding along her wet skin as he groaned, the sound caught in the chamber of their kiss. Cooper’s lips dragged free, his forehead dropping to hers as he found the hard nub of her clit and began to stroke with an unerring touch.
“Is there a reason I should wait to fuck you until I can reach the condom box in my nightstand?”
She was so caught up in the bliss he was bringing that it took a few beats for her brain to make sense of his words. Even once she did, her answers came out choppy. “On the pill.” She whimpered as her legs started to shake. “Don’t have any medical issues.”
“Thank God.” His fingers worked a little faster. “None for me either.”
Suddenly his touch was gone and she was being lifted up. Her legs flailed a little, both arms latching at his neck as she tried to find stability.
Then the thick head of him was there, pressing in, filling her with a long, solid stroke that pushed all the air from her lungs in an unladylike groan.
“Fuck.” Cooper’s arm banded around her lower back, beneath where the upper part was braced against the tile, holding tight as he pulled back and sank deep again. His mouth sealed over hers, swallowing down the unhinged noises coming out of her as he started to do as he’d promised—fucking her pretty much exactly where he caught her.
As a woman who’d never done anything outside of a bed, the whole thing was pretty damn surreal. Not just the physical feat of what he was accomplishing, but the desperation he did it with. Like if he’d had to wait a second longer to be inside her he would have died.
But there still wasn’t a doubt in her mind Cooper would have waited for the bed if she’d wanted to. If she’d been worried about nothing standing between them.
That was exactly why she wasn’t worried. This man would never do anything to hurt her in any capacity. The only way he’d even consider fucking her bare was if he knew for certain it wouldn’t harm her.
You’re my everything.
That’s what he said to her, and she believed him. Knew for a fact it was true.
Because he was hers.
All her hopes and dreams and plans hadn’t been wrong. She was just a little mistaken about who would be there with her.
Cooper’s next thrust was a little harder. A little deeper. It pushed her higher on the wall and changed the angle of their bodies, bringing his pelvis to rub against her with every flex of his hips.
Her eyes went wide when the next press of his body hit a toe-curling spot inside and put friction on her clit at the same time. “Ohh.”
“Who’s got big words now, Princess?” Cooper’s free hand came to curve around one breast, fingers plucking at the bud of her nipple. It was like he’d figured out the magic combination.
Her whole body jerked, clenching against him—around him—as she came.
Hard and loud.
Cooper was right behind her, the flex of his cock inside sending a little shock wave of pleasure as he rocked against her, letting out the sexiest groan she’d ever heard.
Then he was kissing her again. Mouth. Cheeks. Forehead. Chin. Nose.
Then mouth some more.
It wasn’t until the water started to cool off that he lowered her to the ground, his body sliding free. After taking a second to wash her and then himself, Cooper helped her out, wrapped her in a towel, and took her to his bed.
She expected him to collapse, but after stealing away her towel, he climbed over her, nosing up the center of her body until they were eye-to-eye. “You never told me what you decided.”
She blinked, a little tired and a lot relaxed. “What?”
“Hands or mouth?” he asked.
“Oh.” Her eyes dipped to his lips, watching as they curved.
Cooper shot her a smirk. “That’s what I thought.”
Then he moved down her body, seeming fully intent on making good on his plan to get her off as many times as possible.
Thank God for a man who liked to make plans as much as she did.