25. Nese
NESE
Happy with my purchase—though not the variety of stores I had to visit—I skip into the kitchen. This beer bread was fantastic at Coop’s, and I can’t wait to make it again. Here. At home. With people who love me.
Alexis rushes in. “Nese. You’ll never guess who’s here.”
“That guy from the bar?” I pull out a couple of mixing bowls.
“Nope.”
“Your fellow server at the diner?”
“Ewww. No way.”
Noah strolls in. “Did Alexis tell you we spent the afternoon with your boy, Coop?”
The bowls slip from my fingers and land with a clatter on the countertop. “Excuse me?”
“Yeah. Owen took him to your bedroom.”
“Coop’s in my bedroom with Owen?”
“Not with Owen.” Alexis scrunches up her nose at Noah. “More like Owen led him to your room to drop something off.”
I shake my head. “Owen led Coop into my room?”
“Exactly.”
This isn’t making any sense. There’s only one way to get to the bottom of it. “Excuse me.”
Bewildered, I march down the hallway toward my bedroom. Sure enough, the open door to my room reveals my roommate.
With Coop.
Seeing UC’s guitarist in my bedroom screws with my mind. On one hand, he looks as if he belongs here. On the other, this is wrong. So wrong.
In the hall, my hands settle on my hips. “What are you doing here?”
Owen glances between Coop and me. “I think I’ll leave you to sort this out.” He walks around Coop and joins me at the threshold. In my ear, he whispers, “He’s a good guy.”
I don’t acknowledge Owen’s comment, merely allow him to cross the hall into his own bedroom.
Coop brings himself to his full height. Something’s different about him, but I lack the patience to discover what it is. “Nese.”
“That’s my name.”
His head swivels, going to my full-size bed, then the drapes I bought at Walmart, to the closet that’s so jammed the door doesn’t close all the way. “I want to talk with you.”
I sigh. Still in the hall, I say, “Couldn’t this have waited until I got back to LA?” He knows I’ll be there to resume the tour next week.
His shoulders lower.
Noah yells, “Let him have it, Nese!”
Turning my head, I yell, “Don’t worry!” I focus my attention on the guitarist again. “I don’t know why you came all this way. I think we said everything that needed to be said in LA.”
He reaches to adjust his sunglasses, which are not on his face—I knew something was off—and ends up putting his hands into his back jeans pockets. “That’s not entirely true.”
I slam my eyelids closed. Opening them, I give him my version of the facts.
“You told me it was time for me to return to Georgia, so I bought my ticket and you put me on the plane. All without asking me if it was what I wanted. You made some stupid declaration that you’re happy with your life as it is.
This about sums up the past three weeks. Minus the shopping and sex, of course.”
From down the hall, I hear Alexis tell Noah she knew we had done it. He responds, “So what? Nese and I have had sex plenty of times and you never seemed to care.”
I raise my chin. “Anything to add?”
His jaw hardens. I’ve never seen him give anyone a belligerent attitude before, but he’s throwing one to me now. Bring it, Grandpa.
“As a matter of fact, I do.” His voice vibrates with tension. “You are the most reckless, spontaneous, and infuriating woman I’ve ever met. You do whatever you want, when you want, damn the consequences.”
Alexis supplies, “That’s our Nese!”
I look toward the kitchen and give her a thumbs up. Returning to the infuriating man in my room, I say, “Better than raking the sand and sitting on pillows in my spare time.”
The inside of his cheek twitches. “This isn’t going how I thought it would.
I should leave. Here.” He shoves a bag obviously filled with clothes at me.
Since I’m still standing at the threshold, he can’t escape unless he physically picks me up.
Judging from his demeanor, touching me is the last thing he wants.
“What’s this?” The bag is branded from the pricey boutique about a half-hour away from here.
He stares at the bag in my hands. From behind clenched teeth, he says, “It reminded me of you.”
I glance into his blazing hazel eyes and warning bells go off in my mind. I will not be sucked into his orbit again! My gaze returns to the bag, which I push toward him. “I don’t want it.”
“Well, I sure as hell am not going to wear it!”
I make the mistake of looking into his eyes once more.
They’re begging me to take his gift. Indignation rises from my toes, knowing what I’m about to do is stupid.
But I do it anyway. “Fine.” I rip open the bag, and a gorgeous blue dress glitters up at me.
It has a pattern of barely-there butterflies. I blink.
“It matches your eyes.”
Damn. I drop the bag to the floor and something makes a loud noise.
“And shoes.”
Grabbing the hanger, I hold the dress up to my body and walk to the mirror hanging inside my room. One end of the hemline hits above my knee, then it slants down to about mid-calf. Have to give him props. “The color does make my eyes pop.”
He retrieves the shoes and puts them down in front of my feet. They’re silver with an open toe. “These look great with it, as well.”
I will not crumble for a dress and a pair of shoes.
He still ordered me around like I was nothing more than his property—something I promised myself I’d never allow a man to do, after watching Kelvin do that to Ma.
“I appreciate the gesture. You did well. Must’ve had a good teacher. ” My cheek inflates.
“The best.”
I glance in the mirror with longing, then extend the hanger to him. “I can’t accept these.”
Quietly, he says, “I bought them for you, Nese. Keep them.”
“I don’t have anywhere to wear them.”
“The dress would fit right in at any club while UC’s on tour.”
There it is. He doesn’t say I could model it for him or anything. He mentions the entire band. “Why are you here, Coop? From my point of view, you wasted a trip.”
“I don’t think so.” He takes a couple of steps closer to me yet remains beyond reach. Smart man. “You will look amazing in this dress, and anyone would be proud to have you on his arm. Be it a roadie, a fan, Noah…”
“Noah?” I face him. “What about my roommate?”
“He told me in a roundabout way that you two sleep together.”
“Are you jealous, Coop? Is that what all this is about?”
“Hell, yes, I’m jealous.” His cheekbones tinge pink. “I hate the idea of you with anyone else. I don’t want any other man hearing those sounds you make—” He drags a hand through his hair, pacing now.
“I want you with me. On tour, on vacation… in my bed. I want you beside me. Not just for now.”
His voice drops.
Rougher.
“You do things to me, Nese. You cause me to want things I thought I was beyond having. You make me want to be… more than I have been.”
He reaches into his pocket and thrusts a small packet toward me. “I even experimented with the jewelry kit you left behind. By the way, I have it with me in my Tumi carry-on.”
I stare down at blue earrings. Imperfections wink at me, but I ignore them.
“They’re not perfect,” he mutters. “But neither am I.”
His gaze locks on mine. No retreat.
He says louder, “Here’s the thing, though...”
A breath.
“I want you.”
Another step closer.
He grits out, “Because I love you, Nese Dalton.”
Tears well in my eyes. My mouth drops open. My fingers run over my new earrings, which are more precious to me than any sapphires on the market.
“I, I don’t know what to say, Coop.”
“You aren’t obligated to say anything. I’ve said what I came here for.” He starts toward the door.
Clutching the earrings, I beat him to the threshold. “You don’t get to fly across the country and give me this dress, these shoes, and earrings you made just for me, then waltz out of my bedroom.” I swallow. “Things haven’t exactly been a bed of roses for me since I got home either.”
“Oh?”
“No. For one, the bed’s smaller than I remember. The neighborhood’s a bit more, well, down than my memory served up.” I turn my head so it’s pointed down the hallway. “But my roommates still rock!”
“Damn right we do,” replies Alexis.
To Coop, in a much lower voice, I say, “But conversations with them are less exciting than ours. I fought hard to get here, Coop, and I’m proud of all I accomplished to have made it happen. However, touring with UC has opened my eyes to a world outside of Georgia and Oklahoma.”
“Do tell,” he prods.
“On tour, I’m in my element, surrounded by fashion—whether it’s for the stage, in stores, or for you guys personally.” I take a full breath. “Or for you.”
My feet carry me in a circle around the small room.
“I enjoy our conversations, where you challenge me with your deep knowledge of a variety of topics. I love learning, and you keep me on my toes. All the guys do, in their own way. However, none of them could open my eyes to the challenges of meditation.” I hold up the signed book I bought at the bookstore.
“This is actually some interesting stuff.”
His gaze lands on the book. “He’s one of my favorite authors.”
“I know.” I replace it on my nightstand. “I should hate you for how you treated me.”
I suck in the silence.
“But I’m also old enough to fall in love.” I stare at him. “Because that’s what I did, dammit. I fell in love with the introverted guitarist of Untamed Coaster.”
His smile could power a small city. “You did?”
From down the hallway, Owen says, “I knew it!”
Ignoring my roommate, I speak directly to the man who makes my heart sing. “Damn you, Cooper O’Shea.” I stomp my foot.
“Right back at you, Nese Dalton.”
Both Alexis and Owen crowd the doorway, chanting, “Kiss! Kiss!” Noah hangs in the background, not joining in but still supportive.
Coop asks, “Should we give them what they want?”
I consider his offer for a moment. “No. I want to go out to dinner in my new dress before I let your lips near mine.”
He looks at the peanut gallery who’s assembled in back of me. “You heard the lady. No show tonight.”
“We’ll be here when dinner’s over,” Alexis quips.
Ready to be anywhere but here, I shoo Coop out. “I’ll change and be good to go in thirty. Play nice.”
I close the door behind him and rest my back against it. What the hell just happened? I replay our conversation, holding tight to my heart when he told me he loves me.
In a burst of energy, I put on the outfit he gave me.
The dress fits like a glove. I spin and delight in how the skirt billows around my legs.
Racing to the mirror, I apply lipstick, brush on mascara, and flip my hair.
With special care, I remove my earrings and put in the ones from him.
Imperfections and all, I think they look incredible with the dress.
Slipping into the heels, I grab my purse and place my hand on the doorknob.
Am I prepared for tonight? Hell to the yes—I’m more than up for exploring this amazing energy surging between us. With a smile, I open the door and enter to the sound of voices in the living room. Where my roommates are grilling him.
“Treat her right, and we’ll be good, bro.” Noah treats the rockstar like, well, a rockstar.
Owen says, “She’s basically my little sister. Don’t fuck with her.”
“If you break her heart,” Alexis warns. “Know you’re easy to find.”
Gotta love them. I enter the room. “Better listen to Alexis, Coop. She has a mean right hook.” She executes an air punch.
Coop stands, grabbing my attention. He’s wearing dark wash jeans with the purple shirt we bought in LA. I contain my drool—knowing he could pass for a model.
“Based on reviews, I made reservations for us at Miss Donna’s Kitchen tonight. But if you have another spot in mind…”
“I’ve heard that place is fantastic.” I turn to Alexis, our resident expert on all things dining. “Right, Alexis?”
“Definitely. I have a friend who started working there recently,” she says. “The buttermilk biscuits are divine.”
“Great.” He offers me his arm. “It’s a date.”
Will he be my only date forever? Being next to him, though, I feel his quiet confidence and it reassures me.
Yes.
This is the right decision.
My gaze travels over Coop, snagging on the earrings I gave him. They’re too loud for an intimate dinner, yet they’re perfect on him. I turn to my roommates. “Don’t wait up!” Then I put my arm through his and use him to keep myself steady, considering my ankle isn’t one hundred percent.
He pulls a carry-on next to him and opens the front door for me.
The moment hangs for a couple of beats.