Forbidden Dreams (The Sterling Brothers #6)

Chapter 1

Aspen

"I'm pregnant."

"That's amazing. Congratulations."

Eve smiled. "We're excited to expand our family."

Eve had married Maddox, the fire chief and a single father. It made sense that they wanted to start a family right away to ensure the kids would be close in age. But I'd only just started working as her assistant. What did her announcement mean for my job?

"I need you to work closely with Cooper on the renovations."

“You want me to work with Cooper?" My brothers' best friend. My brothers recently opened a contracting company, and their best friend, Cooper, was the supervisor. Growing up, he was always hanging around, and he was so annoying.

"It would be helpful if you could take my meetings with him. I've been feeling tired and nauseated.”

"I'm sorry you're not feeling well. I'm happy to help," I said, even as my stomach sunk.

Her shoulders lowered, relief visible in her gaze. "Thank you."

But there was a roaring in my ears. I couldn't believe I had to work with the one guy who drove me crazy.

“We’re going into the holiday season. I’m going to need all the help I can get between the seasonal events and the town’s renovations.”

“I’m here for whatever you need.” It would be more responsibility than I was accustomed to in a job. But I was excited about the opportunity.

"I know you don't always get along with Cooper, but I'm hoping you can put any hard feelings aside for this," Eve said.

I laughed it off. "We fight like siblings, but I can ignore my feelings and do what needs to be done for the town."

She let out a breath. "I'm thinking about making your position permanent. Let's treat this as a trial period to prove that you're the best person for this position."

"I'd love to work for the town." Of all the jobs I worked over the years, this one was the one I could see myself in for a long time. I didn't get bored, and I looked forward to going to work each day. But now, I'd be working with Cooper, and a sense of dread took up residence in my gut.

"When Maddox and I talked about how I was going to handle all my responsibilities while pregnant, he was worried they were too much. I'm so relieved that you'll be handling the day-to-day details."

"What will you be doing?" Did she mean that I'd be handling all the responsibilities? She planned the events, coordinated performers, vendors, and parking, and she dealt with any issues that arose from the shop owners to the visitors.

"I'm going to work from home. That will make it easier for me to rest and take it easy."

I hadn't anticipated that this position would turn into a full-time one. For once, I was excited at the prospect of more responsibility. "You can count on me."

She pulled out her laptop and opened the screen to a spreadsheet. "That's great to hear. Let me go over my schedule with you. I meet with Cooper, or talk to him on the phone, several times a week. We work closely together to coordinate the repairs.”

I nodded at the appropriate times, but all I could think about was that I was going to work with Cooper. The man I tried to avoid as much as possible. He already worked with my brothers and hung around our house all the time. Now I was expected to work with him too. I wouldn't be able to escape.

"The good thing is that you're already living in town, so you'll be close to the action," Eve said with a smile, as if it were a good thing to be so close to work and my new colleague.

I'd recently rented the apartment above Reina's bakery, Sweet Dreams. "I'm here for whatever you need."

Eve grinned. "I knew I could count on you. Cooper had some reservations that you would be professional."

The roaring in my ears only intensified. "He said that?"

Eve waved a hand. "I told him he doesn't know you like I do. You've gone above and beyond for me. If I can rely on you, then he can too."

"I'm glad you were able to alleviate his concerns," I said stiffly, even as irritation slid down my spine. Cooper had talked badly about me to my boss?

How was I going to work with him so closely when we couldn't be in the same room together without fighting? He was always criticizing me, and it was only going to get worse. But I'd promised Eve that I'd work with him. This was such a mess.

We spent the rest of the afternoon going over her job duties and what she expected me to handle. The entire time, I nodded and smiled at the right times, but I couldn't wait until I had a chance to confront Cooper.

It wasn't okay for him to bad-mouth me to Eve. I wasn't his younger sister. He needed to treat me like a professional.

I had Cooper's phone number. Not that I ever used it. My brothers said I could rely on him like I would a brother. He had been at every family event and most dinners growing up. He was everywhere, and it was only going to get worse.

When work ended for the day, I cleaned my desk and pulled on a jacket. On the sidewalk in front of town hall, I pulled out my phone and found his contact information. I hesitated only for a second, then typed out a message.

Aspen: We need to talk.

Cooper: About?

Aspen: You told Eve I couldn't be professional.

Cooper: I'm worried about our ability to work together. Aren't you?

It was easy for him to say. He already had a plum role as the supervisor of a contracting company. His position combined with his relationship with my brothers were solid.

Aspen: Meet me at the bar across from the bakery.

Cooper: Now?

Aspen: Yes.

I knew he was irritated that I'd interrupted his workday, or whatever he was doing, so that we could hash this out. But I couldn't wait a minute longer. I had to know why he'd tried to sabotage me.

I headed toward the bar, growing more irritated with each step. How dare he talk badly about me? He didn't know me, and over the years, he'd treated me like an annoying little sister.

He was just like the rest of my family, believing I was impulsive and irresponsible. I tried to ignore those comments, but it set me off that he'd insinuated I couldn't do my job.

I was done with being talked down to. I was tired of feeling less than because I didn't take the path that everyone else did. Who said you had to finish college and find a boring office job?

I reached the heavy wooden doors at the same time as Cooper and drew up.

He opened the door with a flourish of his hand and a mocking bow. "After you."

I wanted to argue, but I was going to be mature and pick my battles. This isn't one I was going to win anyway. He had good manners.

I swept past him and into the dark interior. It was still early, so there were only a few people sitting at the bar.

He came to stand next to me. "Where do you want to sit?"

Without responding, I started for the table in a dark corner, not wanting anyone overhearing our conversation.

Somehow, he beat me to the table and pulled out my chair.

I sat as he pushed in my chair. Then I waited for him to take the seat across from me.

He inclined his head toward the bar. "You want me to grab something from the bar?"

"I don't want a drink." My stomach was churning, and I wanted to get this over with. I'd never been alone with him like this, and it was unsettling to have his focus on me.

He raised a brow, his demeanor deceptively calm. "What did you want to talk about?"

I sniffed. "I met with Eve. She asked me to work with you."

He nodded. "She talked to me about it already."

It irked me that she talked to him first. "Apparently, you told her that I couldn't be professional—"

He opened his mouth to interrupt, but I held up my hand. "I'm tired of you and my brothers talking about me as if I'm not a responsible, mature adult. And it's not okay that you told Eve that I wouldn't be able to handle the job."

He leaned back in his chair as if he didn't have a care in the world. "You know we don't get along."

My jaw tightened. "You insinuated that I couldn't rise above our personal issues and be professional."

He crossed his arms over his chest. "Honestly? I don't know if you can."

I was so infuriated. How could he be so calm when I was ready to explode? "She wants me to prove that I'm the right person for this job. She wants it to be a permanent position."

His forehead wrinkled. "I didn't know you were looking for a full-time job."

I looked away from him, feeling fidgety under his scrutiny. "I'm tired of everyone in this family assuming that I'm flaky. Just because I didn't know what I wanted to do with my life the second I was born, doesn't mean that what I want isn't valid."

He raised a brow. "What do you want?"

"If we're going to do this"—I gestured between us—"then this is strictly professional. No jabs about how you think I'm immature or telling my boss that I'm not qualified to do my job."

His expression was somber. "This job is important to you."

"Yes."

His face was pinched. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize—"

"That's because you don't know anything about me," I interjected, my voice filled with irritation.

His jaw tightened. "I don't want to fight."

I clenched my hands into fists at my side. "So don't."

He gave me a look. "You make it difficult."

I tipped my head to the side. "You're saying it's my fault that you're infuriating?"

He let out a breath. "You don't make it easy."

I wasn't sure how we were going to work together.

I couldn't be in the same room with him without sniping at him.

I assumed it was because I had five brothers and didn't need another one taking my parents' attention away from me.

When I was younger, I didn't care why he was at our house all the time; I was just annoyed that he was.

He was quiet for a few seconds. "Maybe we should try and hang out together so we can get to know each other outside the dynamic of your family."

"What are you proposing?" I asked cautiously.

"Why don't you come over tonight for dinner? I'll cook, and we can put these bad feelings in the past."