Chapter 20
Cooper
I worked with my crew for most of the day. From what the crew said, the crowds were thick, watching the parade. Inside, we could hear the drums and the occasional horn.
The plumbing and electrical had already been installed by Hudson and Morgan. Today we were working on the insulation and drywall to prepare for the fixtures.
I was excited to see this bathroom come together. It was going to feel luxurious by the time we were done with it.
It would be an excellent advertising piece for Sterling Brothers Contracting. I didn't usually get so hands-on with a project, but since this one had a small turnaround window, I wanted to be involved in every step.
It was an impulse to see Aspen before the parade started, one I didn't spend too much time thinking about. I wanted to wish her good luck, and once I saw her, it had turned into a kiss. I wanted her to know that I supported her. I didn't think she got a lot of that from her family.
I got the impression that they didn't think she'd need it. But I'd be there for her. I tried to push away any thoughts that this was temporary, because right now it felt good.
I was fairly positive that the feeling in my chest was happiness. I wanted to see her all the time. I wanted to kiss her goodbye in the morning and greet her when she came home from work.
When had I gotten so invested? Was this what it felt like to be in love with someone? You wanted to spend all your time with them, and you couldn't focus on your job?
My heart pounded harder at the idea that I could be in love with Aspen. Why would I fall in love with the one girl I couldn't have? I was unfeeling except when it came to her. Was it because I'd known her my whole life, or was it just that she was special?
It figured that the only woman that would make me feel anything was my friends' sister. I couldn't help but think that this was something my dad would do. Sabotage himself. Was it worth getting what I wanted to blow up my friendship with the Sterlings?
I'd already decided it wasn't. But that was before I fell for Aspen. Didn't that change things?
"Everything's cleaned up. You getting out of here?" Carl asked.
I stowed my tools in the bed of my truck. "Yeah."
"We're making good time."
"I think so too."
"You were a little distracted today. Everything okay?"
I hadn't realized it was noticeable. "Of course. Maybe I just need more sleep."
"Yeah, maybe," Carl said. "Have a good night."
"You too," I called after him. I got in my truck and turned on the engine. Then I pulled out my phone.
Cooper: I'm on my way home.
Aspen: Meet you there.
A thrill shot through me. I couldn't wait to see her again, to have her to myself. My house was more secluded. There wouldn't be any gossip if she stayed the night, and more importantly, I liked having her there.
I pulled out of the lot and headed home, intending to leave the front door unlocked, and jump in the shower. I couldn't see her like this, not after working all day.
As soon as I was in the house, I texted her to come in without knocking and ran to the shower. I peeled off my clothes, not bothering to grab new ones, and got under the stream of water. I quickly scrubbed my body and shampooed my hair.
I let my head fall back, the water rinsing my hair when I heard movement. I opened my eyes just as Aspen slipped into the shower, naked.
"What are you doing?" I couldn't help but reach for her and pull her against my body. Her tits were pebbled from the cold air.
A smile spread across her lips. "I heard the shower running and thought I'd join you."
"You lock the front door?" I asked tightly.
She nodded. "You usually leave it unlocked?"
"Just when a beautiful lady is meeting me here."
Her cheeks flushed, and I wasn't sure if it was due to the heat of the water or if she was blushing.
"I missed you today."
Her lips quirked. "You didn't get your fill in the alley?"
"That was just foreplay," I growled.
"I like the sound of that."
As much as I enjoyed our quickies in her office and the ballroom, I liked prolonging our pleasure too. "I thought about you all day."
"Same."
I spun her so that she was under the stream. "Weren't you supposed to be thinking about the parade?"
"I couldn't help but think about this morning and how nice it was that you surprised me."
"It was a last-minute sort of thing. Didn't want you to go out there without a few words of encouragement." I nibbled her jaw, then down her neck.
"It was nice."
I crouched lower so that I could scrape my teeth against her nipple. "Nice, huh?"
"It was more than nice." Her eyes held a bit of a challenge.
I sucked on her nipple, rolling the other with my fingers. I'd never get enough of her, in my shower, in my bed, and in my life. I didn't want to think about what we had to do. Not when I felt so close to her now.
I flicked her nipple with my tongue, and she moaned. "I bet the parade was perfect."
"It was really good. Eve was happy." Her voice was breathless.
"Were you happy?" I dropped to my knees, urging her feet farther apart.
Her hand landed in my hair. "I'm happy now."
Her eyes were hooded, and her skin flushed. She needed what I had to give her.
I parted her folds, leaning closer so I could catch her scent, sweet like honey. Then I licked her, holding the back of her legs so she wouldn't sway.
I flicked her clit with my tongue, and she whimpered.
"You like that?"
She nodded shakily.
I wanted to know everything about her body, how she reacted, the sensitive spots. I wanted to make her feel so good that I ruined her for other men. That wasn't something I'd ever thought about before. But I was lost to these new feelings.
I licked and sucked, then flicked her clit with the intention of driving her wild. Her fingers tugged at my hair as if she hung on a precipice and needed me to send her over. I used a finger to enter her, barely containing my urge to be inside her.
She bit her lip. "I'm so close."
I used a second finger to pump inside her while I circled her clit with my tongue. Her muscles tightened, and her body went still. Then she was convulsing around me.
"That's it, baby. Ride my fingers." I wasn't usually a talker during sex, but she brought it out in me. There was this overwhelming sense of tenderness. I wanted to take care of her.
When she calmed, I pulled out my fingers and licked them. I stood. Her fingers encircled my dick. Every rational thought disappeared. I couldn't remember what my plan was for her. Instead, I focused on the pressure of her fingers.
I wanted more.
She slid to her knees, and I was powerless to tell her no. How could I when she looked so gorgeous at my feet, looking up at me, her tongue licking the precum?
She tightened her grip and sucked me into her mouth. The motion was so unexpected; I let my head fall back. The sensations rippled through my body. The heat of her mouth, the tight grip of her hand. She pumped and sucked, removing every rational thought from my brain.
I lowered my head so that I could watch her.
The sight was so erotic; I was close to losing control.
I rested a hand in her hair to ground myself, but I couldn't seem to grab onto reality.
Everything was slipping away, all logic and reason.
My mainstays in any relationship. If I lost those, then I was vulnerable to getting hurt.
I wanted to be the man she deserved. But how was that possible with my past?
There was so much determination swirling in her eyes.
She wanted me to feel good. And I wanted to let go.
I focused on her, blocking out everything else, and the orgasm tingled at the base of my spine.
The sight of her lips stretched wide around my dick was all I needed for the orgasm to overtake me.
She swallowed, and I helped her to stand, feeling like I'd lost the strength in my legs. We quickly finished in the shower. Then we stepped out. I grabbed a towel to dry her off. Then one for myself.
We tumbled into bed naked to escape the cool air.
This was my favorite place to be. There was nothing between us, and our bodies were sated. She curled up against my side, her head on my shoulder, and my hand played with the strands of her hair.
"Today was good."
"I'm glad the parade was a success."
"It made me think that I could do more," she said hesitantly.
"What do you mean?" I asked, wishing I could see her face.
"I don't want to follow the blueprint from the year before; I might want to add something. For example, Hattie's hot chocolate truck is so popular; I'd love to have her in town permanently. But it's not my decision to make. I'd need to run it by Eve."
"She is your boss." I understood the need for hierarchy. I wouldn't want my crew making decisions without consulting me. I had the bigger picture in mind, one the crew on the ground didn't always consider.
"Are you saying I should do what I'm told and leave it at that?" Aspen shifted so she could see my face.
I sighed, out of my depth in this conversation. I saw things in black-and-white, right and wrong. My dad was bad, so I avoided being anything like him. "I'd talk to Eve and see if she agrees with your changes."
"That's what I was thinking. I wish I had more autonomy, and I never will in this job. Natasha and Eve own the town. I'm just a temporary employee." She sounded defeated.
"That doesn't mean you can't dream about something different."
"This is the first job in forever that I actually could see myself doing, but not if I'm stuck in a box that someone else made."
I suspected that had been her problem all along. She wanted to forge her own path but kept trying to fit into the box to please her parents. "You don't have to settle."
"I'm never going to find another job like this. And even if I do, I won't have the independence to do what I want. I would always be under someone else's supervision."
"I guess you have to decide if you can deal with that."
"I finally found something I like, but I still feel restless. Is that normal, or is that my impulsivity coming out?"
"You say impulsivity like it's a bad thing. I think it's what makes you good at your job."
She snorted, her breath tickling the hair on my chest. "You can't be serious."
"What others perceive as differences are actually what make us unique."
She lifted up so that she could look at me. "So you're saying that my parents have been wrong all these years? That I'm not broken somehow?"
"Of course you're not broken." I hated seeing the pain in her eyes. "Everything you're involved in is so much more interesting because you are there."
She looked away. "I don't know."
"It's hard to see things differently when you've been looking at it one way your whole life. So maybe vow to be more open about your options."
"What you're saying is that I'm not going to figure out my life in one night."
I chuckled. "It's a life-long process, no matter what your parents tell you. Not everyone has their life figured out in high school, and even if they thought they did, they're allowed to change their minds."
She rolled to her back next to me, staring at the ceiling. "I'm not different. I'm not broken. I'm perfect exactly the way I am."
I smiled. "Now you're getting it."
She gave me a look like she didn't quite believe it yet. Then she sighed. "I don't know why women have told you that you're unfeeling."
I shifted so that I was staring at the slow-moving ceiling fan and not her. "They weren't wrong. I am closed off. I assume because of my dad and everything I experienced as a kid."
"You don't seem that way when you're with me."
"I'm still the same guy. I haven't changed." Was that true though? I felt different with her.
She shifted to her elbow. "I'm wondering if you see yourself clearly."
I raised a brow. "You're saying all my exes were wrong?"
Her lips quirked. "Maybe."
"And I'm an emotional heart-on-his-sleeve kind of guy?" I asked.
She laughed, falling onto the bed, and I moved over her. "Absolutely."
I growled, nipping her shoulder. "I'm not that guy."
Her eyes danced with amusement. "Then what kind of guy are you?"
"The kind that fell in love with you," I said before I could take the words back. Now my life hung in the balance. Would she laugh at me or push me away?
She sobered. "You love me?"
Should I have kept my mouth shut? "It's probably too soon, and what do I know about being in love?"
Her hand touched my cheek, forcing me to focus on her. "I love you too."
I swear my heart stuttered at her words, and I wasn't sure how to react. She loved me back.
What did this mean for us? We didn't have a future together. Her brothers would never accept us.
"I can see your brain working from here. Relax. We don't have to figure out everything tonight."
Was she saying that we could be together? That there was a world where her brothers accepted our relationship?
"We just have to be there for each other and enjoy this."
"I can get on board with that." I wanted to live in this moment. She loved me. The guy who was rejected by his father over and over again. And in a lot of ways my mother chose my father over me. She preferred to love my father and ignore the damaging effect he had on her kids.
I'd always believed I wasn't worthy of love, and now I had it. The question was, what was I going to do about it?