Chapter 7
On book club night Scarlett walked into Palmetto Perk ten minutes late, her pulse thundering in her ears. She’d left Cora in Cooper’s care. At her house. Wishful thinking or pure idiocy? The world may never know.
Maybe the wishful thinking was that there would be a day when he wasn’t at her home. Since he and his toolbox arrived, it seemed she was constantly tripping over him, or preparing to meet him for another fun outing.
Of course she trusted him. Mostly. But what if he slipped up or Cora asked a pointed question and suddenly the dad word was out there—a bomb detonated before she was ready? She owed him a conversation about this, but it was hard to carve out the time that would change her world forever.
He’d been attentive and wonderful with Cora. The two of them were like peas in a pod and although her heart positively delighted in that undeniable connection, her gut churned with worry.
It was all well for now. But how much would her daughter hurt when he left?
And he would leave. He’d come to Brookwell for the month and eventually that time would run out.
She had no doubt he would get another offer to guide the next generation of bright minds.
Cooper wasn’t built for small-town life.
He didn’t fit in with the roots she’d given Cora or the vision she had for where and how to raise their daughter.
Through it all, he’d been a perfect gentleman with her. He didn’t get too close, didn’t make any familiar advances, which meant all this pent-up attraction had nowhere to go. It was making her mad enough to growl at inopportune moments.
This was insanity.
Her house smelled different with him in it so frequently, his masculine scent mingling with the vanilla candles she usually lit to relax. It left her edgy, and tiptoeing around the persistent evidence that the sanctuary she’d created for herself and Cora had been breached.
“You look like you haven’t slept in days,” Holly said with somber concern when Scarlett dropped into a chair. “And you’re late. That’s two strikes against your typical orderly behavior.”
“It’s been a week,” she muttered.
Grace nudged a cup of her favorite tea within reach. “Want to talk about it?”
Yes! “No, thanks. I’m good.” Everyone was already reading and that’s what they were here to do.
She wouldn’t wreck this special time with her problems. What advice could they offer?
Legally, Cooper was entitled to see his daughter.
He’d never had the opportunity to revoke his parental rights.
Knowing him, seeing him with Cora, she knew he’d hire an attorney if she didn’t come around.
He’d probably hire someone anyway, just to keep the solution civilized.
Civilized solutions were slipping further from her reach.
There were moments when she could believe this temporary happy family vibe was real. Moments when she wanted it to be real. And then reality would smother her, making it hard to breathe through the inevitable pain of his next departure.
She pulled her own book out of the bag, but suddenly the true crime held zero appeal. She swallowed the urge to growl, reaching instead for her tea and opening her book. But the words didn’t inform or entertain. They dissolved and scattered like ants across the pages.
She was the bad guy here, the villain of this drama unfolding right under her nose. A runaway train she’d never stop in time.
She’d kept her secret for all the right reasons, no one would convince her otherwise. But now that Cooper knew the truth, keeping it from Cora would only backfire. Maybe not today, but tomorrow, next month, or next year.
The precise timing was irrelevant. Scarlett would shatter if her daughter resented her for the choices she made in this moment. Cora’s needs superseded her desire. Either she’d find a way to co-parent with Cooper or she’d break the precious bond with her daughter.
Her hand trembled, sloshing tea over the rim of her cup, spilling onto the pages of her book. Scarlett swore at the mess, then at the tears that burst through without permission.
“Sorry. Sorry.” She blotted the pages with a napkin. “I’ll go.”
“You will not.” Trina plucked the book from Scarlett’s grasp to tend to the mess.
“Start talking,” Willow urged. Her eyes were kind, but her voice was firm.
Scarlett scanned the faces watching her. All her friends were clearly worried. She studied what remained of the tea in her cup. “I’m fine.” They knew. Not the whole truth, perhaps, but they knew the atmospheric pressure around her had dropped to dangerous levels.
“You’re not,” Hazel countered.
“But we’re here to read,” she protested.
“Hard to do that when it feels like you’re a ticking time bomb.” Charity’s gaze brimmed with concern. “We’re here for each other as much as we’re here to read.”
Holly dared to rub her arm. “Whatever it is, holding it in isn’t working.”
No, it really wasn’t. Scarlett looked around the circle of women who had become her family.
The idea of leaving them was absurd. These women had helped her move furniture and stake out her garden.
They’d watched Cora during late-night school board meetings, and never once pushed too hard when she grew quiet about her past.
“It’s Cora’s father. He’s back,” Scarlett whispered without making eye contact.
The air in the Perk went still as everyone waited for her to elaborate.
“That was the after-school meeting?” Trina asked.
Scarlett nodded, miserable. “Thanks again for that.”
Willow’s eyes went wide. “The guy at the open mic night.”
“Yes,” she admitted.
“Hold on,” Camille said. “Catch me up.”
With a sigh, Scarlett explained. “Cooper Moss. Doctor Moss,” she added.
“He’s a math professor.” She dragged in a shuddering breath and shot a look at the door.
Willow popped up to lock it so they wouldn’t be interrupted.
“He came to Brookwell for a vacation after his college closed. But his first time in the area was when he was an interim professor one summer in Charleston while I was a student. We, um, had an affair and then I had Cora.”
She glanced at Willow, wondering if she should ask for some legal advice. Willow was an attorney, though she didn’t practice with a law firm. Instead, she ran her own business proofing contracts for several firms.
“He just left you?” Holly was indignant.
“No.” She couldn’t meet anyone’s gaze. “I’m the problem. The bad guy. He got the offer of a lifetime and moved to California. Because I never told him I was pregnant.”
“You didn’t want to hold him back,” Charity said. She tended to see the best in everyone.
“It sounded like the right argument at the time. We’d planned for me to come out and see him, at least to visit, but I just ghosted him.
” She swiped at her eyes. “It was California. And whether it was true love or not, I was scared. I didn’t want to have a baby without any family close by.
And I didn’t want him to resent me—us—later. ”
“Where is Cora tonight?” Grace queried.
Scarlett leaned back in her chair. “With Cooper at my place. He’s so good with her.”
“So, you trust him,” Trina said. “Otherwise, you would’ve brought her along.”
“He’s missed so much time already.” Scarlett was crying again. “We haven’t told her yet. I just don’t know where that conversation starts. But it’s what he wants.”
“He’s been at the house every day. Fixing things, admiring her Lego builds and her math worksheets. They read together. You should hear the stories they make up at her fairy garden. It’s so damn perfect.”
And here she was blubbering about something so wonderful as if it was the worst thing in the world.
“What about you?” Charity asked. “Is it perfect for you?”
Grace let out a soft, sympathetic gasp. Willow leaned forward, her eyes wide with a mix of protectiveness and curiosity.
The others were equally intrigued. “He fixed the shelf in my laundry room. The one Cora climbed a couple weeks ago. He’s good with his hands,” she said, exasperated with herself.
This wasn’t the intel they wanted. “I watched him fall in love with her in an instant. Who can blame him?”
“What about you?” Charity pressed.
“I don’t want that to matter,” she admitted. “So far it’s always the three of us, though he wants time with me.”
“That’s a good sign,” Camille mused.
Scarlett disagreed. “Not romantically.” She’d caught flashes of the old desire, but no indication he wanted to rekindle things in that area. Trust went both ways and she’d burned him. Badly. “Only to plan how to tell Cora the truth and decide how shared custody will work.”
“Hold on,” Holly snapped. “Shared custody? Without a lawyer? Without a background check? Scarlett, you don’t know this guy.
Not really. Seven years is a long time for someone to stay a good guy.
I can run a full search—employment records, credit history, any civil suits in California.
You need information before you agree to any changes. ”
“It’s the opposite,” Scarlett said, shaking her head. “I know who he is: kind, reliable, steady. That’s the problem. He’s exactly the same, but I’m completely different.”
“Is he staying?” Trina asked.
“So he claims,” Scarlett replied. “Y’all know I’ve spent her whole life being everything to her. Not easy, but worth it. Then,” she snapped her fingers, “in one afternoon, he’s her new best friend. She looks at him like he hung the moon. It’s obvious that by myself I’m not enough anymore.”
Not enough for either of them.
“He’s a novelty,” Grace stated. “But that won’t last. You are Cora’s world. If he’s really a good guy, his showing up doesn’t subtract from your relationship, it only adds one more person to the pile of folks who adore her and care for her.”
Scarlett laughed bitterly. Her friend made sense, but she kept envisioning the worst-case scenarios of Cora crying when Cooper’s career called him away. “For how long? He’s a brilliant, talented professor at the peak of his career. The colleges and universities that need him aren’t local.”
“You’re afraid because there are too many unknowns,” Willow offered. “Maybe you need to have that adults-only meeting with a family lawyer on call.”
“Probably,” she agreed. Not like she held out any hope for romance at this point.
“You’ve been in mama-bear mode for seven years, Scarlett,” Trina reminded her.
“You’ve been so guarded that you’ve forgotten how to just be.
You’re an accomplished professional, a talented musician, and a hell of a mother.
Maybe letting Cooper into Cora’s life is the best way you get to be all those things at once. ”
At what cost? Every option Scarlett could envision put her daughter’s tender heart at risk or set herself up for another irreparable heartbreak.
“I say make him earn it.” Holly sat back, arms folded.
“You’ve been in charge this long, don’t just hand over the reins.
If he wants to be a dad, let him do the heavy lifting.
The school runs, the soccer practices, bedtime and bad dreams. If he’s still here when the novelty wears off, then you’ll know. ”
“You’re suggesting I invite him to move in?” she challenged. Once again, her heart shouted in approval, but her gut was staunchly against it.
“Not before you get a family lawyer involved,” Willow advised. “I can send you a few names.”
“Was it a crush?” Charity asked. “Because from over here, I’d swear you’re in love with him.”
“No.” The denial burned in the back of her throat. “I’m happy with the way he loves her,” Scarlett said. “That’s all.”
Just because she still dreamed about those hot summer nights in his arms didn’t mean he wanted the same thing. And what if she worked up the courage to tell him he was the one? What if she kissed him again? How would she ever know he wanted her and not just the easiest path into Cora’s life?
“He’ll leave,” she murmured. “His career is too important.” And if they hooked up again, she’d feel obligated to follow him to keep the family together. Cora’s happiness was important, but not at the expense of her own. “It’s only a matter of time.”
“It could be different this time,” Hazel suggested. “If you keep the lines of communication open.”
Scarlett pressed her hands to her eyes for a moment. “You’re right. You’re all right.”
“We’ll stay on babysitting standby,” Trina said for all of them. “One of us will always be ready to take Cora so you and Cooper can sort out the adult parts of this situation.”
Everyone around the table agreed with enthusiasm and encouraging words.
“All right. Thanks.” Scarlett looked at her friends—the women who knew her secrets and loved her anyway.
For the first time since Cooper had appeared at the Pelican Pub, the tightness in her chest eased, just a fraction.
She wasn’t alone in this. She had a fortress of women around her, ready to verify his credentials or offer him a second chance, depending on the needs of the moment.
“He’s older,” she mused. “He has silver at his temples now. He looks wiser and distinguished and part of me feels like the student again whenever he says my name.”
“Well stop that,” Hazel said with a theater-worthy gasp. “You’re both adults on equal footing now. Make the most of it.”
As they gave up on reading and chatted over less intense topics, Scarlett listened with half an ear.
Her own thoughts were still too loud and scattered.
What if he moved in? What if he moved on?
The time for easy answers had passed and the longer she delayed, the worse things would get.
She and Cooper had created a beautiful little girl and somehow, she had to come to terms with sharing Cora with him.
Leaving the coffee shop, the salt air felt lighter than when she’d arrived.
She knew the road ahead was a mess of unresolved attraction and potential heartbreak, but as she drove home to Cora, she realized it was time to rewrite the secrets from her past and bring the truth into the light.
The only catch was having to share the narrative with Cooper.
She could figure it out. She would. Cora deserved her best effort, deserved to know her father, however that unraveled.
Life would never be perfect, but love soothed and healed.
She’d always given Cora the best parts of her father without giving her a name.
It was time to change that. And if at some point in the near or distant future, Cooper hurt their little girl, Scarlett would help her wade through the emotional grief.