Chapter Thirty-one – Hanging by a Moment
Chapter Thirty-one
Andie
HANGING BY A MOMENT
Performed by Lifehouse
The more time I spent with the Wylees, the harder I fell. It scared me how fast it happened. And it wasn’t just for Cooper—it was for all of them and the way they fit together without the least bit of effort. It was for the family portrait they made simply by existing in the same room.
After the ugly start to the day, the rest of it unfolded with a dangerous kind of ease. And once Cooper arrived, the vibe in the house changed. Laughter came quicker. The warmth deepened. It felt like stepping into a life already in progress and realizing how badly I wanted a place in it.
The Wylees filled their home with noise and motion, teasing each other with an affection that left deep marks, but these were the good kind. Surprisingly, they wrapped it around me too, where it glowed like a shield I didn’t deserve and wasn’t sure I’d be allowed to keep.
After hot chocolate, Dale brought out a deck of cards, and one game turned into a dozen, time slipping away.
For the first time in years, I let my guard drop, shuffling one-handed and dealing quick enough to earn low whistles, even with the crook in my index finger making it nearly impossible to be as fast as I’d once been.
Luca’s attention locked in immediately on my little act.
“Show me how you do that,” he said, eyes bright with challenge.
When Lydia and Dale finally tapped out and headed for the kitchen, I stayed at the table with him, slowing my hands so he could follow each movement.
His concentration was intense, and something tight in my chest loosened just watching him.
He laughed when he finally managed a passable shuffle, and the sound hit me hard enough to make my eyes water.
That was the problem.
Everything with this family seemed to hit me harder than it should.
By the time we’d polished off Lydia’s chili and cornbread, the house had settled into a relaxed, comfortable quiet. I stood, offering to help with the dishes, but Cooper shook his head and tipped his chin back toward the table.
“Mom’s rules,” he said. “Guests don’t clean. Luca and I’ve got it.”
“These wooden chairs are murder on my old bones,” Lydia announced, pushing herself up with a soft groan. “Let’s migrate to the living room.”
“Behave, Mom,” Cooper called after us.
“I’m always good, Cooper Jonathan Wylee,” she shot back.
Hearing his full name landed another soft blow, another piece of him handed over to me.
Dale flicked on a football game before disappearing down the hall, leaving Lydia and me alone on the couch. She glanced toward the kitchen, then the hallway, before looking back at me, and her smile softened into something quieter. More serious.
“I won’t have long before someone comes back and tells me to hush,” she said. “So I’ll just say this once. Thank you.”
My heart constricted. If she knew my past—if she knew what followed me into Rivers—would she still be thanking me for anything?
Cooper insisted today’s chaos wasn’t my fault, but I couldn’t shake the sense there was a shadow hovering just beyond us.
What had happened today was a harsh reminder of the risks I was taking.
When I didn’t reply, Lydia patted my hand.
“You’re good for them. Both of them. I’m not sure I’ve seen Luca laugh and smile this much since he’s come to Rivers.
Some of that is the dog, and some of it is finally finding a friend like Wysteria, but you’ve added to that.
He’s at ease and lit up around you. You’ve lit them both up. ”
“Lydia—”
She shook her head. “No. Don’t say anything.
I know it’s early days. I know relationships take time and trust and more than just the heated looks you and Cooper share, but I haven’t seen Cooper be this willing to open his heart in nearly thirteen years.
That woman…” She paused, rubbing her hand over her chest as if it hurt.
“That evil piece of work took Cooper’s natural instinct to love and protect and twisted it all up and spat it out.
It left him doubting if he could ever love again.
He never said that to me, but a mother knows.
So, even if nothing comes of what you two have started, you’ve given him that back. His ability to love.”
Emotion pressed hard behind my eyes, threatening to spill. How did this family tug so perfectly at my hidden wounds? Threatening to dislodge all the patches hiding the gaping holes left by years of neglect and abuse and regret.
Dale came striding back into the room. “What’s the score?”
Lydia huffed at him. “If you think I’ve been paying attention to those men dog-piling on each other like Neanderthals, you’ve lost your dang mind.”
Dale rolled his eyes and turned to me, hopeful. “Please tell me you’re a football fan. I need backup. Cooper never sat still long enough to watch a game—even when he was playing. Luca’s all X Games. And my wife thinks anything besides baseball is just men pounding on men.”
I laughed before I could stop myself. “I hate to disappoint you, but I’ve always been more of a basketball fan.”
He groaned dramatically just as Luca and Cooper joined us.
Cooper’s phone was in his hands, frustration etched into the lines around his mouth. “Judge Ackers won’t sign the warrant unless I revise it to exclude everything beyond the cabin. And in the meantime, we’re losing evidence every hour we wait.”
Dale shook his head, glancing at the clock. “Worse, he won’t respond to anything you send back tonight. Man goes to bed with the chickens. You might as well give it up until morning. Go home. Get some rest.”
Cooper ran a hand through his thick hair, practically vibrating with annoyance, before his eyes settled on me. “I’d feel better if Andie and Luca stayed here tonight in case I get called in again.”
I made a soft noise of objection, and Lydia winked at me.
“Since Luca’s off this week, I expect his help with the Thanksgiving prep,” she said. “But I imagine Andie needs to get back to the resort. Busy week there, isn’t it?”
My cheeks burned. I knew exactly what she was doing, sending me home with Cooper.
She was hoping I’d turn our heated look into something permanent.
And I wanted that. I’d told Cooper I was his, and I’d meant it.
For as long as he’d have me. But the idea of his mother nudging us toward sex was… a bit mortifying.
I cleared my throat. “I do have laundry to get done, and I need to review my schedule for tomorrow.”
Cooper didn’t seem thrilled at the idea of me leaving with him, but he didn’t protest further. Instead, he looked over at Luca sprawled out on the love seat with both Akela and the Wylees’ dog at his feet. “You need anything from home, Luc?”
The teen glanced between us with a curiousness that was almost as embarrassing as Lydia’s knowing wink.
“I still have clothes here from last time. But if Andie’s okay with Akela staying, maybe you could bring his food tomorrow? Gram feeds Bowie senior formula.”
Lydia huffed. “Bowie may be a senior, but he kept up with your pup just fine today.”
I smiled at Luca’s hopeful expression, holding back the twinge of sadness I felt.
Akela had become a reassuring comfort. I hadn’t felt quite so lonely in my house with him there.
But I’d known all along his stay would be temporary.
“This was the plan all along, wasn’t it?
I think your dad has finally resigned himself to the addition of the dog to your household now. ”
“I should be mad at both of you, but I’m too tired to fight it,” Cooper said, hand settling on my shoulder. His eyes met mine, and the warmth inside me sharpened into something hotter. “You ready to go, then?”
I nodded, turning to thank the Wylees for everything as Cooper leaned over the couch to kiss Luca’s head, and the tenderness of the natural motion tugged again at the weight in my chest.
In the mudroom, I pulled on Cooper’s borrowed coat, and his gaze lingered on it.
“Lydia doesn’t know what happened to my jacket,” I said. “We looked for it earlier. Someone must’ve grabbed it by mistake.”
Before the words were fully out, his hand had curled around the back of my neck, he’d tugged me to him, and planted a kiss on me.
It was brief and intense, weighted with far more than lust. It held trust and hope, a promise blossoming between us like a fragile spring flower pushing through the snow.
“I like seeing you in my things,” he murmured. “Keep it as long as you want.”
Then, he brushed my hand away and zipped the jacket for me, just as he had the first time. My emotions, already so close to the surface, swelled into a tsunami-sized wave.
Outside, snow crunched under our boots as he opened the truck door for me. Another simple gesture that spoke of respect and caring. I wanted to gather each instant up, lock them away in my heart, and keep them forever.
The drive back to town passed in a blur, with me deep in my own thoughts, battling the intensity of my feelings.
For so long, I’d seen only a solitary road ahead of me.
Now, the Wylees offered something else entirely—a banquet of belonging laid out in front of me.
But I couldn’t help the twinge of fear at what the price could be if I sat at the table with them.
When we pulled into his driveway, my house loomed dark and solitary next door. Instead of being the epitome of freedom I’d seen it as just weeks ago, all I could see was how alone I’d been there.
“I really do need to start a load of laundry and grab some clothes for tomorrow,” I told him.
“You can do the laundry at my place. Let’s just get what you need.”
After spending the last few days at Cooper’s and the Wylees’, walking into my empty living room only amplified the differences between the house I’d claimed was a home and their real ones. I had no pictures, no memories, no love pouring from my walls like they did.
Cooper stopped me in the entryway, telling me to wait there while he cleared the rooms.