her tongue. “He’s handsome, wealthy, well-mannered.”
Control freak. Ice cold. Boring.
She kept the not-so-pleasant descriptions to herself. If she were being honest, her mother’s adjectives were what drew her to Gabe in the first place. Gabe was precisely the kind of man her parents would pick for her, and fine, he wasn’t hard on the eyes, that was for sure. But after the night she’d met Cooper outside Bishop’s Corner, she’d realized just what her relationship with Gabe had been missing.
Cooper might not be wealthy or well mannered, but he turned her on like nobody’s business. He also made her laugh, something she didn’t do too often. He challenged her. Called her on her bullshit. Made her feel appreciated, feminine, worthy.
Unfortunately, her parents would never understand that. Cooper lacked the one prerequisite needed to gain her parents’ approval: money. And Lexie lacked the one thing required to stand up to her parents: courage.
“Are you listening to me?”
She lifted her head. “Sorry, what?”
“I said it’s a shame Gabriel won’t be there for dinner this weekend. I would have liked to see you two rekindle the spark.”
“Gabe and I didn’t have much of a spark,” she admitted.
Her mom waved a dismissive hand. “Successful marriages have been built on less. Now, hurry inside to pick up my prescription so we can make our salon appoint—” Miranda squeaked as someone bumped into her.
“Sorry about that, ma’am. Wasn’t watching where I was going.”
Every muscle in Lexie’s body went rigid.
She shifted her head and her eyes collided with Cooper’s.
“You should learn to be more careful,” Miranda said in a haughty tone.
Cooper offered a humble nod, never taking his gaze off Lexie. “Like I said, I apologize.”
Lexie turned into a mute as she stared at Cooper. He looked like his usual bad boy self—tight black T-shirt, worn jeans, scuffed up boots. It was cold out, so he’d at least bothered to wear a coat, only he’d chosen a black leather jacket that molded to his broad shoulders. Black hair was scruffy as usual, strong jaw covered with perpetual stubble. He was sex and masculinity wrapped up in one rough-and-tough package, and her pulse sped up from his nearness, her breasts tingling beneath her red silk shirt.
To make matters worse, he was staring at her too. Expectant. Waiting for her to acknowledge him.
Frustration bubbled in her stomach. She couldn’t let on that they knew each other, not in front of her judgmental mother, who was glaring at Cooper like he’d ruined her entire day by jostling her delicate frame.
So, choking down a monstrous ball of shame and regret, Lexie wrenched her gaze from him and glanced at her mother. “I’ll run in and get that prescription.”
As she hurried into the drugstore, she caught the defeated sag of Cooper’s shoulders as he slunk away.
Chapter Seven
Jake woke up in a cold sweat. Heart pounding so hard he thought his ribs would crack. Palms cold and tingling. The acrid smell of smoke burned his nose, so strong he had to suck in a few breaths to make sure the damn bedroom wasn’t on fire.
Just a dream .
Breathing hard, he struggled to sit up, eliciting an agitated moan from Bree, who was snuggled up beside him.
“You okay?” she murmured sleepily.
“I’m fine,” he snapped. “Go back to sleep.”
The bedcovers rustled as she rolled over onto her back. “Did you have a nightmare?”
Jake spoke through clenched teeth. “Yeah.”
“Wanna talk about it?”
“No.”
Before she could press, he slid out from under the covers and staggered to his feet. The alarm clock on the night table read 7:45 AM , but he was too wired up to stay in bed. Fuck. That dream had been too damn vivid. He could still smell the smoke. The blood.
“Go back to sleep,” he said again, avoiding the big blue eyes that were watching him with unease. “I’m going for a run.”
The covers shifted again and he heard her
Control freak. Ice cold. Boring.
She kept the not-so-pleasant descriptions to herself. If she were being honest, her mother’s adjectives were what drew her to Gabe in the first place. Gabe was precisely the kind of man her parents would pick for her, and fine, he wasn’t hard on the eyes, that was for sure. But after the night she’d met Cooper outside Bishop’s Corner, she’d realized just what her relationship with Gabe had been missing.
Cooper might not be wealthy or well mannered, but he turned her on like nobody’s business. He also made her laugh, something she didn’t do too often. He challenged her. Called her on her bullshit. Made her feel appreciated, feminine, worthy.
Unfortunately, her parents would never understand that. Cooper lacked the one prerequisite needed to gain her parents’ approval: money. And Lexie lacked the one thing required to stand up to her parents: courage.
“Are you listening to me?”
She lifted her head. “Sorry, what?”
“I said it’s a shame Gabriel won’t be there for dinner this weekend. I would have liked to see you two rekindle the spark.”
“Gabe and I didn’t have much of a spark,” she admitted.
Her mom waved a dismissive hand. “Successful marriages have been built on less. Now, hurry inside to pick up my prescription so we can make our salon appoint—” Miranda squeaked as someone bumped into her.
“Sorry about that, ma’am. Wasn’t watching where I was going.”
Every muscle in Lexie’s body went rigid.
She shifted her head and her eyes collided with Cooper’s.
“You should learn to be more careful,” Miranda said in a haughty tone.
Cooper offered a humble nod, never taking his gaze off Lexie. “Like I said, I apologize.”
Lexie turned into a mute as she stared at Cooper. He looked like his usual bad boy self—tight black T-shirt, worn jeans, scuffed up boots. It was cold out, so he’d at least bothered to wear a coat, only he’d chosen a black leather jacket that molded to his broad shoulders. Black hair was scruffy as usual, strong jaw covered with perpetual stubble. He was sex and masculinity wrapped up in one rough-and-tough package, and her pulse sped up from his nearness, her breasts tingling beneath her red silk shirt.
To make matters worse, he was staring at her too. Expectant. Waiting for her to acknowledge him.
Frustration bubbled in her stomach. She couldn’t let on that they knew each other, not in front of her judgmental mother, who was glaring at Cooper like he’d ruined her entire day by jostling her delicate frame.
So, choking down a monstrous ball of shame and regret, Lexie wrenched her gaze from him and glanced at her mother. “I’ll run in and get that prescription.”
As she hurried into the drugstore, she caught the defeated sag of Cooper’s shoulders as he slunk away.
Chapter Seven
Jake woke up in a cold sweat. Heart pounding so hard he thought his ribs would crack. Palms cold and tingling. The acrid smell of smoke burned his nose, so strong he had to suck in a few breaths to make sure the damn bedroom wasn’t on fire.
Just a dream .
Breathing hard, he struggled to sit up, eliciting an agitated moan from Bree, who was snuggled up beside him.
“You okay?” she murmured sleepily.
“I’m fine,” he snapped. “Go back to sleep.”
The bedcovers rustled as she rolled over onto her back. “Did you have a nightmare?”
Jake spoke through clenched teeth. “Yeah.”
“Wanna talk about it?”
“No.”
Before she could press, he slid out from under the covers and staggered to his feet. The alarm clock on the night table read 7:45 AM , but he was too wired up to stay in bed. Fuck. That dream had been too damn vivid. He could still smell the smoke. The blood.
“Go back to sleep,” he said again, avoiding the big blue eyes that were watching him with unease. “I’m going for a run.”
The covers shifted again and he heard her
Similar Books
