Stolen Breaths by Pamela Sparkman Page A

Cooper chose to stay and endure the torment with my father, and then actually take on the burden of blame. Hearing Cooper blame himself felt like shards of glass penetrating my heart. How could he take on that kind of guilt? He saved me.
    I looked up at him, and he was watching me with a deep concentration, trying to read my thoughts, I guess. He seemed scared almost, or maybe it was just sadness I was seeing, but looking at him looking at me like that felt like my heart was being squeezed in a vise. I reached for Cooper, placing both hands on his face, and looked into the windows of his soul with an intensity so potent that any lingering doubt or insecurity should have melted away. I wanted him to know what he meant to me. I needed him to understand that he had the power to break my heart with just a look and the power to heal it with another. I knew there weren’t words that could explain the emotions that he managed to stir inside of me.
    “Cooper Hudson, in all my life I’ll never be able to thank God enough for you. You have taken the pieces of me that were broken and began fixing them one by one, and you did it with just your smile. That magical weapon you possess that’s so powerful yet so subtle that I never even realized you did it until now, this moment. You tore down the walls from the emotional prison that I built around myself and unlocked the door to hope. And it’s because of you that…”
    There was more that I wanted to say. So much more, but I choked on my tears, rendering me incapable of saying any more words. Cooper remained fixed on my gaze and remained still, waiting for me to finish. Something inside me erupted and I was suddenly desperate to make Cooper understand. Without another thought I kissed him hard on the lips and wrapped my arms around him as tightly as I could. Up until then, Cooper had been the one to kiss me, and now I wanted to be the one to kiss him.
    In my head I was willing him to understand. Feel that, Cooper. Please feel what it is I’m trying to say.
    I felt Cooper’s hands reach my face and he reciprocated the kiss with a degree of emotion that made me feel like I was skydiving without a parachute. And as sure as I was sitting there I knew that when I eventually came down from this freefall that he’d be there to catch me. Right now, I enjoyed the peacefulness he brought me while simultaneously giving me a rush of adrenaline I’d never before experienced. We were communicating without the hindrance of words. He gently rolled me onto my back until I was looking up at him. He hovered over me, allowing his arms to hold up his upper body, never completely resting the full weight of his body on mine. His kisses had slowed and the urgency that we both felt before had subsided, leaving only the need to touch and be close. He continued to kiss me, slowly bringing me back to the ground. I felt completely safe and cared for with him, and I made a soft landing.
    I opened my eyes to find Cooper’s. His eyes had taken on a darker shade of chocolate. He brushed the hair away from my face with light touches of his fingers and then his eyes traced the outline of my eyes, nose, lips, and chin. The way he looked at me when he did that made me feel cherished; like he was taking precious time to study me – all of me. He leaned in close to my ear and whispered so sweetly, “I caught you.”

    I woke up to sounds of breathing. At first I was disoriented and forgot where I was. Then I remembered Cooper and I had fallen asleep on his couch watching movies. I was bundled in his arms with my face nestled against his chest. I didn’t want to move and risk waking Cooper, so I closed my eyes again and breathed in his scent, recalling everything we talked about last night while I absentmindedly made light circling motions on his chest. The sun was barely breaking through and all I wanted to do was lie here with Cooper until it was time to face the world again. If I had my choice, I would stay right