Chapter 7
Cooper
Sunday 9.16am
Stupid. So fucking, Goddam stupid to think it was more than sex. As I walk back into the living room, I have to mentally punch myself so I can focus on putting this weekend and this woman behind me.
I was enjoying her so much, enjoying how she responded to my touch, that I built it up to be something it never could have been.
No matter how incredible the sex was, and it was incredible, she’s right. It was a distraction.
And if she used me for that purpose, I used her body just as much.
I need to suck it up and not make this a bigger deal than it is. I mistook chemistry for something more. Something she doesn’t want. Not from me anyway.
Now aware I have no reason to put anything off anymore, I switch my cell back on and stare out the window.
The rain has eased off, and since her knee is better, there’s no good reason for her to stay.
And given her dismissal of this weekend, I have no reason to consider her as anything more than a superficial hook up.
I bite back a curse when I see thirteen missed calls and just as many texts. When I see the majority of them are from Chris, I press the phone against my ear to hear his latest message.
His voice comes out terse. “Where the fuck are you? You aren’t answering your phone so I hope you’re on your way here. I’m giving it another hour, then I’m bringing her to you. And there’s an additional complication we’ll need to deal with.”
My heart starts to slam around in my chest as I check the time of the message and the time now.
Shit! With the time difference and the travel, Chris could be right on my doorstep with her in tow. I don’t have time to consider the additional complication he mentioned. I have my own complication to address.
I spin around, dial his number, and hope like hell I can stall him or at least divert him to the town until I get rid of Ellie.
I stalk down the hall and nearly run into Ellie. She’s dressed and holding her backpack and looking about as awkward as I feel right now.
To make it worse, she extends her hand for me to shake. “Thanks. For everything.”
I stare at her, eyes flicking over her shoulder to the front door, and can’t find my tongue for a moment.
That she wants to shake hands like this was a business transaction burns at me.
But she’s made it clear, this was just sex, and I’m not about to chase a woman who doesn’t want to be caught.
I place my hand on top of hers and force a smile as I pump her arm. “You want a ride?”
A smile twitches at her lips but she shakes her head. “I’d like to hike back down.”
I’m not so sure she should be, but with Chris on his way, I don’t have time to argue, I just step past her, ignoring the ache in my chest, and walk towards the front door.
I crack it open, check the driveway, and let out a sigh of relief Chris isn’t outside yet.
I open the door wider and step outside before she does. Her eyes find mine, and even with Chris en route, I have to actively stop myself from asking her for her number.
I clear my throat and point to the track running alongside my driveway. “Follow that track, and you should be back before lunchtime.”
She nods slowly, and chews her lip as she stares at me so long I’m sure she’s about to change her mind.
When I hear an alarm going off, I know I’m out of time. I back up, and even though it takes every ounce of resolve I have, I raise my hand to wave her off.
“Stay away from bears,” I say.
She chuckles and secures her backpack. “Oh, I intend to.” She starts to walk backward, an uncertain smile on her face as if she’s not sure of how to say goodbye.
To make it easy on her, and on me, I smile. “Take care of that knee.”
When she nods and spins around, her hand raised in goodbye as she opens the gate to the track, I know this weekend is over.
With nothing else to do, but face reality, I close the door, and ready myself to face the ghost I’ve been chasing for three and a half years.
As I walk towards the security panel behind the bar, I try to console myself that at least by her leaving now, I’ve effectively kept my past and present from colliding.
And if I didn’t have a hole in my chest the size of the Grand Canyon, I could almost believe I’m glad she left before things got messy.
***
Ellie
Tears are stinging at my eyes, and my lungs feel constricted as I follow the track parallel to Cooper’s house.
Even though I know he won’t be standing there, I glance over my shoulder, and can’t stop the stupid feeling that I should have stayed.
But what can I say to him? He doesn’t know me, and if he did know, he wouldn’t have looked so wounded.
Between the breakdown I had at work, and my family issues, I’ve got enough baggage for us both.
It’s beyond stupid to hanker after a man who I in no uncertain terms rejected.
I stand, staring, feeling, and probably looking ridiculous as my throat starts to close over.
Because after everything I said, after telling him I don’t believe in happy ever afters, I know, deep down I desperately want one.
My legs are glued to the track, still damp from the rain, but it’s not the risk of slipping that keeps my feet rooted to the ground.
It’s the thought bashing painfully around that I’m making a mistake, that this could be more than just a weekend fantasy.
I know if I were anyone else, I’d be back inside already, explaining why the idea of a relationship terrifies me.
I can almost hear Maggie’s voice, competing with Grace’s, asking me why I pushed a good man away.
Without thinking I take another step closer, trying to psych myself up to knock on his door, but I freeze as I hear sounds coming from alongside the track.
My heart jumps to my throat as I imagine another bear lurking close to Cooper’s house again.
With the trees providing coverage, I step closer, careful not to make a sound, and peer through the leaves.
I have to squint, but I see the front door open just as an SUV rolls to a stop just at the door.
Cooper takes a step out and looks around as if making sure no one can see him.
I suck in a breath, sure he can see me watching, but when his hand goes to the passenger door, I know he has no idea I’m still close by.
He opens the door, and my jaw slackens as a woman near spills out, her belly swollen and looking decidedly unhappy at being here.
Her voice comes out a ragged whisper. “This is kidnapping, you asshole.”
Cooper steadies her, his face creased in concern, but it’s not Cooper I’m looking at, it’s the man who was behind the wheel that draws my attention.
Whoever he is, he’s six feet of muscle and looks about as menacing as a man can look when a gun is visible at his waist.
I don’t have to guess why the man has brought her here. But I’m not sure what disgusts me more, that I had him pegged so wrong, or that he’s sullied the entire weekend we spent together.
I’m about to leave when I can hear the thug’s grumbling voice penetrate the still mountain air. “You’re a better man than I am, Coop. Anyone else would have left her in the gutter,” he says.
The statement is as unwelcome as the glimpse into his private life is.
It takes all my will power to stay where I am and not confront him. But when the door closes, I know I have no right to judge him for his past.
I have my own secrets I’d rather stay hidden.
***
Cooper
At the state of my sister, Gabby, and her attitude, I know she’s coming down hard from something that won’t do her or the baby, any good.
Luckily for me, she’s too exhausted to fight when I steer her into the spare bedroom.
I know she won’t stay put, but while she’s here, I can at least try to get her some help.
Chris shakes his head as I pull the door shut. “She’s not wrong about the kidnapping, but fuck, Coop, she’s in with some bad people. No way I was letting her stay where she was. But first chance she gets, she’ll go back, you must know that?”
I slap him on the back and gesture to the living room. “I at least have to try to dry her out.”
He takes a seat on the sofa and runs a hand over his face. “You can’t do that on your own. And if these guys come looking…”
He lets the words dangle in the air because we both know what will happen if they come looking.
And that’s not something I can allow to happen. “I can go deal with whoever is looking for her in Texas.”
Chris exhales a low breath. “Sam might have something to say about that.”
He’s not wrong. Sam and Gabby have their own history I know Sam is trying to forget about.
Unfortunately for Sam, Gabby was already into way more than recreational drug use when they started sleeping together.
I scratch my chin and hate that my thoughts stray to the woman who just left.
“She needs rehab. But they won’t take her until she’s clean,” I mumble.
Chris eyes me, looking about as doubtful as I feel suggesting it. “No clinic this side of Mexico will touch her with the warrants.”
I shake my head. “Then I’ll get her a new name, ID, whatever it takes.”
Chris leans forward and if he wasn’t one of my oldest friends, I’d have punched him just for telling me what I already guessed. “She’s running with a biker gang. Call themselves Satan’s Hounds. She’s the mascot.”
I wince and know he takes no pleasure in relaying what he’s discovered. “The leader has a laundry list of charges, rape, assault, and battery. Most of the members are maximum security ex-cons, all with a serious addiction to meth.”
If that wasn’t bad enough he lays a final nail in the coffin. “Looks like the local Sherriff is taking a cut of their business. Saw money change hands clear as day.”
Shit. That brings another whole level of complication to an already overloaded party.
If the gang is working with the law, even if Chris took precautions, there’s a chance they can find Gabby.
I run my hand over my face and mentally try to erase the images of my twin sister’s ongoing sexual exploits. “Did anyone see her leave with you?” I ask.
He shakes his head, but there’s an element of doubt on his face that worries me. “You know these places, there are eyes everywhere not to mention CCTV.”
I nod and glance at the security screens behind us. “Sorry. I was so sure it wasn’t her, I put off coming. I shouldn’t have left you hanging.”
He nods and looks apprehensive when he speaks again. “What are you going to do about the baby? Can she even detox?”
I know it’s too early in the morning to be drinking but the idea I’m going to be an uncle sends me off the barstool and towards the whiskey bottle.
Chris accepts my offer of a glass, letting me know he’s as shook up as I am.
“I don’t know. But I don’t see any other option.”
With Gabby, options to help ran out when she committed armed robbery, shot a cop, and damn near put a price on her head.
Ever since she ran away, even with all my contacts I haven’t been able to track her down.
Now she’s here. And she needs help even more than she ever did before. Chris takes a gulp. “What if you brokered a deal. The kid will be born in jail, but at least she’d get clean.”
I wince. “Protective services would take her baby, and I’m not sure if I can live with that.”
We both sit in silence, and I know him well enough to see he’s struggling with this just as I am.
“And there’s no chance you can get guardianship?”
I shake my head, and down the drink. “Maybe. I don’t know. I’m not exactly father material. It’s not like I have a wife and a permanent residence.”
His eyebrows raise. “But still, you’re flesh and blood, and that means something.”
Even the warmth of the whiskey doesn’t chase the chill those words cause.
“I need to call Sam and tell her I’ll be delayed here a little longer.”
Chris shoots me a questioning look. “She fought me tooth and nail all the way here. This isn’t going to be pleasant.”
I grimace as I slide my hand into my pocket and pull out my cell phone. “Is finding her ever pleasant?” I say.
