“Well, that wasn’t what I was thinking, but I’m glad to know you’ve been thinking about it,” he said. “That should make it that much better when I finally do kiss you.”
“Cooper, this isn’t a good idea,” she said. “We have a professional relationship, and that’s all it should be. Maybe I shouldn’t have come to dinner tonight.”
“Stephanie, we haven’t done anything wrong, we haven’t crossed any lines, yet,” he said, wiggling his eyebrows at her. “I can be patient, at least I think I can.”
“That is not reassuring,” she said, shaking her head. “This isn’t a game, Cooper, this is my career.”
“Let me warn you right now, this isn’t a game to me,” he said, then leaned a little closer. “I think this is the real thing, but we’ll just have to wait and see what happens.”
Her heart was pounding in her chest again, and a little gasp escaped from her chest as a surge of desire took her breath away. “I should go home,” she said when she could find her voice. “All your sweet talk is starting to get to me, and I don’t know if I trust what I’m feeling for you. This is all so new to me, Cooper. I don’t want to rush it, I don’t want to make a mistake.”
“I won’t rush you, but I’m not giving up either. I’m drawn to you, Stephanie. I’ve never felt like this with anyone else,” he said, taking her hand. “I think there’s a reason fate put us together, and I’m willing to wait until you trust me enough to give in to what’s growing between us.”
“You’re making this very hard,” she said, wishing she could just give in to her feelings. “But there’s so much at stake, not just my heart, but my career. It means everything to me. I hope there will be time for us, but I can’t promise anything. Thank you for understanding.”
“I understand, but my mind is made up,” he said, looking into her eyes. “You’re mine, Stephanie, you were meant for me, and one of these days, you’ll see that too.”
The urge to throw herself into his arms was so strong, she had to grip the couch to keep herself still. “I think I’d better go before I do something I’ll regret tomorrow,” she finally said when the feeling had passed. “I should tell everyone goodbye and thank Hattie before I leave.”
“That’s not going to be easy,” Cooper said, getting to his feet. “They’re all gone.”
She was surprised to discover the kitchen was empty. “Oh, well…” Her words trailed off. “I’ll go then.”
“I’ll walk you to your car,” Cooper said, then picked up a foil-wrapped plate on the counter. “This has your name on it. I bet it’s a piece of Hattie’s apple pie.”
She took the pie. “That was sweet of her,” she said. “I wish she would have let me thank her.”
“You’ll get another chance,” he said, guiding her toward the hallway. “I have a feeling you’ll be back again.”
“Oh, you do?” she asked, smiling up at him. “You’re awfully confident, aren’t you?”
They’d reached the front door, and he paused before opening it, then turned to face her. “When it comes to you, I am,” he said, then pulled her into his arms, making her senses go wild. “Let me show you why.”
When his mouth came down on hers, it was like nothing she’d ever experienced before; her body suddenly came alive, and she found herself winding her arms around his neck even as a voice in her head was screaming at her that she was making a mistake. Wave after wave of pleasure washed over her, awakening a part of her that no one had ever touched before, and she was suddenly overwhelmed. Pulling away from Cooper, she stared up at him for a second, then turned and fled out the front door, not stopping until she was locked in her car.
She sat trying to catch her breath, her body still throbbing with need, then looked over at the door, a wave of warmthflowing through her as she saw Cooper standing on the porch watching her. It took several deep breaths before she was able to get the key in the ignition and start the car, but when she looked back at the house, he was still waiting patiently for her to leave. Telling herself the kiss was no big deal, she waved at him, then pulled away from the curb, but she knew deep down that everything had just changed. Her life would never be the same again, and the thought scared her more than anything ever had.
CHAPTER 9
***COOPER***
Cooper stood watching Stephanie’s taillights disappear into the distance, his lips still tingling from the kiss, not ready to go inside and have the magic of the moment destroyed by real life. If there had ever been any doubts in his mind about what he felt for her, the kiss had driven them all away, leaving only the feeling deep inside his gut that everything he’d said that night was true. He would have to give her time, let her get used to the idea of them together. He didn’t blame her for being careful; the power of what was growing between them was frightening.
Equally frightening was the prospect of telling her the truth about what he was. He had no idea how he was going to break that kind of news to her, and even worse, couldn’t predict how she would take it. For a moment, he wondered if he was taking too big a risk telling her; it could backfire, she could expose him, she could think he was a monster. It might be better to hide the truth from her, keep that side of himself a secret, but he knew that would never work. She would find out and that would be even worse.
Letting out a long sigh, he realized that falling in love was harder than it looked and decided it might be time for someadvice, but before he could go back inside, Ryan threw open the door, his face bright with excitement. Sure, that something had gone wrong, he shook himself out of his thoughts and headed for the door, hoping it was nothing too serious.
“Cooper, you’d better get in here,” Ryan urged. “Stephane is going to be on the news; they just showed a teaser. Hurry up, we only have a minute or so before it’s on.”
He raced into the house after Ryan and found everyone sitting in a circle around the television in the den. “Did you tell everyone?” he asked, squishing in between Walker and Gabe on the couch. “You couldn’t have gotten them all together this fast.”
“We were in here talking about Julien’s theory,” Ryan said, sitting down on the floor. “I told them that you think he might be right. I hope I didn’t overstep, but I told them about the weird feelings you get when you're there. We think you both might be right, the circumstances all fit together, but we need some proof, we’re just not sure what.”
“So, you don’t think I’m crazy?” he asked. “I was beginning to think I was losing my mind.”
Before anyone could answer, the news came back on and they all fell silent. “I’m Jeremy Gilbert and I’ve got an interesting story for you all tonight, a story about the paranormal, magic, and a full-blown cover-up going on over at the college,” the reporter said. “I’m here with Maggie Dubbenhouer, who witnessed a conversation about the ruins recently discovered under the football stadium. She’s agreed to be interviewed live here with us tonight.”
A young woman walked into the frame and sat down in a chair next to the reporter. “Thank you for joining us, Maggie,” he said. “I understand you have some information about the cover-up at the college.”
