“He wanted to switch,” Adam corrected.
Grant cleared his throat. “He wanted to switch.”
“And flip.”
“Cute.” Grant smirked. “Switch and flip. I didn’t know those were such hard lines in the sand for you.”
“It’s just the timing,” he interrupted. “It’s complicated.”
“It’s not. It’s the concessions required.” Grant ruffled his fingers through Adam’s hair and handed him his wine, clearly sensing that Adam needed another drink. “You shouldn’t let what happened with me and Oscar color your decision-making with Cooper.”
“Hardly.” Adam traced a stray drop of wine up the side of his glass with the tip of his tongue. “I didn’t even think about Oscar. That guy is a piece of shit.”
“Agreed.” Grant raised his glass in a toast.
“I don’t know how to put words to it,” Adam said. “Things with Cooper were really good the way they were. We were just supposed to be hanging out, having fun. And then it got serious, and everything changed.”
“You don’t have to explain it to me,” Grant said, patting his leg.
Adam wasn’t so much explaining it to Grant as he was to himself. The whole progression of events with Cooper had left him feeling confused and off-center, unsure of his ability to do the things he’d always felt so confident in. It had left Adam wondering what kind of partner he could be for someone. Honestly, the thing with Cooper had left Adam questioning everything.
“It’s complicated when you think you have one thing and you find out it’s something else,” Grant whispered.
“Not a fan.” Adam took a drink, the wine already hitting his empty stomach and causing his head to spin. He closed his eyes and rested his head on Grant’s shoulder again.
“It’ll pass.” Grant clinked their glasses together and sipped at his drink. “You’ll get over it. Things will go back to normal.”
“You sure?”
“I hope so.”
Adam sighed, wondering just how in the hell he was ever meant to get over Cooper Hendricks.
Chapter2
Cooper
Present Day
Cooper locked up his bookshop, flipping the sign on the front door fromOpentoClosed. It had been a long day—a long life if he was being honest—but he did as he’d always done. Cooper powered through and made the best of the hand he’d been dealt. There was a time, nearly a decade ago, when he’d debated selling the store, selling the building, and moving away from North Edgewood, but even though he woke up alone every day, he was glad he hadn’t.
Cooper had lived in North Edgewood his entire life. The small town was all he knew, and even though he’d lived through his fair share of rough patches, he couldn’t imagine being anywhere else. He’d also run through his fair share of friends and social circles, but that was probably to be expected. Growing up in a town like North Edgewood meant you were either friends with the same people your entire life, or you made friends with the new folks who moved into town seeking quiet away from the city.
He had a mix of both, though more of the latter and less of the former as the years went on. But he understood life in North Edgewood wasn’t for everyone. It was forhim, though, so he stayed.
Cooper owned and operated a small bookshop named Totally Booked, and while it wasn’t a moneymaker per se, the building that housed the store also rented space to a coffee shop, which was easily the most lucrative business in town. Cooper did well enough for himself, and he was able to entertain his hobbies in a way that made him enough money on the side that he lived far beyond comfortably.
There was a big demand for hand-crafted impact toys, he’d found out years before. Not just among his friends, but the public in general. Cooper had an online storefront and a workshop in his basement, and that was where he spent most of his time. He loved to come up with creative toys in innovative shapes and sizes. He liked things that could be discreet but menacing all at the same time.
He would have liked the opportunity to use them, on either the giving or receiving end, but willing partners had been scarce for years. That had been his own doing, of course.
In his pocket, his cell phone vibrated and he fished it out, his long-time friend Devon’s name appearing on the screen. He knew what Devon wanted, so he ignored it. But it rang again. And again. Until on the fourth call, he answered it.
“What?”
“That’s no way to greet your oldest friend,” Devon said, feigning hurt.
“Devon.”
