But his mother demanded attention at all times. She gently palmed his cheek and turned him to face her. “That’s what the bourbon is for.”
“You know I don’t drink that shit,” Cooper said.
Not since the accident. In his father’s later years, he turned to the hard shit to cope with whatever the fuck was going on in his head. It never helped. It never made him better. Cooper swore he wouldn’t become his father, wouldn’t drink when he was still hurting. And as Stassi said, there was no timeline for when the hurt would go away.
The sigh she sighed dripped with exhaustion. “Sometimes I wonder if your father was your father.”
“Somehow I don’t see the grande dame of Columbus stepping out on her husband.”
“I was always too classy for an affair. That doesn’t mean I didn’t consider it on occasion. Your father was always gone. Loneliness is a part of the package of marrying a football player and I knew that from the start, so I could never quite rationalize stepping outside that line.” She twisted to grab a glass of champagne from a passing server without so much as athank you.“I can see the loneliness in Stassi’s eyes.”
Cooper shook his head. “She lost her other half.”
“You’re her other half.”
He finally worked the courage to stare his mother straight in her hollow eyes. “It’s not the same thing.”
“I lost my sister at a young age. I thought it’d destroy me but I persevered like I always do. That’s what strong people do, they persevere. They hold on to what is theirs with every bone in their body.” She pointed to Stassi who made her way through the crowd, accepting hugs and gratitude from friends and strangers alike. “Don’t let Stassi slip away. It’ll destroy you because the only thing worse than losing someone to death is losing someone who is still alive. I grieved your father long before he was gone.”
“And now?”
“I’ve become so accustomed to being alone that I believe extended company would drive me insane. The memory of your father is enough to make me not feel so alone.”
That was enough of that.
Enough ofher.
“This has been a delightful talk, but if you don’t mind, I need to go get ready for my speech. Thank you for coming tonight, mother.”
He turned his back on her, but the hand that gripped him by the arm proved she wasn’t finished with him yet. She never was. He turned back to her with a sigh.
“You’re a mess,” she scowled. “Do as I say, grab a drink, something strong, and calm yourself down before you take that stage. You will make a fool out of us both.”
“Who cares?” He gritted his teeth. That’s the best he could do without making a scene. “Why do you care?”
She closed the gap between them. “You represent more than yourself, more than your team. You represent this family and all eyes are on you at all times. My constituents demand a certain level of finesse and that means not bumbling your way through a speech.”
“You know I don’t like politics, especiallyyourpolitics.”
“And you’ll smile and wave anyway.” The smile on her face imitated the words coming out of her mouth, decades of practice mastering the art of pretending. “This place is crawling with donors, so try and make the rounds.”
“This is a memorial for my best friend, so I don’t think I’ll be doing any such thing.”
“Yes, you will.” She patted him on the chest. “Don’t forget the power I wield and how much you have benefited from that. Do you really think Coach White kept Luke Davies around because you begged him to?”
Cooper swallowed a gulp, the muscles in his throat tightening. “What are you talking about?”
“Power. I have it. Most don’t.” She leaned in and whispered against his ear. “The rumors are true.”
His eyes widened as he thought about all the articles in the press about how she was planning to run for the Senate, rumors that she continued to deny publicly. “You’re running for Senate?”
“I’m going to crush the opposition in both the primary and the general election.” She took a quick glance around, ensuring whatever she said could only be heard by him. “All I need you to do is to not do anything to jeopardize that. I’ve already cleaned up enough of your messes.”
Cooper took the stage with all eyes on him.
Nico’s eyes especially. He watched as his coach approached the podium and placed a lowball glass with nothing remaining in it other than ice. Cooper gripped both ends of the wooden podium with his big hands. Cooper’s eyes searched the crowd, and even from a distance, Nico noticed there was a glisten.
“I’m nervous,” Matteo whispered to Nico. “Callahan does not like public speaking.”
