“Don’t youdareapologize for that,” I said instead, bumping his nose with mine and earning myself one of his big, bright smiles in response.
He was so easy to be around. I could’ve gottenveryused to being around him.
“No?” he asked, eyes open and earnest.
There was no point pretending to myself that I didn’t want to do this again. For once in my life, I couldn’t wait to tell Avery they were right about something. They’d been so, so veryrightabout Cooper.
That revelation could wait, though. I had more interesting things to think about now.
“I needed that,” I confessed with a sigh. “I needed that so badly. I should be thanking you.”
Cooper’s smile turned shy, his gaze flicking away from my face, tongue darting out to wet his lips. Now that I’d gotten intimately familiar with them, I couldn’t stop noticing what a nice shape they were—full lower lip, soft, and naturally curved a little way up at the edges, as though he’d been born with a permanent smile.
He was so gorgeous like this. Shy and blushing with my come still cooling on his stomach.
I tilted my head to kiss him, soft this time, a brush of lips followed up by a hint of teeth scraping that lower lip I couldn’t stop looking at now. A thank you.
“Think I did, too,” Cooper murmured, gaze flicking back up to my face. His lips twitched, eyes sparkling, and I couldn’t resist kissing him again, slower this time, my fingers curling into his rumpled T-shirt.
“Been a while?” I asked, staying close enough for the tips of our noses to touch this time. The moment would have to end eventually, but I couldn’t bring myself to let it just yet. This was the most at peace I’d felt in six months.
Longer, maybe. Maybe much longer.
“Eight months,” Cooper admitted, voice low and deliciously rumbly. His fingers were rubbing little circles into my hip—I wasn’t sure he knew he was doing it, but I didn’t want it to stop. I wasn’t used to cuddling like this, but I was quickly realizing I could be a slut for it.
“Six,” I said in response. Part of me wanted to tell him my last time hadn’t beennearlyas good as this had, but that felt like too much, too soon.
Besides, I wasn’t about to marry the guy. Even if he might have ruined me for all other men. I was only here temporarily, until I… got back on my feet.
I ignored the twinge that thought set off in my gut.
“Before…?” Cooper asked, eyes glinting as they searched my face.
Now it was my turn to look away. I nodded, wetting my lips, half wanting to say something, half knowing that if I started, I’d say too much. My problems weren’t Cooper’s problems, and I was starting to imagine a couple of weeks in which we had uncomplicated sex a handful more times before our lives separated again.
That was all this had to be. It’d be good for both of us. Cooper didn’t have time to date seriously with Benji to take care of, I wasn’t sticking around…
The more I thought about it, the better an idea it seemed.
“Well,” Cooper spoke up again. “All the important parts seem unscathed.”
I snorted, burying my face against his shoulder. He let me, let me curl up next to him and cling and soak in his warmth and the pleasure of contact with another body.
Piotr wouldn’t have.
Avery was right. Hewasa dick.
I just couldn’t see it until someone treated me with basic human decency.
No. No, that wasn’t true. I’d known, secretly, for a long time. I’d just been too much of a coward to leave. Too afraid of losing my career.
Which was exactly what had happened anyway.
“Thank you.” I sighed against his shoulder. “I guess you have to go home?”
Cooper tensed, his fingers going still.
“Yeah,” he said after a heartbeat. “Yeah, uh. Benji.”
