“Yeah.”
“What did you have in mind?”I ask.
He grins.“I have a few ideas.”
We eat and talk about our plans for the day.I help him clean up after we’re done, then we both grab our things and head out.
“Do you want to walk?”he asks as I glance at his car.
The truth is that I’m not nervous about being in Cooper’s car when he’s with me.But it’s a nice day out, so I nod and take his hand in mine as we walk toward downtown.
Cooper takes me into town for our date, though I’m pretty sure the entire day should count as more than one date.First, we stop at the bakery, where he buys me a cinnamon roll the size of my face because I looked at it for two seconds too long.Then we walk through the little shops on Main Street.He buys me a pair of fuzzy socks, even though I tell him I don’t need them, a paperback from the bookstore because I touched the cover, and a little green glass pendant from an antique shop because he says it matches my eyes.
“You can’t buy me everything I look at,” I tease as we leave the shop.
“I can.”
“Cooper,” I warn.
“I like spoiling you.”
“I’m not used to it.”
“I know.”
Those two words make my chest tighten.He knows.He knows without me having to explain every ugly little piece of my past.He knows that Taylor and I had to work for every scrap we had.He knows I’m not used to someone stepping in and saying, “Let me carry that, let me buy that, let me make it easier.”
He holds my hand as we walk home.I smile, feeling lighter than I have in forever.I’m happy and confident in my future for the first time.
I’m also so turned on.
The mating heat has been getting stronger all day.Every passing second with Cooper makes it burn hotter inside me.Every brush of his body against mine makes my core clench and my need for him grow.
“Still happy you moved in with me?”Cooper asks, pulling me from my dirty thoughts.
“Fishing for compliments?”I ask, tilting my head back to look at him.
“Always.”
I laugh.“Yes, Cooper.I’m happy I moved in with you.”
The tension in his shoulders eases.“Good.”
“Are you okay?”
He looks out over the forest.For a second, I think he’s going to tell me he’s fine.Then he sighs.“I’m worried.”
The fear I’d forgotten about creeps back in.“About the cult?”
He nods.
“What happened on patrol?”
His arm tightens around me.“They’re moving around more.Loading vehicles.Talking like they’re planning something.”
My stomach drops.“Something with me?”
He goes still.That’s answer enough.
