Page 18

Chapter Seventeen

Cooper

W e remain in the position for what feels like hours, making out like a couple of teenagers. Not a stitch of clothing is removed, but we tentatively touch each other. Neither of us cares about moving any further. I don’t want to rush things with Beauty, the events of early this morning notwithstanding, keeping my hands firmly placed about her waist.

My hand brushes against her hardened nipples through her shirt as she moans my name loudly. Her eyes are hooded with want and something I can’t quite place. Her fingers tremble as she runs her fingers through my hair. Each touch sets my skin on fire, a burning need to be closer to her flickers to life under the surface of my skin. I want to be close to her, drinking her in, to the point of madness. But I don’t stop nipping and sucking at her sensitive flesh.

“Fuck. You’re an amazing kisser,” she mumbles against my lips, sliding her pussy against the bulge in my sweats. “I’ve never been kissed like this before.”

The friction of her pussy against me is a pure out-of-body experience, something that I can’t wait to do again, but we need to do something else or I’m going to embarrass myself a second time. “Beauty, if you don’t stop doing that, things will be over soon.”

“I don’t mind.” She giggles, nipping at my jaw. “I’d very much like a repeat of last night, if possible.”

“Shit. Beauty.” I growl her name, my hands gripping her hips as she grinds down into me again. “We don’t need to do anything you don’t want to.”

Ramona stops abruptly, raising her hips so she leans over me. The ends of her locs brush my cheeks. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to force myself on you. If you want to stop, we’ll stop.”

I groan loudly, pulling her back down into my lap. “Beauty, that’s not what I meant.” She leans back to look in my eyes, and my heart breaks. Tears pool in her eyes as she drops her forehead to mine, begging me to explain. “I’d love nothing more than to take you right here, keeping you naked in my bed until next week. But I don’t want to ruin what this is between us.”

“You can’t ruin this, Cooper. We need to let things happen naturally, and while I agree that sex right now isn’t the best idea, we should just do what feels natural.”

“So if I want to feast on your pussy again, then I should just do that?”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying.” My cock hardens even further, arousal pooling in my belly as I bury my nose in her neck and inhale deeply.

“You smell so fucking good.” I groan, sucking the flesh of her ear into my mouth before flipping her over onto her back.

Her locs are spread across my pillows; the golden color of the sheet looks beautiful against her skin. I nip and suck my way down her body, raising my shirt above her breast. “Lift your head, Beauty.”

She follows my instructions, lifting her head just enough for me to pull the shirt over her head, bringing her arms up, as well. Instead of pulling her shirt all the way off, I use it to wrap and bind her wrists together.

“Is this okay?” Ramona nods her head, pupils blown with need, and I lean down to press my lips to hers again. She moans softly, arching her back into my chest. “There’s something about having you completely at my mercy that does it for me.”

With her breasts now exposed, I lean down and pull one deep into my mouth. “Jesus, Cooper.”

I release her breast with a pop before switching to the other one, lathing her hardened nipples with my tongue before nipping and sucking my way down her body. The coarse hair covering her mound tickles my nose as I drop between her legs, using my shoulder to make enough room.

“Is everyone decent?” Beau’s voice echoes through the hallway, followed by the slam of the front door. “At least you two made it to the bedroom this time.”

“Ignore him,” I growl, nipping at the inside of her thigh before languidly licking at her folds. Her fingers tighten around my hair, shoving my face between her legs as my asshole brother speaks again.

“Are you guys even in there?” I can hear his footsteps as he makes his way down the hall toward my room. I freeze, hoping he has some common sense, but he doesn’t.

“Don’t you fucking dare open that door,” I growl, dropping my head onto her leg, my eyes flicking up to hers.

Beauty giggles softly, her eyes still filled with the same heat from before. Fucking Beau is going to need to make funeral arrangements soon. What happened to people calling before they came over? It’s never been a problem in the past. That’s why I haven’t beaten the shit out of him yet.

“Oh, shit. Sorry, man. Just come out when you’re ready. I’m going to go check the game highlights from last night.”

“Or you could just leave!” I shout, but he doesn’t respond. I really need to change the code for my front door.

“Your brothers need to learn a little something about boundaries.” Ramona sighs as I move to the push-up position. My eyes lock on hers, and my cock hardens all over again.

“Fuck, you are so goddamn beautiful.” Forgetting about my brother in the other room, I press my body into hers and kiss her again. Fuck. I’ve kissed a good deal of women in my time, but kissing Beauty is truly an experience. Just the feel of her skin pressed against mine has me ready to come a second time. The first time was not a fluke. There is just something about Ramona that makes my body fill with an uncontrollable need.

“Are you sure you want to start this again?”

“No.” Beauty fastens her legs around my waist, pulling me closer to her. “But I don’t want to get interrupted again. I want to take my time with you and worship at the altar of your beauty.”

Her lips pull down in a pout as I pull away. “Fine. Be sensible. I’m going to go shower and change. Can I borrow a pair of sweats until Alise and Darius get here? I assume you asked her to bring me some clothes.”

“You assume wrong, but I’m sure she’s bringing some.” I climb off her, flopping down on the bed. This is not how I planned for my lazy day with Ramona to go, but maybe it’s for the best. Beauty is right. We need to let things happen naturally; whether we have sex or not is up to us. There’s no time frame on anything, but I don’t know how much longer I can keep my dick in my pants with her. The tension sizzles between us when I’m within a few feet of her. It's only a matter of time before the chains we keep on our control snaps.

“I’m sure you’re right, but can I have my phone? I want to shoot her a text just to make sure.” Her eyes widen in horror as she scrambles off the bed and heads for the door. “Oh fuck, my bag!”

I wrap my arms around her waist, pulling her back down onto the bed with me. “Don’t worry, Beauty. Beau, the cock-blocking brother of mine, grabbed it from the park after we got distracted.”

Her body sags into my chest, relief written all over her face. “Distracted, huh? Well, that’s a word for it.”

“And before you ask, I didn’t search through it or anything, but he said your bag wasn’t very wet. I think it’s safe to say your notebook is also fine.”

“I wasn’t going to ask.” She plants a kiss on my chin before wrapping her arms around me for a hug. “Thanks, Cooper.”

“Anything for you, Beauty.”

We can hear Beau banging around in the kitchen, once again ruining the mood. “Find out what your brother wants. I’ll be out in a few minutes, after I call Alise and shower again.”

“Sure you don’t want some company?”

“Oh, you know I do, but I doubt Beau is going to respect the closed door for long.”

“You’re probably right.” Ramona unwraps my arms from her waist and dashes around the bed to the bathroom. My eyes remain locked on her as she closes the door behind her and turns the lock.

After making sure my dick is no longer ready to burst out of my pants, I push to my feet and stride out the door. Beau is exactly where he said he’d be—in the den, the sound of the television echoing off the walls.

“Why the fuck is the television so loud?” I ask, grabbing the remote off the coffee table to turn it down to an acceptable level.

“I didn’t want to hear you moaning and shit.”

“You could’ve also, I don’t know, fucking left or called before you walked into my place uninvited.”

“Would you have rather it been me or Momma? They should be here any minute now.” Beau shakes his phone in the air, not bothering to take his eyes off the television. “I’m sure you’d have seen her text if you weren’t otherwise occupied.”

“Good point. Thanks for having my back.” I slap him on the back before heading into the kitchen to grab a bottle of water. Momma walking in on Ramona and I would’ve been terrible. Not only do I not want my mother to catch me in any type of sexual position, but we haven’t defined whatever this is between us. Sure, we talked about this being more than just a fling, but we need to discuss so much more. I know that I’m all in on this. There’s no one else I want to spend time with besides Beauty, but does she feel the same way?

“Aren’t you afraid of Momma getting the wrong idea?” Beau strides into the kitchen, opening the refrigerator door to examine the contents.

“The wrong idea?”

“Ramona stayed in your house last night. Now you’re bringing her son and her to a game that you aren’t playing in and want them to wear your jersey.”

“I don’t see the problem here.” I stride toward the small breakfast nook off the kitchen and take a seat at the table. Something tells me this is going to be a very involved conversation. I appreciate my brother looking out for me, but his need to overanalyze things and come up with the perfect plan of attack isn’t for everyone. Sometimes you need to act on what you feel, and for the first time in my life, I’m doing just that. I may not have all the answers right now, but I know in my soul that if I miss this chance, I’ll regret it for the rest of my life.

Beau pulls out the chain across from me and takes a seat, his arms resting on the table. “I need you to think with the brain between your ears, not the one between your legs for a minute. Ramona is a m-o-t-h-e-r.”

“Was the spelling really necessary?” I chuckle, leaning back in the chair. I’m sure Beau has a point, but I’m losing my patience. Has things between Beauty and me progressed quickly? I don’t know. We’ve only known each other for forty-eight hours, but there’s something there. I’m not planning on getting down on one knee and proposing marriage the moment she walks out of my room, but I want to see where things are going between us.

“Yes, it was, because I wanted to make sure you were fucking paying attention. You don’t just take a single mother on a date, have sex with them, and then bounce.”

“Do you really think?—”

“I know you fucking aren’t and Momma does too, but does the world? And that, dear brother, is your problem.”

“You’re overreacting, Beau. No one gives a shit about what I’m doing when I’m not on the ice.”

“That’s where you’re wrong, brother. I’ve been asked at least twenty times in my interviews this week where you’ve been and why you aren’t on the roster for the game. The team isn’t saying shit either. What’s going to happen when the world sees you walking into the arena hand in hand with a woman they’ve never seen before and a pre-teen boy?”

Well, shit. Beau has a point. I had planned on going to the arena early to have a talk with Murphy about his timetable for my coming back to the team, but maybe I should make a stop in to see Coach and the general manager. After they told me I wouldn’t be on the roster for the start of the season and they wanted me to coach at the hockey club back home, I stopped listening. If they have a plan to announce something, I need to know. A call to Remy is probably in order, as well.

Beau has given me a lot to think about, but that doesn’t change my course of action. Ramona and Darius are coming to the game with me, and she’ll be wearing my name on her back if I have anything to say about it. I’ll just have to make sure I can handle the rest before anyone catches wind of it.

“Thanks, brother.”

“Anytime. Just wanted to make sure you’re thinking things through completely and have a plan.”

“Of course, because God forbid you don’t have a perfect, foolproof plan before starting something with a woman you like. How’s that working out for you?”

Beau pushes back from the table in a huff, storming out of the breakfast nook to sulk in the den. I could’ve been gentler with him, but it serves him right. He wants me to be happy, but the same goes for him. I just wish he’d open his mouth and say something before it’s too late. He swears he has too much to lose by admitting his feelings, but to me, the risk is worth the reward, especially because I have a feeling that his lady love feels the same way.

I should probably apologize, but just as I’m getting up from the table to follow him, something dawns on me. “Wait. How do you even know her name?”

Beau turns his head to look at me, the answer written all over his face. “Alise,” we say in unison before he continues his thought. “She called me bright and early this morning, demanding to know as much detail as I can give her about what happened last night.”

“And you told her…”

“That I stopped you from fucking on the floor of your entryway but have no idea what you two were up to after I left.”

Great. Just great. Am I ashamed of what happened between the two of us? No, I’m not. I’d shout from the rooftop what happened if it would make her happy, but I have a feeling she’s more of a private person than that. The likelihood that she’d tell Alise what happened is strong, but it’s her choice.

“Stop looking at me like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like I ruined everything.” He sighs loudly, dropping his head into his hands. “Look, we both know that woman is a natural born lie detector. And even if I could lie to her, which you know I can’t, I wouldn’t dare. She means too much to me to even think about doing one of the few things she has no patience for.”

I have a feeling that this has a lot more to do with him than it does with me. I could push the subject and try to get him to open up to me, but Beau isn’t like that. He’s always there for the people he cares about, a shoulder to cry on. He would bend over backward to give them everything they want, but he always keeps his own feelings close to his chest. The uncertainty of others’ actions can be too much for him, ?so he keeps it locked inside. Is that healthy? Hell no, but if it’s not broken, don’t fix it. Beau knows I’m here for him if he needs someone to listen. I just have to wait for him to want to talk about it. Good thing I’m a mostly patient man.

“Want to play some NHL ’25 ?” he asks, probably wanting to change the subject.

“Sure, but we aren’t allowed to use the Timberwolves as our team.”

Beau changes the input on the television and hands me a controller. “You just don’t want to get your ass kicked again, do you?”

I shake my head, scrolling through the list of teams and find the perfect one to kick my little brother’s ass.