Page 39

I’m hot.

Too hot.

It takes me a minute to realize it’s because I’m sleeping in my jeans.

Why the hell am I sleeping in my jeans?

I’m in my bed…I think. The room is dark, so at least I was coherent enough to close the room darkening shades my dad had custom-installed, which normally I’m grateful for but today they’re just confusing me. There’s enough light peeking in around the sides that I know the sun’s up.

What the hell time is it?

And how the hell did I get home?

I pry my eyes open and glance over at the clock, and the numbers haven’t quite registered when my bed shifts beside me.

“Ahhh!” I scream, and I push the offending figure clean off the bed, using both my hands and my feet before I realize maybe I’m overreacting just a smidge.

Cooper Noah’s head pops up from the floor, and his eyes are sleepy and confused. If I wasn’t the most hungover I’ve ever been in my entire life, I might find this amusing.

Instead, I feel like I’m going to barf.

Did I barf last night?

It’s a blur.

“What the hell are you doing in here?” I yell at him as I hold my head between my palms and press—like if I press hard enough, the pain will subside.

It doesn’t.

“There are three ibuprofen tablets on your nightstand,” he mutters as he stands, and he’s not wearing a shirt.

He’s not. Wearing. A. Shirt.

His abs shimmer in the darkness, and my dry mouth miraculously starts to salivate.

God, do I want him.

He rubs his hip and winces. “And a bottle of water. Take the pills and drink the bottle and maybe don’t kick and push someone out of your bed for taking care of your drunk ass all night.”

A tiny pang of guilt stabs into me. “You took care of me all night?”

“You got sick at the bar, and I took you home. I looked after you. I didn’t want to leave you alone, so I slept beside you.” He holds up both hands. “Nothing happened.” His hand returns to his hip again to rub it.

“Did you hurt your hip or is that just your old age showing?”

He glares at me. “I landed on it when you literally kicked me out of bed for taking care of you.”

“What about my dad?” I ask, and I realize my tone is both sassy and bratty, but I’m out of fucks to give.

“He had some business to take care of and said he wouldn’t be home until after noon today. Can we talk over breakfast?”

I blow out a long, frustrated breath. “ Now you want to talk?” I demand. “When I feel like I got hit by a truck?”

“Finding out your dad is Troy Bodine had much the same effect on me, and you wanted to talk yesterday,” he says, holding up both hands.

I roll my eyes. “You weren’t this big of a dick when we were together, were you?”

He chuckles and leans down, palms on my bed as he gets a little closer to me. His voice is low and husky when it comes out. “You seemed to have quite the affinity for my dick when we were together, darling.”

His words steal my breath, and I hate that I’m still this attracted to him even though he’s made it clear that what we had is over.

I can’t do this. I can’t live with him, I can’t wake up with him next to me in my bed. I can’t pretend like I’m not head over fucking heels in love with him when he’s all I’ve ever dreamed of.

But I have to.

Love and hate ride a thin line, so I guess my only choice is to opt for hate.

“Fuck you.”

He presses his lips together and raises both brows. “I’m going to turn on the coffee pot then head to the workout room for a quick workout. If you want me to make you breakfast, meet me in the kitchen in forty-five minutes for scrambled eggs and a chat.”

He stalks out of my room and disappears, and I collapse back onto my pillows as I try to ward off the emotions plowing into me.

But one feeling swoops in to trump everything else, and I run to the bathroom where I dry heave for a few minutes before giving up.

I take the pills Cooper so thoughtfully left for me, and I start to cry as I think about how fucked up all this is. We’re so damn right together, and I can’t help but wonder if it would be different if I’d told him who my dad was up front.

The only thing that might’ve changed is that he never would’ve agreed to be with me in the first place.

I head to the shower where I let the water mingle with my tears, and I feel marginally better once I’m clean. I brush my teeth and check the time. I still have another fifteen minutes before Cooper told me to meet him, but I head down to the kitchen anyway and grab a cup of coffee. I check my phone as I slide into a chair at the table, and I see a missed call from Justin. He left a voicemail.

“Hey girl. Just wanted to check on you to make sure you got home all right. Call me.”

I decide to ring him back even though he left the voicemail nearly ten hours ago.

“Hey,” he answers. “You’re alive.”

“I’m alive,” I say, my voice a little hoarse. “Barely.”

He laughs. “I figured you were fine with Noah since he was in our meeting yesterday.”

“Yeah,” I say. “He’s a good friend of my father’s.” I leave it at that since apparently it’s nothing more than that. Not anymore.

“I had fun with you last night.” His tone has a hint of suggestion to it, and I know where he’s going with it. “I’d like to see you again. Maybe grab another drink but just the two of us this time.”

“It’s a nice offer, Justin, but I’m, uh…it’s complicated.” I’m fumbling for an excuse when the truth is that I can’t tell him the truth. I think about what Mia suggested yesterday—that I go out with Justin to make Cooper jealous. It’s a terrible idea. Right?

“I didn’t ask you to marry me, Gab. I asked you out for a drink. Just friends if that’s all you want. We have to work together for the next few months, and I like to be friends with my coworkers,” he says lightly. He’s not offended that I basically declined his invitation, and I like that about him. He’s confident. Maybe more than he should be…but he’s right. I want to have fun at work, too, and I’ve got enough heaviness surrounding me. I need something light. Maybe Justin can be a friend to help combat the darkness.

“Okay,” I say. “Sure. I can do the friends thing. But just coffee this time. I can’t even think about alcohol without dry heaving right now.”

He laughs. “Coffee it is. Today at three, Starbucks near the bar last night?”

Cooper walks in as we end our conversation.

“That works,” I say. “I’ll see you then. And Justin?” My eyes are on Cooper’s as I say another man’s name.

I’m not doing what Mia said.

I’m not.

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for a fun time last night. I’m excited to hang out with you again.”

I see the physical change on Cooper’s face when I say the words to another man. Cooper doesn’t know that I just told Justin that I’m not looking for anything other than friendship, so it’s not quite Mia’s plan, but it still has the same effect.

His brows are pinched and his nostrils are flared. His cheeks are an angry red and a vein makes itself visible in his neck, and I’m pretty sure it’s from what I just said to Justin but it’s possible it’s from his workout.

“You too, girl,” Justin says. “See you at three.”

We hang up, and Cooper draws in a deep breath as he walks past me.

He’s a little sweaty from whatever he just did in the workout room, and he runs a hand through his hair before grabbing a coffee mug and filling it to the brim with hot, black coffee.

“Black coffee?” I ask.

“The trainer gave me a plan to get ready for the season,” he mutters. “I’m making cuts where I can.” He grabs a Slim Jim out of the pantry and starts to peel open the packaging.

“What were you doing at the bar last night?” I demand.

“I met Kaylee for a drink. I saw that Spongebob douche putting his arm around you and I didn’t like it. You were drinking a lot and I wanted to make sure you were okay.”

My heart clenches and my chest tightens. “I was fine,” I grit out.

“How were you planning to get home?”

“It’s not your business. You gave up that right when you decided this was over.” I wave a hand between the two of us.

“Do you want scrambled eggs, toast, and bacon?” he asks as he chews his beef stick.

I blow out a breath. “God, you’re frustrating.”

“Right back at you. Answer the question.”

“Yes,” I say, my tone full of petulance. I slide into the chair without bothering to offer to help. I don’t want to help. I want to sulk and feel sorry for myself first for the hangover and second for the broken heart.

“So you’re meeting him again today?” he asks casually as he starts grabbing what he needs to make breakfast.

“It’s none of your business.”

He presses his lips together and nods, and then he drops the loaf of bread and a pound of bacon onto the counter before turning around to lock eyes with me.

“Look, Gabby. Last night when I walked in with you passed out in my arms, your father told me what a good guy I was for taking care of you. He trusts me to treat you a certain way, and wrecking your tight little pussy with my nine-inch cock while I suck on your tits is not that way.”

Butterflies take flight in my stomach at his words. God, could he wreck me good.

But that’s not what I’m upset about.

Sure, I’ll miss the sex. But it’s so much more than that.

“We have no choice but to live beside one another for the next month, and I can’t lose focus now,” he continues. “Your father is trusting me not just to treat you right, but to mentor you. To honor the commitment I made to the Vegas Heat. I can’t fuck this up. It’s my one shot after being out of the game for three fucking years.”

I suck my bottom lip between my teeth and bite hard to try to ward off the tears heating behind my eyes. I should be all cried out by now, but apparently I am not.

I nod a little. “It’s not about the sex, Cooper. We had something that’s once in a lifetime, and I know you felt it, too. I know you did. I may be young, but I know what love is, and I know I’ve never felt even an ounce of what we shared with anybody else. If you’re choosing to put an end to this even though it’s not what I want, then you have to let me all the way go. You can’t steal me away from my friends to protect me. If you’re out, you’re out, and you have to let me live my life. You have to let me dance on tables and fuck up and learn from my mistakes on my own, or else you’re just acting like another parent and I’ve already got enough of those.”

He clenches his jaw at my rant, and he looks like he’s about to go one way with his words, but then he pauses, rubs his hands up and down, and blows out a breath. “You’re right. I’m sorry. If you like that jackass, it’s your right to go for it.”

He turns back to his work at the counter, pulling two slices of bread out of the bag and setting them in the toaster, cracking eggs, sprinkling salt and a little bit of garlic powder.

I watch him work, thinking about how to respond to his words. He’s plating our food when I finally offer a reply, my voice quiet and full of regret. “For the record, it’ll be a long, long time before I’m ready to go for it with anybody.”

He sets a plate in front of me, and I quietly thank him. He sets the other plate in front of the seat beside me, and he slides into the chair. I dig into my eggs, and they’re delicious.

I glance up when my plate’s almost empty, and I see him watching me. He hasn’t even started his food yet, and my tummy does a little flip at the realization.

He leans his elbows on the table and closes his eyes, resting his head in his palms for a beat. “I love you, Gabby. So fucking much. This is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do.”

I run my tongue over my back teeth and point my fork in his direction. “Then why are you doing it?”

The front door opens on cue, and he blows out a heavy breath. “You know why,” he mutters.

“There’s my girl!” my father says, striding into the room. He’s wearing a suit, which seems odd for ten forty-five in the morning, but who am I to judge? “How are you feeling, sweetheart?”

“I’m fine. Cooper made me some breakfast and it’s really helping cure the old hangover,” I say.

“Good man, that Cooper Noah. Good, good man,” he says. He strides over and claps Cooper on the shoulder. “Thanks for taking care of her.”

“Not a problem,” Cooper says flippantly. “You’re back early.”

“I was worried about Gabriella, so I cut my endeavors short,” my dad says.

“Was Joanie your endeavor?” I tease.

His eyes widen a little as if he’s been caught, and he turns accusatory eyes onto Cooper, who holds up his hands innocently.

“Wait a minute. Is there something I don’t know?” I ask.

“Joanie and I have been seeing each other a while now,” my dad admits. “I confessed it to Coop yesterday, but I wasn’t ready for people to find out.”

Cooper holds up both hands in defense. “I didn’t say a word.”

I raise a brow at him, noting that he’s apparently good at keeping secrets, and then I turn toward my father. “The way you two looked at each other when we stepped into her office yesterday sort of gave you away.”

He chuckles. “Did it, now? We’ll have to work on that.” He shoots me a wink. “Glad to see you’re feeling better. Do you have plans for the day?”

“I’m meeting Justin the intern for coffee a little later.” I finish what’s left in my cup of coffee, and I glance at Cooper, who has finally started eating.

My dad slips into the chair beside me. “Isn’t he the boy who got you drunk last night?”

I roll my eyes. “I made my own decisions last night. Admittedly they weren’t the brightest, but I felt safe knowing both he and his father work for the Heat. I was out with an entire group of interns, so it’s not like I was ever in danger. And Justin’s nice.”

“Nobody’s nice enough for my little girl,” he growls, narrowing his eyes at me.

I glance at Cooper again, who gives me a pointed look as if my dad’s words are proving his point that this is the right decision for us.

I pick up my plate and rinse it in the sink before setting it in the dishwasher. “I have an essay to write and a few chapters to read for my Global Consumer Behavior class, so I’ll be upstairs.”

Cooper presses his lips together and offers a friendly nod, and my dad stands and pulls me into a hug before he lets me go. I hear his voice behind me piling on the compliments as I trail up the stairs.

“She’s such a good kid. Hard worker, smart as a whip.”

I’m not as smart as he thinks I am.

I did, after all, fall for a man twelve years older than me…and then I allowed him to break my heart.