As he walked away, Cooper noted the unusual curve of his brother’s shoulders as he held up the weight of the world.
“I feel so bad for them to be put in this situation,” Gigi said as she led the way upstairs to her place.
“I do, too. It’s awful and wonderful at the same time.”
“I need a shower. Make yourself comfortable.”
Cooper followed her into the bedroom and pulled his T-shirt over his head and then dropped his shorts.
“Wait a second. I said no nudity.”
“If I keep my boxers on, that’s not nude.”
“This,” she said, waving her hand at him, “is too close to nude for comfort.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t let you have your wicked way with me. This is sleep only. Go take your shower. I’ll be waiting for you.”
She let out an aggravated sound and slammed the bathroom door behind her.
God, he loved her, and yes, he knew that was crazy, but how could anyone not love her? She was amazing and funny and sweet and so wounded that she didn’t even know how to let someone love her. He was determined to show her something so good, she’d want to keep him around forever.
They could be happy together. He knew that. How he knew it, he couldn’t say. It was one of those things that just was. It couldn’t be explained or rationalized or easily described in words. All he knew for sure was he needed to be with her. If he could make that happen, the rest would fall into place, or so he hoped.
Ten minutes later, she got into the other side of the bed, wearing a long T-shirt that landed midthigh, leaving the rest of her legs on display.
“Is snuggling allowed in this nap?” Cooper asked.
“Absolutely not.”
“Oh, come on. That’s not fair. I agreed to your no-nudity clause, but you never said anything about snuggling.”
“That’s for couples. We’re still a fling.”
“No, we’re not. You gave me a promotion earlier to boyfriend status.”
She looked over at him, eyes flashing with anger, and he’d never wanted her more. “When did I do that?”
“When you didn’t kick me out.”
“How does that make you my boyfriend?”
He rolled onto his side and moved closer to her. “If you didn’t want me around, you would’ve kicked me out.”
“I was sparing your feelings. That’s the only reason I let you stay.”
“Are you sure about that?” he asked, placing his hand on her abdomen.
She tried to push it away, but he stayed firm.
“Don’t. No touching.”
“Yes, touching.” He slid his hand from her belly to her leg and dipped under the hem of her T-shirt.
“Cooper…”
“Shhh, just relax and get some rest.”
“How am I supposed to rest when you’re doing that?”
She’d broken out into goose bumps that gave him tremendous satisfaction.
“What am I doing?” He ran his fingertips up her inner thigh, intentionally avoiding touching her anywhere she’d deemed off-limits.
She squirmed, trying to get closer to his hand, but he denied her. “Cooper.”
“Yes, Gigi?”
“Knock it off.”
“You still haven’t told me what I need to knock off.”
“Touching me without touching me where I want you to.”
“You told me I couldn’t!”
“Since when do you listen to me? I told you to go away, and here you are, mostly naked in my bed!”
“You’re sending some seriously mixed signals. Do you want me to touch you or not? And if you do, you need to say so, because I don’t touch without permission.”
“I want you to touch me.”
“Where?”
“Everywhere.”
“I thought you wanted to sleep.”
“I’ll do that after you touch me, and go easy, because that big thing of yours made me sore.”
Cooper rocked with silent laughter. “You’re a piece of work, Gigi Gibson.”
“Believe it or not, I’ve heard that a few times before.”
“I believe it.”
Chapter 21
Cooper continued to stroke her inner thighs with the lightest possible touch that was driving her crazy—and he knew that because she growled at him. “Patience.”
“Got none.”
“Get some.”
“You’re pissing me off again.”
“I have a feeling you’ll forgive me.”
“I won’t.”
He kissed her neck. “Yes, you will.”
“Hey, Coop?”
“Yes, Gigi?”
“You’re not, you know, selling me a bag of bullshit, are you?” she asked, her voice and expression so vulnerable, she broke his heart.
He used his free hand to brush the hair back from her face. “No, sweetheart. I swear to God, I’ll never tell you anything other than the truth.” Kissing her as softly as he possibly could, he said, “And the truth is, I’m crazy about you. I was before I ever met you, and then I found out you’re even more than I could’ve ever dreamed.”
She blinked back tears that made him ache because he knew tears weren’t her thing.
He kissed both her cheeks and the tip of her nose before returning to her lips as his fingers moved up her leg to find she was bare under the T-shirt. The discovery made him hard as a rock, but this wasn’t about him. It was about showing her that he meant what he’d said, that he wanted her for more than just the surface things.
Earning her trust and her love would be the greatest challenge of his life, and keeping her happy would be his greatest pleasure. “I feel like we could set the world on fire together, you and me.”
She arched her back, trying to get closer to his fingers between her legs.
“Easy, baby,” he said. “Nice and easy.”
A sound came from her that might’ve been a sob.
Cooper kissed her softly. “Just relax and let me love you.”
“I can’t let you love me.”
“Yes, you can.”
She shook her head.
He nodded and kissed her again as he slipped his fingers inside her heat.
She held on to him so tightly, it made his ribs hurt, but he didn’t care. He wanted her to hold on to him as tightly as she could for as long as possible.
Cooper took her on a sweet, easy ride, teasing her until she was begging him to finish what he’d started, but he was in no rush.
“Cooper… please.”
“Tell me what you want.”
“You know what I want!”
“You’ll get everything you want, but you have to have some faith in me.”
“I do, or you wouldn’t be here. Again.”
He was wise enough to know that her admitting such a thing was a huge win for his campaign to convince her that not only was she worthy and deserving of love, but she was also able to give it back.
“You’re the devil,” she said, gasping as he took her almost to the point of explosion before backing off again.
Laughing, he moved carefully so as not to aggravate ribs that were finally feeling a little better and replaced his fingers with his tongue.