“You want another?”
“No. I’m good. Thanks though.”
“All right.” He drains his bottle and sets it on the table as well. “Now, we talk.” He stretches his legs out beside me and pulls my feet into his lap.
“Honestly, I don’t know where to start.”
“Let’s start with now that it’s had time to really sink in, are you upset about the foundation?”
“No. Not even a little. I’m… flabbergasted to be honest. That you would think to do something like that for me.”
“I was hoping that would be your response. I know you pretty well, and you’ve talked a lot about wanting to do more. I can’t believe I’m getting ready to say this, but if you want to run the foundation from your apartment, we could make that work. You would just have to come back to Indy for contracts, etc. Everything will be done through John. He’s already on retainer for me anyway.”
“Isn’t that weird for you? That you have an attorney on retainer.”
“Yeah.” He shrugs. “At first it was really hard to adjust to all the changes, but I’ve accepted them now and have accepted that while I’m still me, the same old Cooper I’ve always been, I’m also now a professional football player, and that comes with status and prestige in most cases, and there is nothing I can do to change that.”
“You’re wrong, Coop. You’re making changes. You’re changing the world. Look at what you did today. That’s amazing. I’m so proud of you and all that you’ve accomplished. What you did for the kids in the home, that meant everything to them.”
“I did it for you, Reese.”
I nod. This is my Cooper. The love of my life. The man who created a foundation to make my dreams come true. If this is a dream, I never want to wake up. “So, what are you thinking?” I ask him.
“I told you what I was thinking. I think it’s your turn to talk.”
“How would this work? I mean, if I give up my job to run the foundation, how am I going to support myself?”
“I assume if I say that I’ll support you, that idea’s not going to go over so well?” he asks.
“Not particularly. I mean, what would the media think, our parents, and friends?”
“Fuck the media. Our parents and friends have seen this”—he motions between the two of us—“coming for years. It’s what we think that matters.”
“I don’t know, Cooper.”
“Fine. The foundation will pay you a salary, just as any foundation would,” he concedes.
“But that’s taking away from the kids.”
“Baby…” He chuckles. “You can’t have it both ways. Unless you’re leaning toward keeping your job and running the foundation from Columbus.”
“You’re here.” I state the obvious.
“And I want you here with me.”
“I want to be where you are,” I confess.
“What’s mine is yours, Reese. I created this foundation for you and for me. It was with the hopes that not only do you get to do what you’ve always wanted, reach more people, help more people, it would also bring you home to me.”
“Tell me how you see this playing out? Where are we a year from now, five years from now?” I ask.
“Married, and in five years a kid or two.”
I get that fluttering feeling in my belly. The one I’ve come to associate with Cooper. Only he has ever made me feel this way. Thinking of our future, marriage and kids, it’s everything I’ve ever wanted. With him. Only with him. I raise my eyebrows, making him laugh. “How many kids are we talking, Reeves?”
“As many as you want. At least two.”
I nod. “I can be on board with that.”
“This is what I see and what I want. I want you to give notice and move here with me. I want you living here before I have to leave for training camp. That commute for you to visit on those days will be short, and in the meantime, you can explore the city and dive into the foundation work. I want to come home to you every night, at least those nights that I can. When possible, and your schedule allows, I want you to travel to the games. I want to marry you and have babies with you. Do I need to keep going?” he asks.
“No.” I shake my head as I fight back the tears. I’ve wanted this for so long. Not just everything he just described, but all of it with him. He is my dream, and through his love for me, he gave me mine. No way would I have been able to do all the start-up for a new foundation and get it off the ground holding down a full-time job. Not only that, but he heard me, and without me even knowing, he gave me the perfect career. Loving him and caring for our children as well as those who are vulnerable.
“I have one more question,” I say, watching his reaction closely.
“What’s that?”
“Will you help me move?” I smile as I say it, but he just sits still, staring at me. There is a blank expression on his face. “Cooper?” I wave my hands in the air to get his attention.
“Shh,” he whispers.
“What are you doing?” I whisper back.
“Memorizing the moment.”
“So that’s a no?” I ask, amused.
“That’s a hell fucking yes!” He stands and leans over me, pressing his lips to mine. His tongue traces my lips, and my hand goes around his neck, keeping him close to me. “You’re moving here? With me? When?” He fires off questions in between peppering my face with kisses.
“Soon. I need to give notice and pack up my place.” Excitement bubbles inside me at this new start. With Cooper. It’s everything I could have hoped for, yet it’s more. I’m deliriously happy.
“So? A week or so?”
“No, I have to give work at least two weeks.” It’s going to be hard to leave, but I just need to remind myself of all the kids I’m going to be able to help. I’m so excited to hit the ground running with this new foundation.
“You should do it now. The sooner, the better. Hold on. Let me get my laptop.” He stands and rushes down the hall.
“Coop! I’m not going to email them. I’ll tell them on Monday!” I yell after him.
He comes back into the room with his laptop. “Fine, but we can start looking at houses.” He takes a seat next to me.
“What do you mean, look at houses? I mean, I know you mentioned it, but we live here.” I motion around the room.
“You said we.” He’s grinning like a fool. “You said we live here.”
“Well, maybe not today, but in a couple of weeks.”
“I love you.” He leans in and kisses me. “I signed a five-year deal, so we’re going to be here for at least five more years. I’d like to be here longer, but we’re going to need a house. The kids need a yard to play in, and you need an office to work from home,” he rattles on.
“Coop.” I place my hand on his arm. “We don’t have to do this all at once.”
“Yes.” He nods. “We do. I’ve been waiting for this, for us to start our lives together. We’re doing this, Reese’s Pieces.” He winks.
It’s been months, hell, maybe longer than just months since he’s called me that. That was always his thing, and we lost that, but now we’re back. We’re better than ever, and it makes my heart happy. We each might have traveled the long road to get here, but I’m confident we’ll be traveling it together for the rest of our lives.