Chapter One
Eli
I was eager. I was egotistical. I was edgy. Hell, I was Eli Cooper, and that said it all.
“You want a coffee, love?” Alice let the brown-handled pot swing back and forth between her fingers. “You look like you could use a piece of pie too.”
From my brother Owen’s favorite booth in the corner, I glanced around the diner and could see why he chose it. Nothing happened in Alice’s Diner that he wouldn’t see.
“Thanks, Alice. I’ll take my usual.”
“You’re a creature of habit.” She filled the empty mug.
“And that’s a problem?”
“Not for me, but it must get boring for you.” She darted off to fetch me a slice of apple pie.
She was right, I was a creature of habit. I loved everything about my simple small-town life in Frazier Falls because it was predictable and perfect, all the way down to Alice’s apple pie.
I knew myself, and there were three truths that would never change.
First, I didn’t have lofty ambitions. What I wanted was a steady but satisfying job—better if it was stress-free and didn’t come with a horrible whip-wielding boss. Setting up Cooper Construction with Owen and pulling in our younger brother Paxton meant we bossed ourselves, or rather Owen bossed us because we allowed it.
Second, I wasn’t comfortable with people I didn’t know. The best thing about Frazier Falls was I was familiar with everyone.
Third, I could be an asshole. I’d always known this, though most people around me did not. In public, I was perfectly polite and kind to everyone. On my own, or with my brothers, it was another story.
I spent my free time, pretending I knew what everyone was doing, and their reasons for their actions. It was a game Mom and I played to pass the time when I was a child. She called it I Know You. We didn’t know anything, but we made up amazing stories about people that entertained us for hours.
The best thing was, nearly fifty percent of the time, I was right, which made it more satisfying. The sly and stupid suggestions about what John Reilly was getting up to behind the doors of his bar, or whether Rachel Wilkes knew how to run a convenience store, or whether Sandra the hairdresser kicked out her no-good husband Paul for drinking or cheating on her, entertained me. With Paul, it was usually one or the other, though my guess was both. I was curious about Lucy and why she was the town gossip, or how Alice managed to stay upbeat despite the work and patience it took to run the diner.
Alice plopped the plate of apple pie in front of me. “I added a scoop of vanilla because you look like you needed it.”
Staring at my plate, I wanted to scream, but instead, I looked up and smiled. “Thanks, Alice. You’re the best.”
When she walked away, I pushed the ice cream to the side before it could melt into the perfect flaky crust, making it soggy. Damn … even Alice was becoming unpredictable.
With the first bite, I thought about Carla Stevenson. I had to hand it to my brother. He’d found a great woman who happened to come with a nice sibling. The joining of the Stevenson Mill with Cooper Construction was a boon. Liking both the Stevensons was a bonus.
A hand waved in front of my face. “Eli, are you spacing out?” Paxton appeared out of nowhere. “Where did you go?”
I swatted him away as I took another bite before the quickly melting ice cream could touch it.
He slid into the bench across from me and picked up a spoon, taking a big bite of ice cream, which saved me from leaving it on the plate and potentially hurting Alice’s feelings.
“I was thinking you should stop flirting with Carla, you moron.” No way would I tell him the truth. That I was missing our mother, and the predictability of our lives. Pity parties didn’t go over well with the Coopers.
“I don’t flirt with her. She belongs to our brother.”
I laughed. “You want to tell Carla that marrying Owen will make her his property?” I shook my head. “Make sure you wear a cup when you do. She’ll kick your gonads so far up, they’ll be stuck in your throat.”
“Dude, I’m not telling her anything. Just stop breaking my balls because I like her. She’s going to be family.”
Paxton had admitted to being half in love with her in high school. He said he wasn’t anymore, but I wasn’t convinced. There was something about the way he looked after speaking to her that made me think he was either lying to me or lying to himself. Or maybe he was envious of the love our brother had. It was also a possibility that I imagined something that was there for my amusement. No matter what, it got a rise out of my younger brother, which was a perfect distraction for me.
“When are you going to find your own girl?”
“When are you?” he grumbled as he collapsed against the blue pleather seat. “God, I can’t believe Carla told you I liked her.”
My future sister-in-law, Carla, who everyone called Carl, had impeccable timing. She laughed loudly before she made Pax scoot over. “I think it's cute that you liked me in the first place.”
“Stop ganging up on me.” Pax’s lips stretched into a thin line. “Having one Eli is enough.”
Carla sat taller and pressed her palm to her chest. “I’ve reached Eli levels of mockery? I’m honored.”
“You’re hilarious,” Pax grumbled.
“You realize this was the stuff I was talking about, Pax. You’re blushing,” I said, causing my brother to roll his eyes and curse under his breath.
Carla looked at me, amused. “I guess we should stop picking on him for now,” she looked at Pax and turned back to face me. “Do you have any clue when Owen will get back? He’s not picking up his phone.”
I glanced at my watch, frowning. My brother was late, but one look out of the window confirmed why. It was snowing hard enough to block the visibility to the stores across the street.
She followed my gaze. “It’s really coming down.”
“Only in the last couple of minutes. You should head over to Owen’s place before the snow keeps you trapped here. Which I wouldn’t wish on anyone because the central heating upstairs is down.”
“I was thinking you’d turned it off to torture me,” Pax complained as he rubbed his hands together. “Or to keep me doing my work instead of falling asleep.”
“Did it work?” I asked, raising a curious eyebrow.
“Nah. Now I’m down here getting warm on the outside and freezing my innards by eating your ice cream.”
I pushed my plate in his direction. “Eat the rest of it, and then head on home.”
“What about you?” Pax asked. “You shouldn’t stay either.”
I looked at the spreadsheets in front of me. “I’ll finish up the finances for the month, and I’ll be done.”
“But,” Pax began, confused, “there are still a few days of January left. Wouldn’t it be better to do it all when the month is over?”
I shook my head. “We don’t have any projects to work on until February, which you would know if you had read the report I sent you this morning.”
My brother let out an exaggerated sigh as he slid his arms into his jacket and nudged Carla out of the booth. “I’ve got a busy schedule. With winter upon us, the days are shorter, and things are slowing down at work, but picking up in my social circle.”