Page 98 of A Scoring Chance
How the hell do you buy gifts for guys who can literally have anything they want whenever they want it? We even resorted to asking Ms. Melanie for ideas about what we should get them, but she wasn’t exactly a lot of help. After a while and a lot ofgoogling, we had practically given up, but then it was Alise to the rescue with the perfect present idea for Beau. We came up with gifts that we thought suited both of them; however, Cooper will get a very special gift just from me later tonight.
“How did you even know I smoked cigars?” Beau reaches into the bag and pulls out a humidor to store his cigars.
After Alise gave us the perfect suggestion, we did a lot of research and discovered that Spanish Cedar is the best material to have because it removes moisture and maintains humidity very well. We wanted to get something a little more personalized, so we had the glass top engraved with his jersey number, 30, and the Timberwolves logo above it.
“Alise—” Darius begins, but I immediately cut him off.
She gave us very specific instructions not to let him know where we got the idea for the gift and what to tell him if he asked. Stupid, I know, but if my bestie asks for it and it isn’t illegal, it shall be done. Honestly, I’ll probably still do it whether it’s illegal or not, but don’t tell her that.
“Google. You said something in an article last year about enjoying a good Cuban cigar, so we ran with it. Hopefully, you really smoke cigars or this gift is pointless.” Darius narrows his eyes at me before shaking his head. He probably thinks this lie is as stupid as I do, but this is what we're going with.
Beau’s eyes flick up toward Alise before bouncing back to Darius. “Thanks so much, you guys. I’ve been in the market for one of these for a while now. And it’s even personalized. Thank you so much.”
Beau steps away from Darius, holding his arms out toward me for a hug. I quickly step into his embrace, wrapping my arms around his waist. He leans forward and whispers in my ear, “It was her idea, wasn’t it?”
I don’t respond, just nod my head slightly and tighten my arms around his waist. “You two really need to have aconversation with each other. I have a feeling you both have things you need to get off your chest.”
“It’s not that simple, Ramona. I’m sure you're aware of that.” He pulls away slightly, planting a kiss on the top of my head before turning back to Darius. “Coop is going to be so jealous.”
“Nah, we got him one, too.” Darius smiles, running his hands through his hair. “I wanted to get one for your other brothers, but Auntie Mel said Kyle isn’t allowed to have one, and we didn’t know if Cole smoked cigars or not.”
“It's the thought that counts.” Beau slides the humidor back into the bag before fitting it into his bag. “Cole doesn’t smoke, just the occasional drink, but that’s it. He’s a lot like Cooper in that respect. All about your body being a finely tuned machine you need to take care of in order to always play your best.”
“That sure sounds like something Cooper would say.” I giggle, my eyes flicking toward the players’ exit, hoping that he’d appear.
“He’s more than likely checking on the guy I decked and trying to smooth things over for me with Coach.”
I open my mouth to ask why he wasn’t doing it, but I snap it shut quickly. I have a feeling that even if Beau tried to speak to them himself, Cooper would’ve followed right behind him. Some people would believe that’s him wanting to control his brother’s life, but to me, it seems like a need to fix everything for the people he cares about. However, by the look on Beau’s face, I don’t think he feels the same way.
“Your brother loves you very much, Beau. He just wants to make things easier for you.”
“I love my brother, too, but sometimes he needs to remember that I’m his brother, not just his teammate he needs to manage.” Beau smiles down at me before giving my shoulder a light squeeze. “I’ll see you guys at dinner.”
Beau strides past me and out the door, not even bothering to say one word to Alise. Now that gets her attention. She jumps to her feet and shouts after him, “Who the fuck pissed in your Wheaties?” She immediately spins around to me, looking for an answer, but I don’t have any for her.
“You kept all your attention focused on your phone the entire time he was standing here. How else did you expect him to react?”
“He could have at least said hello. Fuck off. Something.” She throws her hands up in the air before flopping back into the chair.
“And so could you,” I counter, hoping to drive my point home.
Anyone who spends over three seconds with these two can tell they have feelings for each other. I understand their reservations, but this is ridiculous. Not to mention they’re practically perfect for each other.
“When are you two going to act your age?” Darius sighs, strolling toward Alise and sitting in the empty seat. “Even I can tell you both have the hots for each other. This crap of ignoring each other does nothing but piss the other person off. Trust me, I’m speaking from experience.”
“Out of the mouths of babes.” I spin around at the sound of Cooper’s voice coming up behind me.
I can’t even say hello before he lifts me into the air and crashes our lips together. He nibbles at my bottom lip, and I open my mouth for him. The all-consuming need to get closer to him, wanting to crawl beneath his skin, shoots through me. How the hell is it like this every time we’re near each other? I expected it to lessen or something the more time we spent together, but if anything, it’s become even more intense the longer we are away from each other. It’s only been a few days. I can’t even imaginehow painful it’s going to be when I’m away from him for weeks at a time once the playoffs start.
Cooper pulls away from me, gasping for air as he rests his forehead against mine. His eyes are clenched shut as if he’s in pain, but that’s not right. Kissing me should feel right, like your soul has been reunited with its other half. That’s how I feel every time we kiss. Is it different for him?
“Everything okay?” I cup his cheek in my palm, and he nuzzles into it, planting a kiss on the inside of my wrist.
“It is now.” Cooper’s hands slide down my back, cupping my ass in his hands as he lifts me into the air. My legs instinctively wrap around his waist as he heads toward the exit. “Let’s get the hell out of here. I need to stop at my place and grab something before we head to dinner.”
Darius and Alise fall into step beside us as if Cooper carrying me out of the arena is an everyday occurrence. It isn’t, per se, but the man loves carrying me around whenever he can. “Uncle Beau said he’d meet us there. He’s meeting Cole for a drink before he leaves.”
If my body wasn’t wrapped around Cooper like a glove, I would’ve missed the slight flinch of his muscles at the mention of his younger brother, Cole.
