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r waving Jo Ellen farewell, Emma Leigh grasped her husband’s elbow and propelled him toward the exit.
Coop chuckled, transferring his smile to Jo Ellen. “She hasn’t changed at all, has she? Still as brash and unabashedly candid as ever.”
The amused expression on his face grew infectious and Jo Ellen found herself smiling back at him, momentarily forgetting how her stomach kept knotting with tension. “Branson and Brand have tempered her quite a bit, but no, I don’t think she’ll ever learn to quell that open, honest tongue of hers.”
He shook his head and smiled as if reminiscing about his good times with her twin sister. A wave of jealousy swept through her. He’d always been close to Em but never to her.
Emma Leigh must’ve gotten it all wrong; no way could Cooper have wanted her when he’d been friends with the vivacious, outgoing twin. Besides, he had never done anything to lead Jo Ellen to believe he’d cared about her more than he had anyone else. Even offering her marriage when they were eighteen was simply a typical self-sacrificial Cooper move to her.
Besides, what did it matter now? That had been ten years ago. Whatever he might’ve felt then had no doubt faded over time, which only depressed her.
As if sensing her somber mood, Cooper’s smile faltered. He cast her an uneasy grin and rubbed at the back of his neck, reminding her once again how they’d been left alone together. With his cowboy hat off, his blond hair had matted to his head, giving him a serious case of hat hair. Yet he still looked too hunky to handle, and her tummy knotted with hot lumps of tension.
“You’re invited to come out to the farm, too, of course,” he said, as if he felt it’d be rude to exclude her from his invitation.
Immediately uncomfortable with the idea of going anywhere near his home place, she opened her mouth, trying to think up a polite way to decline. But the blasted man had to go and add, “Mama always liked you and Em. I’m sure she would relish as much company as she could get these days.”
Unable to refuse him now, Jo Ellen dropped her shoulders and graciously accepted, “Oh, well…I’d love to see Loren.” Her eyes twinkled as she added, “Think she’s got any of those famous chocolate chip cookies of hers sitting around?”
His features pinched tight as if her question physically injured him. Then he bowed his head. “She always does.”
“I’d like to visit Thad in the nursing home sometime too…if that’s possible.”
Again, Cooper’s face filled with what she realized was grief. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. But a moment later, he nodded and pushed out the rusty words, “I’m sure we could manage that, though I can’t promise he’ll recognize you. He only knows who I am on good days.”
Her chest packed tight with compassion and sympathy. “It must be tough.”
He blew out a breath. “We’re managing.” He forced a brave face though she could clearly see he just wanted to convince her things weren’t as bad as they actually were.
Jo Ellen dropped the subject. After glancing at the clock, she eased back into a chair and wondered how much longer it would take before someone updated them with news…any news. When a baby’s muffled wail rent the air, she lifted her face, holding very still, waiting…
But no one came to the waiting room with news. With a heavy sigh, Cooper dropped into a chair two spaces down from her. “Must not have been our baby.”
She stared at him a moment, the words “our baby” falling from his tongue made her shiver again. Suddenly, the cold air drowning her, her reaction to the man next to her, and her worry over Lexi’s baby was more than she could take.
If they had to sit around here much longer she’d— “Really, how long does it take to have a baby?” Lurching to her feet, she began to pace the room.
Cooper chuckled. “I imagine it takes a while.” When she scowled at him, he sobered immediately. “Sorry.”
Growling in her throat, she spun away and walked to one wall only to retreat to the next. “Shouldn’t someone have at least come out by now to give us an update?”
This time, he kept silent and only shrugged when she speared him with a questioning glance.
Oh, this was awful. “Something must be wrong,” she said under her breath, working her fingers into frantic knots. Without Emma Leigh here, keeping her composer no longer mattered. The panic attack she’d been shoving down all evening rose in her throat like heartburn, unexpected and acidic.
“Something…something awful’s happened,” she gasped out, sure of it. “What if the baby’s—”
“Hey.” Cooper’s low, concerned voice and his warm hand on her arm made her jump. “Everything’s going to be fine.”
She yanked back, dislodging his touch. “You can’t know that.”
Shock filled his face as he straightened his spine. “No,” he finally said, his voice calm and steady. “I guess I can’t know for certain. But neither can you know it’s not going to be fine. Either way, neither of us has any control over the outcome. So wouldn’t you rather believe in good results until we find out the truth?”
Her chin trembled. She felt irrepressible fear and sorrow rattle up into her jaw line, the sensation to cry stinging her eyes.
“Jesus, darling.” His voice went hoarse. He reached for her again. This time, she didn’t shove him away and from the way he forcibly gathered her into his arms and held her close, she had a feeling he wouldn’t have let her break loose anyway. “Don’t cry.”
She clenched her teeth, bowed her head, and squeezed her eyes closed. “I’m not.”
