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“A ride that dreams are made of.” It was a modification of a quote from Shakespeare. Sappy, but it fit the moment.
Dad would be so proud.
Charles Cooper Pearson the Second may have been an oil man, but Dad loved him some Shakespeare. Although Coop’s father would never condone using Mr. Shakespeare’s words as a pick-up. And maybe, for the most part, he’d be right. However, using Shakespeare’s words had become second nature to Coop. Not that Coop relied on the old bard’s quotes to win women. No. He used his patented smile for that, bringing it into play after a woman laughed off his Shakespearean-based lines.
Although…
The target of his intentions didn’t burst out laughing at his words. Or dress him down for being a jerk with a too-cheesy line. Instead, she narrowed her eyes and said sharply,“What did you say?”
“A ride that dreams are made of.” He spoke slowly, tipping his hat back and leaning forward, grinning, to make sure she got the message:I’m attracted to you, honey.
And she to him. She’d said he looked kissable when he’d first come upon her at the beach.
Whether they did something about that attraction was another matter.
“All that glitters is not gold.” She shook her head, tossing a more accurate Shakespearean quote back at him, which was intellectual hotness.
No one ever caught on to his use of Shakespeare, much less gorgeous women who smelled of bluebonnet-strewn fields and didn’t fall off on impromptu bareback rides.
She waved a hand as if brushing him aside. “I’m going to give you a pass for what just happened, Shakespeare. It was all my fault, after all. I trusted you with my hand.”
“So gracious.” He hadn’t expected that of her. And yet, she was also somehow cynical. Neither of which took the sting out of her rejection.Women never rejected Coop!
“You should be careful who you offer rides to out here,” she told him in a voice he imagined kindergarten teachers used on misbehaving five year-olds, soft yet unyielding. “Some women are more particular than the likes of me when it comes to the treatment of wardrobe, hair, and manicures.”
She was anything butsome women.She was special. He knew that instinctively. “Noted, Miss…”
His Hamptons beauty shook her head a little, smiling. “You have a nice day, Shakespeare. Give Tally some oats.” She turned, making her way down the bank to the beach in her impractical sandals.
And for the first time since his father had kicked him to the curb, Coop wanted to follow more than a whim.
He wanted to follow her.
Chapter Two
That cowboy...
Back at her parents’ house, Violet slipped into the kitchen, registering the hum of voices that indicated her twin sister Lily’s engagement party had wound down but wasn’t quite finished. She hurried up the rear staircase.
She didn’t want to answer questions about where she’d been. What would she say if asked? Tenured Harvard professors didn’t participate in impromptu escapades. And yet, she was hard-pressed to get the bold, Shakespearean cowboy out of her mind.
Talk about fantasies fulfilled.
A scholarly cowboy in the Hamptons?
Le Sigh.
No. No-no-no. There will be no sighing. And no distracting thoughts about what might have been if she’d let him kiss her either.
Self-lecture complete, Violet opened the door to her bedroom, startling Maggie from what looked like a nap on her yellow rose coverlet. “What are you doing here?”
“Waiting for you.” Maggie sat up and yawned. She’d changed into black leggings and a tank top. “I thought you’d be gone longer. Did the cowboy bring you back? I hope you got his number. He was hot.”
“No number. And I walked back.” Violet shed her wrinkled clothes, changing into shorts and a maroon Harvard T-shirt. “He’s trouble. I can tell.”
“He’s an adventure,” Maggie countered. “Something you haven’t had in a long time. Don’t you miss being impulsive and reckless? I used to be so envious of your life.”
“The last time I was impulsive and reckless, I was lectured by my dean about how Harvard staff represent Harvard at all times.” She’d been dating a NASCAR driver and their appearance at the Burning Man event had made headlines. That had been during the first few months of her employment and Violet had stopped acting like an heiress then and there. In fact, she’d started completely buying into the role of distinguished Harvard professor. “Someday, after I receive tenure, I’m going to settle down with a nice man. Until then, there will be no escapades.”
