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“What?” I repeat. He’s creeping me out a little as the corners of his mouth tip upward. “Tell me,” I whine.
“You’re doing that thing with your face when you’re happy and you have this dreamy look in your eyes.” He pauses and rakes his eyes up and down. “It’s making me rather nauseous,” he says, followed by a fake gagging noise.
I roll my eyes, muttering, “Dick,” loud enough for him to hear me.
“Why yes, I have one in case you forgot. It works just fine, too.”
“Dude, seriously?”
He shrugs. “You’re the one who brought it up.” Closing the distance between us, he kisses the top of my head before heading to the fridge and grabbing the bottle of orange juice. “But seriously, Ry, it’s nice to see you smile again—it’s been forever.”
“What are you talking about? I smile all the time.”
“Nah, not like this. I think this smile has something to do with a certain six-foot-two blue-eyed brunet who is still upstairs—to be determined dead or alive.” He purses his lips together. “Wait, maybe that smile is that Cooper won’t be a problem anymore because you really did off him.” He narrows his eyes at me, searching for answers, and I can’t help but laugh.
“Maybe lay off the late-night true-crime documentaries there, babe,” I tease, slapping his chest twice before walking toward the front door. I need to get this run over with before Cooper walks downstairs and gives me shit for not staying in bed.
“I’ll be back in a bit,” I shout before closing the front door behind me. Just before the door latches, a thought hits me. I whip the door back open and pop my head in just enough to see Austin heading toward the stairs. “Wait, if you gave Cooper your house key, what did you use to get in here this morning?”
“I had to borrow the spare key we keep at my parents’.” I’m sure that was a fun conversation to have with his parents this morning, but then again, I’m sure the better conversation he had with his parents took place last night when he told them he needed to crash at their place.
I close the door again and jog down the few steps. I pull up my running playlist and secure my earbuds. Clasping my fingers together, I reach up and sway side to side, stretching out my already sore muscles—thank you, Cooper Graham, and the way you played my body last night.
As Taylor Swift’s song about shaking things off starts in my ears, it’s Austin’s words that overpower them.It’s nice to see you smile again. It’s been forever.His words hit me like a ton of bricks. I’m not sure how to explain it, but I do feel different this morning. I don’t just mean the ache between my legs as I stretch out my quads. Something shifted between Cooper and me—a veil, so to speak, lifted as we put everything out on the table. Confessing my darkest secrets to him lifted the weight that had been on my shoulders for years. My chest feels lighter and my heart fuller.
With one last deep breath, I set off on my run. Most days, I run to escape and clear my head, but this time, for once, I can’t wait to get back and find the man waiting for me.
Chapter 26
Cooper
AfterRileyclosedherbedroom door, I tried to fall back asleep, but to no avail. As I tossed and turned in her sheets, her scent enveloped me, and all it did was make my dick harder.
I’m not sure how much time passes before I say fuck this. Getting more sleep is just not happening. Now that my body has had her back in my arms, it can’t relax without her by my side, even after only one night together. I’m not sure how long she’s going to be gone for her run, but maybe coffee will help pass the time.
I wonder if maybe after she gets back and showers, I can convince her to take a nap with me. I must have lost my touch because I was sure I was going to convince her earlier to stay, but she was adamant about going. I didn’t want to disrupt her routine with me being here.
Scooting off the bed, I search for my clothes. I’m not sure if Austin ever made it home or is awake, so it’s probably best not to walk around the house naked. I don’t want to scare him.Thank fuck he wasn’t home last night when I ran to his room with my dick in hand.I find my jeans on the floor and slip them on. My shirt is a few feet away, sitting on top of the giant-ass panda bear I saw her carrying around yesterday at the festival. I chuckle as I retrieve it from his head, as if it had acted as a blindfold, covering his eyes.
“Sorry, buddy, but it was probably for the best,” I say to the stuffed animal.
This is really the first time I take in Riley’s room. Last night, I didn’t really get to explore. Various photographs hang on the light gray walls—some of her and her sisters, Sutton and Lyla, and others are of her and Austin. There are so many moments that I missed out on. Judging by the amount of deep purple and black providing accent colors in the room, I assume they are both still her favorite colors.
This room is very her yet also a version I’m not exactly familiar with, but I look forward to getting to know the newer parts of her.
Trekking down the stairs, I look around for any sign of life. I feel like it should be awkward that I’m in her house, possibly alone, but it doesn’t. There’s something about this that just feels right.
“Ah, ha, he is alive.” Austin has a big smile on his face as he brings a mug of coffee to his lips. His chuckling echoes into the cup. I enter the living room, where not all that long ago, he was ripping into me, wondering what my intentions were with her.
“Uh, yeah? I wasn’t aware there was a possibility that I wouldn’t be.”
He shakes his head. “It’s nothing. But I take it everything worked out.” His tone insinuates that he already knows the answer to that, so I just nod and smile.
“If you want some coffee, there’s some in the kitchen. Mugs are in the cabinet to the left of the machine.” After filling up a mug for myself, I return to the living room and take a seat on the couch opposite Austin.
After taking a long pull of the rich caffeine, I set the cup down on the coffee table in front of me.
“Hey, Austin?”
