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As I get to the office, I can hear shouting and immediately recognize one of the voices as True’s. She’s pissed, there’s no doubt about that. I open the door and catch sight of an unknown woman and True having heated words, and Principal Oaks is looking scared for his own life as he tries to separate them. Coop is watching from his seat in shock, while another boy looks pleased beyond words at the event unfolding.
He catches my glare and immediately wipes the look off his face.Little turd.
I hear True threatening the woman and talking about how much she loves Cooper, and I swear my heart skips a beat. I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t been feeling things for True that I know I shouldn’t. But seeing her defend my son so vehemently and with so much passion, something that I never once saw Tiffany do, just rips my chest open and fills my heart with so much warmth.
I think it's at this moment that I realize I can no longer deny those feelings I have desperately been trying to.
When I’m pretty sure True is about to step up and deck the woman, I finally intervene. Grabbing her swiftly, I wrap my arms around her and pull her back into me. As hot as it would be seeing her deck that awful woman, I have a feeling Coop shouldn’t see that.
“Maybe we shouldn’t have a fight with another kid's mom in the office and just take Coop home,” I whisper into her ear in the most soothing tone I can. Her body relaxes against mine and the floral perfume she wears invades my nostrils. If this wasn’t such an inappropriate time, I’d be unbelievably turned on by having her close to me like this.
“Thank you, Principal Oaks. We’ll be leaving,” I say, steering True away and watching with a bit of amusement as Cooper snags her hand and pulls her the rest of the way out.
It’s not until we’re outside that I stop Coop and kneel down to take a look at him. My blood boils when I see his black eye and split lip. He doesn’t release True’s hand, but he looks at me warily, like he’s waiting for me to yell at him.
“What happened?” I ask, making sure he hears in my voice that I’m not angry with him at all, just worried.
Coop wipes at his nose and sniffles a little. He takes a moment before the story comes pouring out of him.
“Bobbie was making fun of me for being so small and laughing that I don’t have a mom. When I told him I had True, he asked if I was a baby for having a nanny. I tried to walk away, but when I didn’t say anything back, he pushed me. I fell on my face onto the sidewalk and started to cry cause it hurt. So he started laughing more and it made me mad. True is awesome, and I think it’s kind of cool to have a nanny. I stood and pushed him back. He didn’t like that. He tackled me and started punching my face until the teachers came and got him off me.”
Cooper starts to cry again, so I pull him to me and hug him tightly to my chest.
“Are you mad at me?” he asks, breaking my heart that he would think that.
“No, son, I’m not mad at all. You were defending yourself, and that’s perfectly okay.” I look up at True and see she’s got her free hand over her heart like his pain is hers.
“I’ve got an idea,” I say cheerfully, getting both of their attention. Coop pulls away and rubs at his eyes. “Why don’t we go home, get you cleaned up, then order some pizza and watch some movies? You can pick what movies we watch,” I tell Coop, feeling relieved when he gives me a small smile.
“That sounds good,” he replies.
“I think it’s a perfect idea,” True adds, sending me a wink when she sees the tension leave Coop.
“Want to go wait by the car while I talk to True for a minute?” I ask him, pointing to my car that’s haphazardly parked on the curb in front of the school.
“I’ll see you back home.” She leans down and kisses the top of Coop’s head before he walks away.
“I’m so sorry about causing a scene,” she immediately tells me, looking a bit embarrassed. “When that woman tried to blame Coop for all this, I just saw red.”
I chuckle and dismiss her apology. “It’s fine. Honestly, if we hadn’t been at the school and in front of Coop, I might have let you.”
“Really? You? Mr. Always Calm and Collected?” She laughs in disbelief.
“I mean, it’s not like her face would’ve moved if you had,” I joke, still a little shocked at how frozen her face was.
True throws her head back and laughs. It’s probably the sexiest laugh I have ever heard.
“I know it’s so wrong to poke at people’s looks, but man she was mean and I honestly don’t feel bad that I agree with you. Kinda explains why her son is such a little shit.”
My mind flashes back to how angry True got for my son. “I really appreciate you standing up for Coop. Tiff would’ve just scolded him and walked out, promising a grounding without even hearing his side.”
True’s expression grows angry. “I only needed to look at Coop to know I didn’t need an explanation. He’s far too gentle and kind to ever fight anyone over nonsense. To think she would’ve just punished him for defending himself kills me.”
Fuck, this woman is amazing. “Yeah. He’s lucky he had you there to fight in his corner.” I step closer, leaving barely a foot between us. “Again, thank you, True. For showing up. For believing in him. For just being in his life.”
Her breathing slows, and her eyes flick back and forth between mine, not looking away. Is she feeling what I am? Can she hear my heart racing in my chest?
“I’d do anything for Coop. Always,” she says, barely above a whisper. All I can think about is kissing her right here and now, but she suddenly clears her throat and steps back, reminding me where we are, and that Coop is only a couple of yards away waiting.
