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Across the room Cooper stood, one hand cupping the back of his neck, staring at the floor.
How had she not realized who he was? She’d somehow missed his name. And the brothers looked nothing alike really. Gavin’s hair was black, his eyes blue. But they were both tall and built similarly, and she’d known Gavin’s brother was in law enforcement.
And of course Avery had mentioned Cooper before. Katie and Avery had been friends at undergrad school. They’d lost touch for a while afterward, but when Avery had reached out to her about a position at her clinic, Katie jumped on it. The rest was history.
It was all making sense now. Cooper was the eligible, uniform-wearing brother who turned all the women’s heads. She felt stupid for not putting two and two together. Then again, she had been a little, you know, distracted. Hanging between life and death.
Avery returned with a glass of lemonade, and Katie thanked her in a haze. The concussion must be messing with her mind.
“What happened out there?” Avery asked. “How’d you end up on the edge of a cliff?”
Gavin squeezed her hand. “You said on the phone it was a deer?”
Katie covered the basics of her accident, from the deer to theslide to the abrupt halt at the edge of a cliff, while the family listened intently.
“I had no idea what to do. I couldn’t get my door open, and when I tried to move, the car dropped. I was so relieved when Cooper showed up.”
His head snapped up at his name. She tried to think of something to say. Something about how grateful she was. Or how much his presence had meant to her. She grasped for the words, but they hovered out of reach.
Avery glanced between Katie and Cooper. “Good thing you were there, Brother.”
“Yes, it was.” Katie tore her attention from Cooper and turned a smile on Gavin.
“Well...” Lisa popped up from the recliner. “You must be hungry after your ordeal. Let’s get some food in your belly.”
***
It all made sense now. Katelyn was Katie—Gavin’s Katie—the friend Avery had set Gavin up with. So the woman Cooper was more attracted to than any woman he’d ever met was the same woman who was bringing Gavin back to life.
Cooper’s insides deflated like an old party balloon.
They settled in the dining room. In between bites of roast beef, he glanced across the table at Katelyn—Katie. But she seemed more like a Kate to him. Jeff had said grace, taking a moment to give thanks for her safety. After prayer the family quizzed her about her life. She kept her answers more general than she had on the cliff.
Cooper took some comfort in the level of intimacy that implied. Then he mentally smacked himself.
Gavin’s girl.
Once the polite inquisition was over, the conversation shiftedto the usual banal chatter that accompanied family dinners. His mind still spinning, he struggled to keep up.
Kate didn’t live in Asheville as he’d assumed. She’d moved to Riverbend in May, hoping for a new start, following the death of her brother. She didn’t state the last part, but he pieced it together from what he already knew. She’d bought a house on Maple Lane, liked to bake, and grew her own herbs.
Stop thinking about her.
“You’ve had an eventful day off, Cooper,” his mom said.
Everyone turned his way, and Cooper’s face heated at his thoughts. “Yeah. It’s been a long day.”
“That’s my fault.” Kate offered him a sweet smile. “After I got banged up, I took a peek over that cliff. Definitely closer to Half Dome. Thank you for keeping that to yourself.”
“No problem.”
Avery frowned. “That must’ve been a harrowing experience.”
“I was on my way to a panic attack before Cooper arrived. He kept talking to keep my mind off of things.”
All eyes turned his way.
Gavin snorted. “Coopkept a conversation going? Is this some deputy superpower we don’t know about?”
