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“Just leave them in the car.” She was already backing away. And there was nothing left to say.
33
Katie was glad it had stopped raining because her sanity required a good, hard jog. She needed some space. Some endorphins. Some thinking time. And boy did she have a lot of thinking to do.
Her feet pounded the wet pavement, and her lungs pulled rain-scented air into her lungs. The humidity had broken, leaving the temperature a full ten degrees cooler. She moved through the neighborhood unseeing, her thoughts spinning in a whirlwind.
She’d crossed an unforgivable line, and there was no going back. She wouldn’t be able to be around Cooper and not want his kiss. There was no hope whatsoever of keeping things between them strictly platonic.
She had to break up with Gavin. There was no way around it now—she’d have to hurt that lovely man. Her stomach twisted hard at the thought.
She’d also have to leave behind the family she’d grown to love. Avery might very well hate her for a while—even if she didn’t find out about the kiss.
She swallowed hard. What had she done? One brush of the man’s lips, and she melted like a snow cone in August. But, oh, what a kiss. It made her kisses with Gavin seem downright lame.
The thought plagued her. She should’ve known it wouldn’t work with Gavin. The chemistry had never been there. There was no forcing such things. She should’ve broken up with him before he’d had a chance to develop more serious feelings. Now she was going to hurt him, and that’s the last thing she wanted. She of all people knew the cruel pain of rejection. And now she had to inflict it on someone she cared about.
Furthermore, she wouldn’t be seeing Cooper anymore. He would never date his brother’s ex-girlfriend. That thought settled like a leaden weight in her stomach. Tears stung her eyes, making the road before her blur. She could hardly stand the thought. How could she live in this little town, run into him, and pretend she didn’t—
What? Love him?
She gave a slow blink as reality settled in, clear and palpable. Yes, she loved him. Somehow, while trying to force things with Gavin and after two months of trying to avoid Cooper, she’d fallen in love with the man. All her life she’d been searching for a place to belong, a person to belong to, and she’d finally found him.
But she couldn’t have him.
God, how could You let this happen?
She winced at the accusation.That’s it, Katie. Blame God.
There was no one to blame but herself. She was the one dating Cooper’s brother. She was the one who should’ve handled this much differently. She’d let this go on too long. But she’d been so enamored with the Robinsons, she hadn’t been willing to risk losing them.
How sad was that? How selfish?
Now, in one fell swoop, she’d lost Lisa, Jeff, Gavin, Cooper,and possibly, Avery—her boss and, most importantly, her friend. Everything in Katie’s life seemed to overlap now. How had this gotten so complicated?
***
So much for clearing his head. Cooper’s long ride through the mountains hadn’t helped. His thoughts were still as tangled as last year’s Christmas lights.
He pulled into his apartment’s parking lot and shut off the motorcycle. Twilight closed in around him as he removed his helmet and made his way into the building. How was Kate doing? What was she thinking right now? Would she break up with Gavin?
He hated the way his heart lifted at the thought—and to what end? Nothing could happen between them now. He hated himself for being disloyal to his brother, and he’d never repeat the mistake.
His thoughts snagged on the last word—how could something that felt so right be a mistake?
Once inside his apartment he kicked off his boots and checked his phone, some small part of him hoping to hear from Kate. He’d missed two calls, a voice mail, and a text—all from Avery.
Surely Kate hadn’t told his sister what had happened between them. That wouldn’t end well. But he could hardly blame her for needing to talk it out with her best friend.
Avery’s text simply demanded that he call her back. The voice mail reiterated the message in a blunt, measured tone.
Oh boy. Kate had definitely told her about the kiss.
Cooper took a minute to gather himself before he dialed Avery’s number. She answered on the first ring.
“Oh, you’ve caused a real mess this time, Cooper Holland Robinson. How could you? She’s Gavin’s girlfriend, for crying outloud. You said there was nothing going on, but obviously that’s not the case.”
“I didn’t lie to you. There wasn’t anything going on—not physically at least. I don’t know what Kate told you but—”
