Chapter Thirteen — Allie

As promised, Cooper arrived late Friday night, but he was worn out from the weeks of cramming work in to catch up, and after a short, but hot, session in the shower, we both passed out. When we woke up on Saturday morning, we had a nice, hearty breakfast with my parents, and then Cooper took me out for the big adventure he’d been teasing me about for the past week. We’d been driving for a little while and I couldn’t help but laugh at the role reversal as Cooper pointed out shops and landmarks along the way, as though I’d never seen them before. It was obvious he’d done his homework and wanted to impress me with his newfound knowledge of my home turf.

“What’s so funny?” Cooper asked while I stifled a giggle.

I waved a hand at him. “Nothing, it’s nothing. I just think it’s funny that this is my hometown and you’re being the tour guide.”

“Aha. Well, I’m the man, after all, it’s my job to plan dates.”

I smiled, relishing his sentiment. It was sweet that after being together for several months, he was still trying. I didn’t have a lot of experience to draw from, but I was pretty sure that in the past, after the first two or three dates, it all kinda turned into eating at chain restaurants once a week and Netflix binge sessions in lieu of actual dates. I thought back to my conversation with Hannah a few days before and couldn’t help but wonder if it was a side effect of dating a billionaire, or if things were just different because Cooper was Cooper. Somehow I knew that even if he worked at a fast food joint, he’d find a way to take me out and spoil me—albeit on a much, much smaller scale.

I pulled out of my thoughts long enough to see that I no longer recognized the surroundings out the window. “Where are we?” I asked as Cooper turned down a long gravel driveway. I craned around in my seat to get as full of view as possible from the passenger seat. “Is this like a dude ranch?”

Cooper laughed. “I’m pretty sure it’s a regular ranch, then again, maybe I’m not qualified to truly know what makes a ranch a dude ranch.”

“You know what I mean. They have horses and shit?”

“Well, they have horses, so I’m sure there’s a lot of shit too!” Cooper’s laughter roared even louder and I couldn’t help but roll my eyes and join in.

“You’re ridiculous. I think all the country air’s gone to your head.”

He shrugged, his eyes still sparkling with amusement. “Come on, Kansas Girl, let’s go.”

I pushed out of the car and as I was rounding the hood, asked, “Is this new nickname a negotiable thing? I’m not sure I’m in love with ‘Kansas Girl’.”

Cooper tossed me a smile and took my hand. “I know I am.”

He led me down the rest of the drive, like he’d walked it a hundred times before, and we ended up in front of a small log cabin. Cooper was about to take a step onto the small porch, when a man wearing jeans, a flannel shirt, and a cowboy hat poked his head from the side of the house and gestured over to us. “Hey y’all, come on over. I’m just getting your mounts ready for ya.”

“Mounts?” I asked Cooper. “We’re going to ride horses?”

He nodded. “Yes, now, no more questions. This was supposed to be a surprise, remember?”

“Right.” I laughed and followed him around the corner where the man was standing with two gorgeous horses.

“Afternoon, Cooper and…Allie, I assume?” We both nodded in confirmation and he stuck out a hand, “I’m Logan, nice to meet y’all. Have either one of y’all ever rode before?”

We both shook our heads. Logan smiled, “No problem. Let me show y’all the basics and then you guys can take off.”

The idea of taking off when neither of us had ridden before made me a little nervous, but Cooper gave a confident smile and I relaxed. By the time Logan had us up on the horses, I was at a five on a scale of one to ten, but Cooper looked like he’d been riding his entire life. His posture was perfect, and he just looked…sexy as hell.

After a crash course on horseback riding, Logan sent us on our way, and Cooper took the lead, letting his horse walk a few feet in front of mine until we were out in a field and we could walk the animals side by side. As we rode, we caught up on the goings on at Brighton Enterprises, my dad’s progress, and Cooper entertained me with stories of Sam’s antics since he’d moved into Cooper’s penthouse. It sounded like the two were forming quite the bromance. After a couple of hours, we stopped to let the horses drink at a small creek. We stood on the bank, watching them, and Cooper pulled me into his arms. I relaxed back and soaked it all in, the beauty of the surroundings, the peace of being with Cooper, and the steady beating of his heart as he held me against his chest. “You ready for lunch?”

I nodded and a slow smile crept over his face. He took my hand and led me down the bank a little ways to find a picnic blanket was laid out with an old fashioned basket and a bottle of wine sitting in a glass punch bowl that was filled with ice. “How did you do this?” I asked, a hand flying to my mouth as I gasped at the beautiful spread.

He didn’t answer the question, he just smiled and led me by the hand to sit down on the blanket. “I told you, it’s my job to plan the dates.”

“Well, this is gorgeous. Thank you.”

He nodded and served up the dishes that were laid out in the basket. Sandwiches, vegan potato salad, fruit, and an impressive array of veggies. “Rabbit food, just the way you like it,” he teased.

I smacked his forearm playfully before digging in.

“So, what do you think?” He asked, spreading his hands around us, pointing out the woodland scenery.

I swallowed a bite of potato salad. “It’s amazing, Cooper. This is the perfect date.” He smiled at me, but I felt like there was something he was holding back. “Thank you for planning it,” I added.

“I’ve always been a city guy. It’s been a long time since I’ve been out like this. It’s pretty amazing,” Cooper said, staring at the surroundings.

“I know, it’s like there’s nothing around for miles.”

“There isn’t, at least, not on this twenty acres.”

I shot him a questioning look, pausing with my sandwich halfway to my mouth. “That’s specific…”

He cleared his throat. “This plot of land is for sale, Allie. That’s why I brought you out here, actually.”

“Wait, what? You’re buying a plot of land?” My mind was spinning, trying to put together the pieces of information.

“Well,” he glanced down at his hands for a beat. “I could. If that’s what you want. I’ve given it a lot of thought over the past couple of weeks that we’ve been apart. Whenever we talk, you seem so refreshed and happy, and I feel like you being here—in the country—agrees with you. So, if that’s what it takes, I’d be willing to relocate and build a home here, or another plot like this one, whatever you think is best.”

My mouth dropped open and I couldn’t believe the words coming from his mouth. Just the sight of him wearing jeans and riding a horse had been enough of a shock to my system. It was such a far cry from the way he’d been when we’d first met, back when I assumed he was basically glued into his power suit, and didn’t own a pair of shoes that cost less than most used sedans. “Cooper, are you serious? What about Brighton? You can’t give that up,” I rambled, my thoughts coming faster than my words.

He held up a hand. “No, no. I wouldn’t give up the company. I would work remotely as much as possible and fly back to LA when I needed to be there. I don’t have all the details worked out, but I have enough to know that it’d be possible.”

I stared off into the distance beyond his shoulder, suddenly imagining a farmhouse sprouting from the ground, a small fence surrounding it, maybe a dog and a couple of chickens running around a coop. When I’d left Kansas it wasn’t because I hated life in the country, there was a pace to it that appealed to me, even still, and being so close to home and being able to see my parents and Ben on a daily basis had been more fulfilling than I could have ever imagined. But that didn’t necessarily mean I could do it full time, forever. Did it?

“So? What do you think?” Cooper asked, a tinge of nervousness in his voice.

I grabbed his hands and pressed a kiss to his lips. “I think you’re amazing and I love you.”

He smiled and kissed me. “I love you too, Allison.”

My heart squeezed in my chest, so full it was like it could burst open. “I’ll think about it, okay? I need some time to process everything. It would be great to live so close to my family, and I do like the pace and beauty of life out here, but it’d be a big change. In some ways, I feel like I’m just settling into my new role at Plush and I don’t want to give that up.”

“Who said you had to give that up?” Cooper asked.

“Well, I just—”

Cooped tucked a finger under my chin. “Allison, I will give you the stars—not that you can’t chase them down on your own—if that’s what you want. All I’m asking is to be wherever you are when you’re searching for what you really want. I don’t want a Stepford wife, or whatever else it is you think I’m looking for. I have everything I want, and need, and desire…with you.” He pressed his lips to mine, slowly exploring them in a soft kiss that conveyed the things he was thinking and feeling. Things that went beyond words.

I nudged aside the basket and straddled Cooper’s thighs, resting my hands on his shoulders and pulling him into another deep kiss. When we broke apart to catch our breath, I stripped my shirt off over my head and threw it into the grass beside us. “Whatcha doin’ there little lady?” Cooper asked, working on the soft drawl he was trying to perfect.

“Seducing you,” I said, leaning down and kissing a trail at the side of his neck, hitting every spot that made him groan.

“Right here?” He asked.

“You said there was no one for twenty acres. Who’s going to see us?” I asked, laughing at the stunned expression on his face. It wasn’t very often I could catch him off guard, and I took full advantage of doing every little thing that drove him wild right there in our own little piece of the middle of nowhere.