Chapter Four
Cooper had been standing at the back of his car in his shop for the past hour, working on the dent with a glue pull. The process was moving along slowly, but it was working. The dent was coming out of the panel. He guessed maybe another couple of hours and it would look as good as new. Especially after he added a little touch up paint, too.
“Hey, brother,” Cade said, as he burst through the door to the garage. “It’s a gorgeous day, right? Don’t get me wrong, I love all the snow that Snowy Ridge gets, but summer is more my season.”
Cooper thought over his day so far. He wouldn’t exactly use the word “gorgeous” to describe it. His brother seemed to be in a great mood though, so he wouldn’t say anything to dampen it. Cade had taken a long lunch to drive two towns over and go ring shopping. Cooper knew Cade and Jessie were in love, but he still couldn’t believe his brother was ready to pop the question. He had a front row ticket to the horror show that was Cooper’s marriage. How could anyone want to make a commitment like that after seeing how ugly people could become after saying, “I do?” But Cade was like a whole different person since meeting Jessie. He used to be the gloom and doom one of the brothers and Cash and he had to practically drag him to Snowy Ridge to start their business in the first place. It was Cooper’s vision, but the brothers had all signed on to it. Cooper had been so certain that the snowmobile shop was just what the three of them needed. It was something solid in their lives that they could depend on. And Cooper felt completely responsible in making sure it didn’t fail.
“Did you find something you like?” Cooper asked.
“I did. It’s absolutely perfect. Two carat princess cut diamond set in a rose gold band; it practically screamed Jessie’s name. I know she’ll love it.”
“Wow, you’ve got the ring lingo down and everything.” Cooper had to really think back to remember when he had gone ring shopping himself so many years ago. It was hard to believe now that he ever cared about details like the size and shape of a diamond.
“We figured out a payment plan, too, so things are under way. It’s happening.” His brother grinned widely at him.
It was hard for Cooper not to smile back when seeing his brother so happy. It reminded him of when Cade made varsity quarterback his sophomore year of high school. Or, when he’d received a 2100 on his SAT. Cooper was proud of his brothers and it was hard not to join in on their excitement when great things were going on in their lives. He might not be pro-marriage but if it was something Cade wanted, he’d be there to support him.
“It really sounds like it’s coming together,” Cooper said. “Have you thought about how you’ll pop the question yet?”
A mischievous look crossed Cade’s face. “I have. It’s not all set yet. There are a lot of moving parts I have to attend to. But, if I pull it off the way I want to pull it off? It will be the best proposal Snowy Ridge, Wisconsin, has ever seen.”
“Whoa, you’re doing it in front of the town? You must have something good up your sleeve. What, are you renting a sky writer?”
“Just you wait. I’ll probably need your help at some point. I’ll let you know.”
“Any time, bro,” Cooper said.
“I know, I know, I’m late,” Cash said as he breezed into the room. “But, if you saw the beautiful woman I just met at MoonBeans, you’d instantly forgive me. And I got a number.” Cash reached into his pocket and pulled out a recycled napkin with a number sprawled across it in lipstick. He held it up like a trophy.
Cooper glanced at his watch. He’d almost forgotten he’d called a meeting. Cooper stood and stretched out his back. “No worries, Cash. Cade just got here himself.”
“Ring shopping,” Cade said, explaining.
Cash shook his head. “Still can’t believe you’re going to propose. It’s so limiting. How will you date other woman with a wife around?”
Cade arched one eyebrow at his brother and Cooper tried not to laugh. Cash loved to push Cade’s buttons.
“Whoa, man, what happened to your car?” Cash asked. He moved to the back of Cooper’s car, his eyes fixed on the dent.
“I didn’t even notice. When did you that, Coop?” Cade asked.
Cooper shook his head and waved a hand. “It’s no big deal, really. Just a little bump at the market earlier.”
“You hit someone?” Cash asked, shocked. “You’re like, Mr. Perfect Driving Record. You know how many car lanes to put between you and other cars and stop at train tracks and shit.”
Cooper tried not to grin at Cash’s idea of a perfect driver. He’d taught both of his brothers to drive and had been tough on them. But he wanted to make sure they’d really gotten it before they were out on their own driving.
“It wasn’t my fault,” Cooper explained. “I looked before pulling out of the parking lot. It was the other driver.”
“So, make them pay for it then,” Cade said. “Did you get their insurance information?”
“Yeah, of course. But it’s really not a big deal,” Cooper insisted. “Besides, I felt sort of bad for her.”
“It was a chick? Was she hot?” Cash asked.
Cooper looked at his brothers and thought about what he should tell him. “It was a little old lady in a rush to get to church or something. She could barely see over the wheel. A real weak, frail little thing. Maybe eighty pounds dripping wet. She had to use one of those rolling walkers to get out of her car and go look at the damage. I’m not going to make her use her social security to fix my car. Besides, I can do it. It’s fine, really,” he added.
“Wow, that’s real cool of you, Coop,” Cade said with a nod.
Cooper shrugged, not wanting to talk about it anymore. “All right, should we get to our meeting?”
“Only if we can get a drink at the pub after,” Cash said.
“Fine, fine,” Cooper said. “Let’s go.”