Cooper

“My goodness, aren’t you handsome?” Mauve said, looking me up and down.

“Thank you.” I smirked. She wouldn’t have thought so an hour ago. The shower and shave I’d made time for had been essential.

“This is about Corinne, yes?” The old woman staring at me was smiling so hard, I thought her dentures might fall out.

“I was hoping to get your . . .” What? Blessing? “Insight,” I finally settled on.

With her eyes still crinkling in the corners, she pointed to the chair next to her bed. “Sit. Let’s figure it out.”

I followed her instructions, already amused by her. Some part of my brain recognized that she’d been waiting for this moment and was glad it was finally here.

I took a deep breath. “Yes, this is about Corinne. I’m in love with her.”

There was something about talking to an elderly person that removed your need for a filter. I didn’t know if I felt freer to speak because I sensed deep down that she didn’t have much time left, or because I knew that none of the pleasantries were needed. Life was too short not to go after what you wanted. And I definitely wanted Corinne.

“That’s wonderful, Cooper. She’s told me how much you mean to her too. That’s why she ran.”

“I’m sorry?”

“Aaron. She uses him as a crutch. She’s terrified of love. She’s never been loved and cherished the way she deserved to be her entire life. It’s made her fearful.”

Several things struck me at once. First, I’d been a fucking idiot. How could I not have seen that Corinne was using Aaron? Maybe their marriage wasn’t legally binding, but that wasn’t enough to explain her actions. She was scared.

“What if you left her? What if you hurt her?” Mauve smoothed the thin cotton blanket over her legs. “Aaron would never do that.”

I nodded, understanding for the first time that asking Corinne to try a relationship with me was the most terrifying thing she could imagine. “So, what do I do?”

Mauve offered me a sad smile. “That depends. Can you handle there being another man in your relationship?”

I thought about it for half a second, and opened my mouth to respond.

Mauve held up a hand, stopping me. “He’ll need around-the-clock care, and there are doctors’ appointments and physical therapy, and . . .”

I shook my head to stop her. She wasn’t going to talk me out of this. “I understand that. And I am prepared—financially and emotionally.”

Mauve smiled again. “Then what are you doing sitting around talking to me for? Go get your girl.”

Quinn had said today was Corinne’s last day at the office. I checked my phone for the time. It was late in the afternoon. She might already be gone.

With a flash of nerves, I hopped up from my chair, kissed Mauve’s cheek, and all but ran out of the retirement home to the parking lot.

Speeding the entire way to the office, I tried to work out what I would say when I saw Corinne. But the words were no clearer to me by the time I pulled into the employee lot, and by the time I was cruising up the elevator, my mind began to whir with doubts. What if, despite Aaron being in her life, she just didn’t want me in it?

Pushing the last of my doubts away, I stepped into the office, finding the receptionist desk empty, and continued toward my office in the back.

Corinne was here, thank God.

She was alone, standing in the center of my office with her back to me, facing the windows and the view beyond. Her shoulders were tense, and I heard her sniff as if she’d been crying.

“Dove,” I said softly, and she turned.

When our eyes met across the office, it was like the air had been sucked from my lungs. Had she always been this beautifully broken?

“Cooper.”

I swallowed and wandered closer.

“What are you doing here?” she asked.

I took her hand and led her to the sofa in my office. We sat down side by side, but with a healthy distance between us. “There are a few things I need to say to you.”

She nodded, her eyes filled with a mix of curiosity and regret.

Looking at her with awe, I had to clasp my hands together in my lap to keep from reaching out and touching her. “These last few days without you have been hell. I want you in my life. I need you, Corinne.” She opened her mouth to respond, but I shook my head. “The dedication and commitment you’ve shown to your childhood friend is admirable. It’s more than that—it’s incredible. It proves what an amazing woman you are. I know you’ll never let him go.”

She nodded.

“And you don’t have to.”

Her brows drew together. “I don’t understand.”

I reached over and took her hand. Having her this near and not touching her, in some small way, was next to impossible.

Corinne took a deep, steadying breath. “It wouldn’t be fair to you to continue being your fuck buddy. You deserve it all, Cooper.”

I shook my head. “I won’t be your fuck buddy. I want to be your everything. There’s room for all three of us. I’ll help you with Aaron. I would never cast him aside. I know he’s important to you.”

She licked her lips, thinking it over.

“Quinn looked into it, and the marriage isn’t legally binding.”

She looked down at her hands. “I know that.”

“Little dove. God, I’ve missed you. Tell me what you’re thinking.”

She drew another deep inhale. “I’ve missed you too. But that doesn’t change my situation, and there’s no way that I could ever ask you to become responsible for both me and another person.”

“And there’s no way I could ever let you slip away. So I guess we’re at an impasse.”

At this, she smiled and squeezed my hand. “You really are bossy, you know?”

My gaze met hers, and all the worry I’d felt on the way over here was gone. It had been replaced by a deep sense of peace. This was the right thing, her and me. And Aaron? Well, it would be no different if she were a single mom with a special-needs child. I’d help her and care for them both—no question. “I love you.”

A single tear escaped her eye, and I caught it with my thumb on her cheek. “I love you too,” she whispered. “This is so much more than I could have ever expected.”

“Corinne? You ready?” Alyssa’s voice sounded from outside the office, and when I looked up, she was standing in the doorway. “Oh. Hi, Mr. Kingsley. You’re here.”

“Give us a minute, would you, Alyssa?”

She nodded and disappeared from the doorway.

I pulled Corinne into my arms and kissed her deeply. “Love you so fucking much,” I murmured, my lips teasing hers. She was crying freely now, but I knew they were happy tears.

When Alyssa cleared her throat in the other room, I pulled away. “Later. You’re mine.”

Corinne nodded, her gaze filled with hot understanding.

I rose to my feet, tugging her up and pulling her close. “One last thing. Unpack your stuff. You’re not quitting.”

She laughed, and the sound was pure and sweet. “Yes, sir.”