something every savvy girl needed to know, I couldn't concentrate on it. All I could think about was Cooper.
Today had been horrible for him. Just horrible. And I was solely to blame. I wanted to call and apologize so badly, but feared he wouldn't talk to me. I'd definitely rocked the boat that was his life. Would he toss me overboard as a result? If so, I deserved it.
Around ten, my cell began blasting "I Won't Give Up," the Jason Mraz song I'd assigned as Cooper's ring tone and considered very appropriate to our situation. Of course I snatched it up. "Hello?"
"I'm outside."
I jumped off the bed and began looking for my flipflops. "How'd you know where I live?"
"Um...the phone book?"
Duh. "Be right down."
I grabbed a Twilight-themed throw and ran downstairs and out the door. Cooper stood on my porch. Though I wanted to throw myself at him, I held back until he opened his arms. Then I flew into them. He hugged me so hard and for a long time, easing his embrace only to dip his head and kiss me.
The moment our lips touched, I felt at peace. We kissed again and again in the dark, each one better than the last, but none of them enough to satisfy me. I wanted to gobble him up, to be his secret girlfriend forever.
If that was even still an option. I honestly didn't know.
It took a while for us to cool down. I guess we were both that needy. Taking his hand, I led him to our porch swing, hidden from the street by shrubs that needed trimming and an overgrown rose trellis. I covered our legs with the fleece throw. Safely in the shadows, he kicked the wooden swing into motion with his foot. The chain squeaked where it hung from the ceiling.
I went first. "I am so, so sorry about today. I never meant for anything bad to happen. I was just trying to help that woman."
"I know."
"Are you mad at me?"
"Do I look like I am?"
"I can't actually see you," I told him. "But you don't kiss like you are, and I'm not sure why. If I were you, I'd be so pissed."
"Well, you might've given the situation a little more thought before you blew my cover, but I understand why you did it." I heard his soft chuckle. "Melissa was beating the shit out of that guy with her bag, wasn't she?"
"Yeah, but he deserved it. What an idiot."
For a minute or two, neither of us said anything. In the silence, night sounds came up around us: the distant bark of a dog, voices, a car radio. The autumn nip in the air made me shiver.
Cooper draped his arm across my shoulders and pulled me closer. "I don't know what to do, Mia."
"What do you mean?"
"Now that I've stepped out of my mental safe room, I'm starting to see and feel things. I'm also picking up random thoughts of everyone I pass--not enough to help anyone, but still. I can send them all packing, of course, but I'm not sure if want to or even should."
"Did you notice that haze around Detective Simms?" I asked.
"So that was real? It's hard to tell right now."
"It was definitely real. What do you think it was?"
"Since it didn't feel new, I'm thinking it was residue from past cases. That stuff is bound to be inside his head and part of what he is, too. Maybe it's leaking out or something."
"I thought it came across sort of military."
"Really? I didn't get that, but it would make sense. I saw a picture of him in camo. Looked like he might've been in the desert."
"Yeah." Wondering about Cooper's returning skills, I decided to test him. "Do you sense the regular under the maple tree?" I pointed toward a huge tree in our front yard, where a middle-aged male presence often hovered.
Cooper nodded. "He's a regular?"
"Yeah. Built this house, I think. Comes back all the time to look at it, but never goes inside, thank goodness. I already have Nick, and the spirits he sometimes brings around are all I can handle."
"Who?"
"Nick." I explained his role in my life, something I hadn't done at eight or since, which meant Cooper didn't know about him. "Do you have a spirit guide?"
"Not so far."
Did that mean he
Today had been horrible for him. Just horrible. And I was solely to blame. I wanted to call and apologize so badly, but feared he wouldn't talk to me. I'd definitely rocked the boat that was his life. Would he toss me overboard as a result? If so, I deserved it.
Around ten, my cell began blasting "I Won't Give Up," the Jason Mraz song I'd assigned as Cooper's ring tone and considered very appropriate to our situation. Of course I snatched it up. "Hello?"
"I'm outside."
I jumped off the bed and began looking for my flipflops. "How'd you know where I live?"
"Um...the phone book?"
Duh. "Be right down."
I grabbed a Twilight-themed throw and ran downstairs and out the door. Cooper stood on my porch. Though I wanted to throw myself at him, I held back until he opened his arms. Then I flew into them. He hugged me so hard and for a long time, easing his embrace only to dip his head and kiss me.
The moment our lips touched, I felt at peace. We kissed again and again in the dark, each one better than the last, but none of them enough to satisfy me. I wanted to gobble him up, to be his secret girlfriend forever.
If that was even still an option. I honestly didn't know.
It took a while for us to cool down. I guess we were both that needy. Taking his hand, I led him to our porch swing, hidden from the street by shrubs that needed trimming and an overgrown rose trellis. I covered our legs with the fleece throw. Safely in the shadows, he kicked the wooden swing into motion with his foot. The chain squeaked where it hung from the ceiling.
I went first. "I am so, so sorry about today. I never meant for anything bad to happen. I was just trying to help that woman."
"I know."
"Are you mad at me?"
"Do I look like I am?"
"I can't actually see you," I told him. "But you don't kiss like you are, and I'm not sure why. If I were you, I'd be so pissed."
"Well, you might've given the situation a little more thought before you blew my cover, but I understand why you did it." I heard his soft chuckle. "Melissa was beating the shit out of that guy with her bag, wasn't she?"
"Yeah, but he deserved it. What an idiot."
For a minute or two, neither of us said anything. In the silence, night sounds came up around us: the distant bark of a dog, voices, a car radio. The autumn nip in the air made me shiver.
Cooper draped his arm across my shoulders and pulled me closer. "I don't know what to do, Mia."
"What do you mean?"
"Now that I've stepped out of my mental safe room, I'm starting to see and feel things. I'm also picking up random thoughts of everyone I pass--not enough to help anyone, but still. I can send them all packing, of course, but I'm not sure if want to or even should."
"Did you notice that haze around Detective Simms?" I asked.
"So that was real? It's hard to tell right now."
"It was definitely real. What do you think it was?"
"Since it didn't feel new, I'm thinking it was residue from past cases. That stuff is bound to be inside his head and part of what he is, too. Maybe it's leaking out or something."
"I thought it came across sort of military."
"Really? I didn't get that, but it would make sense. I saw a picture of him in camo. Looked like he might've been in the desert."
"Yeah." Wondering about Cooper's returning skills, I decided to test him. "Do you sense the regular under the maple tree?" I pointed toward a huge tree in our front yard, where a middle-aged male presence often hovered.
Cooper nodded. "He's a regular?"
"Yeah. Built this house, I think. Comes back all the time to look at it, but never goes inside, thank goodness. I already have Nick, and the spirits he sometimes brings around are all I can handle."
"Who?"
"Nick." I explained his role in my life, something I hadn't done at eight or since, which meant Cooper didn't know about him. "Do you have a spirit guide?"
"Not so far."
Did that mean he
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