The Off Limits Rule (It Happened in Nashville 1)

He grins and holds my gaze. Honestly, he’s so attractive I have to turn away, because looking at him and knowing I’ll never have a man like that is hurting more than breaking up with Tim ever did. It’s only after I make it back to the ladder that I let my smile slip.

It felt good to jump.

It felt good to be looked at the way Cooper looked at me up on that cliff.

I feel something inside me shift, new fault lines cracking their way through my heart, and I have a feeling they’re not going away.

After climbing up the ladder, I look down at the sopping wet shirt I’ve been wearing over my swimsuit all day and attempt to wring it out. This is ridiculous. Who cares if I’m wearing a dumb swimsuit? Who cares if I look a little frumpy? Who cares if my legs are hairy? Those two seconds of heart-in-my-throat free fall made me realize something: I don’t push myself enough. Somewhere along the line in my life, I stopped jumping. It’s time to start again.

I grab the hem of my shirt and whip it off over my head. World, meet my tie-dye one-piece! Isn’t she glorious?!

Reaching for a towel, my skin prickles with awareness. I glance over my shoulder and find Cooper, gaze searing into me with not a hint of a teasing smile on his mouth. His eyes are kindling, and though they never dip below my face, I know he’s already looked. He’s looked, and I somehow get the sense that maybe my swimsuit isn’t quite as frumpy as I thought. I feel my cheeks turn into candy apples, and ever so slowly, a grin spreads over Cooper’s mouth.

I press my lips together and try to hide an embarrassed smile of my own.

Then, Bailey jumps onto Cooper’s back and laughs as she tries to get him to wrestle her in the water.

Right. Happy bubble popped. Moment over.

I wrap a towel around me and head to the front of the boat to find my book, but unfortunately, it doesn’t hold my attention like it did before.

Drew and I have been quiet for most of the drive home. We’re both zapped from the sun, a little crispy, and dehydrated. He has one hand on the steering wheel and the other resting on the console between us. My feet are in the seat, and I’m hugging my knees, wearing his giant sweatshirt that I always steal when I’m with him, staring out the window.

He taps my knee with the back of his knuckles. “Glad you came out today. Sorry if it was a little much for you.”

I keep my eyes trained out the window, remembering what it felt like to have Cooper’s hand laced with mine. “It wasn’t too much.”

He’s quiet for a minute, and then I can tell from the corner of my eye that he glances at me again. “So you’re feeling better than you were this morning?”

“Yeah. Actually, I am. Thanks for inviting me. I feel like going out on the lake was exactly what I needed.”

“Good…great. That’s good.” Well, that’s a weird tone.

I meet his intense look with furrowed brows. “What is it?”

“Nothing.”

“Spit it out, or I’ll frog your leg.” I’m good at it too. Leaves a nice bruise.

His head tilts to the side a little, and then he looks down at the wheel and back to the road. “It’s nothing really. Just… I guess I’ve been wondering why you jumped off the cliff today?”

“Huh?” I’m a little confused by his odd question.

We pull up to a stoplight, and Drew turns the full weight of his gaze to me. “You hate heights, Luce. Why’d you do it?”

I shrug, suddenly feeling defensive. “Because I wanted to.”

“No,” he says, voice more clipped than I’ve ever heard from him before. “You did it because Cooper wanted you to.” I suck in a breath and hold it because I’m not at all sure how to respond to that. Drew looks so stern and protective right now, like I’m fifteen again and he’s showing up to my date, interrupting our make-out session. “Look, I get it. He’s a smooth dude and one of my best friends. But because he and I are so close, I’ve seen too much to be comfortable with the idea of you dating him. So…I guess…”

“You guess what?”

He sighs like it’s paining him to say this. “I want you to stay away from him.” After a beat, he adds, “Romantically, I mean.”

This is the second time I have felt like laughing in my brother’s face today. It’s hilarious that he thinks there would be a need for him to ask me to stay away from his friend. Did he see the women who were hanging all over Cooper? Ha! Yeah…he’s got nothing to worry about from me and my mom-ness.

“Drew,” I say with a chuckle, “you don’t have to worry. Nothing romantic will happen between Cooper and me.”

And that night, I’m still laughing about our conversation as I shower, pull on an old t-shirt, and slip into bed. I flip off the light and turn over to bury my head in my pillow when my phone lights up with a text.