Grace thought about that for a few moments. “I guess so. I just hope it’s nothing serious.” She shoved her elbow into her cousin’s side. “So? The black eye? That’s gotta be a good story.”
“Oh, it’s a story all right.”
“Spill.”
Cooper exhaled and ran a hand through his thick blond hair. “It’s a long, drawn-out tale that involves a married woman, a cheating husband and, well…” He flashed that million-dollar smile again. “Me.”
“Somehow I’m not surprised.”
Her cousin Cooper had a long history of getting involved with unattainable women. As in women who were either spoken for, engaged, or already married. The world saw him as a celebrated scoundrel—a guy with Hollywood looks, no ambition and no morals. Grace found it interesting that Coop perpetuated the myth because she knew him—she knew him well—and he was none of those things.
There was a reason why he was the way he was. But it was his story and as far as she knew, he’d never shared it. At least not with her.
The two of them stared out into the darkness and Grace found the twinkling lights that lined the edge of the lake mesmerizing.
“I love coming up here,” she murmured. She could see the guys—her brothers Tucker and Teague, and Matt—walking near the boathouse. The embers from their cigars gave them away.
“Yeah? What do you like about it?”
“I’m not sure really. The quiet? The stripped-down version of a life I think we all want, but not many of us get. Everything moves so fast. I can see why Teague loves it up here.”
“So what’s up with you and Hawkins?”
Leave it to Cooper to ask the question that everyone was too afraid to ask.
Her eyes on the glowing tips in the darkness, she thought about the question for a long time. She reached for her half-empty glass of wine and finished it in one gulp. Then she wiped the back of her hand across her mouth and set the now empty glass down.
“I’m not exactly sure yet. But…”
“But?”
“I know what I want, but Matt’s got stuff going on, life stuff. And even though I’m pretty sure our feelings are the same, this other stuff bothers me. I don’t know if he’s ever going to share it. I don’t know if he knows how to share it with me. And I don’t think we can move forward until he does.”
“Have you told him that?”
She shook her head and swore. “We don’t really talk. It’s stupid and frustrating and so high school. We keep saying that we’ll talk. That we’ll communicate.” She shook her head. “But we never really do. I’m afraid to bring it up, and he’s avoiding it altogether.”
“You love him.”
Grace’s head whipped up so fast she was surprised it didn’t crack in two. “Why would you say that?”
“Because any idiot with two eyes in his head can see that you do.”
Oh. God. Cheeks now flaming, Grace squeezed her eyes shut. What if Matt knew? What if he knew and this whole trip up north was a pity trip?
“I wouldn’t worry about it,” Cooper said, tugging on a long piece of her hair. It had escaped the messy bun at the back of her head and, irritated, she tucked it behind her ear.
“Worry about what?”
“Matt is so busy avoiding the talking thing that he’s not seeing the situation clearly.”
True. That was totally true.
“So I think it’s gotta be you who forces the issue.” Cooper shrugged. “You should do it before the not talking-thing gets so big that you can’t make sense of it.”
“That’s the thing. I don’t want to.”
“Because you’re afraid he’ll bolt? Because you’re afraid he won’t think you’re worth the commitment?”