Cooper (The Family Simon 6)

Annoyed, Cooper narrowed his eyes. “Just spit it out, Rick.”

His brother was silent for a few moments more and then swung around on the stool so that he faced Cooper. What the hell? He looked way too serious for Cooper to feel anything other than unease. It punched him in the gut, and he set down his beer.

“Why are you getting involved with her?” Maverick’s gaze didn’t waver.

Cooper’s frown deepened. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

Maverick shrugged and took another swig o

f beer. “She’s not your usual MO is all, and that makes me curious.”

“My usual MO.” Cooper didn’t like where this was going and was beginning to think he should have just gone back to his place.

“She’s not married or engaged or involved with anyone else. She’s not on the prowl looking for a quick screw, and from what I understand, she’s got a shit ton of baggage, which means she’s complicated. We both know you don’t do complicated anymore. So what gives?”

Scowling at his beer, Cooper was silent for a few moments. Hell, what could he say to that? Maverick was, if anything, brutally honest, and always had been. Cooper Simon’s MO wasn’t a secret. He did pursue women whose strings were still intact—strings he had no desire to snip. He was happy screwing the ones who weren’t available in the traditional sense because he didn’t want a relationship.

He wasn’t a commitment guy. That wasn’t him. Hadn’t been for a long, long time.

That stopped him cold. What was he doing with Morgan Campbell? Was this just a way to pass time?

Hell, no. It was more than that. He ran his hands over his unshaven face and sighed. “I don’t know.” And that was the God’s truth.

“Well, maybe you need to figure that shit out sooner than later.”

Already ticked off, Cooper didn’t much care for the tone in his brother’s voice. Anger heated his blood, and he slid off the stool. He took a few paces and shoved his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. It was either that or hit something.

“What’s going on, Rick? Why the phone calls? Why the third degree? What the hell does it matter to you if I spend a weekend with Morgan Campbell or spend it screwing some socialite from the city? Either way, it’s my business. It’s between me and Morgan.”

“Normally, I’d agree.”

“So what the hell?” Cooper’s face darkened. No longer in the mood for company, he glanced toward the exit.

Maverick sighed and pushed his beer away. “It’s Holly.”

Cooper’s head jerked, and he took a step back. “What about her?” He spit out the words, his jaw so tight, he could barely speak.

“She’s back in the States.”

Shock temporarily stole Cooper’s ability to speak, and he glanced away, thoughts twirling in a hundred different directions. Holly Adams, back in the United States? Since when?

“How do you know?” he asked roughly, any bit of lightness he’d claimed this weekend now all but gone.

“She stopped in to see Mom in Florida the day before yesterday.” Maverick’s face looked pained. “She wants to see you.”

“Not gonna happen,” Cooper snarled, that anger inside him burgeoning into something so big, Mountain Man behind the bar snapped to attention. He felt the weight of the large man’s glare, as well as the curiosity of the few patrons at the bar.

“Maybe you should.”

Cooper’s head jerked back so fast, he saw stars. “Are you kidding me? After what she did? After…” Throat tight, he couldn’t get anything more out. That old rage, the dark thing that he’d tried so hard to bury, surfaced, and along with it came a feeling of helplessness. He’d written off that chapter five years ago, and he sure as hell had no desire to deal with it again.

Ever.

Maverick was now on his feet, and neither one of them cared that they were in the middle of a bar with about twenty to thirty folks paying rapt attention to the unfolding drama. Mountain Man moved a little closer, tossing a rag across his shoulders as he leaned against the bar, dark eyes watching the two men closely.

“Does Morgan Campbell mean more to you than just a weekend in the sack?”

“What the hell does Morgan have to do with Holly Adams? How does Holly even figure in my life today?” He pushed past his brother, but Maverick didn’t back down. He grabbed Cooper’s arm and didn’t let go.