After a minute he comes back over with a first-aid kit. “It’s fine, Cooper.” It’s only a small cut on my foot, and it’s already stopped bleeding.
“Then it will only take a second.” He drops to his knees on the kitchen floor, and I fight a gasp when his rough hands slip up my calf. My thighs part on their own, and he stills for a moment as my heart begins to race. But he’s right, and all too soon it’s over and he’s putting a Band-Aid on me.
“Juno, do you have shorts on?”
I look down at the oversized shirt I’d snagged from Lux’s bedroom. It’s an old high school shirt, and to be honest I was hoping it might have been Cooper’s at one point. It falls to the middle of my thighs, so I didn’t think I needed shorts.
“No.”
He closes his eyes as he stands up, but as he does his hands come down on the counter on either side of me. When he’s at his full height, all I can see in front of me is him.
“When you go back upstairs, you’re going to take off Luca’s shirt.”
Oh shit. I nod in agreement and wonder what is wrong with me. I should be mouthing back that I’ll wear whatever the hell I want, but somehow I’m agreeing with him.
When his eyes drop to my lips, everything around me stops. The buzz from the light, the hum of the fridge, even my breathing doesn’t make a sound. He takes one look at me, and it’s like he makes a decision.
“Fuck it,” I hear him say before his mouth is on mine.
His fingers tangle in my hair, and his fists pull so that my head tilts back, making me gasp. His tongue slips into my mouth as he deepens the kiss, and all I can think is, It’s finally happening. Cooper Cross is kissing me.
Finally my brain kicks in, and I moan and kiss him back. His full lips are soft yet strong as he commands this kiss and all that’s happening. I don’t know what to do with my hands, so they go to his chest. The feel of his muscles under my fingers is like silken steel, and I want to dig my nails into it.
He pushes up against me, coming between my open legs, and I feel his hard cock pressing against my sex. When I cry out at the sweet ache, Cooper suddenly pulls away, backing up several feet. A cold wave washes over me as he takes his warmth with him and all that was promised in that kiss. My mouth tingles from the mark he’s left on me, and I don’t know what just happened.
“That was a mistake,” he says, and he’s panting like he’s out of breath.
“Mistake.” I repeat the word that slices right through me. I’m pretty sure I was also a mistake to my parents, not that they were around to ever say it to me. I’m not stupid, and they weren't cut out for the whole parenting thing, but hearing it from someone that I considered a good man is harsh.
“I’m sorry.” He closes his eyes, shaking his head.
He’s sorry? Great, I'm a mistake and a regret.
“Don’t worry about it.” I try to keep my words calm as I slip off the counter. “This dirty secret will stay between us. I wouldn’t want the town to think you’re not the all-American hero.”
I know I look different than most girls around town. I change the color of my hair all the time, and my style can be a bit out there compared to everyone here. I stand out in town, which isn’t a bad thing, but it’s a reminder that at the end of the day I’m still an outsider. I’ll never really belong anywhere no matter how hard I try, and I certainly won’t fit into the box Cooper Cross wants to shove me into.
“Fuck.” He shakes his head. “Juno, I was…”
“Don’t.” I hold my hand up, not wanting to hear it.
It already hurts this much after only getting a taste of what I’d dreamed about. As quickly as it was mine, it was gone, and I’m not waiting around to hear the rest of his regrets. I’m only glad that I’ve found my voice again and can mask my pain. I’ve always been good at that, but it’s probably the years of practice.
“You stay away from me and I’ll stay away from you,” I say before turning to leave him behind.
He doesn't stop me from going, which gives me all the answers I need.
Cooper Cross will never be mine.
1
Cooper
Many months later…
“Hey, Sheriff, how’s it going?”
I nod at Jim, the guy that owns the music shop downtown, and straighten my paper. “Good, just taking my lunch break.” I scan back over the sports section, reading again about the Lions’ win over East this past Friday night.