Dee, Lavada - Nothing to Lose [Blackhawk Brothers] (BookStrand Publishing Romance) (5 page)

She had on a tank top and flannel short bottoms she liked to sleep in. Traveling light, she hadn’t packed a robe. Humming to herself, she entered the kitchen and stopped short.

Cooper’s spoon paused just short of his mouth. Galynn’s voice was almost a whisper. “Huh, I thought that you’d already left. I…um didn’t. Uh, the house was really quiet.”

The spoon clattered back into the bowl of cereal in front of him. He swallowed as his gaze took in the skimpy tank top. Was it the cool temperature that had her nipples exposed through the material?

Galynn turned away and reached for the coffeepot. Neither one spoke. Silence filled the kitchen as Galynn filled her cup before fleeing the kitchen like something was chasing her.

Chapter 5

Galynn fussed around the house, hoping that by the time she got to the office Cooper would have left for the job. It was almost nine when she opened the door to male laughter. A huge guy held up the doorframe between the main office and Cooper’s. He turned toward the open door, and his eyes widened. He recovered quickly and gave her a smile that lit up his face. “Hi, I’m Gus.” Turning, he hollered, “Coop, you’ve got company.”

Almost at once, four men and Cooper filed out his office. Galynn couldn’t believe that many men had managed to be in there. Gus moved closer to give them room. He seemed oblivious to his boss’s glare.

Cooper moved across the room to Galynn’s side and introduced them all. He explained that the five men made up Blackhawk Construction.

Speaking to the men, he went onto explain the office situation. “Bev’s intentions were to only be gone about three weeks, but she called Friday morning and said she would be making a permanent move.” He held up his hands. “I know we’ll all miss her, but she deserves retirement.”

One of the guys laughed and said, “I knew something was different in here when we walked in. Now I see there isn’t a paper blizzard all over every flat surface.”

The others joined in and good-naturedly kidded Coop. He took it, giving as much back. “Okay, okay. Have you goons ever thought why we don’t get help in here? You big lugs scare them all away.”

There were mumbled sounds of agreement from the men. Gus spoke up, his voice full of hope. “So is Galynn going to take over the office?”

“She’s helping out for now.” Looking down at her, he winked. “But I’m working on it.”

The crew left almost right away. Cooper told them he’d be out to the job around noon, after he got some calls and other paperwork done. There was some teasing and offers to do the office work for him. When the door closed behind the men, the quiet seemed deafening. Cooper’s smile lit up his face. “So you’ve seen the mornings. We meet here. More or less just to touch base and pick up the work vans. At night when we come back they make short work of picking up their rigs and heading out.” His voice grew serious. “You’re one of us now, and we take care of our own. Do you really think anyone will get to you through that gang?”

A shiver of fear, mixed with longing, raced through Galynn. If only she dared. She shook her head in resignation. “They look like wonderful guys, and they’re even more of reason why I can’t risk staying here.” She looked up meeting his gaze. “You don’t understand, Coop. I don’t think Mick is sane…” She hesitated. She hadn’t meant to say his name again.

Her voice dropped, and she twisted her hands together. “I’m positive he’s taking steroids and they’re affecting his mind. He will kill me and anyone else that gets in his way. I had nothing to lose in leaving him, but you, your family, and friends do.” She fought the tears threatening to fall and again locked gazes with Cooper. “Please.”

The one simple word said it all. Cooper was across the floor in a second, enveloping her in his arms. But she pulled out of his embrace and moved behind her desk.

He held up his hands. “Okay, for now you’re safe, and we’ll let it go.” He turned to the kitchen. “How about a cup of coffee, and then I’ll let you get to work.”

The morning passed in a blur after Coop went back into his office. Galynn finished comparing the invoices against the check register and got everything filed or into a stack for Cooper to take care of. Before he left, he’d told her to run down to the house and get something for lunch. He gave her keys to the office and house with a slip of paper with his cell number on it. “Call if you have any questions or anything comes up. I’ll see you around five.”

The office felt empty without him there. Galynn wasn’t hungry but knew it was important to be as physically healthy as possible when she set out on her own again. Cooper had it right. She needed to eat.

* * * *

The rest of the week followed Monday’s schedule. Galynn would get to the office just before or as the crew was leaving for the job. Sometimes Cooper went with them, but usually he had a couple of hours of office work to do first. On Wednesday they started something new, and Galynn found she liked it. Around noon they would walk back down to the house for lunch together. Given the cold weather and the extra time it took, it would have been more practical to pack a lunch. But with her tendency to become absorbed in what she was doing, the walk down to the house felt good and provided her with a much-needed break. Having company was an added bonus. Having his company made it even better.

Today was Friday, just a week since Cooper had found her on the road. It seemed like so much longer. She had forgotten how good it felt to be rested. Nights no longer held terror for her, and she slept straight through to morning. To make it even better, she was dreaming, and they weren’t the nightmares she had become used to. If a certain beautiful man haunted them, so much the better. It made falling asleep something she increasingly looked forward to.

Galynn had started automating the office. Deep in thought, she didn’t hear Cooper until he stood right next to her desk. At his voice, she jumped and held up her arms to fend off a blow. Cooper’s voice turned husky with emotion. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. You’re going to ruin your eyes working in the dark like this.”

She hadn’t realized it had gotten so late. The day had been sunny, and there hadn’t been a need to turn on the desk light earlier. Stretching, she didn’t think about how the fabric of her sweater showed the contours of her figure until she looked up and saw Cooper’s eyes. Her face heated up, and she quickly lowered her arms. Cooper didn’t move. She saw him take a deep breath and swallow. The muscles clenched low in her stomach, and she felt an unfamiliar pressure. Her eyes widened as her gaze lowered to his lips.

Doors slamming jolted her back to reality. Reaching over, she snapped on her desk lamp. Cooper held his stance for a second longer, whispering, “Later,” as if it were a promise.

Gus, as usual, was the first one through the door. Taking off his hat, he raked his hand through his hair. “Wow, I think it’s dropped twenty degrees in the last hour. Bet we’re in for a doozy of a storm tonight. What’s with Fridays anyway? The last couple have been stormy.”

Ignoring Cooper, he leaned a hip on Galynn’s desk. “So, have any plans for tonight?”

Gus was young, she guessed at a maybe a year older than her. But that was in chronological years, not in experience, where she had a good ten years on him. The other men had all gotten in from outside, and a few eyebrows rose. What could the kid be thinking? You didn’t ask a lady out with an audience.

Galynn didn’t miss a beat and quickly defused Gus’s faux pas. “Plans, sure, everyone has plans for Fridays.” She winked at him to ease the rejection, and he rewarded her by a big grin that said he would try again.

It didn’t take long for the men to file back out for home. Cooper had told her earlier that for the last couple of months they’d worked six and sometimes seven days to beat the weather and get the mall to the point where they could work inside. They would be busy all winter, but they wouldn’t be under the pressure of earlier. With their workweek back to normal, the men could give into fatigue. They were obviously looking forward to a weekend off.

“Let’s follow their example and get out of here. I still can hardly believe all you’ve gotten done.” Cooper pulled Galynn’s snow boots out of the closet.

Galynn went about turning off the computer and rinsing out the coffeepot. By the time they stepped out the door, it had started snowing again. The first few nights, Cooper asked if she wanted to drive the truck down to the house, but she always declined and now he didn’t ask anymore. She loved the walk even when the wind was blowing and it felt like twenty degrees below freezing. Tonight there wasn’t any wind, and the snow came down in huge, fluffy flakes. As they crested the hill, the lake came into view and Galynn sucked in her breath at the sight. “I feel like I’m in a picture postcard.”

Branches bent with the weight of snow, and the dock was a blur under a blanket of white. In unison, they both stopped as time stood still. Cooper moved behind Galynn and wrapped his arms around her. She leaned back, resting her head against his chest. She knew she should pull away like she’d done before, but she couldn’t make herself move. This moment felt just too perfect.

“We have to move, or they’ll find us frozen to this spot in the morning,” Cooper whispered as he moved his lips close to her neck.

His words, even as quiet as they were, broke the trance, and together they moved down the drive. As they opened the door, the scent of dinner greeted them. Galynn had put a chicken in the Crock-Pot that morning, and within a half hour, chicken and noodles were on the table. Galynn enjoyed Cooper’s appetite. She’d gotten to where she hated to cook because nothing ever satisfied Mick. More often than not, it sparked a violent fight.

Usually Cooper seemed to prefer eating in front of the TV while watching the news. Tonight he’d filled his plate from the stove as usual, but sat down at the kitchen table. Whether they were talking or quiet, there was a comfortable feeling to just being together. It would be hard to leave all this, and especially Cooper. Mentally, Galynn shook off the gloomy thoughts that leaving brought. They made small talk about the upcoming weekend. Coop wanted to take her over to his folks’, and she was resisting. “I’m not going to be here much longer. It’s better for everyone if I stay in the background.”

Cooper finished eating and pushed back his chair to get up and pour a couple cups of coffee. Bringing them back to the table, he set one down in front of her but didn’t sit back down at the table. Instead, he leaned against the counter, casually crossing his legs at the ankles. “They want to meet you. And, I want it, too.”

She rubbed her fingers against her forehead. This was so hard. She wanted to make Cooper happy, but going to his parents’?
Not a good idea.
She smiled up and him and said, “I’ll think about it.”

He knew he’d won. She saw it in his quick smile. Darn the guy. They communicated like she’d never been able to with anyone else, ever.

Pushing away from the counter, he said, “Come on, let’s get this kitchen cleaned up and catch the last of the news.”

“You go ahead. I won’t take but a minute, and I’ll join you.”

“Not on your life. It’ll take even less time with two of us.”

Surprisingly, he was right. They worked in perfect tandem. Coop took a last swipe across the counter and then poured them fresh cups of coffee before heading for the living room. Snapping on the news, he sank down on the end of the sofa, leaving room for her to sit with him. She felt tempted, but at the last second, she chose the chair.

By the time the news ended, Coop had fallen asleep. She switched over to one of her favorite programs. It wasn’t long before she could hear Coop’s breath deepen. Galynn listened as the sound of not quite a snore, but more of a sexy sigh escaped from his half-parted lips. Could it get any better than this? It was going to be hard to leave, but as sad as it made her feel, she knew she would have to start seriously thinking about it soon. She’d gotten his financial files on the computer and into an accounting program, but there was still so much she could do.

Monday, she promised herself. She’d wait until they were in the office, as it seemed things were less personal in a business environment. She’d make him listen this time. He visibly showed relief when he’d come back to the office or house after being gone. It seemed like he always half expected to find a
thank you and good-bye
note. She didn’t want to do that. Next week she’d borrow his car and get a suitcase and bus tickets. This was the last leg of her journey. When she got to Seattle, she’d use the last set of her forged identity papers to again be someone new.

The program on the television was about death and someone who could speak with spirits. It wasn’t exactly uplifting, in fact it was downright depressing in her state of mind. But, then, it was so far into fantasy it didn’t begin to touch real life, so maybe not such a bad program after all.

A commercial came on, and she gathered her cup with Coop’s and took them out to the kitchen. By the time she got back, he had woken up. He gave her a wink and that half grin she loved so much. “Sorry. Did I miss anything good?”

“Nope, and this program that you love so much is almost over.” She was being facetious. Coop didn’t have the same taste in TV programs and teased her about the murder and mayhem shows like the CSI and detective ones she watched. The new one where the main guy was a genius and worked with the FBI was one of her favorites.

He glanced at his watch. “Hmmm, about ten minutes, it looks like. Why don’t you finish it up, and I’ll go put out the stuff for your back.”

They’d fallen into a routine in the last week. Galynn wasn’t wearing a bra because the wound would have been directly under it. With only a shirt, it made it easy to pull it over her head and hold it in front of her while Cooper dressed the wound. They’d found it was easier to do in his bathroom where they had better light. In the beginning, he looked for pieces of glass working its way out of the wound, but as it healed, he didn’t do that anymore. They could have done it in the kitchen now, but neither one of them had brought up the option.

While Galynn got ready, Cooper, like he always did, turned to give her more privacy. He’d already laid out the antibiotic cream and the bandages. His hands were cool on her back as he gently worked the bandage off. He was always so careful, sometimes to the point that his touch actually felt like more of a tickle. Tonight she felt a tremor in his hands that hadn’t been there since the first night he’d dressed the wound.