Slow Ride (22 page)

“So you’re a musician and you’re working in my garage? Seriously?”

“Well, I mentioned to Phil some things for the music store. . . .” she trailed off,
feeling suddenly shy.

Cooper nudged her thigh with his. “And I think they’re great. Maybe this week you
can see what kind of magic you can get going over there. The shop is pretty well organized
and with the computer and phones networked, you can still do shop work from Music
& Motors.”

Her face lit up. “I take it you like that idea?”

“Hell yeah!” she enthused. She leaned in and kissed his cheek before taking a drink
of water.

When they were finished Cooper got the check and paid, and finally stood. “All right,
come on, we are going home.” He was tugging her out of the booth when his phone rang.

“Shit,” he muttered. “Hello? Fuck, are you kidding me? Well go check it out. I’m busy
. . . fuck, damn. All right, I will stop by on my way home. Yeah. Later.” He hung
up and looked down at Kyla. “I gotta make a stop at the record store, the alarm is
acting up again. Just be a minute. Then I want to get a look at what you got on underneath
that dress for me.”

The two climbed into Cooper’s truck and motored over to the record store.

• • •

“I’ll be right back,” Cooper said as he headed through the hanging beads to reach
his office at Music & Motors.

She nodded and moved restlessly toward the bins, giving them a cursory glance, before
making her way to the piano. A quick check down the hall confirmed Cooper had disappeared
and she was alone to enjoy the feel of her fingers running over the keys. It didn’t
take her long to get into
“The Heart Asks Pleasure First”
from
The Piano
soundtrack. Kyla was lost in the song. It wasn’t until she played the last note that
she looked up from the keys to see Cooper, leaning against the doorjamb. She squirmed
under his gaze. “Sorry, I, uh, thought you were still in the office.”

His eyes didn’t leave her as he moved into her personal space. “That was freaking
amazing.”

She leaned her forehead against his, blushing. “Thanks.”

He glanced around the space, still holding her. “Monday, I want you here.”

At the confusion on her face, Cooper kept right on talking. “My dad loved this place.
He and Steve, the terrible twosome people called them. Steve opened the bookstore
and dad . . . well dad wanted to be all about the music. He wasn’t the best businessman,
but it stayed afloat, I sometimes think out of sheer willpower. When I came back from
college after he died, everyone thought I’d sell it since I had bought the garage.
But I couldn’t.”

When he closed his eyes, she kissed him softly. “You miss him. If you ever want to
talk about him, I’m here.”

“I might take you up on that sometime. Seeing as your car just kinda died right outside
of town maybe,
maybe
it was my dad bringing me an angel. I’ve been struggling with whether to sell or
just close it up. But seeing you at that piano, your fingers dancing over the keys
and looking as relaxed and happy as I’ve ever seen you, I can’t sell it now.”

“Coop, this isn’t a decision to make lightly. Just because I like it and want to help
doesn’t mean it will be a money-making success.”

“Hey, I was ready to give up on this place. It wasn’t making money, and I had no idea
how to bring it to the 21st century and turn a profit. Now I can see just what it
needs to be.” His hand reached out and cupped her chin. “I still want to sell CDs
and some vinyl, keep the video game area ‘cause the guys and I like to chill there
and so do some of the local kids, but the rest of it . . . Kyla, you could offer lessons,
have a weekly open mic night for local talent, including you. With the school board
cutting funding for most of the music programs at the school, we could fill that void
and bring something good to town.” His dark blue eyes were intent on her, “You think
you can get on board with this?”

She bit her lip. This was a huge deal. Cooper was asking her to basically run the
music store and come up with a concept to make a profit. She had ideas. A ton of ideas.
But agreeing to this meant investing time and energy, and more importantly it meant
staying. Instead of being terrified, Kyla was surprised at the excitement coursing
inside of her. She’d found a place, finally. She had found a place where she could
be herself and people loved her for it. Her past didn’t brand her. She could do good
here, even if it was just bringing music to those who wanted lessons or being a good
friend.

She raised her eyes to his and smiled hugely. “Yes. Abso-freakin-lutely, Cooper.”

Her eyes flicked over to the door, to the couch behind them, and then back to Cooper
. “How well do the locks work in this place?”

Instead of answering, Cooper lifted Kyla in his arms, his mouth coming down on hers.
She wrapped her legs around his waist, laughing against his lips as he growled, carrying
her over to the couch. He bent slightly and dropped her onto the cushion, but their
connection wasn’t severed for long. He was on top of her in an instant and Kyla didn’t
hesitate before her hands were tugging his shirt out of his pants.

His hands roamed over her torso down to the hem of her dress. He pushed it up to her
stomach, his eyes going wide as he caught a glimpse of her black lace panties. “Babe,”
he murmured, his fingers grazing over the thin fabric. “They look so much better on
you than sticking out of your bag.”

She shifted, lifting her hips to pull the dress up over her head, and dropped it on
the floor next to her. Kyla wanted Cooper to see her, all of her, and for once she
wasn’t going to be shy about it.

All he could do was stare, his eyes covering every inch of her until she placed her
hands at the waistband of his pants. He lifted off of her, grasping his shirt to pull
it off and drop it on top of her dress. His hands slid over her breasts and around
her back, unclasping her bra. His mouth covered a hardening nipple while his thumb
stroked the other.

Her back arched, her head tilting back into the cushion. Her hands moved to his pants
and she finished unbuttoning them, sliding her hand inside and along his dick. He
was hard—she knew he was ready and she was getting close just from his mouth and tongue.

“Cooper, please,” she begged.

At her plea Cooper’s hand moved to her panties and snaked inside, cupping her mound.
“You’re already wet for me, baby. Love that.” His fingers breezed over her wet folds
and he slid one inside and then a second, her hips lifting up to meet his thrusts.

She felt the oncoming wave as it crashed into her and she held on to Cooper, her arms
and legs wrapped tightly around him. She felt her bones melting into the couch when
he whispered against her ear, “I need to be inside right now, Kyla.”

“Yes, Cooper, now.” Her legs dropped from his waist and she eagerly pushed his pants
and boxers down. His fingers were peeling her panties down her legs when it happened.

There was a loud banging on the door and a muffled voice. “Cooper! Jesus, where you
been, man?”

“You have got to be fucking kidding me,” he groaned, his forehead leaning down against
hers as the banging on the door increased. His fingers continued to press into her
wet folds. “Whoever it is, I’m shooting them in the head. I don’t care if it’s Phil.”

She could hear the door handle jiggling, “Cooper, get off!” and in a panicked whisper,
she added, “I need my clothes unless you want whoever it is seeing me naked!” She
was pulling at her underwear, and nabbed her bra.

He grabbed the blanket from the back of the couch and covered her up. “Relax, babe.
Let me handle this.” He was already off of her, tugging his pants up, but not before
she got a good look at what he had been about to offer.

Dragging her eyes from his crotch to his face, her tone dead serious, she said, “Shoot
them in the head. You have my permission.”

“You got it.” He kissed her forehead and pulled his shirt on, the top button of his
pants left unbuttoned. Kyla was off the couch, holding the blanket to her front as
she wiggled her dress over her head. She was pulling it over her hips when the door
swung open.

A man walked inside and glanced between the two of them. “Oh fuck, Cooper. Sorry,
but this is important.” He looked sheepish as he caught Kyla’s eyes. “You must be
Kyla. Nice to finally meet you. I’m Sam.”

“Hi, Sam.” Kyla pulled her dress into place and tossed the blanket on the couch. “Nice
to, uh, meet you too.”

Cooper let out a growl. “Is this a social call? What do you need?”

“Word is that Jackson is looking for you. I figured if he needs to talk to you, no
way am I letting you go alone, or have him find you alone.” His eyes flicked to Kyla.
“No offense, Kyla.”

She shook her head, “None taken. I’m glad you guys have each other’s back.” She moved
over to Cooper. “Go see what Jackson wants. I’ll be in my room. Please call me, or
have someone call me, if you don’t come home tonight.”

His body stiffened and Kyla started to shrink away, wondering what she said wrong.
He pulled her back before she was out of arm’s reach. “That motel is not your home.
I’ll be taking you home soon enough.”

She blinked at him, not sure what to say. Thankfully she didn’t have to think about
it too much since Cooper was pulling her in for a heart-stopping kiss. “Let’s get
you next door so I can get back as soon as possible.”

• • •

Kyla was in that place between asleep and awake when she heard a rustling and soft
swoosh as something hit the floor. The covers moved back and when she felt the bed
move, her eyes flew open, panicking as her legs kicked out. “No, no, no, no, NO!”
she protested, her voice rising at each word. Her throat and chest constricted with
fear. Frank had found her. He was going to kill her. She’d be gone forever and. .
.

Her back slammed into a hard chest and a finger slid along her cheek. “Relax. It’s
me,” he ordered, his voice a low rumble.

“Cooper,” she breathed, unable to hide her relief before she remembered what happened
just a few hours earlier. Her body tensed and she tried to move away.

He circled her waist and pulled her against him, leaning his head down, burying his
face in her hair. “Just relax, take a deep breath.” She felt his lips brush against
her ear and neck.

“Is everything okay?” She didn’t know why she was whispering, but it seemed Cooper
was wired and she didn’t want to increase the tension.

“Yeah. It’s fine. Jackson had some information. He hinted that the coroner who fucked
up Cheryl’s autopsy is starting to drink. A lot. Jackson thinks the man might be close
to cracking and wanted us to be aware.” He kissed her forehead. “I was only gone a
couple hours and I missed you like crazy.”

“I missed you, too.” She snuggled into him and wrapped her arm over his stomach as
she pressed her cheek to his chest. “You help chase away the dark, Cooper. I hope
this feeling never goes away.”

His hand at her back stilled before lifting her up farther, his face mere centimeters
from hers. “Forever. It’s forever.” He followed his own word with a toe-curling kiss.

Kyla released the tension in her body and relaxed against him. Soon the feelings she
felt earlier in the music store, the tingling at her core, began to overtake her once
again.

Cooper groaned, his hips lifting just a touch into her hand. “Fuck, Ky.” Kyla took
that as her cue and moved her fingers to the waistband of his boxers and pulled down,
releasing his now hardened erection. She wrapped her fingers around its width while
her thumb swiped the tip. She ducked her head down, intent on getting her mouth around
his cock when suddenly her body was lifted in the air and she was turned around. Kyla
had already gotten wet, just from touching Cooper, so when his tongue slid over her
slick heat she nearly lost her mind.

Kyla was in mid-moan when her mouth covered him and worked him over. One of Cooper’s
arms was tight over her hips, holding her in place though her body was desperate to
move against his mouth. He was teasing her with his tongue and mouth and she was doing
the same. They were each driving the other to the edge only to back away slightly
before starting again. Cooper’s other hand slid up her tummy and to her sensitive
nipples, pinching and rubbing it with his thumb and forefinger. His mouth moved away
just a touch and Kyla moaned around his cock in protest.

“I’m gonna come baby and I know you’re close. Let it go when you’re ready.” Kyla didn’t
know whether to laugh or cry in joy at his comment. How many men wanted to make sure
their woman got off? How many put them first before their own pleasure? From Kyla’s
experiences, which were limited, and her friends talking, it wasn’t many.

Suddenly Cooper’s hand was gone from her breast and he pinched her clit just as he
pushed two fingers deep inside her. Kyla came with a cry, though the sound was muffled.
She felt Cooper’s body tense but before he found his release, he was pulling her up
his body and flipping her over on her back.

“Cooper.” She moaned in protest.

She squirmed as Cooper’s hands slid down her spine and inside her panties.

“I love it when you say my name.” His hand moved and one finger slide inside her.
He swiped his thumb across her sensitive spot before applying slight pressure.

Kyla ground out a moan as her hips lifted up towards his hand.

“Don’t stop,” she begged.

“One minute, Ky.” He murmured and rolled away from her. He reached for his pants and
grabbed a condom from the pocket. He tore it open, rolling it on before covering her
body with his once more. He teased her entrance with his cock. Slowly he pushed inside,
his eyes locked on hers until he was settled deep inside her. His thrusts began slow
but soon they were at a fevered pitch. Kyla was keeping up with him, her nails sliding
down the skin of his back. He arched his back when he felt her pussy clench around
his cock as she came again. He buried his face in her neck as his own climax overtook
him.