Wilde Riders (Old Town Country Romance) (10 page)

I shake my head. “You got the Bonus Score.” Then I point to where tickets are pumping out of her machine.

“Wow, that’s a lot of tickets.”

“That’s what happens when you hit the corner hole.”

She grins.

“Do you think you can do it again?” I ask.

“Oh, yeah!”

Riley seem to be like some kind of
Skee Ball savant because from that point on, she’s on fire and it doesn’t stop. She’s raking up tickets like I’ve never seen before.

When all of our quarters are finally spent, we take the huge pile of tickets over to the counter with all of the prizes.

Riley hands the old guy behind the counter the huge pile of tickets we’ve both accumulated and he actually looks a little surprised.

He puts the tickets through an automated ticket counter and declares that we have 523, enough for one of the larger, second tier prizes.

Riley can’t help but grin when we both look up at the second tier of prizes and they’re all stuffed animals, and not just any animals, they’re all various shapes and sizes of stuffed cows.

“Just what I always wanted,”
she declares facetiously. “A stuffed cow.”

“See one you like?” the old guy asks.

“It’s so hard to choose,” Riley declares. Then she glances in my direction and adds. “I love cows so much.”

***

“It’s not that bad,” I say as I examine the stuffed cow more closely. Riley picked one with gigantic eyes and a button for a nose.

“It’s a cow,” she teases. “You know how much I love them.”

“He’s kind of cute.” I move the cow back and forth in front of her. Then I try to speak in my best cartoon cow voice, “Please love me Riley. Even if I am a cow.”

“Fine,” she says, and grabs the cow from me. “I love you,” she says to the cow and gives it a quick kiss. Then she glances at me. “Happy?”

“Ecstatic. I feel like I’m living vicariously through that cow.”

“Does that mean you want a kiss too?” she teases.

“That’s exactly what it means.” I pull her close and place a soft kiss on her lips. To my surprise she deepens it and soon we’re standing in the middle of the thoroughfare making out again. It takes a few more hoots and hollers before we both decide to break.

“Now what?” Riley asks.

“You must be starving.”

“I could eat.”

“How about funnel cake?”

She frowns. “
I don’t know. I’m still a little weary about fair food”

“
At least give it a try,” I urge.

We stop at the funnel cakes booth and I order one for us to share. It’s dripping with grease and powdered sugar. I hope Riley loves it as much as I do.

“I can see it’s a real health food,” she jokes, as she takes a piece and pops it in her mouth. I notice that she’s got some powdered sugar on the side of her mouth. I wipe at it with my thumb.

“So?” I ask. “How do you like it?”

“I actually think I can feel my arteries hardening,” she jokes.

I dip my finger in a big glob of powdered sugar and playfully wipe it on her nose. She goes a little cross-eyed as if she’s trying
to catch a glimpse of the sugar. Then she retaliates by wiping a little on my nose as well.

Within a few minutes, Riley looks like she’s turning a little green. I can see sweat beginning to bead on her forehead. “I’m not feeling so good,” she says. “I think I need to sit down.”

“Is it the funnel cake?” I ask. “I feel fine.”

“Are you used to eating greasy foods?” she asks as she takes a seat on an unoccupied bench.

I don’t want to admit that I have a pretty awful bachelor diet. I almost always eat out and rarely cook.

“I’m usually a fairly healthy eater. I don’t think all the grease and sugar is sitting well on my stomach.”

“I’m sorry,” I say. I feel like a real jerk for making her try the funnel cake. “Maybe I should take you back home so you can lie down for a while.”

She nods.
As I help her up I notice she’s holding her stomach. I wish there was something I could do to make her feel better.

I take the shortest possible route back to my parents’ place and have her undressed and back in the bed as quickly as poss
ible.

“I’m going to get you some Ginger Ale, okay?” I ask as I wipe her forehead with a wet washcloth. “It’ll settle your sto
mach.”

She gives me a small smile that tugs at my heartstrings. “Thanks for taking such good care of me.”

I place a light kiss on her forehead and head for the kitchen.

Tucker is seated at the breakfast table. This time he’s staring at a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on his plate.

“What’s going on?” I say, as I pass by him.

He just grunts in response.

“Are you actually going to eat that sandwich or are you just going to watch it to see if it moves?”

“Funny,” he replies, as
he picks it up and takes a bite.

I open the fridge. “Do you want some milk with that?” 

“Yeah, okay.” He takes another bite of his sandwich.

I grab the Ginger Ale and milk. “Riley’s not feeling well.” 

“I’m not surprised the Farm and Horse Show made her sick,” he says. “I hate that place.”

“How can you hate the Farm and Horse Show?” I ask. “It’s a tradition.”

“It sucks,” he grumbles.

“I still like it.” I pour a glass of milk for him and a small glass of Ginger Ale for Rile
y. “It brings back memories of Mom and Dad taking us when we were kids.”

“I guess if I had kids I’d take them,” he says. Then he glares at me. “But we both know there’s not a lot of chance of that happening. Maybe I’ll get to take my nieces and nephews when you and Riley have kids.”

“Nothing like getting way ahead of ourselves,” I say, as I place the milk down in front of him. “I’ve known Riley for all of two days.”

“You can’t tell me you don’t already have feeling
s for her. I have eyes, Dude.”

I don’t really want to go down that road with Tucker because I really have no idea what’s happening with me and Riley. He’s right, I do like her. But I haven’t exactly been honest about who I am. I get the feeling that she kind of likes the New Jersey country
boy but it’s not really who I am. At least it’s not all that I am. I’m not sure she’ll like the real Cooper Wilde, the Wall Street wannabe, the person who I’ve worked so hard to become and the one I’m now working just as hard to hide.

I take a seat at the table with Tucker. “I do have feelings for her. I just don’t know how she feels about me.”

He actually rolls his eyes at me. “All girls like you, Coop. How could they not? You’re perfect in every way.”

“She likes who she thinks I am. I don’t think she’ll like the real me very much.” She already said it a number of times. No Wall Street guys. She’s not into them at all.

“You won’t know until you give her a chance.”

“I don’t want to
mess things up,” I admit. “I’m afraid I’ll lose her if she finds out who I really am.”

“I’m definitely not the person to give advice about girls.” Tucker takes a gulp of his milk then continues. “But I think you should be honest with her.”

I rise. “I need to get this Ginger Ale up to her.”

He
nods then says, “The band is going to practice soon. Getting ready for tonight. You in?”

“Yeah, I’m in,” I reply as I exit with the soda. He’s right. I should be honest with her. I just can’t bring myself to actually do it. I want her to fall completely and totally in love with me first. Is that a bad thing?

Riley eyes pop open when I enter the room. “I must have dozed off.” 

“Here,” I sit on the edge of the bed and help Riley prop he
rself up a bit. I hold the glass and give her a small sip of the Ginger Ale.

“Thanks.” She gives me a forced half smile.

“Do you need anything else?” I offer. Once again, I’m overwhelmed by the urge to take care of her.

“Maybe just some rest.” She lies back down on the pillows.

“Okay.” I place a soft kiss on her cheek. “I’m going to practice with the guys for a while. I decided to play tonight. I hope you’ll feel better by then. I’d really like for you to see us.”

“I’m sure I’ll feel fine after a nap,” she assures me. “I really want to
hear you play.”

That’s the final part of my plan to get Riley to fall for me. A
fter she sees me perform, I plan on telling her the truth. That I’m not just a country bumpkin like she thinks. That there’s another side to me. Hopefully, it won’t be a deal breaker. 

I tuck in the edges of the covers so Riley won’t get cold. Then I place another kiss on her forehead. “Get some rest,” I whisper as
she closes her eyes.

Ten

Riley

I’ve never had another person take care of me before. My parents weren’t exactly nurturing types. It surprises me that Cooper is so tender and gentle and takes such good care of me.

I have to admit that I really like it.              

I wonder what changed his mind about playing with the Wilde Riders again. He seemed so dead set against it. I can’t help but think that I influenced him when I said I wanted to see him play.

When my cellphone rings, I grab it from the nightstand and answer it without bothering to look at the caller ID.

“
Where are you?” a female voice screams at me through my cell phone.

I instantly regret answering the call. But in my defense, I thought it might be Cooper phoning to check up on me and I didn’t want him to worry. I feel like I need to tell Patti that I'll be staying in New Jersey all weekend. I don't want her to worry about me. She'll probably send a search party to look for me if I don't.

“I'm staying in New Jersey until Monday,” I state and brace myself for the inevitable round of questions that I’m sure will follow.

“
I heard the words,” she says. “I'm just having a hard time believing what I'm hearing. You hate New Jersey. You've said you'd rather die than have to spend time in New Jersey. You said you'd rather be strung up by your toenails than spend time in New Jersey. You said...”

I cut her off before
she can continue. “I lost a bet, okay?” I’m not ready to share anything else with Patti. I know how judgmental she tends to get.

Besides, aren’t things with Cooper strictly for the weekend? Despite how incredibly hot as he is, and how sweet he seems to be, and as much chemistry as we have and as compatible as we seem to be, we both agreed it was a short term thing. We're from different worlds. There's no future for us. We both know it.

But if that's true, why am I so sad thinking about the possibility of never seeing him again after I go back to New York?

“
What kind of bet is that?” Patti asks.

“
It doesn't matter. I just don’t want you to worry when I don’t come back to the city right away.”

“
I'm still worried,” she says. “Maybe even more so now. This isn't like you. You're not spontaneous. You don't just make a bet and stay in New Jersey.”

“
Please don't worry,” I plead. “I'm fine.”

She
doesn't respond right away and that worries me. Finally, I hear her let out an enormous sigh. “I'm coming to New Jersey.”

“
No!” I practically yell. The last thing I need is for Patti to come to New Jersey. I try to take in a calming breath. Then I say, “You don't need to come to New Jersey.”

I wait but there's no response.
“Patti?”

She's already hung up...and she’s probably already on her way out of New York. I try to call back several times but it goes to voice mail.

Great.

Then I realize Patti has no idea exactly where in New Jersey I actually am.

I think about finding another way to contact her but then I decide against it. Maybe it’s better if she seeks but never quite finds me.

I grab a quick shower in the blue bathroom
, but this time I make sure to lock the door so one of the Wilde boys doesn’t accidently (or maybe even not so accidently) enters while I’m getting ready.

As much as I still think Harley doesn’t like me, she obviously likes Jake enough to give me quite a bit of clothing to choose from. For this evening I decide on a little
, flouncy white skirt that looks really cute with the red cowboy boots she loaned me. And I pair it with a white corset top that accentuates my cleavage just right with the push up bra. I hope Cooper likes it as much as I do. And maybe I’ll fit in a little better with the country music fans at Haymakers than I would if I if I picked something more like what I’d wear to a bar in New York.

As I make my way down the stairs I can’t help but once again take notice all of the family photos lining the wall. Seeing photos of Cooper and his brothers when they’re young makes me think about one day having a family of my own. I try to push that idea to the back of my mind. No good can come from thinking about marriage and raising a family. Right now, my career needs to come first. With my hectic work schedule I’m not sure it will ever be realistic to think about becoming a mother.  

“Wow,” I hear a male voice say. The exclamation is followed by a low whistle.

I turn to see Jake heading up the stairs. He’s eyeing me like a hungry lion. It immediately makes me uncomfortable.

“Cooper is one lucky guy,” he makes a point of saying, even though the words don’t match his actions. He’s still eyeing me like a starved animal.

“I’d say you’re pretty lucky, too.”

He raises an eyebrow. “Me? Lucky? Nah. I’m not the Golden Boy of the family like Cooper.”

I’m not sure what it is about these Wilde boys that they’re so competitive with each other but it’s a little disturbing. “If I had to bet, I’d guess that Cooper would say you were the Golden Boy of the family.”

Jake gives a hearty laugh. “He’s the one who got you.”

“And what about you and Harley?” I offer.

“What about us?” He gives me a sideways glance.

“The two of you seemed awfully cozy with each other.”

“Cozy, huh? Is that what they’re calling hooking up in New York these days?”

“And hooking up is what you’re calling what’s going on with Harley?”

He steps a little closer to me and I can feel the heat radiating from his body. I want to step away but I don’t want to seem rude. 

“That’s exactly what I call it,” he insists.

“And what do you think Harley calls it?” I push.

He bites the inside of his cheek, which seems like a nervous habit. “She knows the score.”

“Are you sure about that?” I now look directly into his eyes.

He wipes at his forehead where a little bit of sweat has a
ppeared. I can see my line of questioning is making him uncomfortable.

“What’s going on?” I hear another voice at the bottom of the stairs. It’s Cooper.

When Jake takes a step back, I realize that our close proximity might have made it look like something inappropriate was taking place between me and Jake. My suspicion is confirmed when I see that Cooper is seething. His eyes are slits of anger and his face is a stone mask.

“Dude, chill,” Jake says as he turns to his brother.

Cooper has now joined us on the staircase. I can see that his hands are clenched into tight balls of rage. I just hope he doesn’t hit his brother, especially for no good reason.

“Jake and I were just having a conversation about Harley,” I say, hoping to alleviate some of the tension that is now thick in the air.

Cooper’s eyes are still narrowed as they dart between me and Jake. I just wish Jake didn’t look so smug. I think he’s really enjoying getting his brother riled up.

“I wanted to see how you’re feeling,” Cooper says to me. “Make sure you’re okay.”

“She’s fine,” Jake responds.

Cooper glares at him. “I wasn’t talking to you.”

I can’t reach Cooper because Jake is still standing between us but I really want to have some kind of physical contact with him. I think my touch would relieve some of the enormous amount of tension that seems to have overtaken his body.

“What crawled up your ass?” Jake replies.

“Do you mind moving out of the way so I can have a conversation with Riley?”

Jake crosses his arms over his chest, which seems even broader today. “Maybe I like where I’m standing.”

“Don’t be a jerk,” Cooper spits.

With a smirk Jake says, “But I’m so good at it.”

The brothers glare at each other but neither one will move from his position on the stairs.

“This is ridiculous,” I hiss. “Both of you need to grow up. I’m going back upstairs and if one of you decides to stop acting like a twelve-year-old, you can meet me there.”

I waste no time marching back up the stairs and into the guest bedroom. When I sit on the bed, I can actually feel myself shaking a little. I’m usually not that bold and direct with people but the Wilde brothers, especially when they’re together, seem to bring that out in me.  

Only a few moments go by before I hear a soft knock at the door.

“Come in,” I call out.

When Cooper enters, he looks like a puppy that’s just been yelled at by its master. It tugs on my heartstrings a bit
to see him look so pitiful.

“I’m sorry,” he says as he approaches the bed.

I glance up and give him a small smile. That seems to lift his spirits a bit.

“I don’t know what happens when I get around Jake. I just can’t seem to think rationally, which isn’t like me at all.”

I pat the spot on the bed right next to me and Cooper takes a seat. When I place my hand on his leg, he immediately takes it into his. I like how well our hands fit together.

Not that they’re the only body parts that fit together nicely.

He doesn’t waste any time reminding me how well our lips fit together too.

After a tender kiss, Cooper looks into my eyes and I can see there’s still some uncertainty there. 

  “You have nothing to worry about,” I whisper, then place another soft kiss on his lips. “I don’t want Jake. I want you.”

“Girls always want Jake,” he replies, as he moves a hand on my cheek and searches my face.

“Haven’t you figured out yet that I’m not like other girls?”

“Oh, I’ve figured that out all right.”

When he gives me his signature half smile, I realize that confident Cooper has returned. I just wonder what I can do to bring out his full-blown smile that I love so much.

“How much time before you have to get back to the bar?” I ask.

He raises an eyebrow. “How much time do we need?”

“It depends,” I tease. “What will it take to get you to give me a real smile?”

“I’ve got several ideas.” He looks at his watch. “And we’ve got enough time for any one of them.”

“Care to share some of those ideas with me?” I ask, as I move in closer to him.

“I think I’d rather just show you.”

***

Another round of mind blowing sex and I don’t want to get out of the bed. My body is like jelly.

Cooper has his arm around me and is holding me tight. I don’t think he wants to get up either but we both know we have to.

“So what it is with you and Jake,” I say as casually as possible. I don’t want to upset him but it’s a question that has been burning in my mind.

“What do you mean?”

“Why are the two of you so competitive with each other? I mean I know about sibling rivalry and all that but it seems like there’s more to it.”

Cooper heaves a small sigh and I wait while he seems to be collecting his thoughts. Then he says quietly, “Merilee Winters.”

“Who is that?”

When he looks at me, I can see that deep sadness in his eyes again. Part of me wishes I hadn’t brought up the subject but I really want to know what happened.

“A girl I was absolutely crazy about in high school. I thought I was in love with her. Of course, she didn’t even know I existed. I hadn’t filled out yet. I was
a skinny, kind of nerdy guy, sort of like Hunter.”

“Hunter isn’t nerdy,” I say in his defense.

Cooper gives me a look like I must be blind.

“Okay, maybe a little,” I admit.

“Anyway, Merilee was cute and everyone loved her. But she didn’t pay any attention to me. At some point, I guess I was feeling sorry for myself and I let it slip to Jake why I was so upset. I told him I was crazy about Merilee and she didn’t even know I existed.

“As soon as I said the words, I knew it was a mistake. He got this look in his eye like he now held the secret weapon that he could use to destroy me. And that’s exactly what he did. Within a few days he was going out with Merilee. She bragged to all of her friends
, and anyone else who would listen, that she was dating a senior and the star of the football team. It was quite a catch for a sophomore. I could tell she really liked Jake but he didn’t seem to have the same feelings for her. I still saw him flirting with the cheerleaders when she wasn’t looking. They went out for about a month. It was just long enough for Merilee to lose her virginity to my brother and for him to dump her the following Monday. Within a few days he was dating one of the cheerleaders that he’d been flirting with behind her back.

“She was furious. Especially because my brother let everyone in the school know how much he loved doing it with a virgin and how much he wanted another one. He joked that he just didn’t want to have to go down to the junior high to get another one. I’m sure it was humiliating. Merilee wouldn’t even look at me after that. For the next two years I
was more invisible than ever, no doubt because I’m Jake’s brother.”