“I’ll show you,” Carrie answered before Cooper could open his mouth. “The bed in the back bedroom works great.”
As the two mothers disappeared into the house, Haleigh said, “Carrie knows a lot about your bedrooms.”
Refusing to take the bait, he said, “Is there a question in there somewhere?”
She shook her head. “You two just seem like a sensible pairing. Spencer and Lorelei. Caleb and Snow. You and Carrie.”
Leaning close as if sharing a secret, Cooper said, “If you’re trying to suss out the truth of my availability, I promise that I am one hundred percent single.”
“You’re so full of yourself,” she said with a grin. “It’s a wonder all those baseball caps you wear actually fit on your big head.”
He raised a brow. “You really want to give me an opening like that?”
“Please.” Her efforts to appear unamused failed miserably.
Loading the grill with marinated ribs, he said, “You’re in a good mood tonight.”
With a teasing smirk, she said, “Is there a question in there somewhere?”
“A smart-ass remark. Definitely the sign of a good mood.”
Haleigh sighed. “I didn’t want to come any more than Abby did, but that’s the reason I’m here. If we’re both antisocial at the same time, there’s no hope for either of us. She’s dragged me from the abyss on more than one occasion. It’s about time that I returned the favor.”
Cooper took the opportunity to point out what Haleigh would never see on her own. “That’s the kind of thing that a good person would do.”
“More like a guilty person,” she snorted. “I’m running out of IOUs to hand out.”
If they kept going in this direction, he and Haleigh would end up in another standoff. Cooper brought them back to the subject of Abby.
“Do you think having Jessi and the baby around is making her worse?”
Snatching a peanut-butter-filled celery stalk from the table, Haleigh looked to be contemplating her answer. “She was already moody before Jessi moved in. And the only time I see her smile anymore is when she’s holding Emma and doesn’t think anyone is watching.”
“I talked to Miss Hattie about this J.T. person.” Cooper flipped the chicken breasts. “She’d never heard of anyone in town going by that name, and she’s lived here her whole life.”
“It’s obvious that Jessi’s mother made up this J.T. person,” Haleigh sighed. “But how are we going to tell her that? And if she does finally give up this pointless hunt, where will she go?”
He felt as if they were devising a way to tell a child that Santa Claus was a fraud. “What’s the harm in letting her think we’re still looking for him?”
“Again with the lying,” she said. “But in this case, a tiny fib might not be a bad idea. Still, are you going to tell Abby that this temporary arrangement might not be so temporary? She’s been the person most put out by all this.”
Cooper spotted Abby talking to Lorelei and Snow. She was almost smiling. Getting her out was definitely the right thing to do.
“I’ll tell her. Which reminds me, how did you get her to come?”
“Funny story,” Haleigh said, but she didn’t sound amused. “No lie required. I simply told her about the invitation and said I was coming whether she did or not.”
That didn’t explain why Abby agreed to come. “You lost me,” he said.
Pointing toward Abby with her celery stick, she said, “She doesn’t trust my intentions toward you.”
Liking the sound of that, Cooper said, “You have intentions toward me? I think we should explore this further.”
Haleigh rolled her eyes. “She thinks I’m going to break your heart. Which is ridiculous because you’re Cooper and I’m a walking disaster and no one knows either of those facts better than I do.”
He definitely didn’t like the sound of that. “Skipping the I’m Cooper bit, because I have a feeling that’s the sainthood bull crap again, let’s clear up the second part. You are not a walking disaster.”
“Come on, Coop,” Ian cut in. “I’m shriveling down to nothing over here, and the smell coming off that grill says the food is done.” Sparing Haleigh a glance, his cousin did a double take. “Hello, gorgeous.”
“Hey yourself, O’Malley. The last time I saw you, your head had yet to grow into your ears.” Haleigh grinned. “It’s nice to see some things never change.”
“Dude,” he mumbled out the side of his mouth as if Haleigh couldn’t hear him. “How does she know my name?”