My One and Only(62)

Stating a fact, he said, “That’s two weeks longer than I’ve ever been engaged.”

“This is not the time to remind me that you’re perfect.”

“As much as I’d like you to believe that, I’m far from perfect.” In all fairness, Haleigh shouldn’t be the only person dragging her history onto the lunch table. “The truth is that I can’t imagine tying myself to one person for the rest of my life. Legally, anyway.”

Haleigh stared unblinking. “You’re going to have to repeat that because I’m sure I heard it wrong.”

“You know the stats,” Cooper said. “How many people get married believing they’ve found the perfect person only to find out down the road that they were wrong?” His mother had endured more than twenty years with a man who’d treated her and his kids like crap. That would not happen to him. “Getting married is like putting all your money on one roll of the dice in Vegas. I’d rather keep what I have and go about my business. So why did the first guy only last two weeks?”

“Oh, no. You don’t get to drop a bomb like that and not follow it up. Are you saying you never want to have kids?”

This had always been the kink in his thinking. His mother had stayed for the sake of her children, and because in her generation, till death meant exactly that. Which meant Cooper knew from experience that staying only made things worse for the entire family.

“I’d love to have a couple munchkins, but that would make the whole thing imploding even worse.” At her incredulous look, he said, “I’m not saying never, I would just have to be sure. Like, really, really sure.”

Propping her chin on her hand, she said, “You want a guarantee that you’ll live happily ever after.”

Lifting his glass, Cooper said, “I’m cautious, not stupid. Nothing comes with a guarantee.” After taking a drink he added, “Let me put it this way. If I buy a car, I know enough about that machine that, with a thorough inspection, I know what I’m getting. It’s still a risk, as there’s always a chance of a hidden problem, but I feel secure enough about my knowledge of the subject to commit to buy. You meet a woman you’ve never met and you’re required to buy in, with a diamond, no less, practically sight-unseen. No manual. No clue what’s lurking under the manifold. Put your money down and hope for the best.” With a tap on the table, he said, “No, thank you.”

With her hands on her cheeks, Haleigh said, “Who are you and what have you done with the guy I came in here with?”

“Still me, darling.” Cooper picked up his fork. “And still single for a reason.”

“Ha,” she laughed. “And I thought I would sound like a commitment-phobe.”

With a shake of his head, he said, “I’m not afraid to commit. I simply haven’t found enough reason to do it.” With a bite on the end of his fork, he pointed it Haleigh’s way. “Now let’s get back to why you’re still single. Why three tries and no wedding?”

“That’s easy. Danny was a musician. I was twenty and in full rebellion phase, looking for anything that would piss off my mother. We got engaged one week after meeting, and two weeks later I caught him with two women in the back of a club.”

“What is it with women and musicians?” Cooper asked. “I’ve never gotten that.”

“What is it with big boobs leaning over the hood of a muscle car?” she asked.

“You saw the calendar, huh?”

Haleigh nodded. “She was hard to miss.”

Cooper surrendered. “We’ll call that one a draw. Engagement number two.”

“Phillip was a great guy. We met in recovery, and though it works for some, two addicts in one relationship was two too many for us.”

“That does sound like a recipe for disaster.” Growing up with one alcoholic parent had been enough to make Cooper’s childhood miserable. He couldn’t imagine growing up with two in the same household. Not that all drinkers were like his dad, obviously, but the possibilities were still more than he wanted to consider. “And lucky number three?”

“That would be Marcus.” Haleigh’s light tone vanished. “We broke up right before I moved back to Ardent Springs because Marcus didn’t want to live in a dinky little town—his words. He’s out in LA now, attempting to become the plastic surgeon to the stars.”

The first two castoffs Cooper could handle. A recent breakup with a doctor knocked him off balance.

“Plastic surgeon?”

“A young, up-and-coming plastic surgeon is how Marcus Appleton refers to himself. He was the opposite of Danny in that instead of trying to tick Mom off, I went out of my way to find a man who would meet her standards.” Lifting her glass before leaning back in her chair, Haleigh said, “And boy, was she pleased. Mother loves Marcus.”