“Wait!” He stumbled forward and tried to grab her hand, but she backed out of his reach. “I want to—”
“Kayla, are you okay?” her mom asked, coming up behind her and hovering like an anxious mother hen. “Why are you here?”
Cooper flinched. “I needed to talk to her. I got Susan’s permission first.”
“Well, you don’t have mine.” Her mom crossed her arms. “You can take yourself right on out—”
“Mom.” Kayla shooed her away. “I’m fine. Just let him talk to me, and you go have fun. I can handle myself.”
“Fine.” Her mom’s eyes narrowed on Cooper. “But I’ll be watching you.”
Cooper nodded. “I know.”
When they were alone again, Cooper heaved a sigh. “Where were we? Oh, right. I was about to tell you—”
“It doesn’t matter what you were going to say.” Her heart twisted. “We’re done.”
He held a hand out. “Please. Don’t say that. I’ll stay for you. I want to stay for you.”
“Stay?”
Her breath slammed out of her chest. He would give up his job for her? That was exhilarating, wonderful…and horrible, all at the same time. Because she wanted to say yes so damn badly. Wanted to be selfish and let him stay.
But it’s not what he wanted. He’d been pretty damn clear about that.
And what about next time his demons over losing Josh reared their heads?
“Is everything okay over here?” her father asked.
Kayla closed her eyes and counted to three in her head. By the time she hit three, she was ready to talk again. She opened her eyes and then managed a smile. “Yes, Dad, everything is fine. We’re just talking.”
Her father scowled at Cooper. “I’ll let you talk, but I’ll be—”
“Watching him,” Kayla finished dryly. The moment was so frustrating she couldn’t help but shake her head. “Yeah. We got it.”
Cooper choked on a laugh, but covered his mouth to hide it. “I won’t be long, Mr. Moriarity.”
Her dad nodded. “Good.”
Then he left, too. Cooper grabbed her hands and squeezed them tight. “I’m going to say this quickly in case someone else comes up. I’m fucking serious, Kayla. I want to stay with you.”
She bit down hard on her lower lip. “Look Cooper, what we had was fun. Great, even. And I’ll miss you, but you need to stick with Plan A. I won’t be the one to take you away from it. Not in a million years.”
“But I want to stay. You’re not listening.”
“No, you’re not listening. I realized something today, watching Susan and Max. Watching my mom and dad, even. I do want a future with someone, a good one. And for a little while, I wanted that someone to be you. But I’m not going to compete with something that happened in the past. I’m sorry about Josh, about what his fiancée is going through. I’m sorry that you feel responsible for it. But I’m right here, right now. And I think I’ve got a pretty damn good grasp of the things I can and can’t handle.”
He blanched. “Kayla, I’m sorry.”
“I don’t need your apologies.” She lifted her chin. “And I’m not finished yet. I can handle someone not being here. I can handle the man I love being in danger. But what I can’t handle is the fear that he’s just going to run off whenever he decides it’s best for me, regardless of my input. I want a partnership where I have a voice that’s heard, even if the man in my life is halfway across the globe in a war zone when he hears it. So…there. Good luck with your job. I have to go back in now.”
“I don’t want your good wishes, damn it.” He cupped her face, his grip firm yet gentle. His gaze clashed with hers. “I want you to believe me. I want you to let me be yours. And I want you to be mine. I just panicked for a second, and I pushed you away. I’m begging you not to do the same thing to me. Don’t push me away.”
“Kayla, is everything okay?” Uncle Frankie asked, his voice hesitant.
They both turned to him at the same time and shouted, “Yes!”
He stumbled back, blinking rapidly. “Okay, then.”
And then they were alone again. Kayla covered her face and took a shaky breath. She couldn’t do this. Couldn’t do any of this. She wanted so badly to believe him, the same way she’d believed him when he promised he’d stand by her through the wedding. And then he’d bailed.
And now he was back.
And he was still holding her.
“Let me stay, Kayla. Give me another chance. Please.”