Sharon let go of Cooper and padded over to Jackson. She still had on borrowed jeans and a bra, but no shirt. She crawled up next to him and cupped his face, even though he didn’t meet her gaze. “What is it? What has you so spooked? You’ve learned so much about us in the last few days. And you’ve taken it so well. What about this has pushed you over the edge?”
Cooper sat on the other side of Sharon and ran a hand up her back, giving her chills.
“I don’t know if I can do this,” Jackson muttered.
“Do what?” Cooper asked.
Sharon flinched. A silence filled the room for several seconds that seemed like hours. “Jackson…talk to us.”
He finally inhaled long and slow and turned his gaze to hers, glancing at Cooper and then back. “It’s like you two belong to this secret club, and there are a lot of members, but membership is invite only and exclusive. Since the club has existed for hundreds of years, there are general principles that are widely known and accepted.
“But see, I don’t know those norms. And I never will know them all. And it’s frustrating and confusing.”
“Babe…” She reached out for him, but he grabbed her wrist midair and kept her from touching his skin. Her chest hurt. She hated making him feel left out or inferior.
“You have conversations around me that make no sense.”
She swallowed. “I’m so sorry. We didn’t mean to—”
He shook his head and heaved himself off the bed, dropping her wrist and then pacing the floor. “I know you don’t. And I’m not mad. I just don’t fit into your world.”
“Of course you do,” Cooper said from behind her. “It’s fated.”
Jackson chuckled sardonically and whipped around to face them both. “See. Like that. Fated? What does that even mean? Do you realize how ridiculous it sounds?”
He was probably right. It was all Sharon knew, and she had no way of understanding how normal humans met and married as if joined by nothing but whimsy. “Yes. I hear you, but you’re a part of this, whether you like it or not. It’s who you are now. And yes, it’s going to take some time to learn about all of our idiosyncrasies, but you’ll get there. Everyone does. Rebecca did. Amanda did. You will too.”
“What if I don’t believe in your Fate? What if I’m not up to the task of fitting in?”
Cooper squeezed Sharon’s bare shoulder. “You don’t really have a choice. And it’s not entirely true that you don’t have some of the same abilities. Maybe they wouldn’t have been as developed without meeting us, but now that you have, you must admit you’ve experienced things you never dreamed possible.”
“Watched, yes. In shock most of the time.” He threw his hands in the air, and his voice rose as he spoke again. “Who smells when their woman is ovulating? Or pregnant? That’s crazy.”
“Okay,” Cooper said, “so you don’t have that one particular finely tuned ability. And no, you never will. But you do scent some things. Why do you think you returned to the ski resort over and over all winter? Because you were drawn to Sharon.”
Jackson rolled his eyes. “So what. Men do that every day. She’s smokin’ hot and funny and lights up a room with her smile. Who wouldn’t come back to witness that?”
Sharon’s face heated at the unintended compliment.
Cooper shook his head. “It’s more than that, and you know it.” He pushed himself off the bed and dragged Sharon to standing also.
Shocking her with his timing, he reached for the button on her jeans, pushed it through the hole, and then lowered the zipper. Before she could manage to comment, he tugged the denim down her legs and off her feet. He hooked his fingers into her panties and drew them down also, and then he reached around her and unclasped her bra, leaving her naked while both men were clothed.
It was unnerving, and she couldn’t imagine what his intent was. “Cooper…”
He shot her a glance. “Just let me make my point, baby.” He lifted her onto the bed by her waist and set her about a foot from the edge. And then he drew her legs up and set her heels down wide, spreading her open to his gaze and Jackson’s.
“Cooper? What the…?”
Cooper stepped back.
Sharon met Jackson’s heated gaze, his eyes glassy as he stared at her. He licked his lips. “What’s your point, Cooper? She’s fucking hot. I know this. I’ve known it for a long time. She doesn’t need to be naked for me to know this. It changes nothing.”
“Really? Close your eyes.” Cooper leaned against the mattress at her side. “Do it. In fact, turn around and face away from her. Close your eyes and just breathe.”