Page 19 of Collide

They always tried to go places that weren’t right in town. Rumors spread so fast in Blackcreek, and since neither Adrianna or Cooper wanted anything serious with each other, it made things easier.

“You’re awfully quiet, Cooper.” She looked up at him from the stool she sat on. Coop stood in front of her, close, Adrianna’s back to the bar so she could see him.

And she was right. He was being quiet. But he wasn’t sure why. “Nah. You’re imagin’ things.” He grinned at her and she smiled back. She really was a beautiful woman. He’d always loved red hair. Hers was this deep shade, with certain spots looking almost purple in some lights. Cooper touched it, let some of the strands slide through his fingertips. All that soft hair. This was what he needed to try and focus on. This and the fact that they both wanted the same thing from each other was just icing on the cake. She wasn’t looking for a guy like Coop for the long haul. He guessed he wasn’t the kind of guy she thought would be a good fit as her kid’s stepdad.

She was right. Not that he didn’t like kids. He just never saw himself as a father. The thought of getting hurt and leaving a child behind scared him too much.

Leaning forward, he put his mouth close to her ear. “It’s been a while. How have things been with you?” His arms were on either side of her, palms on the edge of the counter.

“Too long. And things are good. Keeping busy at work.” She had this husky, smoky voice, that had always driven him wild. “How’s your friend that you brought to the ER? He hurt his ribs, right?”

At that, Cooper pulled away and stood up straight. It would mean he’d have to talk louder so she could hear. Noah was the last person he wanted to talk to Adrianna about. Which made him an asshole. It wasn’t his friend’s fault Cooper had a fucked-up dream about him, and started noticing him in ways he shouldn’t. “All healed up.”

Picking up his beer, he drank the whole thing and then signaled for the bartender to bring another one. “You ready for more?” he asked, but the glass in Adrianna’s hand was still half full. She held it up to show him.

“I’m good. So, he’s new in town, right? How’d you guys end up friends so fast?”

Cooper fought his groan. She was only being friendly and making conversation, but the point in tonight was to get his mind off Noah, not to keep thinking about him.

It was a fluke. A weird night. I’m not attracted to Noah.

“He and I were friends as kids. He up and disappeared while I was away with my aunt one weekend, and I never heard from him again. Not till he came back last month. Been seventeen years.”

He hadn’t needed to say all that. It pissed himself off that he did.

Cooper grabbed the new beer and took a couple long pulls. “I want my hands on you. Come dance with me.”

She smiled and set her drink down. Cooper joined his hand with hers and led her to the dance floor. The song was fast but he still pulled her tightly against him, moving slowly, letting his hands skate up and down her back. Soft, soft, soft. That’s what I want.

They danced a few songs, Adrianna exploring as much as Coop. Afterward, they took a break and he ordered another drink, bullshitting about life and whatever else they could think to talk about. Anytime they went out, Adrianna never drank more than one.

The conversation continued on for a while. Each time Cooper went to ask her if she was ready to leave, he asked her another question instead. I’m putting off going home with her. Why isn’t Adrianna turning me on like she always has?

Finally it was Adrianna who prompted, “Not that I’m not having a good time here with you, Coop, but you have to remember, I need to be home early for my daughter. She has a soccer game in the morning, and it’s highly frowned upon for me, as the coach to be late.”

His pulse spiked. “I thought your daughter was with her dad tonight, so we were going to your place?”

She shook her head. “The soccer schedule got changed and she has the early game. It’s not fair to her dad to lose time with her, and have to get her home early. He’s taking her next weekend instead. I got a sitter for tonight.” Her nose wrinkled, and he could tell she wondered what the big deal was. It wasn’t as if she’d never come to his house before.

Coop shook his head. What the hell was his problem? It shouldn’t be a problem. He had the right to bring a woman home, just like Noah had the right with a man.

Coop pushed to his feet, the chair accidentally falling backward. “Shit.” He bent and picked it up. He needed to relax. Coop had no idea why he was so on edge.

“Let me go pay and we can go.” He took care of the tab and then met Adrianna by the door. They had taken her car. There wasn’t a place for Coop to hide his truck at her house, so she often drove. She always pulled her car around by the shed at his place.

“Ready?” he asked, as he held the door open for her.

“Always.”

CHAPTER SEVEN

“I’m hungry, and the food here is shit. There’s a little diner about a mile east called Reds. I’ll be there for the next half hour or so, grabbing something to eat.” The brown-haired guy—Wes, who’d sat next to Noah at the bar—stood, and walked out. Noah didn’t watch him go. Didn’t have to, to know he’d enjoy the view. He was sexy as hell, strong jaw with the right amount of stubble that Noah liked. He loved the way stubble felt against his skin.

He also knew that even though he rarely picked someone up at a bar, that’s exactly what he would do tonight. It’s what he came out for, after all.

It hadn’t been ten minutes that he’d been here when he’d noticed Wes looking at him. At first he’d turned away each time Noah met his eyes. When Noah let his gaze linger enough, Wes got the message—Noah was gay too. He’d come right up to the bar and took the stool next to him, and ordered a drink. They bullshitted a little, not too much, because the last thing he wanted, was to risk shit going down, but now Wes had solved that problem for them.

Raising a hand, Noah signaled the bartender over. “How much?”

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