Page 9 of Craving Cooper

“And where’s that?”

“Not far. It’s just outside the town.”

I nod my head, even though he’s focused on driving, a slow-moving truck taking up most of the road in front of us. Not that Cooper seems in any rush to pass it. “You said your friends were moving two houses into one?” I say, to keep the conversation flowing. I like the sound of his voice, even if we’re not talking about anything special.

“Yeah. Laurel was married before… to Mitch Bradshaw.”

There’s something about the way he says that name that makes me shiver slightly, and I wonder if I’ve heard it before. “Should I know him?”

“That depends. Are you interested in pro-football?”

“Not particularly.”

“In that case, as you’re not from these parts, you probably won’t have heard of him, but Mitch played professional football… that is, when he wasn’t being a professional asshole.” I laugh, unable to stop myself. I’ve never heard Cooper say anything like that before and he glances at me, his lips twisting upward into a perfect smile. “Sorry. I probably shouldn’t have said that, but there’s a story behind all this, which I know, but not many other people do.”

“Why do you know it, if it’s such a secret?”

“Because Brady told me after it happened. Only Laurel didn’t want the entire town knowing intimate details about her private life… at least, not all of it.”

“I see,” I say, nodding my head again, while trying to think of something else to talk about. Secrets are secrets and I don’t expect him to share.

“Mitch cheated on Laurel,” he says, surprising me… not because of what he’s just said, but that he said it at all.

It feels good that he did, though. For some reason, it makes me feel close to him. “Did they split up?” I ask, concentrating on his face, and noticing the way his features seem to have hardened.

“No. Mitch was driving out of town with his pregnant girlfriend when he crashed his car, killing both of them and their unborn baby.” I can’t contain my gasp, and he glances over again, his face softening as he looks at me. “As the sheriff, Brady had to tell Laurel about Mitch’s death, but he kept the rest of it a secret.”

“You mean, he didn’t tell her what her husband was doing… about his girlfriend, or the pregnancy?”

“No.”

“Because he loved her?” I ask, hazarding a guess at his friend’s motives.

“Yeah. How did you know?”

“I didn’t, but I remember you saying Brady had been pining for Laurel, and I can’t see why else he’d have done that.”

“No, although it nearly backfired on him when she found out for herself.”

“Obviously it didn’t, though… not if they’re moving in together.”

“Oh, they’ve already done that. They’ve been living at Laurel’s place since the summer.”

“The place she shared with Mitch?” I ask and he nods his head. “That must have been difficult, given the history.”

“It has been, I think.”

“Then why didn’t they move into Brady’s place?” I ask.

“Because Laurel and Mitch had a daughter. Addy’s five now, and Laurel wanted her to have some continuity in her life.”

“How does Addy get along with Brady?” I ask, trying to take this all in and wondering what kind of atmosphere I’ll be walking into.

“Like a house on fire,” he says, smiling as the truck pulls off down a track, and we can speed up at last. “It’s kinda cute, really. Brady’s adopting her.”

“That’s lovely.”

“Yeah, it is.” He turns the car off the main road, onto a narrow driveway.

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