Page 78 of Can We Just Be Happy Now?

I quickly pack my backpack with everything Cooper listed, plus some. Zipping it, he takes it from me and swings it over his shoulder.

Knowing I’d follow him anywhere, I let him lead me to his car without any more questions. Almost an hour later, he pulls off the road and onto a dirt path. “Where are we?” I’m having deja vu like maybe I’ve been here before, but I can’t place the memory as we pull into a dirt parking area, my view blocked by a row of fir trees.

“At item number six on your list,” Cooper grins as he pulls the key from the ignition.

Confused, I open the list on my phone, my eyes going wide. “Cooper, we’re in public,” I say, my eyes squinting, barely able to make out the swimming hole through gaps of branches.

He laughs. “If you’re naked in private, it’s called a shower, Sophie.”

“Oh.” I guess I didn’t think this one through.

Cooper senses my hesitation. “Soph.” His finger hooks on the side of my face and turns me to look at him. “It’ll be fine. I’ll make sure you’re comfortable, okay?”

I sigh. “The whole point of this is to get uncomfortable.” I glance back through the windshield. “Let’s do it.”

“That’s my girl.” He releases me with a grin, jogging around to my side of the car and helping me down. “Come on.” When we push through the overgrown path, a shallow, crystal clear swimming hole lies in front of us. Moss covered rocks line the edges and there’s a waterfall upstream. There aren’t a ton of people, but still, it’s other people. I’ve only ever been naked in front of Cooper.

Cooper scans the area before his eyes land on a massive boulder on the edge of the swimming hole. “This way.” I let him take my hand and lead me across the rocks, careful not to slip on the wet moss.

When he’s satisfied with our location, he drops my hand, replacing it with the T-shirt he’s tugging over his head. I stare as the sun lights his abs as they flex with his movement. God, he’s so hot. Oblivious to my gaping, he kicks off his joggers, folding them neatly on top of his shirt resting on a nearby rock.

His thumbs are hooked on the edge of his briefs when he notices I haven’t made any effort to undress. He wets his lips and takes a step toward me. My heart races, flutters of arousal swarming my stomach. The way this man looks and the way he looks at me–I can’t believe I get a second chance with him.

“Do you need help?” he whispers, close enough his breath brushes my lips. Still able to remember we aren’t alone, I glance at my surroundings. I can’t see anyone behind this rock, and I’m assuming that means no one can see us either.

I nod.

Cooper’s thumbs brush across the bare skin on my shoulder. He places a soft kiss on my collarbone and continues trailing his lips up my neck as he slides the straps of my dress off my shoulders. It’s warm enough for July, but the air connecting with my skin sends a chill through me. “This is surreal. Us being back together,” I whisper, trickling water and a breeze through the trees the only other sound.

He drags the fabric over my breasts slowly as his lips reach my ear. “There is nothing more real than us.”

I melt at his words. No matter how far we drift, he’s always my constant, and we always come back.

He kisses me as slowly as he’s teasing my dress down my body. It’s torturous and perfect and every worry that someone might see us fades away. I break our kiss only long enough to step out of my dress, coming back to him to loop my arms around his neck and pull us closer. His warm skin against mine attempts to dissolve the chills running through me from the touch of his hands running up my back. Our tongues tangle together in the perfect harmony they’ve always had as he unhooks my strapless bra and pulls his chest back enough for it to fall between us.

His fingers press into the skin at my hips, sliding down until they catch on the layer of silk between us. He groans as he slips it off, immediately pressing back against me, his briefs the only thing separating my already sensitive skin and his hard-on.

Taking a step forward, he mirrors my movement, backing up until he’s against the rock behind him. My hands trail down his chest until they reach the elastic band. Cooper helps me tug them off, and as soon as there’s nothing between us, our kissing shifts from sweet to frantic, like we can’t get enough.

It’s been a few weeks since we’ve gotten back together. We agreed there was no reason to rush because in Cooper's words, we have the rest of our lives. I couldn’t disagree more. I don’t want to waste any more time than we already have, but I’m trying my best to be patient. I know he just wants to make sure I’m ready since it’s such a big step.

I press into him harder, but he slips between the rock and me, his grip on my hip tugging me toward the water as he backs slowly into it. Trying to keep our lips locked, I stumble over the rocks in the shallow water, Cooper’s smile evident in our kiss. His arms lock around my waist tightly as he slows down, backing us into the deeper pool of water. When we’re deep enough I have trouble touching the rocky floor, I let my legs float up to wrap around his waist, the water swishing against his chest. We both groan as we connect in all the right places, and I can’t help but grind against him as my head falls to his shoulder. “Fuck, Sophie. You feel so good.”

He’s not even inside me and my orgasm is on the verge of taking over. “Coop,” I choke out, grinding against him as he backs against the rock underwater for leverage, pulling us completely out of any current from the water passing by. “Oh my god.”

“I love when you come for me,” he breathes against my ear.

“You always make me come better,” I mumble, stuck in that in between before ecstasy kicks in.

He pulls back ever so slightly, forcing me to readjust the hold of my legs around him. “Better than who?”

What? Oh, he thinks I mean someone else. “Myself, silly.” A visible sigh of relief deflates his chest. “Even when I think of you, it’s never as good as the real thing.” My orgasm is slipping away, but reassuring Cooper is more important.

His eyes flick to mine. “You think about me?”

“Every time,” I admit.

On a groan he pulls me tighter, rocking my body against his. Within seconds, the friction against my clit pulls me right back to the edge, and I topple over it without warning. Breathless, I’m too overcome to move. Cooper grinds me against him, his head tipping against the rock with a groan. “Jesus Christ,” he mutters. “You turn me on so much. I love that you’re mine.” His lips find mine again, and I’m just as desperate for the connection as I come down from my high right as his begins. His body convulses slightly as he increases the pressure between us. He slows to a still, and having regained some of my strength, I tighten my legs around him, leaving his hands free. They thread through the dry part of my curls by my face, the bottom wet and stuck to my skin. “I’m like a damn teenager when it comes to you.” He chuckles.

---