Page 45 of Cooper

“Come on, I’ll show you how. Bean will tell you how easy it is.” Colton insists.

I try to come up with a lie, but Cooper beats me to it. “She’s had a problem with her leg.”

Colton lifts a brow but otherwise lets it go. If Wade were here, we’d be sunk, but he’s not, so the subject is dropped. I’m not sure if he buys it or not, but as long as he doesn’t draw attention to it, it’s all good. The last thing I want is for Bean to find out this way. Not just for the obvious reason, but also because Cooper has something special planned for her, and she deserves that more than this. After a nice dinner at home and a Christmas movie, I lay in bed with Bean for a while, reading with her, just like we’ve always done. And she suddenly looks up at me and starts crying.

“What’s the matter, baby?” I ask, holding her tight.

“Cassandra told me all about her mother, and how she died, and I’m so scared, mommy.”

“Why, baby? I’m not going anywhere.”

“Well, that’s what her mom said, too, and she left, and then she died. Cassandra said her mother didn’t want kids. She said it a hundred times, especially when she was angry, when Cassandra didn’t listen to her.” She sniffs. “Mommy, you wanted me, right?”

“Oh, sweetheart, I wanted you so bad, you came early.”

“Did daddy want me?”

“Of course, he did, baby. Why would you think that?”

I can hear Cooper rising from the couch, likely overhearing Bean’s crying.

“Because he wasn’t nice to me. Not the way that Cooper’s nice to me.”

I look up and see Cooper standing there, smiling warmly. He walks in and offers some help. “Well, all parents are different, Bean. Everyone is usually closer to one parent than the other, and sometimes it switches. But I suppose because I don’t have any little ones of my own, it makes me appreciate having you around, more.”

Bean settles some. I feel her cuddle closer to me. Cooper slides in beside her, so she’s sandwiched between both of us. When I feel her chest finally stop spasming, so I know that she’s finished crying, I pull her closer to me. Bean looks up at me. “Mommy, can you stay here tonight?”

“Of course, baby. I’m not going anywhere.”

Cooper looks at me and smiles. I smile back at him and kiss his awaiting lips. He mouths ‘love you’, and I mouth it back. He carefully walks out of the room, leaving us, and I hold my baby tight all night. I so want to tell her that it’s almost over. I so want to tell her that we’re safe. But I know in my heart of hearts that now isn’t the time. We still haven’t told her about the funeral and as I think about it, I realize that there is one solution to that problem.

“I would do it in a heartbeat, but I’ve got back-to-back meetings on Monday afternoon.” Colton explains. “And with such short notice, I can’t switch them around. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay. I understand. I should have said something sooner. We were only with you all day yesterday and I never said a word. I shouldn’t even be asking you, considering you’re watching her in the morning for me.”

“Maybe Liz can watch her.” He suggests.

“Sure. I’ll ask.”

Turns out, Liz is able to watch her, and in fact, she offers to come to Colton’s ranch, so that she isn’t trucked all over the place. Bean is really great with not asking questions, since she knows that Christmas is getting close, and her hunch is that we’re going to do Christmas shopping. I don’t confirm or deny her guess, I just smile. We lay in Bean’s bed again, this time the three of us, reading to her, and then reading together, but again, I don’t have the heart to leave her, and Cooper falls asleep next to me, so we end up camping out on Bean’s bed for the night.

I have to wake him in the morning. “Jesus, you weren’t kidding when you said that your tiredness catches up to you. I don’t think you moved an inch all night.” I tell him.

“Slept like a baby, though.” He grunts, stretching, as Bean trots out of bed, eager to make Christmas pancakes again.

“I’ll bet you did.” I smile.

“Mommy! Cooper! Hurry up! I want to go over to Colton’s house!” Bean just about shrieks, knowing that she’s spending the day at the ranch again.

“Alright, Bean. I’ll be right out.” I say to her, and then I address Cooper. “You go on and get in the shower. I’ll help her make breakfast.”

Cooper kisses me on the mouth. “Sounds good. I won’t be ten minutes.”

“There’s no rush, Cooper. We don’t have to be at the doctor’s for another hour and a half.”

“Still. I don’t want to miss out on them pancakes.” He winks, walking to the bathroom, pulling his shirt off. I watch him as he winks again. It’s only been a couple of nights, but I miss making love with him. His warm, soft skin is a perfect juxtaposition to his tight muscles and ass, as he works it, without even knowing it, all the way to the bathroom. Bean is so eager to go riding that she barely finishes her breakfast.

“Now, you behave for Colton, okay?” I tell her perfunctorily. “And Liz is going to watch you for just a bit this afternoon. Until we get home, okay?”

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