Page 32 of Too Delicious

Summer is undeterred by my disbelief. “Look at the facts. He respects you when you say you’re not ready. He keeps an eye on you when you’re out and about alone and working alone at Little Spoon. The man built a fence around you with his hands when he could have hired someone to do it. He bought a house across the street from you!”

“Which is a little psycho,” I mutter, even though I don’t believe it myself.

“He loves you so much he can’t help himself. If you don’t lock him down, he will drive Carter insane with the lovesick puppy act.”

I take the bottle and finish the last bit of it.

“There’s more,” I admit. “Every time I sit down to come up with new recipes for Little Spoon, all I think about is what would Cooper like.”

Summer arches an eyebrow. “You finished my bottle. Now you owe me. Get over there and tell him the truth.”

The truth? Facing the truth is a scary proposition.

But I think about Cooper, and imagine the alternative. Not having him around, looking out for me, keeping me company, and generally being wonderful, is simply unacceptable.

chapter

fifteen

Cooper

In the middle of watching the game highlights, there’s a knock on the door.

In the dark, I trip over a box as I go to the door.

Harmony stands there, holding a bucket of something frozen.

“Hi.”

“Hi,” she says, biting her bottom lip.

“Hi,” I say again, hoping this prompts her to say something else.

I can do this all night.

Shyly, she looks past me. “Got any whiskey in any of those moving boxes?”

I stand aside and gesture for her to come in. “Let’s open one and find out.”

I stand aside and she comes in, setting the bucket on the countertop.

“I saw you had food delivered, so I thought I would let you taste test this for dessert,” she says, setting it down on the kitchen island.

“Ice cream is my favorite thing after 9 p.m.,” I say.

She rests a hand on her hip. “It’s not ice cream, Cooper. We’ve been over this.”

I nudge her shoulder with a loving tap and she blushes. To hide this, she turns away and looks for bowls and spoons.

“Where are your bowls? And why is it so dark in here?”

I shrug. “Haven’t unpacked them yet. And the last owners took all the lightbulbs out of the fixtures.”

“You’re kidding.”

“I wish I were. I didn’t think to pick any up while Carter and I were moving my stuff in, and I guess I didn’t notice until after dark that they were all missing.”

“How have you unpacked silverware but not plates and bowls?”

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