Page 68 of Rebels and Roses

“I hate that you’re right.”

“I know. I’m not a huge fan of calling in a hacker, but I’m not ready to walk away from this yet. If anything, talking to Amanda has put even more questions in my head. I will ask Finn to look into the call, too. I’d rather go the lawful way, to be honest.”

There were loose threads in the story of Tom’s last night on this earth. Why had he been doing coke in the first place? What made him fall off the wagon? Where did he get the drugs? And the most important one - was he alone when he died?

Cooper wasn’t going to give up, and neither would she. Next stop?

Tom’s other girlfriend in Chicago. Jane couldn’t wait to hear what the woman would have to say.

17

Cooper glanced at Jane who was standing next to him in the elevator of a swanky hotel in Chicago. He wanted to impress her. Period. He’d admitted it to himself when he’d made the reservation. They couldn’t talk to Cassie, Tom’s other girlfriend, until tomorrow.

Tonight, he was going to romance the delicate pink panties off of Jane.

She had no idea of his plan. He wanted it to be a surprise, although he wasn’t great at putting things like that together.

He’d been feeling absolutely shitty about Fiona being in Winslow Heights and taking his time and attention away from Jane. She deserved better than this, and he was determined to give it to her. Her ex-husband had been a real piece of shit, and Cooper never wanted her to categorize him the same.

They were a couple now. They’d said the words, they’d made the commitment - albeit a bit wishy-washy. He had to take most of the blame there. He hadn’t been ready to verbalize his feelings at that moment. There had been fear churning in his stomach, telling him not to go all in. He needed to move more slowly; there wasn’t any hurry.

He’d been taking it slow, however, for months with this woman. And frankly, he wasn’t a man who let fear run his life.

He was falling in love with her.

There. He’d admitted it.

Jane was the kind of woman that a man could depend on. If she loved someone, she’d do whatever was in her power to make them happy. She’d go out of her way to do nice things. She’d make them a priority in her life.

Cooper wanted to do the same. His marriage hadn’t exactly been a model of a good relationship, and his parents’ marriage hadn’t been any better. But…he’d seen people in a healthy, loving dynamic. He wanted it, and he had a feeling she did, too. But she’d been burned along the way, so she wasn’t going to throw caution to the wind and go all in with him unless he showed her that he was worth taking that chance.

He’d hold her hand when they both walked off that cliff together. Partners. That’s what he’d been looking for, and he’d never found it until her. There’d been women - lots of them - but no one had ever been his match. Jane didn’t give him any quarter. She demanded his best, and damn, if that didn’t make him want to give it to her. She challenged him to be a better person, a better writer, a better brother, and a better loving partner. He didn’t want to disappoint her.

Tonight was all about champagne, roses, and romance.

If they ended up ripping each other’s clothes off like wild animals? All the better. He could do soft seduction and freaky-deaky sex play, too.

I’m flexible like that.

Cooper had stayed in this hotel a few years ago when he was doing some research for a book. It had a luxurious feel to it without being cold and sterile. The service was top notch, the mattresses comfortable, and the views first-rate. Hell, even the water pressure was good.

He unlocked the door and then stepped back so she could enter. He watched her reaction closely as she stepped inside, her smile widening when she saw the table covered in roses and chocolates along with a champagne bucket next to it.

“Cooper Winslow, you dog,” Jane drawled. “Are you trying to seduce me?”

“Yes, is it working?”

He wasn’t going to lie. She’d figure it out anyway. She was way smarter than him.

“Yes, I’m a sucker for traditional romance. Dammit, sometimes I hate you.”

Her eyes were glistening with tears, and for a moment he was scared that he’d fucked up badly, but then it hit him that she wasn’t crying sad tears. She was happy.

Women were a mystery.

“You hate me for doing something nice? I’ll make a note of that.”

Launching herself into his arms, she pulled his head down for a quick kiss.

---