Page 24 of Claws and Feathers

Nope, looking away again. Looking at my shoes. Oh, hey, there’s an ant.

She shook her sandal when the ant began crawling onto her toes.

“It’s a good town,” Cooper continued, his body turning to face her. “I’m glad you’ve decided to stay.”

Now it was Abby’s turn to dissect his possible double meaning. Why was he glad? Because The Crow was a ‘good town’? Or was there another reason? She decided she’d already choked on her words enough for one conversation, so she let it go. She would obsess in silence. “Tell me about your family,” she prompted, eager to change the subject.

Cooper ran a hand through his hair as his gaze shifted to just over the porch railing. He looked lost in thought. “Well, you met my sister, Kate. She’s my only sibling.”

“Ah, yes. Melancholy Barbie. How could I forget?” Abby replied, half-joking and half-disgruntled.

He ducked his head with a timid chuckle. “She feels bad if that makes any difference. Daphne got her fired up and she just sort of snapped. I assure you I’ve been called worse.” Cooper paused, then returned his eyes to Abby. “She asks about you every day. Maybe you two can make amends.”

Abby was surprised to hear this. She hadn’t thought much about Cooper’s sister, except for when Daphne went on one of her ‘the McAllisters are the Devil’ rants. “I’d be open to that.” Hell, it wouldn’t kill her to try and make another friend in town. In fact, it would be fantastic if she could bring her resounding number of friends up from one to two.

Or maybe she already had two. She wasn’t exactly sure where Cooper fell.

“Awesome. I’ll send her by with a fruit basket or something,” he grinned.

“I prefer cupcakes, but I suppose I can make an exception.”

“Cupcakes. Noted,” he said. Cooper set the coffee mug down on his knee and lowered his eyes. “As for my parents, my father lives above the bar. He’s a good guy. I come from a long line of police officers and my father was the first to kind of break that trend. He’s a business guy through and through. The Crow Bar is his baby.”

Abby smiled with appreciation. “I bet he’s really proud of you.”

“I’ll never know. He’s not the feelings type.”

“What about your mom?” Abby wondered curiously.

Cooper stiffened slightly, the muscles in his jaw noticeably twitching. He shifted his weight on the swing and scratched the back of his neck. “Her name was Lori. She passed away when I was twelve.” He began tapping his foot against the concrete porch. “Cancer.”

Abby couldn’t hold back her hand from reaching out and giving his knee a comforting squeeze. She knew all too well what that felt like. They were connected in yet another way. “I would say I’m sorry, but I know how little that actually means. People only say it because they don’t know what else to say.” Abby smiled ruefully, trying to convey to him that she understood. She was leaning forward, her hand on his knee, her eyes glued to his ridiculously handsome face, when he reached over to lay his own hand on top of hers. Abby froze, not expecting the gesture. She was not expecting the contact. And she was mostcertainlynot expecting the electric charge that shot right up her arm and dispersed its magical little sparks all throughout her body.

Abby was in trouble. She was in big, huge,ginormoustrouble.

She was going to pull away. She had every intention of doing so. Abigail Stone was a fierce, independent woman with strong willpower and endless self-control.

Only… Cooper wasn’t pulling away. No, he was still sitting there, his hand on hers, completely oblivious to her inner turmoil. And the kicker was that he didn’t seem the least bit frazzled by the contact. He was blasé; comfortable, even. It was as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Abby tried to reel in the peculiar sensations sending shockwaves through her system. She studied his features, masculine and strong. He had delicious cheekbones, and just enough stubble along his jawline to give him that rugged edge. His lashes were long. His hair was the color of dark chocolate, and it was just grown out enough to curl at its ends. Abby was tempted to run her fingers through it.

That’s my cue.

She was about to pull away when a voice startled her.

“Am I interrupting something, Romeo?”

Cooper stood from the swing so fast, Abby wobbled as it abruptly swung forward. She noticed Cooper reach for his holster out of instinct, then relax when he recognized the visitor.

“Really, sis? You think it’s wise to sneak up on an armed officer?”

Kate stood on the front lawn, holding a plate wrapped in tinfoil. She shrugged with an air of nonchalance. “I mean, if anyone is going to take me out, I feel like it should be you.”

Abby rose to her feet, fluffing her hair and letting her gaze fall anywhere but on the man to her left. “Hey, Kate.”

Kate forced a smile. “Hey, yourself. I thought I’d try not being an asshole for once and stop by with a peace offering.”

Cooper set down his coffee and slipped his hands into his pockets. “Fruit basket?”

---