Page 12 of Cooper's Salvation
He waited for her to pull her car out of the garage before climbing into his vehicle. When she stopped beside him, Cooper rolled his window down.
“Have a good one.” She gave him her sweet smile, and his gut clenched. God, she was beautiful. “I’ll chat with you soon.”
“You too, K.”
Gifting him another smile, she waved, and then she was gone.
He rested his head on the steering wheel. He’d honestly thought he’d fucked up any chance he might have had with Kara, yet here she was, acting like he hadn’t almost killed her. How could she possibly still trust him when he didn’t even trust himself?
7
Kara glanced back in the rearview mirror. Her heart clenched painfully seeing Cooper slumped over his steering wheel. The defeat his body language broadcast was so at odds with the strong man she knew him to be. God only knew what hell he’d endured that day.
There was no denying how scary it had been while he’d been in the grip of the nightmare. That didn’t mean she couldn’t understand the very real guilt she’d seen in his devastated gaze.
She sighed. What was she going to do? She had absolutely no idea how to help him, only knew that she had to. Fate had brought him back into her life for a reason, and Kara had no intention of letting the opportunity slip through her fingers.
So caught up in her thoughts, Kara arrived at work with no recollection of the drive over. She parked in her reserved spot at the back of the clinic, grabbed her purse, and got out. Letting Tammy out the back, the two made their way into the building, Kara still preoccupied with thoughts of the morning.
Once she had Tammy settled in her office, she went out front to chat with Darby about the day’s patients. Mrs. Fonda sat in the waiting room with her Chihuahua, Fifi. While the little dog was still as disagreeable as ever, Kara had developed a soft spot for the older lady. Without her, news of Tom’s death would have been a harder blow to deal with.
“Good morning, Darby, Mrs. Fonda. How’s everyone doing this morning?”
The three ladies chatted for a few moments before Kara invited Mrs. Fonda back to her consultation room to examine Fifi.
As she’d hoped, the routine of her workday gave her respite from her thoughts and the morning passed quickly.
* * *
Cooper hadno idea how long he sat, lost in his guilt, when his phone rang. Becoming aware of his surroundings, he relished the comforting weight of Daisy’s head on his shoulder, occasionally snuggling her muzzle into his neck.
Seeing a number from the base flashing on the screen, he answered.
“Good morning, Sergeant McDowell. My name is Corporal Anita Cortez. I know you’re not scheduled to report for duty for a few more days yet, but I don’t seem to have an RSVP on record for you for the ceremony day after tomorrow. Will you be attending?”
His heart sank even further. Jesus, he couldn’t seem to catch a break today. There was no RSVP on record for him because he was still trying to scrape together the courage to attend. While it was couched as a request, it would be deeply frowned upon if he stayed away with no good reason. And pleading post-traumatic stress didn’t count as a good reason apparently.
“My apologies, Corporal. I’ll drop it off today.”
“Ok, great. Thank you. I’ll see you later then.”
The phone went dead in his ear as the corporal hung up.
Fuck.
Much as he’d wanted to give her some space after last night’s incident, Cooper needed to call Kara. He’d have to attend this ceremony, but there was no way he’d be able to go alone. He just prayed she wouldn’t tell him to go to hell when he asked her to accompany him.
Taking a much-needed deep breath, he rubbed one of Daisy’s ears between his fingers to ground him as he dialed Kara’s number. He didn’t expect her to answer, had intended to leave a message when it went to voicemail, so was caught off guard when she did answer.
“Cooper, hey. Everything okay?” The concern in her voice warmed him.
“Hi K. Yeah, all good. I just have a favor to ask. And I know I shouldn’t be after last night’s incident, but I really need your help.”
“Honey, last night happened. I know you feel bad, but please don’t. I really do understand. What can I help you out with?”
“I have this damn ceremony I have to attend day after tomorrow, and I can’t bear to go alone. Would you consider going with me?”
“The one for the teams involved in the raid on the compound?”
