The Risks We Take Duet Box Set

16. Cooper

COOPER

T rick and Rook are arguing over something. I should be paying attention to what, but I’m not. Carys went to the bathroom almost ten minutes ago, and I haven’t seen her since. I watched her push her way through the crowd, but once she was on the other side of the dance floor, I lost her as she turned down the hall, and something about it isn’t sitting well with me.

“Right, Coop?” Trick asks.

I have no clue what the hell he said before that and nod my head as I push off the bar and follow the path Carys took a few minutes ago. But with every step, warning bells start to go off in my mind, and I pick up my speed.

Then I turn down the hallway.

Carys is pinned against the wall by a large man.

He’s five foot ten, two hundred and fifty pounds.

He looks sloppy drunk.

Physically, he’s no threat.

I can easily take him, but I can’t be sure he doesn’t have a weapon.

His face is too close to hers.

His body is invading her space.

Her delicate palms are flat against his chest, and her eyes are wide with fear while his fingers run through her hair.

I step between them before either one realizes what’s happening.

With a hand to his chest, I shove him back, and he crashes to the floor.

When she tries to step around me to see what’s happening, I reach back to stop her. Squeezing her hip, I wait to see how this dude reacts and if he’s going to reach for a weapon.

His eyes are less than focused one minute, then full of fear the next. “What did you do that for?” He sounds like a big kid. “That hurt.”

“Coop.” Carys tugs at my shirt. “I don’t think he was trying to hurt me.”

The guy runs a hand over the back of his head. “I just wanted to tell her she sounds pretty when she sings.”

Carys laces her fingers through mine and carefully moves around me. “Thank you.”

“Hey.” I’m not as forgiving as she is. “Don’t ever put your hands on a woman.”

He gets to his feet and backs away from us. “I’m sorry.”

We watch as he stumbles down the hall. Once he’s out of sight, she leans back against me, letting me take her weight.

I scoop her into my arms before she falls. “Is there a back door here?”

“I can walk, Cooper.” Her clammy skin and shaking body tell me otherwise before she points me toward the end of the hall.

We round a corner to an old metal door that dumps us in the back parking lot not far from my Jeep. I carry Carys to it and open the back gate, then set her down on it. Gently, I run my hands over her arms and down her sides, checking for injuries. The air outside sits heavy against our skin as a storm gathers in the distance.

“Are you hurt, baby? Did he hurt you?”

“No. He didn’t hurt me.” She crinkles her nose, causing the light dusting of freckles on it to bunch up. “I’m okay. He just scared me. I don’t think he realized what he was doing. He seemed like he just wanted to talk but had no clue that he was scaring me. Maybe he drank too much. Maybe he’s socially awkward. I don’t know. But I don’t think he was trying to attack me.”

“Baby.” I run my hands over her head and ghost my fingers across her face, needing to know for myself that she’s really okay. “Do not ever make an excuse for a man who doesn’t know to keep his fucking hands to himself. That is never okay.” I hold her possessively in my arms and breathe her in as I try to get myself under control.

Thunder crashes in the distance as if it’s channeling the rage that courses through my body. It’s a living, breathing thing, threatening to explode if I don’t lock it down. “If something happened to you...” I leave the rest of the sentence unsaid, unwilling to think about the what-ifs. Instead, I focus on this woman. This moment.

Carys wraps her arms around my waist and runs her palms soothingly up my back, even though I’m supposed to be taking care of her .

“Cooper . . .” Her breath warms my cheek.

I pull back and cup her face in my hands. Her eyes shine with unshed tears that I wish I could take away for her. Make it so she never knows fear. My thumb traces the curves of her face.

She closes her eyes, and those long lashes kiss her perfect skin as she slowly drags her teeth over her trembling lower lip and leans into my hand. Then on a whisper, her eyes open and she asks, “Do you want to kiss me, Cooper?”

“More than my next fucking breath, Carys.” I’m not sure I’ve ever wanted anything more. I fight the urge to crush my mouth to hers.

To take what I need.

What we both desperately want.

What I’ve wanted for fucking years.

Instead, I lean down slowly and brush my mouth over hers, groaning when her sweet taste explodes on my lips.

Carys moans, and electricity sparks between us. My cock twitches behind the zipper of my jeans before I slide one hand to the back of her head and gently tug her hair, then tilt her head as I deepen the kiss. My other hand grips her waist, dragging her closer.

Needing more.

Wanting everything.

Trailing my mouth along her jaw, I lick the salty sweat from her skin while she claws at my chest, trying to get closer.

The sexy sigh she breathes out when her hands slide up under my shirt and rest on my bare pecs is intoxicating. And my dick grows hard as steel, wanting in on the action.

As if sensing what I need, she wraps her legs around my waist and her arms around my back. She rubs her chest against mine with a moan at the delicious sensations of her soft curves fitting perfectly against the hard planes of my body. Our tongues dance a slow dance. Learning. Exploring. Setting every fucking nerve ending ablaze, like a live wire skipping across a street, ready to set fire to whatever it touches.

Her nails dance across my waist and tug at my belt as I run my tongue down her neck, stopping to trace lazy circles over her racing pulse.

Carys clings to me, grinding against me.

The heat of her pussy tempts me to take this further than we should.

Not yet.

Not here.

Not like this.

She deserves more. Better.

She deserves flowers and dinner. Promises.

She doesn’t deserve the back of a Jeep.

“Carys...” Unfocused eyes stare back at me, scorching my soul. “I?—”

My phone rings in my pocket, and it’s not just any ringtone.

Fuck .

I pull back and rest my head on top of hers as she groans. “Ignore it, Coop. Please tell me you’re going to ignore it.”

“I wish I could.” I yank my phone from my jeans and look at the screen. “It’s Command. We’ve got to go in.”

“Now?” Her hands fist my shirt. “Like... you need to go in , in? Like you’re getting sent somewhere now?” Her words are fast. Clipped... and scared.

I expected frustration, but what I see instead is fear, and I never want to be the reason this woman is afraid. “Yeah, baby. I’ve got to go in. We all do. It’s part of the job. Can I drive you home first?”

She kisses me again nervously and runs her hands over my face. “Will you let me know before you leave?”

“Yeah. I’ll let you know as soon as I can.” Her eyes well up with tears. “Please don’t cry.”

Carys sniffs as she forces her tears back and sets her shoulders tight. “Thanks for saving me tonight, Coop.”

I kiss the freckles on the bridge of her nose, then haul her against my chest.

A week ago, I’d have been thrilled to get spun up again already.

Funny how quickly your perspective can change.

A n hour and a half later, we’ve been briefed on a mission gone wrong.

Alpha Team—a unit out of Virginia Beach—has been in the Sudan on a mission, but their cover was blown by a former British special agent.

Charlie Team is being sent in to pick up where Alpha Team left off.

Once Command gives the orders and clears out of the room, Ford stands there, arms folded over his chest, staring at me. “Sinclair. You’re supposed to be on a plane for sniper school in two weeks. If you miss the start, you can’t just drop in when you get back. We understand if you want to skip this one, so you don’t risk fucking that up.”

I close my laptop in front of me and stand up with it in hand. “Not a chance, Master Chief. I’m not letting you guys have all the fun without me. Axe would never let me live it down.”

“Damn straight,” Axe adds with a fist bump.

“OK. It’s settled then, boys. Our flight leaves at zero-five-hundred. Get your shit in order.” Ford gives us our marching orders, and we all exit the war room, then grab our phones that have to be left outside the door.

I turn it on and quickly look at the screen. There’s one message from Carys.

Carys

Please be safe.

I have a choice to make.

Coop

You still awake?

Carys

Yes.

Coop

Can I stop by?

Carys

I’m already waiting.

The need to see her before I leave is so strong that it’s the only thing I think about as I drive to her house and park my car on the street directly behind Linc’s. I figured this was where he was going too, but we didn’t stop to talk on our way out. This is the first time either one of us has had someone to say goodbye to before a mission.

Before I make it to the front door, it opens, and all I see is Carys. Standing in an oversized Kroydon Hills Prep football t-shirt that hangs off one bare shoulder. Her legs are bare, and her hair hangs damp around her shoulders. As soon as I’m close enough, she throws her arms around my shoulders, and I lift her off her feet, walking inside.

She slides her legs around my waist. “How long before you leave?” She holds my cheeks in her hands as a tear tracks down her face, wrecking me.

“I have to be back on base by five a.m., but I’ve got to stop at my house before I go. So maybe five hours.”

Her thumb runs along my jaw. “Come to bed with me, Coop. You need to sleep.”

I grab the back of her head and press a kiss to her forehead, then lock the door behind me.

Is it possible to be in love with a woman you’ve only kissed once?