Page 22 of Flirty Thirty

Robbie shakes his head and swallows. “No… you said your plans wereflexible.” His eyes move to me. “Looks like it’s going just fine. She’s still here, isn’t she?”

Cooper weaves his fingers with mine, and I have to bite away a twitterpated grin when the deep blues of his eyes lock onto me. “That she is.”

There must be a silence long enough to make Robbie feel like he has to clear his throat to get our attention back, but it sure doesn’t feel like it was nearly enough time.

“So… big bro, you two stand in for the next ten minutes then you can scamper off while I supervise the rest of this very exciting bedding ad. Good with you?”

Cooper turns to me. “Good withyou?”

“Will there be food at some point this evening?” I ask, starting to wonder if I should’ve eaten before he picked me up.

“Right after this.”

“Then that plan isgreatwith me.”

Robbie’s gaze distinctly moves down my frame, his lips curling upward, and I self-consciously wonder if he’s amused by the fact that a fuller body type wants a trip to the trough, but I quickly shake it from my head. I shouldn’t worry about the approval of Cooper’s family members—there is no reason for it now or ever. I snicker to myself at the fact that my mind went there all on its own.

“We’re ready, Mr. Sterling,” a girl with a headset and clipboard says, looking at Cooper, but it’s Robbie who answers.

“Great. Maya, you want to climb up on the bed? Grab a pillow, will ya?”

I give Cooper a hesitant glance, and he grins and reaches across the mattress for one of the well-fluffed pillows. He playfully tosses it in my direction, and a squeak of surprise floats from my mouth.

“Watch it, buddy,” I tease, then trip my way up onto the bed. Robbie tells me to stay standing, keeping the pillow above my head while he directs Cooper to position himself flat on his back between my legs. A rare blush tints Cooper’s ears as he follows the direction, causing my mouth to turn up and soft giggles to erupt from somewhere deep in my abdomen.

“Perfect,” Robbie says, and the evil glint in his expression tells me that he’s enjoying embarrassing his brother a little too much. Cooper may be overly forward with his words, but his touch has been nothing but slow, sweet, and cautious ever since he apologized for kissing me on his run. I can tell the comfortable position for him right now would be to hold onto my ankle or run his hand up my leg, but since that’s a level we haven’t progressed to, he’s awkwardly stretching his arms to the side. I hold back a laugh as I stare down at him.

“This is so very tempting,” I say, giving the pillow a little squeeze. “One swift move and I’ll ruin that great hair you’ve got going for you tonight.”

My light-heartedness seems to relax him, his body loosening enough that he doesn’t look so frigid on the very comfortable mattress.

“I think that was his intention.” He nods toward his brother who is now directing me to angle my hips toward the camera. I rock a little on the bed, and whether out of instinct or just a genuine reflex, Cooper grabs hold just under the back of my knee. The soft touch sends my head spinning, and though I know he’s helping me keep my balance, I have to breathe a few times to keep from falling on top of him.

“Whoa there,” he says through a laugh. I get my footing and reposition myself to where Robbie wants me. The pressure Cooper’s putting on my leg starts to wane, his hesitancy creasing the lines near his mouth.

“You should keep your hand there,” I reassure him.

A noticeable air of relief passes in his eyes. “I like the way you think.”

He flexes, his fingers tickling enough to get a giggle out of me but not enough for me to lose my balance. Robbie tells me to bring the pillow down in front so they can see how the lighting is on my face. I try to follow the instructions, but Cooper’s starting to make faces at me, and it’s mighty distracting.

“I thought you were a professional,” I tease him as he does a blowfish impression. It’s incredibly sexy on him.

“Who told you that?”

I laugh and let the pillow swing down and flump against the side of his face. When his eyes open, I lift one shoulder and say, “Sorry.”

“You’re gonna be.”

“I wasn’t talking to you.” I glance over my shoulder at Robbie from behind the camera. “Sorry!” I say louder. “It slipped.”

Cooper’s fingers grow relentless in their tickling, and I curl in laughter, dropping on top of his stomach.

He lets out a whoosh of breath, and I hold mine while I wait for his to come back. I forgot that I’m not the lightest person in the world—with him teasing me and looking at me like I’m the actual model in front of this camera, I felt like a size two.

“Oh, hold it there,” Robbie says. Cooper’s head whips around in a panic, and a similar feeling drops a weight into my gut. I shift on him, trying to hold most of my weight on my knees and less on him. His hands make a quick trip from my legs to my waist.

“Uh… you may want to hold still.”

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