Page 28 of Summer Nights

I followed him up the stairs to the second floor and down the hall to the master.

"I knocked down the wall to the guest bedroom and expanded the space."

I stepped into the room which now had a sitting area in front of wall-to-wall windows opening onto a deck. "You added this deck."

"It runs the length of the second floor."

My heart rate picked up. He had a futon chair out there to sit and enjoy the sunset. "It's gorgeous."

"The bathroom's through here."

The room was massive with a tub in front of a large window with a view of palm-tree leaves. It felt like a tropical paradise. The shower had three shower heads, and I couldn't help but imagine what it would be like to share those with Cooper.

"What do you think?" Cooper asked me.

"It's gorgeous." It would feel luxurious to live here.

Cooper grinned. "Would you change anything?"

He respected my design choices and wanted to know if he'd made the right decisions. "Not at all."

"I was worried it would feel like a bachelor pad."

"I don't think so. Unless you put a pool table in the dining room."

Cooper chuckled. "Have you seen that?"

"I've seen one in the foyer."

He raised a brow. "As soon as you walked into the house?"

"It was like they couldn't carry it any farther and dropped it as soon as they got it through the door."

"That's ridiculous." He smiled at me, and I felt something pass between us. A connection.

This space was a mature adult's space, complete with every amenity you'd want. "You did good."

Cooper grinned. "After listening to everyone else's design choices, it was nice to make my own decisions. I just hoped I hadn't screwed up and inadvertently lowered the value of the house with my style."

"Not at all. I can run the numbers for you if you want, but I'm positive you significantly increased the value."

He couldn't have just brought me here to see his renovations. He had to have an ulterior motive. I wasn't sure what I should do. Hooking up with a man in his home was relationship territory. Especially with this man.

Chapter Eight

Cooper

Now that I had her in my space, I wasn't sure what I should do with her. I’d like for her to see my renovations but beyond that, what was the plan? I didn't want her to feel pressured into having sex. I didn't even want that to be the expectation.

I had a feeling Ivy didn't know how to react if sex wasn't on the table. She used physical intimacy to block out everything else.

"You want to sit on the deck? I can get us a drink."

I half expected her to make an excuse and leave. She'd seen what she wanted to. I didn't have anything else to keep her here. And as much as I wanted to test out the new shower heads, I wouldn't do that tonight. I wanted to keep her guessing.

"Sure."

My heart leaped at her easy agreement. We headed downstairs to the kitchen where I grabbed a bottle of wine and poured two glasses. Then we went outside to the deck where you could hear the crash of the waves.

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