Page 54 of Chasing Elliott
"It was fine," I lied as I bent down to pet Mia briefly. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say Kara was trying to make pancakes again. Why does my kitchen look like a war zone?"
"Well, you see," Cooper started to say as he pointed a spatula at me which made me giggle. "I wanted to make you a nice dinner, but my homemade noodles didn't really work out, so then I thought I could make dessert but between you and me, Mia isn't the best cooking partner when you have crackers laying around."
Laughing through my nose as I glanced down at Mia, I rolled my eyes and closed the gap between Cooper and me. He smiled down at me mischievously before he gave my lips a quick peck.
"Well, now we know to use boxed noodles, make sure you have a sous-chef and don't snack while cooking," I teased as I tried to brush the flour off his chest. "You know this means we need to give her a bath now, right?"
"Oh, goody," he replied sarcastically as he turned back to the stove. "Isn't that technically your job though? I mean, she is your dog."
"And seeing as my boyfriend is the one who got her dirty, I think it's only fair he throws in a little assistance."
Cooper laughed loudly as he started stirring whatever it was he had in the pot. Grabbing my phone, I turned on my speaker that sat on top of the fridge and started playing some music.
I sat on the counter top as he worked away at some dessert that I was positive he had made up on the spot. Once he poured it into a pan and put it in the oven, he grabbed my sides and helped me off the counter before he reached for my hand and led me down the hall.
Mia thankfully followed close on our heels as we entered the bathroom. I knelt down on the tile floor as she walked up to me and gave my cheek a kiss while Cooper checked the temp of the water. Once he was sure it was at a good temperature for Mia, he climbed in and called forher to jump in after him.
Chucking softly as she sat comfortably in his lap, I grabbed the dog shampoo that Cooper had bought me out from under the bathroom sink and squirted some in my hand. As I started working it through her thick coat, I caught Cooper staring at me. Raising an eyebrow at him, he shrugged me off before reaching for my body soap and dripping some on his chest.
Once we got all the soap out of Mia's fur, I slipped into the hall to grab a towel when Iheard Cooper yelling. Running back to the bathroom, I saw him desperately trying to hold onto Mia's bottom half as her front paws were out of the tub. Before I could reach her and cover her with the towel, she slipped out of his grip and began to shake out her fur.
Laughing uncontrollably, I finally got the towel over her once she stopped shaking. Cooper was chuckling as he shook his head before he watched me with a small smile on his face. Giving up on trying to dry her off, I grabbed the towel and threw it in the hamper as she disappeared back toward the kitchen.
"Not going to help me dry off?" Cooper questioned as he stood up from the tub in just his boxers. Rolling my eyes as I smiled softly, I went to grab another towel. Coming back into the bathroom, I saw his boxers now sitting on the floor.
"Was this a dry off or a rub down?" I teased as I slowly walked over to him. Wrapping the towel around his back, I pulled his bare front into mine, not caring that my clothes weregetting wet.
"It's up to you, baby," he retorted with a raised brow as his finger slowly started to trailup my side under my shirt. "But I've definitely missed you."
"Show me how much," I teased as I started placing soft kisses on his chest. BeforeCooper could put both his hands on my sides, I quickly spun on my heel and darted for my room as I laughed loudly.
"Oh, you're going to pay for that," Cooper laughed as I heard him come running after me.
"Maybe that was the idea," I told him as he entered the room to see me sitting on my bed, waiting for him. He bit his lip to suppress his smile as he sauntered over to me and wasted no time in stripping off my shirt before he pushed me down onto the bed.
We pulled up to the bar and Cooper quickly climbed out to open my door for me. Smiling up at him, I had to grab his arm because I lost my balance in my heels due to all the cracks in the pavement. He let me loop my arm through his and lead me over to the door.
There was a small line formed with one bouncer at the front to check ID's. Reaching into the pocket of my jumpsuit, I grabbed my small Michael Kors wallet and pulled out my driver’s license once we reached the guy.
"Thank you for having it ready," he said to me as he quickly glanced at it before giving itback. "Have a great time."
Smiling, Cooper pulled me forward and led me inside. The music was playing loudly over the speakers as we maneuvered our way through the large mass of people dancing to try and find Kara and Benjamin. Heading up the stairs to go to the rooftop, I was blown away by the view.
There were tables lining the perimeter of the roof, a DJ booth behind a lit-up dance floor, and a nice bar on the far side. String lights decorated the area, but it didn't take away from thegorgeous view we had of downtown. All the lights from the buildings contrasted beautifully against the dark blue of the night sky. It brought a sense of calm over me.
Feeling Cooper nudge me, I glanced up and saw him gesture to his right. Looking in thedirection, I saw Kara sitting on Benjamin's lap as they made out. Laughing softly, I shook my head and laced my fingers through his, allowing him to lead me over to them.
As we approached, Cooper cleared his throat which caused Kara to pull back immediately with a bright red tinting her cheeks. She quickly climbed off his lap and slid into thechair beside him and folded her hands together to lay on her thighs.
"About time you two made it," Benjamin teased as he leaned back in his chair and put his arm around Kara's shoulders. "We've been waiting for about half an hour."
"Sorry," I apologized as we sat down across from them. "I don't think Mia quiteunderstands yet that we're going to be coming back. She was crying when we left and it just broke my heart, so we gave her a bone and slipped out while she was distracted. Just don't want the neighbors to file a noise complaint."
Benjamin nodded in understanding before Cooper leaned over to whisper in my ear as his hand rested on my thigh.
"Want something to drink?" He asked as he began to rub small circles there.
"Yes, please," I told him as I put my hand over the top of his. "I'll take my usual."
