Page 32 of What the Cowboy Wants
It took a while before Gary had all the information, and she could open the door for him.As he left, she checked the corridor in front of her apartment, worried Duncan might still be lurking around.He was nowhere to be seen, thank goodness.Relieved, she closed the door.
Taking deep breaths, she went to her room to find her bag.What had Duncan been thinking?She’d fall into his arms the moment she saw him?Why she’d ever thought he was attractive, was beyond her.Compared to Cooper… Nope, no comparison.
Grinning, she walked to the front door.Problem was, Cooper set the bar so high, no other man even came close to him.
Argh, and there the cowboy was on her mind again.Focus, Rose, focus.Getting into the elevator, she went over her list.She still wanted to get something for the kids.There was Dylan, the Millers five-year-old son, Jane, Vivian’s and Aiden’s two-year-old little girl and of course, Luke, Hayden’s and Laura’s eight-year-old son.
As she stepped out of the building, a pair of arms snaked around her and pulled her close as a camera flashed.
*
With his eyeson the building in which Rose’s apartment is, Cooper lengthened his steps.The traffic was something else.That was why he’d paid the Uber and got out a block away.
Everyone was looking down, fingers busy on their phones as they passed one another on the sidewalk.Nobody smiled, nobody made eye contact.Why people chose to live in cities, he would never know.He couldn’t wait to get back to the ranch, the wide open spaces, but he was here for Rose.
He saw her as he came around the corner but the next moment, his feet stopped.From behind someone bumped into him, but he hardly felt it.His eyes were on the scene in front of him.
A man wearing a suit had Rose in his arms.Nearby, a camera flashed.Several other bystanders had their phones out and were taking pictures of the scene.
Disappointment hollowed out his insides.He couldn’t look away.Over the guy’s shoulder, Rose’s eyes met his for a millisecond.Turning around, he staggered away, his only thought to get back to the ranch as soon as humanly possible.
Of course, the guy would want her back, who wouldn’t?She was warm and gentle, fierce when she needed to be, and so beautiful, he ached just thinking about her.This probably also meant she wouldn’t be returning to Marietta.In no time, she’d be back on her phone, forgetting all about real connections like the one she’d had with Molly, with Scarlett, with him.
It was for the best.Rose deserved the fairytale, and it wasn’t something he could give her.He was hoping to interest her in spending time with him until this deep need to be with her disappeared.It wasn’t as if he’d planned on asking her to marry him.
For a moment, a clear picture of Rose on a horse wearing a champagne-colored dress, her long hair hanging in curls down her back, flashed before his eyes.Stumbling to the one side, he got out his phone.He didn’t want to stay here another minute.
*
Rose was sostunned to see Cooper on the sidewalk in front of the building where she lived, it took another minute before she shoved Duncan away.By that time, Cooper had disappeared into the crowd.
“Come on, Rose, everyone is watching,” he growled as he tried to pull her back.
“That’s your problem.I don’t ever want to see you again,” she said loud enough for everyone around them to hear her.
With her heart breaking into tiny little pieces, she turned around and quickly moved away.Cooper had, of course, seen her in Duncan’s arms, jumped to his own conclusions, and had stormed off in a huff.Wasn’t he supposed to know things?
What about just asking her what was going on?But nooo, he’d just turned around and disappeared.Damn it, he knew how she drank her coffee, shouldn’t he know what she was feeling?The bottom line was, he’d probably been looking for an excuse to end whatever was between them and now he had it.
Angrily wiping her eyes where tears were threatening to spill over, she gnashed her teeth.She was not crying over a man again, she had a few more presents to buy, damn it.Her steps slowed down.
Could she go back to Marietta knowing Cooper was close but she wouldn’t see him, touch him, kiss him?
Squaring her shoulders, she continued to the toy shop around the corner.Of course she could.She wasn’t going back for him.She was going back for herself.Her soul had healed in the picturesque little town at the foot of Copper Mountain, she’d made the best friends, and she was planning to start a new business.
No animal-talking, blue-eyed cowboy was going to stop her, no matter how gorgeous he was.
It would mean no visits with her Weston friends when their whole family would be there, but she’d still see them at the book club and she and Arlene were neighbors.
For the past few months she’d been living in Marietta, she’d hardly ventured outside, too busy licking her damaged ego.She was now ready to throw herself wholeheartedly into all things Marietta.Starting with the Autumn Festival next week.
Besides, it wasn’t as if she’d actually fallen for Cooper Weston.It might take her a tad longer to get over him than she would’ve liked, but get over him she would.
Bonus, she didn’t even have to rush home now, she could make sure all her affairs were settled.The main reason why she’d been so excited to go back as quickly as possible, didn’t exist anymore.
*
Cooper arrived backon the ranch around dinner time.He was tired and fed up, mostly with himself.He could go home and avoid the wholewhy-are-you-back-and-where-is-Rosescene, but he’d rather get it over with as soon as possible.
