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“He didn’t act like much of one.” Cooper’s brow furrows as he watches the car drive off.
“Well, I think he felt insulted that I had other plans tonight. I was just going to tell him I had to run early and sneak out. I didn’t expect to have to introduce you, and I didn’t mention that you were picking me up.”
“Oops.” He gives me a sheepish look and shrugs. “Well, sorry. I didn’t realize it would make him upset.”
I stop in my tracks before we get to the car because I don’t want to have this discussion in front of Lizzy. He stops when I do in the small berm and raises a brow when I stare at him and cross my arms.
“It wouldn’t bother you if you were out with a woman on a date and some other guy just showed up and said all right, let’s go? You’d just be fine with that?” I knew Cooper to be a pretty easygoing person, but I didn’t see him being that laidback.
“Nah.” He shrugs. “Wouldn’t bother me. If she’d go with him, it’d mean that I didn’t have a chance in the first place.”
My jaw drops, and I give Cooper a look without saying anything, but he just grins and walks me around to the side of his truck and opens the door. He holds out his hand to help me up, and I take it.
“Here’s your drink, Lizzy.”
He hands it back to her, his arm brushing my shoulder and his cologne sweeping over my senses as he leans into my space to hand it to her. My eyes track the movement, and I feel a flush at the fact that I’m this close to him in such a small space. She takes the cup from him and smiles at me with a little wave before she resumes her conversation with her friend. Cooper rolls around to his side of the car, cranking up some country music much to Lizzy’s chagrin, and we take off down the road.
6
Beatrix
We meander our way through the fairgrounds until we come to the row of carnival games, and Cooper’s face lights up as he turns back to Lizzy.
“Want me to win you something?”
“Dad.” She gives him an exasperated look. “I know you know I’m too old for toys.”
“It’s not a toy. It’s a memento. Sits on your shelf to remind you of the time Trixie was here, and we had fun.”
Lizzy looks up at me with a question in her eyes before giving her father a skeptical look.
“Well, if she doesn’t want one, I do,” I pipe in, turning to Cooper. I can tell he’s trying to hold on to the waning days of her childhood. The time when he’s the cool dad who plays football and not the annoying parent who doesn’t let her stay out late with the boy he doesn’t approve of.
“I can do that.” Cooper’s smile lights up, and he hurries over to the counter to lay down money for a chance at the prize. Lizzy and I follow after him, and she takes another bite of her shaved ice as we watch him ready himself for his shot at the stuffed animal. Lizzy lets out a little sigh. I know she’s impatient to catch up with her friends who aren’t quite here yet, but I wish I could tell her how someday she’ll wish she had more of this time with him. That not all kids get the kind of attention and time he gives her.
“You’re lucky, you know.” I look at Lizzy. “My dad would never play games like this for me.”
“I thought you said you went to lots of fairs.”
“We did, but he was always working when we went to them. Talking to his potential voters. It was mostly about photos and work. I wish we could have just walked around and rode the rides and played the games. Gotten him to relax and have some fun. But it was all business, and we were just there so he could get some pictures in with his family most of the time. Sometimes, one of his staff members would take me to grab a funnel cake or play a quick game before we had to be off to the next thing.”
“Well, that sucks.”
“Yeah. But hey. We’re here, and now I’ve got you two to let me do it. So thank you for letting me come with you.”
“I’m glad you came. He’s less annoying, and you get things he doesn’t.”
“Like lemon shakeups?” I rattle the ice in my cup and then take another long sip.
“That too.” Lizzy laughs.
“All right. Which one do you want?” Cooper looks back at me before pointing up to the wall of stuffed animals.
“Um. That one?” I point to a small teddy bear that’s dangling near the bottom.
“That’s it? No faith.” He shakes his head. “But all right.”
Lizzy and I stand patiently by while he plays through several rounds of the game, racking up points and spending tickets to win the prize. He refuses to stop at the small one and instead gets a bear that’s going to have to have its own seatbelt on the way home. I’m laughing when he hands it to me.
