The Perfect Stroke (Lucas Brothers #1)(42)

“Jesus. I belong to a nut-house,” Gray grumbles, grabbing my arm and pulling me outside. The kitchen door slams behind us and I can barely keep up as Gray pulls me towards an old painted red barn. I want to argue with him, but honestly I’d rather his family didn’t hear everything we say, so I go with him.

I just wish I knew what I could say to get out of this without looking like the jealous freak I am.





I pull CC into the barn with me and don’t stop until we’re in the far corner where the fresh hay has been piled up. I push her against the wall with my body and trap her there with my arms. I look down at her, pinning her with my eyes.

“Okay, Cooper. It’s just you and me now.” I watch the line of her throat as she swallows. God, everything about her is appealing. I want to move my tongue along the lines of her throat and taste her skin.

“Did you kiss Cammie?” she asks, and whatever I expected, for some reason that’s not it. Because I take too long to respond, she punches me in the stomach. “You f*cking *!” She does her best to push me out of the way. When my woman gets mad, she packs a punch. I grab her fists and push them up against the wall. Her breath is coming in hard gasps and she’s pushing against my hold, but I don’t let her go.

“She kissed me!”

“Oh my God. You did not just say that to me!”

“Are you jealous? I swear, it was nothing!”

“Are you an idiot?”

“I’m serious. I didn’t expect it, and I did nothing to encourage it.”

“Fine! Then I’ll go out there and kiss White and we’ll be even!”

“I love my brother, but if you kiss him, I may have to kill him.”

“Are you jealous?” she throws back in my face, and I have to say I am.

“Damn straight. Now that I’ve had your lips, they’re mine.”

“Gray…”

“Now that I’ve had you, CC, you are mine. You need to understand that.”

I see the moment fear hits her face, and I know I’m pushing her way too hard, but I can’t seem to stop myself. The last thing I expected was to have her follow me here. Now that she’s here, I’m going to make damn sure she understands what her being here means.

“You broke up with me.”

“I left, but I was coming back, Cooper. You’re not getting away from me.”

“We were a one-night stand, Gray.”

“That’s just it, CC. We were. What we are now, what we could be, is so much more.”

“Gray, I don’t do relationships real well.”

“Do you want what we have to end, sweetheart?”

“No…”

“Then take a chance. I don’t do relationships either, but I do not want to let go of what we have here.”

“We’re completely different,” she says, but I see a little of the fear on her face fade and I know I’m starting to get through to her.

“Opposites attract.”

“What if Cammie’s right and I hurt you?”

“Hurt me?”

“In your business, with your whole hitting-balls-in-weird-pants thing,” she says and I have to laugh.

“Sweetheart, I can assure you the only way you could hurt me is if you walk away without giving us a chance.”

“I don’t come from money, Gray. I’m never going to be comfortable around people like…”

I put my lips to hers and kiss her gently to stop whatever she’s going to say. Her lips are as tender and sweet as I remember. I drink in the flavor of her and pull slowly back.

“You’ve met my family, Cooper. Do you honestly think they’re anything like the Rivertons?”

“Well, Ida Sue’s pet cow does remind me of Cammie a little.”

“Oh, that was bad, Claudia Cooper.”

“I could show you bad…”

“Right here? In the barn?”

“Let’s be honest. Your family already thinks we’re having sex. We might as well.”

I step away from her. I think she actually thinks I’m a stupid man because her face shows her confusion. She actually thinks I’m turning her down. I pull my shirt up over my body and throw it down on the hay.

“Well, what are you waiting for, Cooper? Strip,” I tell her, kicking off my boots. When she starts undressing while smiling at me, something clicks into place. Claudia Cooper is my forever.

Now I just have to prove it to her.





I can’t believe I’m doing this. Then again, I can’t believe I’m here. Something about Gray makes me do things I would normally never do—like have sex in a barn on a pile of hay in the middle of the afternoon with his crazy family milling around outside. Yet here I am.

I watch him the entire time I undress. I can’t go slowly because there’s a good chance I’ll lose my nerve and an even bigger chance his mom will come out to do something crazy like give her cow a manicure. It doesn’t matter because the last article of my clothing hits the ground, then Gray grabs me and kisses me. His body is warmer than I remember, softer, yet strong at the same time. I open my mouth to him, groaning as his tongue pushes inside and takes over my mouth. His mouth slants over mine, our lips caressing, tasting and devouring each other. I’ve been kissed before, but Gray’s kisses are always like nothing I’ve ever experienced. I could kiss him for hours upon hours and still crave more.