The Trouble with Tomboys (Tommy Creek #1)(51)

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and glanced back. Cocking his head to the side, he studied her thoughtfully.

“What?” she demanded. “Am I doing something

wrong?” She looked down at the baby in worry.

Cooper smiled as he shook his head. “No.

Tanner’s fine. I just realized... You’re actually a soft touch, aren’t you?”

She frowned. “Excuse me?”

“That night,” Cooper said. “You were only trying to cheer me up. You came over to me in the bar because you said I looked sad.”

“So?” B.J. answered.

“Well...that makes me think the same thing

happened with Ralphie Smardo. I can see you saying yes to him just to boost his ego.”

“Oh, God,” she moaned, closing her eyes. “Does everybody know about that?”

He nodded solemnly. “About the skinny dipping?

I’m afraid so. Your little diner scene is quickly becoming legendary.”

B.J. rolled her eyes. “I never should’ve let that little slime ball touch me.”

Cooper shrugged. “But you did,” he murmured,

“because you felt bad for him.”

She scowled. “He kept whining about never

getting a woman. I just wanted to shut him up.”

“Uh huh,” Cooper said, knowingly. “So you gave him some sympathy sex. Just like you did Grady.”

B.J. stopped and opened her mouth as she

frowned at Cooper. But no words came out.

Cooper chuckled. “Don’t you dare tell me you don’t feel bad for him. Hell, everyone in the county feels sorry for Jo Ellen’s brother. He’s been through hell; you only have to look at his face to see that.”

“You are so wrong, Gerhardt,” she insisted. “I don’t do sympathy sex.”

Cooper’s return look said otherwise, but he

murmured, “If you say so.”

155



Linda Kage





Chapter Thirteen


“Sympathy sex?”

B.J.’s mouth fell open. She hadn’t been home from Jo Ellen’s but an hour before Grady came knocking. She’d had time to shower and shave her legs and feel refreshed for an evening of lazing around the house and eating a frozen dinner. But Mr. Rawlings had other ideas.

As soon as she opened the door to him, those two dreaded, accusing words came out. They didn’t exactly register in her brain though. She was too busy staring at him and thinking how absolutely beautiful he was. His father’s visit and sister’s phone call immediately forgotten, all she saw was a man who made her heart pound hard and her breathing turn choppy.

“You’re into sympathy sex?” he repeated.

Groaning out a curse, B.J. gritted her teeth. “I’m going to kill Cooper for opening his pie hole.” Then, frowning as Grady pushed past her to enter the living room, she muttered, “Sure. Come on in.”

“Why Cooper?” he asked, turning to send her a questioning look. “Cooper’s not the one who told me.

Jo Ellen is.”

B.J. gasped. “Oh, my God! Jo Ellen heard us

talking?” She lifted her hand to her suddenly aching temple. Damn. There went the only female friend she’d ever had. And she’d been anxious to ask Jo Ellen more pregnancy questions.

Wincing, she asked, “Is she totally pissed at me?” He frowned in confusion. “Why would she be 156



The Trouble with Tomboys



pissed?”

“Because of what Cooper and I did—” she

started to blurt out before she realized Grady obviously hadn’t heard the whole story. “Wait a second,” she said, setting her hands on her hips.

“What exactly did she say to you?”

“She said you only slept with men you felt sorry for. Cooper was not mentioned in that list.” But from the way he closed his eyes and shook his head sadly, he’d already added Gerhardt to the register. “Please, God,” he muttered. “Don’t tell me you slept with my brother-in-law.”

“No!” she said. “Definitely not.” When he gave her a probing stare, she shifted uncomfortably, crossed her arms over her chest and scowled.

“Besides, he wasn’t your brother-in-law at the time.”

“Oh, my God. You slept with Cooper?”

“No,” she yelled back. “He stopped before it went too far.”

Grady paused. “He stopped?” When she gave a miserable nod, he pierced her with a look and set his hands on his hips. “And just how far did you two go before he stopped?”

B.J. let out a dramatically long sigh and tried to stop blushing. “Not that it’s any of your business because it happened way back when you were still married to Amy, but we barely got our shirts off,”

she admitted on a mumble.

Grady didn’t look happy about thinking of her with a shirtless Cooper. “That’s it?”

She nodded. “This was right before he and Jo Ellen hooked up. And he was all bummed out

because he thought he was never going to see her again. So, he couldn’t go through with it...with me.”