Intercepting Love (Second Chances #5)(25)

“I do, but something’s holding me back.”

A wide smile spread across her face as she led me through her house to one of the back bedrooms. “Are you sure it’s not a someone instead of a something?”

I shrugged. “Does it matter?”

She opened the door slightly and put her hands on my shoulders so she could look at me. “It makes all of the difference in the world, Kate. You’re not scared of Luke, but you are of Cooper because you know he can be the real deal. Stop running and look at what’s in front of you.”

“Lara, what are you talking about?”

She pushed open the door to reveal Cooper sitting on the navy blue bed with his elbows resting on his knees and gazing straight at me. Arms crossed, Lara nodded toward the room. “You two need to talk. Deny it all you want, but I know you want to talk to him, too.”

I did want to talk to him to tell him what a worthless douchebag he was for leaving me. Turning my back on Cooper, I glared at Lara and gritted my teeth. “Fine, two minutes, and that’s it.”

Lara winked over her shoulder at Cooper and shut the door, the sound of a lock clicking into place. When I tried the handle, it wouldn’t budge. “Lara, you can’t be serious! Unlock the damn door,” I shouted, banging on the door.

“Nope, not until you and Cooper talk. This is for your own good.”

I banged on the door some more, but it was no use because I could hear her footsteps echoing down the hall. “Lara! Lara, get back here!”

“Is it so bad to be locked in here with me?” Cooper asked. “You know, I thought things were going great with us the past couple of days. What happened?”

Leaning against the door, I sighed before turning around. “Look, Cooper, it doesn’t matter. We work together, that’s it. We need to keep our relationship on professional terms.”

“Professional terms?” he sputtered, slurring his words. “So you’re saying we can’t even be friends?”

It was then I smelled the remnants of liquor in the room. His dumbass was drunk, and here I was trying to talk to him. He probably wasn’t even going to remember what was discussed anyway.

As I walked past him I said, “Yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying.” Suddenly, he grabbed my arms and turned me around, holding me close to his body with both hands on my biceps.

“Cooper, let me go.”

“No, not until you give me an explanation. Even if it takes all night, you’re not going anywhere.”

“Fine,” I snapped, finally having the courage to look him in the eyes. “The sooner I get this over with the sooner ...”

I stopped mid-sentence the second I got a good look at his eyes; something wasn’t right, they were mainly pools of the magnificent blue of his irises with only a tiny pinpoint showing of his pupils. It wasn’t normal, especially since the darkened room we were in would make anyone’s pupils larger … and it wasn’t the alcohol that would do it either.

“Son of a bitch,” I hissed. “You’re on something, aren’t you? Tell me!”

“Why are you switching the subject?” he countered. “Why don’t you tell me what I did wrong? Are you mad about last night, or embarrassed that I saw you at your worst? You don’t have to hide that stuff from me.”

Narrowing his gaze, he pulled me closer and I could feel his heart pounding in his chest. Everything about his arms felt familiar, like I’d been in them before. How could that be?

“Why don’t you answer my questions first and then I’ll answer yours,” I murmured breathlessly. “I promise to be honest and tell you the truth, but only if you do the same.”

Closing his eyes, he lowered his forehead to mine and sighed, his voice low and pained. “Okay, love, you want the truth … here it goes. I still take my pain killers every day. I’ve tried to stop, but I can’t. I’ve at least cut my pills down from six to four a day.”

I gasped. “And you’ve done this for how long?”

“For four months.”

“Has your shoulder been giving you that many problems?” I asked. “Or are you taking them for the hell of it?”

Cooper ran his fingers through his hair and blew out an angry breath. “I don’t know, both I guess. I love the way I feel when I’m on them because I never care about anything. At least, not until I met you. I’ve taken five of them today, and I still find myself thinking of nothing other than you. If I’m addicted to anything it’s not those f*cking pills … it’s you.”

My breath hitched in my throat and I froze. He was addicted to me? “Cooper,” I murmured, taking his face in my hands. His blue gaze stared back at me—so deep—that I almost forgot to breathe. “You need to tell me when you’re in pain. It’s my job to help you. Taking pills like you’re doing is a serious problem. Starting tomorrow you’re going to cut down the amount of four to three and you’re going to work with me. I’ll show you some exercises that are great for pain management. Then the next week we’ll cut down to two and finally to one.”

“What about withdrawals? Will I experience that?”

“Unfortunately, yes. That’s why you need to slowly cut back until you can wean yourself off of them. It’s not going to be easy, but I’m not going to let you go through it alone.”