Storm Warning (8 page)

“Eh, I can take it.” Hayden’s eyes flickered toward her. She wondered if Coop noticed. He was standing off to the side with his fists clenched.

Kyle didn’t seem to notice, which made her wonder if she’d imagined it. Usually he got all ’roid ragey if a guy so much as nodded in her direction. But he shook Hayden’s hand and thanked him for passing the message along.

“EJ, when you go inside to change, tell Mom to give me a few minutes to unload the rest of this mulch.”

“I’m not going inside to change.”

She watched as Coop stepped between her and her brother. “Dude, relax. She’s not dressed any differently than any of the other girls that will be there. It’s ninety damn degrees out here.”

EJ was torn between watching Hayden leave and the interaction between Coop and Kyle. Maybe this was it. Maybe Coop was finally going to man up and tell him they were into each other. She sucked in a breath, praying she was right. She’d already named their kids—it was probably time for some forward progress.

And this was good. They could tell him together, present a united front and all that.

Apparently, her brother was ready to press the issue. “Oh yeah? What’s going on, Coop? You got something to tell me? Like maybe that you enjoy seeing my sister nearly busting out of her clothes?”

Coop took a step back. “No. For God’s sakes, Mase, she’s like a sister to me. I’m not into incest.”

He might as well have grabbed a bag of mulch and swung it at her with all of his might. The force of his words hit her just as hard.

Incest. He thinks of me as a sister. Incest is repulsive. The thought of us together is repulsive to him.

Now she knew why he’d looked so conflicted about kissing her not so long ago. Maybe he hadn’t been about to kiss her at all. Maybe he’d just been comforting her and she’d let her imagination run wild.

The contents of her stomach threatened to rise into her throat. A far away ringing sound began to drown out whatever else was being said.

“You know what? I’m going to skip the track after all. You two have fun.” Backing up so fast she nearly tripped over her own two feet, EJ beat it out of there as quickly as she could manage without full-out sprinting.

She hated that she was in flip-flops instead of running shoes, but the tears were coming hard and falling fast. No way she could suck it up long enough to go inside and change shoes without her mother asking a million questions.

Thankful that she had the path to The Ridge memorized, she made her way there, blinded by the moisture in her eyes.

Dropping herself down onto the edge of the cliff above the steep incline to the railroad tracks, she let loose one loud sob before swiping at her tears with her hands.

All these years she’d been dreaming of the day when Coop finally saw her. Finally looked at her in
that way
. And now it was never going to happen.

She cursed herself for the hours upon hours she’d spent fantasizing about what it would be like to kiss him, to call him her boyfriend. God, Lynlee was going to laugh her ass off at her. A million times her friend had told her to grow a pair and make a move. While EJ was pretty sure she never wanted to “grow a pair,” she had been putting serious thought into making a move.

She glanced over at the setting sun. If there was any type of silver lining to having her heart splattered all over the barn, it was that she hadn’t followed Lynlee’s advice. Because how horrifyingly humiliating would
that
have been? She shuddered at the thought.

“You cold?” a deep male voice asked from behind her.

For one stupid second, she let herself imagine that it was him. That he’d followed her to comfort her. To say he didn’t mean it.

But a quick glance over her shoulder was enough to put the final nail in the coffin of any fantasy she’d ever had about being anything more than friends with Coop.

“H-how long have you been here?” she asked the boy standing behind her.

“Long enough to hear you imitating a wounded animal.” Hayden took two steps before he plopped down beside her. She was strangely reminded of a nursery rhyme her mother had read her as a kid.
Little Miss Muffet sat on her tuffet…along came a spider and sat down beside her…

He’s not a wolf and he’s not a spider
, she told herself.
He’s just a guy.
She cleared her throat and took one last swipe at any remaining evidence that she’d been crying. “And you have a hard-on for damsels in distress or what? Because I honestly came out here to be alone.”

She watched him flinch at her words. “See, normally I would make a rude comment about you being interested in what gives me a hard-on. But since I know you’re upset about your brother’s wuss of a friend acting like such a douche back there, I’m going to give you a pass.”

“Gee, thanks.” She pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them.

“So what’s the deal? You and your brother’s friend a thing or what?”

She sniffled. “Didn’t you hear? That would be like incest as far as he’s concerned.” She tried to ignore the painful stab to her heart that word caused.

“Yeah, I heard. I also heard enough to know he’s full of shit. And he’s given me enough dirty looks any time I get near you to let me know he’d like for me to back off. Too bad I don’t much care what he’d like.”

“What? Coop doesn’t give anyone dirty looks. He’s like the nicest guy on the planet. Everyone loves him.”
Some of us more than others.

“Oh yeah? Well what does that make me? ’Cause I gotta say, I’m not all that impressed.”

EJ bit her lip. Maybe Hayden was onto something. Maybe Coop thought of her as a sister
now
, but maybe, just maybe, a few well-placed interactions with Hayden would make him realize what he was missing.

Hayden must’ve taken her contemplative silence for something else because he moved to stand up. “Hey, it’s cool if you want to be alone. I’ll leave you be.”

“Um, wait.” She reached out to him without thinking. “Stay?”

Darkening green eyes took in the sight of her hand on his arm. “Whatever you say, angel face. I got nowhere else to be.”

W
AY
to go, dumbass.
Coop cursed himself for not just telling Kyle the truth right then and there before Ella Jane took off like a bat out of hell. That would’ve been the best thing he could’ve done—just put all of his cards on the table. But nope. He had to go and make some stupid, completely false statement about him not even noticing how she was dressed. He’d noticed. He always noticed, and he didn’t mind it when her tank top was a little tight or her shorts a little too short.

And then for the grand finale of his asshole show—the fact that the word
incest
had come out of his mouth. The last thing he pictured Ella Jane as was a relative. He saw the look on her face when he’d said what he’d said and it was comparable to the reaction a kid had when they found out their favorite pet died.

He’d panicked and he’d crushed her. Especially after their
almost
whatever it was at the canyon the other day. He really wanted to backtrack, tell her he didn’t mean it, and tell his best friend that he was in love with his sister. But the don’t-you-dare look on Kyle’s face stopped him from following her like he’d desperately wanted to.

“That girl needs to quit being such a big baby,” Kyle said as he and Coop climbed into the cab of Coop’s truck. “Everything is end of the world with her these days.”

“She’s just having a rough time.”

“So you’ve said,” Kyle replied, side-eyeing his friend with an accusatory look. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were hot for my little sister.”

“Hardly,” Coop replied, baffled as the words came out of his mouth.
Why can’t I just tell him the truth?
He knew exactly why. Because he was stuck between a rock and hard place. When your best friend asked you not to do something, you didn’t do it. Bro Code. Plain and simple.

“Better not be.” Kyle chuckled and punched him in the arm as they drove down the gravel and dirt drive and pulled out onto the road.

It didn’t matter anymore anyway. The look on Ella Jane’s face told him that he had royally blown any shot he had of making any moves anytime soon. Maybe once he could explain to her—how he hadn’t meant it—she’d forgive him.

Yeah right,
he thought to himself.
And maybe on the first day of school I’ll tell the guidance counselor I want to go to college after all so I can major in wishful thinking.

“G
RAB
me a Coke,” Kyle said as they pulled into the gas station. He turned his hat around and gave his buddy a stern look. “Quit moping around and make it quick. We’re never gonna have your slow ass ready for the next race if you don’t pick up the pace.”

“Ha-ha,” Coop deadpanned. “I can be around the track ten times before your slow ass makes it through the whoop section, and that’s on my worst day.” He headed into the station to pay but turned around to dig into Kyle one more time. “You need me to pick you up a couple wedding magazines, too?”

The look on Kyle’s face told Coop that he had no idea what he was talking about.

“I mean, I just figured as whipped as you’ve been lately with your secret girlfriend, surely wife-ing her up is the next step.”

Kyle shook his head. “Go get me my Coke,” he said, fighting back a smile and pointing at the station.

Coop laughed his way to the counter. He was still trying to figure out Kyle and his new girl. He didn’t mind that his best friend had been ditching him lately for the mystery chick, but she was just that—a mystery. Kyle hadn’t even told Coop her name. All he knew was that she was some rich girl from Summit Bluffs and that Kyle was batshit crazy about her. His best friend’s eyes got all dopey and glazed over any time she was mentioned.

Coop knew the feeling, which was exactly why he didn’t ask any more questions about her. When Kyle was ready to talk, he’d talk. Just like Coop. Someday he’d tell Kyle how he felt about Ella Jane…right after he told her.

“Hey, George,” Coop greeted the grizzly looking guy behind the cash register. “Can I get five gallons of the high octane?” He pointed at Kyle, who had climbed into the truck bed, ready to fill the gas cans.

“You paying with cash?” George asked.

“Something wrong with the farm account?” Coop was confused. He had always just charged his gas to his family’s line of credit.

“Well, yeah,” George replied gruffly. “Ain’t been paid in over a month.”

“I’m sure it’s just a misunderstanding,” Coop reasoned. His parents had never been late on a payment for anything. In fact, he quite often got the “how to be financially responsible” speech from both of them. He pulled out his wallet only to find it empty.
Should have listened to their spiel.
He’d spent all his cash when he bought lunch for Kyle and Ella Jane yesterday.

“Go ahead and fill your tanks this time, kid.” George offered a sympathetic smile as if he knew more than he was letting on. “But tell your old man to stop in and see me.”

“Will do.” Coop thanked him and rushed out the door before George had a change of heart. He was in the truck before Kyle had the tanks full.

“Where’s my Coke?” Kyle asked as he hopped back into the truck.

“Long story.”

“D
AD,”
Coop called out as he walked through the screen door of the old farmhouse he called home. “Where you at?”

“Hey.” His mom did her best whisper-yell as he walked into the living room. “Your brothers are asleep.” She wagged her finger, warning him to be quiet, and sat down the tablet she was undoubtedly reading some romance novel on. He would have bet money that by the time he came downstairs for breakfast the next morning she’d be on the phone with Millie Mason talking about how hot and bothered some love scene in whatever fifty-shades-of-mommy-porn book they were reading had her. It was beyond disgusting.

“Sorry.” He tossed his hands up. He hadn’t realized it was so late. Well, late by farmer standards. Nine o’clock on a weeknight was like midnight for the people in his house. Especially when five a.m. rolled around. He flopped down on the sofa and put his hand behind his head.