Escaping the Blackness (A Cooper Brothers Novel Book 1)

by Norma Jeanne Karlsson

  “I’m always good to my bitches,” he snarks right back.

  Mitch saunters out of the suite and I go to check on my girl. I look over her shoulder to find her drawing a picture. She’s five, but I can still make out her intent.

  There’s a dragon breathing angry red fire while its tail holds back a little girl. There’s a knight trying to fight the dragon, but the dragon’s fiery breath is winning.

  Riley’s nightmares come to life.

  “Hey, Princess,” I say tenderly as I place a hand on her shoulder.

  She jumps at the contact, but calms when she feels it’s my touch. Dropping her crayon, she leans back against the couch while staring at her picture.

  “You wanna talk about it?” I ask tentatively.

  She shakes her head no.

  “Can I get a hug?” I can’t leave her on the floor staring at an image that’s clearly haunting her.

  Riley nods minutely and I sweep her into my arms, plopping on the couch.

  “You’re safe, Riley,” I assure her, kissing her hair.

  She curls into a ball on my lap and I use my thick arms to blanket her body in my strength as best I can. I hold her in silence until Mitch comes back. She seems better after our quiet time together. I like that I can offer her comfort without words, because I sure as shit don’t have the words to take away all the hurt.

  We load up and roll out to my brothers’ place while I worry about Riley. I need to find a place for us to live so I can get her into therapy. I’m in no position to do anything other than what I did today. I can hold her, comfort her and protect her, but I can’t get inside her head. I need help with that part.

  I ring the doorbell as Mitch totes Riley on his hip as they chatter about the pool.

  “Quit ringin’ the bell. Just come in,” Dane huffs as he jerks the door open.

  “You don’t lock your door?” I ask, following him down the hall.

  “Not when we’re home,” he responds nonchalantly.

  He pushes his sandy hair off his forehead and grins at me before reaching his fist out for a bump. I oblige as I study my brother while he saunters over to the fridge.

  He’s wide. Really fucking wide. At a little over six feet, he looks like a wrestler with a thick neck and massive biceps. I see a hint of ink beneath the collar of his T-shirt. Dane’s face is what most women would call pretty. He has smooth skin that almost glows. His honey-hued eyes are always alight with a silent joke he’s got working in his head. His hair is buzzed close on the sides, but long on top, falling near his eyes often.

  Look out ladies, Dane Cooper will melt your panties.

  A herd of elephants descend the stairs as my brothers and Cara enter the room. Cara doesn’t look at me, instead heading straight for Riley who jumps into her arms with excitement. I watch the two of them beam at each other while Cara carries her over to the couch.

  Cole smirks at me watching them. I’ve been caught, though I’m not trying to hide. My family knows how I feel about Cara. I’ve never made that shit a secret.

  Sawyer and Mitch start talking while Cole approaches me.

  “She was flustered when she got home yesterday,” he says through a sly grin, nodding over at Cara.

  “Shut up, Cole,” I grumble.

  Cole’s tall. An inch over my height. He played basketball until last year when he tore his rotator cuff. He’s still got that athlete’s body, lean and cut. His pale blue eyes study me while he runs his hand along the back of his neck. His sandy hair is short, but long enough for him to style it if he wants to. Today, it’s covered in a University of Kansas hat.

  I tug on the bill and punch him in the chest lightly.

  He rubs the spot while he chuckles. “You’re so fucked.”

  This is us. Me and my brothers. We give each other shit, joke around and spend most of our time laughing. I missed this. If I didn’t have Mitch with me the last six years, I would have been lost. He fits with us.

  “How much longer are you gonna stay at the hotel?” Sawyer asks Mitch and me.

  “We’re supposed to check out tomorrow,” I answer.

  “Are you goin’ back to Virginia?” Cole questions with a hint of pain in his eyes.

  “Wasn’t plannin’ on it.”

  “Kansas City?” Dane pipes in, Gatorade in hand.

  I look over at Mitch and shrug. We haven’t talked about it yet. He’ll go wherever I decide. It’s up to me at this point. I’m not sure where we should go. I don’t want to impose on my parents and Shannon. But I need help. A lot of fucking help.

  “You could move in here,” Sawyer suggests.

  “I couldn’t put you guys out like that,” I respond instantly.

  “Pfft. We’ve got the space. You’re not puttin’ anyone out,” Dane informs me.

  “Mitch’s stayin’ with us. He and I can find a place. I just need to figure out where to go.”

  “So you stay here until you decide,” Cole insists. “We’ve got three extra rooms up on the third floor. It’s not a big deal.”

  I look at Mitch for some direction. He turns the corners of his mouth down and shrugs, saying he doesn’t give a shit where we go. He’d be comfortable in a cardboard box.

  “You wanna stay here with us, Princess?” Sawyer calls out to Riley.

  Riley and Cara are out of earshot so this is the first she’s hearing about it.

  “You’re not leaving me, right?” Riley asks me with panic on her face.

  “No,” I growl.

  My growling and posture set her at ease in Cara’s arms instead of scaring her. I’m happy for that because I don’t know how to be soft when I feel possessive. And that’s how I feel about my girl. I’m not fucking leaving her.

  “Okay,” Riley agrees with a small smile directed at Sawyer.

  “Shit, what’d you do?” Dane grumbles.

  “Braided her hair,” Sawyer announces triumphantly.

  “Cheater.”

  “Pussy.”

  “I am what I eat,” Dane retorts through a wide smirk.

  “You guys should probably talk to Cara about this,” I suggest, breaking up their snark-fest.

  “Cara, you good with this?” Dane shouts at her.

  “Yeah,” she hollers back without looking at us.

  “She’s good.”

  “I’m in the fuckin’ room,” I snort, rolling my eyes at my smug brother.

  “I see you, you big motherfucker. How the hell did you get like this?”

  “I drink my milk,” I joke. “Looks like you do too.”

  “I had to beef up to be able to kick Sawyer’s ass.”

  “Dream on,” Sawyer snorts.

  “Don’t get these two started,” Cole huffs. “It’s a constant dick measuring contest around here.”

  “He’s just sad because he always loses,” Dane replies, pointing at Cole.

  “The only thing I lose is brain cells tryin’ to talk to you, dick.”

  They stop giving each other shit long enough to discuss their next workout plan.

  “We should get in a ring soon,” Mitch suggests.

  “Yeah,” I agree, needing to work off a lot of tension.

  “You’re in luck. We’ve got a place set up in the basement. Dad and Aunt Shanny hooked us up two years ago for Christmas,” Cole says happily.

  “Thank fuck, I need a workout other than in the sack,” Mitch sighs with relief.

  “Thought you were sore.” I quirk a brow at him as Dane smiles mischievously at my friend.

  “Fuckin’ standing up always wrecks my back.”

  “No one wants to hear that shit,” I grumble, swinging my gaze to the girls who are blissfully unaware of our conversation.

  “My neck’s fucked from goin’ down on this chick last night—”

  I palm Dane’s face to cut off a story I have no desire to listen to. He keeps mumbling into my hand and when I remove it, he finishes with, “—like a vacuum.”

  “I like him,” Mitch quips.

&nb
sp; “You would.”

  We all chuckle and I allow the easiness of the situation seep in. I can do this. I am doing this. And it feels right. For the first time since I walked away from these people, everything feels right. That should bring me happiness, but it fills me with dread. I don’t get good in my life. Something bad is on the horizon.

  I can feel it.

  I can do this. I have to do this. I am doing this.

  I sit on the couch with Riley as she talks about swimming and playing with cars later. I listen to everything she says and try to block out Jake’s presence. An impossible task, but I’m putting in the effort.

  I just agreed that he can move in here. If I objected, it would have caused problems. His brothers want him close, and I can’t stand in the way of that. I’ll just keep myself busy outside the house until he leaves. There’s no way he’ll hang around for very long.

  “Princess Cara, are you gonna swim too?” Riley asks, bringing my focus back to her.

  “Yeah. Do you know how to swim?” I ask, looking into her stunning light grey eyes. They look like the sky after a storm has burned off, soft and peaceful. I love that she looks this way. I keep expecting to see that haunted look she had in her eyes the other day when she woke up from her nightmare, but it’s nowhere in sight.

  “I’m not very good yet,” she says with a determination in her voice that indicates she wants to master it.

  She’s her father’s daughter.

  “We’ll have fun,” I assure her.

  Now that my finals are done, I can focus on fun. Logan is now a part of that plan, along with a date on Friday.

  “You two girls ready to go?” Dane asks.

  “Are you five girls ready to go?” I snark back, making Riley laugh hard.

  “I’ll show you how much of a girl I am,” Dane threatens.

  “Will you play dolls with me since you’re a girl?” Riley asks innocently.

  “I’m…not…well…” Dane looks at Jake for some help, but he’s smothering his laughter in his massive hands.

  “You can have the one with a pink dress. I don’t like pink,” Riley confesses with her nose turned up.

  “Yeah, Dane,” Sawyer goads, “You can have the pink doll.”

  “Last night Daddy and Uncle Jase—”

  “Let’s get going!” Mitch shouts to cut off whatever Riley was about to say.

  “What did your daddy and Uncle Jase do last night?” Dane asks mischievously.

  “Nothing!” Jake and Mitch holler in unison.

  Riley’s brow is furrowed at me, questioning what’s wrong with all of these childish men.

  “Uncle Jase likes the pink doll, huh?” I ask.

  “Actually—”

  She gets stopped again when Mitch yanks her from my lap, tickling her mercilessly. His massive form is quite the sight. His jet black hair is always messy, like he just got out of bed in a sexy way. He has deep grey eyes that glimmer most of the time. His face is sculpted and angular matching the rest of his body. I can see why he’s popular with the ladies. He does nothing for me though.

  I only have eyes for Jake.

  Stupid!

  “Let her speak,” I demand, jumping up to save Riley.

  “Never!” Mitch yells dramatically, running back to the group where the guys take turns tossing Riley around to her delight.

  My cheeks hurt from smiling and I forget what we were talking about by the time everyone settles down.

  “Ready?” Sawyer asks me, readjusting his hat that Cole flipped off.

  “Yup.”

  I collect our pool bags and immediately have them swept away from me by Mitch. He winks and nods at me to walk ahead of him, so I do. See, he’s good with the ladies. Hot and charming.

  The women of Lawrence don’t stand a chance with him and the Cooper brothers in the vicinity.

  “See you there,” I say to Mitch after he loads the bags in the back of Sawyer’s SUV.

  “Cara,” he calls out before I round the trunk.

  “Yeah?”

  “Give him a chance. I know he hurt you. And hurting all of you, destroyed a piece of him. I know it’s hard for you guys to understand, but he was doin’ what was best for all of you. He’s a good man. I don’t know where I’d be without him. Just give him a chance,” he urges softly.

  He doesn’t give me an opportunity to respond before walking away. Not that I could, my throat has a lump so big I feel like I’m about to choke.

  I slip in the backseat and am instantly hit with the questioning gazes of the Cooper brothers.

  “Just drive,” I groan.

  “Havin’ some girl talk?” Dane quips.

  “Yeah, we were comparing bra sizes,” I deadpan and Sawyer pulls out of our driveway.

  “Sorry I missed it,” Cole jokes.

  They leave it alone after that. Our conversation moving to what are plans are for winter break. Cole and Sawyer are done with finals tomorrow and Dane finishes on Thursday. I’m ready for the break.

  “I have a date on Friday,” I announce.

  “What’s that?” Dane asks, turning in his seat to face me.

  “I have a date on Friday. You know that thing that people do with the opposite sex sometimes when they like each other.”

  “That’s called sex, not a date,” he responds.

  “Only in your twisted world.”

  “Who?” Sawyer snaps.

  “Logan Pierce.”

  “That asshole from the track team?”

  “He’s not an asshole,” I grumble. “But yes, he runs track. Do you know him?”

  “I see him around.”

  Sawyer’s on the baseball team. He’s actually being scouted by a few professional teams. He’s got a good chance to go pro once he’s done with school. He acts like he doesn’t care about it, but we all know he does.

  “I don’t think Jake’ll be too happy to learn about this,” Cole interjects.

  “Well, he doesn’t need to know because it’s none of his business,” I sneer.

  “Uh huh.”

  “Cole,” I warn.

  “I’m not sayin’ shit,” he says with his hands up.

  I lock eyes with him in the mirror on his visor, threatening bodily harm if he talks after he told me he wouldn’t. He rolls his eyes at me before snapping the visor shut.

  The rest of the ride is silent. The guys know they can’t stop my dating life. They simply wish they could. They’d lock me up in the house if they thought they could get away with it. I don’t know why they still worry so much, but they do. It’s sweet and annoying. I’m pretty good at shrugging it off at this point in our lives.

  I’m twenty-three years old. It’s about time I started dating. Logan is a good place to start.

  We pull up at the pool and unload quickly. It’s starting to snow again and the wind is wicked. I run into the lobby and wait for the guys to follow. Jake enters first with Riley in his arms.

  “Hey,” he says to me, pulling her hood down.

  “Hey.”

  There’s a moment of uncomfortable silence before everyone else joins us.

  “I’ll take Riley with me,” I say to Jake when we start splitting off toward the changing rooms after paying.

  “Okay.”

  He passes Riley’s stuff to me, holding my eyes for a moment. I look away and focus on Riley. She jumps into my arms almost knocking me down to my amusement. I don’t look back at Jake as I stride away.

  This is going to suck.

  I get Riley and myself changed into our swimsuits. Sawyer’s going to be pissed because I’m in the bikini he demanded I not wear. I’ve only worn it a few times back at the house in Kansas City. I don’t have another option so it wasn’t really something I could forgo. But I feel a little exposed as I carry Riley into the pool area.

  She beams a massive dimpled smile when we enter. There’s a pirate ship in the zero depth part of the pool where the babies are splashing around. The pool zigs and zags around to the deeper parts w
here a few floating animals are along with some slides, a lily pad obstacle and water basketball nets. It’s a great kids’ pool and Riley’s so excited she’s shaking.

  I look around until I spot Jake and my breath hitches. I can only see his top half, but it’s enough to render me stupid. His body is a work of art. Even with the scar on his shoulder and the one nestled in his washboard abs, he’s perfection. Every other woman in here agrees based on the stares.

  His face is sharp and smooth in all the right places. His ears are even attractive nestled beneath his buzzed blond hair. How can ears be a turn on? There’s water dripping off the end of his nose and I have the overwhelming desire to lick it off before giving the rest of his body a tongue bath.

  Ugh, what’s wrong with me?

  I have a plan and ogling him is not part of it.

  I shake my head and move into the water with Riley, hoping I can keep my wits about me. As long as he doesn’t touch me, I should be fine.

  I spent years learning how to hide. It’s time to put those skills to use.

  “That should be illegal,” I groan.

  “That should be recorded and projected on a big screen,” Mitch argues.

  I push his head under water as I continue to stare at Cara in a bikini. Thank fuck we’re in a pool because my dick’s at attention with no hope of going down.

  She looks like a Bond girl or something. There’s nothing flashy about the eggplant-colored suit, but on her body, it’s erotic. With Riley on her hip, it’s even better. My girl looks as much scared as she is excited, covered in a black one-piece with white polka dots and ruffles on her butt.

  Cara strides into the zero-depth pool, avoiding some other kids splashing around. I wade around to meet them and catch a view of the back of Cara’s bottoms. Her ass is only half covered. I scan the pool and notice a few too many dads staring and my possessive nature flares.

  I force my dick to deflate and stand to my full height, prowling toward the girls.

  “Easy, shooter,” Mitch whispers in my ear, placing a hand on my shoulder. “Come on, Princess. I’ve got you,” he says, taking Riley from Cara.

  I close the distance to Cara and wrap my arms around her waist. She stiffens but doesn’t pull away.

  “What the fuck are you wearing?” I growl in her ear.