The Boyfriend Contract

by Victoria James

  “Are you having mice issues?” Callie said. “You should ask my brothers to deal with them for you. They have loads of spare time.”

  “We already talked to pest control. They’re coming out Monday,” Cooper said, then took a drink of beer.

  “I hate mice. I know it sounds stupid,” Callie said, picking up a carrot. “But they are disgusting, and I refuse to deal with them myself.”

  Cooper let out a muffled laugh. Callie glared and he held up his hands. He appeared younger now, his smile and laugh changing his features. He had straight white teeth and a beautiful laugh, rich and deep and masculine, and it sent a tingle down her spine. “Too bad the mice didn’t get your memo,” Cooper said. Seeing him smile almost made her smile.

  Callie rolled her eyes. “Coop, you’re not funny.”

  Emily leaned forward, relieved. “I’m so glad it’s not just me who hates mice. But I’m torn because I keep trying to decide if mice are worse than bats.”

  Callie glared at her brothers. “Are you guys kidding me? She might have bats in her house and you’re sitting here gorging yourselves on wings and beer?”

  “That’s okay, they told me to buy a fishing net,” Emily said.

  Callie swatted Austin and Brody, who were seated on either side of her, and then frowned at Cooper again.

  “Relax, Callie. There are no bats,” Cooper said.

  Everyone turned their attention toward him.

  “Seriously?” Emily asked. “How do you know?”

  He glanced at her quickly and then at his family. “I checked this morning. Went into the attic through the two different access points, so I’ve seen everything. No evidence of bats.”

  “You didn’t tell us you were going,” Brody said, his eyes narrowed at Cooper.

  Cooper shrugged. “It was morning, and I assumed you were still slothing around in bed.”

  “I don’t sloth in bed.”

  “Sorry to interrupt,” Emily said, tapping on Cooper’s shoulder. When he turned to her, her mouth went dry, because up close, with his full attention on her, he was even more beautiful. Like, so much so that for a moment she forgot what she was going to say, because his eyes had an intensity like he was really listening. “How sure are you?” she said.

  “Very sure. We’ll still have the wildlife guy out, but at least you don’t have to worry about bats over the weekend.”

  “That’s so nice of you, Coop,” Callie said, leaning forward. “Anyway, enough about rodents. Emily, what are you doing Sunday night?”

  “Um, nothing, I think.”

  “Great. You should come to Sunday night dinner.”

  She felt the heat of Cooper’s stare and shifted in her seat. “Oh, thanks, but I don’t want to intrude on a family dinner.”

  “It’s not intruding,” Brody said. “Our mother loves company. Besides, she’d hate to think you were all by yourself in that big old house on a Sunday night. Isn’t that right, Coop?”

  Cooper turned to his brother, and his jaw ticked. “Yes. That’s right, Brody,” he said.

  “Um, okay. Thanks. A Sunday night family dinner sounds really nice.” She took a sip of beer and then winced at the bitter flavor as she put it back down. She looked at the glass and then the one on the table, and heat flooded her face as panic set in. She’d picked up the wrong glass and drunk out of Cooper’s. She turned to him, whispering so no one else would hear. “I’m so sorry, Cooper, I drank out of your glass by accident.”

  “Don’t worry, Emily. He’s not harboring any major germs. Despite Cooper’s reputation as a ladies’ man, he’s as clean as a whistle,” Austin said.

  Emily thought she was going to die of humiliation.

  “You did not just say that,” Cooper said in a low voice, leaning toward his brother and putting his elbows on the table.

  “Oh, I know you’re just joking about the ladies’ man thing,” Emily said with a wave of her hand, desperate to ease the tension. Except Cooper turned to her and his brothers and Callie burst out laughing. Only after a second did Emily realize what she implied.

  Cooper had a way of looking intimidating without actually being intimidating. He wasn’t smiling. It was the intensity, maybe. “Joking?”

  She winced, wishing so badly that she’d just put the beer down without mentioning that she’d taken a sip out of it. She cleared her throat and shifted in her chair, hating that everyone was now staring at them like they were the stars of the latest blockbuster movie. “I mean…you just, um, don’t really strike me as a ladies’ man, that’s all.”

  “I see.”

  She clutched the side of the chair, desperate to explain herself, trying to ignore the enraptured audience hanging on their every word. “Not…that you couldn’t be a ladies’ man if you tried. Because you have all the…um, right assets. It’s more your um, bedside manner…not, like, bedside, because I wouldn’t know, um, I just mean that you don’t talk very much and, um, you have this silent stare and…”

  “Holy crap, Cooper, bail her out! Emily, don’t worry about him,” Callie said, leaning across the table to shove her brother.

  Cooper’s eyes were actually filled with laughter and a corner of his mouth had turned up. “Well, thanks for that enlightening analysis on areas to improve in order to become a ‘ladies’ man,’” he said.

  Relief flooded her, even though her face was still burning.

  “I can give you a few pointers,” Austin said, picking up his own beer and clanking it against Cooper’s glass.

  Cooper snatched his glass. “I don’t need help,” he snapped.

  His brothers laughed, and Emily tried not to appear as though she was waiting intently to see if he’d drink his beer. What had she been thinking? She needed to learn not to just blurt things out in a panic. It was him. It was Cooper’s fault. This weird vibe he gave off.

  “So, do you have a name for the inn you’re opening?” Brody asked.

  Emily nodded, relieved to be talking about something else. “I was thinking of keeping it simple. Something like the Maple Hill Inn. I’m sure you guys are all used to the name of the town, but for people not from around here, especially from the city, it sounds very charming.”

  “I can’t wait to get a tour of this place,” Callie said.

  “Come over tomorrow! Maybe we can get the cat together?” she asked.

  Callie beamed. “Perfect.”

  “Let us know if you need any help preparing for the town council meeting,” Brody said.

  “Thanks, but I think I’ll be fine. It’s just a zoning application.”

  They all exchanged looks.

  “What? Am I missing something?”

  Cooper turned to her. “People are starting to talk. Notice of the meeting was in the paper today.”

  “So? It’s not like I’m doing something crazy or even adding an addition that would affect any part of the building protected by heritage.”

  “Doesn’t matter. People here have opinions on everything,” Cooper said. “So, just make sure you’re ready for people coming up with depositions and all sorts of stupid reasons you shouldn’t be allowed to convert your grandmother’s house into an inn.”

  “Don’t worry about that now,” Callie said. “Coop will help you.” She shot her brother a sweet smile.

  They continued to chat about local gossip for the next hour or so, until Cooper stood to leave, and everyone joined him. They made their way outside, everyone going in different directions except her and Callie. “Okay, how about I swing by around eleven tomorrow morning and we’ll go pick up the cat together?” Callie asked.

  “That sounds perfect. I’m kind of excited. I never had a pet before,” she said, fishing through her purse to get her keys once they stopped at her car.

  A loud, angry man’s voice made her pause and turn toward it, the way Callie was facing already. “Oh no, Moose,” Callie said under her breath.

  “What? Who? Did you say Moose?”

  Callie nodded. “He’s bad news. The t
own asshole. He’s talking to his daughter.”

  Except it was more like yelling.

  “I’m not going home with you,” the girl yelled, yanking her arm from her father’s grip. “You’re a crap father, and I’m old enough to live on my own.”

  He grabbed her upper arm again, and judging by the way she writhed, he did so too tightly. Emily’s heart thumped rapidly, and panic swelled inside her. “Do we need to step in?” she whispered.

  Callie nodded. “Maybe.”

  “You’re coming home with me, you ungrateful little bitch,” he said, yanking her harshly.

  “We have to do something,” Emily whispered, walking forward, having no idea what to do in a situation like this. Callie walked beside her.

  “Okay, he’s a total asshole, but there’s two of us. Also, he went to high school with Austin, Brody, and Cooper, and even though he was a total jackass, he wouldn’t hurt us. He’s only been to jail a few times, and it wasn’t for anything violent,” Callie said casually.

  “Oh, great,” Emily said under her breath.

  “Seriously. He wouldn’t lay a hand on us; he knows who I am, and he knows my brothers would kill him if he did.”

  “Right,” she whispered. “We should try to look tough or something.”

  Callie straightened her shoulders. “Good idea.”

  “I don’t know how to look tough,” she said as her heels almost got stuck in the gravel.

  Callie shook her head. “I know what I’m doing, don’t worry.”

  Emily took a deep breath and walked alongside the woman she knew she wanted to be her best friend.

  Chapter Five

  Cooper was about to start his truck when he spotted his sister and Emily walking toward Moose and his daughter. Hell. He knew trouble when he saw it. He climbed out of his truck, and Moose yelled in their faces about minding their own damn business.

  He walked over there, telling himself to keep his temper in check and play things cool. “You can’t drag her home if she doesn’t want to go home. How old are you, sweetie?” Emily said.

  Moose’s daughter’s lip wobbled. “Seventeen.”

  Moose stepped up way too close to Emily, his massive frame looming over her petite one, but she didn’t back down. “Mind your own damn business, bitch,” Moose growled.

  “Back off,” Cooper said, trying to keep his voice calm.

  Moose backed up a step but glared at him. “Tell your sister and her friend to stay out of my family business.”

  “We are helping his daughter,” Callie said. “He was calling her names and hurting her.”

  The last thing he needed was to get involved in Moose’s problems. But when he looked over at the daughter, who had tears rolling down her cheeks and her arms crossed in front of herself, he knew why Callie and Emily had gotten involved.

  “I’m okay,” the girl whispered.

  “See?” he said.

  Cooper glanced uneasily between father and daughter. He knew the home situation wasn’t great, but he assumed Moose was just a deadbeat and nothing more.

  “If you ever need a place to stay,” Emily started, “I have more than enough room—”

  “Who the fuck do you think you are, bitch?” Moose yelled in her face.

  “Back the hell away from her. Now,” Cooper said, bracing himself in case he was going to be on the receiving end of a punch. He needed to defuse this situation before it got out of hand. He stepped in front of Emily to block her from him. “There’s no need to be insulting. She’s offering your daughter support because you’re yelling at her and manhandling her. We just want to make sure she’s safe and that you haven’t been drinking.”

  “I haven’t had a fucking chance to even go into the bar yet,” he growled. Cooper was standing close enough to him to detect there wasn’t any alcohol on his breath.

  He ignored Emily tapping on his shoulder.

  Moose didn’t say anything for a long, tense moment, and Cooper hoped to hell neither his sister nor Emily decided to throw him an insult. “You three mind your own damn business. My daughter can do whatever the hell she wants. I couldn’t give a shit,” Moose said, walking toward his truck.

  The girl stared at them and then back at her father, who was almost at his truck.

  “I live in the big old house on Maple Hill,” Emily whispered to the girl. “I have lots of room, and it’s a safe place. You come anytime, sweetie. Even now.”

  Cooper pinched the bridge of his nose and looked down, trying his best to keep his mouth shut. He tried to tell himself it was really commendable of Emily to open her door to a virtual stranger, but he was worried about her jumping headfirst into what could be a very dangerous situation.

  “It’s fine; I’ll go home with my dad,” she said, turning to run after Moose’s truck, which was kicking up dirt. They stood there in silence, watching as Moose sped to the end of the parking lot and then slammed on his brakes, taunting his daughter by pretending to drive away. He finally stopped, and she jumped in, not sparing them a second glance.

  Cooper turned to face Emily and his sister. Neither of them seemed to be paying him any attention. Their eyes were on the truck as it sped down the road. “Why the hell, of all people, would you two approach Moose?”

  “Oh, because we wanted to ask him to tea,” Callie said. “Obviously because we were afraid for his daughter, Coop!”

  He loved that his sister had such a big heart; he just hated seeing her in any kind of danger.

  “His name should be Beast,” Emily said.

  Callie laughed. “Agreed.”

  “Okay, I don’t care what his stupid nickname is. You just started something with one of the worst people in town. And you told his daughter where you live,” he said to Emily, trying not to sound angry. He wasn’t mad at her, just at the situation.

  She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear and crossed her arms over her chest. “It doesn’t really matter; everyone knows everything in this town anyway.”

  He ran his hands down his face. “Still. Maybe he didn’t know who you were. Now he knows where you live and you’re in that giant old house all by yourself.”

  He caught the fear that flashed across her eyes, but she lifted her chin. “I couldn’t stand here and watch him call her names and manhandle her. I was worried for her safety.”

  “I get it. I just… You two should have called for help,” he said, not knowing what else to say because if he’d heard and seen what they had, he would have stepped in, too.

  “Sure. How long do you think it would take the cops to get out here for some kind of domestic scuffle?” Callie asked.

  “Well, at least don’t go approaching people like Moose in a dark parking lot,” he said, trying to make a point.

  “Oh, so then you suggest next time we ask him to move onto the lit sidewalk first?” Emily said.

  His sister burst out laughing. He shook his head and rubbed the back of his neck.

  “So anyway,” he said, shooting them each a look that hopefully indicated how he didn’t find their brand of humor particularly funny, “I’m going. See that you can avoid trouble, please.”

  “Sure, thing, Sarge,” his sister said, patting him on the shoulder and then saluting. “Oh. Wait. Don’t forget Mom and Dad’s on Sunday night.”

  “I’ll see if I can make it. I might be busy practicing my ladies’ man skills.” He turned around so he didn’t actually witness their outburst of laughter. But he did smile all the way back to his truck.

  He sat in the front seat, deciding to wait and make sure they were both safely in their cars. The last thing he wanted was Moose making a reappearance. His smile lingered as he thought about Emily tonight and her analysis of what he was lacking. It bothered him that she perceived him as someone who didn’t talk or… Basically she insinuated he wasn’t fun. He hadn’t realized that had stopped, that other people noticed. Emily’s opinion of him shouldn’t bother him…but it did.

  Glancing over at Emily and Callie, he found h
imself smiling again as they laughed and continued to talk…for another half hour.

  Their laughter actually made him smile, and he was happy to see Callie at ease with Emily. When Catherine died, it had affected all of them. Even though Catherine was older than Callie, they had been very close, and he knew his sister had hesitated to make new friends or get into relationships. Hell, he couldn’t blame her, because he hadn’t let anyone in again, either.

  Emily seemed to be roping them all in. Something like longing or warmth filled him as he watched her hug his sister and then get into her car. Callie pulled out of her parking spot first, and he knew she’d be fine, because she was going home to their parents’ house. That was why he followed Emily home. He just wanted to make sure she’d be okay going back to that old house by herself. She wasn’t a woman who should be alone and yet there were no signs of anyone from her life—well, except whatever loser she’d been talking to on the phone. But no one visited her, no one had called her, except Darth Vader. He followed at a distance then parked on the other side of the road and waited until she’d unlocked the door and walked in safely.

  She had fit in with his family perfectly tonight. She was easygoing and charming, and he could tell everyone loved her. He knew Callie had put her beside him on purpose, and he’d hated that his attraction to her only increased. When she walked in the bar, she’d stood out. She’d been wearing a deep-red sweater that clung to her curves in a way that made it impossible for him not to notice them, dark skinny jeans, and black leather boots that stopped just below her knees. He leaned his head back. He hated all of this.

  He sat there for a moment longer, wondering why this one woman, who had been a stranger to him just a week ago, was now on his mind all the time.

  …

  “We’re screwed,” Austin said. “With Brendon not playing on Saturday, we might as well forfeit the game right now.”

  Cooper and Brody nodded in agreement. In truth, he was ready for baseball season to end; he had too much going on. But he hated losing—they all did. He and his siblings were sitting in the family room at their parents’ house on Sunday night, trying to stay out of their mother’s way while she buzzed around them, getting everything ready for dinner. None of them were permitted to help until clean-up duty. He didn’t want to acknowledge that her extra attention to detail might have something to do with the fact that Emily was coming over. She had even sent their father outside to sweep their already clean porch.