The Boyfriend Contract

by Victoria James

  She drummed her fingers against the countertop. “It’s do-or-die time, Cooper. I’ve got to get to bed.”

  Bed. That was exactly where he wanted to be—but with Emily. He cleared his throat and lifted the pen, writing the last condition on this crazy-ass contract. “Done.”

  She peered at the list. “Wonderful. It looks like you got everything. I’ll walk you out,” she said, handing it back to him.

  He walked beside Emily, through the corridor that just over an hour ago had been filled with mouse guts, and into the vestibule where she’d tried to refuse his help because he was a guy, and he wondered what the hell he was getting into. He wasn’t a complicated person. Emily was…all sorts of complicated. She opened the door and turned to him, those gorgeous green eyes holding onto him, tugging at the heart he’d given up on, making him believe that this was all worth it, that she was all worth it. He cleared his throat. “Okay. So, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “Yup. Just hold on a second,” she said, and pulled her phone out of her pocket. “Can I see the contract again?”

  “You mean the notepaper?” he asked, teasing her but taking it out again.

  She rolled her eyes. “Would you mind signing the bottom?”

  He laughed.

  She didn’t smile. “It’s a contract. Without a signature it’s just a list.”

  Sighing deeply, he obliged.

  He watched in silence as she took a picture of the “contract.”

  She smiled up at him, a smile that reminded him how beautiful she was, and how much he wanted her. It was the same smile that had roped him in that first day at the Sleepless Goat, the one that had the power to make him sign a contract in which he was now responsible for Emily’s pest-control issues for life.

  Chapter Ten

  I, Cooper Merrick agree to help Emily Birmingham with rodent removal services for the rest of our lives.

  Emily stared at that line again on the contract, just as she had every night since they wrote it. That whole mice catastrophe had changed her life. She stared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror and decided against blow-drying her hair because she was too tired. She was wearing her favorite pink-and-white striped pajamas and planned on watching a movie, fantasizing about her date with Cooper tomorrow night. She still couldn’t believe it was happening. The week had been filled with this nervous tension between them, almost like neither of them knew how to act around each other—or in front of his brothers. She hadn’t seen Callie this week, but they’d exchanged a series of texts, and Emily had told her about their date.

  She had reread the contract every night since they wrote it. She believed the contract was for the best, that she’d be able to avoid any future heartache if she got him to agree to those minor points. Sure she’d felt silly at times, but it was the only way to protect herself. She would never let a man hurt her again. The new Emily was strong and decisive and self-confident. The contract solidified that.

  The doorbell rang just as she was about to flop onto her bed. She peeked out the upstairs hall window and was relieved to see Callie’s jeep parked outside. She ran down the stairs and opened the door. Callie was standing there in yoga pants, holding a bottle of wine in one hand and a bag of organic something in the other.

  “Have I ever told you that you’re the best friend I’ve ever had?” Emily blurted out.

  Callie laughed and walked inside. “Because I bring a new replacement for Cheetos? I promise they taste way better, and despite the high fat and calorie content, they should bring no guilt because technically you’re not going back on your no-Cheetos rule. Also, organic wine from one of the local wineries.”

  “Wow, yes, because all of the above,” Emily said with a laugh. Callie marched into the room she was now calling the TV room and sank into the one couch. Furniture had started arriving this week, and the house was actually beginning to turn into the country inn she’d hoped for. Callie pulled two paper cups out of her purse and avoided eye contact.

  “Uh-oh. Are you breaking up with me?” she half joked as she sat down across from Callie, sensing her friend’s sudden uneasiness.

  Callie handed her a glass of wine and winced. “No, but you might break up with me. I’m sorry I’ve been so busy. I missed your night at town hall, and I had no idea my brother was actually going to ask you out. I mean, I hoped he was, but I had no idea he’d actually do it.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Callie rolled her eyes. “We all knew he had feelings for you. It was obvious to all of us—except him.”

  She toyed with a damp strand of hair, trying to appear casual. “Really?”

  “Uh, yeah. You didn’t notice?”

  She tilted her head. “Well, sometimes I’d think, maybe…but then it was like he was going out of his way to avoid me.”

  Callie took a sip of wine, her blue eyes turning serious. “Yeah, that sounds like Cooper. He hasn’t even told anyone. I only know because you texted me.”

  “Is this going to be awkward? Should I not have told you?” She loved having a female friend to confide in. Sitting on this couch with Callie and talking about life was what she’d always wanted, but maybe the fact that Cooper was her brother was going to make things weird between them.

  Callie leaned forward and clutched her forearm dramatically. “Uh, of course you should have told me. You can spare me the details that involve…my brother’s skills. But other than that, tell me everything. I won’t tell him a thing. Unless he’s being idiotic, then I’ll tell him.”

  Emily laughed and tried not to get too hung up on the mention of Cooper’s skills. She had no skills, so she was pretty sure his skills would be better than hers. Something about him told her he had very advanced skills. But she didn’t want to think about that too much because that would mean another one of her confessions in which she admits to never having done something. What was the point of worrying about any of that anyway? What if their date was horrible? What if he turned out to be a secret jerk? She’d deal with that if it came up. Somehow. “Okay, fair enough.”

  “So, um, there’s something I think you should know. It’s not that we’ve all been hiding it on purpose, but I’m acting as a friend here, not as Cooper’s little sister. He might hate me for telling you, but I don’t want you being blindsided.”

  Her stomach dropped. “Why? What is it?”

  Callie’s eyes widened above the rim of her paper cup as she gulped some wine. Emily couldn’t even drink because she was dying of anticipation. She braced herself for the worst but still tried to remain rational. Maybe he’d gone to jail for something. Or maybe he’d been involved in some kind of torrid affair…

  “First, you need to know that I’m thrilled you’re going out with Coop…it’s just that you don’t know everything. At first, I was just his sister and we were sort of friends. But now…now we’re like, so close, and as your BFF in Maple Hill I need to tell you the whole truth about Cooper, because I’m afraid he’s going to blow it tomorrow night and I don’t want either of you hurt.”

  Now she was drinking the wine. “You’re freaking me out. What do you mean the whole truth about Cooper? This sounds like some kind of bad made-for-television movie.”

  Callie shut her eyes for a second, all humor disappearing from her pretty face. Emily’s heart pounded as she tried to be patient. “I wish. He’s a good guy, Emily,” she whispered, her voice filled with emotion.

  Emily nodded slowly. “I…know. I mean, I think so.”

  Callie nodded rapidly, her eyes wide. “He is. Okay, I’m butchering this and you’re probably thinking he’s some axe murderer or something. He’s not, obviously. He’s the best. It’s just that Cooper…he was married before. I mean, he hasn’t been married for the past five years, but he was married.”

  Her mouth dropped open. He was in his early thirties, she’d guessed. It wouldn’t be unheard of that he’d been married before. It wasn’t exactly the shocking secret she was expecting. He didn’t exactly seem like the m
arrying type, not that she really even knew what type that was, but still. She took a sip of wine and drew her legs up, sensing there had to be more. “Okay…”

  “He’s… She died. Cooper’s wife, Catherine, died.”

  She gasped. The image of Cooper, that expression she sometimes saw, the one where it almost seemed like he was somewhere else, somewhere far away, floated across her mind. She had assumed at first that he wasn’t interested in her, or just standoffish. But then sometimes he’d do things for her…he’d act a certain way that led her to believe he had feelings for her.

  But it wasn’t until the night of the mouse catastrophe, standing in the laundry room, that she realized she hadn’t been imagining it. When he’d reached for her, the expression in his eyes had made her want to jump into his arms. She had read the desire, but it was more. It was like a longing—for her. He’d stolen her breath away, and she had tossed and turned all night, thinking of him, of laughing with him as they wrote up that contract. Now she felt stupid because…she hadn’t expected this. She hadn’t even imagined he might be a widower. Her heart ached for him. And for Callie, too. For the whole family that his wife had been part of. “I’m so sorry,” she softly, her chest aching.

  Callie nodded and leaned across to give her a hug. “I know. I… It’s not my story to tell, so I won’t say any details, but I wanted you to know where he’s coming from. I see the way he looks at you, the way he talks about you without even realizing he’s talking about you. The little things he does, like at the baseball game.”

  “He struck out on purpose,” she whispered. She hadn’t wanted to think he’d done that for her, or what it could mean, so she’d just brushed it off. Then he’d been business as usual on the following Monday.

  Callie scrunched up her nose and nodded. “He never strikes out. But he did. For you… Hun, he hasn’t been out with anyone in five years.”

  Emily’s eyes widened. None of this was what she’d expected; it wasn’t anything she could ever even be prepared for. She remembered her contract and groaned, putting her wine down so she could place her hands over her face. What an idiot she was. A contract, stipulating mouse removals and hot dogs and…all for a date. The man had lost his wife, had buried his wife, and she, like an immature, self-centered idiot, had handed him a list of terms and conditions. Like life had terms and conditions or guarantees. What had he thought of her? He must have regretted asking her out at that point, or certainly once he read over the contract again later. He was just too polite to cancel on her.

  He hadn’t been out with anyone in five years, and he’d asked her, the woman incapable of dealing with mice.

  “Say something,” Callie whispered.

  She forced her gaze to her friend. “I don’t even know what to say. I want to ask you so many things, but I want to respect his privacy and your loyalty to him. I guess he’ll tell me when he’s ready. I mean…if there’s a second date. Or anything. Is this weird that he’s your brother? I have a thousand things to say right now, and I don’t even know if it’s okay anymore.”

  “I’m so happy he’s going out with you. I know you would never hurt him. He’s been through so much, and the Cooper I grew up with…he’s nothing like the man you know. He was…funny. Like, all the time. He was carefree and a prankster and everyone loved him… Wow, I’m talking too much,” she said, wiping her eyes with her sweater sleeve.

  Emily was having a hard time breathing normally. She clung to every word, every tidbit of information about him. None of this… She couldn’t even picture him like Callie was describing him, which made her ache for him even more. “Thanks for telling me,” she managed to say.

  Callie poured herself more wine. “You can’t let on that you know. I mean, if he even thinks I said anything, he’ll kill me. Like this, right now?” She gestured toward Emily’s face. “You can’t look like that tomorrow night when you open the door. You have sympathy stamped all over you. He’ll take one look at you and know.”

  Emily nodded. “Okay. Then maybe we shouldn’t talk about this anymore.”

  “Okay. What are you going to wear? That’s normal conversation.”

  “I made him write up a contract,” she blurted out, unable to keep it to herself, desperate for her friend to tell her it was still okay.

  Callie sprayed wine from her mouth. “What?”

  Emily held up her cup and signaled for a refill. Callie obliged and asked, “What kind of contract?”

  She cringed, having a hard time making eye contact. “A well-intentioned but horribly lame kind that I’m regretting immensely and am so humiliated by right now.”

  “Was it like a kind that a person has to sign?” Callie choked out.

  Emily rolled her lips inward and nodded.

  “Did, um…” Callie coughed. “Did Coop sign this document?”

  “He did. He wrote while I dictated.”

  “My brother, Cooper, did this?”

  She nodded again, not able to elaborate due to the terms of their contract. Callie patted her knee. “It’s okay. Really. I’m sure it’s fine. The bright side is, if you actually got Cooper to sign something like that, it must mean he’s really interested. Now, tell me, where’s he taking you?”

  “He mentioned some place in some small town that has a view of a gorge or something…” Her voice trailed off as Callie inhaled sharply.

  “That’s the Anson Mill. It’s stunning. It’s… Okay, I’m not going to tell you any more. It’s just really…that’s really sweet. Major points for Coop,” she said, clearly proud of her brother’s choice.

  “So what should I wear to a place like that?”

  “It’s not dressy-dressy. Like, some people might dress up, but you don’t have to. It’s not like a suit-and-tie kind of place. Cooper would never pick a place he’d need to wear a tie to,” she said with a short laugh.

  “Okay. So I could wear a casual dress and heels?”

  “Definitely.” She let out a squeal. “I don’t know which one of you I’m more excited for.”

  She almost laughed, but the revelation that Cooper had been married before…and that he’d experienced a loss like that…left her unsettled, sad for him. It also made her regret ever making a contract with him.

  …

  Cooper stretched out on the couch in his living room, opened his beer, and stared at the folded “contract” on his lap. He didn’t know what the hell he’d gotten himself into.

  Couldn’t he just take a woman out on a date anymore? He’d basically signed his life away in exchange for dinner. He never would have thought Emily would make them write up a contract before going out. There were things in there that set off alarm bells, but she’d cleverly even prevented him from asking about Darth.

  He shut his eyes and leaned his head back on the sofa, and his thoughts went to where they’d often been going the past month…to Emily. He had no idea what was happening to him—well, no, he did know. What he didn’t know was why. Why now? After five years of not being remotely interested in anyone, how did this complete stranger enter his life and fill him with a longing he couldn’t ignore?

  He sighed loudly and leaned forward, snatching the contract, and reread it, a mix of anger and sadness washing over him again. He’d first assumed her whole contract thing had to do with money or something, because he knew she came from wealth. What kind of jerk had she dated in the past that she needed to make some kind of contract to protect herself?

  He tossed the paper onto the coffee table and put his feet up on the ottoman, thinking back to their conversations, their time together, namely the baseball thing. He could still see the embarrassment on her face when they’d practiced. Every move she made, every throw, every attempted catch had looked as though she was bracing herself for mockery.

  And then the whole mousecapade thing, like she had serious issues asking him for help. Again, like she assumed he was going to interpret that as weakness.

  Growing up, he and his brothers had been taught to look out
for the women in their lives—not because they were inferior or incapable, but because they were incredibly important people and the world could be a really shitty place filled with really shitty people. But there was never any doubt their mother was an equal to their father. While his parents had taken on traditional male and female gender roles in the house, they both viewed what the other did with admiration. They would always say it was the sum of their mutually important jobs that made the household run. His dad always treated his mom with respect and adoration. He and his brothers had done the same. When Callie had come along—the oops baby—his parents’ long-forgotten dream of having a girl had come to fruition, and she’d been a cherished addition to their family.

  Their father had lectured that they couldn’t roughhouse with a girl the same way they did with one another as brothers. Unfortunately, once Callie had figured that rule out, she’d used it to her advantage. She’d been younger than them, though, and it had been fun to watch her turn into a spunky, independent young woman. They’d been overprotective, maybe to a fault, but they’d always treated her with respect, too.

  He glanced at his wedding picture on the fireplace mantel and smiled, thinking of Catherine. They’d had a relationship similar to his parents’, except that Catherine had a career as a teacher and loved working outside the home. She and Callie had been very close… Catherine had been close to his entire family, and both their families had gotten along well.

  He frowned, realizing he didn’t know that much about Emily’s family. He would ask her on their date.

  He swore when he heard pounding on his front door. One of his brothers. They were the only people that didn’t use the bell and the only people who came by uninvited. If his door hadn’t been locked, they would have walked right in. He’d gotten in the habit of locking it just to have some warning before they infiltrated his home.