He started to speak, but she pressed her fingers against his lips.

“What I’m trying to say is, I’m more than all right with the way you’re being. I like all the sexy stuff, and back to your original question, maybe you’ll find out later on. About the pressure points, I mean.”

The top of his head nearly blew off at the idea of it. Of sliding his mouth along her neck, down in between the mounds of her br**sts, the curve of her belly, south, past the desired valley of her pu**y, to the backs of her knees perhaps.

“It will be my pleasure to await that moment.”

Quickly, he leaned in, kissed her hard and pulled back, getting out to open her car door to recover from a hard-on the size of Wisconsin.

Cope opened her car door, and she took the hand he’d offered. He tried not to stare, it wasn’t that she looked so very different than she normally did, but he wasn’t normally her date either.

It made a difference, he realized as he leaned down to kiss her again. His to touch at long last. Her arms wrapped around his neck, and she fit perfectly against his body. “Ella, I gotta tell you I like the way you feel on me.”

She hesitated and then snuggled closer. He smiled against her skin.

“I like it too.”

He kissed her again, just a quick one, before spinning and escorting her through the front doors of the pub, her hand in his.

10

Ella was pretty sure her smile might have looked scary or maybe just goofy. Either way, she was so freaking happy, she didn’t care. He held her hand like she was his. While she’d been down that road, it was different with Cope. He didn’t own her the way Bill had. That she knew it, felt it and wasn’t freaked by this different version made her feel all well-adjusted and stuff.

Or something like it.

And she needed that feeling after her experience earlier in the day, needed to know she was capable of getting past the fragments of her past left inside her gut like jagged glass.

Their friends had already gathered in their normal spot near the pool tables in the back where the booths were gargantuan. Elise grinned and waved, the sparkle of the diamond Brody had given her at their engagement party catching the light.

Cope took her coat and hung it on the nearby rack with everyone else’s before sliding into the booth beside her.

“Pizzas ordered. Beer should arrive momentarily.” Brody leaned back, his arm around Elise.

“We were just ready to draw lots to see who’d play the first game. Erin is making some janky argument that since she’s pregnant she should automatically play first. I, of course, call bullshit on that.” Adrian rolled his eyes.

“I am pregnant, mister! I’ll have you know my feet swell when I stand too long. The doctor even said so, smarty-pants.” The impact of this statement was undermined by Erin’s inability to deliver it without a snicker.

“Then you’ll have sausage feet whether you play now or the next round. I’ll even haul a stool over for you so you can sit and watch between rounds. When it’s your turn, that is.”

The server arrived with the beer, so the argument went away until everyone had filled their glasses.

Except Erin, who was drinking water with a twist of lemon. She lazily poked at Adrian again. “Shouldn’t you be out cashing in on your rock star cred to pull some chicks?”

“Plenty of time for that after I play pool. Great thing is, my rock star cred won’t evaporate by morning or anything.”

“Children, please.” Brody sighed and grabbed the straws. “Longest is in first game. Winner keeps playing, other three drop out. And so on.”

Ella shook her head when he gestured her way. “Oh no. I’ll just watch.”

Cope nuzzled her temple. “Why?”

“I totally suck at pool. But I don’t suck at eating pizza and drinking beer. So I’ll watch from here.”

“How you gonna get better if you don’t play?” Adrian asked with a grin.

“Who’s to say I want to get better at pool? Hmm? What if I just want to watch all you guys bend over so I can ogle your butts?”

Elise laughed. “Put that way, I can truly see the appeal.”

Ella was just content to just sit and chat, taking one long look at Andrew Copeland’s ass and then back to their group at the table.

“So how have you been?” Adrian asked, sliding a huge slice of fully loaded pie onto his plate.

“Since you saw me last this afternoon?” she teased.

“Yeah, but Cope came in, and I didn’t get much of a chance to talk with you. He’s an Ella hog.” He took a measuring look at her. “How’s life?”

“Um. I don’t know. Mainly the same as it was last week, or even last year. But totally different. Which makes no sense, but that’s the only way I can describe it.”

“No, I get it. And good. I imagine if it wasn’t a good thing, you wouldn’t look so happy. When you first started at the café you were like this. And then it faded. Slowly so that I didn’t really see it until I’d come back from a tour and you were not the same.”

“Something like that.”

“No, I mean it. But you’ve been coming into focus over the last year especially. You’re blooming, and it’s beautiful.”

She blinked back tears. “Thank you for that. It feels like each day I have that’s just normal is a win. And then I add in the other stuff. Good friends. Family. A good job.” She looked over to the pool table where Cope had just bent to take his shot. A lock of hair had fallen over his forehead, his biceps gloriously bulgy against the wool of his sweater. She smiled at him as he noticed her. He blew her a kiss and took the shot, making it.