Chapter Eleven
Cooper couldn’t believe it. The guy sitting in the corner was his new boss. What the hell were the chances of that happening? He bet Kayla knew. She always knew the answers to weird shit like that.
But she had failed to tell him about this.
Kayla blinked at him, then looked over at her father again. “I think you’re mistaken. My father isn’t in private security. He’s a cop.”
He dragged a hand through his hair. He hadn’t been expecting this. And he didn’t know if this fake relationship with Kayla would work for him or against him in this situation. “A cop that runs a private security firm?”
“No…he’s just a cop.” Kayla pursed her lips. “A homicide detective. I think you’re looking at the wrong guy.”
“Well, then, which one is your father?”
She pointed at the guy next to his new boss. “The one in the black suit and the green shirt.”
Of course her father was the guy who looked as if he wanted to pummel Cooper into the ground for touching his baby girl. And of course her father would be a cop who probably had an arsenal of excellent ideas of how to properly dispose of a body.
“Who were you looking at?” she asked.
“The one in the grey and purple.”
“Oh.” She nodded. “That’s Uncle Frankie. Well, we call him uncle, but he’s just a family friend.”
Cooper sighed. “He’s the guy who hired me.”
“Oh. Well, let’s go say hi.” She caught his hand and tugged him toward his employer and the man who looked as if he’d like nothing more than to kill him. “It’ll be nice having a friendly face when you meet my dad. Trust me.”
“What will your father say when—”
“I don’t know. There’s a sixty-three percent chance that this will backfire, but it’s too late to back down now. They’ve both seen you and they know who you are. There’s nothing to be done except to walk up and say hi.”
“Shit.” He dragged his hand down his face. He didn’t like this, but she was right. He couldn’t exactly tell them the truth, could he? “F*ck it. Let’s go.”
She nodded and they crossed the room to stand in front of Kayla’s unfriendly looking father. “Dad, meet my boyfriend, Cooper Shillings.” The smile on her face was forced, but hopefully only Cooper noticed that. “Cooper, this is my father, Greg Moriarity. And that’s his best friend, Frankie Holt.”
Cooper tensed but managed a smile. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Moriarity.” He shook hands with her father. The man practically broke his fingers, but Cooper didn’t flinch. “And nice seeing you again, Mr. Holt.”
Mr. Holt shook his hand, his brow furrowed. “Cooper. I didn’t know you were dating my niece.”
Cooper forced a laugh. “And I didn’t know my girlfriend was your niece.”
“I’d imagine not.” Mr. Holt didn’t let go of his hand. “How does she feel about you leaving?”
“She is right here,” Kayla said. “And I’m fine with it.”
“Yes, sir, she is.” Cooper extracted his fingers from the man’s hold. “We have a great support system.”
“Wait a second.” Kayla’s father watched him with narrowed eyes. “What’s the position and where is it?”
“It’s an overseas assignment.” Mr. Holt sat back down and smoothed his suit jacket. “Mr. Shillings here used to be a Marine, and he’s going back over with his team as a guard now. He leaves next week.”
Cooper shifted on his feet. This was the complication Cooper had been trying to warn Kayla about. What would her father say about a boyfriend that was leaving her behind to go fight overseas? “Yes, I am.”
Her dad narrowed his eyes on Cooper. “So, you get involved with my baby girl and then you leave?”
Cooper flinched. He didn’t do that and never would. “Actually, sir, I—”
“Stop it, Dad,” Kayla cut in with. “He’s just doing his job. He’s trying to protect the people fighting for his country. It’s honorable and I’m proud of him.” Kayla curled a hand around his biceps, surprising Cooper. “Don’t you dare give him a hard time about that. You of all people should support him.”
Mr. Holt cleared his throat. “We’ll take good care of him, Greg.” He looked at Kayla. “I promise that much.”
She nodded, but she looked a lot paler than she had before. “Thanks, Uncle Frankie.” Then she faced her dad again. “Just so you know? I’m behind his decision one hundred percent. No odd numbers or decimal points.”
Cooper glanced down at her, something warm taking over his heart. “Thanks, sweetheart. I support you, too.”
“I know.” She smiled up at him. “And you’re welcome.”
Her dad relaxed a little bit, his eyes still locked on Cooper and Kayla—watching the way the two of them were interacting. Something told Cooper her father saw way too much, but he nodded and gestured toward the empty seats at the table.
“Sit. Talk. Drink,” her father said.
Kayla squeezed his arm again and sat down gracefully. She might not be used to this charade, but she was f*cking good at it. The way she kept smiling with those bright blue eyes of hers shining up at him made him want to wrap her in his arms and hold her close all night long. Hell, maybe even longer.
“Sir, I’m very excited to meet you, just for the record. Kayla told me a lot about you,” Cooper said, focusing on Kayla’s father. “I’m honored to be here.”
“Are you now?” He eyed Cooper, his voice clearly skeptical. “So, tell me more about yourself.”
Cooper gripped his own knee under the table. “I was in the Marines, and I’m from Maine, near Kayla. I just recently got home after getting out, and now I’m about to make my next career move…” He broke off, smiled, and gestured toward Mr. Holt. “But you already heard that part earlier.”
Mr. Holt laughed. “We’ve already completed the background check, Greg. He’s legit.”
“I see.” He tapped his fingers on the table. “Parents?”
“Still happily married and living in Maine.”
“What do they do—or are they leaving the country, too?”
Kayla rolled her eyes. “Dad.”
“It’s fine. I don’t mind.” Cooper smiled at Kayla, trying to show her that he didn’t care about her father’s curiosity. Because he didn’t. He understood wanting to protect the people he cared about. It’s what he wanted to do, too, overseas. “My father owns a private security firm, among other things, and my mother is an artist.”
Mr. Holt perked up at that. “Your father owns a private security firm, but you’re working for me?”
“Yes.” Cooper shifted his weight and tugged on his collar, despite himself. “That’s right, sir. I feel it’s important for a man to make his own way. I don’t want to get a position because of my last name.”
Her father nodded and Cooper swore he saw something that wasn’t hatred in the other man’s stare. Maybe…respect? No. That couldn’t be it. Maybe he just had something in his eye. “All right.” He looked over Cooper’s shoulder. “I’ll see you two later, though. Max’s family just got here, and I have to go say hi. Frankie? You coming?”
Mr. Holt stood. “Of course. I’ll see you two later.”
Cooper inclined his head, then watched as they left. “Well. That was interesting, to say the least.”
“It went better than I thought it would.” Kayla leaned her head on him. “You did good, by the way.”
He kissed her temple. This snuggling thing didn’t feel too bad. “It’s the dimples. No one can resist the power.”
“Not even my father,” she said, laughter in her voice. She lifted her head and grinned at him. “Right?”
“Especially not your dad.” He stood up, then held his arm out for her. “Ready to have a drink?”
“How about ten?”
He pretended to consider this. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. I’d hate to have to restock the bar.”
“I’m not that bad.” She swatted his arm, then curled her fingers around his biceps. “Let’s do this.”
He led her toward the bar, strangely content to have her at his side.