49. Sutton

49

SUTTON

The week of the Sparks’ camp flew by in a mix of practices and mock games, ending with a scrimmage today where professionals and kids mixed to form two teams. The kids had the time of their lives playing like they were in the professional league themselves, and thankfully, Marcus and Cope hadn’t gotten into any more scuffles.

All in all, it was a huge win for the team, the kids, and my little family. Because with no new drama coming to the surface, all but a couple of reporters had vanished from Sparrow Falls. So, we planned to celebrate it all with a barbeque to end all barbeques. The Sparks, the kids and their families, and, of course, the whole Colson crew.

But something was off with Cope. He’d been edgy since we left the rink, tapping his foot and drumming his fingers on the steering wheel. As we came to a stop in front of his house with two large catering vans parked to the side of us, he didn’t turn off the engine right away.

I twisted slightly to face him. “Okay, what the heck is going on with you? ”

His gaze flicked to the rearview mirror, checking on Luca, who was currently engrossed in a game on his tablet. A fresh wave of nerves slid through me, and I pitched my voice even lower. “Cope. Are you okay?”

He muttered a curse under his breath. “I wanted it all to be a surprise, but now I’m realizing I should’ve asked first.”

I reached over, pulling his hand from the wheel and linking our fingers together. “Hey, together, remember?”

One corner of Cope’s mouth pulled up. “Together.” His fingers squeezed mine. “Are you ready to tell Speedy about us? That you guys are staying?”

That wave of nerves turned into a tsunami, but I knew it was time. Luca would be overjoyed. And he deserved to know that this was more than a friendship between Cope and me. “I’m ready.”

“What are you guys whispering about?” Luca asked from the back seat, lowering his tablet. His eyes narrowed on us as Gretzky panted in the seat next to him.

Cope chuckled. “Can’t sneak anything past this one.”

I twisted in my seat to face my son. “Cope and I have something we want to tell you.”

That got Luca to set his tablet on the seat next to him. “What?” There was suspicion and a little bit of hope in his tone.

Butterfly wings beat against the walls of my belly. “Well, Cope and I… We, um, we’re more than just friends. We’re dating. A couple.”

Luca stared at me for a long moment. “I know.”

My jaw went slack. “You know?”

Luca let out a little huff of air, a sound far beyond his years. “I’m not a dum-dum. You guys hold hands and stuff. Cope’s always touching you. And me and Gretzky saw you kissing in the kitchen the other night.”

Heat flooded my cheeks, but Cope just burst out laughing, making the pup bark.

“What?” Luca demanded.

Cope grinned at my son. “You are too smart. ”

Luca straightened at that, pride sliding across his expression. “You better not forget it.”

Cope held up both hands. “Never.”

I just shook my head. “Do you have any questions about us, um, dating?”

Luca’s little brows pulled together. “Are you gonna be all mushy-gushy? Like a lot ?”

“I’m hoping so,” Cope said, humor lacing his tone.

“Gross,” Luca muttered.

“Does that mean you don’t like us dating?” I asked, a niggle of worry making a home in my belly.

“I think you guys should just get married so we can stay here forever. But no mushy-gushy stuff.”

A giggle slipped free before I could stop it. “So, cool with the dating, not with the mushy-gushy.”

“Yup,” Luca said, popping the P.

“Since you’re okay with the dating, how would you feel about staying here with Cope? Not finding a new apartment.”

Luca froze, his gaze jumping back and forth between me and Cope. “Seriously?”

Cope’s grin widened. “Nothing would make me happier.”

“Yes! Yes! Yes! Times a million billion! I get to keep my room and swim in the pool and play in the creek and ride horses with Arden and?—”

“Take a breath,” I told Luca, laughter in my voice.

Luca’s gasping inhale was audible from the back seat. “This is gonna be freaking awesome! Cope, does the pond freeze in the winter? Can we skate on it?”

“You know, it does. My brothers and sisters and I play a game on it every Christmas,” Cope said.

Luca’s eyes went huge. “And I’ll get to play?”

“Speedy, you know I can’t win without you. And I really don’t like to lose.”

A pang lit along my sternum. Cope wasn’t just giving me a sense of belonging and a home. He was giving it to Luca, too. Giving us all a family.

I squeezed Cope’s fingers. “I love you.”

Cope’s dark-blue eyes heated. “Warrior…”

I leaned over the console and brushed my lips across his.

“Gross,” Luca moaned from the back seat. “You guys are going to be all mushy-gushy all the time, aren’t you?”

I laughed against Cope’s mouth. “You’d better believe it.”

“I guess the pool is worth it,” Luca mumbled, scratching Gretzky behind the ear.

Cope chuckled and shut off the engine. “Well, I’ve got a few other surprises. Maybe that’ll make it more worth it.”

Luca’s eyes lit. “I love surprises!”

He was out of the SUV before I had the chance to chastise him, Gretzky bounding after him. I had no choice but to follow. Cope punched in the door code and led us inside. I heard a commotion from the kitchen, where I knew a catering company was preparing for the team barbeque here this afternoon, but Cope pointed to the stairs. “This way.”

Luca ran up them two at a time, Gretzky charging ahead of him before they both stopped on the landing to wait for us. “Where now?”

Cope’s lips twitched. “Let’s check out your room.”

Luca took off running down the hall. Before I could ask Cope anything, I heard Luca’s squeal of delight and then, “No freaking way!”

I glanced up at Cope in question. He just wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me against him. “It was time he really had his own room.”

We paused in the doorway, and I gaped. The room had been transformed into a little boy paradise. Against the far wall were bunk beds with bedding covered in hockey icons. There was a desk with bookshelves in the corner. The shelves were full of Luca’s favorite books.

The wall closest to the door had what almost looked like a mural of hockey players braced for the start of play, but I realized they were stickers, one on either side of an even larger TV. In front of it were beanbag chairs and a massive gaming setup below it.

Luca ran to Cope, hurling himself at him. Cope caught him easily, and Luca flung his arms around Cope’s neck. “This is the best thing ever! Thank you!”

“I had way too much fun picking it all out,” Cope said, hugging him back. “We’re gonna get you some signed jerseys for that wall, too.”

Luca wiggled free, racing around the room to check everything out in detail, Gretzky sniffing alongside him. I turned to Cope, my eyes burning. “Thank you,” I whispered.

“I’m not done yet, Warrior.”

“I’m not sure I can handle anything else,” I murmured.

Cope slid his fingers through mine. “My girl can handle anything.”

He tugged me into the hallway and back to the landing at the top of the stairs. He guided me toward the huge picture window that overlooked the backyard, pond, and wilderness area.

“Look right over there.” He pointed to a grove of aspen trees. In the middle was an array of six beehives. “I know you love tending those bees of yours. Having fresh honey to bake with. So, I wanted you to have some hives here, too.”

My eyes started to water, the tears sliding down my cheeks. “You got me bees?”

Cope pulled me against him. “You know I’d do anything to make you happy. I want this to be your home. We can decide if we want a place in Seattle, too, or if I’ll commute on my time off. Linc already said he’d loan me his plane if we want Sparrow Falls to still be our home during the season.”

“Cope,” I choked out.

“There’s one more thing.”

“I can’t take one more thing.”

Cope brushed his lips across mine. “Yes, you can.” He reached down, grabbing what looked like some rolled-up papers. “I had Shep draw up some plans for a commercial kitchen right here on the property. ”

I sucked in a breath. It was too much. All of it. My body felt like it might explode from happiness, from all the care Cope was pouring out over me and Luca.

He unrolled the papers. “We can tweak them however you want. It’ll go on the other side of the garage. That way, you don’t have to drive so early in the morning or late at night. You can prepare everything you want here and transport it in the van I ordered.”

“Cope.”

His gaze moved to my face. “Too much?” I flung myself at him much like my son had done, and he caught me with an oomph . “Not too much?”

“I love you.”

“Warrior, you know what that does to me.”

I grinned against his mouth. “Think there’s time before everyone gets here?”

“I’ll make time,” Cope growled against my mouth.

And he certainly did.