8
Cooper had been preparing for this moment since Andi had rushed back into the stands at the Sabertooths game and insisted they needed to talk. She’d been so white she had been nearly translucent, and shivering. Only the fact that Reed had escorted her to Simon’s domain and back had reassured Cooper that no one had hurt her while she’d been out of his sight.
Except maybe he had inflicted damage when he’d claimed her in public that night at Coeur. He couldn’t take it back now, and resented the idea that he should have lied about what Andi was to him. It wasn’t fair. He’d known people who beat their spouses, cheated on their partners, and yet he had to hide his love for a woman simply because outsiders might not be able to deal with the fact that other guys loved her, too? Bullshit.
Marty stood at the entrance to Cooper’s cubicle. Cooper didn’t rate an office yet, since he was only an intern. His boss asked, “Could I talk to you for a moment?”
“Sure, what’s up?” Maybe it wasn’t what he thought.
“I’d rather wait until we have some privacy to discuss it,” Marty said. “Step inside my office, please.”
Shit. It was exactly what he thought.
So Cooper filled his lungs to nearly bursting as he rose from his desk chair, straightening his suit jacket as he did so there wasn’t anything Marty could find fault with. Other than his unconventional relationship, that was.
Marty made small talk, asking about Cooper’s weekend and dumb stuff like that, until they’d shut themselves into his office. When Cooper mentioned that he’d gone to the Sabertooths game, Marty’s eyebrows practically launched themselves onto the roof. “You were there?”
“Yeah. It was a good one. Wish they hadn’t left it until the final seconds of the game to secure the win, though.” In truth, he’d hardly seen the match-up since he’d spent the entire time trying to convince Andi that she didn’t need to hide behind the giant foam finger he’d bought her while picking up their hot dogs and beer.
It had ripped him up to see her that unsure again. Over the past year, she’d really come out of her nerdy bookworm shell and blossomed. He hadn’t realized exactly how much until that moment. And he’d do anything to make sure she didn’t regress.
“I know, right?” Marty chuckled before jamming his hands in his pockets, crumpling the edges of his suit jacket in the process. “Well, about that…I was there, too. Are you still with that girl, Andi?”
There it was. And he wasn’t about to lie.
“Yeah.” Cooper nodded. “She’s the love of my life.”
“I’m sorry, man. I don’t know how to tell you this…” Marty drew a deep breath, then confessed, “Your girlfriend is cheating on you.”
“She’s not.” Cooper shook his head.
“Ah, shit.” Marty ran his hand through his hair. “I debated saying anything, but I saw her with another guy at the game. He also called her his girlfriend and it looked like they’d just had one hell of a good time in the medical supply closet under the stadium.”
“I know.” Cooper left it at that.
Marty sat down hard in his plush leather chair. “What? What do you mean, you know?”
“Simon and I are roommates. We both date Andi.” Cooper only then realized how inadequate those words were. They didn’t date her. They loved her. If they were a traditional couple they’d be engaged or maybe even married by now. Instead they were still…dating. Lame. “So does our other roommate, Reed.”
“Wow. That’s…” Marty held his hands balled, one near each temple, then expanded them, his fingers mimicking an explosion. “Are you serious?”
“It works for us.” He shrugged. “I appreciate you looking out for me, though.”
Case closed, right?
Apparently not. Marty suddenly seemed to have a million more questions. They were lawyers. That’s sort of how they were programmed to work. Still, Cooper didn’t see the merit in it when he’d done nothing wrong and it was his privacy the guy was invading.
Cooper wasn’t a damn criminal on cross-examination. He was a guy who had a very complicated, very consensual romantic arrangement with a woman and her other two lovers. So he shut Marty down. “Are you asking as my boss or a random guy I know? If it’s the latter, sorry, I don’t kiss and tell. If it’s the former, frankly, I’m not sure how my personal life impacts the work I do here.”
Marty blinked a few times, as if he hadn’t expected Cooper to be so direct.
Tough shit. When it came to protecting Andi and the bond they shared, he would go up against anyone to make sure nothing endangered that.
“Whether or not it’s fair, our staff needs to maintain a certain level of decorum. We represent some of the most high-profile people in our community. If it gets out that one of our lawyers—or even some peon intern—has done something immoral or uncouth, it reflects on the firm. It could even look bad for our clients. They won’t hesitate to drop us if they sense we’re going to draw more attention to whatever legal troubles they’re having, which are often damaging enough to their reputations on their own.” Marty leaned in. Suddenly, it was easy to see why he had a reputation as a shark in the courtroom. “Look, I’m not telling you what to do, but it would be better for your career if you found yourself another girl. One who is yours and only yours.”
“I appreciate your advice.” That didn’t mean he was going to listen to what Marty said, though. Never. Cooper was never giving up on Andi or the rest of their little cohort.
Before he could make that clear, Marty shocked the hell out of Cooper. “Of course, if you’d like to pass her over to me for a bit, let me in on the fun, I could probably think of a way to consider this confidential. Even keep the partners off your back. Maybe write you up some kind of—”