Julia dropped down onto the sofa next to Coop’s mother, and when she took Lois’s hand in hers, she didn’t miss the way Coop’s tense shoulders relaxed, or the mixture of pride and possessiveness on his face when his glance met hers.

Julia turned her attention to the television to take note of the soap opera Lois was watching. “I see you’re watching The Rich and the Famous. It’s one of my favorites,” Julia said.

That brought a smile to Lois’s face. “Mine too, dear.”

With her heart full of all the things she felt for Coop, Julia spent a few more minutes talking about the characters, having become familiar with the show when an old friend joined the cast a few years back, but then suddenly, a confused look came over Lois’s face and her lids began to flicker.

“I think she needs to rest now,” Coop said quietly.

Understanding that Coop needed a moment alone with his mother, Julia stood and gestured toward the door. “I should—”

He gave a quick shake of his head and placed his palm on her face. “Please stay.”

She nodded, the heat of his hand stirring all her emotions. Coop was sharing a very private part of his life with her, and if he wanted her there with him, then she was damn well going to be there for him. He put a blanket over his mother, and as he worked to make her comfortable, all of the pieces known as Chase Cooper fell into place. Tears pricked her eyes, because the boy she knew from high school had turned into the most amazing man she’d ever met.

“Julia.”

His soft voice startled her, and she blinked the moisture from her eyes.

There was a tenderness in his eyes as they moved over her face. “Are you okay?”

“I didn’t know.”

“Who’s there?” his mother bellowed, and Julia jumped.

“Mom, it’s me, Coop.” He turned, just as his mother threw the remote at him again, and he caught it in the shoulder. It clattered to the floor, and Tessa rushed in to help his mother as he picked it up.

There was a real sadness on his face, but he tried to inject humor when he pointed to his nose and said, “Sometimes she has great aim.”

Her heart squeezed. “I’m so sorry.”

“Come with me.” He captured her hand, and the two made their way back outside.

Julia glanced around at the wide expanse of land and took Coop’s situation into consideration. “You bought the ranch and moved here for your mother.”

It was a statement, not a question, but he answered anyway. “Yes and no.”

Her glance darted back to his, and all she wanted to do was take him into her arms and hold him, soothe him, tell him everything would be all right. “Yes and no?”

Coop leaned against the white railing and pulled her into him, his legs wrapping around hers. He took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and began, “Yes, I bought it for my mother because she grew up on a ranch, and the familiarity helps with her Alzheimer’s. The guys chipped in on it with me because I couldn’t afford it by myself. And no, I didn’t move here.”

Confused, she asked, “What do you mean you didn’t move here?”

“I don’t live here, Julia. I live in Kentville.”

“Kentville?” Okay, that took her by surprise. “As in an hour outside of Halifax?”

“I’m a sports medicine doctor, and I have a practice there that I can’t just up and leave.”

She widened her eyes. That’s how he knew about her ankle. “Why didn’t you tell me any of this?” As soon as the question left her mouth, she shook her head, already knowing the answer. “Wait, never mind.” She waved a finger back and forth between the two of them. “This situation wasn’t about us getting to know each other.” She inched back, and she could feel his tension like it was her own when he cupped her elbow and hauled her closer.

“Oh, no you don’t. You’re not going anywhere, and you’ve got it all wrong.”

“Coop, please,” she said, needing to put a measure of distance between them.

Wait. Did he just say I had it all wrong?

“Getting to know each other was my every intention.” He glanced down, then back at her. “I just didn’t talk about any of this because it’s…it’s hard. She’s very sick…” His voice wavered when he added, “She doesn’t have much time.”

Her heart twisted at the sadness on his face. “I’m sorry, Coop.”

“I wanted to tell you.” He brushed his hand over his chin, and the vulnerability she detected in the depth of his eyes had her taking a small, tentative step toward him. “I planned to tell you tonight.” He put his hand on her cheek, and she leaned in to it.

“You did.”

“Yeah, I didn’t want you to think I was holding back because I only wanted sex.”

Her hand closed over his. “You…you want more than sex?”

“Don’t you see?” he asked, a new urgency in his voice. “I’m crazy about you, Julia. Today I took you to my old hangouts because I wanted you to get to know me. To show you that I wanted more. What you said in the bedroom, about this being a fantasy. I never once thought this thing between us wasn’t real.”

If her heart beat any faster it was going to burst from her chest. “Really?”

Coop placed his finger under her chin to tip it up. “I meant what I said.”

“What did you say?”

“When I told my mother you were special, I meant it,” he said, his voice thinning to a whisper.

Her knees buckled, and she forced them to straighten. “You did?”

He brushed his thumb over her cheek. “Julia, sweetheart. I need you in my life. It’s always been you I wanted.”

Her entire body tightened. “Then why did you invite Mari here for the week?”

He put his arm around her, and all she could think about was how good it felt to be held by him.

“Late one night, after a few beers, the guys and I got to talking about the ones that got away.”

“Oh.” She looked down as she chewed on that. Coop thought Mari was the one who’d gotten away, and since she was pretending to be her, Mari was the girl he’d fallen for again.

“But I was wrong, Julia.” He shook his head. “I was so wrong.”

Julia swallowed. “Wrong? How?”

“Your sister wasn’t the one who got away. Right after I sent that invitation, I started having second thoughts and regretted my spur-of-the-moment decision. She’s not the girl for me. She never was.”

Confused, she faltered backward, her mind racing, trying to keep up.

“Oh, no you don’t,” he said again, putting his hand around her waist to bring her back.

“Coop?”

“You’re not getting away from me again.”

“What are you talking about?”

“You, Julia. You were the one who got away. I’m in love with you. You never paid me a lick of attention all those years ago, but now that I’ve got you, I’m not letting you go. I don’t want anyone but you, Julia. I never have.”

He was in love with her? If only that were true.

She shook her head, her stomach clenching as she poked her thumb into her chest. “What you don’t understand is it’s not me you’re falling for. I was living out a fantasy, pretending to be carefree like my sister, so really, it was her you were falling for all over again.”

“I never fell for her once, so how can I be falling for her again?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Mari and I were only ever friends. It was you I always liked, but there’s an unwritten rule that I had to live by: you don’t hit on your best friend’s sister. And of course, you did tell me I wasn’t your type.”

“But I thought you two…”

“You thought wrong. And all this pretending you thought you were doing, well, you weren’t pretending at all. You’ve always just suppressed that side of yourself. ”

“Coop—” she began, but he cut her off.

“Maybe pretending to be wild and happy-go-lucky like your sister is what gave you the courage you needed to just let go and be yourself.”

Clearly, he was missing the point here. “I wasn’t myself. It wasn’t really me you were having a wild week with, or thought things were real with.”