Free Stolen Breaths by Pamela Sparkman

time before placing his hand on the small of my back to guide me through the restaurant and outside into the fresh air. I immediately inhaled a deep breath. He threaded his fingers through mine as we walked hand in hand back to his office.
    He was quiet on our walk back and I could tell he was thinking about something. As for me, I was thinking how much I enjoyed being with Cooper and how much I was going to miss him until I saw him again tonight. In my head I was thinking how silly that was. I was going to see him in a few hours and I was actually missing him even while standing right next to him holding his hand.
    “Lily?”
    “Yes?”
    “Thank you.”
    “For what?”
    “For making me feel again.”
    Stunned, I looked at him and stopped walking, and he turned to face me. “It’s true you know…you make me feel , and for the longest I didn’t think I ever would. I know you don’t understand and this is sounding cryptic, but you have to know that you’re not the only one feeling overwhelmed. I do too. There are so many things I want to tell you, and I will, just not right now. Right now, I just want to do this…..hold your hand, whisper things in your ear because I know it drives you crazy, and look forward to our next date. But I needed to thank you for breathing life back into me. Thank you, Lily.” He brought both of my hands up and kissed the backs of my fingers, and then turned them over and kissed each palm.
    I stood there with my hands in his while people passed us by on the busy streets. All the sounds of people talking, buses, cars, horns honking and all the usual sounds of a bustling city – it all faded to black and he was the only thing that I saw or heard.
    I opened my mouth and managed two words. “You’re welcome.”

Ten

Beautiful
    Cooper opened the door and led me inside, still holding my hand. A rush of bottles clinking, people laughing, and the thumping of music playing invaded my senses.
    “Is this where you play every Friday night?” I asked, looking around the bar.
    “It is,” he said. “I wanted you to meet my friends. By the way, have I told you how beautiful you look today?”
    “You have,” I said blushing. “I think it’s the red. You did say red was your favorite color, right?”
    Looking thoughtfully for a minute he said, “No, it’s not the red. It’s you.” He brought my hand up to his mouth for a kiss. And I got tingles instantly.
    It was a decent crowd for a Wednesday night, and looking around the bar, I decided quickly that I liked the place. It was not a roughneck bar, but one that had the ability to suck you in with its charm. The bar itself had dark walls and pictures of famous musicians all around. The muted lighting gave off a jazzy kind of mood to the place. As I continued to scan the room I saw there were large mirrors behind the bar with stools wrapping along the front and around each side, and the stage was directly across the room with tables and chairs set up all around it, booths outlining the perimeter. My eyes scanned back toward the bar area, and I made eye contact with the bartender. His eyes shifted from me to Cooper as we made our way toward his smiling face.
    “Coop!” the bartender shouted as we approached, holding out his hand to greet Cooper.
    The two men exchanged handshakes like old friends and immediately both sets of eyes landed on me. “Joe, this is Lily,” Cooper said, looking at me with pride written on his face. “Lily, meet Joe Carlisle.”
    “Hi, Joe. Nice to meet you,” I said, reaching across the bar to shake his hand. He was good looking with hair black as coal and just the right amount of stubble for a five o’clock shadow.
    “Lily, so nice to meet you. Coop, you dog, you said she was beautiful, but you didn’t say she was a goddess.”
    I laughed at that. Goddess? Please.
    “Would you have believed me if I told you?” Cooper said.
    “Wow, you guys could charm a rattle off a snake,” I said, trying not to look