Free Someone to Love by Lena Hampton

receiving end of my fair share of unwarranted hugs from her. What I saw was Kayla being Kayla and you being jealous.”
    Noli looked at her watch-less wrist. “Won’t you be late for your study group?”
    Diane looked at her watch and realized she did need to go. They hugged and Diane left with a wave at Cooper and the other two at the bar. Noli refused to let the thought of jealousy seep into her head. Just because she didn’t like him sharing his charm with anyone else didn’t mean she was jealous. Kayla was once again laughing and Noli broke in before there was another embrace.
    “Are you ready?” Noli asked.
    “I’m almost done and then we can head out.”
    “Coop is leaving me and Trevor in charge,” Kayla said almost jumping with excitement. Noli took note of the abbreviated use of his name but ignored the fact that it bothered her. No one else called him Coop, not even his mother.
    “I’m leaving Trevor in charge,” Cooper said. “You’re just supposed to help.”
    “That’s what I said,” Kayla said not seeing the difference. “We won’t let you down, Coop.”
    Noli felt compelled to add the missing “er” to his name for the girl. Her face must have expressed her irritation because Cooper gave her a perplexed look. She shifted her face back to neutral.
    “Just call me if anything comes up,” Cooper said to Trevor. “I’m ready. Let’s head to Indy.”
     
    ***
     
    He unlocked his truck with the remote and was about to open the door for Noli, but she beat him to it. She made it difficult for him to be a gentleman. Perhaps traveling alone for so long had made her too independent. Or maybe she was mad. She’d had an irritated look on her face before they came out, and now she was being quiet. She remained that way for most of the ride as she tapped on her tablet.
    Her silence made him feel like an actual chauffeur, minus the cap and black suit. She didn’t even mind when he said he’d prefer to stay in the car when they arrived at the first second hand store on her list of stops. He’d only said it because he thought she’d make an idol threat to get him in, but he got nothing but an okay over her shoulder as she walked away.
    A few minutes later she stood in the store’s door waving for him to come in. Her full lips were spread across her face in a big smile.
    Whatever was bothering her was forgotten.
    “Shopping isn’t as much fun when you don’t have someone to bounce ideas off of. I found the perfect old secretary, but I don’t know how I’d use it.”
    His stroll was too slow so she grabbed his hand and began to pull him along to see her great find. He didn’t know what a secretary was, other than someone that answered phones, but he liked that it excited her.
    “Isn’t it great?” she said rubbing the piece of furniture.
    “That’s a secretary? All this time I’ve been calling those things a desk.”
    “Why did I ask you to come in?” Her smile softened her words.
    “And it’s old and rough looking,” Cooper added.
    “Seriously, why did I ask you in? You should be the last person to criticize it for looking rough.”
    “You like rough looking though.”
    “If only you were as irresistible as you think you are. Anyway, it is very rough and there is some damage to the wood, but I was planning on stripping it and whitewashing it. What do you think?”
    The word stripping distracted him for moment. “Could you put those little name tag things on it?”
    By the look on her face she must have liked his idea. The sway of her hips as she did her happy dance made his mind return to her stripping. She tore the bottom half of the tag to indicate to other shoppers that this item was taken.
    “This will be perfect for the place cards, that’s what the name tag things are called.”
    “Is that it? Are you all done?”
    “Of course not, silly lumber jack,” she said patting his arm like a mother does a child that just said something naive but cute. “I still need