“I think you nailed your answer,” Boone replied. “Astra saw an advantage and pressed it. That’s what she does.”
“It’s frustrating.”
“And Hannah told you,” Tyler noted. “She didn’t want to push you away. She might’ve done it if she really thought you were in danger, but she knows Astra lies. That’s why she blurted it all out the way she did. She wanted you to talk her out of it.”
“Which I don’t think I did,” Cooper groused, rolling his neck. “Son of a ... ! I knew letting her go off on her own was a mistake.”
“Hey, you need to get it together.” Boone’s tone was grave. “Hannah is a grown woman. She has thoughts ... and feelings ... and opinions. She’s also a powerful witch. You can’t watch her twenty-four hours a day. Thinking you can is ridiculous.”
“Maybe you’re still being affected by the dancing man,” Tyler noted. “You are acting all ... alpha.” He made a playful growling sound, but Cooper didn’t return his smile.
“He’s not acting alpha because of a monster,” Boone countered. “He’s acting alpha because he’s legitimately terrified. Have a little sympathy. It can’t be easy for him. Hannah is just coming into her powers and she has a natural curiosity. In his head, it’s Cooper’s job to protect her. She isn’t always open to that, though.”
“Oh, thank you for psychoanalyzing me,” Cooper drawled, rolling his eyes. He fell silent for a beat and then let loose a heavy sigh. “I know I’m acting like an idiot. If you think I don’t see that, you’re wrong. I just ... have this feeling.” He tapped the spot above his heart.
“She’s afraid of losing Casper Creek,” he continued. “She told me as much. She’s worried that it will mean losing everything we’ve built. I know that probably sounds ridiculous to you because we’ve only been together for a few weeks but ... it’s a real fear for her, and now that she’s given voice to it, I’m worried, too.”
“Because you love her,” Boone supplied. It wasn’t a question but a statement.
Cooper nodded. “Yeah.” He rubbed his forehead, exhaustion momentarily taking over. “I love her and I want her safe. I don’t think that makes me an ogre.”
“It doesn’t, but you have to remember that you’re one half of a team and not the boss of her life,” Tyler said. “You need to treat her like an equal.”
“And not let the fear overtake you,” Boone added. “If you keep this up, you’re going to drive her away on your own. It’s not going to matter what Astra does. You’ll be the captain of your own sinking ship, and I know that’s not what you want.”
Honestly, it was the exact opposite of what Cooper wanted. “I know. I ... .” He trailed off when he caught sight of Jacob, who was heading in their direction. “We need to table this conversation for now.”
“Yeah.” Boone’s expression was serious. “You already know what you have to do anyway.”
“Grovel,” Tyler teased.
“Shut up,” Cooper growled, although his lips curved. He wasn’t opposed to groveling if it became necessary. For now, though, he focused on Jacob. “How goes the investigation?”
“It’s slow-going,” Jacob admitted. “I went through the entire storage room and there were no other live rounds.”
“We know,” Boone replied. “We checked, too. Technically there was no live round in the body.”
“Yeah, none of it makes sense.” Jacob scratched his hand over his cheek. “I hate to say it, but until we figure out what’s going on, I’m going to have to order a shutdown of the town. I know it might be difficult for Ms. Hickok, but there’s simply no way around it.”
“I’m pretty sure she was expecting that,” Boone said. “She’ll understand.”
“I would like to be the one to tell her.”
“I’ll tell her,” Cooper countered. “She’s expecting me in her apartment anyway. We’re spending a bit of time together and ... the news will be better coming from me.”
For a moment, Jacob looked as if he was going to argue, but ultimately he nodded. “Fair enough. I’m going to do another swing around the town and then call it a day. I need to do some thinking. This one is truly baffling ... although your dead re-enactor obviously had something to do with it.”
Cooper didn’t believe that for a second, but he nodded all the same. “I’ll head over and tell Hannah the news. Thank you for your diligence.”
“It’s my job. You don’t have to thank me.”
“Still, we’re glad to have you on the team. I’ll talk to you later.”
COOPER FOUND HANNAH SITTING ON the couch with a huge history book open on her lap. Her attention appeared to be rapt, but he knew her well enough to recognize that her mind was drifting.
“A kiss for your thoughts,” he teased, sliding onto the couch next to her.
She lifted her eyes and accepted the kiss with a sigh. “I’m just ... confused.”
“Oh, yeah?” Cooper turned his attention to the book. “Have you figured out what a magical nexus is?”
“No, although I have found mention of it in this book. It says it’s a convergence of magical entities. To me, that seems to indicate that we have more than one big bad.”
Amusement slid over Cooper’s features. “Big bad?”
“It’s a thing,” she said defensively.
“That you saw on television?”
“That doesn’t mean it’s not a thing.”
“Fair enough.” He held up his hands in capitulation, amused despite himself. Then he remembered Jacob’s words. He’d been expecting the determination but that didn’t mean Hannah would be happy with the turn. “Jacob is doing another round and then leaving.”
“You saw him, huh? Did he say anything?”
“Not really.”
“That’s disappointing.”
“He did tell us that, until we know what’s going on, Casper Creek can’t be opened to the public.” Cooper braced himself for a meltdown, but she simply nodded.
“I figured. The truth is, I don’t want anyone up
