Hannah’s cheeks colored with embarrassment as Cooper offered up an indulgent smile. “It’s all her. She’s beautiful so it reflects on me.”
“Oh, honey, if you could only hear yourself.” Jenn shook her head. “You’re both ridiculously attractive and you say sweet things to each other. You guys are awesome ... and kind of obnoxious at the same time. I’m supposed to be on a break from men. Ah, well ... .” She graced them with a delighted smile. “Do you know what you want to drink?”
“We’ll have a bottle of your house red wine,” Cooper replied automatically. “I mean ... if that’s okay with you, Hannah?”
She nodded. “You mentioned red meat. That’s what I want. Nothing goes better with red meat than red wine.”
“Then you came to the right place,” Jenn said. “The house bottle has great flavor.”
“I want a glass of water, too, please,” Hannah added.
“I’ll bring out a pitcher of water,” Jenn reassured them. “Do you want any appetizers?”
Hannah’s initial instinct was to shake her head, but when Cooper nodded and reached for the menu she stilled. “You really must be hungry.”
“We’ve had a long day,” he replied, his brow furrowing as he studied the options. “Can we get one of the three-appetizer samplers? Um ... Hannah loves stuffed mushrooms, so give us those.” He flicked his eyes to his girlfriend. “Do you like mozzarella sticks? I’m trying to remember.”
“I like anything,” she automatically responded.
He frowned. “I don’t ever remember you eating mozzarella sticks. Let’s go with the stuffed mushrooms, zucchini fritti, and calamari.”
Jenn nodded as she wrote it down. “If you’re in the mood for a nice steak, we’ve got a great porterhouse on the specials menu. Also, there’s prime rib ... although you guys look pretty fit so you probably don’t eat a lot of fatty beef.”
“That’s where you would be wrong.” Cooper patted his stomach with a smile. “The reason I work out so much is so I can eat fatty beef.”
“Good point.” Jenn beamed at hm. “I’ll put your appetizers in and be back with your drinks.”
Cooper watched her go with a half-smile and then turned his full attention to Hannah. “I think she’s hot for me. You should probably move your chair closer to protect me in case she makes a move.”
Hannah snorted and shook her head. It somehow seemed wrong to be happy in the face of what was happening at Casper Creek, but Cooper brought out the best in her and she legitimately enjoyed their time together. “I’ll fight for your honor if it comes to it.” She wasn’t surprised when she felt Cooper’s legs move to either side of hers under the cozy table. He was a tactile individual and his proximity was enough to get her to relax. “I haven’t had prime rib in a long time.”
“Then you should definitely get that,” Cooper enthused. “I know that’s what I’m getting.” He leaned back in his chair and studied her. The moonlight on the patio lit her features in such a way that she almost looked as if she was glowing. “Have I ever told you that you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen?”
Hannah jerked up her eyes, surprised at the naked emotion in his voice. “I ... you ... .”
He smirked at the way she shifted on her chair. “You’re horrible at taking a compliment.”
“That’s because I think you’re exaggerating,” she said after a beat. “It’s nice to hear all the same, though.”
“Oh, I’m not exaggerating. You’re beautiful.”
“I ... .” Uncomfortable with his probing gaze, Hannah shifted her eyes to a nearby table. There, a man sat by himself, eight plates of food scattered over a large table, and methodically plowed through each offering. The sight was somehow jarring. “That’s ... a lot of food.”
Cooper recognized she was trying to change the subject, but he looked all the same. “It is,” he agreed. “It looks like he’s eating the prime rib now if you want a better look.”
“I ... .” Hannah frowned as she studied the man in question. She didn’t like making snap judgments about the appearance of others, but this individual was large, to the point of being unhealthy, and he was steadily shoveling in food as if it were about to be outlawed. “That’s a big piece of beef.”
Cooper’s eyebrows hiked at the observation.
“I mean ... the prime rib,” she added hurriedly, annoyed at herself when she realized that what she said could’ve been taken as an insult. “I didn’t mean him.”
“Uh-huh.” Cooper didn’t look convinced. He also didn’t appear bothered. “I think the prime rib looks good.”
Hannah surprised herself when she reached for the menu a second time. “I might just look again.”
“Knock yourself out.” Now that they had a lull while waiting for the waitress to return, Cooper decided it was probably time to turn the conversation to more serious subjects. “I would appreciate it if you didn’t go down to the creek alone until this is over with.”
His voice was soft, but the strain behind it was enough to have Hannah snapping up her head. “It wasn’t a conscious choice,” she started.
“Oh, it was.” He made a clucking sound with his tongue and shook his head. “You wanted to talk to Astra. Admit it.”
“I ... .” She couldn’t lie to him. It was one thing to lie to herself. Him, though ... . “I was hopeful she might be down there,” Hannah admitted after a beat. “I know that’s not what you want to hear, but she knows more about this stuff than I. She ... is smarter than I am.”
His frown was pronounced. “She is not smarter than you. She’s simply been around this stuff longer than you. I don’t like it when you cast aspersions on your intelligence. You’re the smartest person I know.”
His reaction was enough to garner a genuine smile. “Thank you.”
“I’m being serious.” He folded his arms over his chest
