annccoopcr·:
      âBefore you know it, youâre gonna be lovinâ the thing more than she does,â she smiled up at him, putting a strand of hair that was falling in front of her face behind her ear. âWell, truth be told, I have you both to be thankful for,â Anna said truthfully, thinking that if she stopped and looked at him she would probably start to get emotional all over again and it was the very last thing she wanted at that moment. âMelody gave me a roof over my head and sheâs been a good friend for a long time, but you⊠because of you I know what I was goinâ through wasnât worth it and after I kissed you that night it wakened somethinâ in me, somethinâ I didnât know I had anymore. Besides, you gave me a good shoulder to sleep on and itâs more comfortable than any bed Iâve been in,â Anna heaved a small sigh, glancing at him briefly as she was sure that the skin of her cheeks were arm, the blush ought to be showing. There was a lot she wanted to tell Devon, but this was still not the time, nor the place for it.Â
      âHeyââ she stopped him and turned to face him. âI would love it if you cooked me dinner,â it had been a very long time since anyone had and having time for just the two of them without Hector hovering above their heads seemed the best idea now. âPeople are not starinâ because Iâm walkinâ âround with a guy who was in prison, theyâre starinâ because Iâm walkinâ round with someone after havinâ killed my husbandâŠâ she said matter-of-factly, her teeth worrying her lip immediately as she didnât mean to put such a sour mood to their conversation. âI donât care, you know? I really donât. They can say whatever they wanna say, but right now, Iâm right where I wanna beâ right where Iâve been wantinâ to be for a long time now. Jared was right about one thing, yâknow? Our letters were anythinâ but innocent.â
âWell Iâm glad to hear my shoulder is comfortable, itâs always there when you need it and that kiss was...â he took in a deep breath, his smile widening a bit as he thought about it. He had spent a decent amount of time beating himself up over it, fearing that he had ruined everything for them but hearing that it had actually helped her finally helped quell some of his fears and insecurities. âYeah? Well then itâs a date, whenever you want to come over, Iâll be ready. Plus itâs a lot easier so I donât have to break curfew. I just..want to spend time with you, you know? Just the two of us, no interruptions.â His expression softened as she bit her bottom lip and he brought her hand to his lips. âCould be both. I mean a formerly incarcerated guy and a woman who killed her husband? Lifetime wishes they could write a movie plot that good,â he teased and gave her hand a squeeze, wanting her to know that they could talk about anything, she didnât have to hesitate. But her words caused him to be a little breathless and he felt his cheeks going read again as she spoke. âNo, no they definitely werenât. You know I still read them? Especially when I canât sleep, they help ease my mind. I canât...even find the words to tell you what those letters did for me.â He brushed his thumb across her knuckles, smiling sweetly as he looked in her eyes. âIâm absolutely crazy about you, Anna Cooper.â















