Short Fiction Piece - William Cooper

Hello, guys! My name is William Cooper. My first story - Broken Bones, Mended Hearts - was released today from Dreamspinner Press.

Blurb:
When Noah wakes up in the hospital, he's relieved to see his best friend Mark at his side. Mark's always been there for him—ever since a school bully tried to steal Noah's lunch money. Is it too much for Noah to hope that Mark will want to be a more permanent part of his life?

You can find out more about Broken Bones, Mended Hearts on Dreamspinner's website.

In order to celebrate, I'm posting this short piece exclusively here, on The Dancing Dove. I hope you enjoy it.

***
Josh had his arm around my waist as the two of us walked down the sidewalk. The street lamps cast a romantic glow on everything. Most of the shops along the main street were closed, except for the few that remained open late.

I glanced up at Josh’s face; he looked even more handsome with the bright white moon behind him. “I can’t believe you picked such an expensive restaurant for our Valentine’s dinner.” Every year we went out to dinner for Valentine’s Day, and each year we switched who got to decide – this year was Josh’s year. “You know we don’t need to go to fancy places to enjoy ourselves.”

Josh pulled me closer to him, planting a kiss on my cheek. “I know, but I wanted tonight to be special. We’ve been dating for six years now.”

My heart rate sped up. God, even after six years he can still make me hard as a rock with a single kiss.

The two of us walked along in silence for a little while longer. There were other couples walking around, enjoying the rest of their Valentine’s Day evening.

“Where are we going?” I asked after a few minutes.

“To the park.”

I looked over to see a huge grin on Josh’s face. “Why are we going to the park? It’s nearly eleven.”

Josh’s grin got even bigger. “You’ll see . . .” He leaned over and kissed me again, this time on the lips. I eagerly kissed him back, probing the inside of his mouth with my tongue. I groaned when Josh pulled away from me.

“We’re in public, remember?” he chastised.

I blushed and wished we were heading home, rather than to the park. The two of us continued walking towards the park, Josh still with his arm around my waist.

When we got to the park, Josh led me to a secluded area by a small lake. The crickets were chirping as the two of us gazed at the lake. The night sky was littered with stars, giving us plenty of light to see by.

As I enjoyed the serenity of the lake, Josh stood behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. I leaned back against him, content to just stand in his arms. Sex with Josh was always amazing, but nothing compared to just holding each other.

Josh turned me around to face him. “Tyler . . . You know I love you, right?”

I nodded. God, I hope he’s not breaking up with me. That would be such a shitty way to end a perfect evening.

Josh grinned and backed away. He fished in his pocket for a moment before he knelt down onto the grass. In his hand was a dark blue box containing a small ring. “Tyler Barret, will you marry me?”

Is he serious? My mouth went completely dry as I tried to avoid falling over. One glance was all it took for me to see that he was very serious. I smiled at Josh and pulled him into an embrace. I pressed my lips to his, letting our tongues entwine.

“I’ll take that as a yes?” he asked when we pulled apart.

Both of us panted from the intensity of the kiss. “Yes, it’s a yes. This was the most perfect night ever. Of course I’ll marry you, Josh!” I hugged him again. “I love you.”

I felt his arms tighten around me. “I love you, too.”

Everything felt right in my world.

***

Thank you for reading! You can visit my website at www.WilliamACooper.com