“Fuck off.” Coop shoved Noah’s arm and smiled. “I’m going easy on you.”

“Easy isn’t the last way I like it,” Noah winked at him. Ah, hell. Why did he keep getting himself into trouble where Cooper was concerned? Coop’s eyes held a flash of surprise, and Noah almost apologized again, but this time, he let it go. “I’m gonna head inside.”

He began to walk past Cooper when Coop reached out and grabbed his arm. Damned if he didn’t like that rough, calloused hand on him a little too much.

He didn’t let go when Noah stopped moving.

“It’s cooling off. Why don’t we relax out here for a while with a beer or something? I think we deserve it, after how we both worked our asses off today.”

Even though Noah had been the one to say he was going inside, he didn’t want to. All he’d wanted to do was avoid any chance of awkwardness there could be, between them. And to get his head on straight after the way he’d been eyeing Coop all day.

But a beer sounded nice. There was nothing wrong with having a drink with a friend on a warm summer night.

“I could use a beer or two.” He looked down at Cooper’s hand still holding his arm. When he did, Cooper jerked it away.

“We have leftover pizza in there, too.”

They always ordered an extra one so they could eat off it for a couple days. Neither of them were very good cooks.

They went into the house. Coop threw some ice into a small cooler and pushed a few beers inside for each of them, while Noah filled two plates with pizza and tossed them in the microwave. It only took a couple minutes before they were both sitting in lawn chairs out back, with their feet up, the cooler between them and a plate of pizza on each of their laps.

“So, is it good to be back?” Coop asked him.

Noah finished chewing before he replied. “It is. This place has always felt like home to me.”

“Yeah I remember you saying that when we were kids. I thought you were crazy as hell.”

Cooper’s parents had died, and he’d moved here about six months before Noah had showed up. “You were still adjusting. Doesn’t mean you didn’t love it though. I remember.” Cooper was Blackcreek and Blackcreek was Cooper. At least, where Noah was concerned.

Coop nodded and Noah couldn’t help but wonder if he was remembering some of their childhood adventures.

“Without running the risk of sounding like a sap, I’ll admit it got better after you got here. Hell, we had fun didn’t we?”

Noah looked over as Cooper took a drink of his beer. He watched Coop’s neck as he swallowed it down, wishing he could taste his skin. Christ, he was horny. He needed to get out of the house more, and do it without Cooper. It seemed whenever Cooper wasn’t working, they were always together. “We did.”

And then, because he thought it was a good idea, he changed the subject. “I’m thinking it’s about time I start looking into getting my business going.” He’d been reluctant when he first moved back, because coming to Blackcreek had been a spur-of-the-moment decision, anyway. There’d been the chance he wouldn’t want to stay—that being here wouldn’t feel quite the same way it had when he was a kid. In the short month he’d been back, Noah knew he wanted to stay.

“No shit? That’s good. Making things more permanent.”

“Eh,” Noah shrugged. “Figure this is as good a place as any.” He felt Cooper’s eyes on him, probably glad his friend was moving back for sure, but Noah couldn’t meet his gaze. He needed to nip this attraction he felt, now. “It’ll be some work getting it off the ground. Will probably be slow in going, so it’s best I get started now.”

“I’m glad you’re stayin’, man. Seriously, you’re welcome here as long as you want.” Coop set his plate on the ground.

“You just like the free labor.” Both men laughed.

The sun began to lower, the air slightly cooling but not enough to really matter. Behind Coop’s yard, was nothing but trees and open sky. Noah loved it. He always had. Blackcreek was beautiful.

“Tell me about the army,” Cooper asked, his voice thoughtful and deep.

“Not much to tell. It was the military. Tough as hell. Spent a little time in Iraq. It’s not something I really like to talk about.”

“Sorry. Didn’t mean to pry.”

This time Noah couldn’t help but look over at him. Coop smiled, and it was still that same confident, mischievous smile as when they were kids. But then he cocked his head a little…seemed to dissect Noah in a different way. Because, he didn’t want to speak about his time in the army, maybe?