“Where’s Tessa?” Cooper asked Eric when he managed to break through the horde of women and men currently surrounding the stage where Dalton was gearing up to play. With a full blown band.

The guy had pulled out all the stops tonight, including an entire tent that was being manned by a couple of famous locals whose sole focus was on collecting money. The concert was free with a donation. Cooper didn’t even want to think about what it would look like tomorrow when everyone left. Thankfully, he had some time to kill before then.

“She said she needed a break,” Eric told him, his voice raised to be heard over the ruckus.

“Thanks,” Cooper mouthed and then headed back through the sea of bodies until he reached an empty space on the other side of one of the tents.

“There you are,” he said when he found Tessa pacing back and forth, her attention focused inward. “You all right?”

“Never better,” she said with a huge grin. “This is amazing.”

“You’re telling me,” he agreed. “That’s Dalton for ya. The man doesn’t do simple and easy.”

“I see that.” Tessa peered over her shoulder where they could see the crowd growing. “I’ve called in backup. My cousins usually fill in as security at the bar, so they said they’d help us out here. Tonight they’re bringing their friends. They assured me they had it covered.”

Cooper nodded, pulling Tessa up against him. “I had no idea he’d do this, I swear.”

“Well, since it’s for a good cause, I’m not sure I can complain. But I will say I’m looking forward to a few quiet hours after this.”

“Quiet, huh?”

“Yes. You know… You, me, a truck bed and a starlit night. How does that sound?”

“Like heaven. Can we just sneak out now?”

“Not a chance, cowboy,” Tessa said, placing her hands on his face and forcing him to look at her. “But I promise to make it worth your while afterwards.”

Cooper’s entire body heeded her words. He wasn’t sure he could wait that long. He knew for damn sure that he didn’t want to wait that long.

“Are you going to sing tonight?” Tessa asked as she took a step back.

“I’m thinking about it,” he answered simply. Dalton had asked him to and honestly, the scene was getting into his blood. The excitement was filling him, and he craved it.

“Well, good luck. I’ll be listening for you.”

Cooper leaned down and kissed her, gently at first and then he couldn’t stop himself. Tessa amazed him in so many ways, and he found that he looked forward to seeing her every minute of every day. To the point that he wanted to make it permanent. Only he was scared. Not of what that meant, but of what Tessa’s reaction would be if he suggested it.

They’d certainly mended some rifts between them in the last couple of weeks, but he knew she was still scared. Tessa had spent more years than not trying to atone for her mistakes and even though he could tell she was getting better, she was still holding herself back.

Shaking off the thought, Cooper broke the kiss and stared down at her, running his finger down her jaw. “I’ll check on you in a bit. Try to stay close to Eric,” he told her. “Oh.” Cooper grabbed her hand before she could get away. “I don’t care what happens, don’t talk to any reporter’s.”

Tessa’s eyebrow cocked in question and Cooper smiled. “You shouldn’t have to deal with them. I’m not worried about what you’d say, but I don’t want them hurting you.”

Her subtle nod didn’t reassure him that she understood his reasoning, but at least she agreed for now. Planting a quick kiss on her lips, he pulled a strand of her hair gently and turned to leave her in peace.

Two hours later, all hell broke loose.

Cooper had just come off of the stage when he noticed two guys near the donation tent going toe to toe. He couldn’t see much, but based on the crowd gathering, he knew he wasn’t going to like what he found. Glancing around, he glimpsed Eric at the same time the man noticed what was going on. The two of them made a beeline for the fight, both of them coming from different directions.

After forcing himself through the wall of bodies forming a circle around the fight, Cooper came up short just a few feet away from Jack.

“Stop, Jack! Please. Stop!” Tessa was screaming at her brother who had some guy pinned to the ground by his throat. That wasn’t what had Cooper’s breath heaving in and out of his lungs.

Tessa was holding her shirt closed because it had clearly been ripped, her hair was halfway out of her ponytail, and there was a mark obscuring the side of her face. Big and red…

“He’s not worth it, Jack!” Tessa screamed, her eyes wild as she tried to pull her brother off of the man.

“Nuh-uh.” The voice, along with a firm hand, pulled Cooper up short before he even realized that he was moving in closer. “You get her,” Dalton said fiercely. “We’ll take care of the rest.”

“Bullshit,” Cooper growled.

“Both of you, out of here,” Eric’s stern voice caught Cooper’s attention. “Get her, Coop. See if she needs medical attention.”

Cooper was trying to rein in his rage, and Eric’s statement did just that – as efficient as a gallon of ice water would’ve been. He was just about to move to get Tessa when the guy that Jack had pinned managed to deliver a low punch, effectively doubling Jack over. As soon as the guy was free, Cooper got a good look at who it was. Chad. The bastard he’d thrown out of Tessa’s bar.

Although Chad seemed to be struggling to breathe, he lunged at Tessa, slamming her backward. Before Cooper could get his feet in motion, Chad grabbed her by the hair.

The roar that escaped was probably heard for miles, but Cooper heard nothing except for his blood thundering in his veins. He hit the asshole at a fast clip, sending them both flying to the ground. As much as he wanted to beat the hell out of Chad, Cooper knew he’d spend the night in jail, and at this point, this guy was going to get the honors if Cooper could just keep himself in check long enough.

Pushing to his feet, he kept his eye on the man on the ground, but the bastard didn’t try to move. He just started yelling.

“She’s a stupid fucking cunt!” Chad spat toward Tessa. “Fucking whore! Don’t think your famous boyfriend won’t find out the truth about you! Fucking bitch!”

The group that was now gathered, the noise, everything faded as Cooper’s world narrowed down to the guy throwing obscenities at Tessa. He fucking hurt her, and his nasty insults weren’t slowing. And that’s when Cooper let loose, his fists flying, his anger unstoppable. Chad never knew what hit him either. It wasn’t until someone – make that several someone’s – pulled Cooper off that he stopped.

“Out of here now!” Eric barked, pulling Cooper until he stumbled backward. When the noise and the lights assaulted his senses, Cooper realized where he was, and he immediately searched for Tessa, finding her as Jack was leading her away.

Apparently the bastard now lying in the dirt must’ve gotten in a few solid punches because Cooper felt as though he’d been run over by a truck. He managed to limp toward Tessa, gently pulling her into his arms as Jack moved to clear the area.

“Take him back to the house,” Jack ordered Tessa, referring to Cooper. “Don’t come back until I tell you.”

The next thing Cooper knew, they were in his truck, tearing across the back pasture toward his house. Once they were locked inside of his house a few minutes later, he took stock of her condition. Yep, that was going to be a nasty bruise on her jaw.

“What the fuck happened?” he asked, realizing how cruel he sounded. He was doing his damnedest to get his temper under control, but the only thing he saw was when that bastard knocked her down. And Cooper knew full well that his anger was obscuring his common sense, but he couldn’t rein himself in no matter how hard he tried.

“You don’t want to know,” Tessa said as she inhaled deeply, her bottom lip already swelling.

“I told you to stay the fuck away from him, Tessa.” Cooper growled, forcing himself to stand up straight although his ribs protested as he did.

Tessa glared at him, her anger matching his. “You told me?”

“Yes. I fucking told you to stay away from him.” Moving closer, he lifted her chin, forcing her to look at him. When she flinched, he felt like an asshole, but he couldn’t help himself. He checked out the mark on her cheek as he waited for her to answer him.

Tessa pulled away, walking to the other side of the room.

“What the fuck made him hit you?”

Tessa shrugged, and Cooper’s anger was like a wild fire roaring to life again, gaining momentum as it barreled through dry brush. “You don’t know? This is the second fucking time he’s gone after you. Did you start the fight, Tessa?”

Her incredulous expression pinned him in place, but Cooper was long past sane at the moment. “Did I not tell you reporters would be here? Are you fucking trying to draw attention to me? As it is, they’ve probably got it all on video. Shit, it may be all over the television by now.”

Obviously she didn’t like the question or his tone of voice because her hands balled into fists at her side, her eyes shooting daggers.

“Why would you ask that?” she asked, her voice much stronger than minutes before.

“Is there something I should know?”

Tessa’s body straightened and her eyes narrowed on him. “Yeah, you should know that I’m just the town whore as far as he’s concerned. That make you feel better?”

The words were like a slap to the face and Cooper actually recoiled. How the hell had this conversation turned in this direction? “What?”