She swallowed. “You’re probably right.”
“Now, what do you want for dinner? Should we stop at the store and pick something up?”
#
It felt wrong to be sitting on the sofa with her leg propped up on a pillow while Luke and Paige puttered around her kitchen.
Mia sat on the rug beside Jamison. Although Sophie had only had Atticus for a day, she already felt his absence.
“Luke’s a great cook,” Mia told Sophie. “You won’t be hungry while he stays with you.”
Paige stomped into the dining room carrying a salad. After placing it on the table, she shoved a pair of tongs into it.
“I guess Paige is ready to head back?” Sophie asked when the blonde disappeared into the kitchen.
“It makes sense for us to eat first,” Mia said before she dropped her voice to a whisper. “Her knickers are twisted, because she doesn’t want Luke to stay with you.”
“It’s not like that. There’s nothing between me and Luke.”
“Yeah, but there’s not much between her and Luke either… That’s what’s twisting.”
“You can tell her she doesn’t need to worry. Did you know that the first time Luke met me he called me a sofa?”
Mia laughed long and hard.
“To be fair, I was a lot heavier in high school.”
“Still, that had to hurt.”
“Back then, everything hurt.”
Mia climbed to her feet. “Is it true, Luke? Did you really call Sophie a sofa?”
Luke emerged from the kitchen carrying a large pot of tomato basil soup. Paige trailed after him with a roll of French bread on a platter.
“She wasn’t supposed to hear me,” Luke said. “I was a kid. And stupid.”
“Well, no one would call you a sofa now,” Mia said.
“What happened? Did you go to Weight Watchers or something?” Paige asked.
“No. My mother died.”
“Was she a good cook?” Paige asked.
“It was stress induced. I also lost a lot of my hair.”
Paige pressed her lips together.
“It was really hard on me, too, when my grandmother died,” Mia said.
“I don’t want to talk about people dying anymore,” Paige said. “It gives me the creeps.” She plopped down in a chair at the table and watched Luke with narrowed eyes while he ladled up a bowl of soup, placed a fat slice of bread on a plate, and dished up a large serving of salad. “Are you trying to return her to sofa status?” Paige asked as Luke carried the plate to Sophie.
He dropped to one knee before Sophie and held out the plate and bowl to her. “Will you ever forgive me for calling you a sofa? It was mean, and I was young and dumb.”
“Will I still get the food if I say no?” Sophie asked.
“Yes, but I really hope you’ll say yes, too.”
