Ben bumped it with the hand not holding a broom, then glanced at her. “Akira, this is Dr. Sebastian Grant and Leah Montgomery.”
Oh! These were the two people CeCe had just been talking about. Ben’s best friend and the woman Ben had been in love with. How uncomfortable! How fascinating. “Hi.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” Leah said.
“You too.”
“I’ve been volunteering with the after-school program at Furry Tails Animal Rescue Center,” Ben told them. “Akira’s the director of the program, and she’s great at what she does.”
Ben had said encouraging things to her about her work before, but this particular compliment was as welcome as sunshine in winter. She worked hard and strove for excellence with the kids. But she did so in obscurity, receiving job satisfaction through the kids’ well-being and accomplishments. That a teacher of Ben’scaliber thought well of her efforts meant more to her than any box of chocolates could have on this Valentine’s Day. “Thank you, Ben.”
Sebastian and Leah both asked her follow-up questions and Akira observed the dynamic between them and Ben as she answered.
Leah had styled her long bob in loose waves. Observant gray-blue eyes were the centerpiece of her lovely face. She’d combined her 1930s-inspired high heels with a simple off-the-shoulder dress made of a pink fabric so vibrant it verged on neon. She had the demeanor of a woman comfortable with herself.
Akira noted an underlying carefulness in the way Ben, Leah, and Sebastian interacted. They were all likely trying to navigate the territory they found themselves in now that Sebastian had ended up with Ben’s heartthrob. No doubt Sebastian and Leah would be thrilled when Ben found a girlfriend. That would assuage any lingering guilt they might be feeling.
How bizarre that Ben had ended up as the odd man out in this trio. In no way did she perceive Ben as second-best or inferior. On the contrary, she viewed him as unattainably awesome.
Leah and Sebastian must have been destined for each other. Soul mates. That’s the only thing that could explain why Ben hadn’t ended up with the girl.
“Mom’s expecting Luke to come tonight,” Ben said during a break in the conversation.
“Luke’s coming?” Leah asked with surprise.
“According to my mom,” Ben answered. “Luke told me he wasn’t coming. So I’ll believe it when I see it.”
“I’d love to meet him,” Leah said.
“Don’t get your hopes up,” Sebastian told her. “Either about Luke showing up or about having a conversation with him if he does—”
“Sebastian!” CeCe’s imperious voice carried from the back of the house. “If that’s you, get in hereright now. I want to give you a piece of my mind!”
Ben chuckled. “You’ve been summoned, man. Good luck.”
“I’m not going in alone.”
“I think you should,” Leah said.
“No way. Our best hope of survival is the buddy system.” Sebastian took Leah’s hand, then the pair excused themselves.
Akira and Ben drifted toward the laundry room to put away their brooms.
“I heard you had your heart set on Leah for a while,” Akira said quietly. “Is it painful for you to see her with Sebastian?”
“It’s getting easier, but it’s still a little hard.”
Compassion tweaked within her. “I can imagine. For the record, Sebastian might be good-looking and, okay, a doctor. But he’s no match for you in my eyes. As far as I’m concerned, you’re the most eligible bachelor in Georgia.”
Luke had been on edge all day. More so as the time of the Valentine’s party neared.
He wasn’t going. So why did he keep checking the clock?
Jiggling his knee, he told himself to put all his concentration toward his computer. He was reclining on the chair in his living room with his laptop. Over the past several days, he’d been hunting the Internet for information on the people Finley had told him were connected to her dad. Ed’s family, friends, enemies. Carla and her family.
Today, he’d been researching Rosco Horton, Ed’s attorney. The State Bar of Georgia’s website was open before him, and Luke had just learned that Rosco had been disciplined twice over his long career. Once for violating the ethics of lawyer-client confidentiality. Once for how Rosco had dealt with client money.
Ed’s attorney wasn’t squeaky clean.
