“Don’t start, Lydia.” His voice was almost venomous. I caught myself recoiling at the sound of it before the indignation hit, like a pre-anger, just simmering, waiting to be called to the surface.
“Don’t call me with an attitude before you even talk to me,” I shot back.
“Did you know what he wanted to talk to me about?” he rumbled.
“I can take a guess,” I sassed. “Don’t start with me, Luke.”
“I’m coming over.”
“Well, I won’t answer if you’re going to be an ass.”
“Lydia,” he warned. His voice softened. “You don’t understand. You’ve been gone for eleven years.”
“I’m not a child, Luke. I’m an adult woman who can make her own choices.”
With a determined growl, he said, “I’ll be there in five. Answer the door when I knock, Lyds. Or I’ll kick it in.”
I huffed a frustrated breath. “You’re so dramatic. It’s unlocked.” I ended the call before he could say anything else.
True to Luke’s regimented form, five minutes later, he opened the door to Seb’s house and stormed in.
I tried to hand him the beer that I’d grabbed from therefrigerator in anticipation of his arrival, but he didn’t take it, crossing his arms over his uniformed chest, his neat hair combed even after a long day at work.
“Suit yourself,” I muttered, cracking it open and taking a sip.
“Was he serious? Are you guys hooking up now?”
“That doesn’t seem like it’s any of your business, but yes,” I told him honestly. I had no interest in lying to my family. I was already keeping enough secrets about my past; I didn’t need to start that cycle over again. And certainly not because they were going to be upset about something that wasn’t any of their business in the first place.
“It is my business. You’re my sister. You are my business.”
My eyes rolled to the back of my head, and I tipped the beer back for another long sip. If anyone could take care of themselves, it was me. I proved that by standing here in front of him, in Calla Bay.
“My love life is not your business. It wasn’t when I was in New York, and it isn’t going to be here in town. Just because you get to witness it for the first time in your life doesn’t make it your business.”
“I don’t care that you’re dating. You should be dating. Just not him, Lyds.”
Indignation turned to outrage. He wasn’t the one holding me when I had tears streaming down my face, reliving some of the worst days of my life, other than the day my mom passed. Seb was.
“What’s your problem with Seb? I thought he was your best friend. Now he’s trash because I like him?” I shouted.
“Seb has been my best friend for forever. I know him, Lyds. He takes a new girl home every weekend. He cyclesthrough them like they’re on his own personal carousel. And he never lacks for fresh meat. He’s only going to hurt you. He might not mean to, but he will. That’s what he does. He might say pretty things or break out the charm that women fall for so easily, but he isn’t serious, Lydia. He’s never serious about any of them.”
I wanted to tell him that Seb was serious about me, but we hadn’t actually had that conversation. I had no idea if Seb thought that we were just fooling around or if he wanted us to be something more.
Do I want us to be something more?
The answer formed before my thought even finished.
Yes. I wasn’t sure if I was fully ready to jump into another relationship, but the idea of missing out on a chance to see if we could make this work was making me nauseous.
“He hasn’t brought a single woman home since I’ve been here. Not once,” I said, poking him in the chest. “Maybe you don’t know him like you thought. Maybe there’s more to him than just how many women he’s slept with.” Luke narrowed his eyes, and I thought I might be getting through to him. “It doesn’t botherme. He’s allowed his history. That’s part of his story. So, why does it botheryou?”
His shoulders sagged on a deep sigh, his voice softening. “I don’t want to see you get your heart broken. What happens when a week, two weeks, a month goes by and he’s ready for someone new? What happens then, Lyds? Do you just up and leave again?”
“I’m not the same eighteen-year-old girl I was last time, Luke. I know how to have conversations now. If Seb and I try this and it doesn’t work, then oh well. If I get my heart broken in the process, that’s my problem. It has nothing todo with you.”
Rage simmered in Luke’s eyes in an instant. He dropped his arms, holding himself stiff with tightened muscles, his jaw clenched.
