“Ricky,” I said. “Good to meet you.”
“And you. All these years.” She released my hand and opened her arms for Lu, who, unsurprisingly stepped into her embrace.
“You did it,” Ricky muttered into her hair as she held her. “You got him back. I’m so happy for you Lu-lala.”
Lu made a little pleased sound that was muffled by their embrace, and then they leaned away from each other, although Ricky still held her by one hand on each shoulder.
Lu was absolutely grinning from ear to ear at her, more than delighted. Giddy.
“How?” Ricky asked. “You’ve looked for so many years. No, wait. Don’t tell me yet. This deserves celebration. Get on in here.” She pivoted and draped one arm over Lu’s shoulder and reached for me, catching hold of my bicep, then turning so we all faced the house. “We’re going to dine, and drink, and you’re going to regale me with the stories of your victory.”
Lu giggled, and it was a wonderful sound, even if Ricky was the reason for it.
I shifted my arm out of her grip, not liking being touched by her. Maybe it was because I didn’t like to be touched. Maybe I just didn’t like her.
Or both. It was probably both.
Lorde galumphed ahead of us, trotting up the steps, then sniffed her way down the length of the porch.
“I saw you standing there, and I thought, my Lu-lala doesn’t travel with strange men. Can you believe I was worried he had captured you against your will? I beg your forgiveness for doubting you.”
Lu laughed.
The absolute joy Ricky sparked in Lu, her arm, still over Lu’s shoulder, friendly, companionable, and certainly welcoming, hit like a mule kick to my gut.
Ricky was her friend. One of the few people she could trust in the world. In one of the few places that felt like a haven to her.
I wasn’t jealous.
But the jumble of feelings were hot and twisted: guilt, fear, definitely pain, and it was much too much for me to sort out in front of the two of them.
“Lorde needs a bath,” I blurted out. They paused by the door, Ricky having already opened the screen so Lu could pass through.
Lu ducked out from under Ricky’s arm, and Ricky shifted, the door still open, but now she stood with the screen to her back.
“Brogan?” Lu’s smile was falling, her eyebrows knitting together. All the joy, that giddy freedom gone, flattened under worry for me.
I took a breath, rubbed my thumbs over my fingertips to keep from drawing her against me, behind me, and taking her away so I could keep her as mine. Just mine.
I dug deep for a smile, pulled it into place, and shifted my weight so I was resting on my back foot. Relaxed. Easy.
Some of the lines on her face smoothed.
“Lorde needs that bath,” I said. “I could use a little fresh air. Stretch my back.”
Her gaze searched my face. “Are you sure?”
I bussed her cheek. “The dog stinks, and I’m not ready to be indoors yet. Go. Have fun.”
She considered me for a moment more, then stepped back. “You know where the hose is?”
“Yes.”
“And the soap?”
“You still keep it in the shed?” I asked Ricky.
“Shelf on the right.” Her smile had something heavy in it, as if she were trying to puzzle me out. As if she wasn’t quite sure that she could trust me.
