“So what happened out in California?” he asked, and all my good feelings turned to ash.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said, looking away from him.
“I’m not trying to pry, but Nic mentioned you were working out there for a while. I’m just curious what you were up to.” He took a drink from his cup, but when I didn’t answer, he kept talking. “Like I do a TV show. Were you in movies? Commercials? Plays?”
That was safer ground. He wasn’t asking about what happened with Henry. “I did some set design on a few movies.”
“That’s awesome,” he said, nodding like he meant it. “Anything I would have seen?”
I smiled. “Probably not. Unless you like Hallmark movies.”
“Ahh, I might have missed your work then.” He grinned, and I could have sworn I kept catching him studying my face when he thought I wasn’t looking.
I noticed because I was feeling the same urge to study every angle of his jaw and cheekbones. The hot high school quarterback had matured. He was polished and well put together. The differences drew the eye almost irresistibly.
“What about New York?” he asked.
“What about it?”
“You want to work out there. Have you ever thought of coming for a visit?”
My eyes widened and my mouth fell open. “I’m sorry, but are you inviting me to visit you in New York?”
“Not specifically,” he said. “But sure, if you ever decide you want to check things out, you’re welcome at my place anytime. I have plenty of spare rooms and I’m hardly ever there.”
“Thank you, that’s a generous offer. But my New York goals are going to have to wait. And I’d really rather not talk about it anymore.”
Luke gazed into my eyes and I refused to look away first. Whatever he was looking for, he seemed to find it because he nodded slowly. “I’m upsetting you. That’s not my intention.”
I shrugged. “It’s fine. Whatever.”
“I’ll go,” he said, sticking his hand in his pocket. “But first, a peace offering.”
He handed me one of those tiny candy canes, a big grin on his face. I couldn’t tell if he was trying to remind me of the night of the Christmas Spectacular. That night had confirmed my love of the theater, and sitting on Luke’s lap had led to a sexual awakening I was still reeling from.
I could never tell him that, or about how often I watched his show, even though I didn’t give a single shit about football. I could never tell him that, candy cane or not, when he’d grabbed my hips and held onto me like he was protecting me from Dixie, I had fallen head-over-heels for him.
“I hope that’s not the same one from your old Santa costume,” I said.
“No, that one was much bigger.” He grinned at me and walked away, leaving me shaken and breathless.
As I stood on the outskirts of the party, twirling the candy cane over my fingers, Luke looked back over his shoulder at me like he wanted to take me home with him. Then he disappeared.
Jessie found me a few minutes later. She had two beers, two ciders in her pockets, and a bright red top hat she hadn’t shown up with. “Did I miss anything good?”
CHAPTER 7
LUKE
Packing my suitcase was bittersweet. My crazy life waited for me back in New York, but spending a few extra days in town had been rejuvenating. With a million obligations, I rarely had a chance to slow down in my regular life.
Staying allowed me to sit around with my family talking about nothing, to get drunk around a bonfire with a bunch of old friends, and to reconnect with people I hadn’t realized I was missing—like a curvy little redhead I couldn’t stop thinking about.
There was nothing glamorous about Harrison City, but the last few days were the most fun I’d had in a long time. Back in New York, I got so busy working, I forgot what I was working for.
I had money. Success. Fame. All the women I could ask for. Now I was searching for something else, something that would fill the hollow spaces in my chest. I just had to figure out what that thing was.
In the meantime, I had been pushing the network to transition me to a role behind the camera, directing and running my own shows. There had been resistance. They loved me in front of the camera, young, cocky, and opinionated. But they didn’t take me seriously. I was too young, too wild. Not executivematerial. As if a person needed three kids and high cholesterol to be trusted with important decisions.
