“I get it, man. Better get to work then.”
Chapter Ten
Meredith
Luke wasn’t in when I got to the shop the next morning. I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. We needed to talk. I had handled the kiss horribly. Which wouldn’t matter if the kiss was also horrible. But it wasn’t. It was exactly what I remembered from when we were together over the summer. The smell of his skin, a mix of his cologne and a bit of engine grease from the shop. The feel of his stubble against my cheek. How soft his lips were in contrast. The way he invaded my mouth with his tongue had all my brain cells frozen.
It couldn’t happen again. I needed him to understand why.
Luckily, I had lots to keep me busy. I was not an event planner, so it was a bit of trial by fire, but I thought I could pull it off so long as everything got done on time. Oh, and people actually showed up.
It wasn’t until after lunch that I heard the distinctive sound of his work boots clomping through the staff entrance and intothe shop. I knew from the schedule that he didn’t have a client for another twenty minutes.
It was now or never.
Roxy was tattooing, so I grabbed Luke’s arm and pulled him into her office.
“Hey, we need to talk,” he said.
“Took the words right out of my mouth.”
“You go first.”
“No, you go.” I moved around to sit in Roxy’s chair, putting her desk between us.
He sat down across from me. “I’m sorry I kissed you last night.”
“Don’t be. I’m not.”
He looked up from where he was picking at the top of Roxy’s desk. “Really?”
I nodded. “But I don’t think it is a good idea if it happens again.” I had told him to go first but now I just needed to get this out. “The reason I’m back in Springwood is that I got fired from my job with the Huxleys.”
His gaze softened. “I’m sorry, Mer.”
“I was supposed to keep Rosalind and Vi out of trouble and since I failed with both, it made sense.”
“You didn’t fail. You backed up friends when they made decisions for themselves.”
I swallowed. “I guess I know that, but either way I’m in a position I’ve never been in before. Where I have to worry about how to pay my bills. I knew I’d never get a job in Vegas again. I’m so glad I found this place. I love the shop and working with all of you. I really don’t want to mess this up and I think you…”
“You think I what?” he asked, watching me intently.
I cleared my throat. “I think you are the one thing that coulddistract me from doing the best job I can.”
He stared at me for a moment, his eyes darting from my lips and then back to meet mine. “I get that. The feeling is entirely mutual.”
My heart squeezed at his words. Why couldn’t this be easier?
“When I was growing up, things were ugly. My parents weren’t always around. I didn’t have what I needed. I wanted out. I was shit at school, but the one thing I could do was art. It became my everything. The thing I could escape into so I wouldn’t hear the fighting, or the sirens or the sound of breaking glass.”
I felt like an ass for complaining. I may have lost my job but I had never experienced what he was describing. I reached across the desk and held his hand.
“I studied art for two years on scholarship, but figured out pretty quickly that they call themstarving artistsfor a reason. Working for Asher pays my bills, but I need this place. Think Ink is to me now what my sketchbook was to me when I was that lonely, scared kid. It’s grounding and my escape at the same time.”
I nodded solemnly. “I’ll do everything I can to protect this place. Even if that includes keeping things professional with you.” I stood and we hugged. Not a breakup, even if it felt like one. He felt too good in my arms. I realized I’d nuzzled into his shoulder and quickly pulled back. “You’d better get ready for your client.”
He nodded and stepped out of the office without a word. I let out a long breath once he was gone. The time we’d spent together was short, but it was intense enough that I might have to grieve its loss. First, I needed to protect this place.
