“What’s a good idea?” A voice echoed through the living area. Spinning around too quickly, I found a middle-aged woman wearing jeans and a knitted sweater standing in the living room, a bag in her hand, I sloshed coffee over the side of my mug, coating my hand.
“Ah!” I squawked, grabbing the dish towel and wiping it clean.
“Are you okay?” Luke worried, grabbing my hand and inspecting it closely.
“I’m fine,” I assured him. Geez. Between me and Isla this morning, we were going to turn Luke grey before his time.
Although he didn’t look convinced, Luke let it slide. “Charlotte, have you met Mrs. Neal? Mrs. Neal is a Godsend. She takes care of Isla for me, but really she’s more like part of the family.”
“No, I haven’t yet, but I have heard so much about you. Hi, I’m Charlotte,” I introduced myself, not missing the sly look she shot in Luke’s direction. Seeing me here, this early in the morning, on a school day no less, was probably a shock. It was to me, so I could only imagine what Mrs. Neal was thinking. Especially since I was only wearing one of Luke’s shirts and a pair of boxers and was completely covered in blood.
“I’ve heard a lot of good things from Isla about you.” I smiled. At least she wasn’t hearing I was a horrible bitch. It was a win I’d take every day of the week. “And Luke tells me you’re a doctor over at the children’s hospital.”
“I am. I’m one of the oncologists there.”
“That’d be a hard job. Seeing all those sick kids. I couldn’t do it.”
“It has its days,” I admitted. I turned to Luke. “I’m really sorry, but I’m going to have to go. I’ve gotta duck home before I head into work. Did you need me to do anything before I take off?”
“It’s all good. Isla can just have a quiet day today at home and I’m sure she’ll be fine.”
“Is she not feeling well?” Mrs. Neal asked, worry evident in her voice.
“No. She was complaining of a headache and being tired last night and woke up this morning with a bleeding nose.”
“Another one?”
“Yeah. She seems okay now, maybe just a bit tired and whiny. She was just getting cleaned up.”
“Sounds like we need to bake some cookies and watch a movie.” Mrs. Neal smiled, setting down her oversized bag.
“Snickerdoodles?” Luke asked, his voice filled with hope, while I stashed away that tidbit.
“We’ll see what we can do,” Mrs. Neal offered, and we all knew by the time Luke got home from work, there’d be a fresh batch of them waiting for him.
Excusing myself, I darted into Luke’s bedroom and changed into my dress. I never thought I’d be doing the walk of shame dressed as Snow White. Cinderella maybe, but never Snow White. Double-checking I had everything, I checked the time on my phone and knew I had to get going if I was going to make it to work on time.
Sauntering into his bedroom, I fought back the urge to tackle him onto the mattress and keep him captive there. Spending a day rolling around in the sheets with Luke sounded like a dream to me. Shame it wasn’t going to be today. Unfortunately, we both had work waiting for us.
“Sorry about this. I had plans for things going very differently on your first sleepover,” Luke apologized as he rounded the bed and came to stand in front of me before winding his arms around my waist.
Instinctively, I reached up and put my hands behind his head, toying with his hair. “You had plans, did you?” I teased.
“Oh, you have no idea.”
The velvety smooth sound of his voice slid down my spine making me shiver. Now wasn’t the time for this sort of teasing.
“Well then, maybe next time …”
“Who said there’d be a next time?” The deadpanned look on Luke’s face made me try to take a step back, but he wasn’t having it. I could feel his fingers digging into my hips as he held me close. If anything, he closed the gap between us.
“I don't know why you’re mean to me?” I complained dramatically.
“Haven’t you heard? Boys are always mean to the girls they like.”
“Is that so?”
“It’s so.”
