He sat up and kissed me. His hands slid up and down mythighs on either side of his lap, then up my back. He kissed my neck and warned with a grin. “I can kiss you whenever I feel like it now.” The pain was gone from his eyes. The hesitation that had crept into all our interactions had been obliterated.
He leaned back against the couch and reached into his pocket. “I have something for you.”
I gasped. “My locket...” He reached around my neck to fasten it. It fell against my skin to sit right between my breasts.
His eyes blazed into mine as he leaned into me and kissed it. “I have your engagement ring too, but it feels wrong to use that one. Like bad luck.”
I inhaled a shaky breath. “Well, it’s too soon for engagement rings. We haven’t even been on our first date yet. You owe me dinner, mister.” I smiled through my happy tears.
His eyes crinkled as he laughed. “It’s like that, is it?”
“Oh yeah. I had a dress all picked out.” My face fell. “I am so messed up over you. I was planning what to wear and at the same time trying to find a way to break the date without hurting your feelings. I’m so sorry.”
“I understand. Don’t forget that I’ve known you your whole life.” His smile got bigger as he tickled my sides.
I squirmed in his lap. “Hey now.” I poked him in the stomach, then started feeling him up. Ooh, nice abs. Feeling was so much better than seeing. He didn’t have a six-pack anymore but he had a lot of definition down the sides and at the top. He yanked me forward and kissed me again with a groan. “We should stop,” he whispered between kisses. “Asher is supposed to meet me here before we go to lunch.”
I sat up fast, startled. I yanked up my shirt and started looking around for my bra.
Luke reached down to my side and snagged it from under my knee. He handed it to me with a smirk. “Lily and lace.” He caressed my cheek, rawness in his eyes and a sad smile on his face. “You’re so beautiful.” His smile turned sweet, and he gave me a quick kiss before he shifted me off his lapand onto the couch at his side. He muttered, “I’m glad I keep clothes here,” as he stood up, and I giggled.
Our eyes met, and we smiled at each other.
“I love you,” he whispered, then entered the bathroom to change. I put my bra on, thankful that I’d pumped for Calla before I got here. How embarrassing would it have been to have a milk incident all over Luke? Yikes, that was something to consider for next time.
“Luke, are you here? Liam?” It was Asher’s voice. Wow, that was too close. I stood up and opened the door.
“Hey, Asher,” I called.
He turned to me with a grin. “All made up with Luke? I told everyone to just leave you alone and let you figure it out yourselves.” That was Asher. He was quiet and serious and always there when I needed him. He was a good brother and a good dad to Mark and Mara. It was too bad he’d picked a crap wife. She took off years ago, leaving him with the kids. I walked over and gave him a hug. He kissed the top of my head.
“I think so. At least we’re headed that way.” I grinned up at him. Asher was tall, and solid as a rock. His body matched his personality—strong, steady, immovable. He was the only sibling who shared the redhead gene with me and Rose.
“I’m happy for you. It was meant to be.”
Luke walked out of the bathroom, and I blew him a kiss goodbye. He shook his head and strode toward me. He bent low and kissed my lips. “That’s how we say goodbye.” He smiled at me, and I tried to keep my knees from buckling.
How could I have forgotten how sweet and romantic Luke could be?
“Bye,” I whispered in response. Then I turned to head back to Violet’s.
Chapter 15
Lily
Iwalked across the parking lot to Violet’s with my head firmly in the clouds. My smile was goofy and my mood was a strange mixture of euphoric and nervous. My heart pounded a fast, terrified staccato while my brain swirled with giddy thoughts. A strange voice calling my name knocked me out of my deliriously muddled, confusingly ecstatic stupor.
“Lily Sullivan?”
I stopped with my hand on the doorknob and wrinkled my nose. “I’m sorry. Do I know you?”
“I used to work with Will. I am here to pick up his remaining files.”
Fighting the urge to dart inside the shop, I answered. “I don’t have any of Will’s work things. It’s been over a year since he died. Why are you here?” I studied his face. I didn’t know him, but he looked vaguely familiar. If he knew Will, then he knew that Will did not break the rules and would never have stored evidence at home.
“I’m looking for a missing flash drive. Are you sure you haven’t seen anything like that?” A phony smile crossed his face as he stood up.
I gripped the door handle tighter. “I’m sure. I’m supposedto be at work. I don’t know anything about Will’s cases.” I looked at him pointedly, studying his face so I would remember it. I was getting more suspicious by the second, and I wanted my dad. I hurried inside the shop and shut the door firmly behind me. I quickly sent texts to my father and Cade, then to Trevor. I watched from the window as he threw his cup away and left. I should have asked his name, damnit.
