Theo swept an invisible thread off the bulky plaid sleeve. “Yes, well—”
“Really. That, of all things that could’ve possibly happened that semester, must’ve beenthe worst.”
Theo exhaled. Took a moment to consider the timing of what he was about to say. He would’ve done things differently, waited until they had spent more time together, but because she was bringing it up...
“For what it’s worth, I deserved it. After everything that happened—”
“And here we are,” Skye interrupted, her cheeks pinking. She jerked the wheel into the parking lot.
So, Skye had simply wanted to poke the fire, blow and stir the ashes just enough to make the embers glow. It made sense. This would be their dance, he suspected: shuffling closer, then breaking from the heart of the matter again and again, more and more, until one moment, one unexpected moment, she was ready.
And for him? He had waited fourteen years. He could easily wait a little longer.
The car slid into the first available parking space beneath the gas station’s sign:Luke’s.
Skye popped her door open and Theo followed suit.
As for Luke, Theo had a theory. And it was time to test it. “I’m guessing Luke is still that same lovable, easygoing man I had the pleasure of meeting?”
On that fateful night fourteen years ago, Luke was 280 pounds of pure muscle who had a keen enjoyment of watching martial arts videos and practicing in his living room. He was part of Skye’s long-running friend group and apparently had been waiting for a heroic opportunity to put his homegrown skills to use. Hence, after Theo had made that fateful mistake of running to Skye’s friend’s house to try to talk to her, the broken nose.
Skye’s eyes twinkled as she grabbed hold of the front door. “You nailed it.”
So there it was. Luke was Skye’s attempt at a bit of revenge.
Theo grinned.
The doors jingled as they entered and slipped past rows of chips and chocolate bars, ATM machines, and quarter slots for M&M’s. They walked toward the man behind the register. He was holding something up to a customer, and as the customer stepped aside, Theo saw all of him. The gas station’s logo on the lime green T-shirt was stretched across his chest almost to the point of being unreadable. The chiseled jaw was gone, replaced with baby-face cheeks, victim of a recent sunburn. The bowl cut was gone, replaced with much fewer, tender-looking hairs. A single gust of wind could cause them to fly off like dandelions in spring. But the most startling change of all was his face.
His wide, positively buoyant face.
Luke caught their eyes and stretched out his arms. “Theo! You came just in time.”
Chapter 8
Skye
If Skye’s confusion grew any stronger, the contortions of her forehead would seal her eyes shut. As it was, she barely managed to follow Theo as he walked up to the register.
“Luke,” Theo said, reaching across the glass and giving him a shoulder pat. “It’s good to see you.”
Luke beckoned to Skye. “Come see this. I need both of your opinions.”
It took a few moments, but Skye forced herself to shuffle forward to form the strange triangle of people. Luke rested his elbows on the counter and leaned forward. He tapped the envelope as he spoke in hushed tones. “I have... in my hand... at this very moment... the secret to the baby’s gender.”
Well, it wasn’t the super, ultrasecret, undercover plan to save the world, but it was still something.
Skye’s eyes widened. “I thought Tracy didn’t want to know.”
Luke waggled his eyebrows. “She doesn’t. Just got backfrom the doctor yesterday. She had him write it on a piece of paper and seal it up so we could take it to Blackbird Bakery and get a cake made for the shower, you know, pink in the center if it’s a girl, blue if it’s a boy.” (To his credit, Luke looked like he was about to burst out of his shirt with excitement.) “Anyway, she forgot she had a highlighting appointment for one of her clients, so she gave this to me and made me promise I wouldn’t look.” He looked at the envelope in his hand like it was a treasure map. His blue eyes shone like a baby’s. “And I’m keeping my word.” He pushed it in Skye’s face. “Read it.”
“No way.” Skye threw up her hands and took a step back. “Your wife would kill me.”
“C’mon,” Luke urged, leaning farther over the counter to push the envelope her way. “Read it.”
“Absolutelynot,” Skye said, moving behind a row of candy bars for good measure.
“Aw, c’mon, Skye, I can’t read it myself. I made an oath.”
