Luke covered my hand where it sat on my leg with his warm one. “Yes, relax. We can talk more on that later if you want. Perhaps away from other ears.”
I wasn’t sure if that was for my sake or his, but I nodded and let him lead the conversation into other directions. He told me a little about work the last few weeks, and I gave him a brief rundown of school—not a topic I wanted to discuss if I wasn’t forced to in class—then about my trips home and how much I missed my family without realizing it.
“How far is the campus from Hickory Bend? Was that the name of it?”
“Yeah, population of a little under twenty thousand or so. It’s not the smallest town, but close. Anyway, campus is about three hours if I’m breaking the sound barrier.”
Luke snickered, then glanced at the parking lot. “I can’t imagine that Civic is safe above seventy.”
“It’s not, but it hasn’t let me down yet.” We grinned and huffed tiny laughs. “What was your first car?”
“Hmm, let’s see.” Luke leaned back. Our pastry dishes had been cleared, and we were on our third cups of coffee. I might get an IV of this shit to go. “Well, I was driven to school in a Bentley until I went off to college. My parents gifted me with a Mercedes that I didn’t care for.”
“What? Wrong color?”
Luke snorted. “As a matter of fact, I hated the color, but it just didn’t suit me.”
“The Range Rover does.”
Luke glanced at it sitting pretty and shaming every vehicle in the lot. “You think so?”
“Uh, yeah, like, so much it’s a little weird.”
“I like black vehicles. It’s big enough for me so I don’t feel cramped and has adequate power.”
“Don’t tell me you got a lead foot.”
Luke sat forward and placed his elbows on the table. He’d rolled his sleeves, and the cords of muscle flexed. He totally busted me staring, but I wasn’t going to play coy. This man had kissed me like my throat held treasures he could only find with his tongue, and I’d made him come while calling my name.
I wasn’t about to deny the attraction.
“Not really, but I like knowing I have it if I need it.”
I sat forward too, only with my hands under my legs and my elbows locked in place. “Is that what you’re doing with me?”
His brows lowered.
“I don’t know why we’re here, Luke.” I dropped my voice to just above a whisper. “Not that I’m complaining, but you were fuckin’ desperate in that club. You’re all cold one second and flirtin’ the next. Every weekend. Now this? Thanks for breakfast, by the way, but I’m confused.”
“You’re not the only one a little confused here.”
I sighed and dropped my head back. “Please don’t tell me I turned you gay or some shit.”
“What? No. I’ve always been gay,” he whisper shouted.
Silence built between us until I thought my eardrums would burst. Luke blinked his eyes wide, then paled. Good thing he was sitting because he honest-to-God swooned or something, then gripped the table.
“I’ve never actually said that out loud before.”
“Oh.” Oooh. Oh, shit. He was closeted. Shit! He just came out—to me! “Oh,” I said again, not sure what was the right response here. Fuck, what had I said to Jamie when he told me? I think it was “cool” or something equally stupid. Instead, I went with “No one knows?”
He shook his head, eyes darting around us. “Only you.”
Fuck me. I hadn’t thought about what it must be like to be an adult and not out. Seeing the weight of this on Luke’s shoulders, I suddenly felt all kinds of bad for him, and even worse for tricking him into kissing a … Wait, hold up.
I leaned even closer. “Then why did you ask me out? I mean, me as Ashley.”
“You’ve had the pleasure of meeting my mother. It was either you or a woman of her choosing.”
