Chapter 12
CHAPTER TWELVE
I’ve pulled myself together by the time I pick up takeout from Adaline’s and make my way back to the hotel. The wait and walk gave me a lot of time to think.
While Molly’s news supports my growing fears, it doesn’t necessarily prove anything. And it certainly doesn’t change the reality of our current situation. I already knew Luke was teetering on the edge of the cliff. It was just a gut-punch to have it so vividly spelled out.
If he already went as far as to settle his affairs, Callie and I are on borrowed time.
I pick up my pace, suddenly desperate to see them both.
I also remind myself Molly’s call, while concerning, is also outdated information.
For one, Luke seems to be turning a corner.
It’s subtle and definitely not enough to let our guard down, but I’ve seen glimpses of light returning to his demeanor.
Mostly when Callie’s around. The difference between when I first saw him a week ago and today is so stark, it’s hard to argue something isn’t shifting inside him.
It could be an act, but he has no reason to put on a show .
I’ll keep an eye on him and talk to Callie about it.
For now, we’ll love him and stay close.
When I get back to the suite, the main living area is empty. I think I hear voices down the hall, so Callie and Luke must be talking in her room.
I use the time to unpack the food from the bag, and by the time I’ve pulled everything out, I hear a door open.
I look down the hall to see Callie exit a room and start toward me.
Any lingering darkness immediately falls away when our eyes lock. This world is just a better place when she’s around.
But the look on her face quickly drains any optimism.
“You okay?” I ask when she approaches. “Wait, did you just come out of the office?”
I squint down the hall again, wondering if Luke’s about to come out as well. Other than storage, I didn’t think that room was used.
“Long story,” Callie says. “What’d you find?”
I shake off the gloom to allow ourselves a brief oasis into Burgerland. I need a mental escape for a few minutes, and based on her heavy expression, she could use one too.
“Burgers. But not just any burger. Here, try this.”
Her expression transforms into a hilarious shade of suspicion when I hand her a box.
She studies the packaging way longer than anyone should ever look at a piece of recycled cardboard.
“You’re not going to laugh at me again because I’ve never tasted a burger that costs more than a pair of socks, are you?”
Ah. Here we go.
“A bit sensitive, I see.”
“Well, sorry, but you seem to take pleasure in exposing me to all the forbidden fruit of rockstar living.”
I huff a laugh at her latest weird expression. I still chuckle when I think about what she said on the couch earlier. She really shouldn’t be mentioning her lady parts to me. My brain is already way too intrigued by that topic.
“Now you’re just being dramatic,” I say.
“Am I? First the champagne, now the fancy burgers.”
Fancy burgers. There’s nothing fancy about me.
“I’m from a family of twelve. Trust me, I do not need to eat like this to survive.” I hesitate, suddenly feeling self-conscious. “I don’t know. I just thought…”
I’m not even sure what I was thinking. I wanted to make her smile and give her new experiences.
It was never my intention to point out the differences between us.
In fact, the guys are always making fun of me for still living like I’m kid number seven in a lower-middle class family.
We got by growing up, but I certainly wasn’t eating burgers from Adaline’s.
None of that means Callie feels the same way.
“I wanted you to try something you otherwise wouldn’t. I thought you’d like it,” I finish, trying to read her.
My stomach sinks when she places the burger on the counter. But there’s nothing negative about her expression as she stalks toward me.
Before I know what’s happening, her arms are around me and her cheek is pressing against my shoulder. The tension in my back melts away, and I instinctively brush my lips against her hair.
“What’s this?” I say with a soft laugh.
“Nothing,” she mumbles against me.
I pull her closer when I feel her grip on the back of my shirt. This must be about whatever happened in that office. I have no idea how to tackle a subject like that.
“Will Luke be joining us?” My tone also contains the answer to that question.
“I’m not sure. Maybe.” Still holding on, she leans back to study my face. Her look is pensive instead of layered with the typical angst we’ve come to expect from encounters with Luke .
“Something happened while you were out,” she says quietly. “I don’t know what yet, but something. It may be what we’ve been waiting for.”
Her eyes fill with liquid hope, and she’s never been more beautiful. I don’t think anything has. I tip her face up with my thumbs and brush away a few strands of hair obscuring perfection.
“Thank you,” she whispers in a tone that says much more.
For the burgers.
For being here.
For being you.
When her gaze heats with anticipation, I lean in for another kiss. This one drives for more, intentional and demanding. She adjusts to pull me into her, returning my kiss with an urgency that tells me she needed it too.
I taste a hint of berries from her lip balm and breathe in the scent of clean muted citrus. She tastes amazing. Feels just as good. Her body is always so soft and warm when she presses into me, and it doesn’t take long for my starved libido to make calls for further action.
But that’s not what this moment is about, so against every instinct that wants more, I gently pull away to rest my forehead on hers.
We catch our breath for a moment, absorbing what just happened.
“Wow,” I say, straightening. “Now, that’s a proper thank you. You could have just gotten me a beer.”
Her eyes widen in disbelief before… yep. A playful smack.
God, I live for those.
“Yeah, well, these burgers better be worth it.”
We’re halfway into our meal when I spot a shadow moving down the hall. I still don’t know what happened in that office, but I can guess whatever it is needs a burger break more than a tense grilling… no pun intended.
I nod to Luke with a quick smile and place the food I got him in front of an empty stool.
Luke scans the box and twists a small smile. “Adaline’s?”
“Thought we could all use a dose of heaven after our night of hell.”
Luke stares back at his box, and I wonder if he’s thinking about the last time we had Adaline’s. Not all of our memories are nightmares. Some are the reason I will never give up on this person.
“Callie, here, is a convert already,” I say before this gets awkward.
“How can I not be?” she mumbles through a mouthful of food. I was wrong about my initial impression. She’d fit in perfectly on a tour bus.
“We should take her to 49th & Finch,” Luke says.
The thought excites me for so many reasons.
The main one—it means including Callie in another facet of our lives.
“We totally should. Oh man, they have the best bar food,” I tell her.
I could survive for a month on their jalapeno poppers. Also, I use the term “survive” loosely.
“Bar food?” she asks, eyeing us with her signature skepticism. “So basically you guys just upgraded the same stuff you ate when you first started out as a garage band ten years ago.”
She’s not wrong.
“Basically. Although to be fair, we still eat that stuff, too.”
Her laugh makes it pretty clear she’s not buying that. “And you still look like that, how? Because I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t.”
I lift a shoulder. “I don’t know, good question. Stress? ”
She shakes her head in motherly disapproval. “Okay, first of all, if you’re going to hang with me, you’re going to learn to eat a vegetable.”
“What about fruit cups?” Luke quips. There must be some story there when they exchange an amused look.
“Yes, that’s a start,” she replies.
“Fruit cups?” I ask.
“Part of my standard balanced breakfast order at Jemma’s,” Callie says.
“She doesn’t drink coffee either,” Luke announces with the appropriate level of distaste for that sin.
“I noticed that this morning!” I say, mostly to watch her face do what it’s doing now.
“I like tea. So what?” she fires back. Even crosses her arms in an adorable tantrum. “You know what? I’m so sick of your holier-than-thou attitudes. You think I’m the one who baffles the mind? What about the two of you?”
I have no idea where this is going, but I’m so here for it.
“Yeah, what about us?” I ask in a casual tone I know will drive her crazy.
She squares her shoulders like she’s about to mount an epic courtroom cross-examination for the ages. I wish I could bottle this shit. We’d make a fortune.
“Okay, well, first of all. Explain to me why two guys with more money than they probably know what to do with, two guys who have an entire mall’s-worth of clothing options just a personal shopper away, point to the plain, ratty t-shirt and say, ‘Yes. That’s it. That’s what I want.’”
I snort a laugh, and even Luke makes a humored sound I haven’t heard in a long, long time.
Based on his expression, this is another storied point of contention.
Let’s call it Exhibit A .
“Again with the t-shirts,” he says, confirming my suspicion. “You really have a vendetta, don’t you?”
Her brows lift in a challenge as she gives each of us a thorough onceover that feels way more self-serving than she’s going for. Not gonna lie. She will win every argument with me if it involves visually undressing me like that.
She waves over us in a mock critique. “Am I wrong? You two look identical right now.”
I brace myself on the edge of the island, loving how her gaze scales my arms like she’s powerless to stop it. “Well, first of all, if you recall, I’m actually wearing his clothes, so…”
“And, second of all, I thought we already established pink polo shirts weren’t my thing,” Luke adds.
Her shoulders droop in defeat, but I don’t even get to celebrate my win before she’s back to lawyer mode.
“I didn’t say you had to dress like an investment banker. I’m just saying, would a little color or design kill you? I mean, really. It’s appalling.”
Appalling! She’s going to make an amazing great-aunt one day.
I will never grow tired of pushing her buttons.
“She just wants us to take our shirts off,” I say to Luke in a casual tone without looking away from Callie.
For another direct hit, I lean back on my elbows with the sole intention of tormenting her.
I even add the grin I know she loves. When her gaze scans the thin tee stretched over my chest, then drops to the newly exposed cut of my lower abs, my brain begins an internal victory parade.
I cannot wait to see how she gets out of this one. Luke is snickering as if he knows where I’m headed.
“Whatever,” she huffs in the most unconvincing deflection of all time. “You’re just mad because I don’t drool over you all the time like you’re used to.”
Ha !
Luke shoots me an obligatory warning look, but there’s no conviction in it. He’s enjoying the show too much.
“No? Really.” My tone oozes skepticism as I come around the island to face her.
She sucks in a breath when I tug my shirt over my head. As her eyes flare hot, I step into her, crowding her against the counter.
I fix my gaze on hers, more than a little turned on when the fight in her stance drains into anticipation. Lust flares in her hazel irises before she tears them away to trace the lines of my chest and abs.
“Not even a little interested?” I tease in a husky voice.
Her fingers clench and unclench in her lap. Her teeth sink into her lip.
I reach for her hand, and when she instinctively squeezes my fingers, I know she’s all in on whatever is happening right now. We’ve kissed, but never skin to skin or in front of anyone. The way her mesmerized gaze travels over my tattoos is downright addictive.
I guide her hand to my chest, and as soon as her fingers brush my skin, she takes over. I let her explore, loving how her hungry touch triggers all kinds of delicious heat.
Yeah, I’m going to say we both won this round.
Luke is practically laughing at this point, drawing us back to the present debate turned seduction. Her expression becomes almost resentful, as if it’s my fault she’s so attracted to me.
I mean, maybe it is?
“Geez. Put your clothes on. Luke’s trying to eat,” she snaps.
“I’m good,” Luke replies, and her scowl for him is almost as fun.
Her blush is the perfect ending to this dispute as she rips her hand away from me with a playful glare. She scoops my shirt off the ground and flings it at my chest with an indignant pout. My grin stretches across my face.
“And also,” she continues in a smug tone. “I don’t believe for a second that you can look like that sitting around watching TV and eating bar food, so that makes you a liar on top of everything else.”
I snort a laugh as I pull my shirt back on.
“Of course not,” I say, dropping the act. “I was kidding about the junk food and stress. Trust me, they keep us on a pretty tight leash.” Although, it’s been way too long since my last workout. My anxious mind is in need of the exertion as much as my body.
I turn to Luke. “Speaking of which, I was gonna ask if I could borrow your key and go hit the gym later.”
Luke casts a quick look at Callie before nodding to me. “Actually, if you want, I’ll just call down and have Mara get you one of your own.”
I freeze. Luke’s hesitant gaze finds mine. A decade passes between us, and I swallow the thickening mass in my throat. The last thing I want to do is turn this monumental shift into another setback.
“Thanks, man,” I return as evenly as possible.
He returns a quick nod, and I’m glad I played it correctly when he relaxes.
“Sure. Thanks for the burger.”