CHAPTER SIX
Of course Luke had been there to witness her nearly bite the dust.
“I’m OK, thanks,” she replied, fighting to keep her voice neutral. She ignored his outstretched hand and kept walking without making eye contact.
Her temper was already feeling slightly raised just from his appearance and she had to monitor her breathing to keep any hint of frustration out of her posture. She couldn’t show weakness. Not around Luke.
He began walking alongside her, his smooth chuckle making her grit her teeth. “Come on, Jones. You’re going to hurt yourself. Just give me a bag.”
“Is this a robbery?” She halted in place, her temper spiking just slightly too high for her to contain.
“Because I should warn you, everything in these bags is far too lacy to look good on you.” Breath heaving, April raised a brow as she glared at him.
Their eyes met and her annoyance was a jolt in her stomach, demanding she move closer to him, let him experience the full extent of her ire.
Luke smirked as he gently pulled three bags from her hands, an almost knowing gleam in his eyes. “Nonsense. I look good in everything.”
Huffing in irritation, though she could begrudgingly admit that it was easier to walk now she could see her toes, she continued on toward her car.
“Noah said you and your fiancé split. That’s rough.”
Incredulous, she shot Luke a glare. Couldn’t he see that she was already in a bad mood? And he, what—wanted to rub salt in the wound? April wasn’t sure if she was more mad at Luke for bringing it up, Noah for blabbing, or Tyler for … Well. Screwing his secretary, for one.
She didn’t voice any of that out loud, though, and, after several more paces in silence, Luke spoke again just as she spotted her car. She’d parked in the church lot, which had been out of habit rather than convenience.
“I also just wanted to say … I’m sorry. About your dad.
I came to the funeral, but I didn’t want to join the queue of people waiting to see you when you already seemed so overwhelmed—understandably.
And I know I was there for Noah afterward, but I didn’t get the chance to talk to you.
So …” Luke set her bags down on the ground as she popped her trunk.
One hand pushed through the thick mass of his dark hair, the gesture nervous.
Was Luke Pointer rambling? “So, I’m sorry.
And I hope you’re OK, but if you’re not, that’s OK too. ”
It was probably the longest conversation they’d ever had that didn’t include a single cuss or insult.
Unlike the others who’d inadvertently smothered her all day, Luke’s words were surprisingly fine.
There was no pity in his deep-blue eyes, just understanding and a sincerity that made her uncomfortable in the way it seemed to pierce every part of her.
“Thank you,” she said after a tense moment.
“It’s hard, being here without him,” she found herself adding, not really certain why she was opening up to Luke of all people but somehow just knowing that she could.
That he wouldn’t judge her. “And thank you, for the help with the bags,” she finished reluctantly.
“You’re welcome.” His lips parted, like he was going to say something else but was trying to hold back the words. “If you ever want to talk … I don’t know, maybe we could get dinner sometime?”
“Dinner? With you?” It slipped out of her mouth before she could think twice and she grimaced. “Sorry, that was rude.”
He laughed. “It’s OK. Yes, with me.”
She hesitated and then shook herself. Why was she even considering this?
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. Everything with Tyler just happened and I’m still trying to deal with losing my dad and I—” Suddenly, her breaths were coming too fast, her hands tingling abruptly, until a weight on her shoulders steadied her.
“Hey, it’s OK.”
One breath. Two. April nodded as the panic receded as quickly as it had come. “Sorry.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Luke’s hands were still on her shoulders, his warmth in her space and his scent in the air.
As if realizing as much, he dropped them and moved back.
“If you change your mind, let me know. A girl’s gotta eat, right?
” His lazy half-smile coaxed a small one from her, too, and when he backed up a few more steps and lifted his hand in goodbye, she couldn’t help wondering how it was that Luke Pointer had pulled her out of a panic attack with just one touch.
It was warm inside the car, or maybe she was just overheating from the anxiety attack she’d half succumbed to moments ago, so she stripped off her sweater and fished out her phone from the overall’s deep pockets.
April:
something weird just happened
Emma’s response was immediate.
Emma:
Weird? In Magnolia Springs? DOUBT.
April:
Do you remember Luke from high school? He just asked me out
Emma:
!!!!!!
Emma:
WHAT DID YOU SAY
April:
No, obviously. We do NOT like each other
April:
super weird tho, right?
Emma:
@Iz back me up here pls
Izzy:
Sorry, working
Izzy:
Wait did you say Luke Pointer???
April groaned, resting her forehead on her steering wheel just as her phone vibrated. She cracked open an eye to peer at the screen.
Emma:
dark hair, blue eyes, and fills out a suit better than a property developer ever should? Yeah THAT Luke
April rolled her eyes.
April:
Smug, nosy, befriended my brother just to piss me off …
Izzy:
Idk, you guys did always seem like you had some chemistry
Emma:
THIS
Emma:
like, the kind of sparks that you just know the sex is going to be great
April scoffed. The only sparks between her and Luke were the ones he’d created in sixth grade when he’d sabotaged her science fair volcano project so that he could place first.
April:
you’re both deluded
April:
but regardless—I literally just broke things off with Tyler
Izzy:
of course, there’s no rush to date
Emma:
slightly off topic, but if you break off an engagement do you get to keep the ring?
April turned over the ignition and lowered the volume on the stereo when it automatically came on. She typed a quick reply and then prepared to pull out of the lot and head home.
April:
my ring hit him in the face before I stormed out
Izzy:
I hope it hit him in the eye
Emma:
ditto
“How was it in town?” There was a knowing look in her mom’s eyes as April carried in her bags and set the ones with food onto the kitchen countertop.
“Is it always like that?” April still felt a little on edge after all the condolences that had been offered.
“Pretty much.” Kathy wrinkled her nose but brightened immediately as April began unloading snacks from the bags. “After a while you stop noticing it so much.”
Not likely. “Well, in the meantime, there’s always cake.”
“You get some good stuff?”
Choice could be scarce in a small town, but April had been surprised by just how many things she’d seen that she’d liked. “Yeah, actually. Although not a ton that I think I would have worn before.”
Her mom narrowed her eyes. “When you were with Tyler, you mean? I noticed you were different around him, but I thought you’d just started to grow up. Mature. Not that you were … repressing yourself.”
April shrugged. “I didn’t do it on purpose. It was small things at first. Like, he wasn’t a fan of my bangs, so I grew them out, and he thought three piercings in one ear was tacky, so I only wore one. Then, I guess I gradually just morphed into someone I didn’t recognize.”
“And now?”
She shrugged. “I’m feeling more familiar.” She scooped up the bags that remained on the floor and hesitated before she left the room. “Fashion show?”
It was something they’d done when she was a kid. If she’d been out shopping, or her mom had taken her for new stuff that actually fit after a growth spurt, she’d get home and “model” the clothes for her parents and Noah.
Sure enough, her mom smiled. “Can’t wait.”
It was strange how laundry could become exciting once you reached your late twenties. Wanting to make sure her new clothes were fresh before she wore them, April had found some fancy laundry detergent and softener at the grocery store and had been desperate to try it out once she’d got home.
Now that the majority of what she’d bought was dry, she alternated between folding the clothes and sniffing them to enjoy their fresh and fruity scent. She’d chosen something called Spring Fling and her washing now smelled of blossom and berries.
Sometimes it was the little things in life.
She moved the pile of clothes off of her bed and onto the desk—she’d put them away later—and then flopped back onto her bed.
All in all, it hadn’t been a bad day. Aside from the barrage of condolences she’d received and getting accosted by Luke on her way back to the car, she almost felt like she’d enjoyed herself.
Tyler had been radio silent all day, which she’d appreciated, though she’d had to block his mom’s number due to the sheer number of messages and calls she was sending.
In all honesty, April had expected to miss him more.
She’d spent the past four years of her life with Tyler in New York, and yet she didn’t find herself looking for him, or reaching for him now that he wasn’t there.
If anything, she felt … lighter. Though of course she was still upset by his betrayal and the abrupt way things had ended, it made her think that maybe she hadn’t been happy for a long time. And maybe neither had he.
She’d messaged Emma and Izzy in the group chat with a recommendation for her snazzy new laundry stuff, but wasn’t expecting a reply.
It was almost eleven and they both had to be up early for work.
They’d even pushed their morning coffee date back to lunch instead because of their meetings.
Freshly unemployed, April didn’t have that problem.
Figuring she’d scroll on her socials for a bit before trying to sleep, she settled back amid her covers and tapped on her phone screen.
The first post to come up made her falter.
She may not have realized she’d been unhappy with Tyler until just now, but he had to have known how he was feeling if he’d been compelled to seek out someone else while they were still together.
It was strange to see him with another woman, the pain in her chest not quite anger or jealousy, but it hurt just the same.
His hand was around her waist as she balanced on the arm of the chair he sat on.
It looked like a party—maybe a work function, judging by the suits and smart looks of the other people in the carousel.
But even when she scrolled, she still ended up swiping back to that same photo.
The way he leaned into her, the hand spread possessively wide across her ribcage …
Shayla. The same woman April had found him with after she’d gotten home earlier than anticipated last Friday night.
She wasn’t exactly thrilled with the photo, especially when it advertised their break-up so clearly and tackily. But what really enraged her was the caption.
A great weekend with the best people.
So while Tyler had been blowing up her phone all weekend, begging her to reply, to come home, the reality was that he’d been at a party with the woman he’d cheated with.
A great weekend with the best people.
It felt like a dig. The caption, the pose, the fact that he’d posted it to his socials right alongside the photos of her and him together on his grid.
Her jaw clenched and irritation burned hotly in her veins, making her eyes prickle with tears as she stubbornly hit like.
Asshole.
Two-faced, cowardly asshole. At least she had confronted him and told him how she felt.
Launching her ring at his head had been thoroughly therapeutic, too.
Maybe it was the anger still burning inside of her, or the universal need to one-up her ex, but her fingers tapped out a message before she could second-guess herself.
Noah replied seconds later: a phone number and a question mark. She ignored the latter and instead drafted a new text.
April:
I changed my mind. Let’s do dinner.
April:
Um, this is April by the way
She held her breath, regret and embarrassment already beginning to raise their heads, when her phone vibrated with a new message.
Luke:
I know. I have your number, April.
He did? Since when?
Luke:
Wednesday? 7 pm at The Garden Table?
God, was she really going to do this? Accept a pity date with Luke Pointer? She hesitated long enough for him to send another message and heat flushed her cheeks as she took it in.
Luke:
Don’t worry, I don’t bite. Much. ;)
April:
Keep your mouth to yourself. Wednesday at 7 works.
Luke:
See you then.
What the hell had she just done?