Chapter 18
The problem with Lucas mentioning his mother so casually was that Sabrina couldn't stop thinking about it afterward.
Not because meeting a parent automatically meant something serious.
Except... with Lucas, it kind of did.
Because he barely let people into his real life at all.
And somehow, without realizing it, Sabrina had ended up there anyway.
Which was deeply concerning.
By Tuesday morning she was standing in the kitchen making coffee while Chloe watched her with the exhausted expression of someone witnessing a friend spiral in real time.
"You're smiling at nothing again."
"I'm thinking."
"You're in love."
Sabrina pointed aggressively with a spoon. "You need new hobbies."
Chloe ignored her completely.
"So when are you admitting this whole thing stopped being fake?"
"It's still fake."
"That sounded weak."
Sabrina sighed dramatically and leaned against the counter.
Because honestly?
She didn't know anymore.
Somewhere between late-night drives and quiet conversations and Lucas remembering exactly how she took her coffee, the lines had disappeared completely.
And Lucas clearly felt it too.
That was the dangerous part.
Her phone buzzed against the counter.
Lucas: Adrian scheduled another interview today.
Lucas: If they ask about marriage again I'm jumping out a window.
Sabrina smiled immediately.
Hopeless.
Sabrina: Do it dramatically so I get sympathy points.
Lucas: You'd monetize my funeral.
Sabrina: Correct.
Another message appeared.
Lucas: You free after?
Her stomach betrayed her on cue.
Again.
Sabrina: Depends.
Lucas: I want to show you something.
That immediately caught her attention.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Sabrina: That sounds suspicious.
Lucas: Fair.
Sabrina stared at the screen for a second too long before answering.
Sabrina: Fine.
The interview itself was painful.
Not because Lucas was difficult.
Actually the opposite.
That was the issue.
The more natural they became together, the more obvious their chemistry looked.
Which apparently the internet loved.
Sabrina sat beside Lucas beneath bright studio lights while the host practically vibrated with excitement.
"You two have become everyone's favorite couple recently."
Lucas smiled politely beside her while Sabrina resisted the urge to fake her own death.
"People seem emotionally invested," Sabrina answered carefully.
"That's one way to describe it," the host laughed.
Then came the dangerous question.
"So," the host continued, leaning forward dramatically, "what's the most romantic thing Lucas has done for you?"
Sabrina froze immediately.
Beside her, Lucas looked surprisingly calm.
Probably because he wasn't internally combusting.
Unlike her.
"Oh," Sabrina said intelligently.
The host grinned wider.
Lucas glanced sideways toward her with obvious amusement.
Coward.
"Probably..." Sabrina stalled desperately. "The time he brought me coffee."
Lucas's eyebrows lifted slightly.
The host laughed. "Coffee?"
"It was thoughtful."
Lucas looked at her for a second longer than necessary.
Then:
"You were exhausted."
The quietness of the answer hit her harder than expected.
Because he remembered that.
A random morning weeks ago when she'd barely slept after a double shift.
He'd shown up with coffee without making a big deal out of it.
And apparently it stayed with him too.
The host practically melted.
"That's adorable."
Sabrina looked away quickly.
Dangerous.
Very dangerous.
The interview only got worse from there.
Questions about moving in together.
Vacation plans.
Relationship habits.
At one point the host asked who said "I love you" first in relationships.
Sabrina nearly passed away on live television.
Lucas, meanwhile, looked suspiciously entertained by her suffering.
"You're enjoying this," she muttered quietly during a commercial break.
"A little."
"You're evil."
"You panic visibly."
"That's because these people are insane."
Lucas laughed softly beside her.
Then leaned closer slightly.
"You're cute when you're flustered."
Sabrina stopped breathing immediately.
What.
What?
The cameras weren't rolling at that exact second, but still.
Still.
Lucas seemed to realize what he'd said only after it already left his mouth because his expression shifted faintly afterward.
Like surprise at himself.
Interesting.
Sabrina stared at him.
"You can't just say things like that casually."
His mouth twitched slightly. "Apparently I can."
"Oh my God."
The producer announced they were live again before Sabrina could recover.
Traitor.
After the interview ended, Lucas looked significantly more relaxed leaving the studio than arriving.
Probably because he'd spent half the time psychologically torturing her.
Outside, cold wind rushed through the streets while paparazzi waited near the entrance.
Lucas rested a hand lightly against Sabrina's back automatically while guiding her toward the SUV.
The touch no longer surprised her.
That felt dangerous too.
Inside the car, Sabrina immediately turned toward him.
"You called me cute."
Lucas looked almost thoughtful. "Did I?"
"Lucas."
A faint smile appeared.
"You looked stressed."
"That was your solution?"
"It helped."
"It absolutely did not help."
He laughed quietly under his breath.
God.
Sabrina was starting to think Lucas genuinely enjoyed seeing her flustered now.
Which felt unfair considering she spent most conversations with him fighting for emotional survival.
The SUV moved steadily through afternoon traffic.
After several minutes, Sabrina looked toward him suspiciously.
"So where are we going?"
"You'll see."
"I hate mysterious answers."
"I know."
"That sounded manipulative."
Lucas looked out the window with suspicious innocence.
Twenty minutes later they pulled into a quiet neighborhood in Brooklyn lined with small bookstores, cafés, and old brick buildings.
Sabrina blinked.
"This is where rich people hide from society?"
Lucas smiled faintly.
"Something like that."
He led her down the sidewalk toward a tiny bookstore tucked between a bakery and a flower shop.
Warm light glowed through the windows while handwritten signs sat outside advertising coffee and poetry readings.
Sabrina stopped walking.
"You brought me to a bookstore?"
Lucas looked suddenly less confident for the first time all day.
Interesting.
"You mentioned once you used to spend entire afternoons in places like this."
Sabrina stared at him.
"You remembered that?"
Lucas shoved his hands into his coat pockets slightly.
"You say things."
The answer hit embarrassingly hard.
Because it wasn't even a huge detail.
Just something she'd mentioned casually weeks ago.
And he remembered.
Of course he did.
Dangerous man.
Inside, the bookstore smelled like coffee, old pages, and cinnamon candles.
Quiet music drifted softly through the shelves while only a few customers wandered around.
No cameras.
No chaos.
No expectations.
Lucas visibly relaxed the second they entered.
Sabrina noticed immediately.
"You really like quiet places."
Lucas glanced toward her.
"They don't usually want anything from me."
The honesty in the sentence made her chest ache again.
God.
Everything with him hurt lately.
Not badly.
Just deeply.
They wandered through shelves together slowly.
At one point Sabrina laughed because Lucas kept picking up random romance novels and reading dramatic lines aloud in the most serious voice possible.
"'His dark eyes burned with untamed desire.'"
Sabrina nearly snorted.
"You're mocking literature."
"I'm mocking bad writing."
"You're literally an actor. Your entire industry survives on dramatic staring."
"That's different."
"It absolutely is not."
Lucas grinned slightly before sliding the book back onto the shelf.
And there it was again.
That version of him.
Relaxed.
Playful.
Happy.
Sabrina wondered suddenly how many people actually got to see this side of Lucas Cooper.
Probably not many.
The thought felt strangely important.
They ended up in the café section near the back of the bookstore where large windows overlooked snowy streets outside.
Lucas bought coffee before Sabrina could argue.
"Your generosity is suspicious lately."
"You sound traumatized."
"I'm observant."
"That line's become emotional support at this point."
She smiled despite herself.
They settled at a small table near the windows.
Quiet surrounded them comfortably.
And for once neither seemed in a rush to fill it.
Lucas stirred his coffee absently while snow drifted softly outside.
Then:
"You looked happy in there."
Sabrina blinked.
"In the bookstore?"
He nodded once.
"I used to spend hours hiding in places like that when I was younger."
Lucas looked at her carefully.
"Hiding from what?"
She shrugged lightly.
"Everything."
The answer surprised even her slightly.
Lucas stayed quiet.
So she continued.
"My parents fought a lot when I was growing up. Libraries and bookstores were quieter."
Something softened in his expression instantly.
"You never said that before."
"You never asked."
The words came out gentler than intended.
Lucas leaned back slightly in his chair.
"That sounds accusatory."
"It's observational."
"That's becoming legally your catchphrase."
She laughed softly.
Then Lucas looked down at his coffee cup for a second before speaking again.
"My house wasn't quiet either."
Sabrina looked up immediately.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Lucas rarely talked about family.
"What happened?"
He hesitated briefly.
Then:
"My dad liked control."
The carefulness of the sentence told her enough.
Not details.
But enough.
Sabrina's chest tightened painfully.
Lucas looked out the window while speaking like it was easier than looking directly at her.
"Nothing was ever enough for him."
His voice stayed calm.
Too calm.
"He wanted perfection. Discipline. Success." A quiet laugh escaped him. "The irony is he hates acting."
Sabrina frowned slightly.
"Seriously?"
Lucas nodded.
"He thought it was embarrassing."
The bitterness underneath the words surprised her.
Then again, maybe it shouldn't have.
Suddenly pieces of Lucas made more sense.
The pressure.
The emotional distance.
The constant need to stay controlled.
"You still talk to him?"
Lucas was quiet for a second too long.
"Not much."
Something sharp twisted inside Sabrina's chest.
Because despite everything people thought about Lucas Cooper, moments like this revealed someone much lonelier than the world realized.
And maybe lonelier than he admitted to himself.
Without thinking, Sabrina reached across the table lightly and touched his hand.
Again.
Lucas looked down immediately.
Then up at her.
And there it was.
That look.
Soft enough to ruin her life.
Neither moved.
The café around them blurred faintly into background noise while snow continued falling outside the windows.
Lucas turned his hand beneath hers slowly until their fingers intertwined naturally.
Like instinct.
Sabrina's heartbeat stumbled violently.
Oh no.
Not fake.
Not accidental.
Real.
Terrifyingly real.
Lucas's thumb brushed lightly against her knuckles once.
Tiny movement.
Massive effect.
"You know," he said quietly, still looking at her now, "you make it really difficult to keep pretending this is temporary."
The words shattered whatever emotional stability Sabrina had left completely.