39. Maggie
THIRTY-NINE
MAGGIE
“Hey, Vi,” I said, waving at the camera. “It’s chili cookoff day.”
I rotated in a slow circle so she could see the park behind me filled with tents. Because the weather was cooperating, the town had organized outdoor electricity for what had to be at least fifty crockpots.
With cinnamon now added to our recipe, I hoped it gave Luke and me a solid chance at placing. I’d heard enough chatter about the reigning champion Dana Wilcox and how it was impossible to beat her. But I believed we had a shot at second or third.
“I’m sorry I’ve been terrible at keeping up with our videos lately, but I have a good reason. I think you’d even be proud of me—” An icon with Violet’s profile picture popped up in the top corner of the screen, announcing my sister was watching me live. “Oh, hey.” I waved again.
“So, that good news?” I said, glancing around, scanning the crowd for one tall man in particular. I found him chatting with a couple of Legion members, and returned my attention to the camera. “I took your advice. I let Luke give me his hot dog.”
The double exclamation point emoji filled my screen. It was rare we caught each other live anymore, but the immediate response to the news I’d been sitting on for days made me stupidly happy.
“He’s actually given me his hot dog many, many times.”
More double exclamation points populated. It had to be killing my sister that we weren’t FaceTiming right now. I could only imagine how much she had to say.
“It’s a very good hot dog, Vi. I have so much to catch you up on—”
“You’re Maggie,” a female voice said. I looked up from my camera, finding a slender redheaded woman with a blond shepherd dog at her heel. “I’m sorry to interrupt your call. I’m Kira. Luke’s sister.”
“Gotta go, Vi.”
I caught a mad emoji right before I ended the video message, and stuffed my phone away in my pocket.
“No worries. It was just a Marco Polo message. I’ll finish it later.
” I was suddenly stammering like a fangirl because this wasn’t just Luke’s sister.
It was Diana Davenport, bestselling paranormal romance author.
But it might be a little aggressive to immediately tell her I owned all of the Veltori vampire books she’d ever written.
Or that I’d purchased her most recent release on my first full day in town and read it cover to cover in less than twenty-four hours.
So instead, I settled with, “Hey, Kira. Luke’s told me so much about you. I’ve been hoping to meet you.”
My gaze dropped to the blond shepherd husky dog with its head poking over the table.
“This is Husker,” Kira said.
“I’ve heard a lot about you too,” I said to the dog. Husker looked at me with the biggest brown eyes I’d ever seen, head tilted. His massive ears reminded me of Yoda, and I smiled. Had Kira been the Star Wars fan her brothers and father obviously were, that would likely be his name.
“He does have quite the reputation around here,” Kira said.
“You look like you want a sample,” I said to Husker. Then I looked at Kira. “I have some extra bacon. May I?”
“You’ll be his new best friend,” Kira said, laughing lightly.
I offered Husker a piece of bacon, and he gobbled it instantly. He stared at me with those large brown eyes, hopeful and expectant for more.
“You’re renting Luke’s condo,” Kira said.
“I am.” I broke off another piece of bacon and offered it to the eager pup.
“But you’re not staying?”
“I have about two more weeks in town. Then I’m headed to Lansing, where my family is. My sister’s having a baby soon.”
I was overexplaining myself, but something about meeting Luke’s sister made me extra nervous. The longer she stayed, the more I realized it had less to do with her famous author status and more about wanting her approval.
I glanced toward the row I spotted Luke in earlier, but he was no longer there. I suspected he was pulled away by someone else.
Ever since we set up camp in the park two hours ago, the people of Bluebell Springs approached him in droves, as though he were the most popular guy in town.
It didn’t matter that he’d taken a couple weeks off, or that his officers were more than capable of handling the town in his absence.
The residents of Bluebell Springs looked to Luke as one of their leaders.
He belonged here in a way I’d always hoped to belong in a place I’d yet to find.
Someday.
“He seems better. Less bitter and grouchy,” Kira noted, following my gaze until it landed on Luke talking to Frank and Dylann Mercer four booths away. “I haven’t seen him like this since before our mom died.”
“He’s certainly not the same grumpy pain in the ass he was when he held the door code hostage my first day in town,” I said honestly.
Kira laughed, and the tension in my shoulders eased.
“I don’t know if you know this, but Luke doesn’t do casual. Even in high school when half the girls wanted to date him. He’s as loyal as they come. You must mean something to him.”
I remembered his confession the first night he took me up against the wall.
How he hadn’t slept with a woman in the three years since his ex-fiancée left him in a church full of guests.
I’d taken his celibacy for bitterness. I considered it might be more than that, but surely not the more Kira was insinuating.
“He knows I’m leaving,” I said, light defensiveness rising in my tone despite my best efforts to push it down.
“That’s too bad,” Kira said, a sad sort of smile forming. “I’ll miss seeing him this happy.”
“That’s not really fair,” I said quietly, the sting of tears threatening my eyes. Well, this was not how I expected the first meeting with his sister to go. I loved how protective she was of Luke. I just wished that her love for her brother didn’t make me feel like the villain.
“You misunderstand me,” Kira said. “His happiness is not your responsibility or anyone else’s.”
“Then what are you saying?”
“I’ve just missed my brother.”
She slipped away, Husker at her heel. The pup kept looking back at me, as though I was going to toss him a parting gift of bacon. I considered it, but I didn’t quite know how to feel after that interaction.
I focused on stirring the chili to avoid searching for Luke.
He and I had talked about our arrangement, and agreed to enjoy what time we had left. He never once pressured me for more. I never once had to twist his arm. And yet, I was suddenly the bad guy? It didn’t sit right with me.
“Caramel for your thoughts?” Walter appeared, holding out a candy.
“You startled me,” I said, smiling and accepting the offering.
“You looked pretty deep in thought.”
“You caught me.”
“Everything okay?” Walter glanced toward Luke who was on a fast track back to our booth. “Do I need to smack him upside the head?”
I laughed, nearly choking on my caramel in the process. I concentrated on chewing and swallowing before I finally answered. “He’s been nothing but kind and wonderful. Too wonderful. More wonderful than I deserve.”
Stop saying wonderful, you loon.
“Oh, boy,” Walter said, a giant grin widening his cheeks. “You love him.”
Love.
The word lodged beneath my ribs.
“I don’t—”
“I hope Mrs. Wilcox didn’t pay you off to sabotage our chili,” Luke said to Walter, gently clapping him on the shoulder as he approached our booth.
Walter cackled. “Nah, she wasn’t offering enough.”
“Good man.”
Luke moved behind the table, dropping his hand to my shoulder. Thankfully, he didn’t hear what Walter said, because I wasn’t even close to processing it.
I cared for Luke. I liked him a lot. But love?
I wasn’t even capable of love. It might be months or years before I could fully let someone into my heart again.
Either Walter was mistaking what he saw, or he was trying to rile me up.
With the old man I’d come to love like a grandfather, it could go either way.
“How’s it looking?” Luke asked, nodding at the crockpot.
“I think your niece was on to something.”
I was still weirded out by that whole interaction at the pumpkin patch yesterday.
But because Luke and Connor didn’t seem to think it was out of the ordinary, I let it go.
Besides, it was neat to think that Grandpa wanted to share a secret ingredient no one in our family knew about and found a way to make it happen.
Mom hadn’t been convinced cinnamon was what was missing.
But after a couple hours of simmering, it was undeniable.
“I better sneak out of here before the mayor yells at me,” Walter said, winking. “Good luck!”
I focused on the details of the contest to drown out all the other emotions warring in my brain.
The official chili tasting wasn’t scheduled to happen for another half hour.
First, a panel of judges would make their way through the booths, tasting and taking notes.
Then, the contest opened to the general public.
A combination of judges’ scores and popular public vote determined the top five winners.
“Sorry to leave you alone like that,” Luke said, replacing the lid to the crockpot. “Everyone wanted to talk to me all at once.”
“You’re a popular guy, Luke. Of course everyone wants your attention.”
“I saw you met Kira.”
I fidgeted with the sample cups, evening out the stacks. “I did.” Because I could sense his concern, I headed it off with, “And you’d be proud of me. I didn’t fangirl all over her. In fact, I didn’t admit I knew she was Diana Davenport.”
“We’ve always had a . . . challenging relationship,” Luke said, dropping into a camping chair behind the table. “But at the end of the day, even if we’re pissed at each other, I’d still take a bullet for her every time.”
“You’d take a bullet for anyone in Bluebell Springs,” I pointed out. “And I’m not just saying that because of the whole badge thing.”
“Who’s taking bullets?” an elderly woman asked.