by Helena Rac
“Well,” I point toward Clara, “my sister and I were hanging out, and I was just leaving. And you, Luke Callaghan, have not answered my question.”
“Well,” he mimics my response again, “I’m in town on business, and my friend Marcus and I were just hanging out. He thought it would be nice to meet up with Clara since I don’t get to see them very often. Happy?”
I nod.
“We were going to have dinner and catch a movie,” Luke says casually. “Why don’t you join us?” It’s likely nothing more but a friendly question, yet in my head it gets all twisted and sounds more like a demand. An enticing demand, but one that it’s probably best to decline, because,
One: I’m exhausted;
Two: I already have the aforementioned plans, which, I have to admit, are starting to lose the appeal they had only minutes ago, before a certain someone walked into my life again; and
Three: Hmm, there’s gotta be another good reason. They normally come in threes. I’m sure I’ll think of something else.
“Thanks, but I was just on my way out. I … I have a busy night ahead. So yeah, um, you guys have fun!” Very convincing.
“Oh, come on Tessa!” Clara whines. “It’s not like you were going to do anything overly exciting anyway.” I beg to differ. Channing Tatum is plenty exciting. “Just come out with us and have some real fun tonight! I’m sure Luke will be great company.”
Of course he’d be fun. He oozes it. And I’m pretty sure he knows it.
“I don’t know. I’m beat, and some of us actually have to work tomorrow.”
Lame. That’s what the excuse sounds like. Though I can’t help but think that maybe doing something unplanned could actually turn out to be fun, especially with Luke, my real-life fantasy guy, in on the invitation. The temptation is becoming too difficult to resist.
The stares are now threefold; eyes are on me everywhere I turn. I’m caving in under the pressure. To heck with my predictable Friday night plans! A bit of fun never hurt anyone, right?
“Fine, I’m in, I’m in!” I try to sound annoyed, but my response comes out slightly more eager than I anticipate. “But before we head out, can I freshen up, at least? I’m not even dressed to go out,” I plead with Clara. After spending the day at Lovely Cakes, I could use a makeover, but a hairbrush and a shopping trip through Clara’s closet will have to do.
“Sure, I could use a few minutes to finish getting ready,” Clara adds, understanding my plea. “The boys can chill.”
“So, what’s up with you and Luke? What’s the story?” Clara begins her interrogation the second her bedroom door closes.
“Really, there’s not much to say.” I play it off coolly, scanning the vast display of amazing clothes Clara is pulling from her closet and spreading across her bed. It’s like my own personal fashion show. My sister’s a shopper.
“Tessa, come on, I know you’re holding back. I can read you like a book. You looked like you were shell-shocked!”
Oh good god, she noticed. And it’s not surprising – it’s Clara, after all. Is there any chance Luke didn’t?
“Fine.” I let out an exasperated sigh. Clara’s persistent; she’d wrench it out of me sooner or later, so I might as well cave in now and give her an abbreviated version of my encounter with Luke.
“Wow, that was embarrassing. And totally adorable,” she laughs. I try to shush her. “He’s pretty hot, huh?”
“Yeah, a little.”
“A little?” she questions, unconvinced.
“Okay, maybe more than a little.” Something about him just pulls me in his direction. It’s happened twice now. I can’t help but wonder if someone up there is bored and playing a game with me, throwing little bits of Luke my way on occasion, just for the pure entertainment of seeing me get all worked up and incoherent when I’m around him.
“I think somebody’s a bit more smitten with Luke than she’s willing to admit.”
“Whatever, Clar.” I try to sound nonchalant. “Can we just move on?”
“Fine. This one.” Clara points to a brown tunic dress.
“Really?” I look at her like she’s crazy, but she just shrugs. “You’re kidding, right? This tiny piece of fabric is barely going to cover my ass.”
“Just put it on. It matches your hair and your eyes. You’ll look so hot! And from what I gather, you may want to give Mr. Gorgeous out there a run for his money.”
I laugh. She isn’t entirely wrong. I let my hair drop from a bun, chocolate-brown waves falling naturally past my shoulders. After reapplying makeup and putting on a matching pair of high-heel sandals, I’m transformed. Clara’s right; I do look pretty hot. And I have to admit, I’m feeling intrigued, for the first time in a while. Ever since the last guy I thought I cared about left me feeling heartbroken…
No – I remind myself not to think about the past. I’m just going to take a deep breath and go into this evening with an open mind. I’m sure I can do that; it can’t possibly be that hard. Dinner and a movie and my delicious sexy stranger. Unplanned? Yes. But let’s face it, way more thrilling than what would have otherwise been a very predictable evening.
“We’re ready,” Clara announces when we step out of her bedroom.
“Babe, you look absolutely gorgeous!” Marcus’s eyes pop when he sees us, but they’re glued on Clara’s red-and-white-stripe tube dress. He sets his beer down, then struts toward her like an animal on the prowl, squeezing her butt cheeks and planting his mouth on hers, not giving her a moment to breathe. Hello? There are other people around. These two really need to get a room.
As I look from them toward Luke, I find his smoldering eyes glued on me, scanning my body top to bottom, practically undressing me with his stare. Or at least it seems that way. Unless, of course, I’m imagining it, which is quite possible given he’s been the main star of my sexual fantasies for a few months. But it’s definitely there. That feeling of captivating tension between us. The one I’ve so often read about or seen on the big screen, but never quite experienced. It’s as if the air stands still, charged only by the hasty electrons that are bouncing vigorously off of us.
Clara finally breaks our staring contest with a simple, “Let’s go, lovebirds, I’m starving!” as she and Marcus head toward the front door.
“Looks like we’re ready to go,” Luke states, sounding calm. But a swift readjustment of his jeans makes me think he’s feeling anything but.
We get into Marcus’s sleek convertible. He’s a car enthusiast, so he has a few toys in his collection. Clara sits next to Marcus in the front passenger seat, leaving Luke and I conveniently seated in the back. More like conveniently squeezed. There’s barely any leg room. Really, how is this even a four-seater? We’re so close, in fact, that our elbows and knees are touching and our thighs are practically super-glued together.
Even with the sounds of music blasting from the stereo and the traffic and city bustle around us, it feels eerily quiet. What is it about this guy that makes me speechless and jumbled? Normally I’m the one who can’t shut up, but for some reason I can’t find my voice. I am so worried about saying something stupid that I can’t think of anything to say at all.
“You look nice.” Luke finally breaks the silence, his gaze fixed on me. I think this may be his attempt at a compliment. Albeit a pretty bland one. Or maybe just a safe way to start the conversation?
I respond with a simple, “Thanks,” and the silence creeps around us again. This is getting uncomfortable. For your own sake, say something, Tessa!
“Umm … so, how do you and Marcus know each other?” I ask, relieved to have finally found my voice.
“We went to college together and then did our MBAs. Then we started working with the same hotel chain shortly after. Actually, he was the one who recommended I apply when a position came up. But I haven’t had a chance to see him in a while.”
“How come?” I ask, hoping to learn a bit more about the sexy stranger who has piqued my interest.
“I move
d to London a few months ago,” Luke says matter-of-factly. “Actually, come to think of it, I moved within days of running into you the first time.” A faraway smirk appears on his face, as if he’s re-living that first time we met.
“My mom’s from England.”
“Oh yeah? Whereabouts?”
“Lymington, on the southern coast. Have you heard of it?”
“Sounds familiar, but I don’t know much about it. Have you been?”
“We visited once. But I was really young, just around four or five, so I don’t remember much. Other than it’s in Hampshire and a sailing hub, from what I recall.”
“How come you haven’t visited since?”
“My mom doesn’t really have any relatives left there. My grandparents died when she was in her late teens, and both she and her younger sister moved here to live with their aunt and uncle. I guess there was just never much to go back to. But I think she misses it sometimes, even though everything she’s needed is here.” I neglect to mention that she’s lost the most important person, the one and only who kept her heart and soul here all these years.
“Well, maybe you’ll get a chance to visit another time. And I’m sure you’d love London. You could visit both. I’ve been told I’m a great tour guide.” Luke winks, and I wonder how serious he’s being. I mean, we barely know each other. Yet I’m surprisingly intrigued.
“Maybe, someday.”
After a moment of comfortable silence, Luke sighs. “God, I am still dumbfounded to be seeing you again, Tessa. Don’t you think it’s kind of crazy?”
If he only knew how many times I’ve hoped to see him again, even if in passing, so that I could replenish my fantasies with another image of him. And now he’s here, squeezed right next to me. And looking just as delicious as that first time I saw him.
“Just a weird coincidence,” I say, nonchalant, because I am by no means admitting any of that. He’ll think I’m some sort of crazy.
“That first time we ran into each other, Tessa … you were stunning,” he breathes, and my heart stalls. Did I hear him right?
“What are you talking about?” I try to deflect how giddy his words make me feel. “It was probably one of the most embarrassing moments of my life. Never mind that I fell flat on my ass – I was covered in icing.”
“It’s a good thing I enjoy icing. Very much, in fact.” Luke replies, holding my gaze and smiling charmingly. I think I need water, a gulp of something to cool me down, because I’m no longer thinking of icing on a cupcake. The icing is all over me. And he’s … licking. “You looked adorable, with your flushed cheeks and your mumbling…” His lips form a-lost-in-the-moment-smile, and all I can think of is how much I want to bite that bottom lip of his, because … delicious. But I remind myself I need to come back down to Planet Earth before I float off into space.
“Are you always this forward?” I ask, not sure whether I want to know the answer. I have a feeling Luke is very comfortable in his own skin. Women probably naturally flock to him. And I can’t help but think I am just another one of those women.
“Maybe.” He winks.
“Hmm, I bet you’re a player.”
“A player? Now why would you think that?” He puts his palm against his heart and makes a pouty face, as if hurt. So I’m left to draw my own conclusion. I’d better tread carefully.
“I don’t know. Maybe because you say things that make me all swoony.” Oh god, I didn’t just say that out loud, did I? I scramble for what to say or do next. Not only am I embarrassed by my choice of words, but I’m petrified of what he may say in response.
He chuckles and has that I-think-you’re-kind-of-cute look on his face again, so I nudge his elbow and blurt, “That’s for walking and texting, and making me look like a clumsy idiot.”
“Hey, now. Let’s just be clear here – we both know you’re just as guilty as me,” he retorts. “You were texting too!”
Yes, I definitely was. But I’m not letting him win this argument. “Maybe,” is all I say instead.
“What was with the cupcake first thing in the morning anyways?”
“What do you mean? What’s wrong with having a cupcake first thing in the morning?”
“Come on, Tessa. It’s a cupcake. Last I checked, it’s not normally served for breakfast.”
“Well, I beg to differ.”
“I’m all ears,” he says like he can’t wait to hear what kind of ridiculous reasoning I’m about to come up with.
“A cupcake’s basically a muffin with the added bonus of icing. As far as I know, muffins are in the breakfast category.”
Yes, he’s definitely looking at me as if that’s one of the most ridiculous things he’s ever heard. “Right, right. Whatever you say.”
“Fine,” I give in. “It was my breakfast.”
“Is that what you normally have?”
“Probably more often than I care to admit. I may have a sweet tooth.”
“Is Tessa trying to justify her love of sweets?” Clara chimes in. I wonder how much of our conversation she’s overheard.
“No,” I scoff.
“Yes,” Luke shouts at the same time, and then we both laugh.
As he laughs, his fingers travel to my knee, and I still at his sudden touch. I look down to where his hand is touching my skin, then follow the path of his arm all the way up to his face. He’s looking at me, really looking, and I can’t break away from his gaze. The skin his hand is touching tingles, and I am both intrigued and confused by the feelings he’s awakened in me.
“You have got the cutest laugh,” he remarks, still gazing at me with a look that is… I can’t seem to interpret that look, and I come to the realization that I can’t because I’ve never seen it before. Then another thought enters my mind. Maybe I’ve never bothered to look back at anyone else the way I am at Luke in this moment. He inches closer. I feel his breath travel to my mouth and I bite on my bottom lip instinctively. His gaze follows the movement of my lips and he… Oh. My. God. Is he going to…?
“We’re here,” Clara announces, interrupting our exchange. I welcome the interruption, yet I’m disappointed at the same time. I have a feeling that if our exchange had lasted a second longer, it would have turned into way more than we intended.
Chapter 3
Clara and Marcus are snuggled next to each other on their side of the restaurant booth as if they’re joined at the hip. They’re too cute together – it’s a little bit sickening. Despite their almost total absorption in each other, we’re having a great time. The conversation flows naturally and we bounce through several topics. Luke is easy to talk to now that I’ve passed the barrier into the land of speech again, and he’s just as easy to listen to.
“And so about a year after I started work, I got an opportunity to transfer to the acquisitions department in the London office, so I took the chance and moved,” Luke explains. “I’ve always loved to travel, and so it seemed a natural fit to explore Europe while looking for acquisition opportunities. I mean, I love Chicago, but Europe just has such charm.”
“That sounds like an interesting career,” I comment.
“It is. Though it’s been difficult to balance my busy schedule since I started, so it’s been more business than pleasure for the most part. I’ve been able to get away for a few weekends so far, but I’ve got a whole lot more of Europe to explore.”
“It’s great that you can do all that traveling while working.”
“It’s definitely a bonus. People wait to retire and travel the world, but I say, who knows what old age will bring, you know? And so I figured, might as well live life now, get the most out of every moment. After all, life is about taking chances, taking risks. And since I had nothing that tied me down in Chicago, I figured why not take the leap and move?”
“Makes sense.” I try to sound casual, but I am absolutely immersed in this conversation. I love his outlook on life. I just wish I was able to live life in the moment the way he seems to.
The t
ruth is, I love traveling. We’ve traveled a lot as a family over the years. My dad was a big believer in the old adage, “Family that travels together stays together.” He wanted us to see the world, to live life, to have no regrets. But five years ago he died, and all the excitement that came along with travel for us died with him. It took a couple of years before my mom got her spark back, and I’m not sure it has ever been as bright as it was with him around. It took time before Mom, Clara, and I felt even remotely whole again without Dad.
So, for the past five years or so, we’ve been pretty much stationary. But hearing Luke’s take on life, his get-the-most-out-of-every-moment philosophy, his love for travel – it’s refreshing and reminds me of how much I love to travel too. And how much I miss it.
“More wine?” Luke offers, interrupting my reverie.
“Sure.” I smile candidly.
As we both reach for my glass, our fingers touch for a moment, but the sparks of our connection linger. Before I am able to pull away, Luke covers my knuckles with the palm of his hand, then proceeds to pour more wine in my glass. The connection I felt in the car not only lingers, but ignites and travels to a very Luke-aware spot between my thighs.
Suddenly, I’m aware of every little thing about him. The way he takes deep, slow breaths as if to steady his heart. The way he softly kneads my knuckles as if my skin is the most delicate he’s ever touched. The way he looks at me with piercing eyes as he sets the wine bottle on the table. The way my body’s reacting to all that I’m absorbing. Uh-oh.
Clara clears her throat and reminds me that we are not alone. Luke’s not-so-discrete hand gesture has obviously not gone unnoticed by her always curious eyes. I will likely have some explaining to do later.
“Luke’s always been the adventurous one,” Marcus chimes in. “He’s very fond of exploring. Let’s just put it that way.”
I wonder what exactly he means, but I think I have a pretty good idea. I take that second to warn myself that I need to stay away. Though I have a feeling this warning may be futile, because I seem to be too smitten with my sexy stranger to really give any weight to reason right now.