by L. P. Dover
“Will do,” I answered happily. “Have a great week.”
“You too.”
We hung up and I screamed, but Luke and Chance didn’t hear me through all the noises their bikes made. I put my phone back on safe ground before falling off my float. Rushing out of the pool, I slipped on my sandals and took off toward the track, waving my arms in the air.
“Luke!” I shouted. He and Chance were coming around the corner and I waved my hands wildly in the air. Chance looked over at me and completely missed the turn. He ran off the track, crashing into a bale of hay. I ran over to him and helped him up. “Oh my God, are you okay?”
He tore off his helmet and glanced up and down my body. “Are you kidding me? I’m in heaven. You need to wear a bikini more often.”
“Do you want to keep that tongue of yours?” Luke warned from behind. “If not, keep talking.”
Chance winked at me, then turned to Luke, holding his hand innocently across his chest. “I was respectfully admiring her beauty. I’d like to keep my tongue where it is, if you don’t mind. Numerous young ladies would be devastated if you took it away.”
I rolled my eyes and laughed. “Nice, Chance.”
Luke hopped off his bike and took off his gloves. “You okay? I saw you waving me down.”
I grabbed his hands. “You won’t believe who I just got off the phone with.”
His eyes went wide. “Who?”
“Shelby Reynolds. She wants to interview you for the magazine. She said she could come out here, or we could fly out there.”
“Holy shit!” he shouted, picking me up in his arms and twirling me around. “I can’t believe you got her to do this.”
He set me down and I shook my head. “I only made the call. You were the one who intrigued her. Just let me know when you want to go. She’s waiting for us to call her back.”
“Fuck yeah, that’s awesome.”
“What about me?” Chance asked. “Do you think she’d be interested?”
I smiled. “Oh, I’ll make sure to mention you. No worries.”
A whistle came from the house and when we looked at the culprit, my stomach dropped; it was Kate, waving an envelope in the air.
Luke blew out an angry breath and focused on me. “You ready?”
I shrugged. “If you are.”
Chance lifted his bike and jumped back on it. “Let’s see what that bitch gave you.” He took off toward the house and then Luke held out his hand.
“Hop on.”
“You promise not to wreck?” I asked.
Chuckling, he reached for my hand and pulled me toward him. “Just hold on and you’ll be fine.”
Taking a deep breath, I hopped on the back and wrapped my arms around his waist. The takeoff scared me, but it was a smooth ride the rest of the way down the hill. Once he slowed down, I was able to breathe. Chance was already off his bike and talking to Kate when we pulled up.
She smiled and opened her arms to hug me. “It’s good to see you again. We need to catch up.”
“Yes, we do. How’d you know we were here?” I asked.
She laughed. “Evan tells me everything, since my own best friend doesn’t.”
I felt like a horrible best friend. “I promise to make it up to you. Everything’s just been crazy since the accident.”
“I know, but at least I’m about to make it better. I have the results.” She held the envelope out to Luke and he didn’t waste time opening it.
Chance rushed over and looked over his shoulder. “Holy shit, he had Secobarbital in his system?”
I felt sick to my stomach. I wasn’t exactly educated on the various drugs in the world, but I knew what that one was. Secobarbital was a barbiturate used for insomnia, but it was a drug that people used recreationally back in the day.
Luke’s gaze narrowed and he growled. “Along with Ambien and Xanax. That bitch could’ve killed me.”
“Which is why you need to turn her in,” Kate suggested. “If she’s done this to you, there’s no telling what she’ll do to someone else. You seriously could’ve died. You’re a strong man with a fast metabolism, but what if this had been someone else?”
I reached for his hand and squeezed. He glanced down at me and I could tell he was torn. “I think Kate’s right. She needs to pay for what she did. I’m pretty sure she won’t go to jail, but it’ll keep her from doing it again.”
Closing his eyes, he nodded. “Fine. I’ll call Jason tonight.”
“Who’s Jason?” I asked.
Luke opened his eyes and sighed. “I keep forgetting you don’t have your memories. Jason Avery’s a friend of mine, but he’s also a cop. He’ll know what to do.”
“You know what’s fucked up?” I said, sitting back in my chair. It was later that evening and Lara and I were enjoying dinner and drinks on the patio.
She frowned and looked over at me, her wine glass stopping at her lips. “What?”
“That Skylar got the best of me. I turned around for one minute and that bitch played me. You always hear about guys doing it to girls, but never vice versa.”
Lara nodded. “I know. I just wish someone would’ve seen something. After you call Jason, you might want to give Chance a call and see if he can ask around.”
Sighing, I ran a hand through my hair and even that made me ache. I was never one to get high off drugs; I didn’t like the side effects. “Good idea.” I reached for my phone and called Jason. It was time to fuck Skylar up.
“Collins, what’s up, my man?” Jason answered.
I huffed. “You’re probably not going to believe this, but I was drugged this past weekend by Skylar Wells. I just got the test results today.”
“Are you fucking serious?”
“As much as I hate admitting I was taken out by a girl, yes.”
“Do you have proof it was her who did it?” he asked.
“I confronted her and she admitted to doing it. Plus, Lara Jacobs and Chance Harris are witnesses to her leaving the bedroom where they found me.” Lara winced and I hated that she even had to deal with this mess. We’d had way too many obstacles to overcome for another one to fall on us. “She can’t deny it,” I added.
“When I go to question her and get all the evidence I need, what do you want to do from there? Press charges? If we do, she’ll most likely just get a slap on the wrist.”
“And that’s fine, but at least she’ll be blackballed from our group. No one will want her around after this, which is what she deserves.” Skylar could’ve killed me. She had no idea how I would react to the combination of meds she gave me. And worst of all, she almost ruined my relationship with Lara.
“Sounds good, brother. Can I stop by tomorrow morning to get a copy of the test results?”
“Of course. See ya then.” We hung up and it felt good to know that Skylar wasn’t going to get away with it. But there was still one nagging detail that bothered me about the whole situation . . .
Lara squeezed my hand, pulling me back into the here and now. “Luke, you okay? You zoned out there for a second.”
I looked at her and sighed. “I was thinking. Skylar had to have had help getting me to the bedroom. There’s no way she could’ve dragged my body around by herself.”
“True. And that’s why you need to get Chance to ask around. Maybe someone actually saw her putting the drugs in your drink.”
The thought pissed me off. The guys at that party were my friends. If someone saw her drugging me, it’d be pretty fucked up if no one tried to stop her. “If they did, I’ll kick their ass,” I growled.
She nodded. “I will too.”
The thought made me laugh. “Of that, I have no doubt. Let me give Chance a call and then we can take a walk. There’s a pond right through those woods,” I said, pointing to the tree line.
Her eyes lit up. “Great. It’ll give me a chance to walk off all the food I ate.”
“Don’t worry, cupcake, I’ll make sure you work it off in other ways too.”
She winked. “Can’t wait.”
I found Chance’s number in my phone, and waited for him to pick up. When he did, there was a lot of yelling in the background.
“You miss me already?” he joked.
“You wish. Where are you at?”
“Second Street. It’s two dollar Tuesday, you know this.”
I hadn’t been to the Second Street Bar in a long time. It was in downtown Charlotte, and a place I used to go with Evan and some of the other football players. A lot of our cop friends would go too, including Jason. Now that most of them were married, those times were few and far between.
“Can you do me a favor?” I asked him.
“Sure, what do ya need?”
“I want you to ask around and see if anyone saw Skylar drug me. There’s no way she could’ve carried me to the bedroom by herself.”
“Good point. I’ll see if I can track down everyone who was there.”
“Thanks, man. I appreciate it.”
“No problem. Now give that hot chick of yours a kiss for me.”
Shaking my head, I couldn’t help but laugh. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of shit on my end. I don’t need any coaching from you.”
Chuckling, he said his goodbyes and I glanced over at Lara, who couldn’t hide her smile. “He’s something else, isn’t he?”
I stood and helped her up. “You have no idea. He’s a good guy though. He’d do anything for me, or you.”
“I’m glad you have friends who’ll go to such lengths for you. Evan is definitely one of them too.”
If it wasn’t for Evan and his family, I wouldn’t be who I was today. “He’s more than my best friend, he’s like a brother.”
We headed into the woods, and I kept hold of her hand. It still amazed me that she was with me. When I thought I’d lost her the other day, there were no words to describe how utterly miserable I was.
There was a path I’d made through the woods, so we followed it down to the pond. The sky was slowly turning pink, but we still had a little bit of time.
Lara stopped and looked out at the pond. “It’s so beautiful out here.”
We sat down on the grass and I couldn’t take my eyes off her. “You’re so beautiful,” I murmured.
Her face beamed and I wished she’d break down and tell me she loved me. I’d been waiting to hear it from her lips, but knew I had to be patient. “Are you excited about the race Saturday?”
“Very,” I replied. “In a couple of weeks, I’ll be going to the finals in Vegas. With everything going on, I forgot to tell you about it. Want to go?”
“Um, yeah,” she answered incredulously. “I’m ready to watch you race in person.”
“Speaking of races, we need to leave around two on Saturday.”
Her face fell and she groaned. “I don’t think I’ll be able to go with you that early. Summer asked if I’d work the lunch shift. I think I’m going to have to meet you at the coliseum. Is that okay?”
I was hoping she’d be able to drive there with me, but I knew she had other responsibilities. “No worries. I’ll just get you a parking pass, and when you get to the door, tell them you’re name and they’ll let you in. I’ll get you a seat in the front.”
She squealed and pushed me to the ground, her legs straddling my waist. “Now I’m really excited.”
My dick twitched and I grinned. “So am I.”
“You want to know what else I’m happy about?” she asked.
Grabbing the back of her neck, I pulled her down and kissed her. “Tell me.”
“I think I’m starting to remember things. It’s like flashes here and there.”
“Lara, that’s amazing. When did this start?”
She giggled and I loved the sound. “Just this past weekend. We were over at Chance’s house and I got this sense of déjà vu. When we walked around his yard, I felt like I’d been there before. I knew exactly where to go.”
“It’s because you have walked it before. That night we were together, we went there for a party and I got angry at him for taking you away. We left after I found you. You were so pissed at me for being an ass.”
She smacked my arm. “Probably because you deserved it. Chance is a nice guy, but I would never choose him over you.”
“That’s good to know. But more importantly, it’s great you’re starting to remember. Life would be a lot easier if you did.”
She kissed me again and rubbed her hips against mine. “I’m working on it. I want them back more than anything. It’d be nice to remember our past, my friends and family; especially when Emma-Grace was born.”
A slow smile spread across my face at the reminder. She’d just messed up.
Her gaze narrowed and she pulled back. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
I grabbed her waist and flipped her onto her back, covering her with my body. “Because you owe me, cupcake. I seem to recall a bet we made not too long ago. I think it’s about time to collect.” Her eyes went wide and I nodded. “Tomorrow.”
Two days had passed and the only time I’d left Luke’s house was to get more clothes from mine. I could barely walk after I’d fulfilled my debt. I never knew how insatiable Luke was, until I had to prance around his house naked and give in to his every whim. Next time, I was going to make sure Emma-Grace threw her food on him.
Jason had come by the other day and we gave him a copy of the drug test results. He said it could take a couple of days to get everything rolling, so we expected to hear from him soon. Chance hadn’t heard anything yet from the people he questioned from the party. There were still plenty more for him to ask. It was a waiting game.
After Luke trained for the day, he decided to work on his bike, while I worked on his marketing; or at least, tried to work on it. It was nearly impossible to focus on work, when Luke’s whole body was marked up with grease and sweat. My afternoon consisted of making phone calls and watching him.
“Working hard?” he asked.
I held up my phone. “Yep. I have two other magazines interested in running stories on you. Shelby had given me their names.”
“Did you set up a time for us to fly out to San Francisco yet?”
Grinning from ear to ear, I scrolled through the calendar on my phone, until I found the marked off dates. “Yes, I did. The first weekend in October is what I have. She’s going to let us stay in one of the houses she rents out.”
“Sweet. I can’t wait. It’s going to be fucking epic to see my face on the cover of Physique.”
That it would, and I was happy I’d get to experience it with him.
A car door slammed out front and my phone beeped with an incoming text.
Summer: I’m here at Luke’s.
“It’s Summer,” I said, getting to my feet. “She’s here. I’ll get the door.”
Luke slid out from under his bike, as I rushed inside to answer the front door. I hadn’t spoken to her much in the last couple of days, but I knew Evan told her about the test results.
Summer waved when I opened the door. “Hey.”
“Hey, yourself. Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, everything’s fine. I just wanted to stop by and see you.” Luke appeared at my side and Summer smiled at him. “To see both of you actually,” she added. “Evan and I want you to come over for dinner on Friday.”
Luke held a hand over his chest. “Me too?”
Summer rolled her eyes and laughed. “Yes, you too. I’m sorry for everything that’s happened. I know it’s been a rollercoaster ride from hell. I’m just glad you two found your way back to each other.”
Tears sprung to my eyes. “You mean that?”
She held out her arms and I rushed into them. It was nice having her support, and not constantly on Grayson’s side. “Of course I do. It’s not so easy to think of Luke as the bad guy.”
Luke laughed. “Thanks.”
Summer pulled back and winked at him. “You’re welcome. I know Evan’s looking forward to more time with yo
u.”
“What about Grayson? Does he know Luke and I are back together?”
Her smile faded. “Yes. He wanted to see you, but with you being here, he knew it would be unwise. In time, he’ll get over it.”
“I doubt it,” Luke growled. “He tried to make me think he and Lara were fucking the other day, when I caught him in a towel at her house.”
Summer and I both gaped at him in shock. “What?” He’d never told me that.
Luke rubbed a hand down his face and sighed. “So much has happened since then, I didn’t want to say anything. But when he answered the door in that damn towel, he knew what was going through my mind. He played up on it, then I got pissed and hit him. That’s when I ran up to your bathroom.”
My chest ached, and it wasn’t because I was sad . . . I was furious. “I can’t believe he did that.”
Summer shook her head. “Me either. That’s messed up.”
Luke grabbed my shoulders and turned me to face him. My mind was in shock, but then again, desperate people could say and do almost anything. “I know he’s your friend, ex—whatever you want to call him—but you need to stay away from him. Because if he comes anywhere near me or you, I won’t be able to control myself.”
Summer placed a hand on my arm. “I hate to say this, but I think he’s right, sis. I don’t like the things I’m hearing. It’s best if you two stay apart.”
“What about Saturday? Will he be there when I’m working?” I asked.
“No, he’s working the night shift. From now on, I’ll keep you two separated.”
“Does he know the whole story about Luke being drugged?”
She shook her head. “He only knows you two are together. Once he heard that, he stormed away. I haven’t talked to him since.”
He probably thought I took Luke back, still believing he cheated on me. It didn’t matter what he thought though. I had no plans on talking to him anytime soon. “Thanks for coming over, Sum. We’ll see you on Friday.”
She hugged Luke and I knew it’s what he’d been waiting on. Summer and I were protective of each other, and it would make things easier now he had her trust.
Once she was gone, Luke leaned against the door, his gaze on fire. “Tell me you’ll stay away from Grayson.”