“She’s got a point though,” John says with a shrug, “There’s no way of knowing what might have been, if only…”
“No real need to wonder about what might have been though, is there?” Maddie snaps, her face reddening, “Seeing as we had a dad, and all. A great dad.”
“Maddie,” I say softly, trying to reach her through her simmering rage.
“Had a dad?” asks Finn, the youngest Hawthorne brother.
“Yeah. Had. He died,” Maddie all but spits, “But I guess someone forgot to relay that information, too.”
I fix my gaze on the table, blinking back sudden tears. I can feel Luke’s green eyes hard on my face, but I don’t dare meet them. The empathy I know I’d find there would put me right over the edge. And I won’t give anyone here the satisfaction of making me cry.
“Excuse me,” Maddie mutters, “I just…I don’t seem to have much of an appetite.”
She leaps up from the table in a huff, effectively ending this bizarro family dinner. As the group begins to disperse, all I can think of is getting Luke alone. Not for our previously planned liaison, but to regroup and figure out what the hell we’re going to do now. I finally raise my eyes to his over the table as our families scatter with a look that clearly says, We need to talk.
Luke jerks his head subtly toward the patio door, and I nod my assent. Amid the chaos of the broken-up dinner party, we slip away to reconvene in a less public arena.
Dewy blades of grass cling to my bare ankles as I hurry across the wide backyard of the Hawthorne lake house, trailing Luke down to the dock. My head swims with new gleaned information and, to be perfectly honest, a bit more wine than may have been wise. But hey, something tells me that this is a conversation I’ll be happy to be a bit buzzed for.
Luke’s broad, built figure stands out against the inky lake, imposing and flawless as ever. It’s still bizarre to see him in shorts and a tee shirt, rather than slacks and a button down. I actually find myself wishing we could be back in that lecture hall together. Economic theory may have bored me to tears, but at least our dynamic was clear cut then. But now? The status of our relationship couldn’t be any murkier.
“Well,” Luke remarks gruffly, looking up as I approach the end of the dock, “Fancy meeting you here.” It’s the first full sentence he’s spoken to me since he nearly gave me a heart attack climbing out of that lake.
“No shit, Prof,” I mutter back, crossing my arms as the cool breeze chills my bare skin.
“So,” he goes on, shoving a hand through his short chestnut hair, “Do you want to tell me why the hell you lied to our families back there?”
“I’m…Sorry?” I breathe, gaping up at him.
“Why did you tell them we didn’t know each other?” he demands, “That’s just going to fuck this up even more.”
“What the hell did you expect me to say?!” I laugh incredulously, “‘Luke was technically my teacher, but that didn’t stop us from trying to do the nasty anyway. Oh, and I spent all of last night jerking myself off in the guest room as he described exactly how he’d fuck me when he got the chance?’ Is that what you had in mind?”
“Of course not,” he snaps, “Don’t play dumb with me. I know you too well for that. We could have spun things our way without giving all the dirty details. But hey, if you’d rather pretend we’ve never met and just go our separate ways, then—”
“That’s not what I want at all,” I cut him off emphatically, “That’s the last thing in the world I want, Luke.”
“You have a funny way of showing it,” he replies, cocking an eyebrow at me.
“Come on,” I cry, exasperated. “I just found out that you’re practically related to me all of two hours ago. I’m still trying to figure out—”
“What is there to figure out?” he growls, taking a step toward me, “Why should it matter that our parents know each other?”
“They don’t just know each other,” I breathe, my body heating up despite myself as he closes the space between us, “They’re living together. They were engaged, for fuck’s sake. How the hell is none of this freaking you out?”
“Because it doesn’t matter, Sophie,” he says fiercely, grabbing me by the hips, “All the matters is how we feel about each other. We’re not doing anything wrong.”
“I don’t—I mean…” I gasp, laying my hands on the firm panes of his chest.
“Look, in the end, I don’t give a shit how we play this with our families,” he goes on, circling my waist with his powerful arms, “We can pretend we don’t know each other. We can ignore each other completely when they’re around. Whatever you like. But I won’t pretend that I don’t still want you, Sophie. I couldn’t, even if I tried.”
“I don’t think I could either,” I whisper, turning my face to his, “Luke, I don’t want this thing between us to be over yet.”
“Then don’t end it,” he rasps, running a hand through my long caramel locks. I gasp as his fingers close tightly, tugging my hair with just the right amount of force. Just the way he promised last night…
“How can you go from professor, to perfect son, to this in the blink of an eye?” I ask him breathlessly, lifting my face to his.
“You’re not the only one with acting practice, I guess,” he grins, pulling my body flush against his, “Do you have any idea how hard it was to act like I wasn’t thrilled to see you here earlier?”
“What? Why thrilled?” I ask, baffled.
“Because I thought I’d have to wait two whole weeks to get my hands on you again,” he tells me, running those hands down along my back, “But now…”
A shudder runs down my spine as Luke grabs hold of my firm ass, tugging me hard against him. I gasp as I feel his hard cock pressed urgently against my thigh. Circling his broad shoulders with trembling arms, I look up at him in the gathering twilight.
“I’m really going to need you to kiss me now, Luke,” I whisper.
Without another word, he brings his mouth to mine. I melt against his perfectly balanced body, grinding my hips against his insistent desire. He works my mouth open, sweeping his expert tongue against mine. The smoky, sweet taste of him gets me drunker in a moment than I’ve felt all evening. It’s all I can do to keep from tearing his clothes off right here on the dock.
We may be resolved to see this thing through, despite our families’ tangled history…but something tells me that giving them a front row seat to us getting down and dirty would still be ill-advised, to say the least.
Though Luke and I manage to pull ourselves away from each other before things get out of hand that night, we do leave the dock with some ground rules in place. First, we decide that it’s best to keep our families in the dark about the details of our acquaintance for now. All they need to know is that we met at Sheridan. That’s it. Seeing as neither of our families are particularly forthcoming about their emotional and personal lives, it won’t be out of character for us to keep our lips sealed.
Secondly, we agree to keep our distance for the next couple of weeks, at least when other members of our families are around. We can sneak off together and get up to anything we like, but when the others are watching, we’ll keep our hands to ourselves. We’ll be back at Sheridan in two weeks’ time, anyway. Surely we can control ourselves until then. Any interference from our families now will just jeopardize this thing between us…whatever “this thing” might turn out to be.
“If I know my dad at all,” Luke says, as we walk back to the house after our long conversation, “This little fling isn’t going to last forever.”
“Not with my mom, it’s not,” I laugh, “Since my dad died, she’s barely kept a guy around for two weeks running. Whatever’s going on between her and John will be kaput by the time summer is out.”
“We’ll just be patient then,” Luke smiles, taking my hand in his. We’ve paused in the shadow of the enormous lake house, hidden from sight. “Trust me. It’ll be well worth the wait.”
“Oh, I trust you,
” I breathe, giving his hand a squeeze. “I’ll be counting down the days.”
“This trip will be over before you know it,” he murmurs, tucking a lock of hair behind my ear, “Who knows? We might even think it’s funny. Someday.”
“That might be overstating things,” I mutter.
“Fair point,” he allows, lifting my chin with two strong fingers. His smile fades as he looks down at me in the moonlight, green eyes gleaming. “I have to say, Sophie. You impress me.”
“Impress you?” I breathe, “How—?”
“It’s not just anyone who could roll with the punches like this,” he goes on, trailing those fingers down my throat, “I like a woman with an open mind.”
“Oh yeah?” I smile, taking a step toward him, “What else are you hoping I’ll be open to?”
“You’ll see,” he grins back, bringing his mouth swiftly to mine. He lays one firm, final kiss on my lips before breaking away. “See you, Sophie. Try not to stay up all night thinking about me.”
“Your modesty is truly stunning,” I shoot back, rolling my eyes as Luke turns and walks away from me into the lake house.
He’s not wrong, though. I doubt I’ll sleep a wink tonight, knowing that Luke Hawthorne is under the same roof as me. It’s a good thing our ground rules for this trip have some wiggle room. Now all I have to do is figure out how to get some privacy with my ardent paramour. I look out across the expansive lake, the sprawling forests, the acres of open space without a soul to be found…
Who knows? Perhaps privacy won’t be so hard to come by after all.
Chapter Seven
I’ve got to hand it to Luke, he really isn’t a shabby actor. As the days goes by, I’m frankly stunned by how easy it is to hide the true nature of our relationship from our families. Any time we’re in the presence of our siblings or parents, we give Oscar-worthy performances of not having any interest in each other. It almost becomes like a game for us… If I’m honest, I think it’s kind of hot, having a secret like this. It certainly adds to the anticipation as we wait for the perfect moment to sneak away together.
A couple nights into the trip, the eight of us attempt another big family meal. Amazingly enough, not a single tear is shed from appetizers to dessert. Tensions have died down remarkably fast around here. I guess we’re all a lot more adaptable than we give ourselves credit for. Even Maddie, who was so upset the first night that I thought for sure she was going to leave, seems much calmer. Come to think of it, she seems calmer—and happier—than I’ve seen her in years. Maybe all this lake air is doing her good?
I’m standing at the kitchen sink, rinsing off plates and stacking them in the dishwasher. As the rest of the family disperses, I feel a thrill as Luke strides over to me, leaning against the kitchen counter. My spine straightens under his intent stare, and I peer around to make sure no one’s watching us.
“Stay in character, Hawthorne,” I murmur, keeping my eyes on the sink.
“Don’t worry,” he smiles, “I’m a pro, remember? I just wanted to see what your plans were for tomorrow morning.”
“Oh…Uh…I don’t really have any,” I tell him, “Why?”
“I thought you might be interested in coming out for a run with me,” he says, casually crossing his arms.
“Is that some kind of a euphemism?” I whisper conspiratorially.
“Maybe,” he grins.
“Well then…sure,” I say, excitement rising in my belly, “I’d love to go out for a run with you. I need a little exercise.”
“Great,” he says, thumping his fist on the counter, “I’ll see you at 5a.m.”
I promptly drop the plate I’m holding into the sudsy sink.
“5 a.m.?!” I splutter, “What are you, some kind of masochist?”
“Come on, Soph,” he grins at me, “Aren’t you dancer types supposed to be made out of steel or something? This should be nothing for you.”
“Made out of steel, maybe. But also very fond of sleeping in,” I mutter.
“Hey, if you don’t want to…” Luke shrugs.
“Ugh. Fine,” I sigh, “See you bright and early, bro.”
That gets to him. I laugh as his face twists uneasily at my address. Before he can reply, his brothers appear in the kitchen behind us.
“Cash and I are going into town for a few rounds at the Pourhouse,” Finn says to Luke. “You wanna come with?”
“Always,” Luke replies, turning away from me without another glance.
I return to the task at hand as the boys file out, suppressing a smile as I imagine what Luke has in store for me tomorrow morning.
***
Though I balked at the idea of rising before the crack of dawn, my eyes fly open before my alarm even goes off. This is the first time Luke and I are stealing away on our own, after all—it may as well be Christmas morning. I roll out of bed and dig through my backpack, pulling out my most flattering workout clothes and throwing them on at lightning speed. Mornings here at the lake are pretty cool, so I slip into black leggings, a strappy sports bra, and a lightweight pullover. By the time I’m lacing up my favorite kicks, it’s 5a.m. Time to go rouse my “running buddy”.
I pad through the slumbering house, trying my best not to wake anyone as I approach Luke’s bedroom door. My entire body is awake with anticipation, energized and ready for him, whatever he has in store for me. Taking a deep, steadying breath, I stop outside Luke’s door and raise my first to give it a light rap. But before I can knock, the door swings open. Luke appears in the doorway wearing nothing but running shorts and a small backpack. His sculpted chest and arms are completely bare, and I can’t help but trail my gaze all along his cut torso. The sudden, powerful urge to tackle him back into his room and onto the bed nearly overwhelms me.
“There you are,” he grins, “Come on. Let’s go.”
As he passes me, I see that his well-loved running shoes are already laced up. For the first time, it occurs to me that Luke was a star athlete at Sheridan as an undergrad. Particularly when it came to track and field. His specialty, if I recall correctly, was long-distance running. Oh god…what have I gotten myself into?
“Luke,” I whisper, following him down the stairs, “Are we…actually going for a run?”
“Of course,” he replies, glancing over his shoulder at me, “What did you think?”
“Oh, nothing,” I mutter, feeling my excitement slam into a brick wall.
We make our way out into the crisp morning, stepping onto the wide verandah. I have to admit, I don’t mind seeing this place so early in the day. The quiet that envelops us is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before.
“OK,” Luke says, moving through a series of light stretches, “I’ll take you out on my usual path. Five miles good for you?”
I can already feel my muscles tightening in protest. Though I’m no stranger to cardio, I’m much more of a yoga girl myself when left to my own devices. But there’s no way I’m backing down from this outing now.
“Sure,” I say to Luke, giving my shoulders a roll. “Sounds great.”
“Cool,” he smiles, taking the porch steps two at a time, “I’ll take the lead.”
I watch as he sets off down the driveway, his muscles working together in perfect unison. Hurrying to follow, I let a wry smile play across my face. If only my movement teacher Gary could see me now, huh?
Despite my reservations about this little excursion, my body is thrilled to get a bit of exertion. My lungs fill gratefully with cool mountain air as I dash along in Luke’s wake. His form is perfect as he leads me along back roads through the dense forest. With every long stride he takes, the muscles of his back and shoulders ripple deliciously beneath his tanned skin. His calves are cut to perfection, and his ass is positively rock hard. If his gorgeous form could always be my view while running, I’d be a marathoner in no time.
Little by little, we ascend up toward the tree line. A runner’s high washes over me as we climb, and I forget that there’s anyone e
lse in the world besides Luke and me. I lose track of the time, the miles, and the effort it takes to keep up with my all-star companion. I’m just happy for this moment out of time with him—away from our families, our school, everything. And just when I think this morning couldn’t get any lovelier, the thick forest around us suddenly gives way to open space. We’ve reached the summit. My breath catches in my throat as I skid to a halt behind Luke, who’s come to a sudden stop.
“What do you think?” he grins breathlessly, sweeping out his glistening arms.
I look past him at the rolling landscape, struck dumb by the gorgeous view. We’ve stepped out into a wide clearing overlooking the turquoise lake and surrounding woods. A brilliant sky arches overhead, run through with streaks of pink and orange clouds. A cool breeze brushes deliciously against my flushed skin as I try and take in all this beauty at once.
“…Wow,” I breathe. It’s all I can manage.
“Worth the run?” Luke asks, slipping an arm around my waist.
“Well worth it,” I smile up at him. “Thank you, Luke.”
“Just wait,” he grins, shucking off his lightweight backpack, “There’s more.”
I look on as he unzips the pack, producing a gigantic thermos of coffee and two tin mugs. A laugh escapes my throat as he hands the warm thermos to me.
“How did you know the way to my heart was massive amounts of coffee?” I smile.
“Lucky guess,” he replies, sitting down on a wide, smooth rock overlooking the view.
I hand the thermos back to Luke, who pours out two steaming mugs of coffee. Warmed up by our trek, I shuck off my pullover and set it down on the rock beside him. I raise my arms above my head, shaking out my long locks and soaking in the early morning sun. I can feel Luke’s gaze on my lithe body, lingering on my taut, bare stomach, the rise of my ass beneath my leggings. I’ve met plenty of guys who have liked me for my body before, but never one who looked at it so worshipfully, as Luke does. And never one who appreciated my mind just as much, for that matter.
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