Catching Luke

by Debra Elise

  Luke spoke under his breath. “Neither did I. And she didn’t turn me down. That night, I mean.”

  “What do you mean, ‘that night?’ Are you telling me something’s already happened between you and Lara?”

  Uh-oh. Looks like Lara hadn’t kissed and told her best friend about them. He looked at Kelsey in a new light. Maybe he’d been playing this all wrong. Maybe he shouldn’t have been pleading his case to Lara’s best friend all along.

  Luke finished off his water and thought it over. He’d blown it with Lara, that was for sure, but if he played it right with Kelsey, perhaps she’d help him figure out how to get Lara to give him a second chance.

  “If you’d come to me in the first place, Luke, all this could have been avoided. I happen to know how Lara thinks about you, or I’m pretty sure I know. Anyway, maybe it’s not too late. Although there is the fact that she’s probably moving to Seattle at the end of the summer. You sure you want to start something that’s only going to end in a couple of months?”

  Okay, now she was in his head. Kinda scary. Luke didn’t dare interrupt. He could see the wheels spinning in her eyes. She had now switched back to friend mode, thank god.

  She tapped her nails on the dining room table and took a sip of her wine. “I think I know what to do. If you’re sincere in wanting to find out if there’s a possibility you and Lara could be together, beyond just a night or a month of great sex, I’m willing to help you out.”

  She began to smile in that way women do when given a matchmaking challenge and it made Luke just a little nervous. Maybe he shouldn’t have said anything to her.

  “Do you trust me, Luke?”

  He hesitated just a moment and slid a glance toward Maverick for courage. Sure, why the hell not. Couldn’t be worse than Lara hating him, as he suspected she probably did, after getting fired.

  “What do you have in mind?”

  CHAPTER 15

  Lara drove over to Kelsey and Mav’s new home the day after being fired. They’d decided to purchase a house together before the wedding to have one less thing to worry about. The home they found was located not far from Luke’s new place, but they were higher up in the surrounding mountains of Lake Coeur d’Alene. There was a huge backyard where Mav had a pitching mound installed, to league specifications, and plenty of space for future swing sets and playhouses.

  It was funny to think of Kelsey being domestic. She would soon be an official grown-up. Marriage and babies to follow. They were both eager to begin a family now that Kelsey had sold her public relations firm and had a permanent position with the Outlaws.

  She found Kelsey struggling with a potted plant on the enclosed sundeck. It was Saturday and with Mav on the road on a three-day trip to play the L.A. Knights, they could talk about girl stuff without being overheard.

  “Hey sweetie, hand me that bag of potting soil, would you?”

  “Putting me to work already? I thought we were going to open a bottle of wine and watch Supernatural?” Lara asked.

  “Still going to. I just need to finish this one last planter. I’ve suddenly embraced my green thumb. I never was able to have plants before. Not around long enough to keep them alive, you know?”

  Lara marveled at her bestie’s smile, and yes, glowing face. Being in love definitely agreed with Kelsey. It also made her realize deep down, way under her party girl persona, she wanted the same thing. Not having any prospects for herself on the horizon raised the green-eyed monster in her. And she needed to make sure she kept it hidden. Kelsey deserved every bit of happiness.

  “There, done. Let’s go in to the kitchen and crack that wine.”

  Lara followed her through the new home, packing boxes still piled up against a wall in a room off the kitchen set up with a whale-size flat screen TV. “This must be Mav’s man room, huh?”

  “That? No. His media room is downstairs and he calls it his ‘man cave.’ It’s got a much bigger TV and a pool table, dart board, fully stocked bar, you name it. If it’s electronic or you can play it, he has it down there. I’ll show you later.”

  She followed Kelsey into the kitchen and marveled at the setup. The room was twice the size as Lara’s and had two full-size refrigerators.

  “What do you feel like, white or red?”

  “Um, red. What can I do to help?” Lara asked.

  “Grab a couple of glasses, and I’ll get a platter of finger food I picked up earlier. Much easier to eat and drink as we ogle the Winchester brothers.” Kelsey pointed toward a corner cabinet and expertly opened the wine. “C’mon, I’m hungry.”

  Kelsey led the way to a comfy black leather couch in the room Lara had just commented on and settled in. She poured their wine, took a sip, and said the four words Lara couldn’t turn down.

  “I need a favor.”

  Normally, Lara wouldn’t hesitate to jump right in with a “yes, whatever you need.” But the glint in Kelsey’s eye made her nervous. And since she’d just tangled with her boss, ex-boss, over a certain obstinate and heartbreaking professional catcher who was demanding her full attention, she felt justified in her hesitation.

  Lara took a long sip, actually a big gulp, of the merlot and counted to ten before she answered.

  “I know that look, Lara. And you’re right to be wary. What I have to ask is a lot and it may be more than you’re willing to commit to, but—”

  “Wow, this must be big. You usually don’t have to lecture me before you ask for something. Let me guess. This has to do with Luke Garibaldi and his supersize ego?”

  “Hmm, you really think he has an ego problem? I’ve been around him quite a bit the last few months and he’s kinda funny and self-deprecating.”

  “Yeah, well, then you work with him. Every time I’m around him he acts like I should be lucky he’s even noticed me. He’s bought into his own reputation, and after that fiasco with Syndi I’m really not interested.”

  Kelsey sank into the couch and took small sips of her wine calmly listening to Lara’s reasoning. She was letting her stew over it; Lara knew her game. But she wasn’t going to give in. No way. No how.

  “Kelsey, he hit on me within five minutes of our session. He wasn’t taking me seriously and I ended it right there. He’s just pissed I didn’t agree to sleep with him again.” Lara finished her glass and reached for the bottle.

  “Is that the reason you won’t give him another chance? Because he’s let it be known he wants you in his bed, or because he got you fired from a job you were going to quit in a month anyway?”

  Oh, she’s good.

  “Do we have to talk about this now? What happened to binge watching our show?” She took out her ponytail holder and massaged her scalp and pressed her fingers into her aching temples.

  “Lara, let’s be honest. We both know you’ve been fighting your feelings for Luke for months. And don’t think I didn’t hear you say ‘again.’ So you two hooked up that night, right? The night of our engagement party?”

  She shot Kelsey a guilty look and wrapped her hair back up, prepared to do battle. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. So many things happened right after that and then it was too late and I’m sorry.”

  Kelsey didn’t yell at her like she thought she would. Her friend reached over and gave her a hug instead. “Believe me, I understand. Mav scrambled my brains too after our first time together, so I’ll forgive. This time. But if something big like that happens again, I expect a text the minute after it happens.”

  “I promise. You’ll be the first to know the next time I have earth-shattering sex.” Then Lara quickly added, “with another guy. I’m not interested in hooking up with Luke again.”

  The look Kelsey gave her said “yeah, right.”

  “I mean it, Kels. I’m not dating or doing anything else with Luke, so you can forget about trying to smooth things over between us.”

  “Well, that’s not the favor I have to ask. Exactly. And besides, Luke has no trouble getting women on his own.”

  Lara snorte
d, even though his track record had been lousy lately. She hadn’t seen his name linked with anyone in the tabloids. She also hadn’t heard Mav bring up a woman’s name whenever he talked about Luke when she was around. But she found it hard to believe the man was suffering a dry spell where women were concerned.

  “Luke needs help. Both with rehabbing his knee and . . .” Kelsey held up her hand when Lara opened her mouth. “I know he screwed up, so just let me finish. He also needs someone around his house. To cook his meals, drive him places, and I thought, well, Mav and I thought, since you’re no longer working at the clinic, you could, well maybe, kind of be an assistant or something.”

  “Let me get this straight. Now you not only want me to provide him with PT services, but you want me to babysit a grown man who could hire a day nurse to do the same thing?” Lara began to laugh. She laughed so hard she had to find a place to set her wineglass down.

  “I’m glad you find this funny, Lara. And I understand that it sounds a bit, well . . .”

  “Absurd? How about all kinds of crazy wrapped up in a sheet of hell-to-the-no. Why would I want to put myself in such close proximity to a man I just told you I don’t want to get involved with?”

  Kelsey stared her down and took a deep breath. “Lara, I think you’re protesting too much. And you already know the why on the PT front, but he doesn’t have any family to call, and he fired the first nurse and scared off the second. He’s reeling from the possibility he may never play again and I think he needs someone like you. Someone positive, capable, and yeah, so he has the hots for you. You can handle him. You’re a pro at turning down men, or maybe you don’t turn him down. Have some fun. Sounds to me like you two already hit it off in the bedroom.”

  “Gee, thanks. You make me sound like a . . .”

  “Smart woman who’s not going to settle for Mr. Almost or be talked into something she can’t handle.”

  “Oh, you mean like you’re trying to do right now?” Lara had been pacing for the last two minutes but stopped when she heard her phone go off. She searched for it and finally found it on the floor next to her shoes. She’d missed the call but there was a voice mail. She’d deal with whoever needed her later.

  “Lara, calm down. Could you just think it over tonight? I wouldn’t ask if we weren’t, if Luke didn’t need someone like you to help him out. You wouldn’t have to live with him, just hang out there during the day for the next couple of weeks until he gets stronger, and you could do his therapy session in the team’s workout facility.”

  She stood there watching as her best friend since grade school pleaded her case, actually Luke’s case. Typically, Lara loved a challenge. But only in a professional capacity. She relished assisting patients rebuild their strength or overcome a life-altering diagnosis and prove the doctors wrong. But in her personal life, she only went after what was safe and what she could control.

  And with Luke Garibaldi, she wasn’t so sure she could control her heart.

  Lara ended up spending the night in Kelsey’s guest bedroom. They’d stayed up late and polished off close to two bottles of wine. Not driving was an excellent idea. But she snuck out just after dawn and left a note saying she’d call her later and headed for the nearest coffee stand.

  She ordered the strongest drink she thought she could stand, a triple-shot white chocolate mocha, and headed home. The one good thing about not having someone waiting for you was that you could come and go as you please. She felt kind of sorry for Kelsey, knowing she’d have to give up a piece of her independence.

  With thoughts of freedom and empowerment on her mind she took a long hot shower and debated whether or not she should just go to bed and grab a couple more hours of sleep. But her mind was keyed up and she needed to begin working on a new budget, especially if she ended up moving away. Now that she would have two months’ less salary, she hoped her house would sell quickly.

  She’d just pulled on her yoga pants and a long-sleeved, soft-pink Henley when she heard the doorbell. Seven o’clock was a bit early for someone to be at her door. Everyone she knew would have either called or texted first if they wanted to see her so early on a Sunday morning.

  Lara didn’t bother to look through the side window next to her front door. However, when she flung it open to greet her early morning visitor, she’d wish to god she had.

  “Na-Nate. Wha-what are you doing here?” Lara instinctively took a step back to increase the distant between herself and her dog of an ex-boyfriend. “You’ve got a lot of balls coming back here.”

  She stared at the man who’d ripped her self-worth to shreds before she finally grew a pair and kicked him out of the house almost a year ago. The asshole grinned at her and leaned on the doorframe like he had every right to be there.

  “Hey, Lara. Normally people invite their company inside when they stop by for a visit.”

  “Nate Rollins, you can turn your sorry ass around and get off my porch. Better yet, leave town, leave the state. You wore out your welcome a year ago.” She grabbed the door to slam it in his face, but he was quicker and put his elbow up to stop it from fully closing.

  “Where were you last night, Lara? How come you didn’t return my call? I came into town just to see you.”

  “Oh, really. What about what’s-her-name? The poor woman you convinced she was the only woman in your life too.”

  “C’mon, let me in. I’m in a really good place right now and I want to talk things out. I’ve missed you, Sunshine.”

  She couldn’t believe there’d been a time when she used to love that nickname. Just like she used to think she loved him before she wised up and realized she only loved the idea of them, before his drinking became a wedge between them. And his jealousy. Over her job, her friends, and any man who looked at her.

  Looking back, it all seemed surreal now. Especially that he, while acting like a jealous lover, was the one who was unfaithful. The only thing he left her with was a hard learned lesson and a will to never fall for a smooth talker again.

  “I highly doubt you’ve missed me, Nate. The last time we spoke you made sure I knew you would be welcome in someone else’s arms. So don’t pull that crap with me. I’m not interested.”

  “So I heard you got yourself hooked up with the Outlaws baseball team? How’d you manage that? I’m sure your boss at the clinic is all over that, huh?”

  Lara froze. How would he know anything about that? Unless . . . unless he’d been watching her. Following her. Thoroughly creeped out, she again pushed on her front door. “You need to leave, Nate. Now.”

  “And if I don’t?”

  She calculated the distance between the door and her end table where’d she left her phone. She was sure she could make it to call 911, if she had to. By the looks of him, he’d added a few pounds. She could beat him.

  “I don’t think you want the police called, Nate. Don’t you have an outstanding warrant for failure to appear?”

  She watched as he clenched his fist a few times. A tick appeared over his right eye, and for a minute she thought he was going to strike her. She needed something stronger to ward him off and get him out of her life for good. But what? Too bad she didn’t have a boyfriend, or even a guy friend she could use as a deterrent to his pushing the “let’s work it out” angle.

  But who, and . . . Oh, no. She couldn’t. She shouldn’t. But what if it worked to get Nate to leave her alone for good?

  He had begun fidgeting and rocking back and forth. With the motion she got a whiff of alcohol. Well, that answered one question. Not willing to confront him on the issue she took a deep breath and blurted out, “There isn’t a chance for us, Nate. I’ve moved on and I don’t know where you heard about my connection to the Outlaws, but it’s true.” She had to think quick. If she could convince Nate that she was with Luke, maybe he’d leave her alone.

  “I’ll be working with their catcher, Luke Garibaldi, and we, ah, well . . .”

  “Well, what? You hooked up with a ballplayer? Jesus, Lara, I
didn’t think you’d turn so desperate.”

  “Out, get out now. I’m done with this ridiculous conversation.”

  “Is that where you were last night? Are you shacking up with him?”

  “I said leave. I’ll call the police, Nate. I’m not playing around.”

  “Sounds like you’re doing plenty of playing with—”

  Nate had become distracted enough that she now had the opportunity to put all her weight on the door to slam and lock it.

  “This isn’t over, Lara. I’ve changed and I’m not giving up,” he shouted through the closed door.

  She looked out the window again and saw his retreating back.

  With a sigh she sank down onto the floor and shook her head. What had happened to her orderly and uneventful life?

  “Lara, calm down. Are you okay?”

  She’d called Kelsey as soon as she got control of her breathing and spilled out what had just happened in one never-ending sentence.

  “Yeah. Now that he’s gone I’m more pissed off than scared. I mean, who does he think he is to show up a year later, declare himself a different man, and ask for a second chance one minute and harass me the next?”

  “A delusional freak. Did you ever install that wireless security camera system?”

  Lara didn’t answer. Because she never did. It was still sealed in its box in her garage. Even though both Kelsey and Noel lectured her on its merits after the big breakup with Nate last year.

  She’d been so busy building herself back up that she’d sort of forgotten about it. “No, Mom, I didn’t. I’ll be moving soon anyway and I doubt he’ll be back.”

  “Bullshit. It sounds like he’s been stalking you to have found out that you’d been offered a job with the team. You need to take this seriously. He sounds like he may do something stupid. Maybe you should stay with Mav and me for a while.”

  Lara thought over the offer but quickly dismissed it. She didn’t want to be a third wheel. She also wasn’t sure she could take being around such a happy couple. A happy couple who were having a ton of sex. And she wasn’t.