The Abduction

by Nichole Allen

  *****

  Needless to say, dinner with my mom and her fiancé’s family was a bit awkward, if only for me. Luke breezed through the entire thing flawlessly, never showing any discomfort with the situation. He threw a couple glances my way just to make me squirm but most of our interaction was through our parents or just making conversation about what we do for a living.

  “I’m a lawyer in downtown Boston,” I said through a thin-lipped smile.

  “That’s amazing,” Luke said, widening his eyes. “Do you have any specialties?”

  “Mostly divorce cases and custody settlements,” I shrugged. “We do get the occasional criminal case every now and then but I have yet to work on one.” Everyone at the table just nodded in acknowledgment of my comment and we ended up in silence. “So Luke, what do you do?”

  “I’m a linebacker for the Patriots.”

  I completely froze. The only thing that ran through my mind was: Are you kidding me? He had one of the most impressive careers possible with one of the most successful teams in the NFL. I may know more about my Broncos from growing up in Denver but I could respect the success the Patriots had had during their career.

  “I knew I recognized you from somewhere,” I said with a quick stroke of confidence. Luke chuckled at my comment and steered the conversation to what his sister did for a living.

  After dinner, our parents let us hang out around the house while they went over some more wedding details and since Avery had left to take care of her son, I was left alone with Luke. I knew our parents were upstairs and far out of ear shot but I pulled Luke into the reading room – which wasn’t the same as the living room or the family room or the office. Damn, Mike’s house was massive.

  “You’re my mom’s fiancé’s son?” I whisper-shouted at him.

  “They’re upstairs. Why are you whispering?” he whispered in response.

  “Because I don’t know what’s going on! I hooked up with the man who is about to become my step-brother.” I ran my hands through my hair and started pacing around the book-covered room. “This isn’t happening. Do you know how awkward every family gathering is going to be from now on? And we can’t even tell anyone why it’s awkward because that will make things even more awkward,” I rambled.

  Luke just stood there in silence watching me overheat and freak out.

  “Did you know we were going to be related?” I asked, stopping my movements in front of him.

  “I didn’t even know who your mom was until yesterday,” he said. “We hooked up weeks ago, anyway. Who cares? It’s not like we’re actually related. Where’s the harm?”

  I grumbled in frustration at how lackadaisical he was about our situation. “Our parents would be weirded out. I’m weirded out!”

  “Why? We’re not actually related and when we met, we were complete strangers. Besides, there’s nothing wrong with a little fun,” Luke smirked.

  “Well that ‘little fun’ we had is over and it’s not happening again, got it?”

  “We’ll see how long you stand by that,” he replied.

  I rolled my eyes at him and scoffed. “You’re insufferable.”

  He laughed shortly and shrugged. “Just know my offer still stands.” And with that, he left the room.

  My blood was boiling. How could he be so nonchalant about us? Sure, we weren’t yet related and, sure, I totally wanted to hook up with him again, but our parents were getting married, for fuck’s sake. It just didn’t seem right.

  All I wanted was to go home and wake up to all of this as a big dream. The valet left when the party died down to family-only, so I grabbed my keys from the front door and wandered around the grounds Mike owned until my headlights blinked in front of me. With annoyance running through my mind, I called Jess from my dashboard and peeled onto the highway. Her perky voice filled the car around me.

  “How was meeting your mom’s fiancé? Is he hot?” she immediately asked.

  “I found Luke,” I deadpanned.

  “Wait, she’s marrying Luke?”

  “No, but she’s marrying Luke’s dad,” I replied, my hands tightening around the steering wheel now that I had admitted our non-blood relationship to myself.

  “Whoa. So you fucked your step-brother?” Jess said. I groaned at her. She didn’t know not to mention it, but I hated hearing someone else say it out loud. It made it that much harder to deny…or accept.

  “He’s not my step-brother yet,” I muttered quietly.

  “So are you two going to hook up again?”

  “What? No!” I practically shouted. “Our parents are getting married. It’s weird!”

  “No it’s not,” Jess laughed. “You have every opportunity to do whatever you want with him. You’re not actually related. Where’s the harm?”

  Was everyone in the world against me?

  “And what if our parents found out?”

  “Josie, you’re a grown woman. He’s a grown man. You’re fully capable of making your own decisions. I don’t think your mom is going to be upset about you shacking up with someone like Luke again.”

  “Someone like Luke, sure. But Luke is technically her step-son. I don’t know, Jess,” I finally sighed. “We obviously won’t end up together. I think that’s what’s holding me back. Why sleep with someone if you know it’s going to end?”

  “Um, because it’s fun?” Jess replied as a question. “You can be friends with benefits until you find someone you can end up with. Maybe he can set you up with one of his teammates! Oh, actually have him set me up with one of his teammates too.”

  For the first time that night, I actually laughed a genuine laugh. “I’ll see what I can do. I’ll think it over. Bye, Jess.”

  Was I really considering this? Jess made a good point, though. There would always be a voice in the back of my head reminding me that he was sort of family so I wouldn’t ever let myself develop feelings for him. But any further hooking up would risk my mom and his dad finding out. I couldn’t imagine how they would react. Jess still made a good point about that, though. We were both grown adults. We would reap the consequences of our actions, not our parents.

  What was happening?

  *****

  I went three weeks without talking to or running into Luke and I was thanking God for the break from the stress. Until my mom called. Once again, my mother was making things more complicated for me.

  “Luke gave Mike some tickets to the game this Sunday. There’s one for you if you want to join us,” she said. No matter how much I wanted to say no, I couldn’t. Part of me was desperate to go because I love football but another part of me knew if I told my mother no, she’d be so upset about it and wonder what she did wrong to make me avoid her.

  Begrudgingly, I accepted the offer and met Mike, my mom, and Luke’s sister Avery at Mike and my mom’s place. I hadn’t met Avery’s husband or kids yet but I understood why she didn’t want to take the kids to a loud and rowdy football game.

  Even though I grew up in Denver and was raised to love the Broncos, I did have a Patriots jersey or two so I would fit in at the game. After all, wearing a Broncos jersey to a Patriots/Dolphins game would be a little awkward.

  When I walked through the front door, Mike, mom, and Avery were all sitting in the living room waiting for me. I was still the odd one out, though. They were all wearing replicas of Luke’s jersey with “Bianchi” on the back while I had my slightly older Tom Brady jersey on. At least I was supporting the right team, right?

  “Josie! Good, you’re here. Don’t get too comfortable. We were just about to leave,” my mom said, running around and grabbing a jacket and her purse and all the other little things she would need for the game.

  I didn’t even really want to be there so I stood by the front door and waited for everyone to head outside. Avery made polite conversation but we hadn’t gotten to know each other very well yet so we had no idea where to take our conversation.

  “Oh, Luke said he actually already knew you,” Avery said on
ce we were all in Mike’s Rover.

  My shoulders stiffened at her comment and I barely squeaked out a quiet “what?” in response.

  “Yeah. He said you two met at a bar a few weeks before we all met for the first time. You and a couple friends talked to his friends for a bit. He said he didn’t directly talk to you but he saw you with the other girls.”

  A rush of relief washed over me at her explanation. The last thing I wanted was anyone other than Luke, Jess, and me knowing the truth. “Oh yeah! I totally forgot about that. I think I remember that. Yeah, like he said, we didn’t actually talk to each other. That’s so weird.” I forced a laugh but knew I’d have to talk to him about this kind of thing. If he kept telling his family stories about us, I’d have to know about them first so I could run with it. Otherwise, I knew I’d end up slipping up at some point.

  Conversation switched to Luke and how the Patriots were expected to do throughout the year. Even I knew the Dolphins didn’t stand much of a chance. The Patriots are one of the most historically successful teams in the NFL. The game would be a breeze.

  I didn’t know what to expect when Mike said he had tickets to the game. Maybe fifth row on the 50-yard line, even front row on the 50. What I didn’t expect was a private lounge up at the top. The room was massive and had an array of sofas for all of us to sit on, as well as a bar on the veranda so we could get drinks.

  “Holy shit,” Avery murmured under her breath.

  “Right?” I quietly laughed beside her. “There’s one thing I’ve never understood about these rooms, though.” This caught the attention of Mike and my mother too, all eyes turning to me. “I know it’s cool because it’s private and fancy, but I always thought it would be more fun to watch from the front row. I mean, if you can afford a lounge, you can afford front row.”

  Mike nodded in understanding but tried to explain it anyway. “This way, you can always see the entire field. You get to sit back and relax while you watch the game.”

  My mom was silently willing me to leave it be, but I was never one to back down from my stance. “I just feel like football is meant to be engaging, you know? Screaming and yelling is more fun when everyone around you is doing it too. Up here, it just feels different. It’s like watching it at home from a TV except more expensive.”

  My mom started twirling her beer bottle in her hands, probably expecting Mike to get annoyed with my antics. Instead, he started laughing. “You raised a smart daughter, Mary,” he said, turning to my mom. “Next time, I’ll try to get us some front row seats.”

  Avery and I had left the lounge to go to the bar when she finally brought up the one topic of conversation I wanted to avoid, even though he was on the field in front of us.

  “You and Luke really didn’t talk at the bar?” she asked.

  I shook my head. “Why do you ask?” Our talk was briefly interrupted as we ordered our drinks but Avery sighed and looked back at me.

  “It’s just, the first day we all met, you and Luke were acting sort of…odd, I guess. I don’t know how to explain it but it was like you two knew each other. Just little bickering here and there. I thought maybe I had missed an earlier family dinner and you two really did know each other.” She paused for a second before shaking her head. “I don’t know. Don’t worry about it.”

  “No, it’s okay,” I assured her. “I’m sure we did talk a little bit. Most of my attention was on one of the other guys he was out with.”

  “Was it Jarrod?” she smiled. “He’s a tight end on the team but he and Luke hang out all the time. He’s cute. You should see if Luke can set you up.”

  Even though I had no idea who Jarrod was, I nodded in response. Maybe I would have to see if Luke could set me up.

  The game started when we were halfway through our drinks and Avery and I started talking more and more. By the time halftime rolled around, I felt like we had known each other for ages.

  “Are you going out with the team afterwards?” she asked, right before the start of the third quarter.

  “What?”

  “The team invites family to go out to some bars with them after home game wins. It’s usually pretty casual since they can’t get too wasted but it’s a good time.”

  “Are you going?”

  Avery shook her head. “I would but I’ve already spent so much of the day away from Ian and the boys. You should go, though! Luke will take care of you. Oh! And Jarrod will be there,” she added, raising her eyebrows at me.

  “We’ll see,” I laughed. I was hesitant to go out with Luke again, but maybe Jess was right. Maybe I should just give him a shot until I actually found something serious.

  The game was going well until the fourth quarter. The Patriots were leading by 21, but the drama wasn’t from the scoreboard. Luke was a linebacker so he was always at risk of a concussion but everyone in our lounge shot to their feet when the medics ran out to Luke sitting on the field after a play. It was hard to see from how high we were but the screens on either side of the room gave us a better view.

  Luke shook his head at the medics and pushed himself up, wobbling a little bit until he caught his balance. Even then, he sort of hobbled off the field, keeping as much weight off his left ankle as he could.

  “Damn it,” I heard Mike mumble. “He’s been having issues with that ankle for a few weeks now. I told him to have coach bench him this week. The line would be fine without him.”

  “What’s wrong with his ankle? Is he going to be okay?” I asked, soon realizing I sounded a little too concerned for someone who had supposedly just met her step-brother.

  “Yeah, he’ll be fine,” Mike shrugged. “He just needs to take it easy for a bit.”

  At the end of the game – after the Patriots won 35-14 – we met the team outside the locker room. Luke was walking a little better with his ankle after they wrapped it for him but he was still limping a little bit.

  “I told you to stay off that ankle,” Mike said before pulling Luke in for a congratulatory hug.

  Before I could congratulate Luke too, Avery grabbed my arm and whispered, “That one’s Jarrod. Number 87.” My eyes darted from Luke’s number 56 jersey to the dark-haired man standing a couple feet away from him and talking to numbers 12 and 32.

  “He’s cute,” I replied quietly.

  “I’ll tell Luke and see if he can work something out,” Avery smiled. I was ready to protest when the man in question walked up to us. He had a tendency of doing that and I was just waiting for him to walk up at the wrong time.

  “Hey, Ave,” he said, scooping his sister into a hug. “Josie,” he smiled once he set his actual sister back on the ground.

  “Hey,” I replied casually. “Good game today. Sorry about your ankle.”

  He shrugged it off, probably used to some sort of injury in his line of work. “It’ll be fine. I’ll just stay in bed tomorrow and we’ll see what happens.”

  “Hey!” Avery interrupted, excitedly. “Josie’s going to go out with you guys tonight, if that’s okay.”

  “What?” I started to protest.

  “Really?” Luke asked, sounding just as surprised as I felt. “Yeah, that’s totally fine. If you wanted to wait out here, I can give you a ride once we’re all showered and ready to go.”

  “I don’t –” Once again, I was interrupted by Avery’s excited voice.

  “Perfect! I have to go home but have fun!” She threw a wink my way before she walked off with Mike and my mom. I couldn’t even get mad at her. She had good intentions and she was so sweet. She just didn’t know putting me in a car with Luke after my talk with Jess wouldn’t end well.

  Then again…it might end better than well, depending on the approach.

  Luke smirked at me once our family left and took a step closer. “Is this your way of accepting my offer?”

  I rolled my eyes at him because even though, yes, I had decided to keep hooking up with him, he was still a pain in the ass. “It’s Avery’s way of trying to get you to set me up with num
ber 87.”

  He furrowed his eyebrows at me before laughing. “What, Jarrod?”

  “Yeah. She seems convinced that I need to get with one of your friends. Oh, and my friend Jess wants you to set her up with one of your teammates, too.”

  “Your friend, I can help. But if you want anyone on the team besides number 56, that’s all on you.” I was slowly becoming convinced his resting expression was that damn smirk he always seemed to have around me. He was getting cocky around me, knowing exactly what to do and say to make me squirm. Not anymore. I was about to shamelessly flirt until that smirk wasn’t even a thought in his mind.

  *****

  The drive from the stadium to the bar the team frequented didn’t take long and it was mostly spent with Luke talking excitedly about the game. For the first time since we officially met, I genuinely smiled at him. Seeing people talk about the things they’re passionate about is a great feeling, even when I knew he’d be an arrogant asshole in less than an hour’s time.

  Halfway through his animated recollection of his best plays of the game, he stopped mid-sentence and looked at me with a confused smile. “What?”

  “Nothing,” I said, shaking my head. “You’re just cute when you’re excited.”

  “Cute?” he repeated. When I nodded, his voice dropped an octave and he leaned towards me just a bit, his eyes still focused on the road in front of him. “You know cute isn’t the right word to describe me.”

  “It’s been a little while. I might need a reminder,” I said. Luke’s eyes widened a little before that signature smirk reappeared.

  “So you are accepting my offer.”

  “Ask me later tonight. That guy Jarrod was pretty hot.”

  “No,” he laughed. “He’s my best friend. He knows he’s not supposed to fuck my sister.”

  “Last time I checked, fucking your best friend’s sister is far more acceptable than fucking your own sister,” I replied, raising my eyebrows in challenge.