He nodded slowly, understanding. “Sober is a better look on you, doll.” He motioned towards Jake’s empty station. “My boy would be proud.” His eyes traveled down to the carrier she was holding and he bent his legs slightly to take a peek. “This little guy yours?”
“He sure is, his name is Benny.” She said with a smile and lifted the carrier. “Benny was a gift from Luke and Ava.” She said with a smile, still reeling at how thoughtful it was to surprise her with a puppy.
“Cute.” He murmured, and rose to his full height, clapping his hands together and rubbing them eagerly. “So what are we doing today?”
She diverted her attention from the sleepy puppy in the carrier to Pete. When she called Pete that morning to schedule an appointment, she had done it spontaneously, not realizing once she had stepped inside the shop she’d feel an overwhelming sense of loss. Pete must’ve sensed her apprehension, because he took her hand and led her towards his station, which was adjacent to Jake’s.
“Jake told me you had a love for ink. He wouldn’t shut up about it when I did that piece for him on his chest.” Pete said and stopped walking when he realized she stood frozen in Jake’s cubicle.
“I loved it because it allowed me to be his canvas.” She admitted as she stared at the chair that she had sat in when he had inked the band of strength to her finger. She turned around and looked at Pete. “Would you mind doing it here?” She knew it was a selfish thing to ask of Pete. He and Jake had been real tight and seeing as how nothing of Jake’s had been touched in months she knew she was probably asking for Pete to cross a line, he wasn’t quite sure he was ready to cross.
Pete stared at Jake’s station, taking in the fact that every piece of equipment had been exactly the way Jake left it. His eyes fell onto Cara’s. “Can I ask you why?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “I’m learning to make it on my own, for the first time… well in forever. I miss him, and I don’t know it’s silly, but I thought if I sat in that chair I’d feel him again. I’m not crazy Pete. I’m just trying to make it without him and hold onto the times I shared with him, and still go on with my life.”
He took a deep breath and pulled out the stool Jake had sat in time after time. He grabbed a pair of latex gloves that sat on his counter and straddled the stool. He looked up at the ceiling and shook his head, before moving his eyes to settle on Cara. “Alright, let’s do this.”
Cara placed Benny’s carrier on the floor before she took a seat. She was about to lift the hem of her shirt and have Pete get down to business, but then she paused and turned around to face him. “Thanks Pete and thank you for taking care of Riverdale Ink. You’ve done Jake proud.”
He smiled at her and grabbed Jake’s needle and hoped she was right.
It was seven o’clock when Luke pulled up to his house. He didn’t have much time to make dinner, and he still had to put Ava in the bath and check her homework before he put her to bed. He was exhausted just thinking about it.
“Daddy, whose car is that,” Ava asked, breaking Luke’s train of thought and for the first time he noticed Cara’s car parked in the driveway.
“Cara’s,” he said taken back. He completely forgot about their joint custody situation over Benny, having been too wrapped up in his daily responsibilities. He turned off the car and Ava had her seatbelt undone before he could take the key out of the ignition. “Ava, wait!” He said and before he could protest anymore, she was out the door running up towards the front door. He reached into the back for her school bag and got out of the truck. When he reached the front door, it swung open before he could put his key into the lock.
“Cara! Did you bring Benny too?” Ava asked excitedly.
“Hey cutie,” She said, leaning down and kissing the top of her head. “I did, he’s in the kitchen playing with the new toy I bought him. I think he’s learning fetch.” She winked at her.
“Benny!! It’s me Ava, I’m home!” She said, pulling off her jacket and shoving it on the hook by the door before running straight past Cara, towards the kitchen.
Cara laughed at Ava’s excitement and moved aside so Luke could come in. He closed the door behind him and started to walk inside but stopped in his tracks.
“What’s that smell?” He said as he took off his jacket, fighting back the yawn that was threatening.
“I cooked dinner.” She said as she nibbled nervously on her lip. “I hope that’s okay.”
“You cooked dinner?” He asked flabbergasted as he hung up his jacket. A strange feeling crept inside of him, a foreign feeling. He couldn’t remember the last time he came home to a house that wasn’t dark and empty. He was pretty sure there was never a time that he came home to a woman greeting him at the door and his home filled with an aroma of something that was not cooked by him.
“It’s nothing fancy, just roasted chicken and vegetables.” She shrugged her shoulders.
He turned around and found her eyes as she chewed nervously on her bottom lip. He could faintly hear Ava’s giggles and Benny’s bark from the kitchen as he stared at Cara. He wanted her. He wanted her in his life in all the ways that mattered. The knowledge of that weighed heavy on his chest. Desperate to gain some self-control, he cleared his throat.
“You get your tattoo?” He asked, his voice still hoarse despite his attempts at controlling his emotions.
She nodded and then smiled easily towards him. “If you promise to eat all your veggies I’ll show it to you later.” She took his hand and led him towards the kitchen completely unbeknownst to the battle raging in Luke’s head. This joint custody of a puppy was proving to be very dangerous to Luke’s peace of mind.
He trailed behind her, trying to peel his eyes off of her ass and made a silent promise to eat every fucking vegetable on his plate. Hell, he’d even go for seconds.
Chapter Twelve
Luke pushed back his chair and grabbed his empty plate, along with Ava’s, piling them on top of one another. He glanced at Cara’s half-eaten plate.
“Still working on that?” He asked, causing her eyes to drift from Ava who was playing happily on the floor with Benny.
“No, but I’ve got it.” She said reaching for her dish, but he was too quick.
“You cooked dinner.” He said firmly and piled her plate on top of the other two, stepping towards the trash to discard the remnants of the food that was left on the plates.
“So?” She said, as she stood to take the roasting pan with the leftovers to the counter. “I can manage to clean up the kitchen, Luke.” She placed the pan onto the counter and turned to him as he stood beside her rinsing the dishes and loading the dishwasher.
“I can manage to load a dishwasher.” He countered as he busied himself doing just that. She watched him for a moment, taking notice of how quickly he loaded the dishwasher. Even Ava began to load it with their cups.
“That was good Cara, better than the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches Dad said we were having.”
Cara’s eyes widened and she turned to stare at Luke, while he dried his hands on a dishtowel. His eyes were firmly planted on his daughter.
“It’s getting late, why don’t you go get your pajamas ready and I’ll be up in a minute to set the shower up for you.”
Ava looked between her dad and Cara. “Can Cara help me?”
“Cara was nice enough to cook dinner…”
Cara cut him off. “Of course I can.” She looked back at Luke. “Since you're busy doing the dishes and all, I’d be happy to help.” She winked and took Ava’s hand in hers letting the little girl lead her towards the stairs.
Luke watched them disappear up the stairs and leaned against the counter. He heard their soft footsteps above him and glanced around his kitchen as he ran his fingers roughly through his hair. What the fuck was he doing? He liked her in his house and not because she cooked dinner and helped him with his daughter. He liked her there because it felt right to him. He didn’t realize how much he missed having someone to come home to, someone
to share his life with, but then again, how did you miss something you never had to begin with? Maybe missing was the wrong word. Maybe he was beginning to realize what he wanted in life and it was Cara who was opening his eyes. He finished cleaning up the kitchen, placing the leftovers in a plastic container. He placed them in the refrigerator and then bent down to pet Benny, who was sniffing his ankles.
“Hey boy.” He said and scratched between his ears. He noticed Benny had a new t-shirt, this one read “Stud Muffin” and he couldn’t help but smile. He pet him one final time on top of his head before rising to his feet and grabbing Ava’s book bag that was slung over one of the kitchen chairs. He pulled out a chair and went through her bag. He checked her homework, signed it and then emptied her lunch box and set it on the counter as a reminder for the morning. He sighed heavily, exhaustion overcoming him, and climbed the stairs listening to his daughter's giggles. When he found his way to her bedroom, he stopped at the doorway and watched. Ava was in her pajamas sitting on the edge of the bed, and Cara was sitting Indian style behind her braiding her damp hair.
“Now tomorrow when you take the braid out all this beautiful hair will be wavy.” She said as she secured the end of the braid with a tiny rubber band.
“Thanks, Cara!” She turned and leaned further onto the bed and hugged her.
Benny brushed past Luke and jumped onto Ava’s bed, knocking down the embracing girls and showered them both with kisses. Luke grunted it was the second time that day he found himself jealous of the little beagle.
Cara glanced towards the door, while flat on her back. “Not going to join in the fun?” She asked as Benny jumped on her and licked Ava who was lying next to her.
Luke shook his head. She had no fucking idea what she was doing to him.
“Ava, it’s time for bed.” Luke announced and immediately heard the whine of disappointment escape his little girl. Apparently, she didn’t want the night to end either.
“But Dad…” She started as Cara sat up.
“No worries, Ava. We’ll hang out tomorrow, if it’s okay with Daddy.” Cara said looking back at Luke. “I have to drop off Benny again so…”
“That’s fine.” He said his eyes never leaving hers.
Cara smiled at him and then grabbed Benny before she climbed out of the bed. She looked down at Ava and leaned in pressing a kiss to her cheek. “Sweet dreams, Ava.” She said to her as she made herself comfortable in her bed.
“Goodnight Cara.” Ava said happily. “Goodnight Benny.”
Cara turned around and bumped into Luke, who was standing right behind her. She looked up at him, her eyes searching his. She hoped she wasn’t overstepping any unknown boundaries of their newfound friendship, inviting herself over again. She tried to read him, but his facial expression was blank and she noted that he didn’t step back. His eyes firmly planted on her. His body firmly lodged in front of hers, not budging. He looked tired, but there was something else in his darkened eyes, something she never noticed before.
“I’ll just go downstairs and get Benny situated for the night.” She said softly.
Still, he didn’t move.
“I’m going in the shower.” He said in that gruff voice.
“Okay then, I’ll just lock up when I leave.”
“Don’t leave.” He said and her eyebrows immediately furrowed in confusion.
“Don’t leave?” She asked.
“Don’t leave.” He repeated firmly, playing with fire.
“Okay.” She whispered. Great, he was mad. Why else would he want her to stay? Because first you make him take care of a damn dog on top of everything else he has to do. Then you invite yourself into his house to cook for him and his daughter. It didn’t matter she was trying to pay him back for all the things he had done for her. She should’ve asked first. Luke and Ava had a routine, they had their life down to a science, and here she came with her dog screwing all that up. She watched as he took a step to the side, giving her space to pass him so she could leave the room, and that’s exactly what she did. Only she paused once outside the room and listened, knowing she was totally eavesdropping.
“Goodnight, sweetheart.” He said softly, the gruffness in his voice now gone. “I love you.”
“I love you too, Daddy.” She said and planted some sugar on his cheek. He shut her lamp off and flicked her nightlight on. “Daddy?”
“Yeah, baby?”
“I liked having Cara here tonight.”
He straightened up and looked at his daughter and waited a beat. “Me too.” He agreed and then placed his lips to her forehead one last time. “Now get some sleep.”
“Okay.” She said softly and closed her eyes. Luke watched her for a moment before slipping out of her room, walking down the hallway to his bedroom. He headed straight to the bathroom that's right off his bedroom and started the shower. When he went back into his room, he kicked off his boots and pulled his grease stained shirt over his head. He walked barefoot and bare-chested towards his dresser as he took off his watch. He placed it on the dresser along with the contents of his pockets when he looked up and noticed Jake’s letter still tucked into the frame of his mirror, unopened, unread.
He wondered if he’d ever have the courage to read it. Part of him wanted to desperately know what his brother had to say, while the other part was afraid of his words. Would the answers to all his questions be in that letter? Or would it just be another plea to take care of what he left behind. Cara. Luke sighed and turned away from the mirror. He wanted to take care of Cara, just not the way he promised. When he vowed to look after her, it was to ensure she went on with her life. That she healed from the loss of his brother. Now all he wanted to do was take care of her in the sense that she wasn’t Jake’s, but that she was his to take care of. He hated himself for thinking that way, for feeling that way, yet he wondered if there was a way to honor what she had with Jake and still make her, his. He was completely out of his mind, he gathered as he headed to take a shower.
* * * * *
Cara sat nervously on the couch, waiting for Luke. She heard the water shut off a few minutes ago and knew she was just moments away from Luke setting some new boundaries. She sighed heavily. Her friendship with Jake hadn’t had many boundaries at all, maybe that was her problem. Maybe she was comparing her friendship with Luke to her friendship with Jake and if that was the case, she was in over her head. Luke was the complete opposite of Jake. Not that that was a bad thing, just something she wasn’t used to. She lifted her head when she heard him coming down the steps and sat up straighter.
His hair was still wet, making it look almost black as it curled around his neck. He hadn’t shaved and so he had a little stubble outlining his jaw. He was wearing a white fitted T-shirt that stretched across his chest, making Cara realize how broad Luke really was. She knew he was tall. Her neck cramped when she had to tilt it upward to meet his eyes, but for the first time she noticed how muscular he was. His shoulders were wide and his arms were ripped. His forearms were bare and she could see the tattoos, unable to make out what they were from the distance that separated them. His shirt was loose around his stomach and led her to believe there was a flat abdomen hidden beneath that shirt. If she had to bet, she’d put all her money on the fact that there was a six pack to be discovered under that shirt too.
The sweats, he wore were gray and he was pulling the drawstring tight and tying it as he stepped off the last step. His feet were bare and as she noted that she let her eyes roam back up his body to his face. Luke Lanza was hot. Like really hot. Cara frowned at her discovery, wondering why he was single.
“What’s with the frown?” He asked, his voice back to normal as he grabbed the remote control from the coffee table and sat beside her.
“You’re hot.” She blurted freely and then closed her eyes mentally kicking herself.
Luke froze as he pointed the remote towards the TV and turned to face her.
She sighed and opened her eyes to meet his. “Well, you
are.” She shrugged her shoulders and squinted noticing for the first time he wasn’t blushing when she made a comment about him. “I was just wondering how a guy like you is single, then I remembered you weren’t single and that I botched that all up, being needy Cara addicted to drugs.” She cocked her head to the side. “Do you miss her?”
Luke knew she was referring to Leah. He turned his head back towards the TV and flickered through to the movie channels. “No.”
“Not even a little?”
“She wasn’t for me.” He said as he stretched his arm along the back of the couch. “You have a movie preference?”
“We’re going to watch a movie?” She asked surprised.
“You have something else in mind you want to do?” He asked as he cocked an eyebrow but kept his eyes glued to the TV.
“A movie is good.” She said softly as she took in his profile. He had a solid jaw and she suddenly had the urge to run her fingers over it, outlining the lines of his face. She blew out a breath softly and swallowed. Where were these thoughts coming from? She shook her head. Maybe she was living and breathing after all.
“Cara.”
“Yeah?”
“You didn’t show me your tattoo.” He said and then turned to face her, his dark eyes traveling the length of her trying to locate her new ink. “I ate all my vegetables.” He said pointedly.
She unraveled her legs that were tucked underneath her and stood in front of him.
“Can you remove the bandage? I probably should let it breathe a little.” She said as she lifted the hem of her shirt, revealing her flat stomach. Luke’s eyes watched as she lifted the shirt over her breasts, revealing a purple lacy bra. He swallowed and his eyes found the gauze that was taped to her side right under her breast. He sat up and leaned forward, taking his arm off the back of the couch. He glanced up at her before he started to peel the gauze from her ribcage. She hissed slightly and he looked back up at her.
Fitting The Pieces (The Riverdale Series Book 3) Page 14