“Maybe one day you’ll be able to and if not that’s okay too. It’d be my honor to share your heart with Jake.” He reached up and cradled her face in the palms of his hand. “How about we take it one day at a time? Yeah?”
She wrapped her hands around his wrists. “If I say yes, will you kiss me again?”
“Is that an invitation Cara?”
“Yes.” She said and before she could smile fully he pulled her face to his and his mouth found hers. He took control of the kiss, working her lips so perfectly that she had no choice but to part them, craving more. He slipped his tongue inside reveling in the taste that was all Cara. He didn’t know what drunk was until he was kissing Cara and he was drunk on her. Her fingers went to his hair and she grabbed at the ends desperate for him and everything he poured into that kiss. His heart. His soul. Him.
Chapter Sixteen
December 1
Cara stood in the center of her living room in her new apartment, glancing around at all the boxes that she had to unpack, dreading it. She blew a piece of hair out of her eye that had fallen out of her ponytail and braced her hands on her hips contemplating what to tackle first. The front door kicked open and Luke strode in carrying another box.
“This is the last of it.” He declared setting the box down alongside the rest of the boxes that crowded the small living room. She looked up at him as he eyed all the boxes before finding her eyes. “Jesus Cara, you got a lot of shit.” He said as he scratched the back of his head. She laughed slightly and climbed over the debris of boxes and bubble wrap wrapping her arms around his neck then pulling him down so she could press her lips to his.
“Luckily Rudy likes Benny, and we didn’t have to move in with you.” She said between kisses.
“I would’ve bought a bigger house.” He said as he cupped her ass with the palms of his hand, squeezing her cheeks playfully.
She laughed before she nibbled on her lower lip. “I bet.”
December 2
Luke looked over at Sam clearly uncomfortable. “I don’t think this is a good idea.” His eyes turned back to the instructors that were spinning their students along the wooden floor. He ran his hands along his thighs and shook his head. He couldn’t believe he had agreed to his sister’s ridiculous idea, in fact he wasn’t sure he actually did agree to it, but here he was waiting for his turn.
“Would you just relax?” Sam said, rubbing her hand along his back, trying to ease his nerves.
“Remind me again why I let you talk me into this?” He mumbled miserably. The song ended, signaling that another set of student’s would be selected for their lesson. Luke prayed they didn’t call his name.
“Luke Lanza?” The brunette called, eyeing the few people that sat waiting for their turn. Luke grimaced, naturally, they’d call him next. He glanced at Sam, who smiled at him encouragingly before he drew in a deep breath and rose to his feet.
The instructor’s eyes glided up and down sizing him up and then smiled at him. Luke wondered if she could tell by just glancing at him that he was blessed with two left feet. He stood in front of her, feeling like an imbecile.
“It says here, we’re going to teach you how to Salsa.” She said looking over the form Sam filled out when he registered for ten lessons. His eyes widened and he looked over his shoulder at his sister who was sitting down giving him the thumbs up.
“Salsa?!” He whispered harshly. He thought he was there to learn how to twirl Cara around the dance floor without stepping on her toes.
“Shall we begin?” The instructor asked, nodding to her assistant to cue the music. The music cued and Luke turned around suddenly when he felt the instructor place her hands on his hips. “Let’s loosen those hips!” She said enthusiastically.
Luke felt his cheeks redden instantly. The things you do when you’re in love…
December 3
Luke walked alongside his father and the contractor, he hired. The contractor held the blueprints in his hand and pointed to the open space in which cement foundation was being laid. He pointed to the construction site and then to the blueprints, explaining step by step how this bare area would transform into Jake’s Custom Bike Shop. Luke watched as his father absorbed everything the contractor was saying and couldn’t help but wonder what his father was thinking. He took a chance on the design of the garage they were building, hoping it would eventually be the place his brother dreamed of.
Joe shook the contractors hand and watched him walk back to the site where his crew was diligently working despite the cold weather conditions. He turned back to face his son, draping his arm around Luke’s shoulders.
“What do you think?” Luke asked, shoving his hands into his pockets, walking alongside his father back to the truck. He couldn’t explain why, but this project he was embarking on was so incredibly important to him. He wanted every last detail to be perfect. Maybe it was his desire to finally succeed in being able to give something to Jake. He needed to make peace with the fact that he couldn’t save him, but here and now, he could honor him.
“I think your brother would be so damn proud.” Joe said, his voice thick with emotion. He turned around once they reached the truck and patted Luke’s cheek. “You did good Luke. You did real good.” He nodded over Luke’s shoulder towards the site. “It’s going to be a dream come true.”
He stared into his father’s eyes and swallowed hard against the lump in his throat.
December 4
Sam and Nick climbed the steep hill that was covered with a fresh blanket of snow. He held her hand tightly, careful that she wouldn’t slip as they made their way to Jake’s place of rest. Sam looked down at the stone, not really believing that she was standing in a cemetery looking at her brother’s headstone.
“Hey Jake.” She said softly, taking in all the flowers and trinkets that decorated the area in front of the stone. There was a porcelain crucifix, a bouquet of flowers, a teddy bear and small toy motorcycle.
“Hi Buddy.” Nick said as he wrapped an arm loosely around Sam. “We came to pay our respects to our biggest fan and share some news with you.”
Sam smiled and glanced over her shoulder at the man she loved. He winked at her and her heart melted a little bit. She couldn’t wait to marry him. Sam turned back to the stone as she reached into her purse and pulled out a small frame. She bent down and added it to the collection of trinkets that stood in front of the stone. “We’re having a baby girl, big brother.” She whispered, praying he heard her. A tear trickled down her cheek. “Nick and I are going to have a daughter.” She said in awe as she traced a finger over the framed sonogram photo she was leaving her brother.
Nick bent down and placed his hands on Sam’s shoulders affectionately. “You’ll be doing a guy like me a big favor bro, if you look out for her. If she’s anything like her mother, I’m going to have my hands full.”
Sam laughed slightly. “He’s loving, the fact that you’re going to have a daughter.”
“Oh, I don’t doubt he is.” Nick said softly, then chuckled to himself. “Wherever you are brother, I bet you’re wiggling those eyebrows anticipating the teenage years and when she brings home her first boyfriend.”
Sam looked up at Nick. “I hate that she’ll never know him.”
“She’ll know him. It’s our job to tell her all about him and how much he would’ve loved her.” Nick said firmly, vowing that his daughter would know that she had an Uncle Jake, and he was always watching out for her. After all, everyone needed a guardian angel, didn’t they?
December 5
Cara sat Indian style on Luke’s back as he did pushups, completely unfazed by the rise and fall of her body as he did his workout. She had to admit though the gym set up, he had in the basement of his house was pretty impressive. It almost made her want to work out… almost. She was content eating her Snicker’s bar and badgering him on Christmas gift suggestions. Besides, sitting on top of someone as they lifted you up and down while they did pushups consisted of working
out too, didn’t it? She could definitely say she participated.
“Luke! You can’t ignore me forever. There are only twenty shopping days left!” She said sucking the last of the chocolate off of her thumb as she finished the candy bar.
Luke grunted and continued his set. “Cara, she’ll love anything you give her.” He said through breaths.
“What about an Easy Bake Oven?” She asked thoughtfully.
Luke rolled his eyes and counted to five before he pushed up again. “You could give Ava a pencil and she will treasure it just because you gave it to her. She loves you Cara.” And with his last sentence he laid flat on the floor, resigning on the pushups.
“I know, but, well, I just want to get her something special.” She sighed and rolled off of him and stretched out on the floor beside him. He pushed himself up and grabbed a bottle of water, guzzling it down. “Didn’t you ever get a gift that you wanted so badly, you never forgot about it?”
She raised an eyebrow as he guzzled the bottle until it was empty. When his thirst was quenched, he looked at her. “Yes, it was a collector’s edition G.I. Joe. Does that help?” He asked, hiding his grin, knowing very well it didn’t.
“Do you still have it?” She asked, ignoring his smirk.
“No, of course not.” He said with a laugh and rose to his feet, holding out his hands to her to help her up.
“But you said it was a collector’s edition.” She said, putting her hands in his and letting him pull her to her feet.
“It was. I never even took it out of the package.” He said and pressed his lips to her forehead.
She drew her eyebrows together and looked up at him. “Then what happened to it?”
“Jake.” He said with a laugh. “I came home one day from school and he had built a fort and decided that my G.I. Joe needed to battle it out in the fort.” He laughed at the memory.
“Were you mad?” She asked as they started for the stairs.
“For about a minute, and then I jumped right in and played along.” He wrapped his arm around her as they climbed the stairs. “Toys are made to be played with anyway.”
“You were even a good-hearted kid.” She said, shaking her head in awe.
“Yeah, you struck gold Spunky.” He said with a laugh. She punched his rock hard bicep playfully catching the sarcasm in his voice and then she sighed. She still had no idea what to buy Ava for Christmas.
December 6
“Deb! Did you hide the batteries? The damn controller isn’t working!” Joe bellowed as he walked through the living room into the dining room carrying his broken remote. He spotted his wife sitting at the table with her glasses on as she filtered through a box. “Hello? Deb? Batteries? Did you hear me? The controller isn’t working.”
“They were just babies.” She said more to herself than to her husband as she stared at the photos in an old photo album.
Joe grabbed his glasses from the top of his head and slid them on. He looked over his wife’s shoulder at the photo she was talking about. It was a picture of their three children unwrapping Christmas presents. Sam was just a toddler playing with the wrapping paper. Jake was holding up drum sticks for the kit Santa had brought that morning. Luke was grinning with his hands full of baseball cards and a New York Yankee cap on his head.
“Wow, seems like it was just yesterday.” He said nostalgic and placed a hand on her shoulder. “What made you go through these albums?” He asked.
Deb removed her glasses and placed the photo back under the clear paper. “I went into the attic to get the stockings for the mantle and I came across the box of Christmas albums.”
“I thought you didn’t want to decorate this year.”
“I just wanted to hang the stockings.” She said not sure why she wanted her mantle full of the stockings she had for her children since they were babies. She lifted the red and white stocking that had Jake’s name written in gold glitter along the white cuff. She remembered carefully writing his name in Elmer’s glue and sprinkling the glitter on, when he was just a child.
“Maybe we should call the grief counselor if you’re having a rough time.” He said softly reminding her that they weren’t alone in their grief for their son. They had been going to grief counseling for months now and to Joe’s surprise, it helped. There were other people just like them grieving for a child, whether that child was younger or older, together they found a way to heal.
“No, no… I’m fine. It’s just there are days… you know.” She looked at her husband. “I’ll always miss my son Joe, especially around the holidays.”
“I know, dear. I know.” He said and pulled out a chair to sit beside her. He looked at the stocking she held in her hands. “I miss him too.” He said hoarsely as Deb reached out and covered his hand with hers. They had their days.
December 7
Cara was sitting on her couch, most of her boxes were unpacked and she and Benny had settled into their new home. He was sitting on the rug chewing on a new rawhide while she attacked a tub of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream. It was Friday night and she was settling in with her remote for the night, flicking through the movie channels. She licked the ice cream off the back of her spoon when her phone rang beside her. She glanced down sticking the spoon back in the container and saw Luke and Ava’s picture on her home screen. She smiled and answered the call.
“Hello?”
“Hi, Cara! It’s me Ava.” She said excitedly into the phone.
“Hey baby. What’s going on?” Cara said with a smile, digging back into the ice cream.
“Daddy said you should open your door.” Ava said with a giggle.
Cara instantly turned her gaze to her closed door with her curiosity spiked. She unraveled her legs and stood up. “Why?” She asked inquisitively unable to contain her smile.
“She asked why, Dad.” Ava whispered to Luke.
Cara swung open the door with her free hand, holding her tub of ice cream in the other. A smile spread across her face when she set her eyes on Ava, who was holding Luke’s phone to her ear, giggling. She lifted her head and her eyes met Luke’s. He was holding a pizza box in his hand.
“Didn’t think we’d let you miss date night with us, did you?” He said with a smile.
Ava closed the door and ran underneath Cara’s arm, making a beeline for the dog.
“Benny, it’s pizza night!!” She said as she ran into the apartment. Cara glanced over her shoulder watching Ava throw herself on the floor while Benny tackled her with kisses. She turned around and saw Luke eyeing the tub of ice cream she was still holding.
She bit her lip and scrunched her face. “It’s dinner time.”
“Then we came just in time.” He said with a wink. “Save the ice cream for dessert, Baby.”
“You called me Baby.” She smiled.
“Would you rather Spunky?” He asked and then was treated to her wrapping her free arm around his neck. She pulled him down to meet her waiting mouth. Her lips pressed perfectly to his.
“You can call me anything you want.” She said between the kisses she peppered over his smiling mouth.
December 8
Luke laid along the length of his couch with Cara laying over him. He ran his fingers through her hair as she snored against his chest. He tilted his head up a bit and pressed his lips to the top of her head.
“I’m pretty sure I love you.” He whispered to the sleeping beauty nestled in the crook of his arm. He laid his head back against the arm of the couch and stared up at the ceiling wide awake.
December 9
“Okay, I think I’m ready.” Sam said, taking a deep breath as she stared at herself in the mirror of the dressing room she stood in. It was her final fitting for her wedding dress and outside behind the curtain, her father paced.
“Okay, sweetie, we’re ready.” Deb said from behind the curtain. She looked over at her husband that was chewing on a toothpick pacing the dress store. “Joe, you’re going to make her nervous.”
“Deb
ra, leave me be.” He said roughly. After all, it wasn’t every day you saw your only daughter in a wedding gown. He had been mentally preparing himself for the big day, trying to convince himself he could walk her down the aisle. He could give her away. Christ, the thought shattered him. She was just a little girl in his eyes, alright so maybe she was a woman, and he had to come to terms with that, but when he looked at her, she was still just the little girl who danced in the living room to Rave On with him, promising she’d never leave him.
In just a few short days he’d walk her down that short aisle and place her hand in Nick’s watching as the little girl he read bedtime stories too vowed to love another man for the rest of her life. He lifted his head as she pulled back the curtain and the woman who stood before him in a wedding gown, wasn’t a little girl anymore.
Deb smiled through her tears as she watched Sam step out of the dressing room, her eyes focused on her father, seeking his approval.
“Dad?” Sam said as she spun around in her dress smiling. “What do you think?” She asked when she had made a complete circle. Her eyes found his and he couldn’t help the tears that slid down his cheek.
“You’re beautiful.” He whispered. “So incredibly beautiful.”
Sam smiled brightly as she watched her father stare at her in awe.
December 10
Cara climbed onto Luke’s bed. He was sprawled across the bed, his hands tucked under his head as he slept. She leaned over him and brushed the fallen strands of hair away from his face and dipped her head pressing her lips against his. Her fingers dug into the white T-shirt that he wore as she felt him return her kiss. He moaned slightly as her tongue ran along the seam of his mouth seeking entry. His lips parted and she slipped her tongue inside. She wrapped her arms around him as he took hold of her hips and flipped her over onto her back. He pulled back slightly and stared at her with a sleepy look. As groggy as he was though he was completely turned on. The evidence was pressed against her leg.
Fitting The Pieces (The Riverdale Series Book 3) Page 19