by Harlow Layne
He kissed the side of my head and murmured. “Deep down you’re a romantic at heart.”
A smile tipped my lips. “You think?” I certainly never thought so.
“I do. You just never had anyone who would reciprocate those feelings until now.”
“This is pretty romantic, Mr. Sandström.” I patted his chest above his heart. “Thank you for this. If we weren’t in a room full of impressionable children I would kiss you so hard right now.”
“You can pay me back when we get home.”
There it was again. Luke had called my house home and I loved it.
“And if I could, I’d climb you because God you seem extra tall tonight. I should’ve worn heels.” I placed my hand on his stubbly cheek. “I’m sorry you’ve always got to bend down so far to reach me.”
Threading his fingers through my hair, Luke kept swaying to the music with me. “Not a hardship in anyway.”
“I want to dance with you every day that we’re together.”
“You’ve got a date.”
“Did you know you're the best boyfriend ever?” I placed my cheek against his chest and with one ear listened to my favorite song and the other listened to my favorite sound. Luke’s heartbeat.
“No, but I’m glad you think so.” Luke twirled me out and back into his embrace before his lips caressed the shell of my ear. “I love you too, beautiful.”
8
Opening my eyes, I was greeted with a worried face instantly making me go on alert. “Sweetheart, what is it? Are you okay?”
“Momma?” Mason shakily spoke from the side of the bed. “Miss Prue is yelling at a man in her front yard. They woke me up.” It had to be early if they woke Mason up and that wasn’t a good sign.
The bed dipped as an arm wrapped around me. “Are they still yelling?” Luke asked his voice rough first thing in the morning.
Mason nodded stilled worried, his bottom lip trembled. “I don’t like it. Miss Prue is always nice to everyone.”
“I’m on it, buddy,” Luke knifed up out of bed and started to head to the door.
“Luke! You need some shoes and a coat. It’s freezing outside.” I called as I watched him walk down the hall barefoot with only sleep pants on. A pair that we bought so that he could sleep in bed with me and Mason wouldn’t get any surprises in the morning if he came in. Luke liked to sleep naked, but that wasn’t always plausible with a seven-year-old in the house who could come in any minute.
Lifting the blankets from the bed, I patted next to me for Mason to get in. I held him tight as I heard shouting coming from next door and then the front door closed.
“Are you okay, sweetie?”
“Yeah, Luke will fix it.” He calmly told me. He was right. Luke wouldn’t let some man yell at a woman.
“Get the hell off my property, Holden! You are not welcome here!” Prue shrieked.
A deep rumble came after, but I couldn’t make out what was said.
“You have no right to be here! I don’t want to talk to you or see you ever again! Leave like you did before, Holden. Leave!”
I could hear Luke and the other man’s voices, but they were further away so it was impossible to understand what they were saying. It was several more minutes before Mason and I heard the front door close again and saw Luke coming back into the bedroom.
Releasing my lip from between my teeth, I asked. “Is everything okay?”
“If you mean that the guy left then yes. If you mean your neighbor, then no she’s not okay. I guess her father passed away and the guy, Holden, showed up out of nowhere.”
“Prue’s dad died?” I asked in shock.
Luke sat down next to us on the bed. Even though he didn’t know Prue, he looked saddened by the thought of her father dying. “Yeah, baby. He died and that… a-hole decided now was the time to talk to her when she’s already upset.”
“I should go over there and talk to her. See if she needs anything. Will you guys be okay if I’m gone for a little while?”
Mason sat up and gave me a quick hug before he hopped down from the bed. “I’ll be fine, mamma. Luke, will you make me pancakes?”
A small grin grew on Luke’s face. “Yeah, buddy. I’ll make you pancakes. Do you want chocolate chips?”
His eyes grew wide. “Do you like pancakes with chocolate chips too?” Mason asked excitedly.
“Is there any other way to have them?” he asked back, knowing that chocolate chip pancakes were Mason’s favorite. I knew Luke would only eat them for Mason because you didn’t eat pancakes and have a body like his.
Mason darted out of the room and I was sure he was headed to the kitchen. I couldn’t help but smile.
“Go. We’ll be fine here. If we need anything you’re right next door.”
“Thanks, handsome.” I gave him a quick kiss and rubbed my thumb over his stubbled cheek. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
“No rush. Take care of your friend. While you’re gone I’ll pack up some more boxes so that we’ll be ready to move your stuff tomorrow.”
“It’s going to be weird for the house not to have any of your things in it. How will it seem like it’s your house too? Maybe we should wait.”
“You’re not waiting.” Looking down at me sternly, he took in a deep breath and gritted his teeth. His jaw ticked twice before his face changed back to my sweet Luke. “Your ex-husband is going to find out about us eventually, along with others. I want to know that you and Mason are going to be safe and being in a gated neighborhood and a house with a security system will ease my mind. I need to know that your safe when I’m across the country. Please do this for me.” His eyes pleaded with me.
Even though I wasn’t ready for the change without Luke, I gave in. I didn’t want to cause him undue worry. “Of course, I’ll do it for you. I don’t want you to be worried about us and I know Decker will eventually find out. He’s going to blow up even though he has no right to.”
Pulling me into a hug, Luke kissed the top of my head. “All the more reason for you to be somewhere safe so that he can’t get to you.”
“Someday he’ll find me and confront me.” The thought made my heart race knowing it would be ugly. Before I could think on that any longer or get lost in Luke, I stood to get ready. “Go make Mason some pancakes and I’ll check on Prue.”
Knocking on Prue’s door, I looked back over to my house. I could see Luke’s tall form through the kitchen window as he let Mason help make breakfast.
The front door opened and my head turned to catch Prue’s tear-stricken face. When she saw it was me, she opened the door further and started to walk away. Staying silent, I followed her back to her bedroom and sat down next to her prone form after she laid down and curled up into a ball.
“Prue, sweetie. Are you okay? Is there anything I can do for you? Luke told me about your dad.” I said the last barely above a whisper.
“Can you bring him back, cancer free?” She asked brokenly.
“I wish I could.” Picking up her hand, I held it as I watched her cry silently. “I’m so sorry, Prue. He was such a great man and I’m going to miss him. Can I make you a cup of tea or anything?”
“No, I don’t want anything, but to be left to mourn my father in peace.” She said quietly into her pillow.
“Who was that guy who was here earlier? Do we need to be worried about him?” I asked curiously.
She turned her face into her pillow and cried out. I rubbed up and down her back trying to soothe her as best I could. “What is it, sweetie?”
“It’s Holden,” she sobbed. “He’s back for some reason and showed up here demanding to speak to me. Saying he was already here and heard about my dad.”
“Who is he to you?”
He had to be special enough to cause her so much heartache.
“The man who broke my heart.” She sobbed. “I don’t want to talk about him though. I don’t want to remember what he did to me.”
“Do I need to be worried that he’ll
come back?”
Turning her wet eyes to me, she spoke with conviction. “He’s not violent if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“I wasn’t sure what to think.” Holding her, I let her cry until she seemed to be all cried out for the moment. I hated that after tomorrow I’d no longer be her neighbor. “Um… I hate to bring this up now, but I haven’t had a chance to talk to you since I got back from Mexico, but I’m moving.”
“What? Really? Where? When?” She giggled, and it made me smile. “Oh, gosh, listen to me and all my questions.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’d have the same one’s if you were moving. I’m moving tomorrow, but it’s still in town so we can see each other whenever. The deal was too amazing to pass up and eventually Luke will move in too.”
Prue sat up against her headboard wide eyed. “Wow. Things are really serious between the two of you. I guess Mexico was a hit.”
A smile came over my face as I thought of our time in Mexico. “It was amazing and so is Luke. Every day I wake up and have to pinch myself to make sure I’m not dreaming. How am I living this life? How did I get so lucky to have such an incredible man find me and get along with Mason so well? It’s wonderful and sad at the same time to see. Mason’s father has never given him the time of day and Luke listens to every word he has to say. Right now, they’re making pancakes together.” Happy tears filled my eyes and so did Prue’s.
“Oh, Alex, I’m so happy for you. You and Mason.” Leaping forward, she wrapped her arms around me in a hug.
“Thank you! I didn’t mean to make this about me, but I didn’t want you to find out I was moving when you saw the truck show up in the morning. We won’t be far, and you can come over anytime or call if you need me. Please, it’s going to be so weird at first being in a new house. I need someone to help me pick out furniture because I can’t decorate to save my life.”
“I’d be happy to help. Just tell me when you need me. It’ll help keep my mind off of my dad and Holden.”
Pulling back from our hug, I let her know I’d help her anyway if I could. “If you need a place to get away or hide from Holden just say the word. I’d be happy to help. If you’re sure you don’t need anything I should probably get home to help pack. I have no clue how he packs, and I’d like to know where all my stuff is since he’ll be leaving me to do all the unpacking, and I won’t be able to ask him where everything is every time I can’t find something.”
“Thank you for coming by to make sure I was okay. I really appreciate it. I’m going to miss you and our talks even as infrequent as they were.”
“Call me if you need anything. I mean it.” Giving her a knowing look. Prue was like me in that she rarely if ever asked for help. “Day or night I’m here for you, and I’ll miss you, too.”
“I will, I promise.”
We hugged once more before I left to head home. A little life shined through Prue’s eyes as she waved goodbye.
It was time to pack up my old life and start my new life with Luke and Mason. I was finally getting my happily ever after.
9
Standing in my new kitchen, I was trying to figure out how I was going to organize everything. I had way more space than ever before and yet I still couldn’t figure out where to put everything.
When my phone rang, and Taylor’s picture showed up on my screen, I was happy to stop and talk to her.
“Hey you!” I answered as I sat down on a stool at the kitchen island.
“Hey!” Taylor called back. “How’s the new house? I wasn’t sure if you’d answer.”
“The house is a beautiful mess. I’m trying to put as much stuff away as possible while Luke’s gone.”
“Did he leave already?” Taylor asked confused.
“No, he leaves the day after tomorrow.” My mood instantly shifted thinking about Luke leaving. “God, Taylor, I’m going to miss him so much.”
“I know honey. I’m sorry. I wish there was something I could do.”
“Its life.” I sighed so loudly into the phone it reverberated back. “Once Decker finds out about Luke shit is really going to hit the fan. At least now that we’ve moved he can’t get passed the gates.”
“You let me know if he causes you any problems.”
Letting out a sigh, I looked out the window. “We know he will.”
“I know. Is there a house in that neighborhood for us to move into when we move back?”
“I’m not sure, but it would be awesome. I’d love it if we lived that close.”
“Me too. Have you met your neighbors?”
“Not yet. Colt said he would introduce me to them when he and Anna came later in the month.”
“Your life is so crazy now I can’t believe it, and I’m missing all of it being all the way in Florida.”
“When are you moving back?” I asked sadly.
“I wish I knew. Ben cried so hard the other night because he misses Mason so much. I’m going to try and come visit when he has a couple of days off from school. Hopefully our spring break doesn’t coincide with yours or we’ll probably miss you.”
“Mason would be very upset to know that he missed a visit from Ben.”
“If Decker wasn’t a problem would you and Mason move to LA?”
“Yeah, I probably would. It’s going to suck to only see Luke for a week out of five months.” I didn’t even try to hide my sadness. “It doesn’t matter though because Decker will never let that happen.”
“You’re right he won’t. He loves being an asshole, especially to you. So,” she drew out the word. “I never got to hear about how it went at the sock hop the other night.”
“Oh, you should have seen the women swarm around Luke and then act like they were interested in whatever he was talking about. It was pitiful.”
“What else? I know you’re holding something back. I can hear it in your voice.”
“Damn you know me too well.” Looking up at the ceiling, I felt tears burn the backs of my eyes. I took a deep fortifying breath and told her what I’d been holding in since that night. Luke didn’t even know. “I overheard some of the moms saying they didn’t know what Luke saw in me, that I was ugly, and he could do so much better than me.”
“Oh honey,” Taylor said sympathetically. “You know that’s not true. They’re just jealous bitches. Don’t listen to a single word they say. Luke loves you and I believe with all my heart that he’s the man that you’re meant to be with for the rest of your life.”
“But am I who he’s meant to be with?” I asked hesitantly. Taylor was the sweetest, bestest friend in the whole world and I knew she’d tell me the truth.
“Without a doubt. Don’t you dare start doubting your relationship because if you do then it will not withstand your time apart and with that crazy ass Ashlyn, you’ve got to be on your toes and strong.”
“Taylor,” I whispered her name as my chin trembled. “It really hurt to hear them say that. I even dressed up and did my hair and makeup to the best of my ability. I looked my best without professional help, and they still talked behind my back.”
“Because they are so fucking jealous that you snagged one of the hottest men in the world, who’s also becoming a big name in Hollywood, but also because he’s the sweetest, funniest, most loving man to you and it’s easy to see just by the way he looks at you.”
“Stop. You’re going to make me cry.” I sniffed but held back.
“It’s okay to cry sweetie. Cry because you’re sad about what those stupid women said about you and cry because Luke loves you and what you’ve found is so damn special.”
“Every day I wake up and have to pinch myself because I think - how can this be my life? For so many years I was miserable and felt so unloved, and now just thinking about Luke makes me want to burst with happiness.” I laughed. “It’s really quite sickening.”
“If it was anyone but you I would think so too, but you deserve to be happy and feel loved.”
“We all do, but that doesn’t me
an we get it.”
“Unfortunately, not. Now back to happier topics, change comma to period I kind of can’t believe that you bought a house in a neighborhood I didn’t even know existed and that Luke is pretty much going to be living with you when he’s not working.”
“I didn’t know it existed either until I met Colton. It’s very private, I can give you that. I wonder how long it will take Decker to find it. It’s not like he ever brings Mason home.”
Taylor huffed into her phone. “He’ll probably follow you once he figures out you don’t live at your old house.”
“Probably.” I sighed. It wasn’t going to be fun I knew that. I was thankful to have an alarm system and the security gates. I needed to change the topic away from Decker. I didn’t want thoughts of him to bring me down. “How’s that baby doing?”
“Draining the ever-loving life out of me, but besides that she’s doing great. Growing and kicking me at all hours of the day and night. I barely get any sleep. I’m going to be in a world of trouble when she’s born if she keeps going like this.”
“I wish I could help. Jack needs to get his ass in gear so you can move back here.”
“You’re telling me. I keep threatening to move back since he’s always working, and I could at least be with you and closer to family, but he’s not going for it.”
“Well, now that I’ve got this big house you can stay if you need it. You guys were good sports staying in my tiny house.”
“I may take you up on staying with you again if Ben’s spring break isn’t the same time you’re gone to LA. Does Mason know?”
“No,” I laughed and shook my head even though she couldn’t see it. “If he knew, Mason would pack today and ask me every day when we were leaving.”
“Aww, it’s so sweet how much he likes Luke. I love that for him.”
A smile stretched across my face. “I love it too. Luke’s so good with him and it’s genuine. Something Mason’s always been missing in his life.”
The door coming from the garage beeped letting me know that Luke and Mason were back. “Hey, Luke and Mason just got home. Can I call you in a couple of days?”