“Nice to meet you,” Cat mumbled. She looked down at her hands to break the lock he had on her eyes. She was covered partly in vomit, partly in wet grass, and entirely in embarrassment. She wanted to crawl under the bed and never come out.
“I’ve heard a lot about you, Catie,” he replied simply.
“Great,” Cat thought. His tone offered no indication of whether what he had heard was positive or negative. She took the chance to glance at him and see whether or not his expression would give anything away.
Looking at Luke closely, she realized he didn’t resemble Landon nearly as much as she imagined he did. Her eyes must have been playing tricks on her in the bright sunlight. He had curls, true. But his were dark brown, almost black and short, compared to Landon’s messy mop. He was tall, maybe 6’ 2”. She was always bad at guessing things like that. He wasn’t quite as tall as Landon, though. Luke’s build was more muscular compared to lanky Landon, though he shared the same confident stride. His eyes looked like bright emeralds. He was quite possibly the most attractive male she had ever laid eyes on. She realized, quite suddenly, that she was still staring at him and she shook her head as if to break the spell.
“Luke, thank you for bringing Catie upstairs for me,” Mimi offered, refolding the washcloth and pressing it to her cheeks and forehead. “Catie, what on earth happened to you?”
Luke watched as Cat struggled for words, for some explanation for her sudden collapse. He knew that whatever had overcome her had something to do with a guy named Landon, but who he was and why he had this effect on her, he wasn’t certain. He found himself surprisingly very intrigued. Just having met her a few minutes ago, he was shocked to feel so sincerely interested.
“It might be the sudden change in altitude,” he offered quickly.
Cat gave him a look of gratitude, “I think that must be it.”
“The air is much thinner up here than you would be used to,” Luke nodded.
“Well, I suppose you should just sit tight up here and I’ll bring your lunch up,” Mimi patted her hand. “Luke, will you sit up here with Catie till she’s feeling better?”
“I’m fine,” Cat spat out before Luke could respond. She hadn’t meant it to sound so brusque, but considering the circumstances and how she looked, she wanted to be completely alone. Preferably hidden out of sight for at least a month.
“I think I’m just going to hop in the shower and clean up,” she added in a softer tone.
“Well, just the same, I think it would be best to have someone up here. He can sit outside the door. What if you passed out in the shower?” Mimi walked towards the door, “Is that alright Luke?”
“I — I guess,” he said. He didn’t want to sound eager to sit outside her door while she showered, and he wasn’t sure how comfortable that would be for either of them.
He dared another glance in her direction. She was broken to be sure. Her eyes told him that much the minute they’d met. Mimi had told him that she had been getting wild in New York City, that she was partying, and had become too much for her parents to handle. So, they were sending her to live in the mountains of Boone, NC. Looking at her, he sensed that there was so much more to that story. She looked nothing like the spoiled city girl he had imagined. Sure, from the look of her hands he knew she had never done work on a farm, and her chic ensemble made her quite out of place among Carhartt jeans and steel toed boots, but there was a depth to her eyes that he hadn’t pictured in a rich girl from Manhattan.
They were silent for a good minute after Mimi had left the room. Luke pretended to stare out the window. Cat took off her cardigan and wiped down her neck with the cool washcloth.
“You really don’t have to stay up here with me,” Cat’s voice was a bit curt.
She didn’t mean to be rude to him, but the last 24 hours had been so hellish, she was beyond pretending to be okay. She could feel her composure slipping and when it broke, she would take her anger out on anyone or anything in the vicinity. She didn’t want to do that. Not to a stranger.
Luke shifted from where he was leaning against the wall and sauntered to the old stuffed armchair by the window.
“I don’t think either of us have a choice,” he said as he plopped down.
Annoyed, Cat stood up and walked to the door.
“Well, I’ll need clothes to put on after I get out of the shower,” she snapped, “Do you think you could get my bags for me? Or do you need to ask my grandmother for permission first?”
Luke stared at her. Her eyes were like fire. He had no idea someone could be so haughty while covered in puke and grass, and with their hair all a mess. He began to laugh.
“What?” Cat demanded angrily.
Luke began to howl with laughter. She was amusing to him.
“Stop laughing,” she shouted. She fought the urge to stomp her foot.
“You’re funny,” he chuckled while calming down, and he wiped his eyes.
“Oh, right,” Cat’s tone was full of sarcasm, “This whole situation is just hilarious. I get sent to the boonies against my will to be guarded by some country hick who finds me amusing. Ha-ha. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to take a shower and I expect my bags to be in my room when I get out.”
Cat had gone too far. She knew she had. He didn’t look a thing like a country hick, a farm boy sure, but country hick, no. He had laughed at her though, and that had pushed her over the edge. Still, she felt guilt pour over her and it made her wish she could take it back.
“As you wish, your Majesty.” Luke was fuming now, too. He stood up and bowed to her before brushing past her shoulder as he strode out the door. “Rich bitch,” he muttered just loud enough for her to hear as he stomped down the steps.
“Agh!” Cat stomped to the bathroom door and slammed it shut, just to emphasize her frustration.
Luke heard her banging around in the bathroom as he walked out to the truck. He thought for a moment that she might be different from the New York City girls always stereotyped on TV. Nope. Just a spoiled little brat, used to getting her way.
He knew Mimi intended for him to get to know her so she would have a friend before school started. Yeah, right.
He would just as soon not have to see her again. The interest he had felt towards her upstairs had been replaced by downright dislike. Luke considered himself to be a very patient person, but being called a hick was the one thing he wouldn’t allow.
He grimaced as he remembered she would be working with him on the farm each day. This was going to be just great.
“She will probably expect me to do all the work so she won’t break a precious nail,” he muttered aloud to himself. He would make sure she did her share.
He jerked her bags up with such force the one on the right came open, spilling its contents onto the ground. He stood there staring at her clothes for half a second and thought about kicking them around in the dirt before he bent over and began throwing them back into her duffle bag. When he came across something small and lacy, he paused for a second. He was a guy after all. Then, he shoved whatever it was, and the rest of her belongings, into the bag to keep himself from inspecting it further.
Cat leaned against the sink as she waited for the water to heat up. Why did she have to snap at him? She didn’t even know him, and now she was sure she had an idea of the awful things he thought about her. His “rich bitch” comment had her blood boiling. Nonetheless, Cat decided she would have to make an extra effort to be friendly to him. Hopefully, that would keep him from going around school talking about what a bitch she was before she even had a chance to make a first impression on people. She had three weeks until school would start. Three weeks to change his mind about whatever he might be thinking. She stepped into the tub and let the water wash away her frustration. She felt her tension melting away as she breathed in the steam.
After a hot shower, she felt like a n
ew person. She smelled like one, too. She cursed herself for not thinking about bringing some clothes into the bathroom to change into. Now, she would have to scurry across the hall to her bedroom and hope that she wouldn’t run into Luke on the way. She towel-dried her hair a bit before wrapping the towel around her, under her arms, and across her chest. Cracking the door open just a sliver, she peered out. No one to the left, no one to the right--the coast was clear. Speedily, she darted down the hall on her tiptoes and looked through the door to her room. It was already ajar and she could see her bags on the bed. He had gotten them for her after all. She would have to remember to thank him for that. Peering her head through her door, she didn’t see anyone. With a sigh of relief, she stepped in and closed the door behind her.
Turning, she spotted him and let out a yelp of surprise. He had been sitting in the armchair by the window, probably the one area in the room you couldn’t see from peering in the door. Her squeal had startled him and the book he had been reading tumbled to the floor by her feet: The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. Her eyebrows raised in surprise. Quite a sophisticated novel for someone she had called a country hick not even an hour ago. She felt herself blush.
“Good book,” she commented, bending over to pick it up.
“You’ve read it?” he sounded surprised as he reached out to accept it from her. Not many high schoolers he knew read Ayn Rand. Then again, he was the only one he knew of…until now. If his mother hadn’t been a Literature professor at Appalachian State, he wasn’t sure he would have heard of her.
The astonishment in his voice irritated her. He sounded as though he thought she did nothing but shop and have her nails done or something.
“Yeah, I don’t know that I necessarily agree with her theory of objectivism, but she’s a decent writer,” she replied, aiming to impress.
She knows about objectivism. Luke was intrigued. He didn’t picture her as the philosophical type. He wouldn’t let her impress him that easily though, not after what she had said to him before.
“Neither do I,” said Luke, “I mean there is something to be said for being happy, but to make it the moral purpose of my life seems selfish.”
They stood there, each holding one side of the book until Cat realized she still had her hand on it and let it go.
“I need to get dressed,” she had just become conscious of the fact that all she was wearing was a thin towel and her wet hair was creating a small puddle on the hardwood floor.
“Sure,” Luke walked around her to the door, “You’re feeling okay now?”
He didn’t know why he was asking. After all, he had just decided to despise her, and now he was acting as if he cared.
“Yeah, ummm, thanks,” Cat attempted a smile.
Why was he making her so nervous? She watched him close the door behind him and she fell onto the bed exhausted and confused. Mimi must have brought up a turkey sandwich, since one was now sitting on the nightstand. Starving, she devoured the entire thing before getting herself dressed.
She opted for simple khaki linen shorts and a flowy tank. Not too casual but not dressy, either. She didn’t want to look like she was trying too hard. Cat thought of the encounter they had after she got out of the shower. She thought about apologizing, but had been distracted by his book. Apparently, he was distracted too because he didn’t seem to be angry with her. Maybe they could put their little spat behind them and start over. Maybe it would be as if their initial meeting today had never occurred; that she hadn’t puked on herself and passed out. Wouldn’t that be nice? That was what they needed--a clean start.
“I need a clean start, too,” Cat whispered softly to herself, as she stretched out on the soft, worn quilt that covered the bed.
Perhaps, she would be able to find one here.
Feeling refreshed after a little power nap, Cat hopped down the stairs to find Mimi. Maybe she could persuade her into letting her drive into Boone and look around. She didn’t have a driver’s license, but Mimi didn’t need to know that little detail. How hard could driving really be, anyway? Gas is on the right, brake on the left. Or was it the other way around? Having a driver was a fortunate thing growing up, but it kept her from ever having taken driver’s education. Not that they even offered it at Spence. No one her age had their license anyway. There wasn’t any need.
Walking through the first floor, she was just beginning to think that she was alone in the house when she heard a noise coming from out back. She opened the back door to find Luke, shirt off and weed eater in hand, trimming around the edges of Mimi’s flower garden. He had some strange plastic glasses on, she guessed to protect his eyes from anything that might fly up.
She called to him. He didn’t respond. She called his name once more and then noticed he had earplugs in his ears. She sat on the back-porch swing and watched him while he finished up. Cat knew she should just go inside and wait, but she was bored and, truthfully, she was enjoying watching him work. He was certainly nice to look at with his shirt off, muscles rippling in his arms and chest, but there was something more than that. It was his precision. He wasn’t just trimming away the weeds in a rush, but he was perfectly outlining the stacked stone Mimi had surrounding her flower garden. It was obvious he cared about doing a good job. Cat admired that.
Luke turned off the weed eater and looked up. He was caught off guard, seeing Cat swinging quietly on the porch swing and staring at him. She didn’t look away when he caught her looking at him, but continued to stare. He felt his stomach do a flip-flop. Girls had never made him the least bit nervous before, and he had dated quite a few.
“Do you know where my grandmother is?” she called to him.
Luke realized she had said something, but didn’t hear what it was with the earplugs in his ears. He took them out, pulled off his protective glasses, and began walking towards the house.
“I didn’t catch that,” he said, holding up the earplugs.
“Oh, right,” Cat acknowledged, “I was just wondering if you knew where Mimi was?”
“She said she was going to pick up some Mellow Mushroom for dinner,” he sat down on the steps and began to untie his work boots.
“Oh,” Cat had nothing else to say. She felt like she should apologize for before, but she wasn’t sure where to begin.
“So, you’re feeling better now?” Luke inquired. Now, he felt stupid for asking again.
“Hmm-mm,” Cat looked at her feet. She lifted them out to swing higher. Something told her that he knew she didn’t have altitude sickness earlier. She could sense it when he said it in her bedroom to Mimi, but going along with it seemed like an easier explanation than ‘I thought I saw my dead best friend.’
“So, who’s Landon?” he asked.
The suddenness of his question caught Cat so off guard she nearly fell off the swing. It was as though he had been reading her mind. She clutched one hand to her chest. She always thought heart “ache” was a thing in fairy tales or sad, country love songs. But she noticed that her chest felt crushed each time someone spoke his name. Breathing was harder. There was a pressure that mounted. She exhaled slowly and looked away.
Luke remembered a few moments ago that she had said the name before she collapsed. He thought about asking a few other questions to lead into the topic, but he was a matter-of-fact kind of guy and decided not to dance around it.
“I’m sorry?” Cat felt like she might pass out again. Putting her feet down to stop the swing, she stared at him in disbelief. How on earth had he heard about Landon? Surely, Mimi wasn’t sharing her sad story with everyone.
“Landon. It’s what you said before you passed out,” Luke clarified. The look on her face made him wish he hadn’t asked. He sat on the porch and leaned against the column.
Cat swallowed, “He’s my — my best friend.”
“Oh,” Luke didn’t know what else to say.
“I’m sure you miss
him, being so far away and all,” Luke added. Was that why she looked so heartbroken at the mention of his name?
“Yeah, yeah I do,” Cat looked down. She hadn’t cried since the night Landon died. She thought she had gotten all the tears out then, so she would never cry again. The tears burning in her eyes mocked that idea.
“I’m sure he misses you too,” Luke was searching for something to say, something to cheer her up.
“I don’t think so.”
“Why wouldn’t he?” Luke pressed her.
“Because he’s dead,” Cat didn’t look up from her hands as she calmly stated the fact.
Luke felt like he had been punched in the stomach. Putting his foot in his mouth seemed like a gross understatement to describe how he felt. More like putting an entire leg in his mouth. He couldn’t think of anything, any words, any gesture that would be adequate enough to respond.
They sat there for a moment in silence until he finally stood up and came to sit beside her on the porch swing. He didn’t touch her hand, he didn’t hold her, or offer words of comfort. He hardly knew her, but he felt the need to sit beside her. Never in his life had he felt so drawn to someone. So many questions buzzed in his head about Cat, but he didn’t ask them. He knew somehow that her story would unfold over time and he didn’t want to press her for it. He regretted his last question so horribly, he doubted he would ask another anytime soon.
His presence comforted her. They sat like statues until she heard Mimi’s truck pulling up the drive.
“Let’s get some pizza, Catie,” Luke finally said, offering her his hand to help her up.
“Cat,” she replied, taking it, “My friends call me Cat.”
Chapter Six
That night, Cat lay awake in bed for what seemed like an eternity. Eyes wide open, she lay listening to the unfamiliar sounds beyond her windows. Who knew crickets could be so damn loud? What she wouldn’t give for the sound of an ambulance going by? She wasn’t sure what time it happened, but she finally fell asleep. It was not a restful sleep. No. Cat tossed and turned until she found herself somewhere familiar. Hadn’t she been here before? She was at Samuel Alden’s party. She was leaning back against the railing on the back patio. She had on her navy outfit. It was the night Landon had died.
What Cat Lost (The Last Life of Cat Book 1) Page 5