He was about to knock a second time when the door opened, and there she was. Her hair was down. She wore a t-shirt with no cardigan. Elaine’s face was impassive as she regarded him like she barely knew him.
“Let me explain,” he said.
The smile that tugged at the corner of her mouth was not a pretty affair. “That’s what my dad always said.”
“Paul got hurt—”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“It does,” Luke insisted. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“But it did hurt,” Elaine said. “Just like I thought it would. Imagine if I’d actually fallen in love with you.”
That hit him straight in the heart. Because he was falling in love with her. He wanted to spend his days loving on her. He wanted to spend his time showing her what love could really be like. But more importantly, Luke wanted Elaine to not be afraid to fall in love with him.
“Don’t back away from this,” he said.
But she was shaking her head and backing away from the door. “It’s not your fault. I’m just not built for this.”
Luke could see the pain in her eyes. Once again, he’d hurt the one he cared about. He needed to regroup. He stepped to the side and heard a crash.
The pot he’d stepped into on their first night, the one that had spilled its innards, it was now broken into large pieces. The flower's leaves and bulbs crashed down onto the ground. The soil that had protected it was now slipping through the cracks of the porch and showing the plant's roots.
“I can fix it,” he said.
“It doesn’t matter. The cracks were already there.”
Luke looked back to her. It was as though the life had gone out of her eyes, out of her very being. He wanted to reach out to her, to grab hold of her and pull her close, but she was too far away.
“Elaine, relationships aren’t perfect. People make mistakes. I make mistakes. I use my body as cover to save the ones I care about. I don’t always look before I cross the street.”
She wouldn’t meet his gaze. She looked suddenly weary and tired. Luke went to her, but she backed up behind the door. Her body stood rooted on the threshold, not letting him pass into her inner sanctuary.
“Let me try and fix this,” he begged.
Elaine looked into his eyes. There was a tiny spark of hope. But mostly there was fear. And the fear won out.
“There are just too many cracks. It’s not your fault.” She shook her head, stepping back behind the door and closing it with a quiet snick.
But Luke wasn’t giving up. Not on her. Not on them.
He picked up the pieces of the broken pot and backed down the steps.
Chapter Twenty
She’d made a good decision with the duck. And the garlic, with its pungent and aromatic spiciness, was the perfect added touch to the leftovers of the dish. Elaine let out a sigh. The fiery kick from the bulbous onion on her breath knocked her back down on her pillow.
She checked her phone, but like the last two days, it was silent. He hadn’t texted, or called, or come by again. Elaine realized she was a hypocrite because she desperately wanted him to. The silence that resulted from Luke’s lack of presence in her life was driving her crazy.
Elaine used to crave the quiet when her parents fought. To tune them out while they went at it, she’d lose herself in a book. Most of the time, she got lost in a story where she already knew the ending, finding safety and security in the familiarity of the pages.
Right now, Elaine wanted to hear Luke’s voice. Even if he yelled, which he’d never done. She wanted to sit at dinner with him. Even if he hated her cooking, which her full belly and garlic coated tongue reminded her was excellent. She wanted him to come through the door. Even if he slammed it behind him, which he hadn’t done. He’d stepped back as she quietly closed the door in his face.
Because Luke wouldn’t do any of those things. From the very first moment, since she’d opened her eyes and found him sitting beside her in the hospital room, he’d listened to her. Even when he disagreed with her decisions, he still respected her wishes. He’d thought of her safety first, but her comfort had been paramount.
Except for the one time when he’d let her down for dinner.
But he’d come to her. He’d apologized to her. He’d wanted to make it right with her. She was the one who had turned him away.
It had to have been something big that had kept him away from their date. He’d looked tired when he’d come to her. Worn out. Weary. Like he hadn’t slept the night before.
He’d said that Paul had gotten hurt. Where had they been? What had happened to put those bags under his eyes? What could she do to take his stress away?
Elaine didn’t have the answers. And if her silent phone had anything to say about it, she wasn’t going to get the answers anytime soon. She’d shoved Luke out of her life, and like the considerate person he was, he was going to respect her wishes.
Elaine wanted to make another wish. But what would she wish for? That he’d come to her again last night? That he was perfect and wouldn’t make any mistakes in the future? That he had never hurt her?
It was an impossible feat. Relationships were messy. But Luke hadn’t made anywhere near a mess like her parents had.
Needing some sort of action in her indecision, Elaine got out of bed. The sun shone into her bedroom window, announcing a new day. She reached for the curtains, intent on closing out the happy star when she saw something on her porch.
Leaving the curtains wide open, Elaine raced down the stairs. She flung the door open and had to immediately throw her arms up over her face. The sun’s rays tackled her with their warmth, and her eyes weren’t ready for it.
It didn’t matter. When she managed to pull her hands away from shielding her eyes, she saw that he wasn’t there. What was there was her potted plant. The one he’d accidentally broken. It looked whole again.
Picking up the pot, she saw that it wasn’t entirely intact. There were still cracks in the ceramic. But he’d done his best to piece the broken parts back together. Inside the pot, the flower stood strong. It’s leaves outstretched as though it were offering her a hug. The bud was opened, showing its petals, offering its most vulnerable part to her, as though it had never realized it had been through a battle.
Elaine’s father would’ve replaced the pot. Her mother would’ve pretended it had never happened. Not Luke. He’d fixed it. Because that’s the kind of man he was. He fixed what was broken.
Elaine looked down to see that the fixed pot wasn’t the only thing Luke had left for her. A thick envelope lay on the welcome mat at her doorstep. By the heft and size of it, she knew there was a ream of paper inside.
Opening the package, she found the manuscript for Walker Skye’s third book.
Elaine put the pot down. She dusted the nonexistent specs of dirt from her hands. Then she lifted the title page and carefully turned to the next page.
She’d expected to see Chapter One. That wasn’t what was on the page. The Dedication made her heart stop, restart, and then fall.
For Elaine, it read, who is worth fighting for.
She stared at the words for a long time. Then she looked up. When she did, she could feel the hope in her eyes. But gazing up and down the streets, she saw that they were still empty.
Elaine had read hundreds of books. She’d gotten lost in countless stories. She’d imagined herself as dozens of heroines, even a few villains. This was the first time she was actually on a printed page.
Turning to the next page, she was immediately sucked into the story. By the end of the first page, she was well and truly hooked. By the end of the first act, she could no longer deny it.
Just like the heroine in the book, Elaine was truly, deeply in love with the commander of her heart. The second in command in the book had just put himself in the line of fire for the captain. The question was, were both the captain and Elaine brave enough to go into the battlefield to get the love they both wanted.
Elaine didn�
��t turn to the page to find out. She set the book down, without a bookmark, and headed out of the door.
Chapter Twenty-One
Luke looked down at his phone. There were new messages there, but they were from his agent asking about the manuscript. For the third time this week, Luke put the agent off. He wasn’t prepared to show anyone the book, not until he learned what Elaine thought of the ending.
He’d left the book on her porch the other day. He hadn’t heard anything back from her. But he’d already decided he wasn’t giving up. Not on her. Not on what they could be.
“It’s good,” said Paul.
The man lay in the hospital bed. He was immobile after his surgery. Surprisingly, he was in good spirits. But that’s what relieving chronic pain tended to do.
Luke kept his mouth shut on that opinion. The doctors expected Paul to make a full recovery. In time.
Luke had sent the first draft of the book to Elaine. But he’d also left a copy for Paul. His best friend had always been his first reader. Paul’s vote of confidence was up there with Elaine’s. Although his and Paul’s future relationship wasn’t hanging in the balance.
“Really?” said Luke. “You liked it?”
Paul nodded.
“Even though the hero doesn’t get the girl?”
“It true to the character’s growth,” said Paul. “The two of them are just at the beginning of things. They both have a lot of scars that need to heal.”
The second in command had offered himself up as a sacrifice for the captain. But she’d come to his rescue, blasting the enemy with her phaser. Her most trusted soldier had raced to her, swaggered was how Luke had described it on the page.
After he’d kissed her, she’d pushed him away. Both the captain and her creator knew she wasn’t ready to receive love. Not yet. But it had awakened something in her, something she wanted to fight for.
Just like the captain did with every battle, she would be methodical about it. She would be thoughtful. She would work on her plan.
The plan was to help her new love interest heal the wounds he’d sustained in battle, the wounds she’d tried to protect him from. She’d learned that she couldn’t protect the people she loved from hardships. All she could do was stand by them, help them heal.
“You realize I’m in the recovery wing of the hospital,” said Paul. “I’m in the healing process. Your librarian is still out there on the battlefield.”
Luke scrubbed a hand over his face. He wanted nothing more than to charge back into the minefield that was Elaine’s past and slay all her demons. It had killed him to leave her at the door the other day. She’d looked so lost and in need. But he knew she wouldn’t reach out to him. She was still too wounded to even lift her hand.
“I’m going to have to be patient with her,” Luke said. Just like the heroine he penned, the female main character in his real-life wasn’t ready to receive love. But he was certain something had awakened inside her. He needed to be methodical about his next move. “I have a plan. I need to show her I’m not going anywhere.”
Paul made a sound of disbelief. “You crowded me when I got injured. You bullied me into this treatment. You’ve been nothing short of a helicopter parent. But she gets space to make her own decisions?”
“Yeah.” Luke shrugged. “You can’t outrun me. I don’t want to scare her off.”
Paul tossed a pillow at Luke’s head. Luke easily dodged. When he straightened, both men chuckled.
When Paul sobered, he stared his best friend straight into the eye and asked the million-dollar question. “What are you doing here babysitting me? Go annoy her into submission.”
That wasn’t part of the plan. He needed to give her time. He knew Elaine was it for him. He knew it in his bones. Just as he’d known that he and Paul would be more than military brothers.
“It’s been two days,” said Paul. “She could use a little nudge. Plus, I need to get my beauty sleep.”
Maybe Paul was right. Maybe Luke could just stop by her house and check on her? Or stroll by the library. It was Taco Tuesday and getting close to noon. He knew where she’d be.
“And then get to work on the final book so that captain and her boy toy can finally get together.”
Yeah. Luke was eager to write that book. But before that, he needed to pen his own final chapter. He was ready for his own happily ever after. He was ready for the battle to be over.
He headed out of the hospital and down the main street. He pulled out his phone and pulled up Elaine’s number. Before hitting her contact, he made sure to look both ways at the intersection. And there she was.
Elaine stood on the other side of the street, looking down at her phone. Her fingers worked furiously. Luke watched as she took a deep breath and then hit one final key.
A second later, he startled as his phone chimed. Her fingers had moved so fast, so furious, for a long stretch. But her message was simple.
I made a mistake. Will you give me another chance?
Instead of replying, Luke looked up from his phone. He’d hoped to catch her gaze, but she was looking down at her phone. Her gaze was intent as she waited. She cradled the device in both her hands, as though afraid she’d drop it.
Luke took a step into the street, only to jerk his foot back when the screech of a honking horn demanded his attention.
Elaine looked up then. She caught his gaze. Her features broke into a beautiful smile, brighter than the sun.
She stepped a foot into the street, only to jerk back when another vehicle honked at her.
Looking up to the street lights, Luke saw the white walking man flashing on the opposite street. The orange numbers counted down, telling him that he only needed to wait another twenty seconds before he could get to her.
It was too long.
Luke held out his hand, strong-arming the cars on the road to stop for him. He was able to make it safely across to her in under five seconds.
He had a carefully calculated plan. It all went out the window the moment he was standing at her feet. Without waiting for a protest, he brought his lips to hers.
Just like she had the first time he’d kissed her, Elaine melted into his arms. She opened to him. She opened for him. Without any words between them, Luke knew that the healing process had begun. Not just for her, but for him as well.
“I’m sorry,” she said when he let her up for air. “I don’t know how to do this. I said I’d never do this. And now that I’m here, I’m just so scared.”
“I’ve got you,” he said, pulling her closer to him. “I’m not going to leave you. I’m never going to leave you. Even if you want to read Hardy to me every night, I’ll still be here in the morning.”
That got a small smile out of her. Then she gulped. “So, we’re going to do this? We’re going to date?”
“Date?” Luke grinned, biting his tongue and the proposal that was right at the tip of it. “Yes, we’re going to date. How about I buy you a taco?”
“I’d like that.”
Luke offered Elaine his arm. Just like something out of the Victorian era books that she liked. When she took it, he swaggered into the restaurant, just like the heroes of the military science fiction books and movies that he liked.
From behind the counter, Juan glared at the two of them. Luke let it slide. He had time to win the chef over. As long as the man realized the battle for Elaine had been fought and won. Because like he said, he wasn’t going anywhere.
More books are coming from the Purple Heart Ranch.
Be sure and sign up for Shanae’s mailing list to find out when, to receive early excerpts, and to read free short stories from the ranch that aren’t available anywhere else!
http://bit.ly/ShanaeJohnsonReaders
Also by Shanae Johnson
Shanae Johnson was raised by Saturday Morning cartoons and After School Specials. She still doesn’t understand why there isn’t a life lesson that ties the issues of the day together just before bedtime. While she’s still w
aiting for the meaning of it all, she writes stories to try and figure it all out. Her books are wholesome and sweet, but her are heroes are hot and heroines are full of sass!
And by the way, the E elongates the A. So it’s pronounced Shan-aaaaaaaa. Perfect for a hero to call out across the moors, or up to a balcony, or to blare outside her window on a boombox. If you hear him calling her name, please send him her way!
Also By Shanae Johnson
* * *
The Brides of Purple Heart
* * *
On His Bended Knee
Hand Over His Heart
Offering His Arm
His Permanent Scar
Having His Back
In Over His Head
Always On His Mind
Every Step He Takes
In His Good Hands
Light Up His Life
* * *
The Rebel Royals series
The King and the Kindergarten Teacher
The Prince and the Pie Maker
The Duke and the DJ
The Marquis and the Magician’s Assistant
* * *
You can sign up for Shanae’s Reader Group at
http://bit.ly/ShanaeJohnsonReaders
Light Up His Life Page 9