Fitting the Pieces (Riverdale #3)
Janine Infante Bosco
Prologue
August
Luke sat beside Nick at the old fashioned bar that was positioned in the center of Rudy’s Bar and Grille. The bartender was a girl they had gone to school with many moons ago. She had left the bottle on top of the bar and Luke helped himself. Once his glass was full again, Nick snatched it and claimed it as his own. He scowled at him and took his empty glass, filling it to the brim.
“How are things between you and Leah?” Luke heard Nick say next to him. He shrugged his shoulders. He had been asking himself the same question lately.
“They’re fine. I think she wants more than I’m willing to give her right now, even though she hasn’t said it.” Luke stated flatly. That was the best he could come up with right now. He knew he wasn’t being fair to her lately. He took a long sip of his drink and let the alcohol filter through his system. He didn’t want to think about his relationship with Leah. He didn’t want to come to terms with the fact that there was only one woman in his head that he couldn’t shake.
“Wait a minute, you mean to tell me you can tell what a woman wants or thinks without her saying so?” Nick asked shocked.
Luke lifted his gaze from his drink and studied Nick for a moment, wondering if he was drunk or if in fact he was serious. “Yeah man, C’mon a woman is an open book.”
Nick laughed at him and turned his head. He was silent for a moment and Luke just sat waiting for him to say something.
“Are you serious? You can’t read a woman?” The idea was absurd to Luke. Granted, he didn’t classify himself as an expert, furthest from it, but he still knew how to get into a woman’s head. He assumed it was written in every man’s D.N.A.
Nick held up a hand in protest. “Now wait a minute. I can read a woman in the bedroom. I can tell you what she wants and what she needs…”
Luke shook his head and closed his eyes. It was a struggle for him to differentiate the Nick who was doing god knows what with his sister from the Nick who was his buddy, the one guy he could shoot the shit with. “So you’re saying take you out of a bedroom and you’re fucked when it comes to a woman.”
Nick cocked his head to the side for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, that pretty much sums it up.”
“Nick, that’s a problem. If you can’t read a woman how can you be one step ahead of her?” He asked his friend incredulously. The whole thing was mind boggling to him.
“I’m never one step ahead.” He took a big gulp of his drink. “I’m usually three or four behind, depending on the girl. For example, with your sister, I’m like on a whole fucking different continent.”
Luke genuinely laughed out loud as he mentally pictured Sam driving Nick nuts. It was an amusing thought, and for the first time he could see them together and he accepted it. “Well, Sam’s not like any other woman.” He patted Nick on the back. “Hey, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“No, she’s definitely not.” Nick said.
Helena, their bartender, made her way back to them and this time she helped herself to a shot. Luke raised an eyebrow at her and then Nick. “So I get off in a few minutes and I’ve been thinking the three of us should go somewhere and catch up.”
Nick laughed out loud beside him and when Luke turned his attention from him back to Helena he saw her cheeks redden. “I’m sorry that came out all wrong.”
“Nothing wrong in wanting to catch up with old friends,” Luke offered trying to defuse Helena’s embarrassment.
She smiled at him and stumbled forward when the bartender relieving her bumped right into her. Helena straightened up, finding her balance. Luke looked right passed Helena into the haunting hazel eyes that belonged to Cara.
“I didn’t know you went back to work.” He said softly. He wasn’t expecting to see her, the truth was he had barely seen or heard from her. He had no idea what she had been up to because she ignored all his calls. She made it damn near impossible to keep his promise to his deceased brother.
“Well, why would you?” She nodded towards Helena. “You can take off now, I’ve got this.”
Helena looked back and forth between them before untying her apron. She took the seat on the opposite side of Nick and reached for the bottle that sat between the two men. Cara grabbed the bottle from her before she could pour any.
“Let’s get something straight. I’ll be the one pouring the drinks.” She turned around and placed the bottle back on the shelf. She had one hand tucked into the back pocket of her denim mini skirt and with her free hand, she wiped down the mess that had been made by allowing Luke and Nick to pour their own drinks.