“A little bit.” She said as she rubbed her arms vigorously.
“There’s a sweatshirt in the back seat.” He said simply and raised the temperature in the truck. Cara unsnapped her seat belt and leaned over the console, her arm brushed Luke’s and he caught the scent of her perfume. His fingers gripped the steering wheel as she dug around the back seat looking for his sweatshirt. He damned himself to hell as he stole a glance at her ass that was just inches from his shoulder.
“Did you find it?” He said huskily just as she snatched the sweatshirt and crawled back into her seat.
“Got it.” She declared and pulled it over her head, pushing her arms through the sleeves. The sweatshirt was swimming on her. Luke supposed if she stood it would come down to her knees. She rolled the sleeves up and then buckled her seat belt again. “Thanks.” She said.
“No problem.” He said with his eyes on the road. He was not about to admit he liked the way she looked in his shirt. Christ, Luke, get a hold of yourself, he reprimanded and clutched the steering wheel again for good measure.
She turned around and looked at him for a moment. She needed a distraction. Something to take her mind off the fact that she was an addict on her way to a rehabilitation center, so she took in the outline of his jaw and how his hair curled peeking out from underneath the baseball cap he was wearing, just above his ears. She tried to think if she had ever seen him with a hat on.
“What’s with the cap?” She asked as she tilted her head to get a better view. It was a New York Yankee hat.
“I need a haircut.” He answered honestly and spiked her curiosity. “And besides, the Yankees are in the playoffs. Need to root for my team.” He said lightly. He glanced at her and winked easing the tension.
“I’m a Met’s fan.” She said although she wasn’t really. She didn’t have a preference, but for some reason she needed to be on the opposing side.
“Of course you are.” He said with the faintest hint of a smile playing on his lips.
She turned her head and stared back out of the window. He looked at her. “Are you warmer? I can turn the heat up more if you’d like.” He offered even as his forehead perspired underneath the rim of his cap.
“No, I’m fine.” She looked back at him. “Thank you for taking me. I know you probably have a thousand other things you should be doing.” She thought that sounded better than pointing out he had other responsibilities that took precedence over seeing his late brother’s whatever she was, off to rehab, so she refrained.
“It’s no trouble.” He looked at her for a moment, and their eyes met, before he turned back to the road. “I’m just happy that you asked me to help.”
It was her turn to mock him and she smiled slightly, a foreign thing to her these days. “Of course you are.”
He ignored her comment even though his lips curved the tiniest bit. “We should be there in a few minutes, this is the exit.” He said as he motioned with his head that they were veering off the exit.
She stared straight ahead, her nerves began to consume her and she started to fidget again. The old Cara would be rambling on and on about some sort of nonsense in a time like this. The old Cara wouldn’t be going to rehab in the first place, she reminded herself. Her palms began to sweat as the GPS directed Luke where to turn. Wherever they were headed was isolated and full of trees. Off in the distance she could see a lake and knew they were near. She took a deep breath and bit down on her lip. She closed her eyes and tried to calm herself. She was about to embark on a journey, one she had control over. She thought back to the words that she had reminded Jake of when he was going for his first dose of chemotherapy. “The first step is the hardest.” What kind of coward was she that she was nervous like this? The love of her life had taken on a fight that he had no control of, a fight that they knew could claim him in the end. She reminded herself that she could fight because there was hope. All she had to do was take the first step.
Luke rounded the bend and slowed down as they made their way in front of the center. It looked like a resort that had been tucked away overlooking a lake, he thought, and felt a little more comfortable that he was leaving her in a decent place. It was almost serene. He pulled into a spot that was assigned to visitors and turned the car off. Her hand gripped the handle of her door tightly yet she remained perfectly still.
“I’ll grab your suitcase.” He said softly as he watched her nod before he got out of the truck to retrieve the suitcase from the back. She heard the tailgate open up and Luke rustle around in the back of the truck. She took a deep breath, and felt as if she was going to be sick. She bent down and dropped her head to her knees and prayed she wouldn’t lose it.
Luke came around and opened her door. “Cara?”