Luckily Luke didn’t speak Cat and seemed to have the Super Dude super-power to be total y oblivious to Boo’s meows.
Luke handed me an opened beer when I walked in and then he settled his hips against the counter, arms crossed on his chest, lifting his forearm to take a pul off his beer every once in awhile.
We didn’t speak.
For my part, this was mainly because the only thing I could think to talk about was whether Vance was back in town or not. And I wasn’t going to do that.
For Luke’s part, on the whole, he didn’t talk much.
Final y Luke spoke. “Tomorrow, you’re off. Monday, I’m workin’ and you’re ride-along.”
I nodded, drank some of my beer, settled my hips against the counter and looked at my boots. I was happy about ride-along. It was something to look forward to in a future that, al of a sudden, seemed kind of bleak. I never thought about my future. I lived life day-to-day. I thought a lot about everyone else’s future, Roam and Sniff, Nick, but not my own.
Luke’s boots came into my line of vision and I looked up.
He was close. He set his beer bottle on the counter beside me, pul ed mine out of my hand and put it next to his.
Then before I knew what he was about, his fingers curled around my wrists, he lifted my arms, got deep into my space, wrapped my wrists around his neck and his face started coming toward mine.
“What are you…?” I started then stopped.
His hands slid down the undersides of my arms and a thril shot through me before he (I kid you not) kissed me.
I felt his hands glide down my sides, around my back, low and he pul ed me to him.
It was a great kiss. It was a hot kiss. There was a goodly amount of tongue and Luke seriously knew what he was doing.
But it wasn’t a Vance kiss.
I participated. I don’t know why, maybe because I thought it was safe but also because it felt real y nice.
Luke’s head came up and he stared at me.
Then he muttered, “Fuck.”
“What?” I asked, keeping my arms around his neck, he stil had his around my back.
“You taste like bubble gum.”
My stomach went into a painful twist and I slid my hands to his chest, putting my arms between us and pushing back a bit. He al owed this but his arms got tight when he was done al owing it, his message was clear and I stopped.
“Vance told me you’re playing games,” I said to Luke.
“Vance would know about games,” Luke said back.
“Please don’t talk about him like that,” I whispered. “You don’t understand what happened.”
“I understand.”
“You don’t.”
“Babe.”
The way he said that made me shut up.
“I’m thinkin’ you should train with Mace from now on,” he said.
Um.
Yikes.
What did that mean?
I decided I didn’t want to know and this was mostly denial because I did know.
“I’m thinking that maybe training is a waste of time,” I told him. “I’m hardly going to get into hand-to-hand combat with these guys doing guerril a maneuvers.”
“You’re on the street you need to be ready for anything.” I rol ed my eyes. Drama.
“It wasn’t like it was before, Jules. They’re gonna be gunnin’ for you now,” he said to my eye rol .
I had to admit, he was probably right.
“Al right,” I said, giving in.
“You stil do ride-along with me.”
“Okay,” I agreed immediately.
At that, he grinned.
I realized his arms were stil around me and my hands were stil on his chest. I pushed back and he let me go, touched my nose then he was gone.
I did the getting-ready-for-bed gig, promised Boo I’d buy him treats tomorrow (and mental y added beer to my grocery list) and lay in bed waiting for Vance to break in.
He didn’t.
The longer I waited, the more my chest got tight, the more I had to practice deep-breathing in order not to cry.
It was my decision to break up with Vance. I made it. I carried it through. It was better for me, I knew it.
The problem was, lying in bed, alone in the moonlight, I didn’t believe me anymore.
Chapter Eighteen
Pizza, Football and Facials
From somewhere far away I heard my phone ringing.
With effort I dragged myself out of a deep sleep to hear the voice after my answering machine message.
“Babe, pick up the phone.”
Luke.
I rol ed over and reached up to the high alcove next to the bed and dragged down the phone.
“What?” I said into it.
“Get dressed. We got a takedown. Be there in five.” Disconnect.
I laid there with my phone to my ear for a second then blinked up at the clock. It was after two in the morning.
Luke had a takedown. That meant they were going after a bad guy. That also meant that Luke wanted me to come with them.
I threw back the covers, Boo screeched, “Meow!” and I swung off the bed.
*
It was Sunday night (Monday morning, real y) and I’d had a day of no rest. It was another shit day, post-Vance, stil no word, no sign, nothing.