“I want to see you, Red Cheeks.”
“Please.”
A soft click of the switch flicked the lights off. Then the gasps amplified.
I woke up surroundedby a masculine scent that immediately got me blushing. My body remembered exactly what the owner of that cologne had done to it, and heat pooled up between my legs. Goodness gracious, now I was blushing double.
I pulled the blanket over my head, hiding my face in it. That only served to bring his scent closer to me. I inhaled as the night replayed in my head. Oh my God!
I stayed still in Luke’s bed as more awareness returned. He wasn’t in the bed with me, though every single part of me knew at one point he had been. Oh, he certainly had been.
I was still tired since we really hadn’t done much sleeping.I should get out of his bed regardless.
After I found my clothes, I creaked the bedroom door open and peaked out. Luke was in the kitchen, because of course he was. Something sizzled on the pan, and the fresh aroma of coffee wafted through the space. A low humming of a tune I wasn’t familiar with accompanied the sound, and I realised it was Luke singing. He smiled to himself—or the bacon—since he hadn’t seen me yet. Joy radiated from his every pore, and he was absolutely gorgeous.
I stepped away from the doorway and into the living room. As if drawn by a magnet, his head turned my way, and that smile grew wider.
“Good morning, Red Cheeks.”
I grinned. “Good morning, Mr Umbrella.”
?Epilogue
IRECHECKED MY TRAVEL?bag for my passport, phone and plane ticket. They were all still exactly where I’d placed them. Glen helped me with check-in, and the much bigger, much heavier bag was now already on its way to the plane. It was time for us to part. Yet, I clung to her like this was goodbye for forever.
“I promise I’ll be fine,” she said for the hundredth time since her trial started. “I’m in good hands, remember?”
I felt horrible leaving her alone, but there was nothing that would keep me from boarding this plane. We both knew it.
“I still wish I could be there for you,” I mumbled as she nudged me toward the security gate.
“You’ve been here for me. Now, go be over there with Luke. I said I’ll be fine, didn’t I?”
I checked my documents again, suddenly nervous. In ten hours I would be seeing Luke again. Face to face. Lips on lips. His arms around me, and only the barriers I myself set between us. I missed his voice undistorted by the speakers of my phone. The way he’d chuckle when I said something witty. His eyes would sparkle and he’d either tap his fingers on his thigh or any available hard surface, or he’d give in and touch me. I loved the way he’d search my eyes for permission, take his time making sure I was okay with it first. I missed how my heart would speed up at the smallest of signs that he wanted to kiss me, and the way it had thundered the night we’d been together. I didn’t know you could miss someone this much.
I’d been burning food every Sunday since Luke left. Glen had decided to help with the cooking, leaving me more time to stare at the iPad screen, drooling at how good Luke looked, and how comfortable he was moving around his kitchen. Her warnings for when something on the pan started smelling like it was burning weren’t always timely either, but so far, nothing tasted bad enough to throw it away. Never as good as Luke’s cooking but not outright horrible either.
