This earns me a real chuckle, his lips pulling into a reluctant smile. My heart warms at the sight of it as I gaze at him, completely mesmerized. It feels like finding a rainbow after a heavy thunderstorm.
Then his smile slips. “I kind of need this job.”
“Does it have anything to do with your bruise?” I intentionally keep my voice soft and gentle, knowing I’m likely probing at a fresh wound I know nothing about.
Let me in, baby. Let me fix it.
He nods silently, still picking at his nail polish. Reaching over, I still his hands. Watching for any sign of discomfort, I gently thread my fingers through his and bring them to my lap. He watches mesomewhat warily, surprise flickering across his face. But he doesn’t act as though he wants to pull away.
“I—my—” He blinks, chewing on his lower lip as he closes his mouth.
I don’t know why, but this moment feels important. My heart begins to thump.
Let me in.
“My mother is alive,” he blurts out.
I blink.
Then I blink again.
“I’m…sorry?” I hedge.
Luke sucks in a lungful of air, almost as if he’s revving up for a long story. “She died when I was a baby. Like post-partum complications or some shit. And then my dad died when I was eleven, and Jax raised me. And then about two years ago, I ran into Evelyn. And she told me not to tell Jax, because she wants to come off the pills first. She said she left us because her drug problem makes her a shitty mother.” His laughter is dark.
I stare.
And stare.
“Um…what?”
He gives me an apologetic grin. “Sorry, Jax is my brother.”
I shake my head. “No, I know that. It’s everything else that was a bit of a…jumbled mess.”
His cheeks pinken.
“Who is Evelyn?” I ask.
“Eve is my...” He cringes. “…mother.”
“I thought she was dead.”
He sighs. “I’m beginning to think you’re not even listening.”
I narrow my eyes, pinching his side and grinning when he jerks away with a yelp. “Start over and tell me the whole story from the beginning. Maybe take a breath this time,” I tease him.
He sighs. “Fine.”
I wait patiently while he gathers his thoughts, his fingers plucking at his bottom lip.
Finally, he takes a deep breath and begins. “I never had a mom growing up. It was just me, my brother Jax, and Dad.”
I nod. “Okay.”
“Dad told us Evelyn died in the hospital, after giving birth to me.”
I tilt my head, picking up on the way he avoids referring to her as his mother when possible. Interesting.
