I smiled back at him, but it was strained. “I actually need to see Lucas.”
Bill’s eyebrows raised a tiny bit, but then lowered again. “Sure. I’ll page him.” He grabbed the phone, pressed the intercom button, and spoke into the mouthpiece. “Lucas to the register, please. Lucas, to the register.”
Lucas arrived in a minute or so, wearing an apron, carrying a handful of boxes of screws. He was sorting through them as he walked, not really looking up. “What’s up, Bill? I never work register, so—” He saw me, then, and halted, mouth clicking closed. “Liv. What’s up?”
I glanced at Bill, simply because this was a pretty private conversation—fortunately, Bill caught the hint, and muttered something about getting more coffee from the break room.
When he was gone, I shifted from one foot to the other. “So, my daughter, Cassie, the second oldest. She’s a dancer with an international dance troupe, and she got in a car wreck in Paris. Broke her leg, and her fiancé is in a coma. They’re not sure if he’ll wake up. So, I have to go to Paris.”
He cleared his throat. “Paris, like, France?”
I nodded. “Yeah. Her troupe dances all over the world.”
“She must be pretty talented.”
“She is.”
“Broke her leg, huh? Not good, if she’s a dancer.”
I let out a long breath. “No, it’s not. She says she needs plates and screws and things, which is probably going to be the end of the line, as far as professional dance goes.”
He shook his head. “God dang, Liv, your girls are goin’ through it, ain’t they? Sorry to hear.” He fiddled with the boxes. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“Check on your condo?”
I shook my head. “I don’t have any pets or plants, so there’s nothing to really check on, but thanks. I just wanted to let you know that I’ll be gone…I’m not sure how long.”
“Appreciate the heads-up. Have a safe trip, yeah?” He shuffled his feet, fiddled with the boxes of screws, making them jingle as they shifted. “Liv, I…” he trailed off with a sigh. “Nah, not the time. You gotta go be with your girl.”
“What were you going to say?” I asked.
“Just that I appreciate you being there yesterday. That was rough, and unexpected, tellin’ that story like that, in front of all that family I barely know. You being there, not judging me…” He rolled a shoulder. “It meant a lot to me. More than you know. So…thanks. That’s all I wanted to say.”
“You’re welcome, Lucas. That’s what friends do, you know.”
“Well, I want to be there for you like that, if you ever need anything. So please, don’t ever hesitate to ask.”
I felt something inside me melt a little further, and I leaned forward, into him, wrapping my arms around him. I buried my nose in his neck, and felt his arms close around my shoulders, enveloping me in warmth and strength. For a moment, I just enjoyed the feeling—the feeling of being sheltered like that…something I missed dearly. More than I had known, I realized. I inhaled his scent—hardware store scent, soap, and something woodsy and male. Heady. Dizzying.
I backed away, unsteady on my feet, my heart doing flip-flops. “I needed a hug. Thank you.”
He cleared his throat, a gruff, blustery sound. “Yeah. Well.” He rubbed his nose. “You smell amazing.”
I couldn’t help a grin. “I was thinking the same thing about you.”
He scratched his beard. “Ramsey got me some sorta oil to put in my beard, makes it softer and smell good.”
“I…it’s nice.” I felt so stupid, feeling so off-kilter and heady just from a hug. “I have to go. Flight is in a couple hours and I need to be on it.”
“Go. Be with your girl. It’ll all work out, okay?”
I nodded. “Yes, I’m sure it will. She’s a tough girl.”
“She’s got a great mom.”
I backed away, breathing slowly and deeply through the flutters in my stomach. “Thank you, Lucas. Hopefully I’ll back soon, and we can…talk more.”
