Chapter Eleven
Luke slept horribly that night, and he loved every minute of it. Mar fell asleep cuddled against his chest on the couch. He held her throughout the night, sleeping a little bit but mostly musing over their conversation. He’d shared about Tracey and the baby. Not even his parents or brothers or Rachel knew about that. He was still a little shocked that he’d been so open, but he was mostly grateful that he’d been able to trust her.
Then she’d shared that she’d been abandoned and later had her adoptive family ripped apart by a horrible accident. She’d spent most of her childhood raised in foster care, never feeling loved. What would that be like? Thank heavens she’d found Cosette. Yet with his background and large, happy family, he could hardly imagine saying that the only person who’d loved him was a friend.
He wished he could tell her that he loved her. It was too soon, and if he’d said it last night, it would’ve seemed like he was only saying it to fill the void in her life. That wasn’t true. Not at all.
Mar stirred and then blinked sleepily up at him. “Morning, handsome,” she murmured.
Luke kissed her forehead, wishing he could kiss her lips but not wanting to share his morning breath. “Good morning, beautiful.”
He lifted her to her feet, and they both stood and stretched. It was nice to work out the kinks in his back and legs and get some feeling back in his shoulder, but he didn’t want her out of his arms. He felt protective of her, and he was very much taken by her.
“What’s the plan today?” She smiled up at him.
Luke liked how small she was—a firecracker in a perfect frame. He shrugged, wondering when they’d both have to go back to reality. She probably needed to get back to work, and while his assistants were great, he was always needed for something. He’d given up acquiring a new company for Mar, and he didn’t regret it. Instead of asking when they’d have to go back to life and figure out how to keep dating, he said, “Are you up for another hike?”
“Sure. As long as I have my tough protector—” She squeezed his bicep. “—and bear spray.”
Luke chuckled. “So is it me you trust to protect you, or the bear spray?”
She winked, all sassy and cute. “I’m pleading the fifth on that one.”
“I’ll pretend it’s me.”
She laughed and jogged away from him toward the stairs.
“Where are you going?”
“To get ready for our hike, and I need to pee.”
Luke hurried after her, changing into running clothes in his suite, brushing his teeth, putting on deodorant, and splashing some water on his face. He ran a wet hand through his hair. It looked fine. He smiled, thinking of how he’d tried to explain to Mar that she was beautiful without being all fixed up. He hoped she felt the same.
The doorbell rang, and he jerked in surprise. Walking out of his suite, he almost ran into Mar coming out of hers.
Her eyebrows squiggled. “You expecting visitors?”
“No. Probably neighbors or some of my parents’ friends who think they’re home.”
“At seven a.m.?”
He shrugged. Taking her hand, he led her along the balcony and down the stairs as the doorbell rang again. “Impatient neighbors,” he muttered.
“Well, we are kind of slow,” Mar said.
Luke didn’t think they were slow at all. Though he’d met her several months ago at Isaac’s wedding and she’d often been in his thoughts since then, they’d really only grown close over the past five days. Already, he wanted to declare his devotion and propose.
He tugged the door open, hoping to dismiss the person quickly so he could focus back on Mar. “H-h—” He couldn’t even get his hello out. Standing on the door was none other than his past.
“Hi, Luke, good to see you,” Tracey said, sweet and beautiful as ever. She stood a step below them on the front porch, but she was still taller than Mar. He’d forgotten how tall she was. Her hair was blonde with red highlights, and he supposed her face was model perfect with pale blue eyes and those straight lips he used to dream about.
“Tracey,” he managed to say. “What are you doing here?” He glanced at Mar. Her dark eyes were wide, and she seemed to instantly understand who this was. She reached for Luke’s hand, and he gave it to her, drawing from her warm touch and her strength.
Tracey’s eyes flitted to their hands and over Mar, and her blue eyes got a lot colder. “Holly Jenkins saw you last night,” she informed Luke.
“Okay.” Luke had thought he’d seen one of Tracey’s friends at the restaurant, but he’d been far too focused on Mar to pay much attention to anyone else.
“It’s your first time back in ten years,” she said, as if he’d hurt her by not coming back.