Because of Luke Read online

"I know," he cuts in, taking the bag and tray from her. "It won't happen again." He smiles. "Thanks, Tandy."

  "You're welcome. Have a good night," she calls sweetly as we head out the door.

  "Who's Randy?" He's walking so fast toward the car, I have to jog to catch up. "The creepy cowboy in the doorway?"

  He doesn't answer, and I'm not even sure he hears me, because he's too busy glancing all around the place, like if he's trying to avoid someone.

  Twenty minutes later, I follow close behind him as he leads me down a narrow hallway. Our fingers are entwined again and I'm starting to feel a little bit better about where our night is going. The weird encounter at that restaurant is still on my mind, but I don't press the issue. If he wants to talk about it, I suppose he will.

  "What is this place?" I don't know whether it's the dimness of the low hanging lights, the creaking floor, or the fact that I'm pretty sure we've just committed a B&E, but my voice is just above a whisper, as I glance over my shoulder every few seconds. "Are you sure we're allowed in here?"

  Lucas turns a mischievous grin on me as he pulls me along until we reach another door. This one has no handle and behind it is the faint sound of music.

  He stops abruptly and I smack into him, stumbling back. Lucas reaches behind to steady me. "Sorry," he says. "It's been a while since I've done this in the dark." His grip tightens around my fingers and he turns to face me. "You ready?"

  "Um..."

  Before I can form a response Lucas pushes the door open and I suck in a breath that nearly knocks me out.

  "What do you think?"

  I scan the space in front of us. Dark night, bright stars, full moon, crisp breeze. We've stepped onto a rooftop. It overlooks the city, and all though it isn't much of a view, it's amazing. Off to the side is a blanket and next to it is a cooler. It's incredible, but I can't force the words out. I follow along behind him, mute.

  "I used to hang out up here when I was a kid." He shoves his hands in his pockets. "My parents used to own this place. Then it was mine and my brother's for a while until he decided to shut it down—too much responsibility I guess. It's one of the few things we got after they...went away."

  "This place is...it's beautiful. I don't know what to say?" But I know what I want to ask. He actually owns a restaurant? Who is this guy? And where did his parents go?

  "Say you'll sit with me." He nods to the blanket and holds up the bag. "Dinner's getting cold."

  I smile and trail behind him. We settle on the ground and he opens the cooler. Fishing around inside he retrieves two beers. Lucas cracks one open and hands it to me. After he opens his own, he tilts it toward mine.

  "To a beautiful view, a beautiful girl and a night to remember."

  I suck back my drink, lingering on his last words. I just followed this guy onto a rooftop? A rooftop, Shannon? Seriously? There's only one way this ends and if it goes anything like the last time we were alone together, I'll be powerless to stop it.

  "So," we say at the same time.

  He chuckles, then gestures for me to go ahead.

  I take another swig and hold the bottle by the neck between two fingers. "Thanks for bringing me up here. It's beautiful. So you were saying your family owns this place?"

  I've got to talk about something. Anything to avoid the inevitable. I still don't know much about him, and there's never been a better time to dig deeper. Besides, maybe if I make him uncomfortable enough he won't make a move. Because if he does, I'll comply. I'll be a very happy girl, but in the morning I'll feel awful.

  "Yep."

  "And now they don't?"

  "No, we do. We just don't run it anymore. My brother's kind of a...I guess you could say a free spirit. Some people call him a flake. I just call it like I see it."

  I run my finger around the mouth of the bottle and squint in his direction, like it'll help me see whatever it is he's not revealing. "And how do you see it?" I ask.

  Lucas cracks his lopsided smile and draws his knees up to his chest, allowing them to lull to the side. "Ross's philosophy is 'take life by the balls and squeeze.'"

  I nearly choke on my drink as a giggle erupts. "And what exactly is that supposed to mean?"

  He shrugs. "Kind of like the lemon philosophy, I guess. Basically, no matter what comes your way—and shit will come your way—deflect and be happy because you only live one life. You might as well be happy doing it."

  "That's pretty smart," I reply, cocking my head to the side. "Sounds like he's speaking from experience."

  He takes another drink, staring off over the rooftop.

  "Is he?"

  "Enough about me." Lucas grins. "Besides, I like listening to your stories. You tell them so well."

  I laugh. "I ramble is what I do."

  "Ramble on. I don't mind." He presses his lips together and stares up at the sky. "Let me see, what don't I know about Shannon? First crush?"

  I shake my head. That's an awkward conversation I'm hoping to avoid.

  "Oh, come on. I'll share mine if you share yours."

  "Dave," I say quickly, before taking another drink of beer. "But I was five, so I'm not sure it counts."

  Lucas's eyebrows draw together and he looks down for a moment before his gaze flies back to me. "The dude from the parking lot?"

  I nod, slowly. "I crushed on him from ages five to eight, was completely repulsed by him until I was fourteen."

  He clears his throat. "So you've known him a while then. How long were you two together?"

  How did he...?

  "I only assume because of his reaction the other night."

  I nod. "We were on and off through high school. Mostly on. But he left right after. Only just came back."

  Lucas nods. "Cool."

  I clear my throat, and nudge him gently. "Let me guess, yours was Alyssa Milano."

  He laughs. "No, but she was a close second. Believe it or not it was my Sunday School teacher. She was fucking hot. Because of her I was never late."

  I laugh. "A Sunday School teacher? How on earth...?"

  "Guess I have a thing for church girls."

  Good lord. "First kiss?"

  Lucas smirks.

  "What?"

  "The hot Sunday School teacher." He puts up a hand to silence me. "Don't worry it was years later and she wasn't much of a church girl anymore."

  "How old were you?"

  "Seventeen and reckless. She was dating my brother and I made a move on a dare."

  "First," I say, holding up a hand. "You had your first kiss at seventeen?"

  Lucas ducks his head.

  "I'm sorry." I press my lips together to hide a smile. "That's just...wow. I mean you seem like you'd be pretty popular with the girls."

  "Not back then."

  I shake my head. "You were seventeen and she went with it? Isn't there some law against that?"

  "She was only twenty. Not that big of a jump."

  "Well at least it was only a kiss."

  "Now nobody said anything about that."

  My mouth parts in surprise.

  "Church girls don't always stay church girls forever." His gaze lingers over me and I squirm. "What about you?"

  Did he just ask what I think he did? No way am I telling him about the first time I had sex. Not only is it an embarrassing story. It'll only make things more awkward.

  "First kiss, I mean," he adds with a chuckle.

  "Oh." I laugh lightly. "It was with Dave. At the time we were only friends but after that... Well, let’s just say that kiss opened my eyes."

  Lucas lets out a hiss of air through his teeth. "Is this guy going to be a problem?" he asks with a smile.

  I laugh.

  "How'd it happen?" he asks. "The kiss."

  "We went to my junior school prom together—our parents made us." I roll my eyes. "My sister always adored him, but I never saw it coming. She was so mad at me." I laugh. "Up until that moment, the whole thing was awkward and embarrassing. Our moms made such a huge deal about it. The
y've been best friends since college so they were pretty stoked. Anyway," I sigh. "I let him kiss me after." I smile at the memory. "It was sweet. From then, I just wanted to keep kissing him. So I did. You could say he helped me hone my skills. He was a really good kisser. Just the right amount of tongue and lips." I sip my beer.

  "Parking lot guy. At Junior Prom? What, were you fourteen?"

  "Yep."

  "He was that good, huh?"

  I shrug. "Sure, but he's not the David Baker you met the other night." I sigh. "He's changed a lot since those days. Too much time spent around my dad, I guess."

  "Was he better than me?"

  I bite my lip. "I'm not sure. It was so long ago."

  Lucas raises an eyebrow. "Really? My competition is a fourteen-year-old David Baker?"

  I sigh. "It's hard to forget your first great kiss."

  Lucas leans toward me. "Why don't we test that theory?"

  The second his lips meet mine, I'm a goner. I close my eyes relishing in the feeling of his straying hands. This is so wrong. Rolling around with a guy I barely know on a rooftop is a bad idea. This guy is a bad, bad idea. He's making me stupid and I can't even halt the process. Lucas's hands grip my waist and he pulls me to him, falling backwards onto the blanket.

  It's fine, I keep telling myself as the taste of him sends me into some kind of delirium. He'll be gone soon. It's okay to cheat on a diet once in a while. You haven't been with a man in a long time. You've been so good, Shannon. You deserve a break.

  No one has to know.

  As happy as they are there, I pull my fingers from his hair grab and ahold of his collar, struggling with the tiny buttons on his shirt. After several seconds, I give up and yank it open.

  The buttons spray across the blanket like little plastic beads, and Lucas pulls back, the surprise on his face evident.

  "I'm sorry," I bite my lip. "They were just so small."

  He sits up, leaving me red faced and regretful.

  "What are you doing?" I ask breathlessly, my heart thumping.

  He responds by leaning forward and planting a soft kiss on my cheek. "We should probably slow things down a bit."

  Is he kidding? Oh my, god. I nod in response, turning away from him. Damn this guy. I'm all self-conscious now. And considering I just acted like a sex-starved lunatic, I should be.

  I stare up at the sky, counting the stars as I wait for the awkwardness to pass. It doesn't.

  After a little while, Lucas's finger crooks under my chin and he turns me to face him. "I didn't invite you here for this. The blanket and everything, it wasn't that kind of gesture. You know that, right?"

  I eye him with mock scrutiny. "Is that right?"

  "You don't believe me?"

  "I don't know many hot guys who invite girls to romantic rooftops just to talk."

  "You think I'm hot?"

  I giggle. "Have you seen yourself?"

  He shrugs, then runs his fingers through his hair. "Just so we're clear, we did...talk, I mean. Before you jumped me, we had a pretty good conversation."

  I sit up, my mouth dropping open. "I jumped you? I don't think so." I sit up next to him, bowing toward his ear. "Why don't we test that theory?" I say in a gruff voice.

  Lucas laughs. "Fair enough. I instigated, but how'd you know I was going to kiss you? Maybe I was just getting in real close to make sure you heard me."

  I narrow my eyes. "How about we call it a draw?"

  I catch a glimpse of the lazy curve of his lips just before he covers mine again. Lucas's fingers move to my hair, combing through the long strands and shifting them behind my back. And just like that, I lose it again. And even though I expect him to, he doesn't stop me, as I trail kisses across his cheek and down his neck. When I land on the black ink decorating his exposed collar bone, I force myself to pull back and begin to trace the words with my finger.

  "Love and Hate. Passion and Pain. Life and Death," I read, moving from right to left. Right below the string of letters are bolder, larger ones that spell out strength.

  "I've never seen one of these up close. What does it mean?"

  "Seriously?"

  My gaze flickers to his. "Am I supposed to know?"

  "No. It's not that. It's just...usually people take it so literally. Just a string of words with no deeper meaning." He pushes his hair out of his eyes.

  I stare back at him, waiting for my explanation but it never comes. Instead Lucas says, "Maybe one day, I'll tell you."

  "And what's the nipple ring for?" I ask, allowing my fingers to trail down the center of his chest.

  A laugh rumbles through him. "Got that on a dare."

  "Seriously?" I draw back, looking him in the eye. "You do a lot of things on dares, don't you?"

  "Always been a bit of a daredevil. But you should see my brother."

  "What do you mean?"

  "Tattoos, piercings, scars. I'm tame compared to him."

  "What is he? Some kind of rock star?"

  "Something like that."

  I groan, the memory of where I am coming back in a rush. "Rock stars ruined my life."

  He jerks back a bit. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  "Nothing. It’s just…guys in bands are bad news.” I think of Sheila and wherever she is right now. “They easily corrupt.”

  He frowns. “Corrupt how?”

  “I’m sorry. I don’t mean your brother. I don’t even know your brother. It’s a long story. Not worth getting into. Especially now."

  He strokes the side of my cheek and sighs. "You know what I think?"

  "What?" I whisper.

  He tugs on my arm coaxes me closer. "I think you're smart, funny, sexy and a mystery that, if we had more time, I'd spend my days trying to crack."

  I couldn't force the smile from my face if I wanted as he drops another soft kiss on my mouth. And as his lips move against mine once more, my stomach starts to rumble again, but to be honest, I could care less.

  Lucas pulls back for just a second, a devilish grin on his face. "Can David Baker do that?"

  I shake my head. God, not even close.

  Sheila

  Why the hell didn't I do this before? For years, I've lived in that house, stifled my true self and for what? It's never been worth it. Ever. For the first time in my life, I feel like I'm where I belong.

  "Switch," Coco calls out and holds out her copy of Seventeen as I flip through the last few pages of Rolling Stone. "My god, I can't believe how hot it is today."

  I shield my face from the sun and look over at her.

  We're stretched out on lawn chairs by her pool in shorts and bikini tops. I've convinced her to cut school for the day while I come up with a plan of action.

  With her dad out of town on business, I'll be able to get away with staying at her place for the next few days. Her older brother Cole's kind of a jerk, not to mention a cop. At first, I was worried he'd call my parents, but Cole and I have an unspoken friendship. He treats me like his sister's bratty little friend, but I can tell he doesn't actually mind having me around. Still, the moment Mr. Rose comes back, I'll have to relocate—and quick. He won't hesitate to call my grandmother. There's still a week left until I leave with the band, so I'm hoping that doesn't happen anytime soon.

  "I was thinking I just drop out now, and grab my GED when the tour's over," I say. "That way I don't have to miss anything and I don't have to go home to Lucifer and his wife."

  Coco laughs, flipping her dark curls over her shoulder. "Don't forget their she-devil spawn."

  Her words pinch and my first instinct is to defend my sister, but the memory of what she did, pushes it away. I still can't believe she hung me out to dry that way. After everything I've done for her, she trades me in for a guy. I wonder who he is. She's had her head so far in the books lately I didn't think she even cared about boys anymore.

  "Sorry," Coco says. "That was harsh. I know how close you two are."

  I shrug. "Whatever. She totally ratted me out. She deserves w
hatever she gets."

  "So," Coco pushes her shades down on her nose and her sparkling hazel eyes capture mine. "Any news you want to share?"

  "Like what?" I scoff.

  "Like, Luke. Have you seen him since you got back to Lewiston?"

  My gaze shifts to the house next door. "I haven't seen him since the other night when my virginity scared him off."

  Coco laughs. "I still can't believe that shit. Most guys would jump at the chance."

  "You know?" The memory makes my stomach swirl and I work to shut the conversation down as quickly as possible. "Maybe I just freaked him out or something. He was smoking and Ryan said since he's been in school, he doesn't really do any of that stuff...I don't know, maybe it was a mix of the three intoxicating things: Budweiser, weed and me," I add with a devilish grin.

  Coco rolls her eyes. "Luke's always been kinda lame. If I were you, I'd dig my claws into Dash."

  "No way," I laugh. "As hot as he is, he kind of scares me."

  "What about Ross, then? You two seemed pretty cozy the other night."

  I wave her off. "I'm over that. Besides, I'm in no mood to be fighting with Maya."

  That girl could make a soldier cry.

  "Haven't you heard?"

  I stare at the cover of the magazine, coveting Milla Jovovich's safari-inspired necklace. "Heard what?"

  "They broke up."

  My attention snaps back to my friend. "Who?"

  "Roscoe and Maya."

  I scoff. "What's new? Don't those two break up like every other week?"

  "Every other day, pretty much. But this time it's different. This time she's threatened."

  I laugh. "By what?" What could a girl with stems like that, hair like that, a face like that for godssakes, have to be threatened about? Maya isn't just the prettiest girl in the Northwest, she's a freaking runway model. She walks shows in New York and has been to places like Milan and Paris. And she's only twenty-two. Not to mention she's got Roscoe wrapped around her little finger. He does anything she asks. She's also a first-class bitch.

  "By you."

  This time I drop the magazine in my lap, abandoning the Black Crowes article and giving Coco my full attention. "Excuse me?"

  "He hired you. She told him to fire you. He wouldn't, so she dumped him."

  I sit up straight in the lawn chair and swing my legs over the side. I grip the edge of it so my fingers stop shaking. "What?"