Fated Dreams (Book One In The Affinity series) (13 page)

Waiters were
rushing in and placing orders on a high counter, then taking plates and rushing
back out. It was chaos.

His mother
looked up at us and smiled. “Sarah! Luke said you were here, I’m glad you came
in to see us.” She glanced at Lucas. “Table four’s order is ready to take out,
Sarah is fine.”

He looked at
me, not sure if he should leave. I nodded, and he went to take care of his
order.

Karen washed
her hands then motioned me to come over.

“I’m not in the
way, am I?” I asked, feeling out of place.

“No, not at
all.” She took my hand and pulled me over to the man in the center. He was
around the same age as my dad, with black hair, dark eyes that sparkled, bushy
eyebrows, and a round face. He looked like the kind of man that was full of
mischief. He stood on the other side of the counter, wearing a white chef’s
coat and a matching white chef’s hat that covered his thick hair.

“So this is the
girl who’s stolen my boy’s heart. It’s lovely to meet you, Sarah, I’ve heard a
lot about you.” Nick Tate smiled warmly.

All my nerves
melted away. He had the same smile Lucas had, one that lit up his whole face;
it made me smile. “It’s nice to meet you too, Mr. Tate.”

He scoffed.
“Call me Nick.” He started spreading some seasoning on chicken.

“You have a
really nice restaurant, Nick. I love the food here.”

With a laugh,
he said, “Yeah, right, Lucas told me all you had was a salad. But don’t worry,
I’ll have you trying new things in no time. Why don’t you come for dinner
Wednesday night, that’s our one free night, when I have my sous chef working.
What do you say? Do you want to try some of my cooking? It won’t be too
strange.” He glanced at Karen. “Don’t forget to bring the octopus home for our
dinner.”

I gasped;
everyone who was paying attention laughed.

“I’m kidding.
We’ll save that for the next time you come over,” Nick said with a chuckle.

The doors swung
open, revealing Lucas. “Are you scaring her, Dad?” He laughed softly, having
heard what had been said.

Nick winked at
me. “She looks tough, she can take it.”

“Dad, don’t put
her on the spot,” Lucas said, then looked at me. “You don’t have to come over
if you don’t want to.”

“No, that’s
okay, it will be fun. I’d love to.”

“Great. So have
you met everybody?”

“No. But she
will,” Karen said, and then proceeded to introduce me to the staff that was
there, only I didn’t remember any of their names. Like an elephant in a glass
shop, I felt out of place. Every time I moved, I seemed to be in someone’s way.

“And this is
our temporary dishwasher,” Karen said, clearly oblivious to my discomfort. We
stopped in front of an enormous double sink. There was a tall guy standing in
front of it washing pots. I only saw his back, but I had an idea who he was. He
turned around and scowled at me.

“Logan, I want you to apologize to Sarah and get rid of that snarly look on your face.
You’re doing dishes because of your behavior, not hers!” She didn’t yell at
him, but her voice was so firm Logan smoothed his features.

“I’m sorry if I
scared you, Sarah. It won’t happen again.” For a second he actually looked
sincere, making me think there was a side of him he didn’t show anyone.

“It’s all
right, Logan, I hope we can forget about it and start fresh,” I replied
sincerely. Since I was dating his brother, we would have to get along. I also
hoped that by saying this he wouldn’t retaliate.

His eyes lit up
for a second, then changed to indifference. “Whatever,” he said with a shrug,
turning back to his pots.

I turned around
when Lucas took my hand.

“Mom, I’m
taking a quick break. Lisa, will you tell Emma that Sarah will be out in a
minute?” he asked the hostess, who was walking out to the dining room.

“Sure” she
said, before slipping through the doors.

He pulled me
into a small pantry, wrapped his arms around me, and whispered in my ear. “I’m
glad you came to visit me.” His hot breath on my cheek sent chills through my
body. He lowered his lips to touch mine for a very gentle kiss, which deepened
gradually.

The door swung
open. Logan stood in the doorway staring at us as we both turned to face him.

“Mom, Lucas and
Sarah are making out in the pantry!” he said loudly, picking up a box of what
looked like powdered dish soap.

His mom walked
by the open door. “That’s nice, dear.”

When he shut
the door, our eyes locked, and we started to laugh.

“I’m looking
forward to next weekend, how about you?” he asked after our laughter subsided.
I just nodded, breathless by his proximity. “Am I making you nervous?” he
whispered. I nodded again. “Good.” He leaned down to kiss me. I lifted my hands
up to slip my fingers through his hair as his lips parted, taking us to a new
level. I was lost in the kiss. But one thought suddenly popped in my head—Emma.

I drew back,
out of breath and shaking.

“What’s wrong?”
he whispered.

“I hate to
leave, but you have to get back to work, and I should get back to Emma.”

He nodded his
head. “You’re so responsible.” He poked the end of my nose with his finger.

“I know, and I
hate it.”

His hand
slipped into mine and together we walked out to the dining room. He kissed my
knuckles before letting my hand drop. “I’ll come over around three o’clock.”

“Great.” I
waved at him and then made my way through the now busy restaurant to my table.

“You ready?” I
asked Emma.

She was
finished with her salad and stood up beside me. “Yep. Derrick ordered the
tickets and booked us adjoining rooms.”

We waved to
Lisa on our way out.

The house was quiet when I stepped inside
after Emma dropped me off. “Hello,” I yelled, walking into the kitchen. I saw a
note on the island and picked it up. It was from my mom, explaining that she,
Dad, and Alex went out for some shopping and dinner.

As I ascended
the stairs to my bedroom, I texted Lucas, telling him to come up to my room, no
one was home. Since the house was so quiet, I popped in a CD, turned the volume
to low, and fell onto my bed with a book.

I must have fallen asleep, though, because
the next thing I knew, I was opening my eyes, feeling groggy. I could hear the
sound of shuffling papers in the corner of my room. Startled, I spun my head
towards the noise…I wasn’t alone. But instead of panicking, I felt a thrill of
excitement. Lucas sat at my desk bent over a notebook, scribbling quickly with
a pen. A throw blanket, which had been on the couch earlier, covered me up to
my shoulders, and the book was lying on the nightstand with my bookmark holding
my place. I didn’t remember doing any of this. “Did you cover me up?” I asked.

He jumped, and
whirled around to look at me.

I laughed.

“God you scared
me, I thought you were sleeping.” He was laughing now.

“I was. I just
woke up. Did you do this?” I asked again, lifting up the blanket.

“Yes, you
looked comfortable, I didn’t want to wake you, and you looked cold.” He closed
his textbook and swiveled in the chair. “I was going to lie down with you, but
for one thing, I haven’t finished my homework yet. I thought I could get it
done while you slept. And I didn’t know when your parents were coming home.”

I grinned,
leaning up against my headboard. “Did you finish your homework?”

He nodded.
“Almost.”

“My parents
won’t be home until after supper, we have the place to ourselves.”

“In that case.”
He whipped his pen onto the desk and stood up. “I’m finished. Move over.” He
jumped onto the bed, making me and the pillows bounce. I giggled as he wrapped
me in his arms.

We fell silent,
listening to the wind outside blow the tree branches against the windows, and
the sounds of each other breathing. We stayed like that for some time, lying
comfortably in each other’s arms.

“What time is
it?” I asked him when the sky outside turned dark gray. I hadn’t spoken in a
while, so my voice sounded extra loud in the quiet room.

He glanced at
the clock beside him. “Four o’clock. Do you want to go out for dinner before
the movie?”

“We have
leftovers I could heat up. My mom made lasagna last night.”

“Sounds great.”

We grew quiet
again. I was comfortable and still a little groggy from my nap.

“So what did
you think of my father?” he asked. His voice was soft and peaceful.

“He’s a
charmer. I like your mother too, she’s very nice.”

“They loved
you. Even Logan was on good behavior. I hope he keeps it up until Wednesday
when you come over for dinner.”

I laughed,
remembering our time in the pantry when Logan caught us. “How do you think
he’ll act tomorrow at school?”

His hands
rubbed my arm, gently. “Do you mean, will he give you a hard time?”

I nodded.

“No, he won’t,
I already had a talk with him, and told him you had nothing to do with telling
Mom.”

My eyes
widened. “That’s all you said?”

A short rumble
of laughter vibrated in his chest. “There might have been a threat in there as
well, but don’t worry about it.”

I couldn’t help
but worry. Logan was famous for his ill treatment of our school mates. But I
couldn’t think about that now, there was nothing I could do about it anyway.
I’d have my answers soon enough. In order to change the subject from his twin,
I asked, “What have Andy and Kyle been up to this weekend? Weren’t you supposed
to go to a party with them?”

He leaned above
me, tracing my arm with his finger. My skin tingled under his touch. “Yes, but
I’d much rather be with you,” he murmured. “So now that we’re together, do you
mind if we eat lunch with you guys?”

“You’re a
package deal, aren’t you?”

“Yep, just like
you, Derrick and Emma.”

I chuckled at
the thought of our once cozy threesome, now growing. “I would love for you to
sit with us.”

I turned to
face him, brushing my lips against his. It was meant to be a quick one, but he
held my head to keep me from pulling away. He kissed me softly, ending it by
lying back on the bed and tucking me into the crook of his shoulder. He sighed
happily. “I could stay like this all day. I’m so comfortable with you, Katie.”
His voice was soft, so I could have misunderstood, but I was sure I hadn’t.

I sucked in a
breath. “What did you call me?” Afraid to move, I left my head resting on his
shoulder, staring at my cream-colored wall.

“Sarah. Why,
what do you think I said?” His tone was normal; maybe I
had
heard wrong.

“Nothing,” I
mumbled, listening to his heartbeat. Had I imagined the name? I was sure I
heard him say it. I looked up at him; he was smiling warmly at me.

“Did you have a
dream last night when we fell asleep on the couch?”

He arched a
brow. “Not that I remember. Why?”

Was this Katie
thing all in my mind? “No reason.” I laid my head back down on his chest. Was I
hearing things now? But what about my dreams, they were definitely real. Had I
been thinking about them, and misunderstood him?

My stomach
growled, interrupting my chaotic thoughts; thankfully, Lucas didn’t seem to
notice. “I’m hungry, let’s go down and eat.” I sat up, tossing the throw
blanket off me.

“No. I never
want to leave. I’m so comfortable,” he whined.

“Fine then, I
get all the lasagna.” I climbed off the bed and took off running out the door.
I heard his footsteps behind me.

Thick, strong
arms wrapped around me just as I reached the stairs. “You know, I could just
pick you up and carry you back into the bedroom,” he whispered, nuzzling the
back of my neck, causing goose bumps to break out along my skin.

 “Yes, you
could, but I’m hungry.” My voice came out in a whisper.

“Fine.” He let
me go and took my hand, walking down the stairs beside me.

In the kitchen,
I took out the lasagna and placed it in the oven to reheat. Then I took out
half of an Italian loaf, and garlic butter. Lucas cut the bread into pieces
while I buttered it. When we were finished, we put the pieces on a pan in the
oven with the lasagna.

As we waited
for our dinner, we hung out in the living room, watching TV. The smell of
garlic and tomato sauce drifted out of the kitchen.

When the oven
timer went off, I stood up to get our food.

We ate in the
dining room, with the sound of a game show still playing on the TV. “This is
good, your mom could work for my dad,” Lucas mumbled between bites.

“I’ll tell her
you approve. So tell me about growing up as a twin. Was it annoying when people
couldn’t tell you apart?”

“Sometimes, but
the worst was when you thought I was Logan.”

“What, are you
serious? I had never seen you without your glasses, how was I supposed to
know.”

“I didn’t say
it made sense, just that it bothered me. I had real feelings for you, and you
thought I was my brother. It was a major blow to my ego.”

“Don’t worry
too much; I was relieved that it turned out to be you.”

“Why?”

Feeling
embarrassed about the real reason, I decided to lie. “Isn’t it obvious, it’s Logan we’re talking about.”

His eyes
narrowed, assessing me. “What are you not telling me?”

I raised my
eyebrows in an attempt to appear innocent. “Nothing.”

He paused,
holding his fork midair, and grinned. “I don’t believe you.”

I shook my
head, taking another bite.

“Oh, you’re
going to have to tell me, or I’ll get it out of you somehow,” he threatened
with a playful smile.

I shook my
head. “Nope, sorry.” I bit my lip, trying to keep a straight face.

He stood up,
and slowly walked toward me.

I got up
quickly, my chair falling to the floor, and took off running. I knew what he
was going to do. He caught me as I ran into the living room and started to
tickle me until I screamed. “Fine, I’ll tell you,” I gasped between shrills of
laughter.

I was
breathless when he let me go. I straightened and took a few deep breaths; man,
I hated being tickled. He stood in front of me, with a wide grin on his face. I
really wanted to wipe it off, but I was afraid if I tried, he would do it
again. Now that he knew my weak spot, I was afraid he’d use it.

“When you stood
in my line, I was in a bad mood. I didn’t sleep well the night before, and I
hated working concession. So when I thought it was Logan, I was annoyed. But I
did notice that he looked better, he was dressed casual, and I liked his hair.
I remember being upset with myself for thinking it.”

“You really
thought I was better looking than Logan?”

“Well, you are
twins. But yeah, I did, and I was thankful when it was you that I thought that
about, and not him.”

He took the few
steps between us and wrapped his arms around me. “For some reason, I’m drawn to
you, and I’ve wanted you here in my arms for a long time.”

His mood
shifted from playful to intense emotion in a blink of an eye, leaving me
breathless. I pulled away, not sure how to react to his extreme mood change,
and led him back to the table, where we finished our meal.

We pulled into the parking lot outside the
theater, an hour later. Walking hand in hand through the lot, I suddenly
remembered being followed here last night. I tightened my grip on his hand,
glancing around to make sure no one was hovering anywhere in a hooded
sweatshirt.

“Are you okay,
what’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” His eyes were full of
concern.

“I’m fine, just
a little cold,” I lied. When we reached the building, I tried not to make it
obvious how thankful I was to be out of the parking lot.

He opened the
heavy glass door for me, and we wandered over to the line that was formed in
front of the ticket booth. Lucas was telling me about the rest of his shift at
the restaurant when I noticed Stephanie Brown in line ahead of us.

“Oh crap,” I
mumbled quietly, looking at the floor. I wasn’t in the mood for an argument
with her.

“What?” He
stopped mid-sentence, and glanced around to see what I was talking about.

“See that girl
up ahead with the blond hair?” I nodded in her direction without looking up.

“Yeah, what
about her?” he asked, looking in her direction.

“Don’t look at
her!” I pulled his face back toward me. “I went to school with her my first
year. I’ll tell you the rest when we get inside.”

“Okay,” he
said, looking confused.

We moved up in
line and saw Stephanie walking away. She was with the puppets, Tara and Trudy,
and they were giggling like a couple of hyenas. Considering they were a year
older than me, I wondered if they would ever grow up.

I felt relief
when the trio disappeared into another theater.

We slipped into
a dark room across the hall.

“How about
here?” Lucas asked me, motioning to a couple of seats in the back.

“Perfect.”

“So what was
all of that about, with that girl?” He gestured with his thumb to the door
after we took our seats.

I sighed. “Did
you know I went to a private school, my first year?” I asked, turning to face
him. He nodded, and I continued. “Well, her name is Stephanie, and she
considered herself the queen of the school. She bossed people around, and they
listened to her. After a week of being the new kid, this guy came to my table
where I sat alone at lunch one day, and welcomed me.”

“That was nice
of him.”

“It was, and I
appreciated it. But after he left, I noticed Stephanie staring at me. The next
day no one would talk to me. I didn’t think much about it since I was new. But
it continued for about a week. Ryan, that was his name, came over again and
explained that she had told everyone to ignore me because we had talked. They
used to go out, and she still liked him.”

His eyes
widened. “Why would anyone listen to her?”

“That’s what I
asked. Apparently, she’s from an old rich powerful family, and they still have
connections. Anyway, I told him that I didn’t care what she did, and after that
we started hanging out, but only as friends.

“A few months
later she asked me over for a sleepover. I knew it was weird, but I was hoping
she would finally let people speak to me if I went.” I paused to catch my
breath. His face looked serious, like he was anticipating something unpleasant.
“We went up to her room, and she started to ask odd questions. Then she pulled
out a huge pair of scissors. Her friends held me down while she cut my hair.”