Authors: Samantha Chase
“You don’t go out in public,” she reminded him, her tone wary.
“For you I’m willing to make an exception.” Lucas heard her quiet laugh and knew he’d broken through her resistance. “What do you say, Em? I’ll pick you up at seven and we’ll go wherever you want.”
It was tempting; far too tempting, Emma thought.
Maybe with them being out in public she could resist falling into bed with him.
And maybe pigs would fly.
“I don’t know, Lucas,” she hesitated again.
“Be ready at seven, Emma,” was all he said before hanging up, not giving her the opportunity to turn him down.
It was a risky maneuver, he told himself, but deep down Lucas knew that Emma would be waiting for him. He’d have to be careful to show her respect and let her see that she wasn’t merely someone that he was sleeping with; she was more. They may have begun their relationship fast and out of order, but Lucas swore that by the end of the night, Emma would see that he was sincerely making an effort to show her how he felt.
Words may not be his strongest point but dammit, he sure as hell would show her in every way possible how much she was coming to mean to him.
****
Emma was ready at six-thirty. She berated herself for acting like a giddy schoolgirl and yet that was exactly how she felt. Lucas was taking her on a date. True he hadn’t apologized for his outburst from his previous visit, yet, but she was hopeful that at some point tonight that he would.
Where would they go? Where should she suggest they go for dinner? After their shopping debacle, Emma was more than a little cautious to avoid anyplace that was going to be too overwhelming for Lucas. She understood his fears, sort of, and wanted to respect his feelings. There was a small bistro on the outskirts of the city that would be perfect, she thought. A quick internet search had her finding the number and calling and hoping that they wouldn’t need reservations. They did but luckily because they were still dining fairly early, they had an opening and no sooner had she confirmed their time but Lucas was knocking at her door.
Emma stood and took a few deep breaths before checking her reflection in the mirror by her front door. Her hair
was loose and wavy and she wore an indigo blue jersey dress that clung to her just enough to be sexy but not too over-the-top. She hoped that Lucas would like it and when she opened the door and he openly let his eyes caress her from head to toe, she knew she’d made the right choice. Stepping back and inviting Lucas in, she was stunned when he leaned in and placed a gentle kiss on her cheek before handing her a bouquet of lilies.
“Oh, Lucas, thank you!” she said sincerely. “They’re beautiful!”
“No, you’re beautiful, Em,” he said solemnly. “You take my breath away.”
Well, how was she supposed to respond to that? Her initial instinct was to grab him by his expensive suit jacket and drag him into the bedroom but then she remembered that they were going on a date and that all of the good and yummy parts of their relationship could b
e explored later.
The evening was everything Emma could have wished for and more. Their dinner was delicious and the conversation flowed. There was a small jazz trio playing softly in the restaurant bar and they sat and had coffee while enjoying the music. Lucas suggested a movie but Emma found herself to be enjoying simply talking to him and so they opted to stay longer at the bistro before heading back to her place.
Lucas parked the car in the driveway and was unsure what he was supposed to do from here. He knew that he’d walk her to the door but if she invited him inside, he was unsure he’d be able to resist. And would she even want him to? Unwilling to keep the debate going in his head, Lucas walked around to Emma’s side of the car and helped her out before walking her to the door.
“Tonight was wonderful, Lucas, thank you,” she said shyly, clearly unsure of what they were supposed to do next as well.
“Thank you for being willing to go out with me on such short notice.”
Emma fumbled with her keys before finally sighing heavily, as if she’d just made a monumental decision. “Would you like to come in?”
“Are you sure, Em?”
She was really beginning to love the way he said her name and before she could remember all of the reasons as to why they should just say goodnight now and quit while they were ahead, Emma opened the door and stepped inside, holding the door open for him. “Yes, I’m sure.”
It was all of the encouragement he needed.
They continued to talk until well after midnight, seemingly unable to find a stopping point. They discussed their childhoods, their families
, her career at Montgomery’s, and Lucas even opened up about his football career. All in all, Emma became more and more entranced with the man, which was a dangerous thing. No, the more she learned about Lucas, the more she found that what she was feeling was not just a crush or an attraction but that she was falling in love with him.
“You know,” Lucas was saying, “I wasn’t sure that you’d agree to go out with me tonight.”
“You didn’t really leave me much choice,” Emma replied, her tone seductively light.
He chuckled. “Well, I figured if I gave you too much time to think about it that you’d probably tell me no.” He stopped and studied Emma’s face; her beautiful face with those expressive blue eyes that told him more than he should know. “I have no excuse for my behavior, Emma. My career is a very sensitive subject and I’ve gone to great lengths to keep my private life private. I’m not sure that it’s going to be something that I can overcome right away.”
“I do understand, Lucas. I just want you to see that everything that people say or do or ask is not negative. The only one that’s looking at you in a negative way is you.”
In that moment Lucas knew that she was right. If he was going to be able to move forward with his life and break free of the walls he’d built around himself then he was going to have to change his entire mindset. “I wish I could tell you that I was going to change and that what happened that weekend was never going to happen again but I’m sure that at some point, old demons are going to surface and I’m going to struggle with it all again.”
Emma reached forward and took one of his hands in hers. “No one expects you to change overnight, Lucas, or to be perfect. Just be you.” The need to kiss him became too great and before she could question her own sanity, Emma leaned in and placed a kiss on Lucas’s cheek.
Instantly he changed the angle of his head and gently captured Emma’s lips with his own. When she sighed and leaned further into him, Lucas shifted so that he could take her in his arms and held her close. “I’ve wanted to do that all night.”
She hummed with pleasure. “Why didn’t you?”
“Because I wanted to show you that
I am interested in you, Emma Taylor, as a person and not just as someone that I want to sleep with. Although I do. A lot.”
Emma smiled against his neck and nipped at it. “That’s good, Lucas, because I feel the same way.” Raising her head she met his gaze full on. “I really enjoyed tonight; getting to know you and just spending the time talking.”
“And the sleeping with me?” he asked huskily.
“Oh, I enjoy that too. A lot.”
They continued to stare at one another and Emma knew what Lucas was asking without words. He wanted to stay and oh how she wanted him to. He was quickly becoming an addiction; one that she was finding it harder and harder to do without.
For far too long Emma had lived cautiously, never taking any risks or chances. Right now, she was willing to live a little dangerously and open her heart just a little more to the man sitting before her. He may not love her, he may very well break her heart and destroy her; but for tonight he was all hers and she was willing to live in the moment and take that chance.
Without a word, Emma simply rose to her feet and extended a hand to Lucas. Never breaking eye contact, he accepted her hand and came to stand beside her. Turning out the lamp beside her, Emma led Lucas to the bedroom and said a silent prayer that the risk would pay off.
As predicted, Thanksgiving had been a nightmare. As much as Emma had hoped and prayed to be saved from it all, she got sucked into the same family drama that had been going on for way too long. For a brief moment she had considered inviting Lucas to join her but then thought better of it. No need to let her family be the ones to scare him off; she wasn’t ready to lose him yet.
On the flipside, he hadn’t extended an invitation to her to join him and his family for the holiday either. While Emma tried not to let her feelings be hurt by it, she knew that where Lucas was concerned, she was going to have to wait and be patient. After all, a month ago he hadn’t even been willing to leave his home in the mountains for more than a day; at least now he was venturing out for nearly a full week at a time. It was progress.
Now as she was getting ready for work on Monday morning, she had to wonder if Lucas was going to be at the office. She had seen him just yesterday but he was contemplating going back to his place to check on things. He’d taken her out for lunch and they’d watched a movie on the television before ordering take out but he’d left at a fairly conservative time.
She missed him already.
With a sigh of resignation, Emma knew that it was something she was going to have to get used to. Lucas hadn’t made any real promises to her except that he would try to overcome his issues with his past. So far he was doing that but the pace was more of a struggle for her. Why couldn’t he just open up a little bit more and let her in on where he saw them going?
Grabbing her keys and hoping to finally give the rental car back this week, she headed out the door with a smile on her face and little hope in her heart.
****
“Lucas!” his mother beamed as he walked into the kitchen early Monday morning. “What a surprise! We thought you’d gone home last night.”
“I’ll probably end up back there today but Emma’s car is ready and I figured I’d take her up there to get it later today. Hopefully dad won’t mind if she leaves a little early.”
“Oh, of course he won’t. After all, it’s his fault that her car had to be repaired. I guess there was more damage than they originally thought.”
“Why would you say that?” he asked.
“Well, it just seemed like it took a bit longer than expected. Three weeks is a long time for some minor bodywork.”
Lucas looked at his mother and laughed as he shook his head. “Mom, her car went down about ten feet into an embankment and straight into a tree. The entire front end was messed up. It wasn’t just bodywork that needed to be done but engine work, as well. Plus, I wanted Bob to make sure that it was in perfect running condition before Emma got it back. Apparently she doesn’t follow up on tune ups and oil changes like she should.”
“Hmm…,” his mom said with a knowing smile.
“What? What was that sound about?” Somehow Lucas feared he wasn’t going to like the answer.
“It’s just that you’ve taken a lot of interest in Emma these last weeks and now you’re going through all the trouble of getting her car fixed and getting it back to her. Seems to me that you’re going a little above and beyond here.”
“Above and beyond what, Mom?”
he sighed.
“Don’t get snippy,” she quipped. “We both know that it’s been a long time since you’ve done much of anything. For crying out loud we have to practically drag you out of your precious mountain home to get you to come here once a month.”
“Mom…”
She paid him no mind and went on. “
All I’m saying is that I didn’t think it was possible to see you make such a turnaround. But I have to give your father credit; he certainly knew what he was doing in sending Emma up there.” Looking over at her son, she immediately realized what she had said and froze.
“What do you mean, dad knew what he was doing?” Lucas asked cautiously. “What are you talking about?”
“It’s…it’s nothing. Your father always said that eventually you’d get tired of living such a solitary life and…”
“No, that’s not what you said, Mom. You said that dad knew what he was doing in sending Emma up there. He sent her to my place on purpose? Is that it?”
Her shoulders slumped and tears began to well in her eyes. “It wasn’t like that, Lucas!”
“Then tell me what it was like! All this time it seemed a little odd that dad was claiming having a senior moment when he gave Emma the wrong address but I let that go and now you’re telling me it was intentional? Why? What did he hope to gain by this?”
There was no use denying anything right now; it was time for Lucas to know the truth. “Sit down, Lucas,” she began.
“I don’t want to sit! I want you to tell me what the hell
is going on!” he demanded.
“You were becoming more and more isolated and withdrawn, Lucas! We all know that you’re not fully healed and to be honest, we all have wondered why you would want to stay injured!” His mother didn’t raise her voice or lose her temper often but she was making up for it all right now. “It was only a matter of time before one of us hit our breaking point and confronted you but we also knew, as your parents, that we would most likely end up pushing you further away and I refused to let that happen.”