Page 79 of The Boy from Half Moon

Luke’s eyes widened when he saw me enter the room. He needed a hug something fierce, but I moved my head slowly side-to-side, indicating we were still on a yes or no basis.

“Why is this man cuffed?” I demanded. “Did you arrest him? Did you read him his Miranda rights?”

Both buffoons looked from one to the other before hurriedly removing the cuffs. I placed my hands on the shoulders of a seated Luke and leaned into his ear.

“Do not speak a word until I have you out of this building.”

I had work to do.

CHAPTER FORTY-TWO: Luke

“What do you need right now, Luke?” Tate asked as soon as our Uber pulled out of the jail parking lot.

“I need to go to Half Moon and check on my mother and little brother,” I answered. “David was upset when they dragged me off the ranch in handcuffs. He’s never witnessed something like that.”

“As your legal counsel, I don’t think you should stay on the ranch. I understand your family is still there, but folks might believe you actually committed this crime, Luke. That’s a dangerous risk to take.”

I wanted to hold Tate’s hand, but he seemed different somehow and I couldn’t tell if he wanted me to. I worried that the mess I was in would change how he felt. That, and I hadn’t contacted him for three weeks either.

“We don’t have anywhere to go,” I muttered, more to myself than him and the driver.

Tate turned to me, placing his hand on my thigh, causing me to inhale sharply. I longed for his touch. The moment he came into the interview room inside the jail, every feeling I’d tamped down for weeks reappeared like no time had gone by.

“You’ll stay with me until we figure something out,” he reassured.

I stared at his hand, feeling like what we’d built so far had vanished. “All three of us?” I asked.

“As many of you as you need, Luke.”

I lifted my eyes to him. “Why are you being so kind?” I asked.

“That’s my job.”

“Oh, okay,” I whispered, turning away and watching the landscape speed by. “Thank you.”

Neither of us spoke for a while. Madras quickly disappeared behind us as we made our way to the ranch. I had no idea what reaction my presence would be when we got there, but I needed to reassure Ma and David I hadn’t killed Franklin. Controlling what the rest of the community thought was beyond my control.

“Can I ask you something, Luke?” I turned to face the man I’d figured out I loved and nodded. “Why did you quit working in Bend, and why you’d stop communicating with me?”

“Someone told Franklin I was gone overnight the last time I stayed with you,” I said. “My violation of the rules caused hardship for my family when I didn’t come home all night.”

“You couldn’t contact me?” he asked. I shook my head in embarrassment. “I mean, you managed to call me the night I came to pick you up,” he reminded me. “Don’t you think a simple call to explain why you’d disappeared would have been nice?”

“I decided I couldn’t do that anymore,” I said, unable to look him in the eyes.

“What? Call me?”

“Court you,” I mumbled. “I decided I couldn’t do that anymore.”

“Oh, I see. So even to just tell me that, you couldn’t call?” he asked, removing his hand from my thigh.

“I was in trouble, Tate. My family got kicked out of the dorms and I was in solitary confinement.”

“May ask what for?”

“For threatening to kill Franklin,” I admitted.

“Is that what the young man, Josiah, witnessed?”

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