Page 128 of The Spider & the Storm

Luke, on the other hand, didn't agree.

He was worrying about me again, the way he had after our parents died. Back when Melanie had talked him into taking me to therapy.

Therapy. I scoffed, thinking about it now, as I pulled the meatloaf from the oven.

My time with Dr. Sibilia hadn't been without warrant, but she had also been wrong about so many things. Number one being that there was any benefit to baring my soul to others.

A heart could only be rejected and hurt so many times before the scars finally turned to stone.

Lately, I'd had that uncanny feeling that it was about to be hurt again. Badly. And the safest thing to do was exactly what I'd been doing—nothing.

If only I could get Luke to stop prodding at me.

“So, hey, you wanna go to the movies tomorrow?” he asked abruptly, walking into the kitchen.

I glanced over my shoulder into the dining room, looking for Luke's latest sexual conquest, only to find it empty. “Where's—”

“Sent her home. She's a vegetarian, apparently.”

I looked into the pan and eyed the meatloaf he'd known I was making for three days since I'd been grocery shopping for the week. “You could've told me to make something else.”

“What?” He snorted an incredulous laugh as he opened the fridge to grab a can of root beer. “I'm not sacrificing meatloaf for pussy, dude. Never gonna happen.”

“And I wonder why you're single,” I grumbled.

“No, you don't.”

It was true; I didn't. Luke had made it very clear years ago that he was done with commitment. One serious girlfriend—onefiancée—had been more than enough for him, and although he'd also insisted plenty over the years that he wasn'thappy, he also seemed to be somewhat content. And just in the way I didn't seeany reason to change my own routine, far be it from me to insist he should change his.

But again, theprodding.

“Anyway, so you wanna go or not?”

I carried the meatloaf pan into the dining room to join the mashed potatoes and corn on the table. “Not really.”

“Come on. There's probably something creepy you'd like to see.”

“It's a waste of money,” I muttered, sitting down and spooning some potatoes onto my plate.

“We should go out,” he continued to urge, taking his chair across from mine.

There were two empty chairs beside his, another two beside mine. If it wasn’t for the fact that this was the same table we'd shared with our parents, I would've had half a mind to just get rid of the damn thing and give it to someone who could use the extra seating. We certainly didn't.

“We can watch movies here. And it’s Halloween anyway. We have to hand out candy.”

He sighed as he sliced off a slab of meatloaf and dropped it onto his plate. “You know, you're kinda starting to freak me out again.”

“So you've said.”

His eyes darted toward mine. “And that doesn't matter to you?”

I took a bite of mashed potatoes and lifted my shoulders high to my ears. “Not saying it doesn't matter, Luke. I just don't know what you want me to do about it. I don't want to go out.I don't want to waste my money on movies. I just want to go to work, come home, hand out candy to trick-or-treaters, eat dinner, and draw for a while. Okay? I don't understand why this is such a problem for you.”

“Because I don't think it's healthy.”

“Yeah, okay. And you'd know what's healthy. Sure.” I fought against rolling my eyes while I cut off a slice of meatloaf, lobbing it onto my plate. “When's the last time you got tested for STDs, huh? You know, if you're suddenly so health-conscious.”

The comment was cruel and backhanded, and I knew it. Yet I felt no shame or fear in leveling him with a stony glare, only to be met with one just as angry and harsh. If he wanted to throw a punch at me, that was fine. It wouldn't be the first time, and even though I might not have gone to the gym with him in a long time, I'd stayed in shape on my own, thanks to my job at the cemetery and the weights we kept in the basement. I could take him.

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