Page 104 of The Luminosity of Loriana Harper

He gathered his courage as he yanked his hood over his head. He opened the door and was hit by a lash of rain. He hopped out, slammed the door, and armed the alarm as he sprinted across to the house. As he held up his hand to knock, Vance opened the door.

“Perfect timing, young man. You’ve got about thirty seconds—Patsy likes to start things on time. Now, run upstairs, dump your coat, and come downstairs with me.”

Mitch, known for obedience and an ability to move quickly, hustled upstairs, dropped the coat, and was back within moments. He followed Vance down the several sets of stairs until they were at the basement door.

The group had already formed a circle, and Patsy turned upon hearing the men’s footsteps. “Well, just on time. You know how I like punctuality.”

Vance advanced toward her, and settled into his place at her right.

Mitch stood stock still.

Loriana met his gaze, her deep-brown eyes going wide in surprise.

Patsy glanced over her shoulder. “Well, come here, young man. Join us, and we can begin with our explanation of the evening. We have a newcomer.” She pointed to an older gentleman with white hair and two spots of color rising on his cheeks.

Despite noticing all the little details of the room and the people in the circle—he spotted both Geoff and Ardelle—he really only had eyes for one woman. The woman who’d come to mean everything to him in the last month. Had it only been a month? Possibly the most intense of his life. And he couldn’t regret a single moment except where he’d declined.

He cleared his throat. “I should’ve come to your Christmas party.”

Patsy’s brow knit. “Uh, we didn’t invite you. I mean, if I’d known…” Understanding dawned as she looked between Mitch and Loriana. “Oh, well, isn’t this an interesting turn of events. Are you joining us so we can get started, or are the two of you going to stare at each other all night? As much as I find this byplay endlessly fascinating, people came for hugs. Not a soap opera.” She added that last bit on a chuckle.

This didn’t feel like a joke to Mitch—this felt like the most important moment of his life.

With more courage than he believed possible, he extended his hand.

It felt like forever, but eventually Loriana rose. She skirted the circle as she made her way over to him. She took his outstretched hand.

He pulled her close.

She looked up at him. The smile was tentative—but it was there.

He bent to kiss her.

She rose to meet him.

As their lips touched, Geoff let out a whoop, and everyone burst into spontaneous applause. They might not’ve known what the couple had gone through in the past week, but they obviously recognized a passionate reunion.

“Come home with me?” Mitch’s voice was rough.

She shook her head.

His gut clenched.

“Oh, no, not that.” She ran her finger down his frown line. “It’s just that Plato’s home alone and since I plan to keep you captive all night—or, for that matter, all weekend—we need to go to my place. Plus,” she eyed him. “You’re already wearing your pajamas. What else could you possibly need?”

Thank God he had a spare set of clothes in the van for emergencies. Whenever she decided he was allowed to leave her lair, being in street clothes rather than pajamas might set a few less tongues waggling. Nosy Norma’d have less fodder for the rumor mill.

Vance pointed to the stairs, and Mitch tugged Loriana with him. He forgot to duck, and banged his head on the slanted ceiling.

“You okay?” Her voice was laced with concern.

He rubbed his forehead. “I’m fine. I’ll always be fine—as long as you’re with me.”

Patsy sighed loudly.

The couple retrieved their jackets and Loriana snagged her bag. Apparently she wasn’t going to change as she said, “ready” about ten seconds after they had their coats on.

Vance escorted them to the door. “It’s still wet out there.”

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