Page 114 of In Plain Sight

Her answer came before I could power down my screen.

Mom: why not? You haven’t dated anyone since Ivy. She’s moved on. Why can’t you?

Zander: I have moved on. I just haven’t found anyone I want to date

My stomach twisted as guilt churned in my gut. That was a lie. I’d found someone I wanted to date; I just couldn’t tell her that person was the man standing a dozen feet from me.

Zander: we can talk about this later. I’m at work right now

“That’s not a happy face. What did she want?” Luka asked.

“To play matchmaker.”

“Is this something I should worry about?” Luka asked with a teasing grin.

I snorted. “Hell no. She’s way too young for me, and she’s missing two key things I find very important in a partner.”

“Wisdom and maturity?” He lifted his water bottle to his lips.

“A cock and balls,” I deadpanned as he took a sip.

Luka snort-laughed so loud he sounded a bit like a chainsaw revving up and did an impressive spit take.

“Ow,” he complained, still laughing and holding his nose. “That hurt.”

Shooting him a quick grin, I powered down my screen and put my phone back in my pocket.

“So this is turning out to be a fun Saturday night.” Luka sighed and leaned back against his worktable.

“A blast.” I glanced at the clock on the wall. “At least we’ve only got an hour left.”

“Thank fuck for small favors.”

“You can say that again.”

“Jesus!” Luka exclaimed, jumping a mile as we both whirled toward the door to the breakroom.

“Sup.” Asa strode into the room in a blur of baggy black clothes and his signature platinum blond hair.

“Holy jump scares, Batman.” Luka rubbed his chest. “I swear you just took a year off my life. You’re as bad as my sister.”

“My bad.” He flashed Luka a grin that said he wasn’t sorry at all. “Is Dev in the office?”

I nodded.

He tossed us a peace sign and continued to the front of the store.

“Holy jump scares, Batman?” I asked.

He shrugged, a small smile on his lips. “My dad used to say that. Holy something, Batman. The ‘something’ changed depending on his mood.”

Luka had opened up more about his father the past few weeks, telling me about his childhood and their relationship. I liked that he trusted me enough to share these little insights into his life. It made me hopeful that maybe I meant as much to him as he meant to me.

He leaned against his worktable again and crossed his arms over his chest, the smile dropping off his face as he stared at the floor.

“Luka?”

He shook his head, like he was physically shaking himself free from his thoughts. “I’m fine.” He shot me a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “I was just thinking…”

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