Page 38 of Beautiful Storm

“I’m coming in,” I practically sing, laughing to myself when I don’t get a response.

Once inside, it takes me all of twenty seconds to find my notebook, but when I turn to leave, I startle, finding Luke standing in the doorway.

“Looking for some ‘dirty laundry’?” he seethes, catching me off guard. I’m used to his teasing but this is different. Still, I huff out a laugh and roll my eyes, holding up my notebook.

“It’s none of your business,” I snap back. “But if you must know, I left this behind.” I wave the notebook back and forth.

“Right, okay.” Luke huffs under his breath, shaking his head before walking over to his locker, seemingly more pissed off than usual.And I can’t let it go.

“What’s your problem this time?” I ask, popping my hip.

“You don’t know me, remember?” He throws his comment over his shoulder. “Why do you care?”

“You’re right. I don’t care. I have no feelings…good, bad, or otherwise. I don’t know why I asked.” I move to walk past but he turns and stalks toward me, backing me into the lockers on the opposite wall.

“You hada lotof feelings when I was fucking you.” His hands cage me in as he leans closer, until we’re almost nose to nose. “Could I elicit those feelings now? Or do you need permission first?”

Permission?“What?” As I focus on his expression, his hand drops to my waist before sneaking under my top, his fingerssetting my skin on fire. My breath hitches, but I hide it behind a cough as I subtly clench my legs. “I told you I’d never let you touch me again and that hasn’t changed.”

I bend to duck under his arms but he lowers himself until we’re eye to eye again, and while he respects my wishes and drops his hand from my body, it doesn’t matter. My skin still burns from his touch. There’s no denying that he affects me. But it’s all physical. My brain will win this time.

“Tell me,” Luke asks, his breath warming my skin as he moves closer to whisper in my ear. “Is that something you want? Me not touching you. Or is it something youvowedto avoid? Because your reaction says otherwise.” He leans back and his eyes drop to my heaving chest, distracting me from his strange words as I bite back a curse. Why is my body reacting to him?

“It doesn’t matter,” I huff out. “Nothingis happening between us again. Now please let me move.” My heart races as I wait for him to respond, but it’s not out of nerves. It’s racing because my traitorous body wants what he’s offering, but it doesn’t change what we’ve been through. Or how much he hurt me.

Our one-night stand shouldn't have happened, and I refuse to let it happen again.

I stare at him in defiance until he finally nods. “As you wish.” He steps back and turns away, leaving me alone and confused.What the hell was that?

My breathing quickens when he walks away, and as I straighten up, I’m dizzy. I try to move but when I do, I lose my footing, falling back against the lockers. “Ouch, dammit.”What is going on?

Luke freezes by the door before his gaze locks on mine, a hint of concern set in his features. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” I blink a few times before shaking my head. “I’m fine. I just lost my balance,” I lie. I’d rather not talk to him about my personal problems.

“And you say you don’t feel anything for me.” He raises a challenging eyebrow until I roll my eyes. “Have a goodnight, Amelia.” He chuckles. “See you around.”

He disappears around the corner, and I sit down the second the door clicks shut, rubbing my head as I blow out a breath and try to make sense of what happened.

Does he want me? Or does he want to rattle me? And either way, why am I letting myself be rattled?

When I’m feeling better, I head to my office to work, and by the end of the day, I’m exhausted. Pair that with my dizzy spell and I’m worse than ever. I should be sleeping better now that Preston’s signed the divorce papers. It’s only a matter of time before it all goes through. So why am I so tired? It’s like some invisible stress is draining the life out of me, and the one thing I can attribute that to is Luke. Having him close is getting to me. But I don’t knowhow I can fix that.

My knees bounce as I wait for my doctor. I’m no longer convinced that it’s stress—there’s something wrong. And I need to find out what before it affects my work. More than it already has. I can’t afford this time off. Not now that I’m finally getting my chance.

“Goddammit!”

“Everything okay, Miss?”

Shit. Where did he come from? “Yes, Of course. Sorry. I was just talking to myself. All is good. Unless you count the reason I’m here and”—the nurse gives me a strange look—“never mind. I’m good. Thank you.”

“Great. The doctor will be in soon.”

“Thank you. Again.” The nurse, whose name I didn’t catch, disappears out of the room faster than he came, leaving me anxious again.What’s taking them so long?

“Okay. Okay. I’m here.” Doctor Roland walks in with a smile on her face. “Nice to see you again, Amelia.”

“You too.” I try to smile back.

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