Page 56 of Love's a Glitch
Reluctantly, I broke the kiss, but kept my arms around Luke’s neck.
Penny appeared to be torn, her romantic side longing to celebrate while her logical side fought to maintain control—we’d been through enough through the years I could tell. When it came to a romantic side, Catalina had hers snuffed out about eight years ago, so it was often difficult to convince her when it came to matters of the heart.
She did, however, understand matters of the libido, so I appealed to that side, walking the line between convincing and TMI. “I’ve never felt like this with anyone before, Cat. We click and gel, and the sex…” I fanned my face. “It transcends space and time.”
“We’re gonna have so, so much phone sex,” Luke whispered, his mouth brushing the shell of my ear, and a shiver zinged straight to my core.
I twisted to face him, absorbing this impactful moment before I’d indubitably have to remind Cat that I was a grown woman and fully capable of making my own decisions. “Are you sure? I don’t want you to feel pressured.”
“For phone sex? Do you know me at all?”
A snicker came out, undermining my stern expression and the shake of my head.
“If anything,” Luke said, “I’m the one who should be asking you if you’re sure. There will be weeks where we can hardly talk. But I promise to make up for that during the days that I can text and call. If that goes well, I’ll request more stateside shoots, although you might have to meet me on location in order for us to see each other. But I’m willing to do the extra traveling if you are.”
I nodded, so much happiness flooding my body I expected to float to the ceiling like a released helium balloon. He was willing to travel extra and make an effort to keep this going. “So, like, I can call you my boyfriend?”
“You’d better.” Luke brushed his mouth against mine. “I can’t make a commitment beyond not seeing other people and promising to call as often as possible. But if either of us decide it’s not working anymore, then we’ve got to be straightforward about it. Just like Eloise demanded.”
My cheeks ached from smiling, and I welcomed the burn. “That chick is so smart.”
“Sexy, too.”
We got a bit carried away in our snuggle and kissing fest, until the throat clearing reminded me that we were in public, my friends across the table.
Luke scanned the table and patted the side of my butt, nudging me back toward my chair. “I’m going to go grab refills for everyone. Signal when you’re done discussing this turn of events with your friends, and I’ll return with the drinks.”
How amazing was it that he recognized we’d need to hash it out among ourselves? Knowing Catalina and her faulty filter, I’d rather be able to do that without Luke to bear witness.
I didn’t even bother trying to take my eyes off him until he reached the bar. Slowly, I turned to my two friends, doing my best to brace for their disapproval. I understood why they might worry, but my heart was so full with Luke’s revelation that I couldn’t help trying to get ahead of the oncoming truth-bomb train. “See? He gets me, and he is willing to fight for me—he said so himself. That’s more than most of the guys I’ve dated.”
“That’s a woefully low bar,” Penny said. “One I’m happy Luke’s rising above, and I truly believe he cares about you.” Cat whipped her head in Pen’s direction, her glower accusing her of going off book. “Come on, Kitty-cat. Don’t be salty because he didn’t shrink away from your lawyer bit.”
Penny was pressing her luck—or more accurately, distracting Cat from being too harsh with me, using the nickname she and I used whenever we felt like risking life and limb. “If anything, that proves he’s willing to put up with our overprotective ways to be with her. None of her exes would’ve held up under that kind of scrutiny. Plus, did you see the way he looked at her?” She put her hand on her chest and flashed me a smile. “Gah.It makes me want to race home to Archer, kiss his face off, and bang one out.”
Catalina didn’t so much as crack a smile, and I did my best to smother mine. The goal was to lure her to our side, not leave her feeling like we weren’t on hers. She stretched her hand across the table, and I automatically met her in the middle. “I realize I’m coming across as a salty bitch—”
“Let the record show that I only said ‘salty,’” Penny said, and Cat shot her a sidelong glance.
“We all know the ‘bitch’ was implied.”
A giggle slipped out, and Penny joined in, and then Cat was laughing, too. Cool relief suffused my lungs. Much better. I couldn’t remember the last time things had felt so heavy between the three of us. Probably the year Cat’s one-and-only serious boyfriend passed away, causing her to diverge from her original life plan in the pursuit of justice for all. My brain quickly backpedaled, not wanting to relive that dark period when Penny and I felt so helpless and clueless as to how to help.
“What I was going to say,” Cat continued, “is that I’m just so sick of watching you get your heart broken and then blaming yourself when things didn’t work out.” She gave my hand a squeeze. “I also want you to know that while the good guys are hard to find—and I do think Luke is one of them—that there are going to be others who treat you rightandwant the same things you do.”
“He and I want a lot of the same things,” I insisted, doing my best to ignore the twinge in my chest.
Cat tilted her head, calling me a liar without saying it aloud, and I appreciated that.
“When we were first hanging out, he didn’t even want a relationship. You heard him. We’ll take it a day and a step at a time. Thanks to him, I learned on the ropes course to look at the end, because focusing on the step you’re on leads to a fall.”
“I’m not sure the rules of the rope course transfer to relationships that might be going nowhere. You’re still trying to get to the end eventually, right?” Catalina paused, not forcing me to answer but leaving the words out in the air for a few seconds so they could sink in. “Ever since we’ve known you, you’ve talked about having a big family. Believe me, the last thing I want to think about is our biological clocks, but mine doesn’t tick the same way yours does. I worry you’re going to waste time on a guy who won’t ever give you the family you want.”
There went that twinge again.
“For years, I’ve watched you accept scraps of commitment and bend over backward for dudes who treat you as an afterthought. You always manage to find the good in people, and I admire your eternally sunny optimism—I’m even a little jealous of it sometimes. But you’re a chronic settler. You deserve everything you want and more.”
“I appreciate you saying that. But if I am going to settle the tiniest bit, isn’t it better to do so for someone who wants me? He knows the real me, too. He already saw the embarrassing stuff from the beginning, so I let all my crazy hang out, and he still likes me. He also makes me happier than I’ve ever been. His family has been really great to me, and I can get my baby fix there, as well as with my nieces and nephews. I’d rather see where it goes than lose him.” The mere thought caused a sharp pain to lance my heart, adding conviction to my words. Telling him goodbye for good hurt worse than loosening my grip on the future with kids I’d dreamed up years ago.
