Page 6 of Keeping You
Talk to Callie. Right. The girl I haven’t seen in over a decade. The girl who still makes my pulse jump simply by existing. I shake my head and start walking back toward the bakery to get my bike. On my way, I get stopped by a few more residents, each one welcoming me back while subtly asking if I intend to stick around. A few make their feelings toward Harper’s dating life known. I haven’t met Kirk yet, but I’m liking him less and wondering what the hell Harper sees in this man.
One problem at a time. Fix the gutter. Repair the step. Figure out if I’m really staying in Cupid’s Creek.
Then, maybe, I’ll find the courage to cross the street to the library.
Chapter Three
Callie
I’m fumbling with my keys at the library’s side entrance early the following morning when someone approaches from behind, their steps slow, like they’re trying to be quiet. My heart leaps into my throat as I spin around, dropping my bag with my morning muffin, a can of pepper spray already halfway out of my purse. Crime may be low in a small town, but it’s not non-existent.
“Jesus Christ!” I yelp, nearly dropping my tote bag as Luke stands there, much closer than I anticipated, with his hands raised in surrender. My nerves are already frayed from yesterday, and seeing him here, first thing in the morning, makes me want to crawl back into bed and hide.
“Sorry, sorry,” he says quickly, his voice deeper than I remember, a little rougher around the edges. “Didn’t mean to startle you.”
My pulse is hammering so hard I can hear it in my ears like I just sprinted a lap around town. “What the hell, Luke? You can’t just sneak up on people like that.”
“I wasn’t sneaking. I was walking.” His mouth quirks up in what might be an apologetic smirk, but I’m too rattled to appreciate it. He shrugs. “Though I guess after fifteen years,showing up unannounced is pretty much the definition of sneaking.”
I stare at him, taking in details I couldn’t see from across the street yesterday. He’s broad, his shoulders filling out a simple black t-shirt. There are lines around his eyes that weren’t there before, and a scar cutting through his left eyebrow. His hair is shorter, but still long enough for me to run my fingers through and mess it up. And those intense blue-gray eyes are the same, staring at me like he can read my mind.
“What do you want?” I ask, giving him my back and shoving my keys into the lock with more force than necessary. His hot breath grazes the back of my neck, and my eyes drift closed as a shiver works its way down my spine.
“To apologize.”
That stops me cold. I slowly turn to face him, my hand still on the door handle. “For what? Disappearing without a word, or for whatever fresh hell your sister is about to put me through?”
Something flickers across his face. Guilt? “Harper.”
“Harper,” I repeat flatly. “Right. So, you’re here to clean up her mess.”
“Look, can we,” He gestures toward the door. “Can we do this inside? Half the town is probably watching us right now.”
He’s not wrong. I can already see Martha powerwalking down the sidewalk with purpose, probably hoping to catch whatever drama is about to unfold. I push inside, allowing him to follow.
The storage room we step into is cramped with boxes of books and supplies, but it feels even smaller with Luke’s presence filling up all the available space. The familiar scent of old paper mixes with the leather-and-woodsy cologne clinging to him, and suddenly, it feels like I can’t breathe. I don’t dare take him around the corner into my office. It’s even smaller.
I set my things on top of a closed box and cross my arms over my chest. “Okay, let’s have it.”
He runs a hand through his hair, a nervous gesture I remember from when we were young. Only then, his hair grazed his shoulders. Now the move dishevels it, giving him that just got fucked look. He’s still sexy as hell, and it’s playing havoc with my girl parts. We only had one night, yet that single event has played a significant part in who I am today—single, separated from my best friend in the entire world, and wishing I were anywhere but here.
“She told me what happened between you guys. And it’s eating her up, Callie. What Harper did... Dating your ex right after you broke up, it wasn’t right.”
I laugh, but the sound is cold, not an ounce of humor in it. “Is that what she told you? That she started dating Kirkafterwe broke up?”
Luke frowns. “That’s not what happened?”
“They were together for monthsbeforeI found out. Months, Luke. While I was planning a future with a man I thought loved me, he was screwing my best friend behind my back.” The words taste bitter, even after all this time. And the fact that I’m admitting this to Luke, that’s icing on the mud cake. “So no, your sister didn’t just start dating my ex. She helped him cheat on me.”
He blinks a few times and then clenches his jaw. “Shit.”
“Yeah. Shit.” I spin away, grab my things, and fast walk into the library. Thank God Rachel’s not here yet, and we still have an hour to opening. The only thing to make this day shittier would be to find Martha and Gloria with their ears glued to the wall.
“I can’t believe Harper would do that to you. To anybody.”
“Yeah, well, I didn’t either, until she did.” I head straight to my office, barge through the door, and dump my things on my desk, then busy myself with organizing a stack of flyersthat don’t need organizing. Anything to avoid turning around, knowing he followed me and is about to witness another meltdown. It takes about two seconds to realize leading him to my tiny office was a colossal mistake because in here, I can smell him, hear him breathing, and feel the heat coming off his large body.
It takes every ounce of control I have to keep my wits about me.
