Page 42 of Loyally, Luke
“It’s all right if you still wear crowns, Ms. Ellie.” He shruggeda shoulder. “I’ve got a sister who does too. Often. And without one apology.”
Ellie’s wrestling match with her smile took on a whole new force.
“Your sister wears crowns?” Faye’s eyes grew wide.
“And fancy dresses and she singsallthe time,” Luke added, lowering back to the girls’ level next to Ellie. “But you know what she loves even more than her crowns?”
Both girls shook their heads.
“Her shoes. She’s got more shoes than windows in Cambric Hall.”
A collective gasp from all three of the ladies came in response.
“Faye, Amara,” a teacher called from down the hall. “It’s time for classes, girls.”
Both girls stood, their body language screaming that the last thing they wanted to do was follow the teacher, but with half-hearted smiles and a wave or two, they made their way down the hallway.
Luke stood, offering a hand beneath Ellie’s elbow as they both rose. Her orange scent invaded every breath.
And she’d worn her hair down in the back today instead of the ponytail she’d worn the rest of the week. Long, thick, golden.
Like Rapunzel.
He flinched. Where on earth had that thought come from?
“Three sisters?” She raised her brow, those blue eyes dancing.
He nodded and shoved his hands in his pockets.
“Are you the eldest?”
He shook his head. “Second or third, depending on how you count it.”
She tilted her head, studying him. “I... don’t understand.”
“My folks have three kids, but we adopted my cousin when her parents died, so I’m second born as far as biological siblings are concerned, but third in line if we count Izzy.”
“A middle child no matter how you put it.” The teeniest twist to her smile hinted at her tease. “That explains so much.”
How could he miss having conversations with Ellie, someone he barely knew, after only a few days? But he did. Or maybe it was the company he’d kept lately. Quiet builders and... Pete.
“Best kind, in my opinion.” He held her gaze. “What about you? Any siblings for you to boss around?”
“Boss around?” Her smile flashed wide. “I’m fifth of five. I’m told what to do by everyone else.”
“So you just take out all that pent-up frustration on me then?”
The way her grin responded to him shouldn’t matter so much, but it did. It mattered a whole bunch. And he liked it more than he should. Like a coffee addiction.
Her gaze trailed from his face to his chest and back. “You looked like you could handle it.”
He nearly stepped a little closer, drawn in by those eyes. What was it about her that had him thinking romance wasn’t such a bad idea after all? If she’d even consider him.
Which was unlikely.
But with her dressed in those jeans and that baggy sweater, the distance between them didn’t feel so insurmountable.
“So you’re the baby of the family, are you?” he said, returning her challenge. “That sure explains a lot.” He tossed her words back at her, complete with raised brow.
