Page 79 of So Right
He stared at her a moment, and she had the sense he was going to say something. Instead, he kissed her softly. “See you later.”
She closed the door and watched him walk away, happiness swelling in her heart.
After spending his Monday morning outside in the vineyard, Luke walked into the winery to grab lunch. He headed to the kitchen and was surprised to see both of his brothers and Hayden there. “Guess we’re all on the same schedule today.”
Cam smiled at him. “Guess so. We’re heating up Mom’s leftover stew.”
Luke opened the cupboard to grab a glass and froze for a second. He and Kelsey had eaten dinner at his parents’ last night. They’d had stew. Which meant Mom had dropped this off this morning.
He turned from the cupboard and exhaled. “What did she tell you?” He waited for the barrage of questions, or, perhaps more accurately, the ration of shit.
Cam’s smile broadened to a grin. “Shereallylikes Kelsey.”
This wasn’t news to Luke. She’d been thrilled when, after inviting him to dinner last night, he’d asked if he could bring along his girlfriend. That single word had sent her into paroxysms of delight.
Not that Luke had any problem with that. He was pretty giddy himself. In fact, he was counting the minutes until Kelsey got here. They were going to spend the afternoon finalizing details about the Halloween event they were hosting this Saturday.
“So what’s the scoop?” Hayden asked, stirring the stew, which they were reheating on the stove top.
Luke poured himself some iced tea from the fridge. “There’s no ‘scoop.’ We’re dating. What’s the big deal?”
“Good question,” Hayden said. “It’s not like when Cam got serious about Brooke. That was amassivedeal.” He shot a teasing grin toward his best friend, which earned him an eye roll from Cam.
Jamie leaned against the counter near the door. He was drinking a glass of what looked like apple cider.
Luke inclined his head toward the glass. “Is that the cider for this Saturday?”
Jamie glanced toward Hayden and Cam. “See how he tries to deflect?”
Luke shook his head, then leaned back against the counter next to the fridge. “Clearly you all want details. Ask away.”
“Are you guys living together?” Jamie asked. “My running route takes me by the house, and I notice her car is still there.”
“Wow, sounds serious,” Hayden said.
Damn, they had to open with a tough one? He and Kelsey hadn’t discussed the living arrangements long-term. They were just happy being together. “She’s still staying with me, yes. Her apartment, as I’ve pointed out, is crap.”
“Is she still looking for a place?” Jamie persisted.
“Yes.” Maybe. Probably not. Luke made a mental note to ask and to also reiterate that she was welcome to stay as long as she liked. Which, he supposed, suggested they were living together—at least in his mind. It wasn’t as if anyone was sleeping on the futon.
“Well, I’m thrilled for you,” Cam said. “I hope this works out better than Paige. Speaking of her, I heard through the grapevine”—he winced—“sorry, pun not intended. I heard she interviewed at Bellwether last week.”
“Yeah.” Luke hadn’t heard from her since she’d shown up at his house. “Do you know if she got the job?”
Cam shook his head. “I don’t think so. I think they offered it to someone from the area. Can’t imagine the prospect of her living nearby made you too excited.”
No, but then it also hadn’t made him upset. “It doesn’t affect me. She’s in the past.”
Hayden stirred the stew again. “Clearly, since you’re all hot and heavy with Kelsey. Which is cool. I like her a lot. This Halloween event is going to be great.”
“I think so too.” Luke wasn’t looking for their approval, but it was nice to have. Especially since he liked Kelsey more than a lot.
In fact, he was pretty sure he was falling in love with her. He thought about her constantly and could hardly wait to be with her when they were apart. And when they were together, he never wanted their time to end. Living with her—yep, he’d call it that, at least to himself—felt so comfortable. She didn’t care that he might want to tune out and watchSports Centeror work outside in the yard. She was as busy as he was, doing library stuff or reading a book. They shared this companionable silence that he’d never experienced before.
“Stew’s ready,” Hayden said. He looked over at Luke. “You joining us?”
“Sure. Kelsey will be here in about a half hour so we can walk through what’s left to arrange for Saturday.”
Cam grabbed bowls from the cupboard. “You sound really happy. I’m glad.”
Luke turned and set his glass down on the counter so he could pull spoons from the drawer. “She’s pretty special.”
Yeah, things were serious. He hoped she felt the same way.
