Page 12 of Staying for Her

Dinner was amazing. The food was spectacular and as we sit waiting for dessert, I feel the tension building between us. We spent most of the night talking about our families, the differences and similarities because, believe it or not, we both know what disappointing our families because of our career choices feels like. The conversation between us is easy, simple and a breath of fresh air, yet the longer I spend with this man, the more the lines blur between our arrangement and our attraction. We both know it’s there, and that kiss earlier was the poster child for pent-up lust, but there are things at stake for both of us.

“So what’s this dinner for this weekend?” I ask, hoping to get his eyes to stop undressing me from where he’s sitting across the table.

His smirk tells me he knows exactly what I’m doing but instead of calling me on it, he leans back in his chair, resting his tattooed hands on the table and drumming them against the tablecloth. For a split second, I take in the man before me and see the man that doesn’t fit, the man that needs grease under his fingernails and a rag hanging out of his back pocket. Lucas in a nice suit is glorious to see, but it’s not him and for the last few hours I’ve noticed just how stark that reality is for him.

“Well, my mom usually has family dinners once a month, but since she gave me an ultimatum, I’m betting there’s an ulterior motive.”

“Like what?” I do not understand his family dynamic at all.

My parents were very much disappointed in the fact that I wanted to do photography for a living, but I honestly don’t believe that they would go out of their way to hurt me the way Lucas’s parents are doing. I can’t imagine waking up every morning and knowing your parents are actively trying to sabotage your life.

“Like setting me up.”

My eyes widen. He can’t be serious. “Have you told her about me?”

He nods, a solemn look graces his beautiful features and I wonder how long he’s had to do all of this alone.

“And you still think that she’ll have another girl there for you?”

Lucas leans forward, places his elbows on the table, and smirks.

“I can pretty much guarantee it,” he mutters as his eyes flick behind me. The moment his body tenses, I know he sees someone he knows behind me and I reach over to take his hand, but he pulls away and I try not to let that affect me. Yet that sinkhole starts to open in the pit of my stomach nonetheless.

“Well, well, well. Look who actually looks like he came from one of the most successful families in town,” a female voice says from behind me, and when I glance back and take in the tall, lean, chestnut-haired woman, I know instantly that this is Lucas’s sister.

“Lena, what are you doing here?” Lucas mutters, disdain evident in his tone, but it’s as if Lena either doesn’t notice or chooses to ignore it. Because the snide smile that graces her lips shows just how bitter she is on the inside.

“Oh, big brother, how naive you must be to think that Mom and Dad didn’t send me here to spy on you and see who your little girlfriend is.” Her eyes flick down to me and the disapproval is clear as her lips curl into a smile that is anything but welcoming. “And by the look of it, they had a right to be worried.”

I roll my eyes, ready to defend myself but when I glance at Lucas, he subtly shakes his head, wanting me to stay out of it, so I do. For now.

“Lena, as much as I love the fact that you’re spying on me for Mom and Dad, I’ll see you guys this weekend. You can get all the dirt you want then.” There’s a beat of silence before a cackle escapes Lena’s throat as all eyes in the restaurant turn toward us.

“Oh, Lucas, you have no idea how happy this whole scenario makes me.”

Lucas’s eyes narrow, as my nerves begin to stutter because this woman is way too confident in this situation for this to end any way but horribly.

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

Lena just shrugs, taking out her phone from her purse and reading a text before placing it back where it was.

“It means, dear brother, that because of your endless fuckups and defiance of Mom and Dad’s rules, I get to benefit.”

When Lucas says nothing, Lena leans over the table, taking out a piece of paper from her purse and placing it in front of him. I can’t see the words from where I’m sitting, but from the way his shoulders bunch, his fists clench, and a grimace that breaks out on his face, it can’t be good.

“You can’t be fucking serious right now,” he mutters, anger seeping out of every pore, and I go to take his hand in mine, but again he pulls away.

“I’m very serious. If you don’t get married by the end of the summer, all that money you so desperately want becomes mine.” That devious smile returns and Lucas rips the paper in half and crumples the pieces in his fists before pushing away from the table and storming out the front door.

The air around me cools and when I take out my wallet, place some cash on the table, knowing it will cover the bill and tip, and stand, I turn to see the woman that is supposedly related to the man that just ran out of here.

“You should be ashamed of yourself,” I say, knowing it’s probably the lamest thing I could say to her at this moment, but it’s all I have. “I hope you’re ready for the karma that’s about to be handed down to you because if it were up to me, you’d be flat on your ass, an imprint of my fist in your fucking face right about now,” I say right before making my way out the front door, hoping Lucas didn’t leave.

It doesn’t take me long to find him as he paces up and down the alley beside the restaurant, his face shrouded in darkness. God, he looks pissed, and for some reason, it’s sexy as hell. I have to take a deep breath and calm my body because the reaction I’m having right now will only get me in even more trouble.

I take a few tentative steps toward him, hoping he’s not pissed at me, but when his eyes flick to mine, all I see is hurt. So I do the only thing I can think of, and that eliminates the space between us as my arms wrap around him, pulling him toward me.

“I fucking hate them,” he whispers against the side of my neck as I pull him closer, wrapping my arms around him. “I know I shouldn’t, they’re my family, but how could they do this to me? Was what I did really that bad?” His voice cracks, the emotions coming to the surface as I tighten my hold, his lips against my skin as I close my eyes.

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