Текст книги "Love in Between"

Автор книги: Sandi Lynn

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Текущая страница: 13 (всего у книги 15 страниц)

33

Luke

“Congratulations, Luke. You are now the owner of this bar!” Bernie smiled as he handed me the keys.

“Thanks, Bernie,” I said as I shook his hand.

“This was my legacy, and my passion for many years, son, and now it’s your turn. Do whatever you need to and make this bar your legacy.”

“I will, Bernie. Enjoy the retired life,” I said as I hugged him.

“I will, Luke. You two take care.” Bernie smiled as he tipped his hat and walked out the door.

As I picked up Lily and swung her around, I kissed her. “I can’t believe it, babe. I can’t believe this is all mine!”

“I’m so happy for you,” she said as I put her down.

The door to the bar opened and my mom, dad, Maddie, and Charley walked in.

“Uncle Luke!” Charley exclaimed as she ran over to me.

I picked her up and kissed her on the cheek. “Welcome to Luke’s Bar and Grille, peanut.”

“Yay!” she exclaimed.

I put her down as my mom and dad walked over and hugged me.

“We’re so proud of you, Luke.”

“Damn proud, son,” my dad said.

“Congratulations, manager.” I smiled as I threw the extra set of keys at Maddie.

I stood there and looked around the bar. My life was exactly where I always wanted it to be. I was the owner of a bar, and I had a woman that I was madly in love with standing by my side. As I was in deep thought, Lily looped her arm around my neck.

“What are you thinking about?” she asked.

“Just how lucky I am to be able to share my dream and this moment with you.”

She leaned into me and softly kissed my lips. “I’m the lucky one.” She smiled.

As we were having our little moment, Candi burst through the doors of the bar. “Hey, boss.” She smiled as she hugged me. “You have no idea how happy I am that you bought this joint.”

Candi was one of the best bartenders I knew. She was forty-two years old, and she had never been married. Maddie had always been jealous of her long, curly black hair, and the two of them worked together for years. Both being single, they were constantly getting hit on by the customers. Candi used to be a prostitute. She stumbled into the bar one night after being beat up by her pimp. She was only twenty-two years old at the time. When Bernie saw her, he took her to the hospital. After she was released, they had a long talk, and Bernie brought her back to the bar, taught her how to make drinks, and gave her a job. That was twenty years ago, and she told us every day how Bernie saved her life and gave her a second chance.

I decided to have a celebration party with family and friends tonight. I put up a sign on the door, saying that the bar was closed for tonight only and would re-open tomorrow. Lily walked over to me and gave me a kiss goodbye. Chris, the principal of the school, had called her in for a meeting. As I looked over at the stage, I chuckled when I saw Charley up there, pretending she was holding a microphone, and singing her little heart out. My mom and dad left just as Sam came walking in.

“Dude, congratulations!” he said as we fist-bumped. “I never thought I’d see this day.”

“Me either, Sam. You and Gretchen are coming tonight, right?”

“Of course we are, and depending on how Giselle is feeling, her and Lucky will be here.”

“Oh yeah, that’s right,” I said as I looked at Sam. “Today’s the day of her appointment at the clinic. Lily wanted to be there with her, but Giselle told her that Lucky was taking her.”

“It sucks that they got themselves into this situation in the first place,” Sam said as I handed him a beer.

“Uncle Sammy!” Charley shrieked. “Did you hear me singing?”

“I sure did, and I think you’re going to be the next Taylor Swift.”

Charley’s eyes widened as she smiled. “Do you really think so?”

“Yes, I do. In fact, I’m going to call up American Idol and tell them I have a nine-year-old celebrity sitting next to me.”

I chuckled as I poured Charley a coke. “Here, peanut. Take this and go sit over at the table.”

“Thanks for the beer, man. I’m going to head home, get changed, and then wait for Gretchen to finish her photo shoot. I’ll see you later,” Sam said as we did our handshake.

* * *

As I was sitting in my office, going over some paperwork, Lily walked in, and I immediately knew something was wrong.

“Hey, babe. What’s wrong?” I asked as I got up from my chair and wrapped my arms around her.

“The teacher that I’m subbing for is coming back to work on Monday. Her husband passed away sooner than they thought, and she said she needs to come back to teaching to take her mind off of it.”

“Aw, babe, I’m sorry,” I said as I held her tight.

“I mean, I can understand her needing to come back, and I’m sorry her husband passed away, but I’m going to miss my students.” She started to cry.

“I know you will. I know how much they mean to you,” I said as I kissed her head.

My heart broke for her. She loved her job and her students. I wanted to take away her sadness, but I didn’t know what to do for her. “You can work here at the bar.”

She broke our embrace and looked at me. “Thank you, but no. As much as I love you, I don’t want to work for you. Anyway, Chris said that one of the teachers will be retiring at the end of the year, and when they move some other teachers around, there will be a position available, and she said it’s mine. I’ll just focus on photography for a while.”

“That’s my girl.” I smiled.

I tilted my head as I looked at her and gently wiped away her tears. I brought her face closer to mine as I softly brushed her lips. “You know, in order to make this place perfect, we have to have sex here.”

“Is that so?” She smiled as she bit her bottom lip.

“I think my office is the perfect place to start, Miss Gilmore,” I said as I slowly undid the buttons on her shirt, then pushed it off her shoulders.

“I agree, Mr. Matthews,” she smirked as her fingers grabbed the bottom of my t-shirt and she lifted it up over my head.

34

Lily

Luke and I left the bar and headed back to my apartment to change, and get ready for the party. The whole staff was going to be there along with all of Luke’s family and friends. It was going to be a great night, and I wasn’t going to ruin it for me or Luke. As much as I loved my students, maybe it was best that I focused on what I’d always wanted to do—photography. Walking into my apartment, and Luke following behind, I set my purse on the counter and grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator. As I turned around, Luke put his hands on my hips and looked at me.

“Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, Luke.” I smiled.

“I’m going to run next door and grab some fresh clothes. I’ll be right back,” he said as he kissed me on the forehead and walked out the door.

I couldn’t stop thinking about Giselle and what she must be going through right now. She told me and Gretchen that she didn’t want us to go with her to the clinic because it was something her and Lucky needed to do alone. She told me that she’d call me when she had the chance. As I was heading to my bedroom to change my clothes, Luke opened the door and walked in.

“That was quick,” I said as he followed me into the bedroom.

“I’m a guy. Give me a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, and I’m happy. We’re not like you women who spend hours deciding what you’re going to wear, how you’re going to do your makeup, and how you’re going to style your hair.”

“I don’t do that!” I exclaimed as I took a dress from my closet, looked at it, and then put it back. “Ok, guilty as charged.” I smiled.

Walking over to my dresser, I looked at Luke as he was getting dressed. “I’m worried about Giselle. Have you heard from Lucky?”

“No, not yet,” he replied, slipping his dark gray t-shirt over his head.

“What are your feelings about all this?”

Luke sat on the edge of the bed and watched me as I ran a brush through my hair. “I don’t know what to think. I’m not happy about the decision they made, but it’s their life, and they have to live with it. Who knows? Maybe fatherhood will change Lucky.”

“Their relationship is weird. They’re more friends with benefits than anything else,” I said as I twisted my hair up in a clip.

“Some people prefer their relationships that way; it’s way less complicated.”

“Are you saying our relationship is complicated?”

“Yes, our relationship is very complicated because I can’t just have sex with you and leave. You plague my thoughts and my dreams when you’re not around. So, I would say that complicates things because when you’re not with me, I feel like life has stopped until you’re by my side again.”

His words were like poetry to me, and they reached deep down to the very core of my soul. What he had just said made tears spring into my eyes. I couldn’t say a word, because if I opened my mouth, I would lose it and cry like a blubbering idiot.

As Luke stood up from the edge of the bed and wrapped his arms around me, he asked me if I was ok. I took in a deep breath and nodded my head.

“I’m sorry, babe. I said too much, and if you respond, you’re going to cry, right?”

Once again, I nodded my head and closed my eyes.

“I love you, Lily.”

“I love you, Luke.”

“I hate seeing you sad. Don’t worry about this teaching thing; everything will work out, and I’ll be by your side every step of the way.”

The one thing I could always count on Luke for was the fact that he always made me feel better and, suddenly, losing my job as Charley’s teacher didn’t seem so bad anymore.

* * *

Luke and Maddie were behind the bar, setting up the glasses, while Candi and I were making sure the tables were set up.

“How many people are you expecting, Luke?” Candi shouted across the bar.

“About fifty or so.”

“Who’s watching Charley tonight?” I asked Maddie.

“She’s spending the night at her girlfriend’s house.”

Maddie walked over to me and gave me a hug. “I’m really sorry to hear that Charley’s going to have a new teacher on Monday. I haven’t told her yet; she’s going to be devastated.”

“Thanks,” I said as I looked down. “I’m really going to miss those kids, but I’ll still see Charley every day, and she’s more than welcome to come over whenever she wants. Just send her down.”

Maddie laughed as she placed her hand on my shoulder. “That’s sweet of you, Lily, but I’ll give you a call first in case you and my brother are busy.”

“Ah, that’s a good idea.” I winked.

As I looked over Maddie’s shoulder, I saw Tom and Annie walk into the bar.

“Your mom and dad are here,” I said to her.

“Great, keep them occupied for me.” She smiled as she walked the opposite way.

Following behind them was another couple who walked over to Luke and hugged him. Luke looked over to where I was standing, and he motioned for me to come over to him.

“Lily, I would like you to meet my Aunt Rose and Uncle Matt.”

“My, aren’t you a sight for sore eyes,” Aunt Rose said as she hugged me. “We’ve heard so much about you from Annie and Tom that we feel like we already know you.”

“It’s great to meet both of you.” I smiled.

Rose was Annie’s younger sister, and Matt was her husband. She was a cake decorator and owned a bakery in San Francisco, and he was a retired accountant who did the books for Rose’s bakery. As we were talking, Gretchen and Sam walked in.

“Hey, bro.” He smiled as he and Luke shook hands.

“Hi, Sam,” I said as he gave me a hug.

“Have you heard from Giselle yet?” I asked Gretchen with concern.

“I texted her and she said she’s fine—she’s…”

Before Gretchen could finish her sentence, Giselle and Lucky walked through the door. I put my hand on Luke’s shoulder, and he turned around. The four of us stood there and stared at them.

“We’re having a baby!” She smiled as she threw her hands in the air.

We stood there, unable to say anything, then Luke spoke the first words.

“Awesome.” He smiled as he hugged Giselle and high-fived Lucky.

Sam followed behind Luke and did the same as I looked at her and smiled. Gretchen, Giselle, and I walked over and sat down at a table.

“I couldn’t do it. I was lying down on the table with my feet in the stirrups. Lucky was holding my hand, and the doctor walked in and asked me if I was ready. I told him I was and then he went to check me, and I yelled, ‘stop.’ I looked at Lucky, told him that I couldn’t do it, and he said ‘please don’t.’ So, I sat up, got dressed, and the two of us went out to lunch and talked about what we’re going to do.”

“And what are you going to do?” Gretchen asked as she grabbed Giselle’s hand.

“Lucky and I are going to raise the baby together as friends, with some occasional sex thrown in.” She smiled.

“Is he moving in?”

“No, we’re not moving in together. We’re both going to keep our separate places fully furnished with all the things the baby needs.”

I leaned over and looped my arm around her neck. “If that’s what the two of you want, then I’m happy for you. I can’t tell you how glad I am that you didn’t go through with it.”

“I know you are, Lily, and I gave a lot of thought to what you said about your birth mother. By the way, nobody better cancel on Tuesday, because I want to hear all about it,” she said as she pointed her finger at me and Gretchen.

I felt two strong hands clasp my shoulders. As I looked up, Luke bent down and kissed me. “Come on, babe. There are a few people I want you to meet.”

After meeting all of Luke’s family and friends, Luke walked over and got up on the stage. As he positioned himself in front of the microphone, he held up his beer and yelled, “Welcome to Luke’s Bar and Grille!”

Everyone in the bar whistled and cheered as I stared at Luke’s smiling face. As he looked at me and winked, I held up my beer and blew him a kiss. His happiness is the only thing that matters to me, and I will do everything I can to make sure he stays that way.

* * *

The next couple of weeks, I barely saw Luke at all. He was at the bar from morning until night. If I wanted to see him, I would have to go to the bar. When he’d come home, he would quietly slip into bed and wrap his arms around me. We’d have dinner together at the bar every night, and he still tried to convince me to work there. He even went as far as to ask me if I would play the guitar and sing a few nights a week. I didn’t have to say a word; he could tell my thoughts on that just by the look on my face. I had Giselle and Gretchen over for dinner like we planned, and I told them everything about Mary. Charley cried almost every day at school because I was no longer her teacher. It had been a clusterfuck of a week, and certain emotions from my past were being stirred up. As I was sitting on the couch, feeling sorry for myself, a text message from Luke came through.

“Hey, babe. Why aren’t you here yet?”

I quickly responded. “I’m not coming to the bar tonight.”

“Why not? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong, Luke. I just want to stay home.”

“But I miss you, Lily.”

“Yeah, I miss you too, but you don’t seem to care about that.”

As I sat there and stared at my message to him, I couldn’t believe I had just said that. I didn’t know what was going on with me, and I just wanted to be left alone. When he didn’t respond, I threw my phone across the table. About twenty minutes later, the door opened. I turned around as Luke walked in, threw his keys on the counter, and stood in front of me.

“What the hell was that last text supposed to mean?”

I suppose I was looking for a fight, because I jumped up without hesitation and got in his face.

“It means exactly what I said.”

“What’s the matter with you?” he asked as he softly grabbed my arm when I started to walk away. “Don’t you dare walk away from me!”

I jerked my arm out of his grip. “Don’t you dare tell me what to do!”

“Babe, please tell me what’s going on with you, because right now, you’re not acting like yourself.”

“You want to know what’s wrong? Fine, I’ll tell you what’s wrong. I never see much of you anymore, and when I do, it’s always at the bar with everyone else. We barely eat together anymore, and we don’t go out. You spend every damn, fucking minute at that bar.”

“Watch your mouth, Lily.”

“Oh, and that’s another thing; you don’t get to tell me to watch my mouth, because I can talk anyway I want. I’m an adult, and if I want to scream FUCK to the world, then I fucking will!”

“We talked about this before I bought the bar; that’s why I discussed it with you first, and now you’re behaving like this. Why, Lily? Are you trying to hurt me? You knew the first few months were going to be difficult.”

“Yeah, but then the first few months turn into another few months, and then they turn into years. It’s your passion, and that’s all you’ll ever do, and that’s all you’ll ever think about, Johnny!” I screamed.

The expression on his face nearly killed me; it was filled with pain, disgust, and anguish. As he walked to the door, and put his hand on the knob, he turned around and looked at me.

“I’m not your father, Lily.”

He slammed the door behind him, and I stood there with my hand over my mouth as I dropped to my knees. I couldn’t believe I called him “Johnny.” As I closed my eyes, the memories of my mother and father fighting became more vivid. Brynn and I would sit on the stairs and listen to them scream back and forth at each other. I remembered my mother yelling at him about never being around and how he promised things would be better. I began to sob as I buried my face in my hands. I felt two arms wrap themselves around me, and I heard Sam’s voice telling me that it was going to be ok. He helped me up from the floor, and he led me to the couch.

“Lily, please calm down.”

“Sam, I said horrible things to him. I called him ‘Johnny.’ I’m more fucked up than I thought I was.”

35

Luke

As I hopped on my bike and sped out of the parking lot, I couldn’t stop thinking about Lily’s behavior and her attitude towards me. She was being irrational, and I was disturbed by the fact that she called me her father. We’d had a long discussion about how many hours I’d be working at the bar the first few months, and she told me that she understood and that she’d be with me and support me through it all. As I pulled into the parking lot at the bar, I parked my bike on the side of the building and walked through the doors. I sighed as I stepped behind the bar and poured myself a cold beer.

“Where’d you run off to?” Maddie asked as she was making drinks.

“Lily’s apartment.”

“You didn’t bring her back with you?”

“No, we got into a fight.”

Maddie stopped what she was doing and looked at me. “About what?”

“The bar, and how she’s sick of not seeing me, and spending time with her,” I said as I slammed the glass down on the counter and looked at her. “See, this is what I don’t get: we spend time together, and we see each other every day. She comes here, and when I leave, I go home to her place, and I spend every night with her.”

“You have to realize that things for Lily have significantly changed over the past couple of weeks. She lost her teaching job, and her boyfriend, who spent every waking minute with her, became the owner of a bar, so she barely sees him anymore. That’s a lot to take in at the same time.”

“She called me ‘Johnny,’” I said.

“What? Why did she do that?” Maddie asked in confusion.

“I don’t know. All she said was that this will consume me because it’s my passion and dream.”

As I looked down, Maddie walked closer to me and put her hand on mine. “It sounds like she’s having flashbacks of her father and how he was never around. Didn’t she say that her ex-fiancé was never around either and started spending less time with her?”

I nodded my head and clenched my jaw. “You’re right. Now things are starting to make sense.”

“You need to talk to her, Luke. I love you both, and I don’t want to see your relationship go in the toilet because of a misunderstanding. “

“I’m going to talk to her, don’t worry. I’ll be leaving after I finish the budget. I want to give her time to cool down.”

Pulling my phone from my pocket, I swiped the screen and saw that I had a text message Sam.

“I just left Lily’s, and she’s a mess, man. I know it’s none of my business, but I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen a girl like that. She’s pretty messed up, and if you love her, you’ll get your ass back there.”

“Thanks for being there for her. I’m heading over there now.”

I looked at my watch and walked to my office. I shut down the computer and stacked the paperwork into a neat pile for tomorrow. I walked over to Maddie before leaving the bar.

“Starting tomorrow, I want you out of here by 5:00 p.m. You’ve been here late, and I appreciate it, but it’s not fair to Charley. I know it’s only temporary, but things are going back to normal. We need to sit down tomorrow and have a meeting, so head here right after dropping Charley off at school tomorrow,” I said as I kissed her on the cheek.

* * *

When I opened the door to Lily’s apartment and stepped inside, I didn’t see her. I walked down the hall, stopped in the doorway of her bedroom, and stared at her lying on the bed all curled up. My heart broke seeing her like that. She must have heard me, because she rolled over and tried to open her swollen eyes. As I walked over to her and sat on the edge of the bed, I pushed her hair behind her ear and leaned over, kissing her teary eye and moist cheek. She raised her arm up and looped it around my neck, bringing me closer as I buried my face deep into her.

“I’m so sorry for everything I said.” She began to cry.

“I’m sorry for not being here for you when you needed me, Lily.”

We lay there for a few moments in silence before I pulled back and looked at her. Her eyes were swollen and red. As I got up from the bed, she grabbed my hand, and I told her that I’d be right back. I walked to the bathroom and grabbed a wash-cloth from under the sink. I ran the cloth under the warm water and folded it as I walked back to the bedroom. Gently wiping her face, the corners of her mouth turned up, forming a small smile.

“That’s what I like to see.” I smiled back.

She sat up with her back against the headboard. I put the washcloth on the night stand, and I took both of her hands in mine, interlacing our fingers. “We need to talk, babe. You need to tell me what you’re feeling, where that last argument came from, and why you called me your father’s name. Because if we don’t, it’s going to happen again, and that’s not good for our relationship.”

“I know we do,” she replied.

“Are you hungry?” I asked her as I was starving.

“Yeah. I haven’t eaten all day.”

“How about Chinese food? I’ll call and have it delivered, and we can sit on the couch, eat it, and talk.”

“I love that idea.” She smiled as she put her soft hand on my cheek.

I brought her hand to my mouth and kissed her palm before picking up my phone and calling in our dinner order. Lily got up from the bed and grabbed a pair of yoga pants and a tank top from her drawer. She changed her clothes and put her hair up in a ponytail.

“Ugh, look at my face!” she exclaimed as she wiped her eyes.

Wrapping my arms around her, I said, “You have a beautiful face, tear-stained and all.”

She smiled and crinkled her nose as she turned around and kissed me on the lips. We both left the bedroom and walked to the kitchen. While I grabbed the bottle of wine and a couple of glasses, Lily took down two plates from the cabinet and got out the silverware. She walked them over to the coffee table and set them down. Not too long after calling in the order, there was a knock at the door. As the delivery boy handed me the brown bag, I reached into my pocket and took out some cash. Lily walked over and took the bag from my hands and sat down on the couch.

“I’m going to call a therapist tomorrow morning and schedule an appointment,” Lily said as she took the cartons of Chinese food out of the bag.

“Do you really think you need to?” I asked as I sat down next to her.

“Yeah, it’s something I should’ve done a long time ago. When I was yelling at you earlier, I felt like I was reliving my childhood and watching my mom and dad having the same argument. Mary would scream at him because he was never around, and he kept telling her that it was part of the business and that things would get better. But instead of getting better, they got worse. He would be gone for months at a time on tour, which was understandable, but then when he’d get back to Seattle, he wouldn’t come home for a few days.”

I set my plate down on the table, and I reached over and hugged her. “I’m sorry you had to grow up like that.”

“I felt abandoned, Luke, and then I felt it again after the church incident with Brynn and Hunter. All those emotions and feelings were coming back to me these past two weeks when you were so busy at the bar, and we weren’t spending as much time together. That’s an issue that needs to be addressed, and I think a therapist can help me.”

“I love you, Lily. I don’t know how to make that any clearer to you.”

“I know you do, baby, and believe me, it’s not you. I’m the one who has these issues, compliments of Johnny and Mary Gilmore, and I’m the one who needs to take care of them. I know you love me; I really do. It’s just this change the past couple of weeks has really messed with my head.”

“Then you go do what you have to do in order to free yourself of your past. I’ll be here for you every step of the way.” I smiled as I brushed my hand over her cheek and leaned in to kiss her.