Page 6 of Luke

My mind goes blank. All I can think about is running my hands over her thighs. I used to be so much better at keeping this under wraps. I guess, I’m out of practice. She snaps her fingers, bringing me back to the here and now.

“Uh, Fresh is better than frozen. Where can I put it?” I look down at the box of fresh fruit and veggies. Maybe I should have brought more.

“I thought you were bringing a blender,” Marie says, unable to take her eyes off my box of goodies.

“It’s in the car.” I step past her and make my way into the kitchen. Marie follows me like she’s trailing a criminal.

“I didn’t poison anything,” I say.

“You didn’t have to bring so much,” she says. “I have it covered.”

“You want your mom to live off strawberry puree?” I chuckle. “All this stuff came from the Horace’s garden. Laurel went a little overboard this year. She was happy to share.”

“That’s really nice of her.” Marie looks shocked as if she can’t believe old fashioned neighborly kindness exists.

“All this stuff is real healthy, too,” I say. “Lots of antioxidants, vitamins, and other stuff I don’t understand. Blend it all up and you’ll have a bonafide health potion.”

“I don’t know what to say,” she says.

“Luke, you’re my hero?” I prompt. “Luke, I’m sorry for disappearing six years ago? Anything along those lines will work.”

“I’m sorry,” she says. “I didn’t plan on leaving like that. I had a chance and I took it.”

“You can take chances and also make a phone call,” I say.

“It was…” she hesitates, “more complicated than that.”

“How?” I ask. “Tell me.”

She lets out a long sigh and runs a hand through her hair. “I don’t want to get into this now. I have a lot on my plate with my mom and everything, okay?”

“Don’t you think I deserve an explanation?” I press. I don’t want to push her too hard but if she knew how many sleepless nights, I’ve had while trying to figure out why she left town the way she did, maybe she’d change her tone.

“You do,” she agrees quickly, to my surprise. “You do. I’m just not in a place to give you the quality explanation you deserve. My mental and emotional bandwidths are at capacity, right now. I’m sorry.”

“That’s fair,” I shrug and walk out of the kitchen. I hear her rush after me.

“Wait, where are you going?”

I look over my shoulder with a smile.

“To get the blender,” I say. “I’ve got some recipes I want to try out.”

The visible relief that crosses her face makes me smile. At least, I know she wants me around.

“How’s your mom?” She asks when we’re back in the kitchen. I weigh out smoothie ingredients in an attempt to pack in the most nutrition.

“She’s good,” I say. “She’s dating.”

“Oh?” Marie’s brows shoot up in surprise. “That’s amazing. I’m glad she’s getting back out there.”

When my father died, my mom shut down. It took her years to start acting like a human again, let alone a mom. She’s only been seeing Brad for two months, but he’s been good for her. A small part of me hates that she’s moving on from dad, but I know she has to. She doesn’t deserve to spend the rest of her life alone just because an idiot kid took my dad away.

“Are you okay?” Marie asks quietly.

I realize I’m holding the blueberries too tightly. Purple juice leaks onto my palm.

“Fine,” I nod and dump them into the blender.

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