Page 29 of Legends Luke

Warmth spread through his chest as he returned her smile. “Yeah. So am I.”

Chapter Thirteen

Melody leaned back against the cushioned seat, the candles on the table illuminating Luke’s face in an intimate glow. His clear eyes fixated on her, and her nervous energy came out in exaggerated hand movements as she spoke. Her smile seemed permanently etched on her face as she thoroughly enjoyed his company, forgetting they weren’t the only ones there.

“So, I opened the door, ready to say hello and warn him about our dad wanting to grill him about the date. I have to admit he was a good-looking kid with a cool boy-band haircut, all decked out in a black tux and turquoise tie. I’m thinking Lyric has done all right with him until the guy looks at me and says, ‘You ready? Is that what you’re wearing? You could have told me you were going casual to make a statement. Now we’re going to look stupid.’ All I could do was stare at him like he had two heads or something. I mean, I am completely confused. Then it hits me.”

“He thought you were your sister?” Luke guessed and laughed.

“Yes! Can you believe it? I mean, I’m standing there with no makeup on, in my bare feet, my hair in a ponytail, and wearing a T-shirt dress which may have had a hole at the armpit because I worethis dress around the house all the time. Even if Lyric and I looked enough alike to pass as twins — which we don’t by the way — I’m hardly dressed to go to prom.”

“I hope you ripped into him.”

Her chest swelled with pride, and she knew her expression was smug. “I didn’t have to. Lyric came downstairs then. She looked incredible. Turquoise sequined strapless dress with this slit up to about midthigh. She wore her hair up, and her makeup was very dramatic and perfect. She is dressed to kill. This guy doesn’t know what to think. He keeps looking at me and then at Lyric like we were playing a joke on him or something. So, I tell Lyric what happened. She never missed a beat. She smiled this huge, warm smile at him, then closed the door in his face and flipped the deadbolt lock. He knocked on the door, and I told him to get lost. Just as he’s walking away, Lyric goes over to this timer thing we had in the house and turned on the sprinklers. We could hear him yelling all the way back to his car.”

She laughed, and Luke joined her. She loved the sound of their laughs mixing on the warm evening air.

“Was she upset?” he asked once they calmed down.

Melody shook her head. “She looked at me and said, ‘I’m hungry for pancakes. Let’s go. You can drive.’ So off we went to this all-night pancake house, she in her formal gown and me in my T-shirt dress. We ate as many chocolate chip pancakes as our stomachs would hold. We talked and laughed and had the best time. She finally admitted she only agreed to go to the prom with him becauseno one else had asked her. When he showed up acting like a jerk, she took it as a sign she wasn’t meant to go to her junior prom.”

“The more I hear, the more I like. Your sister seems pretty special.”

She smiled as she always did when she talked about her baby sister. “She is. I mean don’t get me wrong. She’s not perfect, and we’ve had our share of fights over the years. But she’s my best friend. We’ve been there for each other for every major event in our lives. I don’t know what I’d do without her. I wouldn’t be here in Fire Creek, I don’t think. She’s the one who convinced me to take a leap of faith and move here.”

“You don’t think you would have decided on your own?”

She linked her hands together and placed them on top of the table. Their meal had ended a while ago, and their waitress had cleared the table once they were finished. Luke had even settled the check, but they hadn’t left. They stayed and talked over a glass of wine for her and a beer for him. They must have come at the end of the Saturday night rush because no one pressured them to leave so they could have an empty table to seat someone else. They had watched the sunset completely disappear, and the twinkling lights danced along the pond. Enveloped in the low light of the evening, it was easy to feel like they were the only two people in the world.

Melody didn’t realize a sigh escaped her throat as she thought about his question. “No, I don’t. I’m not one to take risks. I overanalyze everything and write pro-and-con lists for every decision I make. On paper, the move didn’t make sense. That would have beenthe end of it if Lyric hadn’t made me realize how sometimes the best decisions aren’t made from lists. She might be the younger sister, but she’s the wiser of the two of us.”

“Something tells me she’d probably say the same of you.”

She shrugged. “Maybe. I don’t consider myself wise. Sometimes I wish I took more risks, but I’m not cut out that way. I’m the play-it-safe girl.”

“Downloading an app and setting up blind dates doesn’t sound like you’re playing it safe.”

She rolled her eyes. “I think it was more of a cry for help. Moving to a new town is not easy when you don’t know anyone. I mean, I like the people I work with, but we don’t do things together outside of work. I’ll admit I was a little lonely and hoping for some companionship.”

Suddenly the twinkling lights flickered off. Startled, Melody twisted her head to look around them. All of the other tables were empty, the candles blown out. No one milled around them, and she realized it had been some time since she noticed any of the waitresses bustling about. When she rested her gaze on the back of the restaurant, she noticed the lights off there too. It was as if they had been deserted.

“Where is everybody?”

“Left. Whitman’s has been closed for about an hour. I’m guessing the staff has finished cleaning up and have gone home.”

Melody’s eyes bugged. She pulled her phone from her purse and glanced at the time. “It’s midnight already?”

Luke smirked. “Afraid so.”

She looked at him incredulously. “Why didn’t they tell us to go?”

Luke reached into his pocket and pulled out a paper receipt. He slid it over to her. There was a scribbled note at the top, but even with the candlelight, she couldn’t quite make out the words. So, she opened her flashlight app and read “It’s good to see you smile again. Stay as long as you want.”

“Seems like you have people all over town looking out for you.”

He shifted in his seat, and she noted, not for the first time, how uncomfortable he was when the conversation turned personal for him.

“Comes with living in a small town. Especially when folks have known you most of your life.”

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