Page 5 of Wish I Were Here
“Twenty minutes early islatein my book.”
His face registers genuine surprise. “How was I supposed to know that?” A light turns red ahead, and Luca slows the car to a stop.
“I thought I told you this is an important meeting.” My heart picks up speed, and I tuck my hands under me to keep from pulling the printed schedule from my bag and checkingit against the clock. Luca would definitely have something to say about that.
“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean that you need to arrive—” He abruptly stops talking as his gaze slowly drifts over me. I do my best to let the tension seep from my shoulders and to bend my stick-straight arms into a more natural position. “You know what?” Luca shakes his head. “Never mind. I’m sorry. I didn’t realize that you were so…”
I wait for whatever he’s about to say.Picky? Controlling? Fastidious?I’ve heard it all before, and it doesn’t bother me. I’ll take picky, controlling, and fastidious overunreliableany day.
“Interested in being early,” Luca finally says, looking me over again. “I’m sorry I continue to contribute to your lateness.” He lifts his hands, palms up in a gesture that I’ll admit does seem apologetic.
I let my shoulders drop another inch. “It’s okay. You didn’t know.”
“I promise I’ll drive you safely, yet quickly, to campus so you can be as early as possible to your meeting. How does that sound?”
It sounds like… my best option, to be honest. But I’m not sure how I feel about it. If Luca Morelli is my best option, things might be going downhill quickly. But the clock ticks forward another number. “Yes, great.”
The light turns green, and Luca presses the gas. “I’ll have you there in five.”
I finally give in to the urge and pull out my schedule. The next two lights we hit are green, so we’ll probably make it in four minutes. I should be fine to get there with time to spare.
While I look over my printout, Luca tips his chin up to glance in the rearview mirror at the passenger in the back seat. “Mrs. Goodwin, you need to run any errands on our way home?”
I thought he said he was just taking a quick break. Shouldn’t he be getting back to his post and figuring out what to do about the broken elevator?
Mrs. Goodwin leans forward in her seat. “I’d love to stop at the pharmacy if it’s not too much trouble. And maybe the bank and the grocery store.”
“No trouble at all.” Luca gives her a grin.
Good thing I’m not expecting any deliveries, because Luca is going to be gone from the front desk all day at this rate. But I can’t worry about it now. I turn away from him and watch in relief as the university buildings come into view.
“Thanks for the ride,” I say to Luca as I climb out of the Town Car and onto the sidewalk in front of the café. “And for the trousers,” I add with considerably more enthusiasm, leaning in to give Mrs. Goodwin in the back seat a wave.
“Good luck with your meeting, honey.” She blows me a kiss. “I’ll be rooting for you.”
That statement cheers me, softening the hard edges of my disaster of a morning. I’ve been getting by on my own for so long, I had no idea how nice it would feel to have someone root for me until right at this moment. “Thanks, that means a lot,” I say, surprised when my voice comes out alittle hoarse. I definitely don’t have time to be getting emotional, so I quickly close the door.
I’m just turning to walk into the café when I hear a low hum and a muffled “Hey” come from the direction of the car. When I spin back around, the Town Car’s vintage passenger-side window is slowly lowering into the doorframe with approximately zero urgency. It reminds me a little bit of the car’s driver. Eventually, it comes to a stop with a high-pitched squeak, and Luca leans across the seat to look up at me.
“How long is your meeting?”
“Um.” Why does he care? “About an hour, probably.”
“Will you be going to your office afterward?”
“No, my office isn’t ready yet. The semester doesn’t start for a few weeks. I’ll probably do some work at home.”
He nods. “Okay, we’ll pick you up over there in an hour.” Luca waves at a row of benches in front of a wide stretch of lawn where students are lounging on blankets in the morning sun or tossing frisbees around.
It was nice of him to drive me here, but I don’t want him to feel obligated to come back. “That’s really not necessary.”
Luca shrugs. “After ruining your morning, it’s the least we can do, right, Mrs. Goodwin?”
Mrs. Goodwin nods. “Absolutely.”
“No, really,” I argue, but the window is already making its slow ascent back to the closed position. I slowly rise with it, keeping my eyes on Luca through the shrinking crack. “I can take the bus.”
“See you at ten,” Luca calls, and the window zips shutcompletely. Before I can react to what’s happened, he puts on the turn signal and pulls the car into a break in the traffic.
