Page 124 of Will Bark for Pizza
“I don’t hate you,” Luke mumbled, reaching for his glass of iced tea as he scanned the patio.
“Could’ve fooled me,” Lila said, stirring her blue raspberry lemonade with a straw.
“I’m a man down with Johnson on vacation. I might not be able to take off work,” Luke said. He was one of three full-time police officers in Bluebell Springs. The rest of his force were part-timers. But that still seemed like a shitty excuse.
It was the only reason I piped up with, “I can help.”
“That would be lovely,” Lila answered as Kira pulled her phone from her purse.
“I’ll fucking help,” Luke muttered.
“Then why couldn’t you just say that?” Kira scrolled through her phone as though searching for something.
“You sure it’s a good idea to move home?” Aspen teased as she helped herself to another slice of mashed potato pizza. Turned out, it really was one of their most popular choices. “You two might kill each other.”
“We’ll be fine as long as she doesn’t get drunk and roast the town again.”
“You mean if she doesn’t publicly call you out for having a stick up your ass?” Aspen shot right back.
“I don’t drink anymore,” Kira said to Luke, sounding exasperated. As though they’d gone round and round on that subject and gotten nowhere.
“So you say.”
“I believe her,” I said before I could remind myself to stay out of this family feud. Luke gave me a strange look, then shot one back to Kira. Fuck, I should’ve sat next to anyone else tonight. But too late for that. Instead, I leaned into my defense. “Look, being around an alcoholic changes you. It certainly changed me.”
“Alcoholic?” Luke repeated, looking confused for once in his life.
“Where have you been, man?” Connor asked in disbelief.
“What do you mean, exactly?” Luke asked Kira, as though he were interrogating her. I loved the man like a brother, and I’d still take a bullet for him. But fuck. I was getting tired of his shitty attitude when it came to his sister. The man could hold a grudge longer than anyone I’d met.
Kira let out a heavy sigh, setting her phone down. Lila offered to search for the email she was seeking, and Kira nodded permission before focusing on Luke.
“You want to know why I don’t drink anymore, Luke? It’s because I watched over and over again as one drink turned into two. Then six. Thenthirty. And no, that isnotan exaggeration. That’s how many beers come in a thirty-pack. Pretty easy to count when no one else is drinking them. I watched how his personality changed with each drink. I stopped drinking because I knew ifIwasn’t sober, I wasn’t safe.”
For once, Luke didn’t have anything to say.
“I take full responsibility for getting involved with him,” Kira said. “For moving to another state to be with him. For staying way longer than I ever should have in that sorry excuse for a relationship. And yes, I takefullresponsibility for the mean things I said the last time I ever touched a drop of alcohol. I’m really sorry I brought up the whole jilted at the altar thing when I had the microphone. I know I hit a nerve, and that was totally uncalled for and unfair. But like it or not, I’m moving home. So you can accept my apology or not. I have Mom’s bookstore to save. I’m going to be too busy to care what you think anyway.”
Luke sat there, looking a bit stunned.
Three people started to talk at once. Not that I could make out what any of them were saying. Not that it mattered. Because in the middle of their talking on top of one another, Husker let out a rare but loud bark that silenced the entire table.
Every head turned, watching as he pointed at the table with his nose, as though he were hunting pizza and couldn’t for the life of him figure out why we weren’t more concerned about the leftovers sitting ignored on the table.
The heavy tension broke the instant I tossed him another piece of crust he caught easily, causing the entire table to burst out in laughter. Luke included.
Husker tilted his head at that sharp angle, as thoughsaying,Silly humans. Don’t you know pizza is the answer to everything?
“I’m sorry, Kira,” Luke finally said as the laughter died, sounding like he meant it. “I didn’t know.”
“None of you knew,” she said. “That was my fault.”
“Babe?” Lila said to Kira.
“Yeah?”
“How soon were you planning to move out of your apartment?”
