Page 36 of The Rebound
I twist my engagement ring from my finger and for one wild moment think about throwing it into a nearby rain gutter. I put it in my pocket instead.
I’ll tell Louise this weekend. I chickened out at dinner but it wasn’t so bad telling Beth. And maybe Louise will be a little nicer to me.
Or maybe not. But it’s worth a shot.
I keep walking, past the funeral home and Dessie’s store and am heading to the bridge when I hear a car slow behind me. I glance over my shoulder, pausing when it stops in front of the café, its lights switching off.
Luke gets out.
His course in Sligo. I remember him talking about how late he can be sometimes. And, of course, it’s been exactly a week since he offered me a ride. A whole week I’ve been here.
It feels like much longer.
I should keep moving, but I don’t, lurking in the shadows as he reaches into the back seat for something. I’m still hurt about what happened between us and unfortunately the wine only increases it tenfold, making me almost angry as I watch him. I know it’s irrational, but I can’t help it. I don’t need to be frowned upon just because of some ridiculous misunderstanding. This is why I left this stupid town. No one understood me. No one even tried to.
I mean, who does he think he is? Judging me like that. He doesn’t even know me. We’ve barely talked since we were kids. He’s just jealous that I got out. He’s jealous and petty and mean and—
“Hey!”
Luke jerks upright at my shout, almost dropping a textbook as he turns my way. “Abby?”
“Yes,Abby.” My boots slip out from under me as I stumble toward him.
“What are you…” He trails off with a frown. “Are you drunk?”
“Obviously.” I stop a few feet from him, holding on to a lamppost for support. Drunker than I thought. The chilly night air has done nothing to sober me, if anything I feel fuzzier. “I have a question for you.”
“Alright.” Luke grabs a plastic grocery bag from the back seat and flicks the door closed. “Ask away.”
“What,” I begin, momentarily distracted by how loud my voice sounds, “is your problem?”
“Right now it’s deciding between the two microwave meals I bought.”
“You—”
“Go home,” he interrupts. “It’s late.”
“I can’t go home.” I follow him to the café. “I don’t have a home.”
“I mean your sister’s.”
“That’s not my home.”
“Then—” He breaks off as he turns, not expecting me to be so close. The grocery bag swings, banging sharply into my hip as we collide and he grabs a hold of my arm, steadying me before I can fall.
He doesn’t let go.
For a moment we just stand there, our bodies pushed together, and I struggle to remember why I was so mad.
“Abby?”
I like it when he says my name. I like the way his lips move.
I wet my own as I stare at him, my breath coming out in sharp bursts of mist. Luke doesn’t seem to be breathing at all.
God, I’m attracted to him. More so than when he was just some stranger on the road. More so than when he flirted with me over lunch. But before I can do anything about it the memory of him in the café flashes through my mind, the barely concealed distaste when he looked at me. Like I was something he scraped off the side of his shoe.
I shove him away, confused, but it’s me who stumbles back, his body solid before me.
