“LOOK, LOOK!”
I was already looking at Lenny, who was behind the wheel of her car, gesturing to me with one hand as we left the Greek place we had gone to have dinner at. “No,” I cut her off. “I did look, and he’s out of my league.”
She groaned.
I looked down at the picture of a half-naked man on my phone and shook my head. “He is, Len. I can see it. He probably has girls hitting on him all the time. Just look at him.”
She didn’t bother arguing that the man she had apparently set me up on a date with—a retired MMA fighter—had plenty of girls hitting on him. She’d be a freaking liar if she did, and Lenny was a whole lot of things, but not a liar. That was me. The route she did decide to go down was, “Give me a break. You’re out of his league.”
I would have laughed, but she kept going like she knew exactly what I was going to say and wasn’t about to let me.
“You’re the fucking best, Luna.”
I smiled at her and lifted a shoulder. “I’ve got my moments,” I tried to joke.
“What have you got to lose? He’s hot, but you’ve got that Cinderella thing going,” she tried to say.
I rolled my eyes because I hated when she used the Cinderella example on me. I was usually dirty, cleaning up after others, working too much, and taking someone’s shit. The Life of Luna.
“If he gets hit on during our date and leaves me there for another girl, I’m blaming you,” I told her.
She snickered. “If he sucks, blame Grandpa Gus. He’s the one who picked him out.”
Oh, Grandpa Gus.
“He’s really proud of himself, by the way. I swear he had a list and was checking names off of it over the last few days. I saw he had a comment next to one guy’s name that said ‘too hairy.’”
It was my turn to snicker. “I love that man.”
Lenny shook her head. “Me too, but I swear the only person who loves him more than I do is himself.”
She so had a point. While Mr. Cooper was calm, easygoing, and had every personal trait that was fatherly and comforting, Lenny’s Grandpa Gus was… something else.
“Hey, we’re going to Mickey’s, right?” she asked, referring to where I had told her my coworkers were getting together after hours to celebrate Rogelio abandoning us.
“Yup.”
After my gynecologist appointment ended, I had headed over to her gym. Grandpa Gus had waved us off, telling me to take her away. We had left and gone shopping at the nearest strip mall, and then gone to eat afterward. Now, I was dragging her along with me to Mickey’s. Except we’d ditched my car at my house because she was the worst back seat driver, and I didn’t feel like getting griped at for driving too slow. Should she be driving with one arm in a sling? Probably not, but I wasn’t going to be the one to tell her that.
“Is Rip going to be there?” she asked. “Doubt it.”
Her muttered “shit” made me laugh. She’d been trying for the last three years to make seeing him in person finally happen. I couldn’t exactly get her to come over while I was working.
“I just want to see him. Just once,” she said.
“I’ve shown you pictures.” Pictures I had maneuvered to get him into the background.
It was her turn to make a noise. “It’s not the same.” “It’s the same,” I tried to argue.
“Maybe it’ll be my lucky day and he shows up.” “Don’t hold your breath or you’ll end up passing out.”
We both cracked up just as her phone started ringing from where she had set it in the cupholder between our seats. Connected to her car’s Bluetooth, GRANDPA GUS came up on the screen of her dashboard. She didn’t hesitate to hit answer.
“Grandpa.”
“Can you head back to Maio House?”
Concern flashed across my friend’s face. “What happened?”
There was some rustling, then just barely the sound of Grandpa Gus whispering, something like I will pop you if you ever use that tone of voice on me again filled the car, but he wasn’t talking to us.
I had to press my lips together to keep from laughing, and it was obvious that Lenny was too because she shot me a funny face.
“There was an accident,” he came back on the line after a moment, his tone mysterious.
“What kind of an accident?”
There was a sigh and another whisper that sounded like I don’t want to hear it before he came back on the line to respond with, “Someone needs a couple stitches and doesn’t want to go to the hospital, and Peter says he’s not doing it.”
That must have been enough of an explanation for Lenny because she groaned, obviously knowing who someone was and why her grandpa’s best friend didn’t want to give someone stitches. I’d heard enough from her over the years to know he set noses regularly, glued things back together, and could fix just about every kind of dislocation without a visit to a hospital.
“All right. I’ll be there in twenty,” she agreed with a grimace. “Okay.” He didn’t even say “bye” before he hung up.
Lenny sighed, but I beat her to it.
“You know I’d go anywhere with you, but you know I’ll faint if I see blood.” That was a true story. I was really squeamish. “Can you drop me off at Mickey’s since we’re closer? If you get a chance to come back, then come. If not, I’ll catch a ride home with someone.” Or take an Uber. I wasn’t planning on drinking.
Her fingers were already up at her nose, pinching the tip of it. For one brief moment, I wondered who that someone was. “You’re sure?”
“Of course I’m sure, bish. Keep my stuff, and I’ll get it from you this weekend.”
She was still pinching her face. “I have to work at the gym tomorrow but text me after your date. We can do something Sunday,” she said, just as she got us a block away from Mickey’s.
I sighed at the reminder I had a date the next day. I already didn’t want to go. That wasn’t a good sign.
Lenny pulled her car up to the curb right outside the bar and gave me an almost half-ass wink that told me how aggravated she was that she was going to give someone stitches… or take them to the hospital. I didn’t really want to ask. “Let me know when you get home, okay?” she asked. “I can come get you if you’re still here when I’m done.”
I smiled and nodded at her. “Drive safe.”
Lenny blew me a kiss. “If Rip shows up, call me.”
I shook my head as I got out of her car and slammed the door shut behind me, clutching my purse to my chest.
She honked the horn the second I was on the curb, and we waved at each other before she busted an illegal U-turn that made me shake my head as she sped away.
It only took me a second to find my license and flash it at the bouncer who didn’t even look at it. He’d seen me enough times to know I was over the age. It was already eight o’clock by the time I walked in and found six people I knew: three coworkers and three wives and girlfriends.
I waved at them before making my way over and giving them all hugs, and it was just as I was turning around to see who else was there that I spotted the small table directly beside the one where I was standing at.
Sitting there, all alone, was Rip. He’d come?
The surprise must have been evident on my face because Owen shrugged at me and said a little too loudly, “I didn’t think he liked Ro that much.”
Honestly, neither had I. But he was there.
It made me sad that he was sitting by himself, when it only took me a moment longer to spot four more people I recognized. The thing was, none of the chairs at the table he was at were pulled out. He really was sitting alone.
He’d come and no one wanted to sit with him.
I was sure the argument he’d had with Mr. Cooper earlier hadn’t helped but….
I knew what I was going to do before my feet moved. I shrugged back at Owen and tipped my head to the side to tell him where I would be. He gave me the same look I gave Lily when she ate steamed carrots in front of me. Like really?
And, yeah, really.
I was going to need to text Lenny and let her know she’d jinxed herself.
Trying not to come off too aggressive, I headed toward the bar first to get a Sprite. Then I turned around and headed back the way I had come. Rip hadn’t moved. He was still sitting there, not on his phone, not doing
anything else, but sitting there. Present. I thought it was a lot sweeter than I had any right to think.
“Fancy seeing you here,” I told Rip as I crossed around the front of his table and stopped there.
My boss, who I wasn’t positive had seen me up until that point, blinked at me. “Luna.”
So much enthusiasm.
Just as I was about to ask if I could sit with him, I decided not to even bother. I pulled out the chair and took the seat anyway. “I didn’t know you were coming.”
That stubble-covered cheek kind of twitched. “Didn’t know you were either.”
I lifted a shoulder as I took a sip out of my Sprite. “My sister left, and I don’t want to be home alone.”
He lifted his own glass up to his mouth, some amber-looking liquid, and took a sip. I didn’t expect him to say, “Thought college didn’t start till August.”
I didn’t mean to give him a sad smile, but it happened, and I tried to cover it up by keeping my voice light. “It doesn’t. The plan had been that we were going to move her to Lubbock at the beginning of August so she could get settled in and find a job before everyone goes back to school, but… her friend’s family has a restaurant in Galveston and they invited her to work there for the summer.”
“Galveston?” he asked in that amazing voice, still surprising me by keeping our conversation going.
“Yeah. Staying at a beach house and everything. Totally slumming it and having a miserable time, you know?” I gave him a real smile that time.
Rip just raised his brows.
“I promised her I would go visit, and she promised she would come up too… What’s that face for?” I surprised myself by laughing. “I don’t believe it either. I’ll get lucky if she comes once. I’m not that delusional.”
I didn’t imagine the way his cheek twitched again, just a little, just enough to keep the smile on my face.
“I’m stuck making my own lunches from now on. I have nobody to watch scary movies with who’s more dramatic than I am screaming at the scary parts. And my house is empty,” I told him, going on a roll.
“Your lunches?” was what he picked up on.
I wasn’t sure how much he’d had to drink that he was asking me so many questions, but I wasn’t going to complain. “I can’t cook to save my life, boss. I thought everyone knew. Baking is the only thing I can handle.”
“You serious?” he asked in a surprised tone. I nodded.
“For real?”
“Yeah,” I confirmed. “I can’t even make rice in an Instant Pot. It’s either way too dry or it’s mush.” Oh. “An Instant Pot is—”
“I know what it is,” he cut me off.
It was my turn to make a face, but mine was an impressed one. He knew what an Instant Pot was but not a rom-com. Okay. “Sorry.”
He didn’t react to me trying to tease him, instead he asked, “You can’t even make rice in that?”
“Nope.”
“You know there’s instructions online.”
Was he messing with me now? I couldn’t help but watch him a little.
How much had he drunk already? “Yeah, I know.” “And you still screw it up?”
I blinked, soaking up Chatty Cathy over here like a plant that hadn’t seen the sun in too long. “I wouldn’t say I screw it up. It’s more like… you either need to chew a little more or a little less.”
It was his turn to blink.
“It’s a surprise. I like to keep people on their toes.”
If I hadn’t been guessing that he’d had a couple drinks before, what he did next would have confirmed it.
His left cheek twitched. Then his right one did too, and in the single blink of an eye, Lucas Ripley was smiling at me.
Straight white teeth. That not-thin but not-full mouth dark pink and pulled up at the edges. He even had a dimple.
Rip had a freaking dimple.
And I wanted to touch it to make sure it was real.
I couldn’t help but think it was just about the cutest thing I had ever seen, even though I had zero business thinking anything along those lines. But I was smart enough to know that I couldn’t say a single word to mention it; otherwise, it might never come out again.
What I did trust myself to do was gulp down half of my Sprite before saying, “You can make rice, I’m guessing?” If he wanted to talk, we could talk. I was good at talking.
“Uh-huh,” he replied, sounding almost cocky about it.
All I could get myself to do in response was grin at him, and for another five seconds, his dimple—and his smile—responded to me.
“Big plans for the rest of the weekend?”
He gave me that smug face. “No” was his short answer, which could have meant a thousand different things. “You think of a new favor yet?”
We were back to this.
Well, if he wanted to play this game, we could play it. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
The smug face turned into my favorite smart-ass one. “Luna.” I smiled. “Ripley.”
“You think of one or not?” he grumbled but not in a mean way.
I scrunched up my nose at him and leaned forward a little as I lowered my voice and said, “For the thousandth time, boss, you really don’t owe me anything.”
“I really do,” he quipped back immediately, lowering his voice too. “No, you don’t. We’re even.”
That dimple popped up and disappeared again so fast I thought it might have just been wishful thinking that I’d seen it again. “We’re not even until I do another favor for you,” he tried to claim.
“That’s what I’m trying to tell you. You don’t have to do another favor for me. You didn’t have to in the first place.”
He blinked. “Think of a favor, Luna.” I blinked back. “You think of a favor.”
He stared, and I definitely wasn’t imagining that his voice dropped into this thing that was too low to be called a whisper. “You want me to think of one?”
I ignored the way that went straight to my chest and lifted a shoulder, keeping it calm, keeping it cool. “Sure. Why not?”
That got me no response. Just like I thought. It’s not that easy, is it, Rip? I thought to myself before giving him a break.
“Do you know how to do tile work?” “Tile work?” he asked slowly.
I nodded. “Yeah. How about you help me tile my bathroom?” “Tile your bathroom?” he echoed, fueling up my inner pest.
“I’m just throwing out ideas since you’re being all desperate and needy about wanting to get this favor over with.”
If Rip could have sputtered, I was pretty sure he would have right then, because his expression…. “You say I’m being desperate and needy?”
Okay, so maybe I just wanted to screw with him a little. So I kept my mouth shut and took a small sip of my Sprite before adding, “It’s okay if you don’t know how to do
tile. Not many people can tear a car apart and build it back together like you can.”
The silence yawned between us for a moment and then three before… “How much have you had to drink?”
I burst out laughing. “It’s Sprite, boss. I don’t drink that much, and especially not in front of most people.”
Those eyebrows went up. “You don’t?”
He was still asking me questions. Okay. “Drink?” Rip dipped his chin.
“One or two is okay, but even that’s rare. But get drunk? No. I’ve done it… twice, and it was for special occasions,” I informed him.
His finger drew a circle around the rim of his glass as he asked, “What were they?”
Was Rip trying to get to know me? I wanted to be excited about it, but… well… I wasn’t sure why he was doing it. But it was fine, I wouldn’t overthink it. “My twenty-first birthday and my best friend’s grandpa’s seventieth birthday.”
Rip looked at me. “Huh.”
Plastering a smile on my face, I went with changing the subject again. “But seriously, Rip, everything else aside, I want you to know I’m being serious about this favor thing. You don’t owe me anything. You don’t have to do anything. Going with me to the funeral was more than enough.”
“I don’t care what you think. I still owe you.”
I crossed my eyes and didn’t bother holding back a sigh. I didn’t even know why I was bothering insisting. Like he was going to change his mind. I could only wish.
And really, why was he being so freaking talkative? I liked it. I liked it a lot, but it didn’t make any sense.
Just as I was opening my mouth to tell him fine, someone called out “Luna!” right behind me.
I barely managed to glance over my shoulder when a male body stopped directly beside me. Tipping my head back, I found a familiar face grinning down at me.
“How’s it going?” the late twenty-something-year-old asked. “Hey, I’m good. How are you?” I asked the guy back. “Good, good. Owen invited us to come by.”
I smiled at him.
“I wanted to tell you. I did that rice thing you said to do with my phone last time I saw you, and it worked like a charm. Let me know if you want a drink. I got you,” he offered, sliding Rip a quick glance before dropping his hand off me. “Least I can do.”
“I’ll let you know, but I’m glad it worked.”
“See ya,” he said with a grin before turning around and heading back toward the bar, disappearing into a small group of people.
Turning back to Rip, I raised my eyebrows. “He works at one of the parts stores we order a lot of things from,” I explained when I noticed his gaze was in the direction the guy had gone.
That had my boss glancing back at me with that remote face. “He’s nice,” I added for some reason I wasn’t totally certain of.
His fingers brushed over the stubble covering his chin, eyes zeroed in on me almost thoughtfully.
“What?” “Nothing.” “What?” I insisted. “Nothing, Luna.”
Okay then. If he didn’t want to tell me, I was fine with that. “Luna!” another familiar voice shouted in the bar.
Glancing over my shoulder, the group of coworkers I had greeted when I’d first walked in—who were behind me—waved me toward them. “You can have my seat!” one of them offered.
“I’m okay!” I yelled back. “I’m all right over here.” “You sure?”
I gave them a thumbs-up.
When I glanced forward again, Rip was taking another drink, and he was watching me.
“What?” I asked.
“Do you know everybody here?”
I rolled my eyes, hoping he’d know I was just playing with him. “Not everyone. Just like half of them,” I joked.
Honestly, it looked like he believed me, but what I didn’t like was the way his jaw kind of ticked to the side and how his voice went from tight to honestly a little sharp as he said, clearly, “I don’t need a babysitter.”
I couldn’t help it. I frowned. “I’m not being a babysitter.”
“You don’t have to sit with me,” he said coolly out of nowhere.
What the hell had crawled up his butt? “I know that. I came over here and sat with you. If I had wanted to sit somewhere else, I would have,” I told him, trying to process his words and tone. “But if you don’t want me to sit here, I can get up and go. It won’t hurt my feelings if you don’t want me around. I don’t want to wear out my welcome.”
Damn it, why hadn’t I just said that he wouldn’t hurt my feelings if he wanted to sit by himself instead? I didn’t mean to make it… about me. But regardless, I didn’t shove my stool back and get up. I wasn’t going to show him his words and his tone bothered me.
Because they didn’t. Much.
Before I got a chance to say anything else, my phone started to ring from inside my purse. Rip didn’t say a word to confirm or deny that he wanted or didn’t want me to sit with him. He didn’t tell me to leave either, but that didn’t make me feel much better. Phone out, I saw THEA flashing across the screen, and I answered it, cupping my hand around my mouth so she could hear me.
“Hello?” I pretty much yelled anyway.
“Luna,” her watery voice came over the line. “I got broken into.” I froze. “What?”
“My place. It got broken into,” she explained with a sniffle that was so loud I managed to hear it despite the loud background. “What do I do?”
Shit. “Call the cops but not the emergency line,” I rattled off, trying to think. “You’re sure no one’s still in the apartment?”
“Positive,” she confirmed, her voice wobbly and honestly sounding pretty freaking panicked, not that I blamed her. “Can you… can you come?”
“Yeah,” I agreed, quickly. “I’m not home, but I’ll leave in a little bit. Call the police and start making a list of what they took. But whatever it is, don’t get upset, okay? It’s just stuff. What matters is that you’re fine.”
“Okay, I’ll call now, but hurry, please.”
My stomach turned as I took in the fear in her voice. “I will. Maybe don’t touch anything. I don’t know. Ask the dispatcher who answers, okay? I’ll be there as soon as I can.” I swallowed. “I’m glad you’re okay though. But don’t stress. Everything can be replaced. Text me your address, Thea, okay? It’ll save me time from looking for it.”
Giving me a broken goodbye, my sister hung up, and I shoved my stool back and got to my feet.
Poor Thea. I couldn’t imagine how she felt, much less that she called me first before calling the freaking cops. I was honestly surprised she wanted me to come, but I would never tell her no if she needed me. Not to any of my sisters. Or anyone I cared about. But that didn’t change the fact that my relationship with the oldest of my three younger sisters had been strained since before she had moved out. Since the night I had tried to give her a hug and she’d pushed me away, telling me to leave her alone. I hated that string of words more than any others. I really did.
Why was I thinking about that? I had promised myself I wouldn’t again.
Taking in a calming breath, I unlocked my screen and quickly started going through the apps on it.
“Everything good?” Rip asked, honestly reminding me he was there.
I wasn’t sure how I’d forgotten, but I had.
Opening the app I needed, I glanced up at him and rushed out, “My sister’s apartment got broken into.”
The little notch between his eyebrows popped up. “She all right?” “She doesn’t sound like it,” I told him, glancing down at my phone
as I put in the address I was going to need to get a ride to. “She asked me to go see her, so I need to get back home, and drive up there.”
“Drive where?”
I didn’t glance over to him as I hit the search icon to find a ride on the app. “Dallas. She lives in Dallas.” I grabbed my purse and watched the screen blink as it searched.
“What are you doing?” Rip asked instantly.
“Trying to get a car to take me back home,” I told him, still looking at my screen. “My friend dropped me off.”
I heard him shove the stool back instead of seeing it. “I’ll take you.”
That had me glancing up at him. “You don’t have to.”
“I’ll take you, and don’t say anything about the favor either.” He was already up and making his way around the table. “Let’s go.”
I blinked, but… I hit the icon to exit the app.
Maybe I should have argued with him a little more, but… maybe he’d count this as the favor once he really had a chance to think about it. Not that I held much hope since driving me to San Antonio hadn’t counted, so I doubted driving me a few minutes away would, but…
His choice.
I nodded and took off toward the door, waving absentmindedly at the coworkers who watched me leave, giving curious glances, probably because Rip was right at my heels behind me. It took seconds to get out
of the bar. Rip pointed down the street, and half a block down I spotted his yellow truck. In no time at all, we were at it and he’d unlocked the passenger door to let me in. The second my seat belt was on, he pulled onto the street.
“You good?”
I took a breath, not realizing that I was staring out the windshield. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just a little worried about my sister,” I explained, thinking he didn’t know her name. “I’m just surprised she called me, I guess. Not that surprised her place got broken into. Her apartment isn’t in the greatest neighborhood I’ve ever been in.”
“She lives by herself?”
“No, she’s got a roommate.” I took another breath in and out of my nose. “I’m sorry, Rip, do you need me to give you directions?”
“I know how to get there.”
Another breath in, another release of it. “Thank you so much for driving me,” I told him.
“Uh-huh.”
I eyed the clock and swallowed back a yawn. It was going to be after midnight by the time I made it to her house. I’d gotten up at 5:45 that morning. I could make some coffee, and I’d make it just fine. Well, as close to fine as possible. Worst case, I’d roll down the windows and let the air wake me up.
I must have been in my thoughts longer than I imagined because the next thing I knew, Rip was pulling his truck into a driveway.
My driveway.
I needed to get it together. Calm down. Focus and get going as quickly as possible.
“Thank you so much for the ride,” I managed to tell him.
Rip’s gaze was pretty intent on me as he put the car into park and leaned back in the seat, and I watched as his eyes flicked to my house over my shoulder before returning to me. He licked his lips before he said in that boss-man voice that told me not to argue, “Get your things. I’ll wait out here.”
Uh. Maybe he had had a little more to drink than usual. “You don’t have to wait. My neighborhood is pretty safe.”
I doubted anyone would ever give me a slower blink than the one he shared with me in that moment.
I watched as he paused and looked at the bracelet I’d put on that morning. My fun thing of the day was an old bracelet Lily had made me years ago that said LOVEYOU in white beads with black lettering. He
sighed and flicked his eyes back toward my face. “Luna, I’m taking you to Dallas. Get your shit.”
