“I don’t know. A couple of years, maybe.”
“That seems like a long time.”
She pulled away to look at him. “Really? Says the man who only visits his family in between projects and when it’s convenient for him.”
He went still.
Crap. What was wrong with her? She shouldn’t let Victoria get inside her head like this.
“I’m sorry, Luke. I didn’t mean it like that.”
“No, you’re right,” he said tightly. “I need to visit my family more often.”
“It’s just, like I said before, my dad isn’t a real dad. I mean, he’s a great guy, but he didn’t raise me. Not like your dad did with you and Mimi.”
He nodded, but she noticed that he’d stopped stroking her hair.
“What time are we leaving tomorrow?” she asked.
“Whatever time you’d like,” he said, but he sounded distant.
“Okay, well, I’m pretty beat.”
“Me, too. Good night, Sarah.” Neither of them moved. Then she rolled over and turned her back to him. This after-sex cuddling thing they’d been doing had been nice, but she didn’t need it.
I’ve never seen him look happier, and that has absolutely nothing to do with fishing, and everything to do with you.
Mimi was wrong, of course. If Luke seemed happier these days it was because, after months of working non-stop, he’d finally caught up on his sleep. And, yes, there was the fishing, which helped him relax. Plus, there was the Alaskan contract. It might not go through, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t looking forward to the possibility of it. The other day she’d caught him checking out flights on his laptop.
As for her? Well, of course she had feelings for Luke. Sarah had read all the magazines and she’d even occasionally watched Dr. Phil. It was hard for some women to distinguish between love and sex. She totally got that. But she wasn’t the kind of woman who confused reality with fantasy. She wasn’t Victoria. She was Olivia Jamison’s daughter and she’d been raised to be pragmatic.
What she felt for Luke was powerful, to be sure. She liked him better than she’d ever liked any man, including Christopher.
But it couldn’t be love. No way.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Luke lay in bed and watched Sarah as she slept. It was almost seven, way past the time she normally got up to go to work at The Bistro. But today was Sunday and they were in his condo in Atlanta and she had a rare day off. Nice Guy Luke would let her sleep in. He’d take her breakfast in bed, wait patiently while she did the New York Times crossword puzzle, then kiss her gently, leading them into some slow and gentle lovemaking. But Asshole Luke wanted to continue the conversation they’d both avoided last night. He also wouldn’t have minded another quick, hard fuck.
Asshole Luke was a real winner, all right. No wonder Sarah had been so distant last night. Except, the evening hadn’t started out that way. She’d been sweet and funny and supportive. In other words, her usual self. But the woman who’d gotten in the car last night demanding sex? He’d never seen that side of her.
Not that he minded the demanding sex part. That had been hot. The Old Luke would have high-fived himself. Slam, bam, thank you, ma’am. Life just didn’t get much better. The New Luke, however, had been just a little…hurt by her sudden aloofness.
What happened last night? Because something had happened. Something that had changed the way Sarah saw him. Maybe for the first time she was seeing the real Luke and she decided she didn’t like him. Not that he blamed her.
He should never have gone to Torie’s wedding. Mimi and everyone else had been right about that. He thought back to their relationship over the last three years. Initially, he’d been attracted to Torie because of her looks. But he was a guy, so that was a given. He’d been impressed by her intelligence and, yes, her pedigree. It had boosted his ego when his friends discovered that she’d graduated from both Harvard and Yale. She was successful and sexy and he’d liked the envious looks other men gave him when he walked in a room with her. He’d used her. And it didn’t feel good to acknowledge it.
On the other hand, he’d always been honest with her. He’d thought she was as career driven as he was. Every few months, she’d pull her breaking up act, only to come back in a few days or a week. He should have seen through the manipulation. But he’d ignored the temper tantrums when he’d had to cancel a dinner date due to work, or her pouting if he didn’t compliment her enough. He shouldn’t have let it go on for three long years. It hadn’t been fair to her. Or to him, either.
Seeing her last night, he’d been a combination of both happy and sad. Happy, because Torie had finally gotten what she’d wanted—a guy who put her first in his life. But sad, too, because if she treated her relationship with Jeff the same way she’d treated their relationship, then the marriage didn’t stand a snowball’s chance in hell. Love wasn’t about one-upping one another. It wasn’t a game. Love was about being honest and real and being there for your partner when times were tough.
Listen to him. He sounded like a girl. Or a freakin’ Hallmark card.
The doorbell rang, shaking him out of his thoughts. Who the hell was at his front door this hour of the morning? He got out of bed and pulled on his boxers. The sound of a fist banging against the door made him bristle. “Yeah, yeah, I’m coming!” He grabbed a T-shirt and a pair of jeans.
Sarah leaned up on one elbow, her long, blond hair falling off to the side. She blinked the sleep from her eyes then squinted at the bedside clock. “What time is it?”
“Time for me to kick someone’s ass,” Luke said, as the door banging started up again with a vengeance.