“Funny,” I said instead and turned away. “Let me go and check on Lucky again and make sure she’s okay.”
I walked out of the kitchen quickly and back up the stairs. I frowned as I walked to Lucky’s bedroom door. It was always a bad sign when Lucky went into her own room as opposed to mine. I wasn’t even sure what was wrong.
“Lucky!” I banged on the door. “What’s going on? Can you let me in?”
“I’m coming.” Her voice sounded a little too cheerful and she opened the door.
“What’s going on?” I tried to look into her normally warm and happy brown eyes, but she avoided my gaze.
“Nothing.” She paused and I saw her lick her lips quickly, while furtively checking her phone.
“It doesn’t look like nothing to me.”
“I was on a call and they said some things about you and I don’t want to bring it up right now because we have a guest and I’m not even really sure what they were saying exactly.” She looked up at me and her brown eyes were wide and slightly worried.
“Who were you on the phone with?” Suspicions grew in my mind. “You weren’t talking with Braydon, were you?” I didn’t hold back the anger in my voice. I knew we hadn’t heard the last of that asshole. “What did he say that’s got you so upset?”
“I wasn’t on the phone with Braydon!” she snapped back at me. “And let’s talk about this later, okay?”
“Why are you mad at me, Lucky?” I grabbed a hold of her hand and pulled her towards me at the top of the stairs. “What did I do to you to get you upset? I don’t even know.”
“Nothing.” She sighed and finally looked up at me with woeful eyes. “I just don’t know, okay? I’m just confused. Everything that is happening is confusing me. I’m worried and scared and I’m mad at myself and I just don’t know what this is, what we are. Who you are.”
“Why are you mad at yourself?” I held my breath. “Do you regret being with me? Do you regret coming here? And what do you mean you don’t know who I am?”
“No.” She bit her lip and I tried to ignore the yearning to reach forward and bite it for her. This was not the time to be having thoughts of sex. “Kind of. I don’t know. You have to admit everything has been moving quickly, Zane. We don’t really know each other that well. Sometimes I just worry that what we are feeling is …”
“Oh,” I interrupted, then hesitated, trying to cull the feelings of panic swelling in me. “You don’t love me?”
“Oh, Zane.” Her eyes grew huge. “That’s not the issue. One thing I know is that I love you.”
“Okay.” My heart didn’t stop thumping. “But that’s not enough for you, is it?” I ignored the voices in my head that were screaming at me. They had warned me that it was a bad idea to get involved with her. It had always been a bad idea, and now I was going to pay the ultimate price. If she decided to leave me, I would never be all right again.
“I don’t know.” She shook her head, looking worried. “There are just so many things I’m unsure about. What if I’m pregnant? Will I finish school? Will I ever go to grad school? Will we get married? Should I even want to marry you? I barely know you. Am I crazy?” She rambled on and then paused and gave me a small smile. “I sound crazy right now, don’t I?”
“If you’re crazy, you’re the most wonderful crazy person I’ve ever known.” I couldn’t resist the urge to grab a hold of her hand and trace the lines in her palm. I loved the feeling of her skin next to mine, even when it wasn’t in an intimate way.
“And you’re the most wonderful crazy person I’ve ever known, too.”
“Wait a minute. Who said I’m crazy?” I laughed, happy to see the smile on her face. “I know most men wouldn’t date Worzel Gummidge’s twin sister, but I don’t know if that makes me crazy.”
“Zane.” She laughed and hit me in the arm. “Is my hair looking crazy again?” She looked at me self-consciously.
“No.” I tilted her face up to mine and kissed her forehead as I ran my hands through her long, cascading locks. “Your curls look like you.”
“So it does look crazy?” She smiled at me and pushed her arms around my waist before placing her head against my chest. “You’re so warm.”
I brought her closer to me and wrapped my arms around her as I held her warm body tightly against me. The feel of her so close to me made me feel whole. It made me feel complete. Lucky fit me in a way no other woman ever would.
“Are you still mad at me for reasons unknown?” I whispered into her ear.
“I’m not mad at you, Zane. I’m just confused. The call confused me.” She looked up at me, with a glint in her brown eyes, and all of a sudden, I felt extremely uneasy. “But I would be lying if I told you I didn’t love this, didn’t love you. Your warmth soothes my soul.” She giggled. “Shit, I sound corny.”
“I was going to say you sound like a sweet, innocent farm girl.” I grinned back at her, letting my words mask my concern and worry. “So, Lucky, please tell me, what farm did you come from?”
“The tobacco farm, duh.”
“What, not the cotton farm?”
“My family grew tobacco and cotton, I’ll have you know.”
“Oh, on the plantation?”
“Why, yes, I do miss the plantation.” She reached up and ran her fingers across my lips and I nibbled on the tip of her index finger. “Ow.” She pulled it back quickly.
“There’s more where that came from, ma’am.”
“I bet there is.”
“Hey, guys, any chance of dinner anytime soon?” Leo shouted up the stairs and Lucky pulled away from me with a guilty look.
“Oh no, I forgot Leonardo was here.” She looked at me with anxiously. “I’m such a bad host.”
“No worries, love.” I grinned. She hadn’t even remembered Leo was there. I guess he hadn’t made a huge impression on her after all. I tried to stop myself from gloating. I needed Lucky to like Leo if I was going to follow my plan. I just wasn’t sure if I was making the right decision. One part of me—the part in my brain that was focused on emotions and my worry—told me it was what I needed to do. But the sane part of me—the part that was here with Lucky—told me that I was making a mistake. That I should just appreciate what we had and live life. And I wanted to do that so badly. But I couldn’t stop the voice in my head that told me that I was not enough.
“We’re coming, Leo. Don’t get your panties in a bunch.”
“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.” He laughed and looked past me to talk to Lucky. “I’ve been waiting patiently for your lamb. I hope it’s nearly ready.”
“Oh, my lamb!” Lucky cried out and ran down the stairs. “My lamb’s going to be dried out. Nooo!” I watched as she ran into the kitchen, and a warm, domestic feeling overwhelmed me. Maybe I was old-fashioned, but I wanted to see Lucky in the kitchen, with a bunch of kids around her. I wanted to watch her grimace when she burnt the cookies and delight when her soufflés rose perfectly. I wanted to make s’mores in the fireplace and I wanted to enjoy late night ….
“Zane, can you come and help me, please?” Lucky called out to me and interrupted my daydream.
“Want more wine?” I asked Leo before hurrying to the kitchen.
“I never thought I’d see the day where Zane Beaumont was domesticized.” Leo laughed as he shook his head.
“Shh.” I frowned at him and hurried into the kitchen. “What’s wrong?”
“The potatoes are cold and the lamb has cooked too long.” She looked at me with wide eyes. “The dinner’s going to be awful.”
“It smells and looks good,” I said gently, ignoring the fact that the lamb chop looked like a dried up piece of charcoal.
“Liar,” she mumbled and sighed. “I just don’t believe this.”
“It’s okay, Lucky.”
“Argh.”
“Are you okay?” I was starting to think that Lucky was having pregnancy wiles. Maybe that was why she was so emotional? I wasn’t even sure if that was a real symptom, and if it was, I didn’t know if it would be showing up so quickly.
“No, my dinner is ruined.” She opened the fridge and pulled out a glass bowl that I vaguely recognized. “At least the salad is still good.” She lifted up the plastic wrap from the top of the bowl. “Maybe we can do salad and …”
“Did someone say that we were having a salad for dinner?” Leo sauntered in. I gave him a look and nodded my head quickly to the counter where the burnt lamb chops sat. I saw him glance over and he winked at me. “Salad sounds great. I didn’t want to tell you before, but I’m trying to avoid meat right now.”
“You are?” Lucky looked at him suspiciously.
“Yes, I’m trying to stick to only veggies on my new diet.” He paused. “It’s a Hollywood thing.”
“Hmm.” Lucky frowned and shrugged her shoulders. “Oh well, let’s have salad for dinner then.” I looked at Leo gratefully and smiled. There was a reason why we were friends. He winked at me again as Lucky got the plates assembled and I laughed and walked to the fridge. “Thanks for that. I owe you. Do you want a Blue Moon, Beck’s, or a Corona?”
“Corona with lime, please.” Leo grinned and I took two bottles from the fridge.
“What about my wine?” Lucky frowned and then just shook her head. “Have your beers, you Neanderthals.” She smiled at me. “Typical men.”
“Hey,” I cried out, pretending to be offended.
“I’m joking. My dad would always drink beer, no matter what the occasion was.” She laughed. “Even on their anniversary when my mom wanted to do a champagne toast, he’d be drinking Bud.”
“You can’t fault good American beer,” Leo laughed.
“Even at nice dinners,” she continued. “Even at my birthday parties at McDonald’s.”
“You can get beer at McDonald’s now?” I looked at her in surprise.
“No.” She laughed. “No, you can’t.”
“I used to love McDonald’s as a kid.” I smiled at the memory. “But we only got to go on special occasions.”
“Me too!” Lucky exclaimed. “My parents said I could only go as a treat for doing a good job in school or birthdays.”
“Noah and I were only allowed to go for a treat as well.” I stared at Lucky in amazement. It seemed like the universe was trying to tell me that this beautiful woman was made for me.
“I hate to break up the McDonald’s love-fest, guys. And I’m not going to tell you that their burgers are made with horsemeat, and that they have worms in their milkshakes.” Leo laughed.
“What?” Lucky exclaimed and stared at him.
“I said I’m not going to tell you that.” He grinned. “But can we please eat? I’m starving.”
“It’s coming, Leonardo.” I rolled my eyes at him.
“It’s all right for you, Beaumont. You’re full of love in your stomach, but my stomach is crying out for a juicy steak.” Leo realized his mistake as soon as the words were out of his mouth and I froze, worried that Lucky was going to start crying or start reacting in some other overly-emotional way.
It was silent for a few seconds before Lucky burst out laughing. “You should see your faces, guys. Like someone’s about to die. I am not that sensitive.” Lucky walked over to me and punched me in the arm. “I’m not a little kid.” She looked up at me with laughter in her eyes and I felt myself floating in the endless pools of her love. “Let’s eat the salad while we wait for the pizza.”
“What pizza?” I frowned and looked at the oven.
“The one you’re about to order.” She grinned and kissed me on the cheek before sauntering into the dining room with the plates and salad bowl.
***
“That was some great pizza, Lucky.” Leo licked his lips and I watched as Lucky blushed and giggled. I kept a smile on my face, but I was annoyed. Lucky and Leo had been joking around all evening and I didn’t appreciate it.
“Well, I tried hard.”
“That pepperoni, ooh la la.”
“I made it by hand.”
“Talented, I tell ya.”
“Well, you know, I’m the next Julia Child.” Lucky laughed and threw her head back. “Next thing you know I’ll be on Chopped or Top Chef.”
“You can come cook for me anytime.”
“Unfortunately, Lucky has a job, so she won’t be able to cook for you anytime soon.” I interrupted, snarky. Lucky looked at me in surprise with a frown on her face and Leo just smiled at me with his boy-is-he-gone look.
“Are you single, Leo?” Lucky turned away from me and smiled at Leo once again, and I knew my face reflected my anger and jealousy. Was Lucky interested in Leo? Was that why she was confused? Was she developing feelings for Leo? I knew it was an irrational thought and that they had just met, but maybe she had felt an instant spark? They certainly seemed to be getting along well together—too well. I was not happy about their camaraderie and was seriously considering not hiring Leo as her bodyguard anymore. I wanted someone to be there to protect her, but not someone she may fall for. I trusted Leo with my life, he had always been a good friend, but why would I put temptation in his way? Lucky was a beautiful, vibrant woman and I knew there was no way that Leo was immune to that. I watched her as she spoke, her face was animated and glowing, and even her crazy curls weren’t enough to detract anyone from her charm. There was a bustle of energy and an innate joy that surrounded Lucky. It was what had attracted me to her back when I first started going into Lou’s Diner. Her energy was captivating, and you couldn’t help but be swept away by her charm.