The Wells Brothers: Luke (20 page)

Mikki flipped her menu open.  “She
has stocks, bonds, a finger in several restaurants and hotels, and is part
owner of a large amusement park.”  At the silence greeting this, she smirked. 
“I bet you thought she lived on Uncle’s money and swanned around, didn’t you?”

“Well…yeah.”

“You thought this mansion idea was
just some scheme from an eccentric woman.”

Luke looked a trifle guilty.  “I
knew it would work, though, handled correctly.”

“But you didn’t think Aunt Elspeth
was so business canny, did you?”

“No,” he replied honestly.

“There you go,” she said.  “Don’t
judge a book by its cover.”

“I misjudged you,” he stated
bluntly.

“Aw, sweet.”

“I misjudged me.”

Not sure where he was going with
this, Mikki shifted her attention from trying to decide between the steak
sandwich and the fisherman’s basket to Luke.  From his tone, she’d expected him
be serious, instead he was grinning wickedly.

“I misjudged us.”

She waited, one eyebrow raised.

“I thought we’d kill each other
spending time together this week.”

“And instead…?”

His eyelids lowered, giving him a
darkly mischievous air.  “Meet me in the tower tonight.”

“Geez.”  Heat crawled through her
at the memory of what had occurred there the previous day.

“I can’t exactly go to your
stretcher with Elspeth sleeping in the same room, and you won’t come to mine.”

“Not with Aunt Elspeth around and
maybe hearing or, God forbid, accidentally seeing us, no.”

“We’re both adults.”  He stopped
talking as the waitress suddenly appeared at the table.

“I’m Sandy.”  The waitress flashed
ultra white teeth at Luke.  “What can I get for you and your sister?”

“Not my sister,” he replied.  “And
I’ll have the-”

“Your cousin.”

“No.  I’ll try the-”

Fascinated, Mikki watched the
waitress and Luke.  He was oblivious to Sandy trying to pick him up.  Attention
on the menu, he was trying to order food while the waitress was, well, getting
a little desperate.

Sandy shot Mikki a glance. 
“Employee?”

Try again
.  Mikki smiled
widely.

“Girlfriend,” Luke murmured.

Sandy visibly wilted.  “Really?”

That had him glancing up, his gaze
going from Sandy to Mikki.  She saw the minute it hit him what Sandy was doing.  He smiled warmly at Mikki, reaching out to take her hand, looking deeply
into her eyes.  “Fiancée, actually.  We’re getting married soon, aren’t we,
baby?”

“Oh baby,” she cooed back.  “Are
you proposing?”

His hand tightened on hers.  “I
know you’ve been wanting me to since the night I picked you up at that bar.”

“Oh honey.  I thought the amount I
paid you would be enough.”  She batted her eyelashes at him.

Expression lovingly serious, his
eyes sparkled with laughter.  “I know I knocked you up, but now that we know
that out of the three of us you were with
at the same time
that night,
I’m the father-”

Sandy sucked in her breath
sharply, her mouth going slack.

“I was drunk,” Mikki assured her. 
“I’d never have slept with three men at once without protection if I’d been
sober.”

“My little hot pepper.”  Luke
smiled fondly at her.

“So have you chosen?” Sandy’s grip tightened on the pad.

“Is that a yes, then?” Luke asked
Mikki.

“The father of my child?  How
could I say no?”

“I’ll be right back.”  Sandy hurried away.

Luke chortled as soon as she was
out of ear shot.

“Maybe out of the three men I
bedded at once, I should check out the credentials of the other two before I
commit to anything,” Mikki mused.

“Man’s got to have a little fun.” 
Pushing upright, he leaned across the table to kiss her slow and deep.

It was all she could do not to rip
the menu in half.  As it was, she crushed the corners in her hand, thick
cardboard, plastic and all.  God, the man could kiss.  His tongue swept in, his
lips moulded to hers, and he had fire licking through her with a slow marauding
of her mouth.

Pulling back, he grinned lazily at
her.  “So how about it, Red?  Tower tonight?”

“Sure,” she answered breathlessly.

He winked and sat back in the
booth.  “You won’t regret it.”

“You better deliver on that
promise.”  Feeling decidedly hot and bothered, she picked up the menu.

Plucking up his own menu with a
satisfied air, Luke perused it.  “We could always ditch lunch and do it in the
back of the ute.”

“My God, you are a suave man.”  He
could tickle her funny bone even in the midst of a lusty flush.  “The back of
the ute, huh?”

“The tray does have ridges in it,
but as you’ll be mindless with passion beneath me, you won’t feel it and I’ll
be fine on top.”

“Won’t be your arse bearing the
impressions afterwards, will it?”

Eyes on the menu, his grin flashed
fast and sinful.  “I’ll kiss it better.”

Taking a deep breath, she
scrutinised the menu.  “As tempting as getting ridge arse is, I think we should
eat first.”

“If you say so.”  Luke sighed. 
“Never thought I’d take second place to a basket of chips.”

“Welcome to the real world.”

His gaze lifted, meshed with
hers.  “As long as you’re in the real world with me, Red, I’m content to walk
it.”

He was suddenly so serious that
she was taken aback.  She blinked, but before she could even fully comprehend
what he’d said Luke waved the waitress over.

“I’ll have the beef burger with a
side order of chips, and a Coke, thanks.”  He looked at Mikki questioningly.

“Oh…um…”  She dragged her thoughts
back to the menu.  “Fisherman’s basket and a Diet Coke, please.”

“Won’t be long.”  Picking up their
menus, Sandy returned to the kitchen.

Feeling unaccountably a little
nervous with Luke watching her so intensely, Mikki glanced out the window.

“So how did your trip to the
library go?” he asked unexpectedly.

Glad for the diversion, she
recounted what she’d found out, relaxing as he nodded thoughtfully.  Sandy
arrived with their drinks and he took a mouthful of the icy Coke, plucking a napkin
from the holder in the middle of the table and setting it under the glass to
catch the condensation running down the outside of it.

Mikki did the same as she
continued talking.  He just listened, nodding now and again, appearing
genuinely interested.

When she finally stopped, he commented,
“Wow, that’s a little sad.”  The surprise must have shown on her face because
he added, “Going through the wars, his parents and sister dying.  Couldn’t have
been easy.”

“But he had an affair, too,” she
pointed out.  “So he did love someone.”

“There can be a big difference between
love and having an affair.”

“You mean he might not have loved
this unknown woman?”

Luke shrugged.  “You’re presuming
he loved her.  He might not have.”

“He had a fling.”

“Could be.  Could be the woman was
bored with her husband, craved something more.  Maybe she loved Wilford.  Maybe
she was in love with the returned town hero.”

“Maybe he wasn’t serious.”  Mikki
took a sip of Diet Coke, the icy liquid fizzing deliciously down her throat. 
“Maybe he was just lonely, and she was too.  Maybe her husband didn’t pay
enough attention to her.”  She looked at Luke.  “Maybe she married without love
and felt like she was missing something.”

“That’s a lot of maybes.”

“Yeah.  And a little frustrating.”

“You’re really into this that
much?”  He regarded her curiously.

She raised her hands palms up. 
“It’s fascinating.  Don’t you find it fascinating?  Here’s a man who came from
a wealthy family, went to two wars, came back, had tragedy in his life, had an
affair, and died a lonely old hermit with no family, in a huge house that he
let fall to pieces.”  She tapped the table with one finger.  “And he cared
enough about his lover to mention her in his journal.  How about that?”

“He also mentioned the sheep his
father bought, his latest acquisition of a car, and some estate business.”

“Yeah, but he mentioned her a lot,
too.”

Luke’s eyes crinkled at the
corners in amusement.  “Have it your way, Red.  He was besotted with her.”

“Now you’re just humouring me.”  Primly,
she flipped a paper napkin onto her lap, wishing it was linen to make more of
an impression, especially when it stuck up and she had to smooth it down with
her hand and tore it.  “Bugger.”  Taking another, she repeated the action,
doing it right this time.

Luke’s lips twitched.  “A man’s
got to do what a man’s got to do.”

Sandy arrived bearing their food. 
After she’d placed it before them and left, Mikki picked up the fork and inhaled
in appreciation.  Piercing a hot chip, she waved it slowly at him.  “You’re
paying, right?”

“Is this a date?”

“You asked me to lunch.”

“Then I guess I’m paying.”

“A man’s got to do what a man’s
got to do,” she repeated smugly.

He eyed her narrowly.  “You owe
me.”

Taking a bite of chip, she closed
her eyes and moaned in approval.

After a second’s silence, her eyes
popped open when Luke huskily drawled, “And I know just how you can pay me
back.”

Going by the hot look in his eyes
as he watched her lips, she could guess.  The flush that spread through her
cheeks was as hot as the basket of food sending curls of steam into the air.

His gaze lifted to lock onto
hers.  Oh yeah, no doubting that carnal look in his eyes.

“Geez.”  Swallowing, she dropped
her gaze to the food.

“You’re giving me dirty ideas.  Do
you swallow, Red?”

Oh boy, there was no need to guess
what he was insinuating.  Now she was really getting all hot and bothered. 
“Shut up and eat, Luke.”

His chuckle was low, full of carnality. 
“Guess we’ll find out tonight.”

She’d have been hard put to finish
her food after the image he’d just unceremoniously shoved into her mind if the
arrival of Bernard Yorick at their table with Elspeth in tow didn’t divert her
attention.

But as the meal finished and they
left the café, Yorick heading for his antique shop while Elspeth fussed with
her purse while walking to where Mikki had parked the car, Luke caught Mikki’s
hand and pulled her to a stop, coming up behind her to kiss the nape of her
neck.  Shivers coursed through her as delicious sparks fired down her spine.

“Tonight, Red,” he murmured.

And then he was gone, moving back,
coolness invading the warmth where his body had been pressed against her back,
the sensation of his firm, moist lips still on her skin.  It took all she had
to walk steadily to her car, beeping the locks open.

“All right, sweetie?” Elspeth
buckled on her seatbelt.

“Perfectly.”  Mikki watched Luke’s
ute drive away.

“I’m so glad you and Luke are
getting on so well.”

Mikki started the engine.  “He’s
okay when he’s not being an idiot.”

“Men, dear.  Men.”  Settling in
the seat, Elspeth smiled contentedly.  “Can’t live with them, can’t have sex
without them.”

Mikki almost choked.  Oh cripes,
did her aunt suspect…?

“Well, unless you’re a lesbian,
then you can.”

~*~

The journal mentioned the married
woman several times.  It appeared that Wilford had enjoyed quite an adventurous
relationship if one read between his stilted style of writing.

It had Mikki really curious as to
the identity of the woman.  But it was more than likely she’d never know,
because he never hinted at a name or family.  In fact, Wilford had been very
careful to never point a finger at his lover.

He was either very chivalrous, or
mindful of his own position in life and not wanting a scandal.

Sneakered feet propped up on the
veranda post, knees bent to support the journal, bum comfortably in a camping
chair, Mikki looked over to where Luke was standing beside his ute talking on
the mobile.  On the bonnet was his laptop.  While talking, he was busy tapping
keys, entering information of some kind.  From the brief snatches she’d
overheard, he was getting prices of paving stones, plants, wood, glass, all
kinds of things on which he needed to do quotes.

The man was serious about his
work, she could see it in the determined set of his jaw, his no-nonsense attitude,
though his humour and friendliness seeped through.  He laughed, joked, but
quickly got back to the business at hand.

It was certainly interesting to
see this other side of him.

Dog sat devotedly at his feet,
casting her several longing looks but definitely not about to leave his beloved
master.  Now and again Luke would absentmindedly fondle his ears, tug his tail
if he walked past, and rub his belly with a sneakered foot when Dog rolled over
in front of him.

It wasn’t only Dog who liked Luke,
the kitten had developed an attachment to him as well.  During afternoon tea
she’d crawled up his legs.  Luckily he had on jeans so he didn’t jump, but it
was cute to see him fondle her tiny ears while he took time out to read a car
magazine he’d laid on the table.  Duchess batted his finger, chewed the button
on the flannel shirt he’d thrown over his t-shirt, and stuck her head over the table
several times to peer around.  Once she’d managed to jump up, purring and
looking up at Luke.  With a smile, he’d tickled under her chin, and she’d
tucked up to him, getting ready to settle on his magazine.  Luke had picked her
up and cuddled her against his chest with one hand while turning the pages with
the other.  She’d fallen asleep and he’d simply carried on reading.

Not long after he’d received a
phone call on the mobile and had disappeared outside to get his laptop from the
ute where he’d left it earlier.  She’d wandered outside with the journal while
Elspeth settled the sleepy kitten in the cage and baked a cake.