by Box Set
I laughed, waving my hand in the air. “What about when the roses die off in the winter?”
His mouth twisted and he turned partially away from me, shifting on his feet. “We’ll light candles. Rose scented ones.”
My heart warmed. His imagination was intoxicating. I could see everything he had suggested. Before my eyes, the dullness of the church washed away, and all I could see was a crowded diner. Luke would wear a serving apron and would hold a tray steaming with fresh food. I even entertained the idea of running the counter, serving coffee and helping people with their purchases. I could see Kota and Nathan as customers, Victor playing piano on stage, and Gabriel or maybe Silas helping in the kitchen.
I had turned to look at the large empty space again. I felt Luke next to me. His fingertips brushed at the top of my hand. It was so unexpected that I pulled my hand away before I had a chance to stop myself.
“You see it, don’t you?” he asked. There was a gleam in his eyes, as if he needed me to believe in this as much as he did. Who was I to tell him what he could or couldn’t do?
I willed my own voice to work so he could hear my honest reply. I nodded, agreeing with him. Yes. I could see it. “It’s beautiful.”
With the smile that broke over his face, you would have thought I said he’d just won the secret to eternal happiness.
“Let’s go find the kitchen,” he said. “I think it’s through here.”
I followed him across the chapel and out through the other door. The hallway on this far side was lit up by a few windows. I followed behind him, my hand on his back to make sure he knew I was behind him. Since I was so close, I could breathe in that sweet fragrance he wore, like vanilla and sugar.
He stopped and opened the door to what was the kitchen. He tried the light switch, only when he flicked it, nothing happened.
“There must be a breaker down,” he said. “Want to stay here? I think I know where it is.”
I nodded. He went off looking for the breaker box and I stepped into the kitchen. There wasn’t much I could see, the window on the other side was covered with a thick curtain.
I crossed the room, being careful as I couldn’t really see the floor. The window was high up above the counter. If I was going to reach it, I had to climb on top.
I put my palms on the flat top, pushing myself up. It took some effort because the counter was pretty high for my size. I managed to swing a leg over and get up on my knees. I felt for the wall, using it to steady myself as I stood up. I reached for the curtain, grabbing the edge of it and I tried pulling it aside. It was tacked along the edges. I blew out a breath, placed both hands on the curtain and yanked as hard as I could.
“What the hell are you doing in here?”
The voice was deep, demanding, with an edge that caused me to jump at the same time I was ripping. The curtain fell away from the wall.
I fell backward into the dark.
North
I teetered on the edge of the counter, my arms flailing. I only had a split second to move and I was ready to twist my body so I landed on my hands and knees rather than my back.
Hands grabbed me by the hips, stopping me, then picked me up into the air and put me down on the floor. I staggered at the suddenness, but arms went around me to hold me steady.
I blinked rapidly. The sun was now coming in through the revealed window. It beamed into my eyes. His face was in shadow, but I could see he had dark hair. The light left him in a halo glow. He was tall, not as tall as Silas, but almost. He had wide shoulders. I could see a gold circle earring in his left lobe.
“Are you hurt?” he asked. The tone was still sharp, bold, and deep.
I shook my head rapidly. I was too paralyzed by fear to feel if anything did hurt.
He started to let go of me and moved until we were both standing beside each other, the sun light shining over our faces. His eyes were dark, his brows thick, and his jaw broad. His skin was tan. His face had coarse hair from a day or two of not shaving.
Whatever I had thought about Silas being the person I wouldn’t want to meet in a dark alley at night, this person was exactly that, only he could scare me in broad daylight.
“Who are you?” he asked. His booming voice radiated the same power as his intense brown eyes on me.
“I’m...” My voice box squeaked. “I’m Sang.”
His face softened but it looked like he wasn’t sure if he wanted to believe me yet. “How did you get in here?”
“Luke let me in.”
His lips pursed. Was he mad at me? Maybe I should have gone with Luke for the breaker box.
The overhead lights above us turned on. They were dim, but revealed the large expanse of black and white tile on the floor. Most of the tiles were cracked and there were a few missing completely. There was a collection of old mops and brooms covered in cobwebs in the corner. The yellow Formica counter tops went around the entire room, leaving a large space in the middle. There was a normal-sized fridge sitting open and empty, a single stove, and a double sided sink in the middle. There was plenty of counter space, but I knew no one could run a diner with just one fridge and one oven.
I turned back to the guy, who was looking me over. His eyes went from my hips up to my eyes again. “Sorry I scared you. I’m North.” He was wearing black jeans and boots with a plain black t-shirt. There was a cord around his neck, dangling from it was something in Japanese that I didn’t understand.
“Luke’s brother?” I didn’t mean to sound like I hadn’t heard of him, only he didn’t look anything like his brother.
“We’re step brothers,” he said. “We’re still family.”
I nodded. “No, I get it. I just...” I felt like I was fumbling. His eyes were so intense, it made my knees shake. “He told me about the diner. I think it’ll be great.”
“My brother has unrealistic ideas,” he said, turning around and walking toward the stove. He bent over, opening the door to it and checked the inside.
I stepped up behind him, looking in from behind his shoulder. The oven had a layer of ashes at the bottom. “It could be fixed up,” I said.
“It’ll take a lot of work.”
“But once it’s done...”
He let go of the oven door and it closed with a bang. I leapt back, holding a hand to my chest.
He turned to look at me. “It might not work. Most restaurants fail within a year.”
I wasn’t sure how to respond. His face was so serious. His eyes held mine. Did he want me to agree with him? To say that there was no hope?
“A good one can stay open for a long time,” I said softly, my fingers lightly touching the base of my neck. “I suppose it depends on how good the food is.”
He blinked at me. “My uncle’s the best.”
“Then what are you worried about? People will taste how good it is and they’ll love it. I mean, if you work hard and put your heart into it, who wouldn’t love it?”
His head tilted back sharply and he squished his lips together.
“Hey! You found her,” Luke’s voice drifted in behind me. I turned to see him coming in, the smile still on his face. How different he was from his brother amazed me. “What happened to the curtain?”
“She broke it,” North said.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I didn’t mean to.”
North blinked at me again, looking perplexed as to how to accept my apology. “It’s no big deal,” he said in a quieter tone. “Just be more careful next time.”
“I like it like that,” Luke said. “I wouldn’t want anything blocking the natural light.”
Having Luke back in the room eased the tension. I felt my heart calming down a little, but I still felt my skin tingling as North continued to shoot glances in my direction.
The phone in my pocket vibrated to life. I had forgotten all about it. I pulled it from my pocket and looked at it.
“Who is it?” Luke asked.
I wondered how much the two of them knew about me and my si
tuation. “It’s Kota. He’s wondering if I can come over.”
“We should go talk to him,” Luke said to North. “There’s not much else to do here. We’ll have to start with cleaning it up.”
“We need to take a few walls down,” North said. “We probably should gut the place before we spend too much time sweeping the floor.”
“Yeah,” Luke said, sounding excited. He pumped a fist in the air. “Let’s break some walls.” He started out of the kitchen.
North rolled his eyes and followed.
I poked at the phone to let Kota know North and Luke were with me and we’d be there in a second.
We found our way out of the building. There was a motorcycle parked near the jungle gym. It looked like the bike had been a custom job. I didn’t see a logo.
“Is that yours?” I asked North.
A dark eyebrow lifted. “Uh huh.”
“Take her for a ride,” Luke said. “I’ll walk.”
“What?” I blushed. “You mean, you’d let me?”
North looked uncomfortable. His hand lifted to the back of his neck, rubbing. “If you want...”
I smiled, nodding. I’d never been on a motorcycle before.
The corner of North’s mouth went up a little. It was so slight but it softened his scary face. Just a twinge. When he did it, he was actually really handsome.
Luke smoothed a lock of blond hair from his face and shoved it behind his ear. “I’ll turn the lights out and lock up.” He turned back to the church, disappearing behind the door.
North headed toward his bike. I followed behind him. He stopped short and turned to me. “You’ll have to hang on to me,” he said.
“Is that bad?” I asked, not understanding.
His lips twisted and he shook his head. “I was just warning you.”
“Why?”
Again he seemed confused by my response. I felt like an idiot. I had no idea how to talk to people. He said nothing, but moved to the bike and then got on it, kicking back the stand and balancing the bike between his legs. “Come on,” he said, holding his hand out.
He instructed me on how to get on the bike. I dropped my hand into his. Compared to my hand, his was massive, but also warm and, in a way, I felt safe that it was him driving. I slid onto the seat behind him. It felt awkward because I was wearing the skirt, but the material became tight against my butt as I sat, and it wasn’t going to fan out.
“Wrap your arms around my waist.”
I blushed, but felt with my hands around his stomach. My palms pressed up to his abdomen. I could feel his smooth, strong body through the material of his t-shirt. When I leaned in to press my stomach and chest to his back, I could smell a light, musk scent. It tingled my nose when I inhaled, warming me. My stomach flipped and my nerves jumped. Touching was difficult.
“Hang on,” he said, and he started the bike, the engine roaring to life.
The vibration rattled right to my bones. My fingers dug a little into his stomach, but I tried not to claw him with my fingernails. He felt so big in front of me. My face pressed below his shoulder blades.
He turned the bike in the lot. I hung on with my legs and he took off.
Unable to see around him, I could only see to the left or right as we passed by the homes. The strands of hair near my ears flew out behind me.
When he neared the bend in the road, my grip on his stomach slipped as he angled his body. I wasn’t prepared for it.
He moved one hand away from the handle of the bike, grabbing my hand. He pulled it in front of him until he had my palm pressed to his chest. He kept his hand covering mine for a second and then let go to make the turn into Kota’s driveway.
My heart was pounding as he shut off the bike and it leaned as he stepped to hold it up.
“Swing your leg around to get off.”
I did, probably revealing way too much leg from my skirt to do so. I used his arm to hang on to until I was standing, and then let go.
He got off the bike, putting the stand into place. He turned to me. “You okay?”
“My legs are tingly.”
He smirked. The sight of his lips like that made my heart stop. “Mine, too.”
I sat on Kota’s bed with my ankles crossed, the only place I thought I could really sit, with the skirt I was wearing. North sat next to me, so close, I could feel the warmth of his side on my arm. He leaned back a little. I couldn’t see as I was too nervous to look, but it felt like his arm had crossed behind me and part of it was very close to nearly supporting my back.
Kota and Luke sat on the floor. Luke was sitting near my feet, almost on top of my right foot. Luke just finished filling Kota in on what they were planning with the diner.
Kota seemed particularly interested in this, asking a lot of questions about capital and marketing plans. “It sounds like your uncle has it figured out,” he said, sliding his glasses up his nose. “I suppose you’ll ask the rest of us to fill in shifts.”
Luke beamed. “So you think it will work?”
The question surprised me. Were they seeking his approval?
“You know it means working during the school year. Are you going to keep up with classes?”
Luke nodded fervently. “No problem.”
Kota looked at North. “What about you?”
North shrugged. I felt his arm push gently at my back as he did. “It's the usual.”
Kota’s mouth dipped in the corner. “I mean it. I don’t care if you think you know more than the teacher. This isn’t like...” Kota glanced at me and then back to North. “Don’t go falling asleep during class, even if you know all the answers.”
“I’ll keep up,” North said.
Kota seemed pleased with this. It was as if the whole thing was settled. I admired the way they looked up to Kota and everything, but this was beyond what I had expected. He was giving them instructions. He was a natural leader, even if he wasn’t the biggest or the most aggressive. However, it had me wondering about this group of guys. I just couldn’t put my finger on it.
“Well,” Kota said. “I’ll call Victor and the others to let them in on it.”
“Where are they?” I asked.
“Victor and Gabriel are over at the school. It’s open today for touring. They’re checking it out before registration and the general open house tomorrow. They’ll be bringing us a couple of maps.”
“It seems like you guys have this down,” I said. “It’s like you’ve done this a lot.”
“We’ve been in the same grade since forever,” Luke said.
“Since kindergarten,” North corrected. “You guys have. I got in late.”
“And Silas,” Luke said. “I think when he moved here, he got held back a grade. Not his fault. It was just the age difference.”
I moved my ankles, switching them around. The action caused me to lean back a little. My back pressed into North’s arm. I blushed, sitting up more and mouthed the words, “Oh, sorry.”
“Relax,” he said. “You can lean against me.”
I wasn’t sure if I should, but the look on his face left my insides quivering. If I didn’t, would it seem like I wasn’t comfortable with him? If I did... well it felt strange to me. I relaxed a little, lightly sitting back, feeling his arm steady behind me. When the conversation turned again to schedules, classes and the school, my mind was whirling, totally focused on North’s arm. Did that mean he liked me? I wondered what Luke thought. Were we friends already?
At one point, Luke grabbed at his stomach. “Is it breakfast time yet? I’m hungry.”
“We can make breakfast,” Kota said. “My mom’s gone to work. What do we want? Pancakes?”
“Do you have chocolate chips?” Luke asked, looking at me with a grin.
North caught the look. “My god, not you, too.”
“Huh?” I asked.
“Luke’s favorite breakfast is chocolate chip pancakes.”
My eyes went wide and I turned again to Luke. “Really?”
&n
bsp; He grinned, nodding enthusiastically.
North leaned away from me, falling onto his back on the bed. His hands went up to his face, rubbing, his elbows arching in the air. “You two are terrible. You can’t have chocolate for breakfast.” The edge of his black shirt drifted up slightly on his body, revealing his belly button. There was a line of coarse hair starting from his jeans, making a thin line up to almost where his belly button was. I know I stared for way too long, but I couldn’t help it. The sight made my breath catch.
Luke jumped up from the floor. “You can have anything for breakfast,” he said. He held out a hand to me. “Let’s go cook.”
I smiled, reaching out to him. He held my hand as I stood up and then part of the way across the room until we were near the stairs. He let go then, so we weren’t tripping over each other on the stairs. Kota came with us, right on my heels. I spotted North getting up from the bed, looking right at me before I moved down the stairs too low for him to see me anymore.
I could have sworn I saw a smile.
Downstairs, I stood with Luke in the kitchen. I wasn’t sure what to do. It wasn’t my kitchen.
Kota came up behind us and opened up the pantry. He pulled out a container marked as pancake mix. “Sang, there’s butter, milk and eggs in the fridge.”
I opened the fridge, peering in. It felt so strange to be looking inside, like I was peeking inside their drawers. I found the milk and other things, collecting them in my arms and bringing them to the counter. Luke found the frying pan and a spatula.
North came downstairs and leaned against the counter with his arms crossed over his chest, observing. “You need protein,” he said. “Make some bacon.”
“He’s right,” Kota said. “Sang? Can you grab it?”
I went back to the fridge, checked the drawers, and found the bacon. Luke pulled out another frying pan and flicked on the stove to warm it up.
I pulled bacon apart, waiting for the pan to heat up. Kota found a fork for me and then moved away to start mixing pancake batter. I got left in charge of bacon.
“We’ll have to make chocolate chip pancakes part of the diner menu,” Luke said. “Like a special.” He stood next to me, watching as I released bacon into the heated pan and it started to sizzle.
