A Modern Love Story

by Jolyn Palliata

  “For a year. Yeah, San Diego.” He heard ice cubes clinking in a glass. “No. I can’t. I don’t know. I just can’t.” She sighed. “I’ll call you later. I’ve got to stew on this. Love you, too. Bye.”

  He heard the phone click into the charger and decided to make his presence known. Turning the corner, he leaned against the doorframe and waited for Robbie to notice.

  “How long have you been standing there?” Her eyes flashed as her cheeks flushed.

  “Long enough. Mind telling me what the hell’s going on?”

  “Look, I don’t care who you are. You can’t go sneaking around listening in on my private conversations.” She tried to push past him, but he clamped onto her arm, tugging her close.

  “It wasn’t intentional. I was trying to surprise you. But since I heard, you had better just tell me what’s up.”

  “Maybe it’s none of your business.” She jutted her chin in the air, a sexy air of defiance surrounding her.

  He licked his lips, but let the moment pass. “I’m thinking it is.”

  Her green eyes narrowed. “What did you hear exactly?”

  “You saying you needed to talk to me. So, dammit, talk already. Enough of this cryptic shit.”

  He let her jerk out of his hold and she stormed to the living room. He was hot on her heels. When she sank down into the couch, she buried her face in her hands, and after a deep breath, lifted her head.

  “I got an email from Colin.”

  “And that’s news because…”

  “You know we’ve been talking, right?”

  “Yeah.”

  “And we’re getting to know each other, right?”

  “Again…yeah.”

  “I told him about my interviews, trying to find a job…all that stuff. Well, today I got an email from him saying he greased some wheels and finagled an intern position at the museum over there.”

  “In San Diego?”

  She shifted her attention to her folded hands. “Yeah. There’s more. Apparently, when my grandfather died, he left a chunk of money to my father, thinking he’d show up one day. Colin has been executor of the estate, and had the money set up in a trust fund.”

  Luc sat and put a hand over hers, swallowing at the cinch in his throat. “Robbie, that’s great news.”

  She nodded. “The money will come in handy, that’s for sure. Anyway, he suggested I come to San Diego and settle the estate. He wanted me to stay awhile so we get to know each other better since I’m all the family he has too. I told him I’d think about it. And then he came back with this museum offer. He said he didn’t want to say anything until he knew he could pull it off.”

  “How long is the internship for?”

  “A year,” she whispered.

  Luc was stunned into silence. She’d be gone a whole fucking year? Panic edged into his chest before he squashed it down. No. This was good for her. She needed this for her future. He was not gonna fucking make this about him.

  “I’m not gonna go,” she said. “I’ll tell him no.” She went to stand. He pulled her back down.

  “What do you mean? Why not?”

  “You want me to go?”

  “Don’t be stupid. Of course I don’t want you to go.”

  “Then I’m not going. We’re finally together, Luc. I’m not gonna leave and fuck it all up! I stuck before, and I’ll stick again.”

  He was surprised by her tone, but more taken by what she’d implied. “What the hell do you mean you stuck before?”

  “With college. I made that work, didn’t I? I’ll work this too.” She got up to pace the room. “I’m not going anywhere.”

  He watched her stalking back and forth, mumbling under her breath like she did when she was working something out. From the snippets he caught, she was painting a pretty damn vivid picture.

  “Hold up! You stayed here for college, because of me? What the hell, Robbie?!”

  “Oh, no you don’t. You don’t get to be mad at me over that. You would’ve freaked, and we both know it.”

  “The hell I would’ve!” He stepped right into her path, earning him a quick shove.

  “Move your ass!” She jabbed a finger in his chest. “I’m working this out. Just let me handle this.”

  “No. Listen up.” He grabbed her by the shoulders, shook her a little. “I handled it just fine when the L’s left and they weren’t even coming back. You would be. And I’ll be goddamned if I’m gonna let you pass up another opportunity because of some skewed image you have of me! What the hell do I look like? A damn charity case?!”

  “Jesus, Luc. This isn’t about you! I don’t want to lose what we have, got it?! It’s not worth the risk.”

  “What the hell do you think is gonna happen? We waited years to be together. We can survive one more.”

  “You’d let me go? Just like that?” He could see the emotions storming through her eyes, and it softened him.

  “No, not just like that. This wouldn’t be easy for me either, Rob, but this internship is what you’ve been waiting for. And it’s important to our future together, right? So this is what you do. I’m not going to let you hold yourself back on my account anymore.”

  “I haven’t.”

  “You have, and it damn well better stop here. No more missed chances. Shit, I’d drag you there myself if I could, but I can’t.”

  “I know. Hooligan’s.”

  “Yeah. Besides,” he continued, rubbing his palms up and down her arms, “this will give you the chance you’ve always wanted. You’ve finally found your family, and now you’ll get a chance to know him better.”

  “I suppose. Letters and a short visit would accomplish the same thing though.”

  “True, but you need this internship. Can’t do that with letters and a short visit. You have to commit to it.”

  “I guess.”

  “So…you go.” He kissed the top of her head. “But on one condition.”

  “What’s that?”

  “You get your own place while you’re there. Colin may be family to you, but you still don’t know shit about him.”

  “Deal.” She sighed, looking up at him with tears in her eyes. “I can’t lose you now.”

  He absently tugged a lock of her hair. “Hey. I’ll still be here when you get back. You’re not getting rid of me so easily, Squirt.”

  She wrapped her arms around him with a watery laugh. “Thank God for that.”

  “And it’s not like they don’t have phones and email where you’re going.” He gave her a squeeze. “We’ll be just fine.”

  *****

  Robbie stood staring at the disaster covering her bed, and was momentarily too overwhelmed to figure out what to do next. When she noticed Lizbeth poking in her semi-packed suitcase, she suddenly spurred into action.

  “Don’t take anything out of there! That’s all coming with me.”

  Lizbeth backed away with her hands up. “That can’t be all you’re taking.”

  “No, I shipped most of it already.”

  “You shipped all your stuff to someone you barely know? What are you, nuts?”

  Robbie shook her head as she grabbed her notepad off the bedside table. “I sent it all to Scott,” she said absently, trying to read her own handwriting.

  “Who the hell is Scott?”

  Robbie giggled. “Now you sound like Luc—he said the exact same thing. Scott Delray. You remember him from the dorms. He was on third floor of Scott Hall.”

  “Scott at Scott,” Lizbeth said, remembering their little moniker for him. “That’s right. I heard he was out in California. He got an Anthro major too, right?”

  “Yeah. I kept in touch with him here and there. He’s actually working at the same museum I’ll be at. Anyway, he’s holding my stuff and trying to find me my own place.”

  “And until you find something?”

  “Hotel for a week, and then Scott as a backup.”

  “Really?” Lizbeth asked, shoving stuff aside so she could sit. “And w
hat does good ‘ole Luc think about that?”

  “After he remembered who he was, he was fine with it.”

  Lizbeth arched an eyebrow in response.

  Robbie looked at her pointedly as she tossed another sweater into her suitcase. “The frat party on St. Patty’s Day.”

  Lizbeth snapped her fingers. “Sophomore year. Delta Zeta house.”

  “Yup. In Luc’s mind, Scott is a safe zone. Anyone who’d take on three guys at once to defend my honor is all right by him.”

  “Did they ever meet?”

  “Um…I think once. Briefly.”

  “And he’s fine if you end up staying with some other guy?”

  “Okay, so fine probably isn’t the right word. More like tolerant. He knows I wouldn’t do anything, and he’s pretty sure Scott would respect my boundaries.”

  “He said that?”

  “Well…no. Basically, he said to tell Scott that if he lays one hand on me, taking on three frat guys would feel like a day at the beach in comparison to what Luc would have in store for him.”

  “And did you relay said message?”

  Robbie grinned. “Not yet. It’s not like I can just call the guy up, ask for a huge favor like this, and then threaten him with physical violence if he doesn’t act the perfect gentleman.”

  “I’ll give you that one.” Lizbeth watched as Robbie began grabbing clothes and throwing them in the suitcase. “Not one for organization, are you?”

  “I’m running out of time. The guys will be here any minute.”

  “Are you good with me staying here this year?”

  “Of course. Don’t worry about it. Rent is paid up for the year. You just have to cover utilities.”

  “I can pay the rent, Rob. That isn’t an issue.”

  “Don’t worry about it. Colin sent me a check from my inheritance trust. I’d have to pay the year regardless unless I wanted to give the place up, which I don’t. And you’re doing me a favor by watching over it.”

  “If you say so.” Lizbeth twisted around to help Robbie close her suitcase. “I hope you don’t have any breakables in here, or they are about to snap.”

  “Nope. Just clothes.”

  “Don’t you want to take some pictures with you or something? Or did you ship those too?”

  “I sent some, but I have a bunch in my purse too.”

  “Ooo. Show me!”

  Robbie dug in her purse and tossed her the compact photo book. Lizbeth caught it and began paging through.

  “These are all of Luc.” She flipped some more pages. “Jesus Christ. Obsess much, Rob?”

  “Shut up.” Robbie snatching the book back.

  “Oh, yeah. You got it bad.”

  “Quiet.”

  “How’s he taking this? With you leaving, and everything?”

  “Surprisingly well.”

  “No way.”

  Robbie sighed, lifted a shoulder. “Appears so.”

  Lizbeth smirked. “I bet he’s probably ragging to Conrad about it right now.”

  “You think?” Robbie asked as she heard the front door open.

  “I know men, and you can’t tell me they don’t bitch like little girls when they don’t get their way.”

  Robbie laughed as Conrad popped his head into the room.

  “Gorgeous,” he said as a greeting to Lizbeth, then tipped his head to Robbie. “Beautiful. You ready?”

  “As I’ll ever be.”

  *****

  Luc stood with Robbie outside the airport security checkpoint. It hurt his chest to even think about her walking away from him, but he ignored it the best he could as he pulled her into a tight hug.

  “This is the end of the line for me, babe.”

  “I wish you could see me off at the gate,” she murmured, burying her face in his chest.

  “I know. Me too.” He pulled back to look at her as the emotions warred inside.

  She stared up at him, then cocked her head. “What is it? What are you not saying?”

  He scowled. “I hate that you can read me so damn well.”

  She poked him in the abs. “Fess up, Stretch. What is it?”

  He ran his palms down her arms to grab her hands. “I just want to tell you something, okay? And I know it’s going to sound stupid, but what-the-hell-ever. Deal with it.”

  “What? Just say it.”

  “You’re going to be gone a long time, and you know I only want you to be happy, right?”

  “Yeah.”

  “So…” He straightened his shoulders, barging through his mental blocks. “If you meet someone else out there, I’ll understand.”

  Her eyes went wide. “What?! Luc, I know it’s a year, but I’m coming back. There’s not going to be anyone else.”

  The pressure started to lift off his chest. “It just had to be said. It wouldn’t be fair to you if I didn’t say it out loud.”

  “I know, and I give you props for that.” She cupped his cheek with her hand. “Even though I echo the sentiment right back at you, I don’t think I can actually say the words.”

  He gathered her close. “There’s no one else for me either, babe.”

  Some kids suddenly tore away from their parents in a mad rush for the vending machines across the room, crashing right into Luc and Robbie in the process. Luc seared them each with a glare before they stuck their tongues out and kept right on going.

  “Spawns of Satan,” he muttered as Robbie laughed, rubbing her thigh where one of the kids caught her with an elbow.

  “Kids are kids.”

  “Yeah, spawns of Satan,” he repeated, flashing a quick grin.

  She lifted up on her tip-toes to give him a good-bye kiss. Not being one for public displays, he kept it short and sweet.

  “I love you, Stretch.”

  “Love you, too.” He crushed her in his arms, one last solid squeeze before reluctantly letting her go.

  Watching Robbie make her way through security was probably one of the hardest things Luc had ever done. With each little step—ticket verification, x-ray machine, metal detectors—she was heading further and further away from him.

  He sensed the change inside himself and tried to resist it. He had insisted she do this. He told her to go. But as he watched her turn and wave, and then disappear in the crowd, he couldn’t help but wonder why she was fucking leaving him.

  His instincts continued to tug at his conscious all the way back to Hooligan’s. The love he felt for Robbie was still so new to him—intense and totally consuming. He had barely figured out how to deal with that before it was snatched away and put out of reach.

  Already the fear and vulnerability of his childhood crept into his thoughts, just as it had when the L’s left. And again, he had to find the resolve to push it back. He reminded himself that she wasn’t leaving him personally, and that ultimately it was for their own damn good. But he slowly came to the realization that this was going to be a helluvalot harder than he’d anticipated.

  Luc put up the mental shields as he strode to Hooligan’s door. This was not the fucking time, or place, to deal with this now.

  “Luc. I was hoping I’d catch you,” Payten purred, catching up to him on the sidewalk. “Did you get Robbie off all right?”

  He stopped and stared. “How did you know she left?”

  She swatted at his arm. “She told me, of course.”

  He shoved his hands in his pockets. “Yeah. Just dropped her off.”

  “Aw, you look sad.” She slid an arm across his back and angled him towards the door. “Come on, sweetness. Why don’t I buy you a beer to cry into?” Her laughter peeled through the air as she pressed up against his side. “Then I’ll let you insult me until you feel all better.”

  He nodded as he let her guide him inside.

  Chapter 11

  Robbie clicked off her cell and stayed on her perch, sitting on the arm of the couch with a funny little smile on her face. Tapping her phone on her chin, she finally turned to look at the blond-and-blue-eyed m
an lounging across the couch behind her.

  “How did he take it?” Scott asked.

  Robbie gestured for him to move his feet, then sunk into the cushions. “Fine. He’s…fine.” Her laugh was quickly followed by a groan. “He’s not fine, but he’s trying hard to pretend he is. I have to give him points for that.”

  “For the record, if you were my girlfriend, I’d be insanely jealous if you moved in with some other guy.”

  “Well, Jesus. Yeah, when you put it like that it sounds terrible. But he knows it’s just until my apartment’s ready.”

  “And he trusts you?”

  “Of course.”

  “And he trusts me?”

  “Apparently so.”

  “He’s an idiot.”

  She slated him a look. “And what, exactly, do you mean by that?”

  “Why would he trust a guy that has the hots for his girl?”

  “You…what?! Since when?” Heat flooded her face.

  “Since always, Rob. Jesus, if you didn’t know that, then you’re an idiot, too.”

  She giggled, nerves buzzing beneath the surface. “I guess I’m an idiot then. Umm…does this create an issue for you? Should I move back into the hotel?”

  His adorably crooked grin made an appearance as he swung his feet to the floor, twisting to face her. “Before I answer that, tell me this: If I made a move on you, would I have a chance?”

  “Not a one.”

  “That’s what I thought.” He winked. “You’re good to stay here as long as you’d like, and I promise to behave myself.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yup. You just be sure to let me know if you change your mind, my Irish lovely.”

  She laughed at the old nickname. “You got it.”

  “Don’t worry. I won’t hold my breath.” He knocked her with his shoulder before standing. “Come on. I’ll show you to your room.”

  Robbie grinned as she followed Scott down the hall, admiring the wide-shouldered man in front of her. What was it with her and broad-chested men? Oh, yeah—if it wasn’t for Luc, she most certainly would’ve changed her mind.

  She sighed, sweeping the thoughts aside. She belonged with Luc, and that was how it should be. She’d waited too long for him to just throw it all away now.