Only You

by Rachel Lacey

  “Seriously?” Luke sat up and looked at her. “What the hell does that mean?”

  “It means we slept together last night, and I’d rather keep Noah out of it until we figure out the rest, okay?”

  He nodded, but there was a new kind of energy between them as they made love in the soft morning light. Something raw, desperate even. As if everything might blow up in their faces if they dared look too hard at what they were doing.

  Reality.

  That’s what it was. By the time she and Luke sat down at the kitchen table to eat breakfast, reality was slapping her hard in the face. Sure, last night had been wonderful. Magical. Certainly the most romantic night of her life.

  But that didn’t mean a relationship with Luke was a good idea. They had a rocky history, and he didn’t even live in Dogwood anymore. This was exactly why she didn’t date. She just didn’t have the time—or the energy—to figure this stuff out.

  She’d just bitten into her blueberry muffin when the front door burst open and Noah walked in.

  T.J. stood behind him, hat in hand, a sheepish look on his face. “Sorry, I tried to stop him when I saw the car in the driveway, but he, uh…” He shook his head. “Anyway, we had a great time camping. I’ll check in with you later.”

  He closed the front door behind him. A moment later, she heard his truck roar to life.

  Noah stood in the middle of the living room, still wearing his backpack, his hands fluttering restlessly at his sides. “Why is Mr. Luke here?”

  Her son felt uncomfortable in his own home. And that was totally and completely her fault. She lurched from the kitchen table, grabbing at Luke’s arm. “Mr. Luke was just leaving. I’ll walk him out while you go put your backpack away in your bedroom. Okay, Noah?”

  He nodded as he walked down the hall toward his bedroom, Yoda at his side.

  Amy tugged at Luke’s hand until he stood from the table. “Go get your bag.”

  He gave her a dark look, then went down the hall to her bedroom, returning with his duffle bag in hand. She practically dragged him out the front door.

  “What the hell?” He stared at her, his hazel eyes snapping. “Why are you making this so awkward?”

  “It’s time for you to go.”

  “Noah’s home early so you’re just going to throw me out of the house?”

  She crossed her arms over her chest. “Change upsets him. You being here just now was upsetting for him.”

  “Noah comes first,” he said, his tone softening. “I get that, and that’s how it should be. But he knows me, Amy. Is it such a big fucking deal for him to see me eat a muffin in your kitchen?”

  “Maybe not, but I don’t want him to get used to seeing you around, because then when you’re not, he’ll get hurt.”

  Luke stepped closer, his eyes boring into hers. “Who says I won’t be around?”

  “Your track record does. I was miserable after I dumped you in high school. But while I was working up the courage to come after you and beg for another chance, you had already moved on with another girl. A girl who you married.” She practically spat the word at him. She wasn’t being fair. She knew it, but she didn’t care.

  “Wait a damn minute—”

  “I did.” Her voice was softer now. “I did wait for you. You promised to love me forever, and then you spent what, a day at college missing me? And you fell in love with Georgia. And you promised to love her forever. Or I assume you did because you married her. But then you divorced her. So, no, I don’t think you’re very likely to stick around long-term.”

  “You’ve got it all wrong.” And damn him, he looked hurt.

  “No, I don’t. Those are the facts. And I can’t…” She drew a shaky breath. “I just can’t have my heart broken again. Especially not by you.”

  And then she went inside and closed the door behind her.

  ***

  Luke had no idea what the hell had just happened. He’d gone from blissfully happy in Amy’s bed to thrown out the front door and dumped—again—in a matter of minutes. But one thing he knew for sure: this time he was coming back to set things straight. And another thing: he needed to tell her everything that had happened his first year of college.

  Because she was so wrong. He’d always loved Amy.

  And this time, he was going to prove it.

  He went home to his mom’s house, but he was so distracted she called him on it before lunchtime.

  “What’s going on, Luke?”

  “Amy,” he just said that one word because his mom knew. She’d always known.

  “You spent the night at her place.”

  “And she dumped me this morning.”

  She frowned at him. “What did you do?”

  “Nothing, Mom. I swear. I was just sitting there eating breakfast when Noah got home, and she freaked out about Noah seeing us together, which turned into a rehash of how I married Georgia five seconds after she dumped me the first time.”

  “Oh, honey. Well, you’ve got to go talk to her.”

  “I will, but not today. I’ve got to go when Noah’s not there.”

  “And you’ve got to be romantic,” his mom said. “Amy’s going to need a big gesture. Something that shows her how much you love her, how much you’ve always loved her.”

  And Luke thought he might have an idea of how to do just that.

  Chapter Nine

  The week was off to a horrible start. Amy had finally gotten everything cleaned up from the wedding—which was a lot less fun without having Luke around—and her damned AC was out again. She and Noah had suffered through two days of sweltering heat. Two nights where she’d tossed and turned, remembering the things she and Luke had done in this bed.

  And in her backyard. And on her couch.

  Dammit, the whole house would torment her forever with memories.

  She’d left the arbor up in the backyard. It was pretty, and it would look great with a little bench beneath it. She could sit there and work or read with Noah.

  Two days, and not a word from Luke.

  He was probably engaged to someone new by now. She balled her fists and pressed them against her eyes to keep the tears at bay. She knew she was being overly dramatic. But dammit, why did she keep pushing away the only man she’d ever loved? And why did he keep walking away without a second glance?

  She was an idiot. And Luke was a jerk.

  End of story.

  Noah ran across the backyard, Yoda at his heels. He grabbed the worn tennis ball Merry had sent over with the dog and chucked it across the yard. Yoda sprinted after it, grabbed it, and kept running.

  “Not so good at fetching, is he?” she said.

  Noah shook his head. “Maybe he doesn’t understand the rules. Why doesn’t Mr. Luke come over anymore?”

  “Well, he was helping get our house ready for the wedding, and now the wedding’s over.” Amy ignored the pinch in her heart at Luke’s name.

  “I miss him,” Noah said.

  She looked down at her hands. “Yeah, me too.”

  “Then why don’t you ask him to come over? I want to show him that Brick Tricks video with the submarine.”

  If only it were that easy. “He’ll probably be going back to Baltimore soon.”

  “I think he’d be a good stepdad,” Noah said, echoing their conversation last week. “You said if you married Mr. Luke, he’d be my stepdad. So you should invite him over.” And with that bombshell, he walked off across the backyard.

  Shit. She’d pushed Luke away to protect Noah. Had she been wrong? Did it even matter anymore?

  She sat in the rocking chair on the patio and watched Noah and Yoda play. Noah tossed the ball, and they ran together after it. The dog always kept an eye on Noah, watching over him, never straying far from his side. They were incredibly in sync that way. With Yoda, Noah ran, and laughed, and played like a happy, carefree nine-year-old. Something he hadn’t always been, not before Yoda came to stay with them.

  She’d never thought she c
ould have a dog with her allergies, but this little poodle mix didn’t cause her any trouble as long as she took her daily allergy meds. His food and care were expensive, but Everyday Emmy was still bringing in enough money to cover the difference and then some.

  “Noah,” she called.

  He jogged toward her, a wide smile on his face, Yoda bouncing at his heels.

  “Do you think you’re ready for the responsibility of having your own dog?”

  Noah’s eyes grew impossibly wide behind his glasses. “Oh, yes. I would walk him, and feed him, and take care of him. I’d even poop-scoop the yard.”

  It was true too. He already did all of those things for Yoda, and Amy had no doubt he would continue to help. “I’d need you to keep helping out with all of those things.”

  “Mom,” Noah looked right into her eyes, his expression so joyous her heart rolled over in her chest. “You’re talking about Yoda, right? About keeping Yoda?”

  “Yeah, bud.” She tugged him into her arms for a big hug. “We’re going to keep Yoda.”

  “My dog.” Happy tears streaked Noah’s cheeks. “Yoda, you’re my dog now. I’m going to love you forever.”

  Amy wiped her eyes as Noah took his dog inside to make him a permanent home in his bedroom. Permanent.

  She sat with her laptop later that night, blogging about her newest family member, and it struck her: why was she more comfortable sharing these intimate moments with nameless, faceless strangers on the internet than anyone in her real life? She closed her eyes and imagined Luke here with her, helping celebrate Yoda’s adoption into the family.

  I think he’d be a good stepdad.

  Yeah, she did too. And maybe she should go after him. Apologize. But if he really wanted another chance with her, why had he walked away—again—without a fight?

  ***

  On Wednesday, Amy spent the morning working at the diner as usual. At least it was air conditioned. The AC repairman was coming later today, and already her stomach was in knots about how much it would cost to fix this time. Almost certainly more than she had to spend.

  Her feet were dragging by the time she got home. She didn’t want to go inside and face the heat. Or the lonely house full of memories.

  But Luke’s SUV was parked in her driveway.

  Excitement warred with anger inside her. What was he doing here? Even if he’d come to ask for another chance, what could he possibly say that would convince her to trust him after the way he’d acted in the past?

  Cautiously, she parked in the driveway and got out of her car. Luke’s SUV was empty. Her house was locked, and he didn’t have a key, which meant he must be…out back?

  She drew a deep breath as she walked around the side of the house. Sure enough, Luke stood beneath the arbor, one foot crossed over the other, looking so ridiculously handsome that her heart missed a beat.

  So handsome that it took her several long seconds to notice that the arbor was once again draped in flowers. Instead of the lush pink and white peonies and roses that had adorned it during the wedding, today it had been decorated more boldly with bright reds, oranges, and purples. The flowers had been stuck haphazardly through its framework. In fact, it almost looked like a man—perhaps a certain sexy doctor—had decorated it himself.

  “I have a story to tell you,” Luke said.

  “Um. Okay.” She stopped halfway across the yard, keeping some space between them. What kind of story did he want to tell her?

  “There once was a teenage boy named Luke, and he loved Amy with all his heart. He thought he might even be lucky enough to spend the rest of his life with her.”

  She was silent. Where was he going with this? She already knew this story.

  “But she was afraid he might be a jerk and break her heart once he went off to college without her, so she broke up with him. And Luke, well, he had no idea what to do without her. He was heartbroken, but he was also young and stupid, so he slept with a pretty girl from his anatomy class named Georgia, thinking it might help him get over Amy.”

  “Luke,” she interrupted him. “I really don’t need to hear this.”

  “But you do,” he said quietly, “because Georgia got pregnant.”

  She sucked in a breath. “But…there was no baby.” And now she felt sick to her stomach.

  “No.” He shoved his hands into his pockets. “But I tried to do the right thing, Amy, by asking her to marry me. When she lost the baby, we were both devastated. It brought us together, but we were never in love, not really. Not the way I loved you, the way I still love you.” He looked into her eyes so that she could see the truth reflected there. “But what kind of jerk would I be if I broke off our engagement because she lost our baby?”

  The worst kind. And Luke wasn’t a jerk. In her heart, she knew that.

  “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

  “Georgia and I got married for all the wrong reasons, for a baby that was never born, and so it didn’t work out. We probably had the friendliest breakup in history, because neither of us were heartbroken; we were never really in love.”

  As he spoke, she walked toward him across the lawn until she was standing right in front of him, the arbor overhead and Luke’s hazel eyes staring straight into hers. The power of his gaze was so intense she thought he must be looking all the way into her soul.

  He took her hands in his. “My mistake, the only one I can apologize for, is in walking away from you without a fight back then. You are the most amazing woman in the world, and I should have moved heaven and earth to win you back. But I was a stupid, horny teenager, and I did a stupid thing and slept with a girl I hardly knew. Can you forgive me?”

  She nodded as tears welled in her eyes. “As long as you didn’t do the same stupid thing when I dumped you last weekend.”

  He shook his head with a laugh. “Amy, I promise you, I never want to be with anyone but you ever again.” He brought her hands to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “You’re the only woman I’ve ever loved. I think I’ve been in love with you my whole life.”

  Oh, her heart! She tried to press a hand to her chest, but Luke was still holding her hands, and now his hands were on her chest, his palm against her heart, and it was thumping like a bongo drum. “I love you too. Always you. Only you.”

  And then she was in his arms, and he was kissing her like his life depended on it, and nothing had ever felt so right. Her arms were around his neck, her body pressed to his, breathing him in, wanting to absorb absolutely everything about this moment.

  He raised his head and looked at her. “I know you’re worried about what would happen to Noah if I leave, but I promise you, I never will. In fact, I have a very important question to ask you.”

  She swallowed hard. “Okay.”

  He reached into his pocket and pulled out a little blue box at the same time he dropped down to one knee in front of the brightly decorated arbor.

  “Oh my God.” She pressed a hand to her mouth.

  “Amy Jameson, will you make me the happiest man on earth and say you’ll be my wife?” He opened the blue box and held it toward her, revealing the ring inside. It was absolutely the most gorgeous thing she’d ever seen, with a diamond glittering in the middle, surrounded by tiny bead-cut stones.

  “Yes. Oh my God, yes.”

  He took her left hand and slid the ring into place, his fingers leaving behind a trail of warmth. For a moment, they both stared at the ring on her finger.

  “Wow,” she said finally.

  “Yeah.” He stood and tugged her into his arms. “About damn time you have my ring on your finger. I love you so much, Amy. I never want to spend another minute without you.”

  “And Noah?”

  “Of course, Noah.” He grinned. “I love him too. You know that, right?”

  She nodded, blinking back tears. She did know it. She’d seen it every time he and Noah had been together these last few weeks. And now, with Luke, her son would finally have a true father figure in his life.

&n
bsp; “I’m sorry it took me so long to come here,” he said. “I knew you needed more than an apology. I wanted to do this right, and it took me a couple of days to put it all together.”

  “Worth the wait,” she whispered, kissing him again. So worth the wait. She’d remember this moment for the rest of her life.

  They stood together under the arbor, kissing and talking, until she heard the squealing brakes of the school bus out front.

  “Let’s go tell him,” she said, taking Luke’s hand.

  “I can’t wait.”

  Neither could she.

  Epilogue

  Amy’s backyard was once again the scene of a wedding. Today, the arbor dripped with red roses, yellow sunflowers, and gerbera daisies in every color. The trees behind it reflected the changing season with red and yellow leaves.

  The perfect setting for a fall wedding.

  Amy drew a deep breath and pressed a hand against the front of her ivory dress.

  Beside her, Amanda giggled. “Full circle since this spring, huh?” She rubbed a hand over her belly, round now with her and Joe’s baby due in just a few weeks.

  “In more ways than one,” Amy said.

  Noah, looking impossibly handsome in his little gray tux, nodded solemnly. “My mom has a baby in her belly too.”

  Merry leaped off the couch, nearly tossing her bouquet in the process. “Shut the front door! Are you serious?”

  “I’m always serious,” Noah told her.

  Merry doubled over in laughter. “That’s true, buddy, you are. And I love that about you.” She tousled his brown hair. “Congratulations, Amy. That’s fantastic news.”

  “I have to say,” Amy said, eyeing her new sister-in-law, “I thought you and T.J. would beat us to it.”

  Merry’s face turned a funny shade of red. “Actually…”

  “No way.” Amy felt happy tears well in her eyes. “You too?”

  Merry nodded. “Eight weeks.”

  Amanda laughed. “This has got to be the most fertile wedding party ever.”

  “What does that mean?” Noah asked.