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“I don’t even like them. What does it matter?”
His hands encircled my forearms and tugged, but I refused to budge. “Stop it, I’m not finished!”
“Jessica.”
The kindness in his voice made me want to cry. I thought of how stupid I looked, hunched on the cement in this cheap dress, scrubbing at a spot on my shoes. It wouldn’t make any difference. Even if I spent thousands on a wardrobe, I would never be like them.
Luke's firm grip supported me as I stood.“I don’t care what they think, why should you?”
The dark blue and gold garden blurred. I blinked away the tears. “But you do care. We changed my background story so I would fit in—but I don’t.”
He sighed. “It would influence my father’s opinion of you in a bad way. That’s the only reason we did that.”
His fingers slipped down my bare back and I curled into his chest, sliding my hand inside his jacket to grip the muscles in his back. His chest swelled into my body and I closed my eyes, thinking only about how safe I felt in his embrace. A vicious heat seared up my core as his fingers moved in tantalizing circles on myskin.
“Just stay close and it’ll be over soon.”
And then we’ll be alone.
A loud buzz filled my ears, and I jumped in Luke’s arms. It was coming from my purse. I opened it and snapped open my phone:
Call me now -Nat
I blinked at the message, curiosity burning in my stomach, but I stowed it. Whatever Natalie had to tell me would have to wait.
“Ready?”
I nodded, and we walked toward the brightly lit house, the noise and light spilling into the garden as he opened the glass door for me. I spotted the hag who had bitched at me and felt a strong surge of anger, but I kept my eyes fixed forward.
“Let’s find my uncle.”
My guts twisted as I nodded. I wiped my hand before I took Luke’s again. He led me through a succession of rooms toward the sound of piano playing. We walked into a living room with a huge ceiling. A crowd of peoplegathered around the white grand piano, where an older man sat, his fingers flying over the keys.
He was a thin, reedy man with a wiry black mustache. Domenico jumped from the piano seat as he saw Luke approach. “Luke!” He grabbed his nephew by the shoulders and kissed both of his cheeks.
“Happy Birthday, Uncle Dominic.”
“Thanks. I’m so happy that you could make it.”
The display of affection shocked me. His uncle gripped his shoulder, unwilling to let go of his nephew. Luke introduced me with a wave of his free arm.
“So, this is the girl I’ve seen in the papers.” He winked at me and shook my hand. “We’re so glad you could come.”
“Nice to meet you,” I beamed.
“When did you fly in?”
“Today, actually.”
“Jesus, you must be tired.” The fabric on Luke’s shoulder bunched together as his hand tightened. Domenico’s face crumpled as he wheeled him away from the crowd of people. “You haven’t seen your dad yet, have you?”
I tensed as a frown creased on Luke’s forehead. Please don’t blow up at him.
“We did.”
“He’s taken a sharp turn for the worse. I found out from James that he tried to fire you.”
Luke made a sound that might have been a laugh. “Yes, he did.”
