Mine felt like they might fill with tears.
“You’re not considering a career change, are you, Val?” He chuckled, like it would be silly to change my career now.
It would be silly to change your career now,a voice in the back of my head agreed.
“Ha, no,” I lied, hiding my face in my coffee mug. “How would my private equity clients survive without me?” I added drily.
Max leaned back in his chair and crossed his ankle over the opposite knee. “Not well, I’m sure. Us finance people need our lawyers.” He winked.
I nodded and schooled my expression to conceal the disappointment roiling in my stomach. When I stood to go top off my coffee from the dedicated coffee bar in the kitchen, I wished I had something stronger to drown in.
“Want to take the boat out later?” he called from the breakfast nook.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “I so would but I made plans with Mimi. I haven’t spent much time with her lately and I feel bad.” Between staying until Luna’s bedtime on Friday and going to the gym first thing Saturday, I’d only seen Mimi for a little while on Saturday afternoon before I left to meet Max.
“Oh, okay.” The disappointment in his voice had me considering changing my mind, but he added, “How about on the Fourth? We can take the boat out for the afternoon with my parents, then have dinner and do the fireworks at their club?”
I joined him at the table again, steaming mug clutched between both hands, the sweet aroma filling my nostrils. “That sounds like fun.”
20
On Monday, Luke asked if I could stay a few extra hours because he needed to work late.
Luna and I had macaroni and cheese for dinner (her request), and I convinced her we should read a book together before bed. It was the first time I’d gone into her bedroom. Her bed was a custom, wooden work of art, built to look like a sailboat. It had nooks and crannies for books and other things, and even a cup holder for her water cup. Luke obviously made it himself. Admiration flooded my bones as I took in all the beautiful details.What a good dad.
As I descended the stairs, I was already mentally cracking my book open on the couch before I noticed Luke sitting in the living room. Still in his dusty jeans and work boots, he was leaning over, elbows on his knees, rubbing his temples.
“Hey,” I said softly.
He lifted his head with a start. His eyes were red, beard longer than usual, hair disheveled, dark circles under his eyes. “Hi.” He forced the corner of his mouth up, but the smile didn’t reach his eyes. “Is she asleep? I just got in.”
“Yeah, totally passed out.”
Luke sighed. “I hate it when I only see her in the morning.”
“It happens,” I reassured him. “Work’s been crazy, huh?”
“More so than usual, yes. That renovation has been a lot. I wish I didn’t promise it would be done by the Fourth. Today I had to make them rip up the tile in the bathroom because it wasn’t aligned perfectly. I don’t know that the client would notice, butInoticed, and I couldn’t leave it like that. Now I’m going to do it all over again tomorrow, after I check on all my other sites and have a meeting with the town about the new development. So it’s going to be another long day.” He pushed both of his hands through his hair.
“I can stay late again tomorrow. I don’t have any commitments.”
“Thank you. I’m really sorry. I wasn’t planning on you having to do this so often. Things will slow down after this reno is done and my people get back from their holiday vacations.” His employees were taking time off around the Fourth, so he’d been picking up more of the heavy lifting.
“It’s no problem, seriously. I want to find out what happens in this Magic Tree House book. I don’t know why I didn’t read more of them as a kid. They’re gripping.”
Luke smiled, eyes crinkling.That’s a real one.My stomach fluttered.
“Thanks, Val.”
I sat down on the edge of the couch, not ready to leave yet. Luke hadn’t made any move to get up either. His eyes scanned the living room, kitchen table, and the bench by the front door. He sighed again, his mouth forming an O like he was trying to calm his breathing. I could feel the anxiety wafting off of him from across the room.
“Is it just work that has you stressed?”
“That obvious, huh?”
I nodded.
He blew out a breath. “My parents get here late tomorrow night.” He let that statement hang in the air for a beat.
