Page 55 of Filthy Twisted Devil

“I’m rooting for other people’s love,” Wade says. “I’ve got other things to worry about.”

After some texting with Brinley, we land on a wedding date of June 5. Christmas goes smoothly after that. Mom must have given Wade a talking-to during my phone call because he doesn’t try picking a fight about me leaving Sundre again. Mom and Jasper kick Wade and my asses at Scrabble, with Jasper eking out a victory with a well-placed Z. Reed gets me a pair of white fuzzy earmuffs which I love instantly. I text Luke a selfie of me wearing them.

Eden

A substitute for your earplugs?

Luke

I doubt their noise-blocking abilities, but you do look adorable.

Nobody has ever called me adorable before. Pretty, sure. Confident, smart, determined, once even elegant. In general, though, people don’t tend to think of me as cute.

I like that Luke thinks I’m adorable.

Because he’s two thousand miles away, because it’s Christmas, I let myself pretend it’s real.

Tomorrow, I’ll remember the rules. Tonight, I wear my new earmuffs at the dinner table until Wade threatens to confiscate them, and every time my phone buzzes, my heart does something the napkin never authorized.

22

EDEN

January

The first time I see Luke again in person, it’s in Maura’s kitchen, surrounded by all our friends and a massive pile of vegetables.

“Whose resolution are we doing this for again?” Brinley complains. “I’ve chopped like a thousand carrots already.”

“Me,” Ryan says proudly. “I’m getting into meal prep in the new year.”

“I’m doing this for Maura, not Ryan,” Pippa says. “She deserves a fully stocked freezer for after the baby’s born.”

“I want everyone going home with enough good, healthy food for the week,” Beau says. “There are enough of us here that there’s no reason we can’t hit that goal.”

Luke leans toward me. “I thought this was supposed to be a casual hangout. How did we get stuck peeling potatoes?”

“Because Beau hijacked us with root vegetables the second we walked through the door, and you’re still scared to start another fight with him,” I say.

“I’m not scared,” Luke scoffs.

“Please. Beau weighs like fifty pounds more than you do. If he really threw a punch at you, you’d be on the ground.”

“If he could land it. I’m scrappy, you know. Quick, too.”

I raise my brows. “You really want to brag about being quick?”

Luke smiles delightedly, sending butterflies into my stomach. “Wow. If that was a jab about my stamina, then I’m impressed. I didn’t know dirty jokes were in your repertoire.”

“If you catch me on the right day, I can be absolutely filthy.”

“I’d like to see that.” Luke’s voice drops low, playfully suggestive. I can’t help but respond in kind.

“I think you already have. You were one of my subscribers, remember?”

Luke inhales sharply. “Yeah. I remember. I really fucking remember.”

His spare hand—the one not holding a potato—brushes against my lower back, making me shiver. He lingers there for a moment so the heat of his hand burns through my thin sweater. He must feel me shiver.