Page 22 of After We Fall

His eyes glitter. “Did you wear that outfit to practice yoga?”

“No.” I flick a piece of lint off my pants. “I was supervising yoga.”

“That’s not a thing.” The plastic stick moves with each syllable, highlighting his jaw muscles.

“What’s not a thing?”

“No one supervises yoga.”

“Are you going to start this meeting or am I?”

“Do you ever relax?”

I scowl. “I relaxed yesterday. Today, I need to get back to work.”

“Yesterday, you fought a migraine.” He leans in, the obnoxious stick within my reach. “That’s not relaxing. Today is the Saturday after Thanksgiving, and your boss isn’t even in town. What could you possibly have on your to-do list?”

“Do you want to see the list?”

“No.” He pulls the stir stick out of his mouth and points it at me. “But I want you to be available to me at lunchtime today.”

My mouth gapes. “I have to—”

“Nonnegotiable.” He transfers his attention to the girls before I can respond. “Ladies, if I could have just a few minutes of your time, please.”

Something swirls in my stomach. Do I have a lunch date with Luke? No. A working lunch. Do I want a lunch date with Luke? No. But what if the swirls mean I do? Maybe a little companionship would be nice. Just for lunch. Just this once.

Luke sits in the matching armchair across from me. He straightens his legs, crossing them at his ankles, and folds his hands across his abs. His body is relaxed, but his piercing eyes are alert. Cargo pants are to Luke what high heels are to me. A daily necessity. Dressed in black attire from head to toe, he resembles a resting panther.

“I need your help,” he declares to the room.

Finley sits up straight, Tanya cocks her head, and Bianca grants him a curious perusal. With four words, he disarmed them, offered them responsibility, and gave them significance.

In complete awe, I dart my glance from the intrigued girls back to Luke. He continues to prove he’s good with them. Trustworthy with them.

“The floral delivery last night was legit. No worries there.” He scratches the stubble at his chin. “But I’ve got to figure out how information about the wedding leaked outside the gates of the ranch to the person who committed the vandalism. Anyone overhear anything that might help me?”

Bianca and Tanya turn their gazes to the middle of the couch.

Finley gapes. “What? You guys think I told someone?” Her pitch rises as she shifts her focus to me. “Miss Penelope, I made a promise not to tell anyone. I know the wedding was supposed to be kept under wraps. I keep my promises.”

I nod to her, then redirect my focus to Luke. He’s running this show. I won’t wade in until there’s a problem.

“I need each of you to think through your interactions with people. Any offhand conversations you might have participated in or heard,” he says.

Finley points her thumbs to Tanya and Bianca. “They’re still looking at me.”

Luke returns the stir stick to his lips. He turns his intense green eyes to me. “Penelope? Can you think of anyone you told about the wedding who wasn’t on a need-to-know basis?”

He’s starting with me, which causes the tension in the room to defuse. Luke should be hired to negotiate peace in the Middle East.

“I mentioned the wedding to three people,” I say.

Finley gasps.

Bianca raises an eyebrow.

“Did you have a good reason?” Tanya asks.