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Michelle tapped her toes in the corner and looked away, but Luke wasn’t paying her any attention. When he was finished with Ashanti’s face, he wet a few more wads of toilet paper and started on her hands.
“How much longer is that going to take?” Michelle strode closer. “I have school tomorrow.”
Luke wanted to snap that he wouldn’t need to clean her off if Michelle had done what he’d asked, but instead he just dealt with Ashanti’s hands and stood.
“Come on, Ash.” Luke held Ashanti up. She leaned heavy on her feet and almost slumped back into the chair.
“Luke, I’m tired.”
“I know.” He watched her sway and realized Ashanti would not be able to walk out of the bar on her own. Immediately, Luke dropped to his haunches in front of her and slapped his shoulder.
“What are you doing?” Michelle hissed.
Luke didn’t have to explain when Ashanti instinctively threw her arm around his neck and climbed on his back. He stood and hooked his arm under her knees, hiking her up so he had a better grip on her.
“Let’s go.”
Michelle glared at him but obediently trumped along as they headed outside. The wind had picked up and he could feel Ashanti shaking in the cold. She tightened her hold, almost choking him.
He let go of one of her legs to fish his keys out of his pocket. He pressed the fob and then glanced behind him to get Michelle’s attention.
She sulked but seemed to brighten when he caught her eye. “Yes?”
“Can you hold the door open for me?”
Michelle’s expression fell. He ignored the crestfallen set of her face and raised his eyebrows. “Please?”
She sighed and yanked the door open, holding it ajar as Luke turned around, lowered himself slowly and slid Ashanti into the backseat. She flopped down on the cushions with an unladylike snort.
Luke smiled and tenderly put her legs inside the vehicle. When he was certain that she was secure, he stepped back and closed the door. “Thanks.”
“Whatever.” Michelle stormed forward and jumped into the car.
“Ashanti’s sleeping. Could you not…” he winced when Michelle shut the door with such force the entire vehicle rattled, “slam the door? Okay.” Luke sighed and jogged to the driver’s side.
The first few minutes, they drove in silence. Eventually, Michelle turned to him. She wore a scowl that seemed misplaced on her beautiful face.
Luke glanced away from the road to look at her. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“Okay.” He focused on the road again. “Am I going in the right direction?”
“I don’t know. Are you?”
He frowned. “What does that mean?”
“Luke, tell me the truth. Was everything we shared over the past few weeks in my head?”
“Of course not.”
“Then…”
Luke glanced at Ashanti in the rearview mirror. She was still sleeping soundly, but he didn’t want to discuss this in front of her whether she could hear or not. “Look, can we talk about this later?”
“Why? Because I might disturb your precious ‘Ash’?” Michelle folded her arms over her chest. “Exactly what is your relationship with her? Are you sure you’re just friends?”
His grip on the steering wheel tightened. “Am I going the right way?”
