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There’s real frustration in Luke’s stare now, and he clenches his jaw as he reaches down and grazes the tops of his socked feet.
“Good. All right. Session over.”
I turn to leave, but Luke snags my arm and spins me around to face him. I crash against his chest, and he stares daggers down at me as his fingers press into my bicep.
“Need I remind you, I’m keeping you safe by allowing you to stay here.”
Scoffing as my mouth falls open, I snatch my arm back.
“Allowing me? You practically begged me to stay here.”
I watch as he runs his tongue over his teeth behind his lip, and then Luke sags.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to intrude on your work.”
Eyeing him with a cocked brow, I give a I don’t buy that for a second look. Luke rolls his head back before holding his hands up.
“Fine. Fine. I did. I won’t do it again. I’m sorry.”
It’s honest and forthright, and Luke isn’t running away from my anger.
“Damn.” I crack a smile. “You take all the fun out of a fight, don’t you?”
His stupid, charming grin is back, and he reaches into his pocket, pulling out his phone.
“Takeout?”
Chapter 18
Luke
When the Chinese comes, and I’m passing out our containers, it hits me that’s the fastest I’ve gone from admittedly pushing someone’s buttons to apologizing.
I never apologize.
Clara ordered kung pao shrimp, and I got cashew chicken. We swap half and half with each other, piling the food onto thick paper plates.
We’re actually at my seldom-used dining table this time, and I have to fill the silence as we sit down and start eating.
“So, really, how was work?”
She looks up, the same tired smile creeping over her face that I’ve noticed the other nights she’s come home.
“Oh, fine. Normal. I’m exhausted, though. Two bypass surgeries I assisted with back-to-back, and they’re long.”
Furrowing my brow at her, I take a sip of the beer I snagged from the fridge before indulging my curiosity.
“Why are they so long?”
Clara finishes chewing her food, washing it down with a bit of water, and then looks up at me, talking with her hands.
“Well, they’re complicated procedures. You know what a bypass is, right?”
“I mean, I know the basics. A heart surgery usually for older folks that can be pretty hit or miss.”
She laughs a little, and I still like it way too much.
“That’s essentially it. So, in a bypass, it’s like redirecting traffic. That’s why it’s called that.” She demonstrates with her hands. “You see, there’s a traffic jam over here, or in my world, a clogged artery to the heart.”
