Outrageously in Love by Jen Morris

20

Alex holds up her glass of champagne, her eyes gleaming with pride. “Congratulations to Michael on his latest book deal.”

Luke dropped Henry off at Mel’s place earlier and now we’re at a bar called Deidrick’s in the West Village, celebrating the result from Michael’s meeting with his agent today. It’s a funky little place: low lighting, large bar, and round, wooden tables along one wall. There’s a dance floor off to one side—currently empty—and a DJ playing early 2000s songs in one corner. I bet the dance floor gets packed later.

Michael’s cheeks flush with modesty as we all raise our glasses. I meet Luke’s gaze and tip my glass ever so slightly in his direction. We might be here to celebrate Michael’s book deal, but every time I glance over and see Luke’s broad smile, the way his whole posture looks more relaxed than I’ve ever seen, I can tell something is up with him. Since the bridge he’s been different. Lighter, more playful, just… happy. It’s infectious.

“So how was sightseeing?” Alex asks over her glass. “Where did you go?”

“I took her to the Transit Museum,” Luke says, grinning at me.

Michael groans. “Poor Harriet. I know you and Henry love it, but—”

“No.” I shake my head with a laugh. “It was awesome. And it made me reconsider my fear of the subway.”

“That’s great!” Alex says. “The only way to get comfortable with the subway is to just go on it a lot. After a while, you get used to it.”

Huh, kind of like the trapeze. The only way I got comfortable with it was to do it. No amount of thinking about it and mentally rehearsing helped. I had to throw myself off the platform.

Of course, I’ll need to avoid throwing myself off the platform in the subway, but you get the point.

We talk about the museum for a while, sipping our champagne. When the bottle is empty, Alex stands and wanders to the bar, returning with another bottle and a tipsy grin.

“The only thing missing from the Transit Museum,” Luke says as he pops open the champagne, “is a Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. Now that would be cool.”

Alex holds out her glass, scrunching her nose. “What?”

Luke sends me a secret smile and my heart does a funny little hop. Because that would be cool, but I’m not thinking about that at all. I’m thinking about the man who would say something like that.

I slide Alex a grin. “It’s a Harry Potter reference.”

“Oh.” She rolls her eyes. “You two are such nerds.”

Luke chuckles as he refills my glass. “That may be the case, but you should have seen Harriet this morning. I took her to that trapeze school in Hudson River Park, and she was totally fearless.”

“Really?” Alex gives me a doubtful look.

“Yeah.” Luke nods, his eyes fixed on me. “She just got up there and went for it. I was actually a little freaked out but I figured if she could do it, then so could I.”

“Wow,” Alex says, impressed. “Harri, you’re inspiring me, doing all these new things. Dyeing your hair, swinging from a trapeze, not to mention…” Her words are swallowed by giggles, her cheeks rosy from the alcohol. “Can I tell the guys, please?” I open my mouth to ask what she means, but she turns her attention to Luke and Michael. “You’ll never guess what Harriet did on the plane ride over here.”

Oh. Shit.

I pause, my glass halfway to my lips and my smile frozen on my face, dread rising inside me. I feel Luke stiffen at my side as Michael leans forward curiously.

“She hooked up with some random guy she met, in the airplane bathroom!”

Oh God, Alex.

I press my eyes shut as my stomach turns over. I wait for Luke to say something, or to stand and leave, but he laughs along with Michael. When I cautiously peel my eyes open, I find the three of them looking at me.

“Really?” Michael says with a disbelieving chuckle.

“Er…” I begin, setting my glass down, but Alex is on a roll.

“Oh, come on!” She swats me on the arm before focusing back on the guys. “She totally did. And she said it was the best sex she’s ever had!” She thumps a hand on the table, chortling with laughter.

Heat sweeps up my neck and I concentrate on a spot on the table. I can’t look at Luke. Or anyone. Ever again.

“Is that right?” I hear from beside me.

I risk a glance in Luke’s direction. His mouth is half-tilted in a grin, eyebrows raised, and annoyance sizzles in my gut. He doesn’t have to look so damn pleased about it. And he should not be encouraging this.

“The best sex you’ve ever had, huh?”

My cheeks are flaming as I reach for my glass of champagne again and gulp it down.

“I mean, how does that even happen?” Alex muses aloud, topping up my glass. “How do you end up in that situation?”

“Did he comfort you during some bad turbulence?” Michael suggests.

I grumble under my breath. If only I could tell them the truth: that I was the one looking after him. That might give me a little of my dignity back.

“Or maybe he gave up his seat so you could sit by the window and you couldn’t resist such a chivalrous guy?” Alex’s eyes become misty as her romantic imagination kicks into overdrive.

“Or maybe you threw yourself at him when he least expected it?” Luke chimes in and the other two roar with laughter. He gives me a knowing grin and I cut him a look of irritation.

“Um, no. That’s definitely not what happened.”

“Really? Maybe you”—he gestures vaguely for effect—“threw yourself into his lap? Or lured him into the bathroom when he was vulnerable?” He nudges my knee under the table and I swing a foot out to kick him, but hit the table leg instead.

Ow.

“Oh my God, Harri, is that what happened?” Alex asks, noticing my grimace.

“What?” I glance at her, horrified. “No!”

“Or maybe you simply begged the poor guy for sex?” Luke says, his lips twitching deviously.

A laugh bursts from Alex. “Harriet’s not the type to beg for sex.” She wipes her eyes, then turns and leans close to Michael, whispering something to him.

“Exactly.” I send Luke a withering look. Honestly, I don’t know what’s gotten into him tonight.

“Are you sure?” he asks, swigging from his glass. “Are you sure you didn’t say please?” He cocks a playful eyebrow and my face burns with shame.

Because I did say please, I know I did. I wanted it.

“Well, anyway,” I mutter through gritted teeth, refilling my glass so I don’t have to look at him. He might think this is hilarious, but two can play this stupid game. “It doesn’t matter. I mean, the sex was alright, which is surprising considering how very quick it was. The whole thing was over before it could even begin, really.”

I challenge Luke with my gaze, watching his smile falter. My mouth pulls into a satisfied smirk as his cheeks stain pink, and we stare at each other hard for a moment, neither one of us wanting to back down. Then his face falls, almost imperceptibly, and regret winds through me.

I suddenly remember Alex and Michael’s presence, and when I glance at them in panic, I’m relieved—and not at all surprised—to find they’re in a world of their own.

When I look back at Luke, his whole demeanor has changed. He’s leaning back in his chair, sipping from his glass and gazing out across the bar, his smile gone. And even though he was being a real dick a moment ago, I just want to go back to the joking and teasing.

“Oh! Harri, I forgot to tell you.” Alex leans forward, grinning. “Cat knows someone you might want to take as a date to the wedding.”

I offer her a feeble smile. I should be happy about this, I know I should—I did, after all, ask her to find me someone—but I couldn’t care less right now. And if I’m entirely honest, I know who I want to go to Alex’s wedding with. But I can’t.

“What’s his name?” I ask, trying to muster some enthusiasm.

“Derek. He’s a nice guy.”

“Great. And, um, what does Derek do?”

“He’s her accountant, I think.”

There’s a snort beside me, and I turn to peer at Luke. “What?”

“Accountant. What a boring job.”

“So? Who cares?” I happen to agree with him, but I’m not exactly in a position to be turning this Derek away. Not when I’ll have to spend the whole wedding watching Luke parade Dena around the place.

“What will you even talk about?” Luke asks.

“I don’t know. We’ll drink and dance. It’s a wedding.”

“Whatever,” he huffs.

Jesus, what is his deal tonight? One minute he’s laughing his head off and needling me about sex, the next he’s sulking like a moody teenager.

“Is he cute?” I ask, fixing my attention back on Alex.

She thinks for a minute, then nods. “I think you’ll like him. Medium height, clean shaven, blue eyes and blond hair.”

I try not to cringe. He sounds like the antithesis of Luke, which right now feels like it would be unbearable.

Luke chuckles beside me and I glance at him sharply. “What now?”

He gazes down into his glass, shrugging. “Nothing. He sounds… great. Derek sounds like a great guy.” His lips tighten into a smirk.

I stare at him for a moment, trying to understand why he’s being such an absolute jerk, then it hits me.

Oh my God. Is he jealous?

I tilt my head, eying him, but he just looks down at his glass, brooding.

“Ooh, I love this song!” Alex exclaims as Hey Ya by Outkast comes on. She grabs Michael’s hand and yanks him up. “You guys want to dance?”

“Maybe later,” I mumble, and she bounces away to the dance floor with Michael, disappearing into the crowd. I turn to study Luke as he peels the label on the bottle of champagne, lost in thought. “What was that? All that shit about me begging you?”

He chuffs a quiet laugh, picking at the label. “I’m just in a weird mood, sorry. I got carried away playing along with them. And, er”—he glances over his shoulder, then back to the bottle—“I’m also sorry if the sex was… quick.”

Okay, I didn’t expect that. “It wasn’t.”

He looks up at me and apprehension lingers in his gaze. I sigh, wanting to soothe his poor, wounded ego. First person he has sex with after his marriage ends and I tell him it was crap.

“I shouldn’t have said that,” I murmur. “I was annoyed at you for winding me up. But, come on. You know how good it was on the plane.”

A husky laugh escapes him as he appraises me, and for some reason, I find myself wanting to tell him just how significant the plane was to me.

“If I tell you something, will you promise not to judge me?”

“Of course.”

“Alright.” I slug back some champagne, checking we are still alone. “On the plane with you was the first time I ever…” I trail off, waiting for him to connect the dots, but he looks mystified. “It was the first time I ever, um”—I clear my throat—“climaxed.”

His mouth forms a small O shape. “You hadn’t climaxed during sex before?”

“No, I hadn’t—” I shake my head, cringing. God, why did I mention this? “Um, I hadn’t ever before.”

His eyebrows shoot up. “Never?”

“Never.”

“Until…”

“Yep.”

His eyelids fall to half-mast and a breath gusts out of him. “So… I gave you your first orgasm.”

I suck my bottom lip between my teeth, nodding.

“Holy—” he breaks off with a little growl. “Harriet, why are you telling me this?”

I lift a shoulder. “I don’t know. It was a big deal for me, and you made it happen. I thought you might like to know.”

A scowl drags his eyebrows together and he reaches for his glass. “You shouldn’t have told me,” he mutters, knocking back his champagne. Then he sits there, seething at me.

I frown. “Why are you being such a dick?”

“Excuse me?”

“Tonight, Luke. What’s going on with you?”

He drains his glass and sets it down. After contemplating me for a moment, he forces the air from his lungs. “Fine. You know that call I took on the bridge?”

“Yeah?”

“That was my lawyer. He told me my divorce has been finalized. I am officially no longer married.”

My lips part in surprise. “Really?”

He nods.

Right. Well. I’m not sure what to do with this information. And as I watch the way he twists his champagne glass on the table in front of him in agitation, I get the sense he isn’t either.

“And you’re… unhappy about that?” I venture. But that doesn’t feel right. He seemed thrilled when he got the call.

“No. That relationship died a long time ago. If anything, I’m relieved.”

“Then what’s going on? You’ve been all over the place tonight.”

“I know.” He stares into his empty glass. “I’m just… struggling with something.”

“With what?”

When he brings his gaze to mine, I can see the frustration smoldering in his eyes. “With the fact that there is something I want, right in front of me, and I can’t have it.”

Oh.

My pulse quickens, because I know he’s talking about me. Desire spills through my veins and my hands tingle with the urge to grab his collar and yank him towards me, despite the fact that Alex and Michael are only a few feet away.

Goddammit. Why did his divorce have to be finalized now? Everything was fine when he was still married, when he was off-limits.

But with every heated glance he gives me, my self-control evaporates. Now that I know he’s available—that he’s feeling as desperate about this whole thing as I am—how much longer will I be able to keep resisting him?