Read Online Just a Little Reminder by Tracie Puckett - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Tracie Puckett
Tags: Romance, Young Adult
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want him to sense my fear.
Luke had enough on his plate without having to worry about me.
“Hey,” I whispered, hoping that he’d humor one simple request.
“Hmm?”
“One last truth ?”
He propped himself up on his elbow, and the moonlight caught the sincerity in his dark eyes. “Sure.”
“When did you know?” I asked, blinking heavily.
I thought I’d have to elaborate, but a tired laugh escaped his throat, and I could tell he’d understood my question just fine.
“Well,” he said, and he sounded groggy and tired. A long yawn escaped him, and he shook his head and widened his eyes. “I’d embarrassed you— I’m sorry, by the way —by eavesdropping on your conversation with Matt at the café. And then you played hooky and skipped our next patrol so you wouldn’t have to see me, so I came by the house to see you instead.”
I half-laughed as I remembered how angry I’d been when I’d opened the door to find him standing on the porch with a bowl of soup and a smile.
“You weren’t very nice to me that night, just FYI,” he added, and then he tilted his head. “You wouldn’t even look at me; you just stomped upstairs, and I sat down to eat with Matt. He told me about your parents over dinner, and I’d felt like a jerk for the rude things I’d said to you. I hadn’t known…. And after that… I honestly thought I’d never see you again. I thought you’d quit the project and stay as far away from the station as possible. I wouldn’t have blamed you if you had.” He blinked a few times and his gaze drifted down to the mattress. “But then you came back. And I turned the corner into the break room that Saturday morning, and you were standing there with my coffee cup in hand and a stupid grin on your lips.”
I smirked as he looked back up to me.
“I couldn’t believe how much courage you had, kid,” he said, meeting my stare. “And I don’t know… I just knew, and that was the defining moment. I knew I loved you.”
Chapter Eight
Thursday, June 06 | 10:00 a.m.
Luke rolled out of bed shortly thereafter.
Leaving me with instructions to stay put, get comfortable, and go back to sleep, he left the apartment to tackle his early morning, five-mile run—a masochistic torture I knew I’d never understand.
I don’t remember hearing him return; I slept right through the next six hours.
It was 10 o’clock when I finally woke up, and my eyes fluttered rapidly as they adjusted to the mid-morning sunlight shining through Luke’s bedroom window.
“Ten o’clock,” I said, rolling over to steal a second glance at the alarm.
I buried my head in Luke’s pillow, took a deep breath, and let his familiar scent fill my lungs. A small smile tugged at the corner of my lip as I snuggled a little deeper into his blankets, and I pressed my eyes shut once again.
Six hours of dreamless sleep…. I couldn’t remember the last time that had happened.
“Long before Piqua,” I said aloud, and then I opened my eyes again.
I didn’t put much thought into the fact that I’d finally gotten some sleep; after all, each night came with its own set of surprises. I wasn’t about to get excited about the possibility of things getting better all at once.
Sleep….
It was probably just a fluke. I couldn’t have gotten that lucky twice.
I rolled out of bed and retrieved my overnight bags from the guest bedroom across the hall. Carrying them back to the bathroom, I shut the door behind me and tossed them in the corner. I stood in the center of the white tiled floor for a few long minutes, and I never once took my eyes off the shower stall in the nearby corner.
“You can do this, Julie,” I said quietly. Swallowing hard, I took a step forward, grabbed the silver handle, and opened the frameless glass door.
Leaning the top half of my body inside the shower stall, I turned the knob and started the hot water. Closing the door again, I backed away and sat down on the closed toilet
Luke had enough on his plate without having to worry about me.
“Hey,” I whispered, hoping that he’d humor one simple request.
“Hmm?”
“One last truth ?”
He propped himself up on his elbow, and the moonlight caught the sincerity in his dark eyes. “Sure.”
“When did you know?” I asked, blinking heavily.
I thought I’d have to elaborate, but a tired laugh escaped his throat, and I could tell he’d understood my question just fine.
“Well,” he said, and he sounded groggy and tired. A long yawn escaped him, and he shook his head and widened his eyes. “I’d embarrassed you— I’m sorry, by the way —by eavesdropping on your conversation with Matt at the café. And then you played hooky and skipped our next patrol so you wouldn’t have to see me, so I came by the house to see you instead.”
I half-laughed as I remembered how angry I’d been when I’d opened the door to find him standing on the porch with a bowl of soup and a smile.
“You weren’t very nice to me that night, just FYI,” he added, and then he tilted his head. “You wouldn’t even look at me; you just stomped upstairs, and I sat down to eat with Matt. He told me about your parents over dinner, and I’d felt like a jerk for the rude things I’d said to you. I hadn’t known…. And after that… I honestly thought I’d never see you again. I thought you’d quit the project and stay as far away from the station as possible. I wouldn’t have blamed you if you had.” He blinked a few times and his gaze drifted down to the mattress. “But then you came back. And I turned the corner into the break room that Saturday morning, and you were standing there with my coffee cup in hand and a stupid grin on your lips.”
I smirked as he looked back up to me.
“I couldn’t believe how much courage you had, kid,” he said, meeting my stare. “And I don’t know… I just knew, and that was the defining moment. I knew I loved you.”
Chapter Eight
Thursday, June 06 | 10:00 a.m.
Luke rolled out of bed shortly thereafter.
Leaving me with instructions to stay put, get comfortable, and go back to sleep, he left the apartment to tackle his early morning, five-mile run—a masochistic torture I knew I’d never understand.
I don’t remember hearing him return; I slept right through the next six hours.
It was 10 o’clock when I finally woke up, and my eyes fluttered rapidly as they adjusted to the mid-morning sunlight shining through Luke’s bedroom window.
“Ten o’clock,” I said, rolling over to steal a second glance at the alarm.
I buried my head in Luke’s pillow, took a deep breath, and let his familiar scent fill my lungs. A small smile tugged at the corner of my lip as I snuggled a little deeper into his blankets, and I pressed my eyes shut once again.
Six hours of dreamless sleep…. I couldn’t remember the last time that had happened.
“Long before Piqua,” I said aloud, and then I opened my eyes again.
I didn’t put much thought into the fact that I’d finally gotten some sleep; after all, each night came with its own set of surprises. I wasn’t about to get excited about the possibility of things getting better all at once.
Sleep….
It was probably just a fluke. I couldn’t have gotten that lucky twice.
I rolled out of bed and retrieved my overnight bags from the guest bedroom across the hall. Carrying them back to the bathroom, I shut the door behind me and tossed them in the corner. I stood in the center of the white tiled floor for a few long minutes, and I never once took my eyes off the shower stall in the nearby corner.
“You can do this, Julie,” I said quietly. Swallowing hard, I took a step forward, grabbed the silver handle, and opened the frameless glass door.
Leaning the top half of my body inside the shower stall, I turned the knob and started the hot water. Closing the door again, I backed away and sat down on the closed toilet
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