Read Online Loving Lucas by Violetta Rand - Free Book Online Page A

obligated, darlin’. I meant what I said.”
    “So did I,” she explains. “I admit there’s some kind of chemistry between us. I’m just not sure . . .”  
    I pat her hand.
    “I’ve never . . .”  
    Climaxed? Been held all night? Or been treated like a lady? “I know.” I’ll never forget what Brandon said at the track.
    She scoops a couple of pieces of bacon onto her plate. “After a year and a half in Connor prison,” she starts, “living in a place like this, where I’m free to be myself, well, it’s mind-boggling. I freaked.”
    I clear my throat; anger jolts through me whenever I hear her ex’s name. “We’ll figure it out.” I take a sip of juice, shoveling a forkful of eggs into my mouth. It’s good. “Why’d you drop out of coronary, I mean, culinary school?”
    She giggles at my quip. “I’m already a cook. And landing a position in a five-star restaurant is pretty hard, especially in South Texas. Not too many openings. I decided to pursue something a little more challenging, more academic. If I can’t find a job after I graduate, I can always cook.”
    “I just might handcuff you to my stove.”
    She laughs. “I wanted to thank you again for this opportunity. It means a lot.”
    “My stomach couldn’t be happier.” Of course my dick is still raging hard. “What’s your schedule?”
    “Monday through Thursday,” she says. “Classes start at nine, and I’m usually home by four unless I have a lab scheduled. There are no classes today—it’s some administrative holiday.” She nibbles on a piece of toast. “What about you?”
    “Eight to six, three-day weekends twice a month. I don’t go back to work until next week. I need time to get settled.”
    She nods. “Do you miss Lake Jackson?”
    I shrug my shoulder. “If you blink you’ll miss downtown,” I say. “Thirty thousand people and a golf course. What’s to miss?”
    “Family? Friends?”
    “My parents live in San Marcos now. I have cousins in Corpus. As for friends, we’ll see each other on the weekends.”
    “At the races?”
    I grin, thrilled that she rides motorcycles. “Every chance I get.”
    “What about that AMA title?”
    “Is this a formal interview?”
    She rolls her eyes.
    “Just a regional title,” I say nonchalantly. “Got lucky in 2012. Now I’m a weekend warrior. Life kinda got in the way.”
    “Your son?” she blurts, then covers her mouth.
    How’d she find out about my family? My eyebrows jump in question. “Who told you?”
    “I-I’m sorry. Brandon did a background check,” she confesses. “So we’d all feel better about our arrangement.” She gives me a nervous smile.
    “At the bail bonds office?”
    “Yes.” She looks at me intently.
    I rest an elbow on the table, pleased she’s resourceful enough to go to such extreme measures to protect herself. “Alex is five,” I say. “Miss him every day.”
    “And your wife?”
    “Irreconcilable differences,” I muse. That’s what the paperwork says. I know better. “Remarried and living in St. Paul.”
    She swirls her eggs around on her plate with her fork. “I can’t imagine what it feels like being separated from your son.”
    I lean forward, using my napkin to wipe a crumb off the corner of her mouth. “Excruciating pain at first,” I admit. “But as time goes on, you get numb. Lots of phone calls, video chats, and letters.”
    “Why’d she win custody?”
    I opened the honesty door . . . “The judge sympathized with my wife. Just because I’m a public servant doesn’t mean my profession impressed the court. Long hours and high risk, that’s how they classify me. It’s in the best interest of my son to live with someone who can provide a stable home environment. Direct quote from the case worker who investigated me before the final hearing.”
    “I’m truly sorry.”
    “Don’t be,” I say hesitantly. “That’s what attorneys are for.”
    “You mean . . .”  
    “Still battling it out.”
    She