A Modern Love Story (25 page)

“Fine.” She handed him a knife. “You cut up the veggies while I prep the roast.”

“So demanding,” he growled, nuzzling and nipping at her neck. “I like it.”

“Hey! Get to work.” She pulled out a roaster pan as Luc began cutting. “All right, so I called him this afternoon after Lizbeth got off work. We didn’t talk super long—just long enough to get the introduction stuff out of the way.”

“And?”

“Like Payten said, he’s my half-uncle. His mom married my grandfather after my grandmother died. He said my father never approved of his mom, and eventually took off. Colin was still pretty young when it happened.”

“Did your father keep in touch? Why didn’t you ever hear about him before?”

“He kept in touch, but I don’t know why I never heard about him. He said he got the occasional postcard from my dad while we were traveling around the country, but that’s about it. They were always real vague and impersonal, he said.”

“But he didn’t know about you?”

“Apparently not. He knew about my mother, though. But they never met. I guess my dad told him right before he died that he’d stop by next time we passed through California, but obviously that never happened.” She tried to stamp down her emotions as she scooped up some of the veggies Luc had cut, arranging them meticulously around the roast. “He didn’t know my dad had died.”

Luc stopped what he was doing to put a hand on her shoulder. “You okay?”

She nodded, let out a breath. “Yeah. I’m good.” She flashed him a quick smile as she composed herself. “Colin just figured he decided not to write anymore. Truth was, it didn’t surprise him either. My dad never wrote to anyone else in the family, and only those short messages to my uncle.”

“Man, he must have really been pissed at your grandfather.”

“Seems like.”

“What about your aunt? Did her name come up?”

“Just real quick. He said she died from cervical cancer four years ago. We already knew that though. And then we talked a little bit about how Mom and Dad died.”

Luc nodded. He looked like he was trying to gauge her temperament.

“I’m good, Luc. Really.”

“All right. If you say so. Anything else?”

“Not really. He asked about me and my life—how I grew up, what I went to school for. That kind of stuff. It was nice.”

“I’m glad it went good for you. Of course, it would’ve been better if I’d been able to be there for you.”

She grimaced. “Well, next time you can be there.”

“There’s going to be a
next time
, then?”

“I think so. He seems really nice. I’d like to get to know him better.”

“Maybe someday you and I will take a road trip out that way.”

“Really?” She threw her arms around his shoulders, pulling him down to plant a kiss on his cheek. “Oh, I would
love
that! Thanks, Stretch. You’re the best.”

“You bet I am, babe,” he chuckled. “And don’t you forget it.”

*****

A few weeks later, Luc was peeling away from the curb in front of Hooligan’s, and heading straight for Robbie’s. Thank fucking God Conrad agreed to cover things. It seemed like it’d been forever since he was able to get away for a whole night, and he was anxious to take Robbie out. Even though he saw her every day, they really hadn’t had the chance to sit and talk for any length of time. He knew she’d been interviewing for jobs, but wasn’t sure of where and when. He knew she had been talking and emailing more with Colin, but the details were hazy. It was time they got caught up. Wasn’t a boyfriend supposed to be a part of her life like that? Shit, he always was when they
weren’t
a couple, so it shouldn’t be any damn different now.

As he got out of his car, Luc mumbled a curse. He’d forgotten to pick her up some wild flowers. Damn. Next time. He should’ve turned around to get some, but now that he was there, he was eager to surprise her.

Maybe tonight they’d finally come to some solid agreement on the living arrangements.

With a grin, he quietly unlocked her door and slipped inside. He could hear her voice coming from the kitchen, and briefly wondered who she was talking to.

“I know, Leah. I need to talk to Luc about it, but I don’t know how. I don’t know what to do.” Robbie paused and Luc heard her set a glass on the counter. “No, he said there was money for that too. I don’t know how much there is.”

Luc eased closer to the kitchen. He knew he should feel guilty for eavesdropping, but given the nature of the conversation, he thought this was the best way to garner information.

“For a year. Yeah, San Diego.” He heard ice cubes clinking in a glass. “No. I can’t. I don’t know. I just can’t.” She sighed. “I’ll call you later. I’ve got to stew on this. Love you, too. Bye.”

He heard the phone click into the charger and decided to make his presence known. Turning the corner, he leaned against the doorframe and waited for Robbie to notice.

“How long have you been standing there?” Her eyes flashed as her cheeks flushed.

“Long enough. Mind telling me what the hell’s going on?”

“Look, I don’t care who you are. You can’t go sneaking around listening in on my private conversations.” She tried to push past him, but he clamped onto her arm, tugging her close.

“It wasn’t intentional. I was trying to surprise you. But since I heard, you had better just tell me what’s up.”

“Maybe it’s none of your business.” She jutted her chin in the air, a sexy air of defiance surrounding her.

He licked his lips, but let the moment pass. “I’m thinking it is.”

Her green eyes narrowed. “What did you hear exactly?”

“You saying you needed to talk to me. So, dammit, talk already. Enough of this cryptic shit.”

He let her jerk out of his hold and she stormed to the living room. He was hot on her heels. When she sank down into the couch, she buried her face in her hands, and after a deep breath, lifted her head.

“I got an email from Colin.”

“And that’s news because…”

“You know we’ve been talking, right?”

“Yeah.”

“And we’re getting to know each other, right?”

“Again…yeah.”

“I told him about my interviews, trying to find a job…all that stuff. Well, today I got an email from him saying he greased some wheels and finagled an intern position at the museum over there.”

“In San Diego?”

She shifted her attention to her folded hands. “Yeah. There’s more. Apparently, when my grandfather died, he left a chunk of money to my father, thinking he’d show up one day. Colin has been executor of the estate, and had the money set up in a trust fund.”

Luc sat and put a hand over hers, swallowing at the cinch in his throat. “Robbie, that’s great news.”

She nodded. “The money will come in handy, that’s for sure. Anyway, he suggested I come to San Diego and settle the estate. He wanted me to stay awhile so we get to know each other better since I’m all the family he has too. I told him I’d think about it. And then he came back with this museum offer. He said he didn’t want to say anything until he knew he could pull it off.”

“How long is the internship for?”

“A year,” she whispered.

Luc was stunned into silence. She’d be gone a whole fucking year? Panic edged into his chest before he squashed it down. No. This was good for her. She needed this for her future. He was
not
gonna fucking make this about him.

“I’m not gonna go,” she said. “I’ll tell him no.” She went to stand. He pulled her back down.

“What do you mean? Why not?”

“You
want
me to go?”

“Don’t be stupid. Of course I don’t
want
you to go.”

“Then I’m not going. We’re finally together, Luc. I’m not gonna leave and fuck it all up! I stuck before, and I’ll stick again.”

He was surprised by her tone, but more taken by what she’d implied. “What the hell do you mean you
stuck
before?”

“With college. I made that work, didn’t I? I’ll work this too.” She got up to pace the room. “I’m not going anywhere.”

He watched her stalking back and forth, mumbling under her breath like she did when she was working something out. From the snippets he caught, she was painting a pretty damn vivid picture.

“Hold up! You stayed
here
for college, because of
me
? What the hell, Robbie?!”

“Oh, no you don’t. You don’t get to be mad at me over that. You would’ve freaked, and we both know it.”

“The hell I would’ve!” He stepped right into her path, earning him a quick shove.

“Move your ass!” She jabbed a finger in his chest. “I’m working this out. Just let me handle this.”

“No. Listen up.” He grabbed her by the shoulders, shook her a little. “I handled it just fine when the L’s left and they weren’t even coming back.
You
would be. And I’ll be goddamned if I’m gonna let you pass up another opportunity because of some skewed image you have of me! What the hell do I look like? A damn charity case?!”

“Jesus, Luc. This isn’t about you! I don’t want to lose what we have, got it?! It’s not worth the risk.”

“What the hell do you think is gonna happen? We waited years to be together. We can survive one more.”

“You’d let me go? Just like that?” He could see the emotions storming through her eyes, and it softened him.

“No, not just like that. This wouldn’t be easy for me either, Rob, but this internship is what you’ve been waiting for. And it’s important to our future together, right? So this is what you do. I’m not going to let you hold yourself back on my account anymore.”

“I haven’t.”

“You have, and it damn well better stop here. No more missed chances. Shit, I’d drag you there myself if I could, but I can’t.”

“I know. Hooligan’s.”

“Yeah. Besides,” he continued, rubbing his palms up and down her arms, “this will give you the chance you’ve always wanted. You’ve finally found your family, and now you’ll get a chance to know him better.”

“I suppose. Letters and a short visit would accomplish the same thing though.”

“True, but you need this internship. Can’t do that with letters and a short visit. You have to commit to it.”

“I guess.”

“So…you go.” He kissed the top of her head. “But on one condition.”

“What’s that?”

“You get your own place while you’re there. Colin may be family to you, but you still don’t know shit about him.”

“Deal.” She sighed, looking up at him with tears in her eyes. “I can’t lose you now.”

He absently tugged a lock of her hair. “Hey. I’ll still be here when you get back. You’re not getting rid of me so easily, Squirt.”

She wrapped her arms around him with a watery laugh. “Thank God for that.”

“And it’s not like they don’t have phones and email where you’re going.” He gave her a squeeze. “We’ll be just fine.”

*****