Blue Love (26 page)

- Not necessary anymore, I just love my friend :)

-Not sad anymore, go to sleep baby you have school in the morning …LYA Luke

Tessa laid in bed smiling; he was not perfect when she fell in love with him, but every day he seems to want to be better. She needed to step it up to make him happy and she was pretty sure she knew how. Now for some sweet dreams, she smiled.

~

He woke up and his dad was gone. He grabbed a pair of shorts on and his sneakers and tied them up. He pulled out his phone.

- good morning Tessa; I dreamt about you last night and woke wishing it were real. Baby I miss seeing your perfect smile..... LYA...Luke.

He tossed his phone on the bed and went outside to run around the lake. He was running hard when he saw Leah outside her parents’ house, where he had first met her last year. Leah saw him and squinted to be sure it was him. Luke slowed down and stopped in front of her; he smiled and held his finger up out breath. She laughed and smiled back. He turned his back to her and bent down concentrating, taking deep breaths.
He is gorgeous Leah thought,
she had only met him once before and remembered it vividly. They had met on a Friday at a lakeside bonfire. He kissed her and that kiss lasted until the sun came up. She wondered if he remembered. “Hey you remember me?” Luke asked finally able to speak.

“
Of course I do Luke,” she smiled.

“
I am going through something and well I fell in love, and she made me realize how wrong I had been to act like I did, I am sorry Leah,” Luke smiled apologetically.

“
She must be something special,” she smiled sweetly.

“
I hope you have found someone who treats you better than I did Leah,” Luke said.

“
I haven’t. I have been waiting to see you again,” Leah said softly.

“
I am sorry, please forgive me,” he said pulling his shirt up to wipe the sweat from his face.

“
Forgiven,” she said.

They shook hands and Luke went to finish his run.

~

When Luke was not at school it seemed even harder to concentrate. Tessa missed his hand holding hers, his kisses, laugh and his smile, oh his smile was amazing. At lunch she tried to call him and there was no answer. She hung up.
“UHG,” she said.

Her phone chimed and she jumped and smiled.

-Hey angel I have two minutes free and I wanted to say hello. Things are crazy here but I still think about you often. I hope all is well, hope to talk to you soon, be good to yourself…Toby

-TOBY!!! It is great hearing from you, send me a picture of you in uniform please I want to set it up as your ID when you text me again…BTW it better be more often! Tessa

Her phone chimed and it was a picture of them at homecoming, a second was of him in uniform, she smiled.

-smoking hot …TTYS…Tessa

~

Landon came home at noon and brought lunch. Luke had just gotten out of the shower and he was getting dressed when his Dad yelled up,
“Anyone home?”

“
I will be down in a minute Dad,” Luke answered.

“
Let’s eat lunch Lucas,” Landon said, “Your sisters will be her at two; I have a sitter coming to watch after them while I am at a meeting with possible investors. I would like you to join me?”

Luke decided to join his father for dinner with the hopeful investors; he would meet him downtown at about four. He would have a chance to spend a couple hours with his sisters that he barely knew.

He grabbed his phone and saw she had called. He knew she was in class now and that she wouldn’t be able to take his call.

- Miss you baby... Love Luke.

At one thirty Audrianna pulled in with Alexandra and Ally. They were beautiful with big green eyes and caramel hair. They were dressed in matching pink dresses and white shoes. Their hair was in pig tails with ribbons tied perfectly around them. They looked a lot like Luke.

“
Hello Audri,” Luke said as he was smiling at the girls, “they are beautiful.”

“
How are you Lucas, Ally and Alexandra this is your big brother Lucas, do you remember him girls?” Audrianna asked smiling.

They both shook their heads and smiled shyly. Luke knelt down,
“I am going to hang out with you guys for a few hours before I have to go meet our Dad for his meeting, what would you like to do?”

Audrianna couldn
’t believe this was the same boy; it looked like the little tyrant that she had dealt with every few months when she was married to his father. He was either drunk or high when she saw him, but it certainly didn’t act like him now.

She answered her phone,
“Hello…Oh ok…I will see what I can do…no I understand…see you soon. Damn it,” she mumbled under her breath. “Ashley,” she called waving her sister to come in.

“
Is that your aunt?” Luke asked the girls and smiled.

“
Yes,” they answered giggling.

“
Good, I need to talk to her, Audri do you mind?” Luke asked.

Why was he asking permission he didn
’t every time they had screwed over the past four years.
“She is happy Lucas,” Audri cautioned.

“
Good, I am too” Luke said, “Is it alright?”

“
Go ahead Lucas,” Audri said.

He walked to the car and opened the door for Ashley,
“Hey Ash can we take a walk?”

Ashley
’s eyes widened, “Luke I don’t think that’s a good idea,” she said looking towards the girls, “and I am, seeing someone.”

“
Me too Ash,” Luke smiled, “I just want to apologize for some things.”

“
Okay then,” Ashley said.

They only walked a few feet away but he did his normal spiel. She hugged him and he hugged her back. Ashley was a great person. They had a different relationship than he did with the girls back home, and it was fun, no strings tossed in with some mutual respect mixed with a bit of alcohol sex, a great distraction from his father
’s nonsense.

“
So we are good right?” Ashley asked.

“
I hope so,” Luke said smiling.

They walked back to the house and his phone chimed, Ashley saw the picture ID
“She is pretty Lucas,” Ashley smiled, “Are you being good to her?”

“
I am trying. She just, I don’t know, she is just different than the other girls back home,” Luke smiled.

Audrianna smiled as she watched him grinning,
“It is so nice to see you happy Lucas, I don’t think I have ever seen you like this.”

“
Ya I know, I am sorry, things are changing,” Luke smiled and looked at his sisters.

Audrianna had always felt sorry for the life he lived. Her soon to be ex was too busy with work or trying to be the man she thought she had married, to pay any attention to Lucas. She knew his mother had major substance abuse issues and that he had been the one to deal with her. And now that she was a Mom she saw him differently. She wished she had pushed more for Landon to be a better father than he was to Lucas. She wished she could have not been jealous or wrapped up in her own dream world to see that the troubled, obnoxious, hormone filled boy really had a sad, angry life and he just needed guidance.

“I am so glad Lucas, I really am. You deserved better than you were dealt, and I should have tried to help, I am sorry,” Audri said.

“
I am fine, doing better every day. And whatever I have said or done in the past to make your life harder I apologize. Oh and thank you for giving me these two, I think we will be great pals,” he said and they giggled.

“
So Ashley we are going to have to change our plans, the sitter is going to be about an hour late,” Audrianna said.

“
No way, I got this, we can have great fun together can’t we girls,” Luke said swooping them up and spinning them in a circle.

“
Oh no Lucas you don’t have to,” Audri said and looked a bit nervous.

“
Please Mommy,” the girls said in unison.

“
Audri I promise they will be fine, I won’t break them,” Luke smiled.

“
He will be okay,” Ashley said reassuring Audrianna.

Audrianna reluctantly agreed,
it was only an hour she thought
and she and Ashley left.

The girls took him out
back and showed him the tree fort their father had built for them, “Wow this is so cool,” he said climbing up behind them. It was very low to the ground so Luke felt that it was safe for them.

They played Princess for an hour, he of course was there Prince and had
“To marry both of them,” Ally said smiling.

“
Ok but only because it’s pretend, when you grow up girls its only one Prince for each of you. And he better be really good to you because if doesn’t, do you know what will happen?” Luke asked in a deep voice. Their eyes widened and he threw his hands in the air making them appear like giant claws, “Your brother will turn into a dragon and gobble them up,” he picked them up and pretended to chew their ears as they laughed.

~

“That’s cute,” he heard someone laugh from behind him.

“
Leah,” the girls yelled and ran to her.

“
Hey Leah what’s going on?” Luke asked.

“
She’s here to watch us, but she doesn’t have to now we have you” Alexandra said and ran to Luke and jumped in his arms and hugged him.
So this is how it feels, he thought, this is what family was all about.
Luke always had felt that they were the competition. He didn’t realize that they could turn his black heart gray. Luke loved them immediately.

Luke hugged her tight and said,
“I have to meet Dad for a couple hours and then I will be back, are you spending the night?” he asked.

“
We don’t spend the night silly,” she laughed.

“
Well maybe tonight you can, should we call your Mom and ask?” he said.

“
Ya,” they both said.

Leah gave Luke
Adrianna’s phone number. Luke called and asked her, she was reluctant but agreed that it was alright if Leah could stay as well. They all agreed and the girls went crazy.

Luke asked Leah to take a picture of him and them in the entry before he left and she did. He messaged Tessa.

-hanging out with two beautiful girls, they are spending the night! Hope you don’t mind…LYA Luke

Luke attached the picture and sent it to her.

Tessa’s phone chimed.

She read his text and her heart sank, until the picture downloaded, she smiled. Another text came through

-This is Ally and Alexandra, my sisters!...LYA Luke

-They are beautiful Luke, and you seem happy!!! Much better than last night
’s text… your friend…Tessa

-Like you…have to go with Dad for two hours, then back here, this will be the
ir first overnight since their Mom left…Hope he doesn’t get mad when I tell him, lol…LYA Luke

~

Tessa spent the evening the same as last, training Chewy on the invisible fence. Chewy hated the beeping noise he heard when he got too close to his fenceless boundaries. He was a quick learner.

John had bought a hot tub that was going to be delivered tonight. They couldn
’t use the pond now that it was cold and Tessa loved the thought of relaxing in the hot tub after practices. Her muscles would love the relaxation they would gain from it. Tessa cringed when she thought of Luke in the hot tub, she was an idiot and had to keep this thing a friendship,
how the hell would I do that
? Whenever she saw him she needed to touch him, to kiss him, she loved him. Time to get tough she thought, God
help me please she thought quietly, or let him change. I love him
.

~

Luke road home with Landon from the meeting. Luke was happy that he didn’t freak out about the girls staying over. Annoyed that he left his car at the country club but his Dad had kept buying drinks and his new investors seemed to like the fact his son was allowed to drink. How that impressed them was beyond him. John Ross wouldn’t be impressed he was sure of that.

He got out of the car and the girls ran to him and not his father. Luke picked them up and spun them around.
Damn he thought, a bit tipsy
. “Okay girls hot tub time!”

They raced to change and jumped in the twelve person tub that sat overlooking the lake. His Dad joined them.
“Hey Leah, could you grab my phone and take a picture of us please?” Luke asked.

“
They have really taken to you Lucas,” Landon smiled.

“
They are great Dad, they really have never spent the night?” Luke asked.