Page 88 of Bluebird

Amelie giggled.

“Yeah, yeah.” He brushed me off and lowered his brow. “What are you doing here? And why do you have Amelie?”

“Oh, nice, Luke, glad to see you too.”

“We had ice-cream,” Amelie spilled.

Luke chuckled at her sticky face. “I can see that.”

Dan walked out from the back office with her backpack. “Alright, kiddo, your babysitter will be here in a minute. Let’s wait out the front.”

Amelie grumbled as Luke passed her to Dan.

“See ya, squirt.” He winked at her.

“Bye, Amelie.” I smiled. “Let’s have another play date soon.”

Her frown turned into a smile, as she waved over Dan’s shoulder.

The door chimed, and I rotated my seat back to Luke, his eyes narrowing in on me.

“How did you get into town?” he asked, suspiciously.

“I drove myself,” I confessed, annoyed at his overprotectiveness. “My doctor said I could.”

Luke raised one eyebrow. “On your own?”

He got me there. “Well…I’m not alone. I’m with you, aren’t I?” I grinned, trying to find a loop hole in his argument.

“Blue,” he growled.

“I know! But I really needed to get out. Mum’s driving me crazy, Nate and Dad are busy on the farm, and I don’t exactly have any friends in this town, plus I’m super bored, and I really wanted to talk to you about something…”

Luke crossed his arms and shook his head as I rambled, but his eyes sparkled with amusement.

“Hang on…” he sighed and relaxed his shoulders. He stepped into the kitchen to make a phone call. I heard bits and pieces, but I got the main gist of it. He called my mum and told her where I was, stating he’d make sure I was okay and see me home.

“Did you just dob on me?” I demanded, as he came back out from the kitchen.

“Yep,” he stated, arrogantly.

I rolled my eyes and threw a paper coaster at him. He dodged it easily. “You’re unbelievable.”

“Thanks. Your mum thinks I’m pretty great too.”

I shook my head and chuckled. My mum did love him like her own. And at times I believed Luke was her favourite. He was such a mamma’s boy. If only his own mother was here to see the amazing man he had become.

“Coffee?” he asked and I nodded, relieved the grilling was finally over.

Luke made my coffee exactly how I liked it and handed it over with his gorgeous smile. My breath hitched and my body heated up at the mere sight of his deep-set dimples.

“Finally, real coffee,” I exclaimed, breaking our gaze to diffuse the ache he was causing below.

Luke’s eyebrows rose as he watched me blow on my latte to cool it down. I took a sip and moaned. I had been living off instant for weeks, so it tasted like heaven.

He cleared his throat. “So…what did you want to talk to me about?”

“Well, I’ve been writing again,” I confessed, with a bashful smile.