Page 11

Lily

W hat the hell just happened? I feel like I had an out-of-body or body-snatching experience because that was definitely not me . I don’t know what possessed me to go over there and defend Luka like that.

He’s a grown man who is perfectly capable of defending himself. At first, I worried he was mad, but he soon put those worries at ease.

To make matters worse, I go and say that I’ve been waiting for him my entire life! I feel a weird kinship toward him because of that dream. It doesn’t help that every time I stare into his eyes, I feel an extremely powerful pull toward him.

But to actually say anything like that out loud?

I want a giant crater to open and swallow me whole in hopes that he’ll forget every last second of that awkward closer. How am I supposed to look him in the eye after saying that? Ugh! I feel like a dumb teenager who has a massive crush on the most popular boy at school.

Guys like him don’t date girls like me.

But what if he likes you?

The look on his face after I said it was so intense, almost smoldering, that it gave me butterflies. I can still feel them fluttering around in my belly.

“Lily Pad, are you okay?” Stella’s question brings me back to reality. Luka is at the pool table, lining up his next shot, and I’m standing next to Luka’s friend and Stella .

“Yeah, yeah. I just feel a little off. I don’t know what came over me.” My cheeks heat at the memory from moments ago.

“Well, I thought it was fucking hilarious. I’ve never seen Luka speechless. That was priceless,” Luka’s friend says. “I’m Rowan, by the way. Who might you be?” He puts his hand out for me to shake.

“I’m Lily.” I shake his hand.

“Lily… Lily? As in Luka’s tutor, Lily?” Rowan has what I would call a cat that ate the canary smile on his face.

I look over and catch Luka’s eyes as he leans down to take another shot. He made the last one, and he only has one more solid and the eight ball before he wins. His eyes crinkle as they rake over my body. My skin breaks out with goosebumps everywhere his eyes touch all the way from across the room.

At this moment, I don’t feel self-conscious at all. Strangely, it’s like I never have been. I feel almost bold. Somehow, having his eyes on me gives me confidence. He makes me feel desirable, beautiful.

“What in the ever-loving hell is happening right now?” Stella’s face scrunches in what appears to be confusion as she stares at Luka. “Why does my brother look like he wants to eat you?”

I swallow thickly, taking her words to mean something else entirely before clearing my filthy mind. Incorrect as I may have been, I certainly don’t mind the mental image.

I don’t mind at all.

“He did fail to mention how hot his tutor is,” Rowan responds, which doesn’t help the situation at all .

I wave a dismissive hand to regain control of the conversation. “He doesn’t want to eat me. ” I nearly choke while saying it because the mental image of his face between my thighs lights up my mind again. I rush to continue to block those thoughts. “I said something stupid earlier and probably freaked him out so much he’s contemplating how to get out of here without us noticing.”

Rowan takes a sip of his beer, glancing over at Luka briefly before looking back at me. “Whatever you say, but that does not look like a man who wants to run for the hills. ”

Stella’s narrowed eyes don’t look like she’s buying it either. “Okay, then. What did you say to him?”

I gulp because I really don’t want to answer that question. “He asked where I was from.”

“ Aaand ? Why the hell would that make him want to run for the hills?” Stella asks, still perplexed. I don’t blame her; I’m confusing my own dang self.

Avoidance is critical here. “I don’t know. I misunderstood his question is all. It’s not a big deal.” I’m not technically lying, but I sure as heck won’t admit to my best friend that I practically hit on her brother either.

I pull my skirt down nervously, but my head quickly snaps up at the sound of Luka calling my name.

“Lily, call which pocket!”

His command makes goosebumps appear again, followed by a warmth that spreads low in my belly. My mouth waters when I take him in. Luka’s leaning against the pool table with one leg crossed over the other in the quintessential hot guy stance. It’s the equivalent of a girl walking through the door in slow motion with a gentle breeze in her hair. It looks so casual on him, but nothing about this feels casual.

It feels monumental.

I quickly look at the pool table and see where the remaining balls are. Then, I calculate the easiest pocket for him to sink the eight ball in.

“Back left corner.”

He smirks. “I feel like I need more of a challenge. Pick another one… please .” The please feels more like a command, one my body wants to obey.

“Can we just fucking get on with this?” the guy they called Axel barks.

Luka ignores him and waits patiently for me to tell him which pocket. His eyes never leave me. The intensity radiating off him is something I’ve never felt before, but I’m unsure if I’m just making it up in my head or not because this whole night feels so damn unreal.

“Come on, Lily. Pick the pocket,” Luka commands gently when I still don’t say anything .

“Right-side pocket.” It’s a tricky shot for sure, but one I’m confident he can make.

The smirk on his face says he’s happy with my pick.

After circling the table like a predator, Luka leans over the table and lines up his shot. The crack of the cue ball striking the eight ball echoes over the music just before he sinks the eight ball into the right-side pocket with ease. The crowd around the table cheers.

Axel slams his pool stick down on the table. “This was a fucking joke. This shit is rigged,” he snaps at anyone willing to listen, which isn’t many.

“Don’t be a bitch, Axel. I won fair and square, and you fucking know it,” Luka says coldly.

“Bullshit! Just like on the ice. You know the damn plays before they happen. You’re a damn cheat!” Axel accuses.

Uh-oh. I brace for Luka to lose his cool because that’s what most people would do when they’re unfairly accused of cheating, but he surprises the heck out of me with his calm response.

He shrugs. “I can’t help that I’m better at hockey than you are, Grimes. Bitterness isn’t a good look on you.”

“Fuck you!” Axel spits. He must finally decide enough is enough because he stalks off toward the kitchen.

What in the world is this dude’s problem?

“We have a problem on our hands with that one,” Rowan says.

“He’s too damn cocky for his own good. He deserved to be knocked down a peg or too.”

“ You’re cocky,” I blurt without thinking.

Luka’s intense gray eyes land on me, and I feel that intensity in every cell of my body. His mouth sets in a hard line. I can’t tell if I offended him or not.

Of course, you offended him! Will you shut the heck up already?!

“I think I like her,” Rowan laughs as he takes a big sip of his beer and leans back against the pool table.

“Lily, honey, Luka is cocky because he is that good . Axel is cocky for no fucking reason. He wouldn’t know a good shot if it bit him in the ass,” Stella says .

My eyes widen as it occurs to me that he might have taken offense in an entirely different way. I look back at Luka. “I didn’t mean that you weren’t good. You’re great! Excellent! Beautiful even!” My cheeks heat as I suck a sharp breath through my nose. I pray to God that my mouth freaking closes to save me from even more embarrassment tonight, but the trainwreck that is my personality just keeps chugging along. Choo choo . “I don’t mean you’re beautiful! As in, you play beautifully .”

He smirks. “Beautiful, huh?”

I gulp and now pray to the dear Heavenly Father above that my word vomit is done for the night, but of course, I’m not that lucky.

My head nods without me permitting it to. “The Pythagoreans were the first to coin the term ‘ Divine Proportion .’ They would most likely agree that you have an almost perfect golden ratio. In essence, by most culture’s standards, you would be classified as beautiful.”

The smile splitting Luka’s gorgeous face only amplifies my nerves. His eyes are alight with laughter, and the dimple on his right cheek makes an appearance.

“Is that appropriate for tier-one friends, Lily McKenna? Or did I just get bumped up again?” Luka asks with mischief in his gaze.

“Tier-one friends? What the hell is going on?” Stella swings her gaze from me and back to Luka.

Luka looks like he doesn’t have a care in the world. Meanwhile, I’m over here trying not to pass out from embarrassment. I’m really starting to feel lightheaded. Why can’t I keep my big mouth shut?

“Lily here has a tiered system she places all her friends in. I’ve gone from acquaintance to tier-one, and now I wonder if I made it to the second tier,” Luka answers when I finally will my blabby behind to shut up.

Stella stands there, looking baffled and possibly ready to strangle me, which I one hundred percent deserve. I’m practically panting over her brother and making a fool of myself because I know he’s just messing with me. There’s no way he sees me as anything more than his tutor .

Even if his eyes are telling me something different right now. I close mine to break our connection. Those eyes are going to get me into so much trouble. I need to stay focused and figure out what part Luka Russo plays in my dream.

We’re nothing more than friends.

Those words feel like a lie when I open my eyes and find him still intently staring at me.

I ignore everyone around me. Somehow, right now, he’s all that exists. “I can think you’re pretty, and you still just be a tier-one friend.”

He tosses his hand over his heart and bats his eyelashes. “You think I’m pretty, too?”

I giggle at his antics and roll my eyes.

Stella holds up her hands. “ Hello? Earth to my brother and best friend! You two need to slow your roll. Even though I think you two would make a cute couple,” her eyes move to set firmly on her brother, “the rule goes both ways, Brother. If I can’t date your friends, you can’t date mine .”

My eyes go so wide it feels comical, and then the blubbering starts all over again. “What? We aren’t—! I’m not—! It’s not like that! I never said—!”

Luka laughs and slings his arm around his sister, bringing her tightly against his chest. “Don’t worry. Lily made me swear not to fall in love with her, and I never break my promises.”

His words cause a physical reaction. It feels like my stomach slams down into my intestines, making me queasy. Still, I plaster on a fake smile because this is what I wanted. This is what I need.

A promise is a promise.