Page 75 of Perfectly Matched: Harbor Falls Romance Collection

“That’s it, Pinky. End of conversation. I’m not going!”

Pinky stared at her in disgust. Lucki turned away and headed for the water cooler.

Lucki knew it wasn’t over. Pinky never let anything drop. But the fact that she’d just told her friend that she wasn’t going to the picnic after all, wasn’t open for discussion. She wasn’t going to go. Ever since she’d left Sam’s kitchen and his waffles this morning she’d been all jittery inside. She didn’t know what it meant. It was strange.

Lucki Stevenson didn’t get all jittering inside anymore. That was for adolescent girls who were experiencing puppy love. In her world, those jittery feelings didn’t exist. It was a damned shame. Love was wasted on youth. She’d heard that said once. She guessed it was true. When those first incredible feelings of love embrace your heart, consume your heart, it is the most wonderful, incredible, and life-altering thing.

But adolescent girls don’t really know how to handle it. Not true love, anyway. Adolescent boys, either. They get all possessive and testy and territorial as far as their love goes. It smothers. Squeezes. Grips at the heart until it hurts.

She didn’t know what was wrong with her.

She hadn’t had those jittery feelings inside since... Since when?

Since Sam?

Oh, shit.

Pinky shouted her name and Lucki glanced down at her overflowing cup of water beneath the cooler’s spigot. Her hands were shaking. Why?

Because the last time you had those kinds of feelings for a boy was over ten years ago.

Lucki swallowed. The night of the horrible disaster. Her life’s most embarrassing moment. The day she’d blocked out of her mind for years—until now.

Until the feelings Sam had dredged up this morning made the memory of that god-awful night resurface.

Senior Prom. Hers. No date. Sam had been home from college two weeks. They’d spent a lot of time together. It felt good. Right. And she’d felt the tingles. She was practically giddy over him. When she’d asked him to take her to the prom, he’d accepted.

She was even giddier.

Then at the last minute, he’d canceled. Broke off their date. And had broken her heart in the process, too.

The Heartbreaker.

She’d chastised herself for months. Embarrassed that she’d let herself fall under his spell.

Not Lucki! She’d been the one to laugh all those years when other girls had fallen. Yeah, that’s what she’d called him all those years ago. The Heartbreaker. All through junior high and high school when Sam had girls falling at his feet willing to risk having their hearts broken by—The Heartbreaker.

Sam would always laugh, puff out his chest a bit, and gloat whenever another one fell.

Lucki would laugh along with him and pity the poor girls. Practically no female within Sam’s age bracket had escaped the charms of The Heartbreaker.

Not even Lucki.

Only that time, she didn’t laugh.

“What about that boyfriend you’re supposed to have?”

Lucki broke her thought process and swirled to face Pinky.

“I don’t...”

Lucki caught herself. She’d started to say she didn’t have a boyfriend.

“I don’t think he can make it.”

“You don’t think.”

Pinky crossed her arms and thrust out one hip.

“He can’t go.”

Lucki glanced to the floor and headed for her cubicle.

“I can’t go, either.”

How could she go now? She didn’t want to be near any man. Not after what she’d finally uncovered, buried for all those years. After all, she’d nearly wiped it out of her memory. She had fallen for Sam Kirk, hard, that spring.

And all he’d thought about her? That she was like his kid sister.

So, he’d sent a substitute. Alan Parker. An already balding eleventh grader who was Sandra Slut’s younger brother. Same couldn’t go so at the last minute, he called Alan to see if he was available to escort Lucki to the prom.

It was both a stab to her heart and a slap in the face.

In the end, she was glad Sam had opted to go back to summer school in Memphis a week or so later. It put distance between her and her heartbreak. She might have killed him otherwise, once she’d moved into the angry stage of heartbreak mourning.

So how could she go to the picnic with anyone at all? Especially someone Sam had chosen for her? Oh, why in tarnation did I ask him in the damn first place?

“Well, you know Rick’s going to be furious.”

“Rick’s going to be furious about what?”

The male voice came from the doorway and Lucki turned at the sound.

Pinky shot a glance at Lucki.

Frowning, Rick asked again.

“What will I be furious about?”

Lucki exhaled and stared at Pinky, then slid her gaze to Rick.

“I can’t go to the picnic.”

Rick chuckled and crossed the room to a filing cabinet. He pulled out a drawer and rifled through the files.

“Someone die?”

“No,”

Lucki answered.

“Dying? Ill?”

“No.”

“Someone getting married, having a birthday, or coming home from overseas?”

Lucki shook her head. “No.”

Rick turned toward her.

“Then why can’t you go?”

Lucki swallowed.

“I... I....”

I can’t tell him I don’t have a date. I can’t tell him I don’t want to come alone because of Matt. I can’t tell him my hormones are going wacky.

“It’s personal, Rick.”

“And the picnic is your job, Lucki.”

“Not directly, Rick. It’s kind of extracurricular, wouldn’t you say? Kinda off the clock?”

Rick turned and stared straight into her eyes.

“Yes, Lucki, if you want to get technical, I guess you could say that. But you know how I feel about it and you know I expect you to be there. You are a salaried employee. You work until the job is done. So, unless have a helluva good reason why you can’t be at the one activity that culminates an entire year of hard work, I could get pretty technical about this whole thing. I expect you to be there.”

Lucki gulped. Rick was right and she knew it.

“Um, maybe I can work something out.”

Rick nodded then picked up a file. He stalked toward the door and turned before he exited.

“Good. I’ll see you on the Fourth. You’re in charge of the volleyball tournament.”

He left and Lucki turned to Pinky, who was gloating. Just a little.

“Shut up, Pinky!”

“I didn’t say a word!”

Lucki headed for her cubicle and briskly shut her door.

****

Even though her stomach was rumbling, Lucki didn’t want to think about dinner. In fact, she hadn’t taken a bite of food all day long. Not one to skip meals, she was feeling it big time. She felt lightheaded, her stomach was a little queasy, and she was getting a headache.

She really needed to eat dinner.

She didn’t want to think about it.

Dinner meant facing Sam. And something firm and hot and satisfying.

And to make matters worse, J.J. wasn’t going to be around. She had dropped him off at Spud’s on the way home. Sam said it would be okay.

Oh, Lord. Lucki pulled into her driveway, parked, killed the engine, and let her head fall against the steering wheel. Immediately it made contact with the horn, which blared loudly. She jumped back up, hit her head sharply on the window behind her, and then slunk down into the seat beside her while rubbing the back of her head.

As she lay there, all she could think about was how good those waffles looked that morning. Then she thought of how good Sam looked. Then she thought about how mad she was at him after he’d dumped her before the prom all those years earlier. And about how hurt she’d been.

Sam only thought of her as the girl next door then. Not a real date. That’s why he hadn’t thought twice about finding himself a substitute for the prom. She was sure he didn’t think any differently of her now. She was still the girl next door. Always would be. Sam would never think of her in any other way.

He’d just been teasing her this morning. Like he had always teased her. She just had to get any thoughts of the two of them together out of her head.

Sam was just the boy next door. Still was. Always would be.

Lucki grimaced and rubbed her jumpy tummy, then closed her eyes. Maybe, she thought, if she just laid here still and quiet for a few minutes longer, the queasiness would subside and then she could go into the house, call Sam and tell him she couldn’t make it to dinner. Then she’d eat some yogurt or fruit or something and go to bed.

Yes. That’s what she’d do. Go to bed and forget about jilted prom dates and the boy next door.

****

The steaks were sizzling on the grill when Lucki had pulled into her driveway. Sam watched as she drove around to the back of the house, like she did most every day. He’d turned the steaks and watched the fire blaze up as liquid fat hit the coals, then heard the blast from her horn.

He glanced sharply up at the sound and then waited.

He figured she’d hit the horn or something when she was getting out.

Then he saw her lean over in the seat.

Probably reaching over to get something, he thought.

He waited.

The steaks popped and sizzled.

There was no movement in the truck cab.

She was still down in the seat.

He waited.

Something acrid itched at his nose. He waved the smoke away.

He still couldn’t see Lucki’s head pop up.

Something was wrong.

He dropped the barbecue fork.

Something was wrong with Lucki. My God! That’s why she blew the horn!

Sam took off running across his back yard, leapt over J.J.’s bike, hurdled the hedge, and jerked open the driver’s side door of Lucki’s truck.

Oh, God. She was passed out in the seat! And she was moaning.

“Lucki!”

He reached in, grasped both her arms, and pulled her into an upright position.

“Lucki! Are you all right?”

He gently patted her face.

Lucki bolted. Her eyes shot open. Sam had difficulty registering the expression in them.

“Sam! What? What are you doing?”

“Are you okay? What happened to you?”

Lucki raked a fist over her puzzled face.

“What the hell are you talking about Sam? Nothing has happened. I’m fine.”

“Oh no, you don’t. You don’t look fine. Your eyes look tired, weak. Your skin looks sallow. You’re shaking. And you were moaning when I opened the door. You’re sick, aren’t you?”

“I’m just tired, Sam. It’s been a long day and I haven’t eaten. I was just... Uh, resting.”

It took only a second for Sam to swoop her up into his arms, back out of the truck, and head back over the hedge to his house. He walked around the bike this time.

“Sam! What are you doing? Put me down!”

Lucki ordered.

Sam ignored her, hooked a foot into the back screen door standing slightly ajar and kicked it open. Through the kitchen and into the family room he walked, and then placed Lucki carefully on the couch. Kneeling beside her, Sam caressed the hair away from her cheek and looked deep into Lucki’s eyes.

He still wasn’t sure what he saw in them looking back at him.

“It’s not smart to go all day without eating.”

“I’ll eat, Sam,”

Lucki replied.

“You didn’t have to carry me in here.”

“You looked weak.”

He lied. He just wanted to carry her.

“I’m fine. Really. Just tired.”

Lucki raked her tongue over her lower lips. Sam swallowed.

“The steaks will be ready in a few minutes.”

He started to rise.

Lucki laid a hand on his forearm.

“Sam, you don’t have to cook dinner for me. I know you were just teasing me this morning.”

Sam looked again into Lucki’s eyes.

“Lucki, I wasn’t teasing. I want to cook dinner for you.”

Again, something flashed across Lucki’s face that was difficult for him to discern. His gaze dropped to her lips. Full. Slightly red. Moist. Then before he realized what he was doing, before he even thought about it, he leaned in closer and touched his lips to hers.

That’s when the siren went off in his ear.

Lucki pushed him back off his haunches, sending him flying backward, yelling, “Fire!”

He turned and saw the smoke billowing into his open kitchen window.