Pretend You're Mine(16)
Luke pulled the album out of her hands and slammed it shut. “We’re falling behind on the tour. Let me show you the upstairs, and then I’ll introduce you to Mom’s chickens.”
“Um, okay.” Harper was confused by the sudden change in him. He half dragged her away from the window seat and towards the first door.
The quick tour of the upstairs bedrooms revealed spacious rooms with very little clutter. The master was a sunny space with a claw-foot tub in the bathroom. Luke’s bedroom had been converted into a sewing room for his mother and the other two rooms were outfitted as guest bedrooms. It was a tidy home designed around a bustling family life.
The free-range chickens in the back yard were Claire’s current pride and joy. The chicken coop that Charlie built was nicer than most of Harper’s apartments.
Everything seemed like a fairy tale to Harper and left her wondering what had made Luke distance himself from it all.
***
Luke accepted the basket of rolls from Harper and passed it on to James, at his right. He usually didn’t mind his family’s monthly Sunday meals — too much — but having Harper with him added another dimension.
He watched as she chatted with his father about gardening while making faces at his nephew, who was refusing to eat his turnips. She seemed relaxed, but he knew she couldn’t help but notice the long looks from his relatives.
Under the microscope.
He was used to the intense study, having been under it himself for quite some time. But he imagined it was more awkward for someone unaccustomed to it.
Soph winked at him from across the table and nodded subtly towards Harper. Luke got the message loud and clear. It was the first family meal in a long time that he hadn’t had to suffer through poorly disguised fix-ups and casual attempts to discern his mental state.
He just might be getting as much out of this deal as Harper was, or at least more than he bargained for.
***
The family adjourned to the deck for slices of the peach pie Harper brought from the grocery store and homemade vanilla ice cream.
“Go easy on that pie, bro,” James teased Luke. “I want you to put up some kind of fight in football before I destroy you.”
“Ooooooh,” Sophie and Ty cooed tauntingly.
Harper snickered.
“Don’t you start, Harper. You’re the ref,” Luke warned, taking a sip of his beer.
“I want to play!”
“No.” His tone left to room for argument. “Not in the shape you’re in.”
Harper sulked and took another bite of pie.
They picked teams, with Sophie and James pitted against Ty and Luke. The game’s action quickly escalated from casual fun to all-out war. Competition definitely ran in the Garrison blood, Harper noted, as Luke tripped James after his brother “accidentally” kicked him in the shin.
She stayed on the sidelines and enjoyed the chaos. The players tiptoed around Josh when the toddler chased a chicken across the field of play and no one batted an eye when Sophie put Ty in a headlock so James could run down field.
Distracted by Claire asking her if she’d like some coffee, Harper didn’t see the freight train of Luke and James hurtling towards her after a long bomb thrown by Ty until it was too late.
Luke caught the ball out of mid-air and she saw the exact second that it registered that he was about to crush her.
He twisted open in the air and wrapped one arm around her while cushioning their fall with the other. They landed halfway in one of Claire’s flowerbeds. Surrounded by azaleas, Harper stopped moving under Luke’s weight.
His hips pressed into hers and she forgot all about bruises and the ground beneath her.
“I keep finding you like this,” he teased, his breath warm on her face.
“It’s nice to not be unconscious this time.”
She saw the subtle change in his eyes and held her breath as he lowered his mouth closer to hers. Harper parted her lips.
“Touchdown, Uncca Luke!” Josh threw himself on Luke’s back.
***
That night, Harper stared into the mirror’s reflection as she brushed her teeth. She had wondered if Luke would acknowledge their “moment,” but he had simply pulled her to her feet and gone back to the game until it was called on account of darkness and they said their good-byes.
Claire had wrapped Harper in a gentle hug and told her she was welcome any time. It had been a great day with his family.
Luke rapped on the door. “You decent?”
Harper spit and rinsed. “Yep.” She reached for her hairbrush while Luke joined her at the sink.
“I really like your family,” she said, tugging the elastic band out of her hair.
Luke shrugged, loading up toothpaste on his brush. “Yeah, they’re not bad in small doses.”