Luke shook his head. He steeled his face into a mask of impenetrability. “No, he’s right. I probably shouldn’t wait.” Luke’s eyes betrayed the fact that he wished Sadi would stay with him but she just couldn’t. She needed to be out of that stifling room, away from the horrible dead eyes of Mr. Greeson. Away from the terrible grief that she knew was tearing Luke apart from the inside, though his face remained stoic.
“I’ll be back in an hour,” Sadi said. “That should give you enough time.” She looked pointedly at Greeson. The man nodded.
“Of course,” he replied. “An hour now will get us started.”
Sadi gave Luke a quick kiss. She felt the tremble in his lips when they met hers. She squeezed his hand one more time, then walked out of the room. She needed to get outside, to breathe in some fresh air. She wanted to pretend that she was anywhere but here and that this was some bad dream, that it wasn’t real, that it wasn’t happening to her and Luke.
Sadi was relieved to see Luke's smile as they walked through the front door of their home. She set her purse on the hall bench and took a deep breath. It had been a long two weeks.
She was surprised to find that she dreaded going home after Luke had finally been discharged from the hospital. The hospital room seemed so safe and sheltered. In there they could almost pretend that what had happened hadn't happened at all. They could almost go on as if their lives were normal.
Except that their lives were anything but. It had been almost twenty one days since the bombing and Connor still hadn't been found. No body. Nothing.
Luke had met so many times with his lawyer that Sadi had lost count. Then there were more police coming for statements. More questions. Luke could provide no answers that he hadn’t given before. Some of the staff at Pearson and Pearson had been injured in the blast but thankfully no one had died. Just Connor....
It seemed unthinkable to Sadi that Luke's twin was gone. Greeson had convinced Luke to proceed as if Connor was never coming back. He had even planted the idea about arranging a funeral for his brother. It seemed very sudden to Sadi; just one more tragedy for Luke to endure.
At the mention of a funeral, Sadi had thought about Luke's parents. She had actually never met them. Luke didn't even know where they were. He hadn't spoken with them in years.
Did they even know what had happened? Sadi had begged Luke to try and contact them, but he flat out refused. She chalked it up to grief. The Luke she knew would never refuse his own parents the right to come to their son’s funeral no matter what he thought about them; or at least Sadi had thought so.
She supposed she may have underestimated the depth of Luke’s hurt and bitterness where his parents were concerned. On the other hand, Sadi knew that Luke believed the funeral to be a farce. He would never give up hope of Connor being found. His unwavering faith that Connor was alive had made Sadi's heart ache.
They had delayed their wedding, which was only right in light of the circumstances. Sadi knew that their impending nuptials were the last thing on Luke's mind. Luke hadn't even been interested in the details she had mentioned.
He seemed completely spaced out, as if he had never heard a single word about the planning she had spent hours going over with him before their world had shattered. She didn't mind. She hadn't been thinking much about it herself.
Sadi had vowed she would change if Luke lived, and she had. She had been by his side in the hospital, offering her nearness as a buffer against the storm of life and Luke had clung to her like a drowning man.
She had felt an affinity with Luke that she hadn’t felt before, even at the start. It was like the horrible events had drawn them closer than ever before. Luke looked at Sadi differently, like he was seeing her for the first time. Like she was the only thing that mattered to him. Like if he looked away, he would lose her.
Luke was looking at Sadi like that now. He took a step closer to Sadi, his grey blue eyes clouded with desire. The smouldering look he sent her took her breath away. Sadi stood rooted to the spot. Luke took another step and another until he was mere inches from her. He reached out a hand and gently stroked her cheek.
“You're so beautiful,” he whispered, voice husky.
Sadi felt his words to the bottom of her stomach. His touch sent a wave of tingling sensation right to her core. Luke bent his head and kissed Sadi.
Her lips came alive under his. Luke groaned and buried his hands in her hair. He drank her in like he had never tasted her before. It was a desperate kiss. One that was deep and full and passionate. Luke had always been a more passive kisser, more tender in his touch, and the force of his lips, the desperation in his touch, took Sadi by surprise. She pulled away in shock, raising a trembling finger to lips that still tingled with sensation.