become clear,
someone would dump pieces from another puzzle into the
mix so that I wasn’t even sure what belonged and what didn’t
any more.
Lucas was one of those pieces.
How did I really feel
about him? There were moments when he was arrogant and I
wished I’d never met him. Then there were the times when I
could see the same warmth in his eyes that I remembered
seeing in Lee’s. It was like he was two different people. Is this
how Lee would have ended up if he hadn’t had so much pain
and sorrow in his life?
As I was pondering the sheer confusion of it all, there
came a knock at the door. In order to avoid the strange looks
from Dad or Shelly, I ran to answer it first. For a split second
after I opened the door, I would have sworn it was Lee on the
porch and not Lucas. Until he spoke.
“So I bet you have one hell of a bruise from that fall
you took today. You should probably have someone look at it,
you know, just in case you need medical attention.” He took
off his jacket and hung it up. “I’d be happy to volunteer,” he
said leering at my backside, “since it doesn’t seem like that
boyfriend
of
yours
is
helping
you
out
much
in
that
department.”
I snapped. “Zach! His name is Zach! And again, what
makes you so sure he’s not?” Only minutes ago I was thinking
about how much he reminded me of Lee.
Now, I took that all
back. I led him to the Man Cave and plopped down into one of
the reclining chairs. When he didn’t immediately respond, I
took it one step further. “What? Suddenly you don’t have
anything to say?”
Lucas chuckled as he set up the balls on the table.
“That—that right there. That’s how I know. If he was giving
you the attention you needed, you wouldn’t get so defensive
when I said he wasn’t.”
“Zach gives me plenty of attention!” I countered
angrily.
“Maybe…but maybe just not the right kind. Not the
kind you need.”
He struck a nerve and he knew it. “So you only met
me yesterday but today you know exactly who I am and what
I need, huh? Don’t be so full of yourself.”
Lucas put the cue stick down on the table and walked
over to me. He sat on the arm of the chair and leaned in close,
so close that I could feel the warmth of his breath on my face.
“Just admit it Ru—you’re hot for me. It’s written all over your
face. And your boyfriend senses it too, doesn’t he? Let me
guess—Mr. Sensitive won’t touch you now because he’s afraid
of getting his heart broken. But just in case you’re interested,
I’m not afraid.”
I wanted to argue with him, to prove him wrong. But
that was impossible because he was dead-on right. He was so
close, close enough for me to kiss him. And that was exactly
what he was hoping I would do.
He wanted me to lose
control. He wanted me to get caught up in the moment and
ask from him what Zach wouldn’t give me. What he wanted
most, though, was me— all of me. I’ll admit it—I was tempted,
tempted to see what I missed out on with Lee.
But he wasn’t Lee. With my hands on his chest, I
shoved him away and he nearly fell on the floor. “I invited
you here to talk about Lee—not to try to get into my pants!
So if that’s the only reason you’re here, it’s time for you to
leave.”
Just like before, I caught a glimpse of something
unrecognizable in his eyes. It lingered for a moment and then
was
gone.
What was that?
Anger?
The
bitterness
of
rejection? I just couldn’t put a name to it.
“Sorry, I’ll back off on one condition—I want you to
admit that I’m right. Admit that you’re attracted to me.” No
smile, no cocky attitude—he was straight up serious.
Okay, so how I was I supposed to answer that?
In
some ways, yes.
In some ways, no.
He looked exactly like
someone I used to date, someone who I used to think was the
cutest boy ever. Until I met Zach. Zach changed everything—
even the way I felt about Lee. But in some ways, Lucas was so
irritating that he became completely
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