"Friends are the family you choose." — Jess C. Scott
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Chapter 34
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Maggie

I'd been trying to figure out how to work Luke's shower for the past half hour. So far, I was just as unsuccessful as the last couple of times.

That was what I hated about sleeping at someone else's house. If you wanted to figure out their shower, you'd need the square root of who the fuck knows, a crap-ton of luck, and a map.

Huffing, I took a step back to avoid spraining my hand in its awkward position. "Oh, come on." My fingers dug into my hips before I rolled my eyes. I'd just ask.

Despite how embarrassing it may be after bragging about my gpa.

It would be the first thing to get me out of the room, today. I'd been hiding in here since the moment I woke up, too afraid or too nervous or too both to go, and confront what was outside.

It was eleven in the morning, though I didn't feel sluggish, despite the previous night. I guessed it had something to do with the spacious bed, or the heavenly materialized mattress.

I didn't know if Luke was awake or not. I hadn't heard anything outside of the room, though.

I glanced around the quiet space, again. It was so silent in here, it was nearly eerie. Turning on the television didn't help, either; if anything, it provided a good jump-scare.

Luke must get real lonely here. If it were just me in this big place, I knew I would.

I didn't know how to feel without Jax jumping on my bed at seven in the morning. Or, smelling his homemade pancakes and French toast. It was all so strange.

I shrugged the feeling off. At least the memory of my brother, and the ability to make even more wasn't completely gone. I had Luke and myself to thank for that, but more him. If he hadn't came, I would have been on the first flight out of Washington before the sun even set.

My feet drifted across the cool marble with such ease, I had to glance down a couple times to ensure that I was actually walking. I was shocked every single time, to realize that I was.

My fingers tightened around the handle before I hesitated. For what, though, I didn't know. It shouldn't be so burdensome to just walk out, but it was. At least it felt like it was.

Fuckitfuckit—

I yanked the door open before I could chicken out of it. My steps continued on, only marked by one mission and one mission only.

Before I could even cross the threshold, though, my foot hit something. Well, someone. And, technically stepped.

Luke's groan echoed through the silent house, his eyes jerking up to me as he cupped his side. My own found his in shock.

"What are you doing?" I asked with more accusation than intended. "Why are you outside of my room?" This was his house, and the room wasn't technically mine, but it was still odd, nonetheless.

Luke lifted himself from his spot, swiping a hand down his exhausted face, and popping his neck. "I wasn't being weird or anything. I was just..." His eyes jerked between the door and me. "Making sure."

My brows knitted in a frown. "Making sure of what?"

He huffed, pulling a hand through his messy strands. "That you didn't have any nightmares. I could get to you quicker from right here than I could from my room."

I nearly stumbled right back through the doorway in pure shock, if only it weren't for the mix of shame and appreciation.

My eyes jerked down to the blanket and pillow that was right where he previously was. "You slept out here?"

"I didn't want you to think that you were alone."

I hadn't realized I'd skipped a breath until it came back to me so fast, my chest shook under the strength of it.

"You didn't..." I paused, considering his effort. As shameful as I felt about making him sleep on the hard floor just to help me through a nightmare, I was just as appreciative. "Thank you, Luke. Really."

He shrugged it off, pressing his lips into a thin line. "I told you to quit thanking me. I don't want it."

Without another word, he turned, which led me back to the originality of my questions. I called out his name a little too quickly, and he jerked back around.

I managed a sheepish smile. "Uh...could you show me how to use the shower? I've been trying to figure it out, but..." I shook my head, pointing back to it.

An amused glint went well with his farcical expression. "Really, miss 3.8 gpa?"

I rolled my eyes. "4.0 now, Palce."

"Ah," he clicked his tongue, stepping past me. "Silly me, Norris."

I followed behind him until we were in the bathroom.

Easily, he turned the water on, setting it to warm. When he glanced over his shoulder to me, his uproarious expression never fell.

"Now, listen real carefully, miss 4.0," he teased, dangling a silly grin at me that made my sun go flush. "This might be a little hard for you to figure out, but it's all practice, okay? You get under the spray of water, and—"

"Get out." Before he could object, I was pushing him out by the chest. "And, get some sleep. I'll be fine." The bags under his eyes were painfully obvious, despite his fresh energy.

I was more than grateful for his effort, though. Even in the shower, I found my mind so entrapped by it all.

There wasn't any rhyme or explanation for Luke's actions, I'd found out. He hadn't given one last night, or in general. It wasn't that hard to figure out, but that didn't make it any less absurd.

He cared about me.

That was it. It had to be. I wasn't sure if that extended over friendship, and I wasn't even sure if I wanted it to.

Would it be so bad if I wanted it to?

I sprayed the water over my face until my mind cleared with it. I couldn't think about that, right now, or ever.

It wasn't going to happen. Luke and Maggie...it wasn't possible.

I needed to make a plan, though.

My father was scheduled for release in late April, which meant that I had a couple of weeks to get my shit together.

Luke mentioned that he had guns. Jax tried to teach me a couple years back, but I had thought nothing of it. Until now. I would need one, and training.

One by one, I was sure I could handle it, but my father didn't play fair when it came to anything. He would ensure an attack that led me to death, or near death so that he could finish me off.

If Luke wasn't around, I would still need to be able to defend myself, effectively. No matter how vainglorious my father felt, we all fell the same, assumptive or not.

He would fall by my own hand.

I'd threatened murder on multiple occasions, to multiple people that deserved it, but this one...this was the one that I'd saved, all of my life. He was the one who deserved it, the one I wouldn't hesitate on.

It was an eye for an eye type of situation. My father had killed me in so many ways, but it wasn't a merciless murder. He had ripped, shredded, and absolutely disembodied any resemblance of life the moment he stepped into my room that night.

It was only fair that I did the same.

I didn't care what would happen, afterwards. I didn't care about the trauma, or the charge that would follow. I didn't care.

As Luke had said, there was always that thought at the back of your head. The ones that were like intrusive thoughts, but would actually be considered right if it weren't for societies standards. Ethos were the only thing holding us back from doing or saying them.

This was mine: that motherfucker deserved to die.

I didn't want to play god, or to be the one to decide who was worthy of death or punishment. I wasn't doing that, either.

It was just the way it technically was. No one else had endured the same pain, the same torture, and demeaning treatment.

It was me.

So, it would be up to me to decide how it ended.

Victims were always being told to be strong, to carry on, to be the bigger person, and pursue peace. As if it hadn't been slaughtered from us by someone who was fine, someone who was facing no real repercussions from what they did.

Well, fuck that.

No one ever told us to seek revenge. For some, it wasn't enough. For others, it wasn't worth it. For me though, it would be. The real redemption would be in emptying a round in that motherfucker's face.

Despite the law, despite the 'right thing' and all of that bullshit, this was the only right answer. It was either kill or be killed, and after being a walking corpse for so long, I deserved to live. Damned or not.

The story would get out, there was no doubt about it. This was the one thing that I couldn't continue to hide, nor would I aid in its discovery.

I just hoped I would be forgiven.

Luke, Granny, Jax, Kimberly, and Raven. The only people that each held a significant part of me. I hoped, and pleaded every single day, that they would find it in their hearts to forgive me and my deceit.

As mournful as it would be, though, I could understand if they didn't. I'd made realization with the fact that they probably wouldn't.

I needed to cleanse my mind as well as I could. A quick visit with Granny would help. She'd know what to say.

I needed to stop by Jax and I's apartment, too. I'd sent him a text that dwindled the details of last night. It was another lie, but it was one to keep him calm until I had a chance to get everything together.

And, Luke. I wondered what he was thinking of me, about me. Was he worried about me staying here, or snooping around his place, or how I'd invaded his space?

I shook the thoughts away. No. He invited me to stay on his own, so that had to mean something.

As I dried myself off, I found myself repeating the same question: how would this work?

I planned to only stay for a week, but that was a long time considering the situation. Especially between two people that had tried to scratch the others eyes no less than two months ago.

Would their be rules? Should we make them, or would they be obvious on their own?

I didn't want to be rude about it, since this was his house. I would just suggest the rules to ensure that we were both comfortable in each others' space. Since we would be here alone and together, comfort and a mutual respect were important.

Alone and together.

The thought made my skin burn. I hadn't elaborated much on that part until now.

I shrugged it off with a swift kick. We'd been alone and together more often than not, so we could continue doing it without problem. Easy. 

While I waited for my hair to dry, I dressed, then concentrated on my neck. The bruises were far more evident than anything else, right now. The blue and purple raw skin was sore to the touch, but if I wanted to ensure that no questions were asked, I would have to cover up. 

I used makeup to do so. Once the spots blended in with my skin, my nerves settled a little bit. Unless it rained, Jax and granny wouldn't know a thing.

I stepped out of the room with my phone in hand. I was waiting on a response from Jax to come over. He was scheduled to work a late night shift, but with his hectic schedule, that could change at any minute.

I retraced my steps toward the kitchen, which was definitely a task on its own. It was a wonder that only one person lived here.

As I made my way, the pristine white marble floors seemed to gleam more with every passing glance. The walls, just as glossy and white as those in my room, appeared to extend throughout the entire house. Upon entering the living room, my eyes gravitated towards the furnishings.

To my left, a three-piece leather sectional sofa exuded an elegant, smoky gray allure. On the opposite side, two expansive, sleek recliners almost blended into the pristine white surroundings. Positioned in front of a colossal plasma television, which dwarfed even my own wall-mounted screen at home, the seating area commanded attention.

In the space between the furniture and the mammoth television, a transparent coffee table held treats, a pack of cigarettes, and an assortment of dog toys.

I'd wait for Luke to show me the rest of the rooms himself, as I didn't want to intrude. If they were anything like this, though, my expectations were definitely high.

Subtle, sharp taps against the tile floors made me pause, before I took one last step. Just as I rounded the kitchen, I was getting knocked on my ass.

Pain radiated throughout my backside, but before I could let out a groan, someone, or something with lots of fur was on top of me. I didn't realize until I pried my eyes open what was happening.

Big, soft brown eyes with a hint of familiarity stared back into mine. His entire body canopied my own with either leg on all sides of me.

The dog leaned down, catching my nose in a swipe of his tongue.

"Shit!" I heard Luke hiss from somewhere in the room. "Fang, get off of her."

The dog continued on, covering every inch of my face with his own or his slobber. I couldn't stop the laughter from cascading out of me, despite the pain from the fall.

"Hello to you too, sweetheart," I cooed, despite how much strength I was losing with his body weight.

Finally, his kisses relented. His head popped back up so quickly, he nearly head-butted Luke, who was trying to pull him off of me without harming him.

Once he got him, Luke's worrisome eyes scanned me over. "Shit, I'm sorry," he rushed out, casting me an apologetic look. "He's not used to having anyone else here. Did he scratch you?" He lifted my arm, waving it in all different directions to check for injuries.

"No, no. It's fine." I shook my head, pulling myself up with a mix of a chuckle and a hiss. "He didn't do anything." Fang relented just enough to let me up, but I kept him at arms reach.

With a growing smile, I scratched at his ears. "So, you're Fang, huh?" I'd only seen him a couple of times through a screen, but seeing him face to face definitely wasn't the same. He was huge.

I would say he was around one hundred-and thirty pounds. His body's length and his ears were of the Doberman breed, but by the thickness of his body and his chocolate eyes, I easily took note of the Rottweiler in him.

Fang leaned right into my touch as I alternated between his ears and under his chin, stepping away from Luke and closer to me. Either one made his eyes nearly droop shut.

Luke watched him, hesitantly. "I've never seen him warm up to a stranger so quickly, before." He chuckled to himself, then crouched to where we sat. His hand patted at the dog's side. "That's my boy."

I chuckled at Fang's heavenly expression. "I think he's mine, now. Aren't you, honey?" He barked so loud, it nearly sent my body back from shock, but I took it for agreement, casting a snarky grin to Luke. "Told you."

Luke rolled his eyes, then raised himself up. "I didn't mean for him to jump you like that. I was going to introduce the two of you the right way so that he'd recognize you, but I guess you've got it on your own." He offered a hand out to me.

I took it, glancing down to Fang, who was already gazing up at me with the cutest puppy eyes. "It's fine. He's a sweetheart."

"Don't let him fool you," Luke warned me. "Trust me, the little fucker will betray the both of us for a steak."

We walked to the kitchen with Fang bumping his head into my knees every step of the way. I cast a chuckle behind me. "I don't believe it."

"You should," he responded over this shoulder. "Levi and I tested him once, I pretended to be an intruder, and for a minute, it was working. But, when Levi threw out a steak, Fang moved out of the way without a care in the world, and took the steak to his room."

"Did you ever stop to think that you're his owner and that he recognized your scent?"

Luke tilted his head, considering the idea. "I didn't. Mhm..." After pondering it for a moment, he shrugged. "It was Levi's idea."

I rolled my eyes, taking a seat at the kitchen island that was being used as a table. I didn't notice the bags sitting on top until now.

Luke moved in front of me, motioning to the bags. "Uh...I didn't know what you ate for breakfast, or if you even eat breakfast at all, and I know that shit sounds crazy, but some people have weird ass preferences, so I wanted to be safe and—"

I leaned forward, pulling one of the bags closer. "Luke." I cast a soft smile at him. "Thank you."

Relief calmed his features. He tried to take the seat beside me, but before he could, Fang pushed him away with the top of his head, instead claiming the spot for himself.

Luke glowered down at him, before he moved to the opposite side of the table. "Prick."

We ate in silence for a moment. When I saw that Luke wasn't looking, I made sure to toss Fang a couple of straps under the table.

I seized the opportunity to absorb the splendor of the kitchen. Flanking the expansive porcelain kitchen island were pristine white countertops, extending gracefully on either side. In one corner, a gas oven beckoned, standing in sleek companionship with a large, silver refrigerator. Atop the counters, I noticed a few essential eating utensils, although nothing overly specialized—just an assortment of spoons, forks, and knives.

My gaze then drifted to the inviting creamy chairs adorning both sides of the island. They, along with the ones we occupied, completed the elegant ensemble. Though, the count of them caught me off guard.

After I counted them, I raised my eyes to Luke, who was already watching me. The moment he caught my eyes, he jerked his gaze back to his phone, biting the inside of his cheek.

I attempted a teasing smile. "Can I have your attention, or does that," I paused to motion to his phone. "Have it all?"

Startled, he blinked back at me as if he were a student who was just caught with their phone by a teacher.

"My bad," he apologized, clearing his throat. "I'm not used to having anyone else here with me, so I just..." he stopped himself, pressing his lips together. "Sorry."

I shook my head with a chuckle, flicking my head at the device. "No, I was just kidding..." I saw him slide the phone back into his pocket while I looked to the chairs, again. "I was just wondering, though, why don't you have more chairs?" It was a strange question, but I didn't see the layout too often.

His brows knitted in a frown as he glanced to the spaces before meeting me, again. "What do you mean?"

"There's only three." It wasn't exactly an interrogation, but I still found it a bit odd.

Realization slid over his face like a sheet. "Oh." He motioned to the chairs. "Kade and Levi were the only people who ever came by to see me, so there was no reason to have more than three."

I tried to stop my frown from showing, but it was a harder task than I'd like to admit. I shouldn't be surprised at anything he admitted about his life, but it didn't stop my heart from sinking with sadness when I did hear it.

With a shake of the head, I turned the conversation over, "How long have you been living here?"

"Since I was fifteen," he responded, cutting into his pancake.

I looked to him with shock. "Fifteen?"

"Mhm," he mumbled around his bite.

"Is that..." I blinked back at the top of his blonde head, attempting to find any reasoning. "Is that even legal?"

He snorted, waving the fork at me. "It is when Ryan Vaudest demands it."

I stared at him for a moment longer before I got it. "Your dad got this for you? Why?"

"He didn't want me to live with him anymore. Claimed just having me in their house was bad," he admitted so casually with a chuckle. "So, he kicked me out. I was fourteen at the time. The only reason he got me this place was so that he wouldn't have to be around me as much, but so that everyone wouldn't figure out that he put me out on the streets. All he did was get the place, but I was stuck with the bills, and everything else."

"You were a kid, and he..." I drawled out a sigh to stop myself from cursing that motherfucker, his mother, and her mother. "I can't fucking believe it."

"It did kind of suck in the beginning, but it's cool now," he shrugged. "The most of it that sucked was  that he didn't let me have anything. All I got were the clothes on my back that night."

My face fell right along with my heart. "I'm so sorry, Luke."

He shrugged it off, wiping his hands along the napkin. "Don't be."

"It's fine if you're not comfortable with answering this part, but..." I placed my fork down, moving my full attention to him. "Where did you go during that time?"

"Kade and Levi's. They took me in for nearly two years, made sure I had everything I needed and more, kept a roof over my head, fed, clothed, shit like that."

I nodded slowly to process the information. "How did you end up..." I motioned to the inside of the house.

"A photographer snapped a couple of pictures of me leaving and going back to Kade's house with him for school and things like that, and the blogs went crazy over it, especially my dad, since everyone was starting to suspect that I wasn't living with him anymore, anyway. That was the first time he called me in nearly two years, and it was only to tell me that he got this place to keep me away from him, Beatrice, and Vance, but away from the blogs, too. The main rule was that I wasn't allowed to come over to their house, or call any of them, just simple shit like that."

Jesus.

"Like I said, though..." He paused to motion toward the space. "It did suck at first, but it was fine with me, honestly. It was nice not waking up to a beating every morning." Another simple chuckle came from him. "Kade and Levi helped me get settled in here, though. They paid my bills up, and made sure I ate and had everything I needed for the first few months I was here and shit like that, no matter how much I fought it."

I stared at him for a lingering moment, willing my throat to unclog long enough to form a speech. But, fuck was it hard.

"That was really nice of Kade and Levi," I managed to get out. "I never knew you lived with them."

I didn't, truly. I had moved to Washington my senior year, but when I first saw Luke, I genuinely thought he had it all. Everyone knew him, and his friends, and as I said, I had thought him to be a spoiled, daddy's boy. I was more than wrong, but I never expected this to be his life behind closed doors.

He propped his head on a fist. "Mhm," he hummed in agreement. "I didn't want to burden them with my shit, so I was going to try and figure it out on my own. But, those two annoying fuckers searched the town for hours until they found me sleeping in my car. I tried running off, but Kade tried to hit with me with his car when I did. And, I'm not kidding. The fucker literally headed straight for me until I jumped out of the way. Levi caught me, but I ended up breaking free and running back to my car."

I laughed. "That's...a lot of perseverance for sure."

His lips lifted into a smirk. "It was." Despite the topic, his expression hung with amusement at the memory. "Levi yanked me out the car, and threatened to beat my ass if I didn't tell them what was going on. I told them, but I was still planning to figure my own shit out. I tried running off again, but Kade put me in a chokehold, and Levi threw my keys into a river to stop me from leaving." His chuckle fell short as he glanced up to me, caution spreading over his expression. "Sorry if I'm talking too much. You probably don't wanna—"

"No, no." I waved him off, immediately. "I wanna listen to anything you have to tell me, I promise." Smiling, I settled my attention on him. "What happened, next?"

Something about my response brought out the surprise in him, but he quickly wiped it off, and finished, "They both picked me up and literally put me inside Kade's car and made me go with them. They gave me a home. I never asked for anything, because they gave it to me themselves. Kade's mom, Susie, didn't mind at all, even gave me my own room at their house. Kade was even going to ask her to adopt me, but I talked him out of it, because I didn't wanna put my shit on them. Him and Levi made sure I had everything I needed, though, even shit I refused to accept. I mainly lived at Kade's, though, since Levi usually stayed over, too."

My laughter had followed up somewhere in his story. The three boys were surely a questionable trio, but it was relieving that Luke managed to find some type of resemblance to care. Kade and Levi had done that for him.

Though, it still hurt my heart to think of it. Luke was fourteen, still a child, when he was put out of his own home, and rejected by the people who were supposed to accept him. It took two of his best friends, who weren't even blood related to him, to show him a real family when his own didn't. They gave him a home, and much more without any ulterior motive, only just friendship. I thought their relationship was beautiful in that way.

"I even tried to pay them and Susie back for everything I cost them over the years, but Kade and Levi both cursed my ass out every which way, and smacked the money out of my hand. I kept trying, but Kade told me to shove it up my ass every single time. Levi just always rolled his eyes, told me to fuck off, and walked away."

I laughed, again. "Are you serious?" I could see the both of them doing that clearly, so it made sense.

"Completely. I didn't want to be a burden, but they never made me feel like one," Luke added around a chuckle, stroking at his knuckles. "I don't think I would have made it without those two in my life, as stupid and as annoying as they both are. They genuinely saved me."

I nodded along, not even bothering to hide my smile. "I bet they'd say the same about you."

Luke glanced up at me, the surprise peeking out in his blues. A reddish hue dipped into the fair skin on his cheek before he smiled sheepishly, and lowered his eyes back to the plate in front of him. "Thanks, Norris."

I nodded, my heart softening as I processed the information. When I first met the three, I thought that violence and ignorance was their only default option, but the longer I heard him talk about them, the more my beliefs differed. Their ways of solving problems was surely...interesting, but I knew that they looked out for one another, no matter the costs. I loved that.

We continued to eat in silence. I wasn't sure if Luke were waiting for a harsh, judgmental response to his confessions, but I didn't have one to give, because none of that negatively impacted how I saw him.

I did have a new conversation, though.

I cleared my throat, closing the container of my food. "Luke."

Luke looked up from his plate, dark eyes meeting mine. "Yeah?"

"I was just wondering..." I decided to just jump for it, headfirst. "How are we going to do," I paused to motion between us, the house, even Fang, who was chewing on a chicken piece at my feet. "You know...this."

His eyes bounced between all three before finally ending on me. "What do you mean?"

"Like rules or something," I explained. "You know, to make sure that we're both comfortable." Saying it in my head and saying it aloud didn't align as well as I thought it would. "Just a couple of ground rules."

His head tilted as he wiped his mouth with the napkin, considering it over. "Mmh." Finally, he raised his gaze to mine, again, flicking his head at me. "What were you thinking?"

Shit. My eyes widened, then fell altogether. I didn't think that far. For someone who was in their head a lot, I never seemed to come out with the right thing, despite the every expectation to.

Luke was waiting patiently, his eyes still and steady on me. Nonetheless, I felt as if I were being watched by an audience.

My lips parted at the first thought, "No acting any differently."

"Elaborate for me."

I drug out a sigh, wiling an ounce of sensible speech to follow, "We talked about it last night."

"Then, why are we talking about it, again?" he retorted, throwing a nod at me. "You won't have to repeat anything that bothers you, or anything about yourself to me, Maggie. Tell me once, and I got it."

My skin pinched as I nodded. "Okay."

Luke stretched his legs out under the table, nearly kicking me in the foot. Instead, he let his own rest right beside mine. "Anything else, angel?"

"Curfew," I added.

His expression went slack with confusion. "Curfew?"

"Curfew. We both have to be home by midnight, unless one texts or calls the other to let them know why they won't be."

His brow raised at me, traces of confusion mingling with humor. "You do realize that we're both adults, right, Norris?"

I sighed. "I know that. I just..." My eyes fell to the napkin in his hand. "It's a rule Jax and I made. It makes me nervous when he doesn't come home or doesn't let me know ahead of time. I get scared as shit. Like something happened to him or someone hurt him, or—"

Luke cut me off with a small kick to the foot. "I'll be home before nine o'clock every night," he reassured. "And, I'll leave my location on at all times for you to track me. You have to do the same, too, though. Deal?"

I was shocked by his offer and how willingly he gave it, but I thought it good. I didn't like the idea of anyone knowing my exact location, but in this case, it might be the very thing that saves me one day.

"Deal," I confirmed with a nod. "I said midnight, though. Not nine."

Luke shrugged, tossing the crumbled napkin into the air. "Guess I'll have an earlier bed time, then. What's your next one?"

I shrugged his compliance off, instead focusing on the next rule. It took a minute, but I managed to catch hold of it.

I steadied my gaze on Luke, who was too busy sipping his juice. "No girls."

The scars on his throat jumped as he choked on his drink. In between coughs, he managed to force out, "I'm sorry?"

"You heard me." I pulled my arms over my chest. "You're not going to have women constantly flowing in and out of here, and you're not going to disrespect me while doing it. I know that we owe each other nothing other than respect but still. I don't care what time it is, who or what she is to you, or how horny you are. If you want your dick sucked, you're going to have to take it to their house, because you sure as hell won't be taking it to this one. Understood?"

That last part made my stomach turn much more than I ever anticipated. My hand fell to it, but it did nothing to soothe it. The feeling was much more complex than anything physical.

Luke, who had gotten over his coughing fit, blinked back at me, shocked. I kept my cover as honest as possible.

"You know, I've never in my goddamned life heard someone say that type of shit to me, but you..." A half-smirk perked the corner of his lips. "Jesus, Norris."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "What?"

He positioned his long leg so that we were touching knees. "You seem a little jealous if I didn't know any better, angel." With a grin, he bumped into mine. "Your eye is practically twitching, right now."

I scoffed. "Don't be an idiot."

I couldn't believe that I hadn't thought of it. Him and those two friends of his were the famous musketeers around town for a reason.

Though, I hadn't seen Luke with a girl ever since we started working on his building, but I figured he kept that part of his life separate. Either way, I didn't want to find out, and I wasn't going to, either.

Luke studied me over, but I held my position. There was no loophole in this.

He rolled his eyes and lifted his orange juice to his lips. He didn't say a word as he sipped on it, but I could feel the smugness running right off of him.

"I don't care about you fucking other girls, of course," I debunked, quickly. "That's none of my business, but you're not fucking them in—"

"You're not fucking any other man, and I'm not fucking any other woman," he announced, placing the glass down. "End of discussion."

"In this house," I corrected, slowly.

Luke chuckled, cupping his hands and placing his head on top. "I'm talking about in general, Norris."

"What?" I exclaimed. "What the—" My head shook. "That wasn't the deal."

"There is no 'deal'," he countered. "Simply action."

Obviously, I didn't have sex in my agenda for the next couple of weeks, but I didn't like the idea of it being taken away altogether. Life was stressful, and with stress, I deserved a good reliever.

"What do you mean action?"

His chuckle did something wild to my insides. "Let me find out you let another man touch you, and we'll find out what I mean, Norris." Without so much as a shift in his expression, he took another sip from his glass.

I was dumbfounded. My tongue was tripping to recover a response the longer his own rung around in my head. I had to tighten my hands around my thighs to stop them from shaking.

"That's..." I managed to breathe out. "You can't."

Luke chuckled, again. "Trust that I can. I'll empty a clip in the fucker's chest before he even gets to find your sweet spot, angel. You know the one I'm talking about."

I hated myself for knowing it. Luke had grazed it time and time again that night, and I was pretty sure that he had found a couple more, too.

Well. I shoved out a lone sigh that came out much more harder than intended. I could work with that, considering this was his house.

I still had to hold my position, though.

"You didn't say anything about girls." I wasn't even into girls, but I wanted to fuck with him. "Pleasure is pleasure, motherfucker."

Luke paused from his juice, narrowing his eyes at me. "Maggie."

I rolled my eyes, sinking back into the chair. "Fine, fine."

He rolled his eyes. "It's simple. Anyone that lays their hands on you loses them," he said. "Get it through your head, Norris."

"Same thing to you," I threw his way. "No other girls. At all."

His lips stretched into a shit-eating grin before he offered a hand. "No problem at all."

I took his hand with an eye roll. "Yeah, right." I was sure he'd find a way around it somehow, but it was fine, because it'd be an eye for an eye when I retaliated.

I leaned into my seat, again, tossing back some of the bacon pieces I had crumbled up. "Now that that's over, I need to ask you for a favor."

He thumped my knee, again. "Answer is no. Automatically." His expression, and actions in the past three months told me more than differently, though.

I rolled my eyes, anyway. "Not this time. I need to go see my grandmother and Jax. If you're okay with taking me, you can drop me off at my house so that I can pick up my car."

"I'll take you to the hospital myself, if you want," he offered. "Then, we can go and get your car."

"Are you sure? You can go to sleep if you want."

"Nah. I'll be fine, trust me." The bags under his eyes said otherwise, though.

I nodded, since there was no use in arguing with him, and gave a knowing grin. "If I didn't know any better, Luke, I'd say that you wanted to meet my grandmother?"

His mouth twitched, before he shrugged. "It depends. Is she like Jax or you?"

"Trust me." I chuckled, spooning my eggs. "Dixie Reeves is a one of a kind."