Out of the Clear Blue Sky, Part Five
When Luke went to pick up Kenna at the farm, he decided a ride sounded like a good idea.
Holden spoke some sense to Luke, suggesting that he wait at least until the stitches had dissolved before galloping off on the trails. Luke relented and spent some time brushing the mares and remembering highlights of the time he spent with Reid.
He would never actually share his thoughts with anyone, but the moment he woke up from surgery, even before he knew it was Reid’s kidney keeping him alive, Luke felt measurably stronger. Not just feeling better, but feeling better than ever. Having Reid with him always made Luke feel damn near invincible and spending time with Reid, feeding from the source only amplified the affects.
Waiting for Kenna by the car, he sat on the hood, closed his eyes and leaned his head back. The sun warmed his face and Luke concentrated on the buzz in his hand, still tingling from Reid’s light trace of the lines in Luke’s palm as he shared the wisdom given to him by an old woman in India.
“Damn. Is it really almost five?” Reid checked his watch again. Time has slipped away from him. He turned Luke’s wrist and placed his hand gently on the table. “I told Bob I’d join him for drinks at the Lakeview. My dance card has been pretty full since I got back.”
“Well,” Luke cleared his throat. “You’ve been missed.”
“I’ll see you around.”
Luke smiled weakly. “Hope so. Then, you can tell me about your time in Paris. I’ve always wanted to be there in the spring.”
Reid threw some bills on the table and turned to leave, but hesitated for a moment. Luke could tell Reid was struggling, from lack of words or whether he should even say them Luke didn’t know. When the words came, they were but a whisper. “You were. I take you everywhere.”
“Ready!” Kenna hopped off the porch, her short legs running at full speed and a plastic bag swinging haphazardly at her side. “Look what I got.”
Luke gasped appropriately at her treasure. “Strawberries. Did you pick these all yourself?”
“Most of ‘em. Jacob kinda helped, but he was eatin’ as many as he picked.”
Brushing the corner of her red-stained lips, Luke eyed Kenna suspiciously. “Looks like you had some, too.”
“I let Grandma Emma wash mine first.” Kenna tossed her wayward hair from her face as she hopped in the back seat and buckled herself in. “Poop makes the garden grow, you know.”
Luke adjusted the rearview mirror. “Who told you that?”
“Uncle Ethan. He teaches me all kinds of gross stuff.”
Shaking his head, Luke turned the key in the ignition. “Talk about gross. You smell like a barn. I think you need a bath before dinner.”
“Arg!” Kenna thrust her imaginary sword in the air. Luke loved the way she would squint her right eye and talk from the side of her mouth when she was in full pirate mode. “I’m Captain Bubble Beard and I’ve come to clean your booty.”
Luke’s shoulders shook with laughter as he put the car in reverse. “You are such a weird kid.”
“And you love me.”
“And I love you.”
***********
“Whoa!” The pungent smell that surrounded Luke and Kenna caused Knox to take a step back. “Did you ride the horses or roll around on a dead one?”
Kenna toed off her shoes by the door. “Dead horses go to the glue factory.”
“That’s it.” Luke steered Kenna towards the stairs. “I’m calling your Uncle Ethan.”
“So,” Knox watched Luke flip through the mail. He tread carefully into his question, not sure what he expected, or even wanted to hear. “Did you hang around the farm all day?”
Luke leafed through the latest newsletter from Doctors Without Borders and made a mental note to increase his donation. “No. I went into town for a while. Ran into Katie and Jacob and invited them to go riding.”
While that was probably all true, Knox knew the rest of the story. He was surprised to find himself suddenly in favor of hearing it from Luke’s mouth. Knox had been in his business too long and knew secrecy was always cause for concern. “Anything else?”
Cocking his head, Luke had a suspicion that Knox already had the answer. “It was the strangest thing. I was just about to leave Al’s when an old friend asked me to sit down. It was nice catching up.”
“Sounds nice.”
From the top of the stairs, Kenna’s high-pitched voice echoed. “I’m ready!”
“I’ll get that.” Knox brushed Luke’s shoulder as he passed. “You could probably use a shower, too.”
Luke rolled his neck as the hot water slipped over his scalp. He thought of Reid’s fingers carding through his hair when they would first wake up in the morning. How, if time permitted, Reid would roll Luke to his back and press him into the mattress while swirling his tongue oh so slowly around Luke’s nipple. He could almost feel Reid’s breath skimming over the skin on his belly. Luke’s hand followed the path. For the first time in a long time, Luke was aroused. His palm wrapped around his fattening cock and he breathed out in a hiss. “Reid.”
Rocking his hips, Luke set the scene. Katie was away with Margo, celebrating her birthday in Vegas and they had Reid’s apartment to themselves. They had enjoyed some intense make-out sessions at this point in their relationship, but had never really had the privacy for more. With Reid’s body fully over his on the couch, his teeth nipping at Luke’s neck as he warm hand traveled under Luke’s shirt up his side, more was exactly what Luke wanted.
Luke bit his lip and moaned softly. He remembered the heat in Reid’s eyes as he wormed his hand between their undulating hips and unsnapped the button on his jeans. Luke kept the pace that Reid had set, brushed his thumb over the head just as Reid did. “Um, fu-“
Pumping his cock faster, the muscles in Luke’s stomach twitched. He curled inward, feeling the intensity of his building orgasm throughout his entire body.
“I can help you with that.”
Luke’s eyes snapped open at the feel of Knox’s hand cupping his balls. He slapped at Knox’s forearm and turned his hips away.
“Oh, I see.” Knox raised his eyebrows and nodded at Luke’s erection. “That’s not for me.”
An overwhelming shame engulfed Luke. Knox was so hurt and angry and Luke had the power to put it to an end but he had been too scared to do it. He opened his mouth to apologize when Knox pounded his fist into the wall.
“What has happened to you, Luke? The secrets? The lying? You were with Reid today and you couldn’t even tell me the truth.”
Luke could feel the blood pounding in his ears. Something in Knox’s tone bristled up Luke’s spine. He shut off the water and held a towel around his waist. “Really? You think you have the right to lecture me about secrets?”
Knox flinched. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about whatever you’re hiding in that safe deposit box.”
The air in the room was suddenly very thin. Knox’s voice was weak. “What?”
“Oh,” Luke rolled his eyes, his head bobbing with the absurdity of it all. “I know. Okay? No point in denying it.”
Knox crossed his arms over his chest. “Well, ask me. That’s what this is all about, isn’t it? You want to know what’s inside.”
“Yeah, I do.”
“Some rings that Kenna’s mother left her. Legal documents, medical records.”
Luke’s shoulders twitched. “Great. So, you won’t mind showing me.”
“Of course.” Knox felt satisfied that he could buy himself some time. “The next time I go, you can tag along.”
“That’s the wonderful thing about our trip.” Luke smiled too sweetly. “We can go tomorrow.”
**********
Reid stared at a blank TV in Lucinda’s guest house, hugging a pillow to his chest. His chin sank into the brocade fabric and he sighed. His phone hadn’t beeped, buzzed, chimed, chirped or pinged all damn day. Just over a week ago, that had been a completely normal non-event. Now, the silence was driving Reid crazy.
After making a promise to himself that he wouldn’t beg for Luke’s attention when it was clearly focused elsewhere, Reid renewed his vow to stay strong. It was completely plausible that Luke would go to Chicago and fall in love with Knox all over again. No need to add insult to injury if this thing that was growing with Luke ended before it began. Again.
He rolled his head along the back of the couch and looked at the clock in the kitchen. Nine seventeen. Reid wondered what Luke was doing. Hearing much more than he ever wanted to know about Knox Hanson, Reid could only imagine what fanciful romance the hubby had in store. Reid’s stomach turned as he pictured Luke sitting on a balcony of a lavish hotel suite, his face aglow from candles on the table and a light breeze ruffling his hair.
“Screw this. I’m going to bed.”
Reid had just turned off the lamp when someone pounded on his door so hard that it rattled on its hinges. “Reid!”
Sprinting to the door, Reid tugged several times before successfully switching the lock. Only a sliver of moonlight touched the floor when Luke burst in and collapsed in Reid’s arms. Reid waited for Luke to speak, but he seemed content to run his hands over Reid’s back and shoulders. Luke threaded his fingers in Reid’s curls and pulled back just enough to look into his blue eyes, folded in shadows in the dark room.
“All this time.” Luke trembled as he lightly ran the tips of his fingers over Reid’s face, mapping every detail with care. He journeyed down Reid’s throat, brushing the prominent collar bone hiding under a threadbare Harvard t-shirt. A strangled sob escaped Luke’s chest. “God, I could have been with you all this time.”
“Luke, what are you-?”
In a crushing embrace, Luke drew Reid to his chest and claimed his lips. Luke’s tongue slowly invaded Reid’s shocked, open mouth, boldly lapping as Reid grunted and dug his fingers into Luke’s hips. The scratch of Reid’s evening stubble turned Luke’s knees to jelly and he cocked his head just to feel it again.
This is what Luke had been craving, a taste sweeter than any drop of alcohol and impossibly more addictive. Reid’s mouth was what Luke needed and he pressed his fattening cock into Reid’s groin to show him.
The trip to Chicago had obviously not been the love fest Reid had feared, but unless it involved a quickie divorce, Reid knew they should stop now. One more caress, one more kiss, one more grind against Luke’s thigh and there would be no turning back. Luke respected marriage too much for Reid to play a role in him dishonoring it.
Reid tried to pull away, but Luke pinned him back against the nearest wall. Luke worked his leg between Reid’s thighs and peered into his blown pupils. Luke’s heart pounded in his chest and he felt hot puffs of Reid’s breath on his spit-slick lips.
“Just one more.” Luke whispered. Without a second thought, Reid nodded.
If Luke had one last kiss to sustain him through what could be a long, harsh winter, he was going to make it count. He sucked Reid’s lips into his own, painting his tongue across the smooth flesh. Luke probed Reid’s mouth, memorizing every bud on his tongue.
It wasn’t a conscious decision, Luke’s hand drifting down Reid’s back to cup his ass. Luke was operating on pure instinct. A sense of déjà vu enveloped him as two fingers dipped inside Reid’s waistband and tugged at the button.
“Stop.” Reid used all his strength to move away. He kept his back to Luke as he panted and muttered incoherently between breaths. “We can’t do this, Luke. Not while you’re married.”
Luke thought of all the judgments he had passed on his parents over the years. Now, he knew what it was like to feel torn between what’s right and something that made you question the very definition of the word. Reid felt right, but going any further would be wrong. He suspected that they had already gone too far. Luke did know that he would never feel regret for kissing Reid.
“We’re getting a divorce. He promised not to fight it.”
Reid shook his head as he turned around. “What people do and what people say can be two completely different things, especially in this town.”
“Knox is about to find himself in some trouble, Reid. We’re talking jail time even if he pleads out. He paid a lab technician to run a second test saying that your DNA matched the man in that grave. He knew you were alive this whole time.” Even though Luke had been repeating it the whole ride home from Chicago, he still had trouble believing that the Knox he knew could do that. Luke assumed from the lack of shock on Reid’s face that he didn’t have the same problem. “But you already knew that.”
“I had a hunch.” Reid glanced down at his feet. “When he met me, he didn’t look shocked at all. He looked worried.”
“It will happen.” Luke’s eyes begged Reid to believe him. “Knox is going to sign the divorce papers. We will be together.”
Reid cleared his throat and shifted his weight. “Okay.”
“It’s true, Reid. Do you know why?” Luke closed the gap between them and placed his hand gently on Reid’s side. He could feel the dressing still covering the wound. “Because you love me.” Eyes brimming, Luke’s voice was choked with tears. “And I love you.”
Reid’s fingers combed through Luke’s hair. He brought their foreheads together and groaned. “Bring those papers to me soon, Mr. Snyder.”
**********
Reid had been an exposed ball of nerves for three days straight. He wasn’t eating. Well, he wasn’t snacking between his normal four meals at least. No spot in Reid’s large bed was comfortable enough to sleep. Something was missing.
He found himself lurking in Old Town during the spare time he had far too much of, hoping for a quick glance of Luke. Reid used shamefully lame excuses to talk to him, but he needed those moments of contact for his sanity. He had to see Luke’s smile, to feel the hug when they parted lasting a few seconds past friendly. To hear Luke whisper his love into Reid’s ear, those were the only things getting Reid out of bed in the morning.
Reid purposefully orchestrated these public meetings. It was unspoken, but known to both, that privacy, a closed door or empty hallway, spelled doom for their resolve. The temptation of consummating their love was too strong. Today they were meeting for lunch in the park and Luke was bringing a chaperone.
“Kenna,” Luke put his hands on her shoulders and gently guided the girl to sit beside Reid on a bench. “This is my friend, Dr. Reid Oliver.”
Kenna climbed onto her knees to better look Reid in the face. She brushed strands of unruly waves from her eyes and examined him intensely. Reid began to feel uneasy, glancing up at Luke.
“You looked away.” Kenna flopped on her butt and pulled her skirt over her knees. “I win.”
Reid balked. “Won what?”
“Kenna is the reigning Stare Down Champion.” Luke patted her head proudly.
Uncomfortable with losing anything, Reid protested. “I didn’t even know we were playing.”
“Daddy says you have to be on your toes at all times.” Kenna shrugged and quirked the corner of her mouth at Reid in an apologetic manner. “I don’t make the rules.”
Reid cocked his head, his lips pursed in Luke’s direction. “I should have known you’d raise a brat.”
Luke chuckled and rolled his eyes. “Why? Because she beat you?”
“Primarily.”
Luke passed out wrapped burgers from Al’s, using two hands to support Reid’s order. “We are working on table manners, so Kenna, don’t watch Reid eat.”
Kenna told knock-knock jokes while they ate their food. Reid was surprised to find that some of them were actually funny. Luke’s thorough enjoyment of every one may have altered Reid’s perception. Pride and love for this little girl radiated from Luke’s eyes. Being back in Oakdale made Reid question his initial decision to leave, but watching father and daughter together, he knew he couldn’t have torn them apart. He realized he hadn’t thought about what a divorce would mean for them now.
The meal was over and Luke began wadding up their trash. He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, but let it go to voicemail, much more interested in Kenna’s questions about medical oddities. No doubt those curious seeds had been planted by Ethan. Luke really needed to give him a call.
“So she’s brushing her hair and boom!” Kenna threw her head back, her arms rising and bursting in a huge explosion. Then, she shut her eyes and dribbled her fingers down her cheeks and chin. “Her head pops open and spiders are crawling all over her face. Could you fix that?”
Reid stared at Kenna blankly for a moment. “Let me start by explaining about urban legends.”
Luke felt his phone buzz again. He assumed it was the notification of a new message, but when it happened a few seconds later, he fished the phone out of his jeans. Luke had two texts from Casey.
Bro, lawyer stuff. Call me.
Now!!!
“Hey, I need to make a phone call. Will you guys be okay?”
An uncomfortable look spread over Reid’s face. He turned to Kenna. “You don’t have to…potty or anything, do you?”
“Reid! She’s in the first grade. She can use the bathroom by herself.” Luke walked over to a grove of trees for some privacy and called back over his shoulder. “I’ll make this as quick as I can.”
Kenna swung her feet, the buckles on her shoes catching the afternoon light. She twisted her tiny hands in her lap. “You wanna do something?”
“Like what?”
She looked up at Reid, squinting into the sun. “Do you like to push?”
Kenna giggled in a high-pitched trill. Her skirt fluttered as she swung back into Reid’s waiting hands, the white of her tights flashing the world. She kicked her stubby legs and squeezed the chains in her fists. “Higher!”
Reid kind of liked this. He thought about pushing little kids around all the time, but it was ‘frowned upon’. Reid had no idea that there was a place in Oakdale he could go where it was actually encouraged. “Much higher and you’ll fly right out of there.”
“Ethan showed me how to jump.” Kenna craned her neck and gave Reid an excited smile. “Wanna see?”
Grabbing the chains, Reid walked the swing into a smooth stop. “There will be none of that. Let’s try something else. Preferably on the ground.”
Kenna wiggled, her face scrunching in discomfort. “Doctor, I gotta pee.”
Reid’s head rolled back and he spoke to the sky. “I knew this would happen.” He begrudgingly stuck out his hand and waited for Kenna to take it. “Come on.”
They stood in front of a small cinderblock building awkwardly holding hands, staring at the signs on either side. If they went to the men’s room, Reid could go in with her. But then he would be subjecting her to things no little girl should see. Hell, Reid didn’t want to see it.
Reid peeked his head into the women’s, all the stalls empty. He found the least disgusting toilet and laid a paper sheet on the seat. Examining the scene, he put down a second just in case. “Okay.” He motioned that it was safe for Kenna to enter. “I’ll leave you to your dirty business.”
“I don’t have to poop. Honest.” Kenna looked up at Reid with large, round eyes. “It’s just pee.”
Hearing more than enough, Reid nodded curtly. “Great. So, do that.”
Reid endured a few suspicious glances as he guarded the door from the outside. An elderly woman kept her eyes to the ground as she tried to move around Reid. He blocked her path. “Closed.”
The lady’s mouth fell open, but Reid wasn’t budging. Not until he felt the small hand, still a little wet from the sink, slip into his. “Oh, look!” Reid’s voice was dripping with false brightness. “It’s open.”
Kenna skipped to keep up with Reid’s long strides. They sat on the bench quietly waiting for Luke. Silence didn’t seem to be Kenna’s strong suit and she blurted out the first thing that came to her mind. “Where do you live?”
“Um,” Reid hadn’t really thought about that. He had never planned to stay in Oakdale as long as he had and it wasn’t completely terrible, but living here permanently? That was something he and Luke would have to discuss. “Nowhere, right now.”
“Daddy and Luke aren’t going to live together anymore.” Kenna sniffled, her tiny nose twitching, but she didn’t look like she was going to cry. “I don’t know where I’m gonna live either.”
Reid didn’t know what to say to that. He certainly didn’t have the answer. A kid rolled past, begging for a head injury by not wearing a helmet as he skated, a waffle cone clutched in his dirty fist. Reid hadn’t spent much time in the park, but he did know where the ice cream vendor was located. “You want dessert?”
Kenna hopped off the bench and tugged on Reid’s hand. He was surprised by their easy connection, but they seemed to share a philosophy. Nothing takes your mind off your troubles like chocolate sprinkles.
**********
Reid hadn’t taken a deep breath since Luke rushed up to them, as ice cream trickled down Kenna’s chin, and she smiled at him with chocolate smears on her teeth. His face was flushed, blonde hair in forty different directions from where Luke had nervously raked his fingers through it repeatedly. He had shoved his hands in his pockets, to keep from doing it again now.
“Did you thank Dr. Oliver for the cone?”
“Three times.” Reid smiled down at her and winked. “You know something, Snyder? This kid’s alright.”
Luke stopped jittering, just for an instant. Long enough to cock his head, a soft smile on his lips. “I’m really glad you think so.” He cleared his throat, remembering that there was a strict scheduled he needed to follow. “Come on, Kenna. Say goodbye. I’m taking you over to Jacob’s to play.”
Kenna slid off the bench and when her feet touched the ground she spun to Reid. “If I wear a helmet, can I show you how I jump?”
Reid snickered. A child that actually listened to him. “Find a suit of armor and we’ll talk.”
She skipped off to the car. Luke watched her climb into the back seat before facing Reid, a cautious smile in his watery eyes. He couldn’t breathe, couldn’t utter a word.
“Well,” Reid’s neck stretched forward expectantly. “Care to share what the longest phone call ever was about?”
Luke shook his head, still dazed by too much hope. “No.”
“Why not?”
The tip of Luke’s tongue darted between his lips as he stared, hot and heavy-lidded, at Reid’s own beautiful set. Luke raised his hand to cup Reid’s jaw. His words rushed from his mouth on the end of a shuddering sigh. “I don’t want to jinx it.”
Luke rubbed the pad of his thumb over Reid’s bottom lip. Back and forth, back and forth. He liked to watch it bend to his will. It was Luke’s to do with as he pleased, wasn’t it? And if Casey was worth the salary Luke was paying him, as soon as tonight he could be kissing it.
“Later.” Luke gazed into Reid’s eyes unblinkingly. “I’ll find you.”
Reid figured the best way to be found was to stay in one spot. Except for the rampant pacing, he had done just that. He worried his chin, rolled his neck, but the rubber-band feeling of drawing in on himself wouldn’t leave. If he didn’t hear from Luke soon, the tension would finally become too great and the band would snap. There would be a Reid-splosion of epic proportions. Lucinda would be picking bits of doctor meat from her carpets for years to come.
Even though his thighs were beginning to ache, the idea of sitting didn’t appeal to Reid. That was two, maybe three steps farther from Luke when he did show up. If what Reid thought was happening actually did, he would take a brief look at the papers to make sure Knox had signed and initialed every line and then, he had every intention of taking Luke right there on the floor. He pressed the heel of his hand against his erection, trying to ease the strain.
Closing his eyes, Reid sighed roughly. “God, if you are up there…I know we’ve had our differences, but I will seriously take your existence into consideration if you help Luke hurry the fuck up.”
Reid’s phone beeped in his pocket. “Shit. I have to go to church on Sunday.”
Come up to the main house.
The text was not from Luke, but Lucinda. Reid was caught off-guard by a smile, imagining Lucinda’s manicured nails punching out a text. How uncivilized.
Busy. Tomorrow.
Luke is here, darling. Be busy later.
**********