Ch 21: Luke's Luscious Lips

“Do you want to stay the night?” Luke asked. I looked at him confused. “Not like that. I just mean, it’s getting late. I think my chef’s made some dinner. You can get some rest. I have an extra room,” he explained.
“Or 2 or 3,” I joked, walking back towards Luke’s mansion. We could see it in the distance, lit up from inside, glowing in the darkened landscape. “Actually, that sounds nice.” I looked up and smiled at him. We walked the rest of the way back in silence, the air starting to chill our hands.
Once inside, Luke warmed up the plates his chef left him including a variety of sautéed vegetables and the most delicious Tuscan chicken. Along with some salad and roasted potatoes, we ate our food at the small dining table off the kitchen. The home cooked meal made me feel cozy and warm.
“I didn’t always have a chef, you know? In my early days trying to make it as an actor, I had to cook my own food. It was horrible. I burnt spaghetti,” Luke said. “But I loved to sing in the kitchen.” I giggled, thinking about Luke at the stove, singing and starting grease fires.
“I’m a pretty good cook.” I took a bite of chicken. “Not such a fantastic singer.”
“Oh yeah? What can you make?”
“I make a mean lasagna and Chinese spareribs. I love to grill.”
Luke licked his lips, lapping up some of the chicken’s juiciness. “I love that confidence of yours. If I couldn’t afford to pay someone to prepare some meals for me, I’d be in trouble. I can’t stand going out to eat all the time, and with my cooking, I’d pretty much starve.”
“You can’t be good at everything,” I shrugged and popped a piece of potato in my mouth.
“Maybe you can teach me sometime?”
“Teach you what?”
“How to make lasagna.”
“OK, but then you have to teach me how to pitch a tent and start a fire,” I said. He nodded.
“It’s a deal.”
When Luke suggested we go to his home theater to watch a movie, it felt like a natural progression to the night. In connecting lounge chairs, we watched one of Luke’s favorite comedies. He laughed every 5 minutes. Although I didn’t think it was that funny, I got a kick out of watching Luke chuckle at every prat fall and silly joke.
After the movie, he showed me to the guest room, which also had a connecting bathroom. “Thanks for a lovely evening,” he said.
“I never intended this night to end like a date,” I said. “I don’t think I’ve ever been more underdressed for dinner and a movie.” I indicated the sweatpants, t-shirt, and hoodie I still wore. Luke laughed.
I didn’t want to give back the hoodie, wanting to keep it on all night, the smell of Luke wafting into my dreams. But I unzipped it and handed it back anyway, so I wouldn’t seem like a crazy stalker.
“I don’t know what all the hype is about with designer clothes,” he said. “I think the sexiest outfit is an old t-shirt.” I blushed, hoping he meant what he said.
“I promise from here on out to act strictly professional,” I said. Luke and I were standing just a foot apart by the doorway. He seemed to be lingering, hesitating for just a moment.
Then he put his arm around my waist and pulled me close to him. He looked in my eyes and said, “promises are meant to be broken” and kissed me on the lips. I let his lips linger on mine, the delicate skin feeling moist and soft. My body sank into his as he held me against him. The kiss lasted a few seconds at least; it wasn’t just a little peck. I never wanted it to end. With Luke’s body against mine and his lips caressing my own, I felt cherished.
When I pulled away, Luke said, “Good night,” in his dreamy voice. He walked down the hallway, and I watched as his tight butt swaggered with each step. I braced myself against the doorway, feeling a little weak in the knees.
Luke Mulligan kissed me! I couldn’t believe it. I scampered in to the room and fell onto the pristine white bed, backward as if falling into a pool. After all the embarrassing moments in the last few days, I couldn’t believe that kiss happened. I wrapped my arms around the soft white pillow on the bed and looked up at the ceiling, thinking about the kiss.
After Luke insisted we keep it professional, saying we were in no way together, what did this kiss mean? My head raced as my body could still feel the warmth of Luke’s breath on my face. It wasn’t just a smack on the lips either. It was a bona fide kiss goodnight like after a real date. In other words, it might not have been planned, but it was no accident.
I rolled over onto my stomach and kicked my legs on the bed like an excited teenager. I couldn’t believe I kissed Luke Mulligan. I had to text Michelle. She’d be wondering where I was anyway. I grabbed my phone from my bag which had somehow ended up next to the bed. Probably Luke put it there earlier after I agreed to stay.
After I texted Michelle and read her reply – kissing lips emoji - the worry set in. Tomorrow he’d probably tell me he just got carried away. That it meant nothing. That he loved Gina. It was understandable. I had been so vulnerable, and he had just been trying to make me feel better. That’s it. That’s probably all it was, I told myself.
How I went from feeling so elated about my kiss with Luke to so insecure, I’ll never know. I just couldn’t shake the feeling that it was all a mistake. It was too late to sneak out, so I resolved to get up early the next morning and leave before Luke was awake. I faded into sleep, thinking of Luke and his sensual mouth on mine. Whatever happened, I’d never forget that kiss.
When the sun peaked in my window, I threw off the luxurious white bedspread, went to the bathroom, and tiptoed down the hall, shoes in hand, bag slung over my shoulder. Still wearing the sweatpants and green t-shirt from the day before, I crept quietly. I didn’t want to wake Luke. I creeped, nearing the end of the hall.
I thought I was home free, and I certainly wasn’t expecting who I saw when I turned the corner.