How (Not) to Fall in Love(31)

“I can’t believe that guy,” he said, shutting off the overhead lights. Only a dim glow behind the counter remained.

My hand was raw and red. I turned off the faucet and wrapped a towel around it. “Me either. I wonder if he would’ve still wanted his drink if I’d chopped off a finger.”

Lucas laughed. “Probably. ‘Paid for it already, you know.’” He walked behind the counter and took my hand. “Let me see it,” he said softly.

I stood there trembling, whether from the shock of the burn, the embarrassment of my espresso disaster, or my proximity to Lucas, I didn’t know.

He unwrapped the towel and I winced. “I don’t need to go to the ER. It’s not that bad.”

“I’ll be the judge of that,” he said, glancing at me from under those disgustingly long eyelashes.

“Oh really? Are you in med school, too?”

He smirked. “No. But I’ve taken first aid classes. And I’ve seen Bella do damage before.”

“On Liz?”

“Yeah. When she first got this machine.” He shook his head.

“The emergency drawer,” I said. Liz had mentioned it before, but I’d never looked inside it. “Maybe there’s a first aid kit in there.”

Lucas frowned. “Emergency drawer?”

I pointed to the red skull and crossbones painted on a drawer under the counter, and was baffled when he dropped my hand and burst out laughing.

“What?” I tingled from his touch and the burn.

Lucas yanked open the drawer and pulled out a hand-lettered sign which read, “Beautiful Bella is having a time-out. Regular coffee and tea only today. Sorry. Try us again tomorrow. We hope she’ll be in a better mood then.”

“Liz used this a lot when she first opened up.” Lucas slid the sign back in the drawer. He shot me another sexy smile as he headed for the back of the store. “I’ll go to the real emergency drawer and get the first aid kit.”

God, now I felt like a total idiot. I sighed and put away the clean cups with my uninjured hand. I just wanted to get home and talk to Mom about what I’d discovered about Dad, and show her the places I’d already marked on the atlas.

Lucas reappeared quickly with the first aid kit, housed in a vintage jewelry box, not a plastic tub with a giant red cross on the lid.

“What’s that?” I asked, as he removed the cap from a slender silver tube.

“This is some burn gel Liz got when she was first taming Bella. It’s the same stuff chefs use for burns in the kitchen.” He waved a white roll at me. “And this is gauze. Maybe you’ve heard of it?”

“Ha.” I glared at him and muttered, “I’m not in a joking mood.”

He looked up from the gauze as he unwound it. “Why not? Now seems like a good time for a joke. It’ll help take your mind off the pain.”

“The pain is the least of my worries,” I said. “I’ve got a lot on my mind.”

“Yeah? Like what?” Lucas took my hand in his and smoothed cool gel over the burn. The sensation blocked out all rational thought for a few seconds, until he reached for the gauze and wrapped it gently around my hand.

“Earth to Darcy,” he said, letting go of my bandaged hand and looking into my eyes. “So what’s on your mind besides the pain, which I just totally eliminated for you?”

He’d taken away the pain, all right, but not in the way he thought. I kept my eyes lowered while I composed myself before answering him.

“It’s some stuff I figured out today. About my dad.” I raised my head, blinking quickly, hoping he couldn’t see any evidence of me swooning over him.

He leaned against the sink. “You want to talk about it?”

I hesitated. In some ways, it was easy to talk to him. But the person I really needed to talk to was Mom. “Maybe later,” I said. “Right now I need to get home.”

“Will you be able to drive okay with your hand like that?” he asked as he packed up the first aid box.

“Not an issue. I took the bus.”

“What about the truck?” He glanced up.

“I’m trying to save gas money. That thing gets like ten miles to the gallon. Plus, it’s been blowing more blue smoke lately.”

“How long is your bus ride?”

“About forty-five minutes from my house to here. I’ve got one transfer. I don’t mind, though. It gives me time to read and listen to music.”

“Buses don’t run as often this late,” Lucas said. “When were you supposed to catch one home?”

Oh crap. I looked at my watch. 10:33. I’d missed the 10:19, plus we still had to finish closing up. I pulled my phone out of my pocket to check the schedule app I’d downloaded.

I’d be lucky to catch the 11:21. Great. I sighed heavily.

“I’ll give you a ride,” Lucas said.

I stared at him. Ride home with Lucas? Just the two of us?

“Uh…I’m on the other side of town. It’s okay. I’ll just wait in here until it’s time for the bus.”

“No way,” he insisted. “The later it gets, the weirder the bus passengers get.”

“Worse than the Harry Potter Knight Bus?”

He grinned. “Yeah. Besides, Charlie would kill me if I let you wait here by yourself for the ghost bus. Let me help you close out the register, then we can blow this pop stand.”