Put Me Back Together(72)

“How could he,” I said, forcing a smile, “with you standing guard?”

We went into our favourite coffee shop, the same one where we’d shared that molten brownie months ago, and my eyes lingered on the table we’d sat at that day. It seemed ages ago, before I knew Lucas, before I trusted him.

Before I put him in danger.

“Oh, I almost forgot. I wanted to show you something,” Lucas said. He handed me a pamphlet as he stepped up to the counter and ordered our drinks—a hot chocolate for me, extra whip, and a coffee with sugar for him. There were photos of kids playing various sports on the cover—soccer, volleyball, basketball—but every time I tried to read the words across the top they blurred.

I had the oddest feeling, as though I should scream, but I couldn’t think why. Outside the windows of the coffee shop the day was sunny. The leaves were beginning to grow in on the trees. The cafe was busy and buzzing with conversation. Lucas stood over by the counter, waiting for our drinks, winking at me. And yet it felt as though the world had suddenly tilted off its axis.

Something’s wrong, I thought to myself. What is it? What is it?

My phone buzzed and I took it out.



Em: So how’s Hottie McLover who makes you ignore your own TWIN?



I let out a breath I didn’t know I’d been holding and searched for a clever response.



Me: Divine. Best McLover I ever had.

Em: I’m glad you’re happy, sis. You deserve it. But so do I, so he’d better have some hot friends.

Me: Like you’ve ever needed help finding a guy.

Em: Not in the Matthews league. You’re moving up and you’re taking me with you.

Me: You got it, sister.



I was still smiling at my phone when Lucas sat down at the table with our drinks.

“God, I’m going to need this to get through my exam,” he said, taking a sip. “Who’re you chatting with?”

“Just Em,” I said, pocketing the phone quickly. I’d been careful to keep my phone away from Lucas ever since I’d told him Brandon had been texting me. His nasty messages had been coming in steadily for the past few days, and they were just as curse-ridden as ever. If Lucas saw the true extent of those texts I was pretty sure he’d go mad and drag me to the police station kicking and screaming.

“So what do you think?” he said, looking at me expectantly.

“What?” I said in confusion, and then looked down at the table in front of me. “Oh, the pamphlet!” I saw now that it was a brochure for a local kids’ sports day camp.

Lucas said, “They need a basketball coach for this summer. I was thinking of applying.”

My mouth fell open a little as I looked from Lucas to the pamphlet. It stayed that way until he leaned forward and gave me a peck on my open lips.

“I guess your look of utter shock means you think it’s a good idea?” Lucas joked, but I could tell he really wanted to hear my opinion.

“I’m so glad,” I said, poring over the glossy photos of the recreation center that would be used for the camp. “I never thought you’d get here so fast. I thought it might take you months, even years to learn to love basketball again.”

“Well, I don’t love it yet,” Lucas admitted. “But I thought maybe helping some kids learn to love playing might help me remember the good times I had with my dad. And it’s a paid position, too, so maybe I won’t have to work quite so hard next year.”

“You’ll be a natural,” I said. “Though, I warn you, all the little girls will be falling in love with you.”

“Too bad I’m head over heels for my girlfriend,” he said, and my heart skipped a beat.

Girlfriend.

I leaned forward and hugged him, breathing deeply of that intoxicating Lucas scent. “I’m so proud of you,” I said into his ear. “If only your old party pals could see you now. I bet they wouldn’t believe their eyes, Lucas Matthews out there doing his bit for the community.”

Lucas waved at someone over my shoulder. “Well, I guess we can ask one of them. There’s Oleg,” he said.

I froze in my seat, gripping my drink with both hands at the sound of the name. Oleg was the friend Lucas had called to clean up my apartment while we were in Christie the day after the break-in. He’d finagled Mariella into letting him in. He’s done an amazing job, too, even cleaning all the red paint off my walls and buying me a new pillow so that when we returned the place looked exactly as it had been before. It was such a relief to have the mess gone that I didn’t have the heart to scold Lucas for letting one of his friends into my nightmare. He wouldn’t have understood, anyway. The secret Lucas held was painful, but if someone found out it wouldn’t break him. He didn’t live in fear of the world finding out the truth about him.


Lucas didn’t know what it was like to live in shame.

“He’s waving me outside,” Lucas said as he got to his feet. “Come say hi.”

“No, you go. I want to read over my essay one last time before I hand it in,” I fibbed. “Tell him thank you for me again.”

“He was doing me a favour,” Lucas said, shaking his head at me. “And I already thanked him for you, twice.”

“Thank him again anyway,” I said as I rifled through my bag looking for my essay. “That’s a good friend you’ve got there.”