The Certainty of Violet & Luke(72)

‘Yeah, a real genius,’ I say with a grin. ‘We’ll see how it goes, though. I still might change it.’

‘I don’t think you will,’ he says as the roundabout starts to slow.

‘We’ll see.’ I grow quiet as the spinning slows to a stop and suddenly it feels like we’re grounded, but neither of us move. ‘How’s your job going?’

‘Good.’ Luke’s been working at the gym for the last few weeks and he seems happy about not having to work at the bar anymore. ‘I mean, I don’t want to do it forever, but it’ll get me through school.’ He pauses, then sits up. ‘Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you. I got a text from Ryler this morning.’

Ryler is Luke’s mute cousin that I met once when we were in Vegas. His dad’s an * and I felt kind of bad for him, especially since he also grew up in foster homes.

‘Oh, yeah? What’d he say?’

‘That he was thinking about starting next semester at the University of Wyoming and wondered if it’d be okay if he crashed with us for a few days when he got out here, until he found a place to live. I told him sure.’

‘Good, I feel bad for him.’

‘Because he can’t talk?’

I shake my head. ‘No, because he didn’t have a real family growing up.’

Luke looks at me with empathy. ‘Speaking of families, how have you been doing with all the trial stuff?’

I scoot closer to him as the wind starts to blow and snow flurries around us. ‘You ask me that all the time.’

‘I know, but I want to make sure you’re okay all the time,’ he says, brushing a snowflake off my cheek.

His touch warms me from my head to my toes to my soul. ‘I’m still doing okay, although I’ll be more okay when Preston starts trail.’

Luke shakes his head, anger flashing in his eyes, which happens every time we talk about Preston. ‘I still can’t believe he’s saying he did all that stuff because he blamed your family for what his father did. Guy seriously has some bolts lose.’

‘I know, but at least he’s behind bars, right?’ Although I wish he was being sentenced for more, that somehow he could be blamed for what his father did. I know it’s kind of selfish of me to want it, and that really I know he doesn’t deserve that, it’s just hard sometimes thinking about how his father is dead and will never actually pay for what he did. ‘How about you?’

He sucks in a slow breath. ‘I’m doing fine, but I’m glad I got my part over with.’

Luke was called up last week and questioned. He was really nervous about doing it, but the important part is that he did; he conquered his fear of his mother and let the world know what a monster she is.

‘Thank you for doing that.’ I press my lips to his and give him a soft kiss.

‘I’m not going to lie,’ he says. ‘I did partly do it for myself.’

‘I’m still glad you did it.’

‘Me too.’

We sit back and enjoy the quiet for a while until the wind kicks up, then he takes my hand and pulls be too my feet. ‘Ready to do the rest of Lana’s challenge?’

I instantly frown. The rest of the challenge is a lot harder than playing at the playground. ‘I don’t know if I can do it,’ I admit.

‘Yes, you can,’ he encourages, taking both of my hands in his and guiding me off the roundabout.

I hop off with him and land in the snow. ‘But what if you’re wrong? What if we drive all the way out there and I freak out and can’t do it?’

He offers me one of my favorite smiles. ‘Then I guess I’ll get to spend some time with you.’

‘You spend all the time with me, pretty much, now.’

‘Now I’ll get more.’ He tugs on my arm and pulls me through the snow toward his truck and I reluctantly drag my feet as I follow after him. When he feels the weight of my walk, he pauses and looks at me. ‘Baby, you don’t have to do it if you don’t want to. I would never make you do anything you don’t want to.’

‘I know you wouldn’t.’ I stand there in the middle of the snow, holding his hand, terrified out of my mind. I’ve dealt with so much stuff lately I’m not sure if I’m ready for this. But then again, if I don’t do it now then I’ll just think about how I didn’t do it and it’ll drive me mad and I’ll disappoint myself. ‘No, I’m ready,’ I say, then pull him toward the truck, so that I’m the one choosing to do this.