How (Not) to Fall in Love (17 page)

Chapter Twenty-Three

November 29

L
u
cas called me on Saturday morning as I was getting dressed to go apartment-hunting with him. I’d been staring in my closet, debating what to wear. Boring sweatshirt and ratty jeans because we were just friends and I didn’t care how I looked? Or cute sweater and nice jeans because I did care? Especially after what he’d said at Thanksgiving about missing me. Missing us.

It felt like something had shifted again that night, and it wasn’t just my ever-hopeful imagination or all the romances I’d been reading. Which reminded me, Charlie still hadn’t found the stack of regencies I’d set aside in his store, and I was desperate for new books to read. I could ask Lucas if he’d seen them, but that was too embarrassing.

“So,” he said on the phone. “I was thinking it’d be easier if I picked you up. That way you don’t have to take the bus down here to meet me.”

My heart sped up. Pick me up? Like a date?

“But it’s out of your way. Aren’t the apartments down by Charlie’s store?”

There was a moment of silence. “Yeah. But still. It’s not that far. And I was thinking I could check out your truck like I suggested before.”

“Did Charlie put you up to this?” I demanded.

His laughter sent a shiver down my neck. “No. I thought of it all by myself. Imagine that.”

I smiled into the phone. “Well, in that case you can pick me up. Do you need my address?”

“I remember where you live. I’ll see you in an hour.”

I compromised and went with the cute sweater and ratty jeans. And a tiny bit of mascara. And lip gloss. And earrings.

While I waited for Lucas to arrive, I stared at my map. Ingram, Texas. Rolla, Missouri. Alliance, Nebraska. Santa Fe, New Mexico. Laguna Beach, California. There weren’t any henges in Laguna Beach. Dad’s postcard had been of a sunset over the ocean. Dad loved the ocean. Maybe he’d just headed west after leaving Santa Fe.

The doorbell startled Toby awake and he tore down the stairs, barking like mad. I stopped at the mirror over my dresser. No, I was nothing like Heather. But that didn’t matter. Like Sal said, I was on fire. Lit from the inside.

“Get your butt in gear,” I told my reflection. I ran a brush through my hair one last time, then hurried down the stairs to calm Toby.

“Hey,” said Lucas when I opened the door, as relaxed as if he came over every day. Toby became a wriggling ball of pathetic dog suck-up-ness. Lucas laughed and bent to play with him.

“God, my dog is a useless protector. What if you were a crazy serial killer?”

“Then I wouldn’t have rung the doorbell.” He looked up and grinned at me.

“Good point. Let me just grab my bag.” I turned away so he wouldn’t see me blushing. My body was so over this “just friends” delusion.

“Hold on,” Lucas said. “What about your truck?”

Oh yeah, that. I turned back to him. “Do you really have time for that?”

“Got the whole day off. Charlie was cool with it since I’m helping you.”

“So helping me is a way for you to suck up to your boss, is that it?”

He rolled his eyes. “You figured it out. My ultimate evil plan is to rule the empire of Broadway. First, the Second Hand Story. Then Liz’s store. Then Homeless Harry and I are taking over Inkheart. Harry’s got wicked ink skills.”

I burst out laughing. “The truck is in the garage,” I called over my shoulder as I led the way. “Come on.”

Lucas followed me through the dining room. “Do you want something to drink?” I opened the fridge. There wasn’t much, but we had a few store brand colas left. “Lucas?” I turned around to see an empty kitchen. I returned to the dining room to find him staring up at the chandelier, Toby sitting patiently next to him.

“That’s one killer chandelier,” he said. “If anyone ever did break in, you could use it as a weapon.”

“I hate it,” I said, “but my mom loves it. It’s definitely a conversation starter for dinner parties. Or it used to be, when we had them.”

Lucas took the soda from me. “Thanks.” He snapped open the top and drained half of it in one swallow. “Take me to the Reaper.”

“How did you know I called it that?”

“You told Charlie.” He grinned. “Sometimes people forget I’m working behind the curtain. I overhear a lot of interesting conversations.”

Oh God. My mind raced, wondering what other embarrassing conversations he might have overheard. He laughed at the expression on my face. “Don’t look so freaked. You haven’t given away any state secrets. Nothing worth turning you over to the Feds, even though I hear the reward money’s pretty good.”

“That’s a relief.” I started to punch him on the shoulder but stopped myself just in time.
Must not make physical contact.

“Can I have the key? I want to back it out to the driveway.” Lucas held out his hand. I grabbed the key from the hook and tossed it to him.

Toby ran after Lucas as he headed into the garage.

“No, boy,” I said. “You’re not going for a ride.”

Toby looked at Lucas hopefully. Lucas opened the truck door and Toby hopped in.

“Way to undermine my authority, dude,” I said.

Lucas slid into the truck and grinned at me, starting the engine and revving it loudly. Blue smoke filled the driveway as he backed out of the garage. He turned off the engine and hopped out, then buried himself under the hood while I tried to convince Toby to come out of the truck. My dog wasn’t budging.

“I’ll need to spend more time,” Lucas said from under the hood. “But it might be your transmission.”

“Is that bad?”

He stood up and shrugged. “It could be. Or it could be a fluid change will fix it.” He glanced around the garage, apparently not seeing what he needed. “I’ll have to fix it at my place. I’m going to wash my hands before we go.”

“Can you grab a Scooby snack from the kitchen counter?” I called through the mudroom. “It’s the only way Toby will come out of the truck.”

I heard Lucas laugh from inside the house. He emerged without the dog treat.

“You forgot the snack.”

He waggled his eyebrows at me. “Watch and learn.” He leaned into the truck and within seconds Toby had jumped out, eyeing him with devotion.

“That’s disgusting,” I said, glaring at him with resentment.

“Just call me the dog whisperer.”

“Can we go now? I can’t take much more of this. Next thing I know, Toby will want to go home with you.”

“I’d love that but my dad’s allergic to dogs. And cats.”

“That’s too bad.”

“Yeah, it sucks, especially for Pickles. She loves animals.”

“Poor Pickles. She’s so awesome.”

He stared at me in mock horror. “What is wrong with you?”

“Just call me the kid whisperer.”

He pointed a finger at me. “Touché, Shaker Girl, touché.”

While Lucas pulled the truck back into the garage, I ran into the bathroom by the kitchen. My face flushed and my eyes shone with excitement. I hoped Lucas wouldn’t notice, since it was all because of him.

“So tell me about these places we’re looking at.” I buckled myself into his immaculate car. “How’d you find them?”

“Lots of people in the neighborhood come into Charlie’s store. I asked around.” He handed me his iPod. “Pick something you like.”

I jerked my arm away as our arms brushed, wondering if he felt the same electricity that I did. I glanced at him, but saw no change of expression in his face.

Paging through his music, I was surprised to see a lot of the bands I liked. I thought Ice Krystal and Phoenix had been a fluke.

“You like Passion Pit? And Snow Patrol? What’s with all the emo music?”

He laughed. “What did you think I liked? Death metal?”

“I don’t know. I just didn’t expect that you’d like
—
”

“Chick music?”

It was my turn to laugh. It was easier to laugh than say what I was thinking, which was that it was one more way I felt connected to him.

He was quiet for a few minutes, then spoke. “The first place is an apartment right on Broadway. It’s above the panini shop.”

“No kidding?” I turned to stare at him. “Does it smell like onions?”

“And garlic.”

“Really? I don’t know if my mom could deal with that.”

He grinned at me. “Honestly, I don’t know what it smells like. You know Pinky, the owner? He called Charlie when he saw one of the signs.”

“What signs?”

Lucas looked embarrassed. “I put up a few signs around the neighborhood.”

I hesitated, surprised. “You mean like, ‘apartment wanted for two weird chicks and their spastic dog’? Something like that?”

Lucas shot me a grin. “Just like that. With a photo of two zombie chicks.”

“Excellent.” I forced a lightness in my voice, but inside I was a quivering mess of churning emotions. His Royal Hotness had put up signs? For me?

We parked in front of the panini restaurant, just a few blocks down from Charlie’s.

Pinky must have been watching for us because he met us on the sidewalk, wiping his hands on his apron. He shook Lucas’s hand, then reached for mine. His grip felt like a bear’s.

“You tell me what you think, honey. If you like it, you bring your mama back to see it.”

He unlocked a door I’d never noticed, tucked into the brick wall next to the restaurant. At the top of a flight of stairs, we entered a bright apartment flooded with sunlight. A large window looked down onto Broadway. I wondered if the sound of traffic would bug my mom. The bedrooms were small. There was one bathroom with a tiny sink. I tried to imagine Mom and me sharing a sink and a shower. The kitchen was small, but there was a newer gas stove and a tiny dishwasher. A window ringed by white curtains let in cracks of sunlight. I looked out to the alley below. It was hardly the view we had now, looking out at our pool and gardens.

“It’s nice,” I said, trying to sound enthusiastic. “Very clean. And bright.”

Pinky nodded eagerly. “And you can have your dog here, too.”

I imagined having to walk Toby downstairs every time he had to do his business. That would get old fast.

“Since you’re Charlie’s niece, I can give you a deal. Five hundred a month. No security deposit.”

That was a killer deal. But the place was so small. And it did smell a little bit like onions.

“This is the first place we’ve looked at,” Lucas said. “So I don’t think Darcy is ready to make a decision yet.”

I smiled at Lucas gratefully. I’d gained some people skills lately, but I didn’t want to hurt Pinky’s feelings.

“Yes, yes, of course. I understand.” Pinky’s head bobbed up and down. “You go look at the other places.” He looked at Lucas. “You have my number? Call me later, okay?”

Lucas nodded.

We trooped back down the stairs, but this time I brought up the rear, not so I could check out Lucas’s butt or anything.

“Next?” I said, after Pinky had gone back inside his restaurant.

“Do you want to walk? It’s only a few blocks away.”

“Yeah, let’s walk.” We fell into step together easily, like we always did.

“So that wasn’t exactly what you were looking for?” Lucas asked.

“It was nice. Really it was. But it’s just…I can’t picture my mom…”

“It would be a big step down. But from what Charlie tells me, your mom will adjust.”

I almost tripped. “What did Charlie say about my mom?” I heard the defensiveness in my voice.

Lucas put his hands up. “Nothing bad. He likes your mom a lot. I guess he knew her pretty well, back when she and your dad were first dating.” It was hard to imagine Charlie and my mom and dad hanging out together, but they must have, once upon a time. “He said she was down-to-earth.” Lucas paused. “Or she used to be, anyway.”

That wasn’t a phrase I associated with my mom.

“She used to be a teacher,” I said. “She and my dad didn’t have anything when they first got married. Dad used to say they lived on love, not money.” He also said he preferred having both money and love, but I didn’t mention that.

Lucas laughed. “That sounds like something from one of those lame books you read.”

“I guess.” I stared straight ahead, feeling heat bloom on my cheeks. “And they’re not lame. Guys just don’t get them.” I felt Lucas’s gaze on me, but he didn’t say anything. I walked faster, forcing him to catch up.

We headed a few blocks east of Broadway, into a neighborhood full of old trees and tiny houses. Some of the houses looked like fairy cottages, with picket fences and gardens. Others weren’t so well-kept, overgrown with weeds and paint peeling from the shingles.

“It’s a mixed neighborhood,” Lucas said, watching me closely. “But most of the people who live around here are pretty cool. Not much crime. Occasional car break-ins, but that’s about it.”

“Are you sure? It looks kind of, um, sketchy.”

He inclined his head. “I’m sure. You realize we’re just a few blocks from my place, right?”

“Oh.” I hadn’t realized, since I’d followed him home blindly that night. Where were my witty comebacks when I needed them?

He pointed to a tiny blue house surrounded by towering trees. “We’re looking at that one. It’s seven hundred a month but I thought you might still want to see it.”

He was right. It looked like an illustration from a storybook.

The elderly woman who opened the door flashed a bright smile at Lucas. “Hello, sweetheart. It’s good to see you.” She turned her watery eyes to me. “And this is your girlfriend who needs a place to live? She’s very cute, Lucas.”

“I’m not his—”

“She’s not my—”

“Girlfriend,” we said in unison.

“Oh my. Pardon me, dears. I misunderstood. When Lucas asked me, I just assumed…” She stepped back and opened the screen door. “Where are my manners? Come in, both of you.” She held out her hand to me. “I’m Mrs. Sandri. Would you like something to drink? I made tea.”

“No thanks.” I shook her hand, staring at the floor and willing it to swallow me up.

“Yes, please. That would be great,” Lucas said.

Of course his composure was better than mine. He was as poised as my dad.

“I’ll be right back. Feel free to look around.” Mrs. Sandri left the small living room, disappearing under an archway. The place was like a dream cottage. I wondered if Snow White lived here, too.