Just a Little Series (Parts 1 - 4) (4 page)

I felt the uneasiness in my chest grow
heavier as he continued the drive.

“It wasn’t six months after the diagnosis…
she was gone. And while I’d always hoped to follow in her
footsteps, it only reinforced my decision to go into law
enforcement. I had to carry on the legacy she started.”

I took my eyes off of him and took a moment
to make a few notes, but nothing relating to his story; it was just
a little reminder of how short life is, and how maybe I’d been
selfish to think that I was the only one who’d lost someone
special.

“And that’s why you joined the force?”

“That’s why I joined the force.” We stopped
at an intersection, and the only sound filling the air was the
ticking of the turn signal as we waited for the light change.
Before I could appreciate what it meant for him to share such a
personal story, he broke the silence again. “So you can understand
why I think this assignment is a bit of a joke.”

And in one fell swoop, he lost every ounce
of sympathy he’d just gained.

“Luke—”

“Mom would’ve laughed in Chief’s face if
he’d given her this assignment.”

I shook my head and shoved my notebook back
into my bag. “You’re a real piece of work, you know that?”

“Me?” he asked. “
You’re
the one who’s
been given a once in a lifetime opportunity to learn valuable life
lessons, and you’re treating it as lightly as you would a day on
the beach. I would’ve
killed
for this experience as a
teenager, but my mother wouldn’t hear of it. Some kids don’t get as
lucky as you, Julie. And it
drives me crazy
to see
privileged brats like you getting everything handed to them, and
then for you to just squander it.”

His eyes darted to me and then back to the
road, making my face flush red with heat. I’d never in my life met
someone so infuriating. Who did he think he was, talking to me like
that?

“You think
I’m
lucky?” I asked,
knowing there was no way Luke could’ve known my story. Had he
known, he wouldn’t have said those things so freely. “
Ha
! If
I’ve
had good luck in life, I’d hate to see the kids who
haven’t
had it all handed to them.” I looked at him long
enough to see him lower his brow, but he continued the drive and
never let on for a moment that my words had fazed him.

“Well,” I finally said after we’d ridden in
silence for another five minutes, “I suppose I should thank you for
painting such a colorful picture. It’ll add a nice little human
interest to my report, right before the paragraph where I discuss
that—while I’ve always had a slight distaste for men in uniform—it
was Officer Lucas Reibeck who put the final nail in the coffin. No
more police work for me, no sir.”

He didn’t respond. He kept his eyes straight
forward, acting as though I was nothing more than a fly on the
wall. My presence meant nothing to him, and that only irritated me
more.

“You’re all the same, you know that?” I
hoped to strike a nerve. “Every one of you—you egotistical,
self-indulgent cops! You say you do this to serve and protect, but
the only thing you’re protecting is your ego—”

“Julie!” he yelled, silencing me in a
heartbeat.
“Stop talking.”

Ten minutes ticked by at snail speed,
increasing the tension and thickening the air with pent-up anger
from both of us. He drove to the edge of town and pulled off into a
dirt siding.

“Get out,” he said, still looking away from
me.

“What?”

“Get—out—of—the—car,” he leaned across my
lap and opened the door. “
Now
.”

I watched the anger burn in his eyes for a
few fiery moments, took my bag from the floor, and did as I was
told.

I stepped off into the dirt and shut the
door, waiting for the tires to spin, and for Luke to disappear
around the bend. But he didn’t leave. As soon as my door clicked
shut, his opened, and he stepped out of the car. He adjusted his
belt and met me on the roadside.

“Follow me.”

He turned and walked off into the thick
woods. I stood firmly in place and watched him leave. After a few
seconds of standing alone, he turned back and looked at me blankly.
“Are you coming or not?”

I looked at the car and back to him. “Are
you going to shoot me?”

Though he fought to restrain a smirk, his
amusement came through clear as day.

“What makes you think I’d want to shoot
you?” he asked, coming back to meet me on the edge of the road.

“Your blatant hatred for me,” I said, as
though the answer should’ve been obvious. “That… and you
do
have a history of shooting unsuspecting victims.”

“Alright, stop,” he lost the edge in his
voice. “Just follow me.”

CHAPTER FIVE

Monday, September 10

The touch of his hand against mine burned
deep within my skin, eliciting a strong reminder of just how
quickly I was letting this guy get to me. One second, I hated him.
The next, I was wondering what it would be like to run my fingers
through his windblown hair. There was just something about him.

I tried to accept that his hand only held
mine for guidance purposes; he’d made that perfectly clear back at
the car, as we walked along the tree-lined path. The brush grew
thicker and thicker, and Luke insisted that I stay close. Even
still, I closed my eyes and let him lead the way, pretending, if
only for a few moments, that he was the sense of comfort and
security I’d been praying for since I’d lost my parents.

The walk didn’t last long, maybe five
minutes at most. As we stepped off the trail, I opened my eyes and
took in the beautiful view. The last of the trees lined an open
field of wildflowers that stretched across acres of rolling
hills.

With his hand still pressed firmly against
mine, we finally stopped walking when we reached the top of the
first hill.

“Have a seat,” he let go of my hand.

I did as I was told and plopped down on the
grass.

As I looked up at him from where I sat, I
realized how easily I’d dismissed the true nature of his physical
beauty.
Handsome
didn’t quite cut it.

He was simply… perfect.

He sat down next to me and plucked a tall
blade of grass from the ground.

“How do you feel right now?” he shot me a
look from the corner of his eye. “Angry?”

I shook my head. It was hard to be angry,
and at that point, I could barely remember why I’d been so upset
back at the car. I looked out at the field and tried to remember
what had started our argument, but nothing came to mind. It was
almost as if all the negativity had been replaced by this
overwhelming sense of goodness. I just had no idea where it had
come from.

“Here’s a valuable lesson for your book,
Julie,” he took it upon himself to reach into my bag and retrieve
my notebook. “Angry cops make bad cops.” When I continued to stare
into his deep, brown eyes, he lifted the pen and clicked it. “Write
it down.”

I obeyed his order and scribbled the words
angry cops make bad cops.

“Anger is a nasty thing, kid. I don’t care
if you’re an officer or a civilian. There are better ways to handle
emotions. I’ve seen too many good cops lose their heads, and that’s
the first sign of a downward spiral.”

“Does it happen to you?” I asked. “Do you
ever find yourself in situations that initiate an angry
response?”

He smirked as he watched the blade of grass
weave through each of his fingers.

“Not so much,” he said, “I have a decent
outlet.”

“Which is?” I asked, ready to write.

“Coming here, sitting down, and taking a
breath. Sometimes it’s as easy as realizing that I can’t control
everything, or
everyone
.” His eyes wandered across the hills
and then back to me. “I’m sorry I lost my cool.”

I nodded. “Thank you, but
I’m
the one
who should apologize.” I took a deep breath and looked down at the
patch of wildflowers smashed beneath my sneakers. “You were right;
I
am
ungrateful. I didn’t want to shadow you. I wanted an
easy ride. I thought Charlie would pamper me.” I laughed and shook
my head, knowing very well that I shouldn’t have expected any less
from my uncle. “I guess
he
had other plans.”

While it made me feel a bit shallow to admit
the truth, I also sensed a wave of relief. It felt good to be so
open and honest for a change. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d
talked so openly about my feelings to anyone, especially a person I
barely knew. It was therapeutic, to say the least.

“I really had no idea he was sending me out
with you, or I—”

“What? You would’ve chosen to be miserable
shadowing someone else?” Luke asked, watching me closely. “Listen,
you may not believe this now, and this isn’t my arrogance talking,
but I was the best guy for the job, Julie. The other guys thought
your uncle was crazier than I did. Most of them, if not all of
them, wouldn’t have given you the time of day.”

“So…what?” I asked him, a little heartbroken
that so many people found my presence a burden. “He asked everyone
at the station until you finally caved?”

“No,” he said, shortly, “I was the only
person he asked.”

“Yeah, I know you think I’m a joke, but
thanks for trying, at least.”

I found it was only necessary to give credit
where it was due. Maybe Luke
had
thought I was a liability,
but at least he’d given me a chance. Not everyone would’ve done
that for me, or for Charlie.

He dropped his head and stared at the ground
for a few seconds, seemingly contemplating his next words.

“I hope you realize I never said
you
were a joke, Julie. I was referring to this whole arrangement when
I said that.”

“All the same.”

“No, it’s not,” he balled his hands into
fists. His knuckles turned white as he held his grip tighter. “Why
are you so damn stubborn? Why do you insist on being the
victim?”

“I’m not trying to be the victim,” I said,
but I wasn’t the least bit convinced that he believed me. “I’m just
used to being
the victim, and maybe
that’s
why I’m
always ready when the attacks start flying. I mean, you’ve been
doing it since the moment we met. You’ve been attacking me left and
right, whether it was with your snide remarks or your
better-than-thou attitude.”

Luke cast a momentary glance at me and then
brought himself to his feet. “We should go.”

“We just got here.”

“But we’re on duty,” he said as if it had
just occurred to him. “The car’s been unattended for too long. We
need to get back.” He extended a hand and helped me off the ground
and back through the trees to the car; neither of us exchanged
another word or glance.

Back at the station, I let myself out of the
car and walked toward the building in silence. I seriously
considered what I could’ve done or said differently to keep the
tone from changing. Back there… back at the field, it seemed as
though we were finally breaking through some kind of barrier. Call
me crazy, but I thought we’d established an open line of
communication. I
thought
we were making some kind of
progress in our… friendship?

Just outside the station door, Luke took my
elbow and pulled me back.

“Julie,” he lowered his face inches from
mine, “let’s quit pretending that you have any kind of interest in
my job, and I’ll agree to get off your case. Deal?”

There was uneasiness in his eyes that left
my nerves a little unsettled.

“Am I that transparent?”

He smirked. “You’re not fooling anyone, kid.
You couldn’t care less about what I do.”

“That’s not true,” I argued, noticing that
his hand was still cupped around my elbow. I pulled away and stared
at him intently. “I’ve asked questions. I’ve taken notes. I’ve made
a point to get to know you.”

“Exactly,” he said as if I’d just proven his
point. “You’ve taken the time to get to know
me
. Not the
job.”

“And that’s a problem?”

“It’s not
me
you’re doing a report
on, Julie. It’s the force—”

“But you’re my mentor.”

“Let’s be honest here. You weren’t asking
those questions for any other reason than to appease your curiosity
about me, and I wasn’t answering the way you wanted me to because
you and I both know that this,” he pointed between the two of us,
“This could never happen.”

Wait, what?

“What could never happen?” I wondered what
in the world he was talking about. I mean, sure I thought he was
cute and all, but had I missed something? “Luke,” I lost my
patience.
“What could never happen?
”

He shined his trademark smile and opened the
door to the station, only turning back long enough to take me by
the arm and gently pull me closer.

“It’s just a little crush,” he whispered.
“You don’t have to pretend you hate me. I notice you. I see you,
kid.” He put his arm around my shoulder and pulled me into his
chest, playfully teasing my hair. “It’ll pass. All in good
time.”

Tuesday, September 11

“Congratulations!” I hugged Matt as we sat
next to one another outside the French Bistro. “I bet you’re on
cloud nine.”

“Something like that, yeah,” he took a gulp
of water and leaned back in his chair. He pushed his fingers
through his hair and let go of a sigh. “I don’t know how Dad’ll
take it, but he’ll adjust to it in time.”

Sure he’ll adjust… when pigs fly.

Matt had just informed me over dinner that
he’d accepted a part-time, after-school position in the same
restaurant where he’d served his twenty job-shadowing hours, served
and completed in less than a week, might I add. And now there he
was, one step closer to the rest of his life, while I sat back
trying to make sense of my feelings toward a guy that I’d literally
only spent six hours with.