I opened the door to my hotel room to find Luke waiting in the hallway. He was dressed sharply in dark jeans and a causal button down shirt. The smile fell from his face when he saw me.
"Are you okay?" Luke asked me softly. I shook my head no and blinked back tears hopelessly as they fell down my cheeks again. I had tried do freshen up the best I could after my call with Nick, but two emotional nights back to back left me feeling broken.
"What happened?" Luke asked, stepping into my hotel room. I disappeared into the bathroom to grab more Kleenex. I blew my nose loudly as Luke waited for me to reply. The door to my hotel room clicked shut behind Luke.
"No one died, right?" He asked. I shook my head furiously.
"No, no one died," I said, my voice hoarse from crying. "I- my...." My voice cracked as tears fell again.
"Take a deep breath," Luke said. He gently placed a hand on my back. I expected myself to lurch away from his touch as the warmth from his hand flowed through me, but instead I found it oddly calming. I took a deep ragged breath and wiped my eyes, smearing what remained of my eye makeup.
"M-my husband and I got in a huge fight," I said softly, my voice trembling. "And-and we're not d-doing good."
"I'm sorry," he said. "You don't deserve that."
"I just... I-I don't know what I did wrong," I said. The implication of my words sent me into sobs. I didn't know what I did to make Nick change so much. If I could figure it out I'd do anything to fix it, to fix us. My body shook with sobs as I leaned back against the sink, holding wads of tissues to my face.
Luke slowly pulled me into him, wrapping his arms around me and nestling me into his chest. The warmth that radiated from his body soothed me slowly. I wrapped my arms around him, holding him tightly as if he were a life preserver in an ocean I was drowning in. Slowly but surely, my breathing regulated and my sobs slowed into just tears and eventually stopped.
My head pounded from my crying as I forced myself out of Luke's embrace. His eyes overflowed with concern for me as he released me from his arms. I wiped my face and blew my nose again, wincing as the skin had gone raw.
"I'm sorry," he said softly. I shrugged.
"Nothing you need to apologize for," I said.
"Do you want to stay in?" He asked. "I can grab you some take out and you can have a night in."
The idea of being alone terrified me and tears pricked my eyes again.
"No," I said adamantly. "No, I need to do something tonight. I'll just cry all night if I don't." Luke nodded.
"Why don't you get cleaned up?" he said softly. "I can come back in like an hour so you can take a shower and get changed. We can go get dinner somewhere." I nodded slowly, anxiety filling my chest as I thought about being alone to even take a shower.
"I need to change my shirt anyways," Luke said, looking down at the tear stains I had left on his chest. I chuckled softly.
"I'm sorry," I said.
"Don't apologize," he said. "I'll be back in an hour." I nodded and Luke headed to the door. My stomach churned as he opened it, stepping outside.
"Wait," I said. Luke caught the door with his foot before it closed completely. He pushed it back open and looked at me curiously. I headed to the nightstand and grabbed the second room key.
"After you change, just come back. I... I don't want to be alone right now," I said. I held out the room key to Luke. He stared at it for a moment before looking back up at me, almost as if uncertain if he should take the card.
"Please," I said softly, my voice pleading. Luke nodded and took the room key from me before heading to his room. My hotel room door closed behind him, the click making my chest twist with anxiety. I swallowed hard and took a deep breath, forcing myself to pick out some clean clothes. I settled on a pair of dark jeans and a black dressy cami since it was still warm before disappearing into the bathroom. I set my change of clothes on the counter before closing the door and starting a shower.
The warm water soothed my pounding head from crying, and helped me feel a little relaxed after the argument with Nick. Anytime I thought about what happened I immediately felt like I was going to cry, so I did my best to think about anything else as I washed up. Before ending my shower I heard my room door open and close.
"Emily?" Luke called through the bathroom door. "I'm here, just letting you know." My heart skipped and I cursed at myself.
"Thanks," I said. "I'll be a few more minutes." A few moments later I heard the tv kick on and the muffled sounds of sports commentary followed. I rolled my eyes. Some things never change.
I got dressed and reapplied some makeup, trying to conceal the redness on my face from crying. I hoped it looked less noticeable than I thought. I straightened my top, adjusting the straps before finally stepping out of the bathroom. Luke was seated in the armchair of the room, watching the football game intently. He looked up momentarily before doing a double take.
"You look nice," he said, clearing his throat. I shrugged.
"Thanks," I said. "I did my best."
He turned off the tv and got up. I slipped on some black pumps before grabbing my purse.
"Ready?" He asked me.
"As I'll ever be," I said with a sigh.
YOU ARE READING
Always You - A Second Chance Romance
Romance"Rummaging in our souls, we often dig up something that ought to have lain there unnoticed." - Leo Tolstoy When Emily Wright married her husband, Nick, she thought he was the man of her dreams. But less than a year into being married, Nick has grown...
