Temporarily Yours

Chapter 33

My eyes fluttered opened, quickly adjusting to the morning light. I popped my head up from the pillow, quickly realizing Luke wasn't in bed. This was odd. On Sunday mornings, Luke always slept in. Then I realized the circumstances we were in weren't the normal ones. I shrugged and slipped out of bed, slipping into my housecoat.

As I rounded the corner to the kitchen, I heard the clatter of pots and pans. There Luke stood, placing dishes into the dishwasher. He was barefooted in sweatpants and a tshirt. I just leaned against the door frame and watched him from afar. Luke didn't notice me whatsoever. He continued putting things away until his phone buzzed.

"Hello?" Luke said as he placed his phone up to his ear. "Yah, man.... she's still sleeping."

Luke turned towards the window above the sink, gazing up at the morning sky. "Gee, Carter, I don't know. I'm scared. I'm scared none of this is going to work, me talking it out ya know. She seemed to believe me last night, but we were both caught up in it all. What if things have changed? What if I lose her?"

I watched Luke's face grimace as the last few words slipped from his lips. He was was holding back tears.

"Yeah, I'm going to go. I'll call you again some time this week, hopefully sooner rather than later if all goes well. I'm heading over there to wake her up now." Luke spoke. "Bye Carter."

Luke set his phone down on the countertop and continued looking out the window. I watched a few tears trickle down his cheeks and it broke my heart in two. I know he didn't cheat, at least I don't think he did, he wasn't that kind of man, but he still needed to explain; I still needed firm confirmation.

Slowly, I approached Luke from behind and slipped my arms around his waist, nuzzling my head into his back. After a moment, he placed his hands over mine and I immediately squeezed my arms around him, tighter. Luke rubbed my hands with his, squeezing them ever so lightly. We stood there in that position for what seemed like forever. The seconds that ticked by were precious ones. Neither of us made a peep, but where words lacked, the sweet embrace spoke.

After a little while, I let go of Luke and he turned to face me, a solemn expression painted across his face. "We need to talk."

I nodded. "What about the kids?"

He smiled softly. "I already shipped them off to their Memaw's, so we could have the whole day to discuss everything."

I nodded and then smiled. "Is that breakfast I smell?"

"Cinnamon French toast, fresh cut fruit, and bacon? You betcha!" Luke exclaimed, reaching for my hand.

"My favorite!" I gasped, following Luke's lead.

He led me back down the hall towards his bedroom. Confused, I spoke up. "Luke, why are you taking me back to the bedroom?"

"I'm going to treat you to breakfast in bed. We can be lazy bums while we talk. I figured you'd enjoy that."

I just smiled and let Luke do his thing. I slipped back under the white comforter and waited for Luke. He came back with a tray, our meal atop it. After he set it down, he crawled in next to me. We ate first, both silently thinking. Here I sat next to the love of my life, the one man I trust with my whole being, doubting his love and loyalty. How crazy. How unthinkable. No, this can't be right.

Luke grabbed the tray and carried it to the kitchen. When he returned, he crawled back into bed. I could tell he was nervous. It was written all over his face, plain as day. To be honest, I knew I was feeling the exact same way. It's then that I became aware of the continuous writhing I was doing with my hands.

"Where do we start?" Luke said quietly. He was staring blankly ahead, his head resting against the headboard.

I cleared my throat. "How about beginning with why Kelsie was on your bus that day. I thought y'all were a thing of the past. She cheated on you for Heaven's sake!" I exclaimed, my voice full of venom and hatred when Kelsie's name slipped out of my lips.

Luke sighed, turning to face me. "Caroline, we are a thing of the past- you don't need to worry about that. I didn't even know she was on my bus. I guess she still had an all access pass from when we were a couple. As I was about to kick her out, Mark called me outside to take care of some issues. When I went back inside the bus, she quickly set my phone down. Sure enough, you were on the recent calls list. " Luke reached for my hands. His rough, but gentle ones felt warm in mine. "And when you didn't respond to my calls or texts, I knew things would spiral out of control if I didn't come home that instant. That's why I left. I couldn't ever hurt you, I would never want to. I'm sorry, my love."

I nodded, finally understanding. I drew a shaky breath. "I'm sorry for ever believing that you'd cheat on me. That was foolish of me."

Luke shook his head. "No, darling, it's okay. I'd feel the same exact way if I were in your position." He trailed off for a moment. "Just please assure me that we're okay now."

I nodded, scooting closer to him. He wrapped me in his arms. "Yah," I said softly. "We are."

"I love you to the ends of the Earth, Caroline." Luke said, kissing the top of my head.

I smiled softly. "I love you to the moon and back a billion times, Luke."

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