Accidental Attraction

5

"Hey girl. How's vacation going?" I asked upon answering the phone.

"Not so great," Jamie said. "Luke's in trouble. My parents are away overseas, so you're my only hope to help him."

"What's going on?" I asked. "What kind of trouble?"

"He was hanging out with our cousin the other night. They went to a bar and a fight broke out. Our cousin beat some guy to near death, and since Luke was with him, he got arrested as an accomplice," Jamie explained. "I don't have the money to get him out, and my grandparents are on a limited income. I really hate asking you, but you two have been friends for so long and you have to believe me that Luke had no idea any of this was going to happen. He didn't even participate in the fight. I'm just so beside myself right now."

"How much do you need?" I asked, not realizing that Adam had walked in to check on me.

"$2500," she answered. "I can find a Western Union or something if that helps."

"Nonsense," I said. "You guys are my best friends. I will come to you. Where do your grandparents live again?"

"Just outside of DC," she said. "Are you sure about this?"

"Absolutely," I told her. "It's only a few hours from here, and I have a couple of days off from work. Just text me the address and I will meet you there."

"Thank you so much!" she exclaimed. "I'll see you soon."

After I disconnected with Jamie, I turned to go back into the living room and was startled to see Adam standing right behind me.

"What's going on?" Adam asked. "Is everything ok?"

"That was Jamie," I said. "Luke got arrested and she needs help bailing him out of jail."

"Is he alright?" he asked.

"She didn't say," I told him. "But he didn't do anything wrong. He was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and because the accused is his cousin, they think Luke was an accomplice."

"Why are we still standing here talking about this?" Adam said. "Let's go get the bail money and go help Luke."

After making a quick stop at the ATM, we were on our way to Luke's aid. Normally it would take about three hours to get to where we needed to be, but we made it in a little under two. When we pulled up to the police station, Jamie was waiting for us outside. She ran over and gave us both a hug.

"Thank you so much for doing this," she said, tears in her eyes. "I promise we'll get the money back to you one of these days."

"Don't you worry about that," I told her. "Y'all are like family. Let's go get your brother and get the hell out of here."

Jamie filled out paperwork for her brother while I dealt with handing over the bail money. A few moments later, a cop escorted Luke from somewhere in the back of the building over to us. Once he was released from the handcuffs, he ran towards us and pulled us in for a group hug.

"Thank you for coming to my rescue," he said. "I will forever be in your debt."

"Like Kara told your sister, no, you will not," Adam told him. "We're like a family. Families help each other in their time of need."

"Are you ok?" I asked Luke. "You didn't get hurt, did you?"

"I'm fine," he promised. "I wasn't even involved. I just stood there in complete shock. I never pictured my cousin to be the violent type."

I gave him a hug. "I'm just glad you're ok. We'll hire you the best lawyer we can find if we have to. You're not going down for his lack of judgment."