LUCAS HAD SECRETS.
The first—he didn’t need a job. He came from old money, and he’d been gifted a house on the beach after graduating from Harvard with a major in economics. And by house, I meant mansion. Apparently, he’d already made a few million in stocks on his own.
The second—he had an amazing voice. After getting over the shock of where he lived, we found Lucas in his living room, surrounded by more people than I could count, lulled by the serenade he sung on his large karaoke machine.
The last and most important—his fiancée was drop-dead gorgeous.
Maybe I shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.
“You made it!” Lucas said after his song was over. He hugged me, and then stuck his hand out to Hudson as the screeching sound of someone singing pecked at our ears. “Isn’t she amazing?” Lucas nodded in the direction of the woman on the karaoke machine.
I tried to keep my features complacent. “Sure. Who is she?” I asked.
“My fiancée, Bella.” He had that smitten look on his face. The one that said their relationship was still fresh and every quirk—like bad singing—was nothing but endearing.
“She’s lovely,” I said, offering a smile.
He waved at her, she waved back, and then he guided us into the fully staffed kitchen. “What would you guys like to drink?” We passed through and ended up in the backyard where a DJ was pumping out hits from the year, overseeing more people jumping in and out of the pool.
“I’ll take a whiskey and coke,” I said, digging my elbow into Hudson. He didn’t say anything right away. I thought he might be shell-shocked. “He’ll have a brandy on the rocks,” I added with a small giggle.
We followed Lucas up to the bar, waiting as the bartender shuffled around.
“You live here?” I asked as I surveyed the place. It was a house fit for a pop star. Not at all what I pictured for shaggy-haired, surfing Lucas.
“Yeah. It was a gift for graduating.”
“Some gift,” Hudson said.
Lucas flinched a little. “I don’t tell people because it’s not something I like to flaunt. My family made a killing in the citrus industry. My father pushed me to learn the economic side of things, so I did. It was his dream, though. Something I soon realized after making my first million.”
Hudson choked on his drink. “Million?”
Lucas nodded. “I have a good eye for investing in stocks.”
“And you’re waiting tables at my diner?”
Lucas tossed his head from side to side in thought. “I like the simplicity of it. I like our customers. I like working with you and Martha. You’re like a family I never had.” He leaned toward Hudson. “And besides, it gets me out of the house. There’s only so much sitting behind a computer a person can take.”
Hudson downed his drink.
Lucas patted him on the back. “I know, I know. You hate the sentimental stuff. But it’s true. My dad was hardly ever home, and my mom was too busy with her boyfriends.” He must have noticed Hudson squirming, because he quickly shifted the subject. “But anyway,” he said with a laugh, “Go. Have a good time. Enjoy yourselves. Mi casa, su casa.”
He left us alone at the bar as people screamed and laughed, jumping into the pool. Palm trees swayed lazily in the evening breeze. There was a pleasant warmth to the air that still boggled me. It was like Florida never received the memo that it was winter.
“That kid has been working for me for over a year, and I had no idea,” Hudson said as he took my hand in his and guided me away from the crowded area.
“Maybe that should tell you that you need to pay more attention to the people who work for you.”
His eyes dimmed a little. It was always his eyes. Never his face that showed expression.
“Come here,” I said, wanting to put light back into him.
“Where?”
“Closer.” I tugged on his hand. “I want to tell you a secret.”
“What secret?”
“A secret about you and me.” I batted my eyelashes. It worked on him when I did it.
He folded as I waggled my finger at him, beckoning him closer until we were nose to nose.
“Tell me, woman,” he said, the anticipation killing him.
“Okay.”
With my hand shielding our faces, boxing us in, I kissed him, good and hard. Deep and long until I felt his entire body relax. That was the thing about us… no matter what it was, a kiss could always make it better.
He pulled away with a smile.
We found a bonfire just down the hill roaring with life. There were only a couple other people standing around it, tossing in sticks, probably trying to get away from the craziness like we were. Hudson pointed to a log, and then we sat, warming up by the fire.
“He reminds me of him,” he said, his voice distant, face a glowing shade of orange.
He was talking about his brother, so I put my arm around his waist as he pulled me closer.
“Silas is like that. Carefree, but deeply emotional. He noticed things I didn’t. Like when Mom was stressed. He could read a face like you wouldn’t believe. And he took everything personally. Almost too personally. I think I always knew that, even when he was a baby. My dad used to yell at me because I’d even speak for him when he was still learning to talk. He never knew what Silas was saying, but I did. It was like we could read each other without ever saying a word.” He stared down at me, and my lungs clenched at the resounding sadness that surfaced in the blue of his eyes. “And then I fucked it up. He was sensitive, but I let my anger and grief get the best of me. Just like with Lucas.”
He stood, and I rose with him.
“We should go.” He took my hand, eyes spooked. I felt the tension rolling off him in thick, smothering waves. It was always like this when he thought about Silas. A habit he’d formed over the years. He was retreating into himself, his mistakes sticking out their greedy hands, begging for him to pay up with happiness.
“Hudson—”
He started tugging me away. “This was a bad idea. I shouldn’t be here. I don’t even know what I’m doing anymore.”
It had to end.
“Hudson,” I said louder. I cupped his face. “Look at me,” I coaxed softly, wishing I could take his pain from him. When he finally did, I said, “You don’t have to keep punishing yourself. It’s okay to allow yourself to be happy.”
He kissed me then. Deep and rough, and raw with emotion. I felt his chains shaking loose, and I pulled him close, desperate to hang onto him and this moment.
WE BROUGHT IN THE NEW year with Lucas underneath a veil of twinkling stars. Kissing new resolutions into our souls. Too caught up to realize reality was perched around the corner.