I WAS SO stunned when I looked up and saw Lucas staring at me from across the lobby that I dropped my forkful of chicken, sending it clattering down to the plate, turning heads in my direction.

What was he doing here? Lucas was heading straight toward me like he had a purpose. I hadn’t expected to see him again, but I couldn’t deny the relief that flooded through me as he walked inside the restaurant. Dressed in a loose linen shirt and shorts, and with his black hair lying flat instead of spiky, the way he’d worn it every time I’d seen him, he didn’t cut quite as intimidating a figure as the Lucas who owned the nightclub scene. Instead, he seemed…nervous? The thought was laughable. Lucas Sullivan and nervous didn’t go together in the same sentence. Never had, never would. But the apprehension on his face was undeniable as he approached my table, his whole body tensed up like he was bracing himself.

As he came to a stop, Lucas cleared his throat and gestured toward the empty seat across from me. “Mind if I join you?”

Did I mind? This was the same guy who’d left me high and dry this morning, and now he wanted to have lunch with me?

Curiosity won out, and I nodded slowly. As Lucas pulled out the chair and sat down, I wiped my mouth with my napkin and watched as he tried to get comfortable, first leaning back with his hands in his lap, then holding on to the armrests, and then finally setting his elbows on the table and interlocking his fingers.

“I’m a bit of an ass,” he said.

My eyebrows shot up. Not where I expected him to go. But he wasn’t wrong, so I nodded. “Yes. You are.”

“Selfish…arrogant…”

“That too. I don’t know when that changed, but I get it.”

His eyes narrowed a fraction. “Do you?”

“Self-preservation. You don’t open yourself up, never let anyone get too close. After all, you’ve got a reputation to live up to, right?” One side of my mouth quirked up as I brought my coffee cup to my lips.

“Looks like you’ve got me figured out.”

“Nah. That’s just what you let everyone see. The Lucas I knew is somewhere under all that bravado.”

“The Lucas you knew has been gone a long time. I’m afraid he’s probably gone for good.”

“If that was true, you wouldn’t have taken my keys.”

Lucas snorted. “That was hardly a good deed after—” He stopped himself, clamping his mouth shut, and I chuckled.

“What? Blow jobs aren’t a good deed? Shame.”

Lucas jerked his head around to see who’d heard me, and when he faced me again, his voice betrayed his surprise. “Who are you?”

“Still the proper kid you knew; don’t worry. Maybe a little frayed around the edges now.”

“You always did look good when you let go and didn’t give a fuck,” he said, a smile curving his lips.

“I suppose I had you to thank for that back then.”

“That’s me. Always the bad influence.”

“Don’t do that.”

“Do what?”

“Pretend like you weren’t the only good thing in my life back then.”

That seemed to stun Lucas, because he reared back and stared at me, and I stared right back. A thousand words were said in those moments of silence, and most of them began with, “I’m sorry.” All of the anger and hurt and resentment washed away as we sat there making up for our offenses without saying a word.

“I know,” I said finally. It had taken a lot for Lucas to show up here in the first place, and that alone was bigger than any “I’m sorry” he could say, and I knew he didn’t want to hear an apology from me either. Actions spoke louder than words, after all.

Lucas nodded, and then caught the attention of a passing waiter to order a water. When it came a couple of minutes later, he drained more than half the glass before he spoke again. “Can I ask what brought you here?”

Straight to the point. “We’re looking to acquire a tech company that’s based here.”

“We, as in your father’s company,” he said. “I’m assuming that’s who you work for.”

“Yes.”

“And once you acquire this business…then you’ll go back?” he asked, and when I frowned, Lucas shook his head. “Never mind. Don’t answer that.”

He knew as well as I did my days in South Haven were numbered, and speaking it out loud when I’d just gotten here seemed somehow like a slap in his face. Wanting to change the subject, I nodded at the purple lines that peeked out from beneath the sleeve of his shirt. “Been coloring?”

Lucas looked down and stretched out his arm, and then I could see the hint of a freshly drawn outline of flowers and what looked like an artistic rendition of his gram that hadn’t been there last night. “Just a little addition coming soon.”

“Looks like it’ll be painful.”

He laughed. “You’re supposed to say it looks hot.”

“Hard to tell with it covered under your sleeve like that, but I’m sure it’ll look as good as the others I remember.”

With an exaggerated eye roll, Lucas threw his hands up. “Jesus, Jackson, if you wanted me to take my shirt off, you only have to ask nicely.”

And just like that, the awkward tension between us faded as a glimpse of the man I once knew came through. The one who was confident without being arrogant. Kind when there wasn’t steel armor to get through. I liked this guy. Missed him, even.

“Maybe later. You naked in a public place might cause mass hysteria, and then I’d never get time with you.”

“And you’d like…time with me?” A slow, creeping smile lifted his lips as he caught my drift, and the fact that I’d been the first to admit wanting to continue to see Lucas had me squirming in my seat.

“I mean, I’d like to…you know…get to know you again,” I said. “Catch up. For whatever time we have…” While I’m here was the unspoken rest of the sentence, but he already knew that.

“Huh.” Lucas tapped his lips, as if he was debating with himself whether to make the effort, and I found myself holding my breath as I waited the drawn-out seconds for his answer. “Well, I guess it would be considered rude not to take in an outsider who’s come all this way.”

I nodded. “Terribly rude.”

“Mhmm.” He drummed his fingers along the arm of his chair. “So. You busy now?”